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"I want to move." Artemis announced, standing at the entrance of Resident Services.
Both Mr. Nook and Isabelle looked up in surprise.
"What, why?!" Isabelle exclaimed, eyes wide.
"I don't think I can be the Resident Representative anymore. I have more to give the island. I'm sure that someone would gladly take my place. I have no debt, so it should be relatively easy other than getting rid of my house and finding another Representative."
Mr. Nook was calm as he turned in his chair. "I'll need 5,000 bells for compensation. You seem to have made up your mind, so I don't see the point in arguing with you. After your departure, Isabelle will temporarily replace you until I find a new Resident Representative."
Artemis took 5,000 bells out of her bank account, as well as the rest of her money. She handed the currency to Mr. Nook, her gaze as somber as it always was.
"Alright then. Have your things packed by tomorrow. I hope to see you again, Artemis, somewhere, someday."
Isabelle was weeping at her desk, as Artemis had noticed in previous years she always did whenever a resident was moving.
"Good morning everyone! It is currently 9:00 A.M. Nothing much is going on today, but our Resident Representative is moving away. Make sure to say your goodbyes and wish her well on her future endeavors!"
Artemis stared at Isabelle's face for one last time. The broadcast had become part of her routine, a familiar constant. She would never hear about the stupid television shows Isabelle watched again. She would never have to deal with Mr. Nook's stupid home expansions. She would never go into Brewster's cafe and have him mention that he was hoping to see her today. No more June photoshoots at Harvey's island for Reese and Cyrus. No more of Redd and his art scams. No more of Blathers and his incessant rambling. No more Able Sisters and Mable's cheery demeanor and Sable quietly working in the background. No more Timmy and Tommy and the inability to tell the difference between the two. No more Dodo Airlines and passing out from scorpions or tarantulas for the millionth time. No more Kapp'n and vines and glowing moss.. No more of…anyone Artemis had met over her time on this island.
The day went by quickly. Every single one of the villagers came by, no matter how close they and Artemis were. Artemis gave them all an article of clothing she had been saving for Christmas that she thought they'd like, as well as the island flag, as a joke, because she had coated the entire island with pictures of the flag as an April Fool's prank. In which the entire island pitched in to help her clean up the next day.
In the early morning of the next day, Artemis loaded her things into the back of Dodo Airlines' only airplane. It was three in the morning, so she had to be quiet, she probably should have chosen a more reasonable time, but she couldn't bear to see the faces of those she had grown to love so dearly right before she was about to leave. Loading the final box, she notified Wilbur that she was ready to leave, and that he could drop her off in a city that was a few hours away, she had a friend waiting for her there.
"BREAKING NEWS! THE ISLAND 'BALDING BABIES' FUNDED BY THE DESERTED ISLAND GETAWAY PACKAGE, FOUNDED BY NOOK INC., IS OFFICIALLY ABANDONED!"
"After the island's Resident Representative left, the island's image and ratings went down, as their was no new Representative found, and thus, no one to care for the island. The stand-in Representative did as best as she could, but couldn't keep up with everything as she couldn't leave the Resident Services building, since she had arguably more important duties there. Other residents started to move away, and after realizing that the island was quickly become deserted once more, Nook Inc. cleaned up and abandoned the place."
She had no way to contact any of them ever again, as she didn't know their new addresses or phone numbers.
Artemis stared at the article, a gaping hole forming in her chest, she had a stable job and was making real money that could be used in more than one location. And she was socializing with both humans and animals, instead of one over the other. But at what cost? Was To- Mr. Nook, even if they'd probably never see each other again, angry with her?
She sighed. She had to get ready for work. If she took one more day off her manager said that their deal was done, and that she would have to find a different job, which would be difficult with a huge gap on her resume as, as Resident Representative wasn't a 'real' job.
But even if it wasn't, she couldn't deny that she enjoyed her time at the island, and that she missed everyone dearly. She hoped that she would meet at least some of them somewhere, someday.
It was Artemis's birthday, and she had nothing to do. She had no friends that she was in contact with anymore, she didn't have many before she decided to purchase the getaway package, and she had only stayed in contact with one, which was also how she found her current job, as her manager was a friend of her friend. Plus, she wasn't in contact with any of the villagers from the island she had once lived on.
She decided to go out. It was the weekend, after all, so she didn't have work. Maybe she would go to the mall or something, or just walk around town.
Yeah. That's what she'd do. She'd walk around town and maybe buy some more clothes and accessories.
When she got to the mall, Artemis first had lunch, shitty mall Chinese food. It was fine, not as bad as expected, but it wasn't anything remarkable. Afterwards, she went on to shop, but not before noticing a tanuki clad in a dark green-teal-ish blouson, something…
"TOM!"
…would wear.
The tanuki turned around and scoffed, "Tom? As in the greedy CEO of Nook Inc.? Grow up, kid, he's not the perfect idol you think he is, and you definitely wouldn't find him in a shopping mall." Trotting away, the man laughed to himself, shaking his head.
Artemis felt herself bristle at the mocking words, Tom had been incredibly kind to her when she had lived on the island, and he wasn't greedy! He was just trying to make a profit like the rest of them! It was how the world worked, and you either had to play into the system or suffer the consequences.
Tom was the closest thing she had ever had to a father, and he didn't deserve to be disrespected on this level.
Artemis sighed. It didn't matter. She'd never see him again. He said he hoped to see her again, but she didn't think it would happen. He was probably running another island while she stayed alone, celebrating her birthday in a shopping mall with no one to accompany her.
Somewhere, someday, yeah, right.