I really don't want to put up the adult only content warning, so this is your warning. There's a little bit of language in this one. I wasn't joking when I said Layla had learned to cuss from the sailors. However, after that bit, there is nothing more. If you are offended, please let me know and I'll gladly put the warning up and sincerely apologize.
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“I’m-I-I’m-excuse
me? Police?” Layla spluttered at the young man, her breath caught in her
throat.
“Yes,” he
answered sternly. “We prosecute trespassers. You’re trespassing. Please come
around front.”
Heart
hammering in dismay Layla turned to walk to the entrance to the grounds,
watching as the young man turned the same way. He’d be waiting for her as fast
as he was walking.
Layla
flinched seeing his expression as she neared. She’d been in town for less than
24 hours and between the seemingly unpleasable woman at the consignment store
and this young man Layla seemed to be stepping on plenty of toes without even
trying.
“How could
you not have seen the signs posted all around the property? No trespassing. You
people think nothing of tearing up the property and stealing whatever you find that you seem to think is 'unclaimed.'”
“I-I was-I
just- really-Just picking up seeds and a few-I forgot about-I’ll gladly give
them back. They’re-they’re in my pocket still! I had no idea I was trespassing!
I’m not from here, and-honestly!-honestly I didn’t see any signs. I was just
enjoying the views. I had no intention of stealing of trespassing, or
destroying anything!”
“That’s
what they all say! Poor you! You didn’t see the signs! They’re everywhere! How
could you not?”
Tears
threatening , Layla stood frowning, mind in a whirl. What could she say? She’d
already said she hadn’t seen the signs. Honestly, she didn’t. It was a little
too much for her right now. She was just looking around. No harm meant.
“I’m
really, really sorry,” Layla finally pled. “I meant no harm.”
Suddenly,
the young man’s face split into a wide grin.
“Just
kidding! There are no signs. I don’t own that far over anyway.”
It took
just a heartbeat for his words to sink in. Then, like a match, Layla’s usually
dormant temper lit.
“What the
hell?” She shrieked. “Seriously? Just
kidding?!? What the fuck is wrong with you? It’s my first day in town, I’ve
already been insulted by some random bitch at the consignment store, then you
threaten to arrest me and end it with JUST
KIDDING?!?”
“Hey,
hey,” he tried to capitulate. “I just wanted to meet you! I saw you and thought
you were cute and wanted you to come over here! It was just a joke!”
Hearing
“You’re cute” Layla finally started to listen a little, took a little interest
in his words though she was still highly suspicious.
“Seriously,”
he continued, noticing that she’d stopped short in her tirade. “I’d not seen
you before around town and thought I’d like to meet you. You were so intent in
staring at the house you didn’t see me wave at you. So I went a little too far.
I’m the one who’s sorry. Really. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I just
wanted to meet you.”
Though the
blood still rushed in her ears, Layla took a deep breath and nodded, a small,
worried, smile on her lips.
“Okay,
okay,” She shushed him. The genuine worry on his face was comforting and
reassuring. “Just-just calm down a bit and I will too. You were waving at me?
And I didn’t see it?”
He
chuckled just a bit, forehead still creased. “I did. Both arms even. You seemed
pretty intent on staring at my home.”
“You waved
with both arms and I didn’t respond? PlumbBob that’s embarrassing. Sorry.”
“No, it’s
ok. I’m the one who’s sorry." Finally, he proferred a hand. “Ned. Ned Hale.
Current owner of the house behind me, and not owner of the land where you were
standing.”
“Ah,
Layla,” she responded. “Layla Sixkiller. Owner of not much more than my
pocketful of seeds and tiny little home in town.” She laughed nervously and he returned
an infectiously wide grin.
“Sixkiller?
Like as in the Sixkiller farm just outside of town? I thought you said you were
new here?”
“That’s my
Uncle’s. I’ve-um, I’ve actually not met him yet. I will though. At dinner
tonight, I’ll get to meet him and his family,” Layla slowed realizing how odd
that sounded, a puzzled look on her face.
“No way!”
He shouted in excitement, again making Layla jump. “You must be long-lost
Buck’s daughter then!”
Blinking
hard, her jaw dropped a little in question. How would he know about her dad?
“How-how did-how
do you know my dad?”
“He dated
my mom, or tried to anyway, when they were in junior high. Mom must have had a
pretty good crush on him, too. ‘Cause Granddad sent her to boarding school to
keep her out of his way. Didn’t stop her telling me all about him when I was
old enough to get-‘things’ though.”
Finally
deciding she kinda liked Ned, Layla attempted to turn the subject a little from
his obviously painful family life and the two chatted easily about mundane
things for quite some time.
