Somewhere, West Virginia, USA.

This was certainly a strange day, Clive thought as he led the large group of little people into town.

After getting Hamish, his wife and son settled into his car, and after calming them down after he turned the key to start it.

He went at a slow pace so that the others could follow after them.

Hamish's wife and son had fallen asleep in the back due to the vibrations of the car.

Hamish on the other hand was fascinated and was pointing/pushing all the different buttons on Clive's dash trying to figure out what they all did.

After a brief scare after turning the seat vibration on, as well as explaining what the radio was, he seemed to settle as the "newness" of his car had worn off Hamish and now he sat and stared out the window, watching the town slowly roll by.

Somewhere was what would be dubbed "Small Town America", which meant that despite being just over 10,000 people, it was in this grey area where it was both popular enough to get a handful of tourists and the odd "new-age" investor trying to "modernize" the town, and out-of-the-way enough where they soon left due to how off the beaten track it was.

The town had not really gotten a big population boom since it was first founded, something in the water or air just seemed to keep people away or made it so they didn't stay long.

Those that did were always a little... off, to put it lightly.

After Clive left town for a few years to pursue an education in Engineering he noticed when he got to college that everyone seemed to look at him like an outsider.

At first he thought it was the whole "New Kid" syndrome where it just feels that way.

It wasn't until his first year was almost up that he realized everyone really did look at him like he was this weird stranger.

Even the few friends he made he would catch eyeballing him from time to time.

It didn't change much when he finally got his BE, he came back home to where everything seemed normal, his weird town and his weird friends.

Do you remember when after tasting something sweet you loved when you were younger that it was so sickeningly sweet that you just wanted to scrub your teeth right then and there?

That's how Clive felt coming home.

He hadn't been gone long enough for everyone to treat him different, though some gave him shit for getting an "edumacation".

But he started to notice all the little things that the people at college probably saw in him.

How everyone kept to themselves and barely talked to anyone that they weren't already friends or family with.

Or how everyone had this look like a blade was hanging over their head all the time.

The weather didn't change a whole lot either. Year round it seemed like it was always cloudy. Didn't stop anything from growing but it just always seemed like things were harder to grow, of course what DID grow was also hardier then most anything elsewhere.

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Also when a stranger would come into town and everyone would look at them like the things from Invasion of the Body-Snatchers.

Kind of like how everyone was looking at Clive and the parade of short people following behind him.

Hamish looked at Clive and spoke in a concerned voice.

"Yer folk look a lil... off there lad. Somethin' the matter with 'em?"

Clive looked out the window and saw the grim looks that the townies were giving them on their way to City Hall.

"No, we just don't get many strangers around here, even less so people as different as you."

As they stopped at one of the town's few stop-lights, Hamish, after pressing a few buttons to get his window to roll down, took his hat off to a nearby couple that were staring at them.

"Fine E'enin' innit?" He smiled cheerfully at them.

They just returned Hamish's cheerfulness with the dour look they had before.

After their light turned, Clive continued to chat with Hamish.

"I don't think they cared for your "Fine Evening."

Hamish just turned to Clive with a smile and said.

"Maybe they didn't, but MY day is brighter fer it. If em's ain't, well then thats their loss!"

With that Clive pulled in front of the City Hall and parked.

Hamish turned to the back where his wife and little one were still snoozing.

"T'was a long journey, best not wake 'em."

He whispered and got out of the car.

As Hamish and Clive made their way into the building, Clive could see that the large group were a couple blocks behind them and were slowly making their way here.

When they entered Hamish looked around in wonder at the old fashioned building.

"Ne'er been inside a Human building before!"

Clive made his way to the bulletin board where the adds were posted, Hamish following after.

After looking over the dozen or so adds Hamish settled on a handful that were near each other that amounted to about 363 acres. A nice bit of land for anyone but for the little people it may as well been a whole country.

