I woke up the next morning when the sun had risen high enough in the sky that a sunbeam had crept across my face and over my eyes. I was still in my clothes, curled up on the unmade bed, and I was drained and exhausted after yesterday's move and my night of weeping. My head throbbed, and my eyes were puffy and sore. I dragged myself out of bed, took a quick shower, and changed into clean work clothes before heading out to do my chores.

Afterwards, I stopped by Kana's to say hi. He was standing in the pasture, watching the horses graze with a contented look on his face. He spotted me heading his way and sauntered over, vaulting over his fence with ease to join me. "Hey there, how's it going? Getting all settled in?" I nodded, and he turned back to his horses. "Ya know, it's great to have a day off from work now and then. But I can't stop thinking about my horses even then!" he said with a rueful laugh.

"Oh, yeah, that reminds me...." I said, rummaging around my rucksack and pulling out a small package of treats. "I picked these up for Hayate, but with everything that was going on yesterday, I forgot to give them to you. So here!"

I handed him the package, and he exclaimed "Hey, thanks! That's sweet of you to think of her. Hey, you wanna give her one yourself?"

"Thanks, but I really can't stop. I have a lot to do today—unpacking and all. But I want to talk to you about getting a dog or two for my farm, so I'll come see you when your shop's open tomorrow, okay?"

"You bet! I've got some great pooches to choose from. See ya then!" he called after me as I hurried down the road into town.

As I had done nearly every day in Bluebell, I went around to each shop or house, visiting everybody for a brief chat before stopping by the village bulletin board. I took a few requests to fill, then headed back to the farm to saddle Lady and head on over the mountain. I rushed, feeling some anxiety about my reception there after seeing how Cam and Ash took the news. I hadn't even had a chance to tell anyone else, things had moved so quickly once I got the ball rolling. However, to my relief, most everyone seemed to take my move in stride. Ash seemed a little cool towards me, and Cam had a bit of a forlorn air about him. Rutger was a bit stand-offish, too, but Rose was as friendly as ever.

Laney and Georgia had been taken completely by surprise by my sudden relocation, and together they pounced on me and grilled me on my reasons for moving and how I liked my new home. I talked with them for a short while, once more explaining my logic, then headed over to Cam's shop to say hello. I gave him a beautiful wildflower I'd picked on my way over, and his face lit up, though his eyes still looked wistful. I chatted with him for a bit, then stopped by the message board to look over the requests before continuing on my way, relieved that no one seemed too upset with me about my move.

I returned home in time to get my animals put away for the night, then I went in and started unpacking. As with my house in Bluebell, I found plenty of old, clean linens in a cupboard, although these had been scented using sticks of sandalwood rather than sprigs of lavender. They exuded a pleasant, exotic fragrance that permeated the house as I made up the bed.

When I was done for the night, I took a hot shower, and warmed up a mug of milk to sip while perusing the books that came with the house. The residents of Konohana seemed to be mostly a mix of East European and Asian ancestries—primarily Ukrainian, Russian, Bulgarian, Japanese, and Korean, I believed—and my grandparents' collection of books reflected that diversity. Finally, I selected a volume of haiku and settled down in bed to read before sleeping. I found myself enjoying it very much; the book fortunately provided translations, as I couldn't read Japanese at all. I fell asleep thinking about one of the haiku I'd read and really liked, written by the poet Bashou:

Ah, Spring!
A hill with no name
Enveloped in mist.

**************

A week or so after I'd moved to Konohana, I went fishing in the river shallows just outside of town in order to fill a request by one of the residents, an elderly man by the name of Gombe. As I returned to town with my catch, I caught sight of someone I'd never seen before. A man of about my age—very cute, with sparkling blue eyes blonde hair, wearing a cap with a feather stuck jauntily into it and carrying a messenger bag. He was just coming up the path, whistling a cheerful tune as I came down, and I stopped in surprise, then walked up to him and greeted him. "Hi, are you new? I don't think I've seen you around here before, or at any of the festivals. My name's Alice."