Ned was
friendly and a talker, seeming to be both a bit bored and lonely. He, too, had
attended a boarding school and so wasn’t well acquainted with too many people
in town. And now he had inherited the large estate, he expressed a want to be
more active in a town that saw him as the stuck up socialite his grandfather
and father had been.
Almost an
hour later and Layla’s feet were getting tired standing at the gate to the
manor house chatting with the easy-going Ned.
“So, I
know this is a bit of a late offer, but would you care for a tour?”
“You
know,” Layla answered. “You know I’ve got to get going actually. I’m supposed
to have dinner with my Uncle and his family tonight and I think I’m expected to
be there soon.” She was surprised to find that her heart sank a little with
regret as she said it. Not long before she had been very excited to meet her
Uncle Trigger. Now, she was rather enjoying herself and wanted to stay to visit
with Ned longer.
Blushing
just a little, Ned reached for her hand, taking it as though he sensed her
reluctance to leave and shared it.
“My offer
of a tour of the house and grounds is a standing offer. Come by anytime. You’ll
always be welcome here.”
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Nearly an
hour later dark storm clouds had gathered in the sky above as Layla finally
arrived at the neat little farm the Sixkillers owned.
Her nerves
were slightly tense as she neared the farmhouse. She’d never met a relative
outside of her immediate family before and had no idea what to expect.
As she
knocked timidly on the door she heard a woman firmly telling someone inside
that homework still had to be done, and that it had to be done before someone
went to work that evening.
But no one
came to the door. At least, she heard no footsteps.
Just as
she’d made up her mind to knock again, this time more firmly, the door swung
open, narrowly missing her as she stepped back.
For a
moment her breath caught as she foolishly though her dad had grown a beard and
was here to greet her.
But the
closer she looked, the more discrepancies she saw between the face in front of
her and the beloved face she’d left at home.
“Land
sakes girl,” Trigger offered his large, callused hand to Layla. “We’d thought
you’d decided to stay on one-a them islands you went to. Been nigh a month
since we’d properly heard from ya! Come in, girl! Come in and meet yer family!”
The room
was dimly lit and Layla was barely inside before an elderly woman pulled her
into a hug that left her needing air.
“This must
be the little Lady we’ve been waitin’ for!”
Nodding,
Layla tried to hug the woman gently, fearful of hurting her.
“Silas,
this ain’t the time to stare. Get a move on your work, boy or you’ll be in
trouble for sure. You’ll have time to get you know this new cousin later.”
“We’re so
glad ya came to us,” Aunt Estella’s smile was warm and she seemed determined to
talk. “Have ya seen your house? Is it adequate? I figured for a single young
woman it was just the ticket. And we even put in the clothes line ya asked for.
Though I didn’t put up anythin’ on the walls thinkin’ you’d like to decorate
yourself.”
Trying to
assure her Aunt the house was just fine, her Uncle Trigger slipped out the
front door, muttering about chores in the rain and the noise ‘them hens make
when they get to cluckin’.’
“Though,”
Aunt Estella continued. “Though we can get ya a dryer for cheap if ya have need
of one. Not many folks want to wait all day for dry clothes.”
Grinning
broadly, Layla laughed a little. “No. No I don’t want a dryer. I’d really
rather dry my clothes on the line. I kind of like the feel of the cloth, the
way it smells of sunshine when it’s been dried outside.”
Layla
immediately used the opening to tell of some of what she had discovered on the
island of Ouroboros, on which she’d spent some time during her travels.
“The line
dried clothes use less energy, too. And since you don’t need dryer sheets or softener, it’s
actually better for your skin also.”
“We dried
on the line back in the day because we didn’t have anythin’ better. I prefer
the speed. Dry clothes just an hour after they’ve washed, and never a worry
about the rain wettin’ ‘em again.” Aunt Estella wasn’t as impressed as Layla
was.
“They all
grew their own food on Ouroboros, too, so I’m going to start my own garden and
grow my own vegetables.”
“Oh,” Aunt
Estella answered. “Is that why ya wanted a yard for just yourself? Trigger didn't give a reason for yer want of a yard and the work that comes along with it.”
“Yes,”
Layla enthused, not noticing that Aunt Estella had cooled to the conversation
topic. “The taste difference between fresh foods and frozen is incredible! The
chemicals they add to foods to keep them fresh really alter the taste! You’d be
amazed if you tasted it, really. One of the men on the island Ouroboros, Shane,
gave me a lot of tips about keeping a garden, too. So I can grow my own instead
of buying it from the store.”
“Ah, see,
‘round here we just grow our own food cause if we don’t we don’t have anythin’
to eat Honey Girl. ‘Course, as you’re from a bigger town, and if Buck didn’t
think of keepin’ a garden, you’d just now be learnin’ that. So if you need help
honey, just give your Uncle Trigger a holler and we’ll send one-a these
boys-yer cousins- to help hoe you up a good patch o’earth for your garden.