They made their way over to the Clerk's counter where Greg, Sammy's hanger-on, worked the desk.

"H-h-hello C-c-clive! W-w-what c-c-can I d-d-do f-f-for you?" He stuttered.

"Hello Greg, I'm here with a new potential land owner with me." Clive said gesturing towards Hamish.

Hamish walked up and placed the land-adds on the desk, though he could barely see over the top of it.

"These are what I'm fixin' to purchase."

Greg picked them up and looked over them before leaning over the desk and talking to Hamish.

"T-t-these are g-g-great b-b-bits of l-l-land, ill j-j-just need you t-t-to s-s-sign t-t-these." Greg stuttered as he handed Hamish a small stack of forms.

Hamish took them with a quizzical look on his face.

"What are these?"

"T-t-those are f-f-forms t-t-to m-make sure t-t-that you are a l-l-legal c-c-c-citizen, as w-w-well as b-b-b-bank s-s-s-statem-m-m-ments we'll n-n-n-need."

Hamish looked pale for a moment before setting the paperwork back on the desk.

"I don't think you'll be needin' all that lad."

Greg and Clive both looked confused at the Halfling before Greg stuttered out.

"B-b-but we d-d-do."

"Nay, just let me talk to the one in charge 'n we can get this squared away lad."

Hamish said as he made his way over to the Mayor's door.

Greg hurriedly got up and ran to the door to block him off.

"I-i-i-i-i-i-i-im a-a-a-a-afraid t-t-t-t-tha-"

"GREG!!!! WHAT DID I SAY ABOUT THAT INFERNAL STUTTERIN'!!!!!"

A voice boomed through the door, before being thrown open to reveal a large portly man that made the hogs on the Halfling's wagons look emaciated.

As Greg was stuttering out an apology, Hamish walked between the wiry mans legs and offered a hand to the large Mayor.

"Hamish Hambinger, at yer service sir!"

Greg, still stuttering like a engine with no fuel in it, was pushed aside as the Mayor looked down on the ageing Halfling.

"And just WHAT is THIS?!" He boomed at Hamish.

"I, my dear large fellow, am a Halfling. And I've come to buy some farmland!"

The Mayor looked down at Hamish, then he bellowed a great deep laugh.

"HAHAHAHA! What kind of joke is this?! Did those quacks at the School Board send you?! HAHAHA!"

Hamish just stood there and waited for the portly man to catch his breath before digging into a pocket and pulling out a pouch barely bigger then his own hand, and tossed it up and down.

CLINK! CLINK! CLINK!

The sound of money made the Mayor stop long enough to look down at the Halfling, or at least at the pouch he carried.

"And what do you have there Mr.?"

"Hambinger, and this here, is payment for the land. As well as a generous donation to yer election campagin." Hamish said with a knowing smile and wink at the large man.

The Mayor returned the wink, though with less subtly, before taking the pouch and opening it and upon seeing several jewels and gold coins burst into a big smile.

"Greg quit bothering Mr. Hamburger with such trivial things and get him sorted!"

He boomed at the still stuttering man as he slammed his office door to no doubt count out his bribe.

After calming himself enough to stop stuttering too badly he put away most of the paper work and handed Hamish the deeds to the land.

After signing, and with a few more coins given to Greg for both silence and compensation for the trouble, Hamish and Clive made their way out.

As they left, and noticing that the group of Halflings had caught up to them and took a moment to rest, Clive turned to Hamish.

"Bribery common where you come from?"

"Not quite so obvious but we always had to pay a lil extra to folk to make sure things went smoothly, 'specially after we had to leave, we've a decent sum for bribing guards or highwaymen to leave us alone ifin we had to."

Clive didn't like it, but he knew it was something that unfortunately happened.

Especially to people like Hamish and his family that people could physically take advantage of.

So he kept tightlipped about what happened and got back in his car as Hamish rallied the rest of the caravan for the final stretch to their new home.