"Hi, Alice—you just moved here a little while ago from Bluebell, right? I'm Dirk, the mailman. I've lived here for a while now, but as the mail carrier, I'm always on the go! So I guess somehow we just kept missing each other. I don't usually go to many festivals, either, especially the cooking festivals. I try to stay neutral, since I serve both villages! I live in the house just across the road from you. Nice to meet you at last!"

"Oh, I see! It must take you a long time to deliver mail all the way over to Bluebell. I can see why I'd never seen you around here before!"

He shook his head ruefully, saying, "You have no idea! I often get home at nearly midnight, then I have to be up again and working by 6. It's such a pain, but the mail's got to be delivered. At least it keeps me in shape! Anyway, I'd better get going, or I'll never finish these deliveries. I'll see you around, Alice." And with a wave, he headed up the mountain.

As I watched him leave, I wished again that the tunnel could be rebuilt between the towns. It would make life so much easier for so many people to be able to easily travel back and forth, like Dirk. I was certain, too, that the isolation of the villages only increased the rivalry between them. I remembered Eileen looking so thoughtful as we discussed the subject, and I decided to talk with her some more on the subject to see if somehow something might be done to improve communications.

However, I was so busy with farming and renovations and trying to build and maintain friendships with the villagers in both towns, that the subject of the tunnel slipped my mind for the time being. My first crop festival would be in just a few short weeks, and I'd been hard at work to prepare for it on top of everything else. The seeds I'd bought from Gombe's garden supply shop were not exactly of top quality—not show quality, anyway—so I had to really nurture them in order to grow a suitable crop to display. That required a lot of fertilizer, which in turn cost a lot of money, and that meant having to find ways to increase my earnings. I accepted every single request I could possibly fill in both towns, then worked hard to get them filled quickly to earn my payments. Fortunately my young cows, sheep and hens were all glowing with health, and producing good-quality milk, eggs, and fleece—which in turn meant a better price at market. By the time the late-summer festival rolled around, I'd finally managed to produce a respectable crop to enter in the competition. And, to my delight, I won the contest.

The last Cooking Festival of summer took place a few days later, and Bluebell won, thanks largely to Laney's mouth-watering fresh fruit trifle. Afterwards, as we all mingled to talk and eat, I overheard Ina and Yun discussing something with barely-suppressed excitement. It sounded as though they were expecting a new resident, so, my interest piqued, I joined them and asked what they were talking about. They both eagerly turned to me, saying that a celebrated musician had been invited to both of the villages, and they'd only just gotten word that he'd decided to stay in Konohana. They were thrilled at the prospect; Ina was already planning a Music Festival and compiling a list of local talent in her head, trying to think of a worthy accompanist. "I don't suppose you play an instrument, do you, Alice?" she asked hopefully.

I laughed and said, "No, not really. I took lessons when I was a girl, but I haven't played in years. I do still have my violin, but I packed it more out of sentiment. I don't think I could play anything anyone would care to hear anymore."

"Why, what a coincidence!" Yun exclaimed. "This man is a violinist, too! You must brush up on your skills, Alice—perhaps he might allow you to play with him sometime!"

A knot formed in my stomach. Trying to keep my voice steady and tone nonchalant, I asked, "Oh, really? Who is it? Maybe I've heard of him, if he's well-known."

"Let me see, now what was his name?" Ina thought for a moment as the knot in my stomach tightened. Then she snapped her fingers. "Mikhail, that's it! Mikhail... Rehn, I think it was. Have you heard of him?" she asked eagerly.

I felt as though my heart had stopped beating and plummeted into my shoes. I mumbled, "Oh, umm, yes, I believe I do recognize the name.... E-excuse me, please, but I think I'd better get back to town—I... I need to check on... on Lady. Yeah, Lady. Sh-she looked like she could have injured her leg, so I need to keep an eye on her. I-I'll see you later." I turned to go, feeling unsteady, as if the whole mountain was slowly spinning.

I was determined to get out of there as quickly as possible, but Ina put her hand on my arm to restrain me from leaving. "Alice? Are you okay? You don't look at all well. Why, you're white as a sheet! Will you be all right walking home like this? Maybe I should have Kana go with you, just in case... " and she turned to scan the crowd for Kana.

