Before the sun, before the sprites, and even before the rooster, I was awake and surveying my fields. I took in the chilly morning, reveling in the silence that enveloped the farm. It wasn’t ever silent like this anymore. Even when we were all sleeping, there was always a sprite or two snoring. Not that it bothered me much. But the absolute quiet of the morning was a welcome respite. I took a slow, deep breath of fresh air.

I looked over the large field, brimming with the green stems of ripe blue radish plants. Harvesting them would take hours, which is why I had gotten up so early. It was getting hot in the middle of the day now, and if I could avoid working in the sun, a few lost hours of sleep would be worth it.

I’d dragged the enchanted dropbox over to the field in preparation for the harvest, leaving it on the outskirts of the field. Taking one final deep breath, I began the harvest.

The land freely gave up its spoils, the loamy dirt loose around the blue radishes. I turned one over in my hand, admiring the deep color. The vibrant hue of the vegetable looked ethereal in my hands, and I was reminded again how different this world was from my own. After a few more seconds of inspection, I shoved three of the radishes into my bag. Even though I wasn’t a huge fan of vegetables, I was certain that Maple would figure out a delicious way to cook them.

Steadily working through the field, I continued my harvest, rhythmically pulling up each plant and inspecting it before tossing it into the dropbox. The sun began peeking over the far mountains, bathing everything in a warm light. I could hear voices stirring from within the farmhouse. Some of the sprites were finally awake.

After another row was complete, Reed, Ivy and Holly came out of the farmhouse to keep me company while the others stayed inside, probably still asleep.

“I was starting to wonder when you sleepyheads would finally wake up,” I said. “I’ve been up since dawn!”

Reed, rubbing the sleep from his eyes, managed to put a small smile on his tired face. “That just means you’ll have to take a nap later. You always doze off before dinner.”

I glanced up from my work with mock affront on my face. “Me? Tired? Never.”

The sprites chuckled.

Reed, Ivy and Holly helped me carry the radishes to the dropbox and we all fell into a good work pace. With the help of the sprites, I could expect my harvest time to be cut in half.

As it usually did, our conversation quickly descended into absurdity.

I pointed to Reed, halting my work to emphasize my point. “You and Ivy would absolutely be in Gryffindor. Clay and Rock would be in Hufflepuff, Flint and Maple would be in Ravenclaw, and you,” I pointed at Holly, “would definitely be in Slytherin.”

Reed snorted, shaking his head at my tirade.

Ivy rolled her eyes, though she couldn’t hide her amused smile.

Holly smirked. “Slytherin sounds great if you ask me. Probably only the best people get in.”

“Someone in Slytherin would definitely say that,” I chuckled, turning back to my work.

Woods joined us from the forest, having heard a small portion of what we’d been talking about. “Is this lore from your world? Are you drunk again?” He crossed his arms disapprovingly.

I shook my head. I knew why he asked. Usually, I only talked about these sorts of things when I’d had too much to drink, but sometimes the monotony of field work brought it out. “You, Woods, would also be in Slytherin. No doubt in my mind.”

Woods frowned. “Why do I feel like that’s a bad thing?”

“I’m in Slytherin too, apparently,” Holly offered with a shrug.

“So, definitely a bad thing,” Woods said, smirking at Holly’s indignant look.

I pulled the last radish from the ground and tossed it to Reed to place into the dropbox. It was still only mid-morning. The chore of harvesting had finished sooner than I’d anticipated with the help of the sprites.

Ivy, Reed, and Holly waved goodbye as they left for the farmhouse, all of us having worked through breakfast to finish the chore. My stomach grumbled. I hoped they’d saved me some of whatever Maple had made.

Woods cleared his throat, drawing my attention away from my grumbling stomach. “I was thinking now might be a good time to commission the carpenters to build a greenhouse. If they start soon, it’ll probably be done by fall, and you can utilize it through the winter. Only if you think you’ll stay here that long, of course.”

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“I didn’t know greenhouses existed here.”

Woods nodded. “They do. And having one will be useful if you want to keep growing crops year-round.”

I considered this for a few seconds. Really, I had put off all thought of returning to my home world by throwing myself into spring planting. Still, even if I did eventually return home, I wasn’t keen on leaving so soon, so I could definitely utilize a greenhouse—if only for a year or so. “I probably need to save up a little more if I’m going to build something like that.”

Between the barn, the horse, and the heaps of animal food I’d purchased, as well as everyday expenses like soap, socks, and ingredients for Maple’s cooking, I was running low on etherchips.

“You’ll probably get a hefty sum from all those blue radishes.” Woods furrowed his brow. “Do you still have that etherite we found in the cave during fall? That ore always goes for a ridiculously high price.”

I nodded. It was still in my bag. I’d been holding onto it, though I wasn’t quite sure why. The rare metal could be crafted into a locket or a ring, and was typically used for marriage proposals, so I couldn’t fathom why I still had it. Or, at least, I wouldn’t admit to myself why I was still holding onto it. Woods looked at me expectantly.

