Lily of the Valley - Stardew Valley - Sebastian

Chapter 18

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The house was almost empty that night. Only the dog had been left to guard the house while the girl was away. It lay patiently by the door, waiting for the girl to come back. Although it strongly seemed like it, it didn't sleep.

The girl was easy to find. The shadows tended to be darker around hospitals and so it seemed to be the case that this one was exceptionally perfect. The door was firmly locked, but there was a small window in the girl's room that had been left open.

Not that any barriers really ever created too much of a hassle.

The girl had a restless look on her face, must have been having a nightmare. Those tended to often happen when the shadows were allowed to reach this close.

Neither of them knew about it yet, the girl or the dog, but there were some unfortunate incidents occurring that very night. Better let them rest for now because it was soon going to become a very long night for one of them.

They'd be awakened soon enough.

Incidentally, on the other side of town there was a boy who couldn't find rest. He had climbed out of his chambers and taken a walk around the lake nearby. Once he reached the other side he stopped and pulled out a small packet of cigarettes.

Dark clouds seemed to follow the boy's head. Brows furrowed, he stared at the lake with such intensity. He could've drilled a hole through the surface if that had been any more physically possible.

There seemed to be a decision still left unmade. Something important. So important so, that even the cool air outside wasn't quite enough to shake the feeling off. The boy shook his head and then threw the cigarette out.

He hadn't yet noticed the dark clouds forming in the distance, but soon enough he would. As they rose up higher and grew even larger in masses, they would soon be impossible not to detect. And so, he did.

The boy ran and, to our distaste, disappeared inside the house.

That night the whole town was awaken. The screams even reached the girl's hazy dreams as the doctor was shouted awake and ripped outside. And yet none of it was enough to wake her.

A lot happened while she continued her restless sleep. Through the window rang some generic directions that no one could hear. Some carried buckets and buckets of water, some brought sand. All passed the clinic and none of them the girl knew of.

In the meantime, the flames had risen so far it competed with the forests with its height. It had reached wide and far, already eating away the front porch of the cottage. The chickens ran wild. The dog woke up.

Humans could be rather useless against nature's will, and so they were today. The flames took what were theirs to keep and only agreed to leave once they had taken everything they could reach.

"As you know, there's a small fund placed by the town for situations like these." The girl was assured the following morning. The clouds had faded from the sky and only the ashy land was left of the flames.

A red-haired woman sat by her bed with a dirty notebook filled with notes and marks. She soothed the blanket covering the edge of the bed with a shaky hand. "You don't have to worry about any of that."

Her voice held the tone of someone trying not to set a bomb off. She continued.

"As you can imagine, not much could be saved from the grainfield. But luckily once someone realized to use the automatic watering system, we managed to save most of the house."