Though you’d also be welcome to help ‘round here and we could give ya’ a share
of the produce we bring in if ya’ really want.”
Layla
smiled nervously. She’d run away with herself a little there forgetting she was
on a farm.
“’Stella!
Silas! A hand!” Uncle Triggers booming voice echoed in the living room from
outside.
“That
man,” Aunt Estella sighed. “Can’t feed the chickens on his own if he tried.
Sally, come say hi to yer cousin while I go and see what yer father wants.”
From upstairs
came a dark haired teenaged girl who stared at Layla totally deadpan. As the
girl looked her up and down Layla felt a little nervous at her boldness. The girl reminded her a lot of the shrew at the consignment store that morning.
“Hi,
Sally.” She offered tentatively.
“Sarah,” she
said sharply, still deadpan. “It’s Sarah. Only my idiot parents call me Sally.”
“It’s
spring,” Sally/Sarah intoned. “It’s warm here in spring. Why are you wearing a
jacket? Do you have bikini lines you’re trying to hide? We wear bikinis here,
too. We’re not as backwards as everyone thinks.”
Slightly
taken aback, Layla shook her head. “I’m not trying to hide anything.”
“I know
you were traveling on a bunch of islands. Did you just get used to being hot
and now you’re cold and that’s why you’re wearing a jacket?”
“I’m
wearing a jacket because, I’m-” Layla stuttered. “I don’t have any other
clothes yet for here. It’s all island wear really. Sometimes it was really cold on board the ships when we were at sea. Then the islands were warm. So I just
wore my jacket a lot in case I needed it.”
As Aunt
Estella hadn’t been too interested in hearing of her island adventures, she
didn’t add that she’d tried to wear home-spun, finding it a bit rough for her
tastes. But that some of the men’s home-spun clothing showed a lot more than
the clothes did here, and, again, her thoughts were back with Joel.
“Oh.” The
girl contemplated Layla for a moment, seeming to think deeply about something.
“I can tell you where the good clothing stores are in town, if you want.”
Wrenching
her mind back to the present, she blinked at her cousin before nodding finally.
“Yeah,”
she answered. “Yeah, I’d like that. I probably need something a little more
fitting for around here for spring.”
“You
know,” Sally’s face had a hopeful look. It was the first time she’d really
changed her expression that Layla had seen. “You know I could go with you and
help you.”
Grinning kindly,
Layla nodded. “Sure, that would be nice. Thanks.”
Looking
about her furtively to make sure they were alone, Sally finally grinned broadly
turning to Layla conspiratorially.
“Ok,” she
said eagerly. “Ok, please tell me that you met some hot islander and, like,
he’s coming to live here with his hot brother. ‘Cause there are like no hot
guys around here. There’s just not a lot of guys around here at all. The town
is small. And the hot ones are usually off limits. Like, Ned Hale is all off
limits ‘cause he’s rich and no one is good enough for him, but he’s not hot like Ignacio. But Ignacio is all
trouble. Like, nothing but trouble, so he’s off limits to most of the town too.
So we need some hot guys. You’ve got some following you, right?”
“You mean
to tell me you don’t have a boyfriend?” Layla asked incredulously. She thought
she’d heard Uncle Trigger say that he had one son married and that his daughter
was ‘spoken for.’ Whatever that meant.
“PlumbBob,
no,” Sally sneered. “I’m engaged. Been since Junior high. Got to hook a boy
early if you want to stick around here and not be an old maid.”
Layla was
completely taken aback as Sally/Sarah continued.
“But,
like, if you brought back a hot guy, and he was totally into me, I could still
break it off. And then Ottawa would be free to find some other girl! So now
there’s one less old maid in 40 years!”
“I met hot
islanders,” Layla conceded. “But none of them are coming here.”
Again
Joel’s image floated lazily in front of her, making her sigh.
“Sally! Best
come and get the table on!” Estella’s voice rose over the insistent ringing of
a phone.
“Crap,”
Sally turned from Layla as to head to the kitchen. “I didn’t realize she was
back in the house.
“Look, call
whoever you’ve got on your mind and get him here. And get him to bring some
hot buddies. We need ‘em.”
Layla just
shook her head in disbelief. Sally was quite a pistol. She’d never really known
anyone quite like her. The opinions she expressed were so foreign to Layla that
for a moment she was genuinely worried about her time here. At least Sally had
mentioned Ned. Ned was single if what Sally said was true by context. That
might be interesting. A little boring after Joel, but interesting all the same.
As Sally
entered the kitchen, Aunt Estella bustled out looking concerned.
For a
moment, Layla was frightened that she’d be upset by the conversation she’d just
had with Sally and wondered how to justify it.