"No!" I cried, shaking my head vigorously. Seeing the surprise in Ina's and Yun's faces, I took a deep breath and spoke more calmly. "No, thank you. I'm fine, really. Just... just feeling the heat, I expect...." Ina raised an eyebrow as she glanced skeptically up at the overcast sky overhead. But she let go of my arm without another word.

As I left I saw her and Yun with their heads together, talking in low voices as they watched me go. I saw Yun look up and gesture towards someone, and I hurried off before the two well-meaning women could sic Kana on me. I underestimated them.

As I approached the bridge near the waterfall, Kana caught up to me. Taking hold of my hand to stop me while he caught his breath, he looked me over in concern. "Hey, are you okay? Yun and Ina were really worried about you, so they asked me to go with you, just in case something happened."

"No, I'm fine, really. There's no need to worry. I'm just... suddenly... kind of tired, I guess," I replied hesitantly, looking away.

"Maybe you're working yourself too hard?" he suggested. "You're real gung ho, and that's cool, but sometimes you don't know when to take a break. Hey, I know! You should take the day off Friday! We can go for a ride, maybe do a little fishing. How about it?"

"Well, I don't know," I replied slowly. "That's the last day of summer, so I'll be busy preparing my fields to plant my fall crops, you know."

He scowled, saying, "Yeah, I know, but that's what I've been trying to tell you, yeah? You don't know when to take a break. You gotta take it easy sometimes, or you'll wear yourself out. Work hard and play hard—that's my motto! Anyway, think it over and let me know, okay?"

"Yeah... I will," I said, smiling at him. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to head back to my farm. I want to check on my animals, then I think I'll go to bed early tonight, maybe read a little."

"Okay, but you know, you haven't convinced me that you're well enough to make it home on your own. If you don't feel like talking, that's fine. But I'm sticking with you until you're safe at home, just to be sure you get there okay."

I sighed, then smiled tiredly at him. "All right, Kana, if you insist. Thanks for your concern. But I really don't feel like talking, so...."

"Then don't," he said with a wide grin. We continued on to town in silence, with me so lost in thought that I stumbled on a tree root once and would have fallen flat on my face if Kana hadn't caught me. He said nothing, just gave me a worried look, then kept a hand lightly on my back the rest of the way.

When we reached my farm, I thanked him for the escort and started to turn towards the barn. He grabbed my arm, saying, "Wait a sec. You know, I'm not much good at this kind of thing, but... well, if you want to talk about anything, I'm here for ya, any time of the day or night. We're buddies, right? So just keep me in mind if anything's bothering you, okay? I'll see you around. Now go get some rest, will ya?"

I smiled gratefully at him, and said "Thanks, Kana, I appreciate it, honestly I do. And I will keep that in mind. But don't worry. I'm fine, really I am. I think you're right—maybe I have been working too hard. I'll let you know about Friday." He grinned at me as he turned to go, and I went and checked on my animals. My new herd dogs were working out well for me, but I still liked to check on them one last time at night.

Once I'd made sure all was snug in the barn, I headed into my farmhouse and took a long, hot shower, and I thought....

Afterwards, I put on my pajamas and made a cup of tea, then went to the storage closet and pulled out a small wooden trunk that I hadn't unpacked yet at either house. I knelt on the floor next to it, unlocked it, and carefully lifted the lid. Reaching into it past layer upon layer of letters and other assorted mementos clear to the bottom, I carefully lifted out a long wooden box and placed it on the floor beside me. I sat and looked at it for a long minute, my heart pounding and my throat dry. Then I opened the lid, lifted out a violin and bow, checked the strings and raised the instrument to my shoulder. I tucked it under my chin, and slowly drew the bow across the strings. I winced at the unmelodic noise it produced and adjusted the tuning pegs—it was very badly out of tune after such long disuse—and once again drew the bow across the strings.

I breathed a sigh of relief and pleasure at the sweet sound that filled the air this time. I paused for a moment, took a deep breath, and began to play a soft, melancholy melody. I played and played and played, until long past sunset, continuing to play as the room grew dark. Then I rose, lit a lamp, put my violin into its box, and set it on a high shelf. Then I turned the light out again and went to bed, where I dreamed troubled dreams until just before dawn.