1

Getting to your feet, you make yourself take a deep breath. You've barely moved in, and you're already heading out the door—wow, things are moving fast today. Still, you think that's how it should be now you're here; you're making the most of things, after all.

And you're determined to make the most of the Town Meeting by:

Yep. Sounds like a plan.

By the time you leave the house, you know it must be almost 8, so you don't waste time stopping to look around as you walk towards the center of town. Luckily it's just a straight road, and pretty quickly, empty land and lonely houses turn into closed-up storefronts and…not much else. You pass a craft store ("What a Yarn!"), a flower shop ("Leaf and Stem"), a glossy, new-looking pet store ("Tall Tails Pet Supplies"), and a convenience store ("Silvertree Minimart"—that one's a little unimaginative).

Still, each "Closed" sign you pass is another little reminder that Silvertree is a small town—though not so small that it isn't slightly eerie to be the only person in sight, lit only by the glow of a few streetlamps.

And apparently (the further and further you walk), it's not so small that you can't end up completely lost.

You walk a few more blocks, past more and more stores, with no sign of any important-looking buildings that could be the Town Hall. You're getting a little out of breath—your footsteps seem far too loud, filling the whole narrow street. At random you start to turn a corner—

"Aah!"