“Laylee,
honey, one-a the girls just called and there’s been an emergency out at the Fox
farm. Someone slipped and I’m needed out there to help get the family in order
and organize drop-ins while she recuperates. I’m so sorry to leave in such a
hurry, but I’m sure you understand.”
Totally
confused about why the family would need to be ordered and why visitors would
need to be organized because someone slipped, Layla nodded cheerfully. Maybe if
she looked like she understood, one day she really would.
“Ah, I
knew ya would.” Estella looked at Layla fondly. “It’s so wonderful finally
gettin’ to meet Buck’s little girl. We’ll have ya over again when I can really
visit with ya. Now get on in the kitchen. It’s not the full dinner I’d planned,
but Rosemary’s got food on.”
She patted
Layla on the cheek and bustled out the door.
Layla
found most of the remaining family members around a kitchen table. It seems
Silas had left for an evening shift at the graveyard. And Skeet, Trigger and
Estella’s eldest, had already finished and was washing dishes in the sink.
“Grab ya
some vittles and join us girl!” Trigger called to her.
Sally smiled at her
encouragingly.
“That’s
Rosemary, Skeet’s wife,” she said, indicating the other young woman already at
the table who pecked at some appalling looking waffles, catching Layla’s eyes
and smiling congenially.
Skeet
chose that moment to double over, biting his nails. “D-D-Did-did- you hear
that? It sounded like a coyote! And awful close, too! It’s near a full moon!”
Trigger
regarded his son stonily before turning to Layla. “We thought he were Buck’s
boy for the longest time. Couldn’t understand where all that scardey-cattedness
came from.” He chuckled. “If we’da known where Buck had run to, we’d have sent
Skeet to ‘im for raisin’.”
Layla turned from her Uncle in
shock. Really? How awful to contemplate
turning your own child out because they weren’t what you expected of them.
Sarah
rolled her eyes as she stood up. “Pa, she’ll think you’re serious. She don’t
know your jokes like we do.”
“Ah, she’s
Buck’s girl! Buck was always cuttin’ up. I’m sure she gets it very well.”
Suddenly
Layla felt very home sick. Her dad was always cutting up? He used to be a funny
man? She had barely known her dad to be light-hearted. Kind-hearted, sure, and one
who appreciated a good joke. But he hadn’t really told jokes once Cyrus had
left. He’d changed, and Layla had lost the father she should have had.
“You know,”
Layla said abruptly, getting up with her dish. “It’s been so wonderful getting
to meet you all, but I’m really tired and I think I just want to go home and
get some sleep.”
“Ah,
sleep!” Trigger clapped his hands with childish glee. “Now that’s a good idea.
Why don’t we all turn in? Chickens get up early!” He didn’t see the look Skeet exchanged with
his wife.
“Layla?”
Rosemary said, standing. “Layla you don’t have to wash your plate. We’ll do it.
And it was wonderful to meet you, too.”
Grateful,
Layla offered a tight smile before fleeing out the door remembering the laughing
man her father had been a few too many years ago and resolved to call her parents the moment she got into the door. She'd run into her fathers ghost a few too many times today for her to be entirely calm.
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Sorry that was so long, but
one scene was short, and the other was longer and I didn’t want to do a part
chapter.
The Sixkiller farm is the
McDermott farm stolen from Riverview. It lends itself so well for this.
Sally really is engaged to
marry the son of Choctaw Fox and Melly Pelly (Melly is the daughter of Imogen
Pelly and Kanoa Parrott. She was in the first chapter as the harpy in the
consignment store.) I had no idea teens could get engaged until I got the
notification for those two.
Trigger and Estella are
versions of Helen and Buck. Estella/Helen was heavily made over. I plopped them
both in Appaloosa plains when I first started playing with it to play with the
equestrian career. This was before I’d rolled for Gen 2 and had decided to
use the world for my legacy. Once I’d rolled, instead of playing much of the
equestrian career I spent a lot of time balancing, aging, and editing the town
for my legacy. It’s now super-unbuggy and has a tiny save file size so it plays
wonderfully. Anyway, when I put in Buck and Helen I was not playing them. They
were just in town. Watching them in SP notifications was really interesting. As
in the legacy, Helen dated like 3 other sims before finally partnering with persistently
single Buck. (By this time, I’d edited both in CAS) They had Skeet pretty early
on, then there was a long gap before Silas came along after which I married
Trigger and Estella with MC. Sally is the youngest and if you didn’t get it, I
love Sally. I think I’m going to save her and use her for something else later
on.
There are now bloopers up
for this generation also. Rosemary did a freaky that I just had to capture. Lol.
If you, like Layla, don't know what a 'drop in' is, or why a family would need to be organized if someone is hurt, I'll gladly explain. Forgot not everyone is from a tiny town.
Whistling Stranger.
