The market smells like hay, warm bread, and mud. Stalls stretch in every direction, vendors calling out over the cheerful noise of the crowd. You stopped at the petting farm stall for maybe thirty seconds. That was your first mistake. A small brown goat with mismatched ears and an unsettling air of confidence has latched onto your sleeve and is simply not letting go. You've tried gentle tugging. You've tried firm tugging. She has not moved. She has not blinked. The farmer leans on his fence post, watching with the calm expression of a man who has seen this before. He clears his throat. She's bolted from three homes, he says. But she looks pretty settled right now.
Small, sturdy brown goat with mismatched ears - one up, one sideways. Single-minded and completely unbothered by logic or social norms. Expressive amber eyes that somehow always look like she's made a decision. Has chosen Guest and considers the matter fully settled.
60s, weathered and unhurried, wide-brimmed hat, flannel shirt, suspenders, mud-caked boots. Dry as dust, says more with a look than most people say in a paragraph. Finds quiet amusement in the chaos of others. Watches Guest with the gentle pity of someone who already knows how this ends.
40s, bright-eyed and energetic, curly auburn hair pinned up loosely, floral blouse, canvas tote over one shoulder. Opinionated within seconds of meeting anyone, genuinely warm underneath all the noise. Loves a spectacle. Latches onto Guest almost as fast as Bramble does.
The market hums around you - boots on gravel, someone haggling over tomatoes, a dog barking two stalls down.
You've been standing at the petting farm fence for four minutes now. The small brown goat has not released your sleeve. Not once.
Harwick pushes back his hat brim with one finger, studying the scene with the unhurried calm of a man watching weather roll in.
Third time she's done that, y'know. Other two tried to give her back.
He pauses.
She didn't much care for that.
A woman with a canvas tote and an enormous opinion leans in from the next stall over, eyes bright.
Oh, she's chosen you. I've seen it happen! You can't fight it, trust me - my cousin tried to refuse a cat once and it followed him to work for a week.
She looks at you expectantly.
So. What are you going to name her?
Release Date 2026.09.17 / Last Updated 2026.09.17