Sighing, I began rummaging in my bag. I retrieved the shining blue metal a few seconds later. It shimmered in the sunlight like a crystal, and I stared at it before unceremoniously tossing it into the dropbox with all the crops. It bounced off the lid and caused it to slam shut.

My heart sank as it did so. I’d had other plans for that metal, but they didn’t matter anymore.

“Well, that’s that, I guess.” I turned to my other field. It had been planted with rainbow roots, and they would be ready to harvest in a couple of days. In the meantime, I would have to turn the field I’d just harvested to prepare it for another spring crop. I’d been eager to use my new farming perk, crop mutation, but wasn’t quite sure how to execute it.

“When I reached level six, I got a crop mutation perk. Do you know anything about that?”

Woods shook his head. “No, but that sounds like a great perk for a farmer to have. We can figure out how to use it when you’re ready to plant this field. Do you have any spring seeds left?”

I nodded. “The Rockborns gifted me a whole box. I have a few different varieties.” My heart sank at the mention of the family that owned the nursery in town. My thoughts skirted around my favorite member of the Rockborn family.

“Well,” Woods said after a moment, changing the subject, “should we go see what Maple made for breakfast?”

I nodded slowly, taking one final look at the dropbox before turning and walking toward the farmhouse.

***

The rest of the day passed without anything noteworthy. I continued with chores around the farm—feeding the animals, turning the soil, watering the rainbow root plants, and intervening in several sprite disputes. We ate dinner and played Uno and eventually, everyone drifted off to sleep.

I listened to the soft snoring that filled my home. It was either Rock or Reed, but I couldn’t see who it was in the dark. Honestly, it’s probably both of them.

Despite the exhaustion I felt, I was filled with anxiety. It was keeping me awake, gnawing at my mind until I couldn’t take it anymore. Slowly and without disturbing the sleeping sprites, I freed myself from the warm blankets and silently pulled my boots on. The half-full moon cast enough light to guide me to the dropbox, positioned beside the now vacant and freshly turned field.

Wincing at the creak of the hinges, I let the moonlight spill into the box, covering the contents with a soft, yellow glow. The dropbox operated on magic, transporting anything deposited into it to the markets. The pale light saturated the blue radishes, but I didn’t immediately see what I was searching for. Fears of being too late gnawed at me. I dug inside the box, rearranging radishes in a desperate attempt to find what I had so carelessly thrown in earlier. Relief flooded me as I pulled the bar of etherite from under a tangle of radishes. I sat back in the dirt, turning the metal ore over in my hands, admiring it in the moonlight. I knew why I was holding onto it. In some weird way, it was one of my last connections to Leia. My intention was to make this bar into a matching pair of etherite rings for us, but she’d left before I had the chance.

“Somehow, I knew you’d come back for that.”

I yelped and spun to see Woods’ smirk illuminated by the moonlight. His change in overall hue made him appear ghostly in the dim light, but otherwise, he looked like his old self—satisfied to have startled me yet again.

“You’re the worst,” I said, hoping he couldn’t see my smile.

His features softened, and he pointed to the bar of ore. “So, why did you come back for it?”

I sighed. “I don’t know. I thought I’d hold onto it. Just in case.”

“In case of what?”

“I… I don’t actually know,” I lied.

“Are you a hoarder?”

I glared at Woods . “No, I’m not a hoarder. I just…” I trailed off as I stared at the sparkling metal in my hands. “I thought about what you said a couple of days ago. About how there’s lots of eligible women in Sagewood.” Inwardly, I cringed at my words. If my date with Rebekah had taught me anything, it’s that I certainly wasn’t ready to date again.

Woods remained silent, his different colored eyes fixated on the etherite.

“That way, in case I need it in the future, I’ll have it handy.”

Woods nodded. After a moment, he finally broke his silence. “Well, that’s good to hear. I hope it works out and you stay here on the farm.”

“You’re just saying that because you want me to get married so I can level the farm and awaken your Goddess.”

Woods shrugged. “That’s not the only reason. I’ve come to really enjoy scaring you every now and then.”

I rolled my eyes, prompting a chuckle from Woods.

He regarded me before speaking again. “If you’d like, you could probably have the blacksmith in town shape that etherite into some jewelry. Then you’ll really be prepared if an opportunity comes along.” He paused before adding, “And if the opportunity never comes, it’ll at least fetch a higher price in a crafted state than it will in its current raw state.”

I thought it over. It was a good idea, if only to be more prepared for the future. A future I had only pictured with one person.

Rising to my feet, I bid him farewell before heading back to the farmhouse. Woods seemed hesitant to stay indoors with the others, and I wondered whether he was wary of his corruption status or if he simply sought to avoid the chorus of snoring sprites. Probably the latter.

I laid awake for several more hours, repeatedly turning the bar of etherite over in my hands before eventually drifting off to sleep.

When dreams came, they were of her.