Star

No Place Like Lilingale

Great so I'm stuck with a hairy giant and a redheaded weirdo, She thought sullenly.

Astara you're being wayyyyy too hard on them, they're better than your real "parents", aren't they?

She didn't answer the thought.

Sighing, she got off the bed and picked up her skateboard, deciding that she needed some fresh air. Not to mention that skateboarding always made her feel better. She opened her bedroom door and marched out.

Wanda, who was sitting in a small armchair in the quaint living room, jumped with a start. "Oh! D-Do you need any—"

"I'm going outside." Astara interrupted, not stopping her walk to the door.

"O-Oh okay! Be—be careful!"

"Will do."

The minute she stepped outside, the fresh Cornacapia air filled her nostrils, immediately easing the tension in her body. She couldn't help but smile as she looked around at Lilingale's natural beauty. Hundreds of gnomes were tending to the lush garden and various assortments of unusual, yet breathtaking, flowers. And bright, shiny fruit hung on the trees nearby that looked way too good to eat. Unicorns grazed in a pasture nearby. It was truly magnificent.

A few gnomes looked up at her as she set her skateboard down in the vibrant grass. "Don't worry, I won't get in you guy's way. The plants don't have to worry either, I'll be very careful." She assured them.

One of them waved their hand, as if dismissing her reassurances. "You don't need to worry Miss Knight, Lilingale is now your home too, no need to feel like a guest." He told her with a chipper, accented voice.

"I'll keep that in mind, thanks." She said with a forced smile. Because the truth was, she did feel like a guest, like at any moment she would be kicked out or be deemed too hard to deal with and moved again.

"That being said, do continue to be careful of the garden." Another gnome squeaked.

Astara nodded. "Got it. Hey have any of you guys seen Greta?"

The first gnome shook his head. "Not today I haven't, probably outback picking the rooted crops. She's stronger than all of us, really the only one who can do it."

"We'll let her know you asked for her if we see her though!" The second one added cheerfully.

Astara nodded once again in thanks and then stepped onto her skateboard and took off.

And she didn't stop until she was outside the gates of Lilingale.

꧁꧂꧁꧂꧁꧂

She wasn't running away, please she knew better than to run away from a given opportunity. She just had to get away from that place she was now expected to call home. Don't get her wrong, Lilingale was still her favorite place in Cornacapia, but she just felt so unwanted...and she was so tired of feeling that way no matter where she went.

Astara raced across the rolling green hills outside of Cherrygrove, she zoomed down the cobblestone streets in The Village of Damond, and she sped through the woods where Fairyhollow lied.

A real smiled formed on her lips as the wind whipped through her hair. The thrill of skateboarding would never cease to make her feel better. She may not have lived in Queens anymore, but she would never give the passion up. Especially since-

"Hey watch it!" A tiny, high-pitched voice squealed, causing Astara to stop abruptly and tumble into a nearby tree.

Grumbling to herself, she looked around her, trying to find the source of the shouting. When she couldn't find anything she frowned in confusion. "I'm sorry what am I exactly watching out for?"