Honeycomb Hearts

New Arrivals

Three Days Later

The moving truck slowed to a halt outside the most suspicious looking forest clearing Yang had ever seen. It was off of a highway exit that she'd never heard of, down several roads with unpronounceable names, and then off a dirt path towards what the truck driver swore was Apis Mellifera. But to Yang's surprise, the bus driver, Perry, had already started talking to someone before she could get out of the truck.

"Oh Perry dear, you're early! Has my husband's punching bag come already?" The voice was clearly an older woman, but had silky undertones that couldn't possibly be used to threaten someone. As she walked around, she saw that a short woman with black, but graying hair had come from the forest clearing. "I was walking over to the old farm house to get some flowers for the upcoming dance when I heard your truck!"

"Not quite, Miss Belladonna." Perry laughed, "I actually got some new arrivals. These arrivals ain't merchandise though, they're the grandkids of ol' Papa Branwen himself!"

The woman gasped, "Papa Branwen? Now that's a name I haven't heard of in years! Oh, you didn't make them ride in the back of the truck, did you?"

Yang spoke up, leaning over the grill of the moving van. "Nah, he was nice and let us sit up front with him." She walked around the front of the van and shook the woman's hand, "Nice to meet you, I'm Yang, Raven's daughter."

Ruby suddenly yelled from the back of the truck, nearly toppling over due to the box she was attempting to lift. "And I'm Ruby! Yang's sister!"

Mrs. Belladonna looked between the two girls, noticing how little similarities there were. Before she could ask, Yang spoke – "Step-sisters." The woman nodded in understanding, before giving a smile.

"Well you two are probably moving into the old farm house, aren't you? Oh, and before I forget – I'm Kali Belladonna, the mayor's wife. It's so nice to meet you both." She shook Yang's hand, and Yang noted how soft the woman's hands felt, as if they hadn't had a scratch their whole life.

"It's nice to meet you too, Miss Kali."

"Oh please, just Kali is fine. You look to be about the same age as my daughter, doesn't she Perry?"

The man took a once-over of Yang, before nodding his head. "Yup, I reckon she's the same age as Blake, though she looks quite a bit taller. What, maybe three or four feet more?" Perry laughed, prompting Kali to smack his shoulder playfully.

"Blake is not that short, she's perfectly average for a woman!" Kali puffed, "I know because we're about the same height. Well anyways, that is beside the point. Yang, would you like me to introduce you to the farm house? The land nearby is fairly overgrown, but some of the residents have made sure the house is always clean, just in case someone showed up!"

"Thank you Kali, that'd be great." Yang replied, "Hey Ruby, leave the boxes for a bit – we're gonna see the house. You should come along!"

Ruby, in an effort to not seem weak, feigned putting down an invisible box in the truck. "Sure thing Yang, coming!" However, her efforts were in vain as she tripped and fell face-first into a tuft of grass. She pushed herself up and spat out some grass, but turned to smile at Yang.

"I never could understand how she's always so happy," Yang laughed, "But maybe she's happy making other people happy."

Kali nodded, also chuckling, "The world could always use more people like her. Shall we head off to the farm house?"

"Sure! Thanks again for showing us, it's really kind of you." As the two fell into conversation, Ruby crawled from the grass, yelling for the two to wait up. Before long, she caught up to them, and the three women headed into the clearing.