Episode 7: The Heart Is What Counts
Tuesday, 8th Of Summer, 2000
After showering, eating breakfast and watching the weather forecast, in which it'll remain sunny tomorrow, I watched a few cartoons on the Cartoon Network channel weekly Cooking Show. This week, the host Naru displayed on how to make salad. Fairly simple food to cook, even I can do it. Then I left the house after turning of the television.
"Hellooo! Are you there, Pete?"
That sounded like Ann! I turned my head to the front entrance of Redwood Farm and I saw Ann coming my way! She had a happy, cheerful look on her face, much like Popuri.
"Ann! What's up? What are you doing here so early?" I asked her after I gave her a hug.
"I came to talk about business," Ann replied.
"Uh-oh. That's a first. Go on," I said.
This is the first time anyone came by my ranch for business reasons.
"Starting from tomorrow, could you deliver 3 fresh eggs daily to the Inn for our cooking needs? It will just be for a while," Ann assured me.
How can I possibly turn down a business offer from a friend? This is a good way to make some extra money so I can buy a brand new refrigerator.
"Sure, I'll deliver them," I nodded.
Ann smiled.
"Great, thanks. Of course we'll pay you for the service. Remember, 3 eggs every day starting tomorrow at 5 p.m., please," Ann reminded me.
"You can count on me, Ann," I said then gave Ann a handshake.
"Thanks, Pete," Ann smiled appreciatively at me then walked away, going out the open gates.
fter she left, I spent ten minutes watering my crops. After that, I went in the hen house and took Red and Violet's eggs, even the ones I kept in in my rucksack from yesterday and put them in the shipping box.
When I went to pick up Kali's egg, I noticed something out of the ordinary... It's gold colored. I picked up the egg and inspected it resting on my right hand. I gently tapped it to make sure it is not a fake, gold-plated egg, but I found out that it is a real, genuine egg that is naturally gold, no one painted it either. Isn't that strange? Who has ever heard of a chicken laying gold egg? That's right, only in fairy tales. I guess reality can be equally strange as fiction.
"An actual golden egg... That must be worth a fortune!" I said, a smile growing wide on my face, then I put the gold egg in the shipping box along with the others.
Then I went out into the forest taking the wheelbarrow with me to pick a couple Pink Cat Flowers for Popuri and chop some wood. By 10:00 a.m., I had nine three foot long logs in my wheelbarrow, that means I stopped chopping wood around that time, and when I came back to the ranch, I dumped all the logs in my wheelbarrow into my wood shed. I now have 371 pieces of wood! Not bad! I'll survive the Winter season at this rate! Then I went to Poultry Farm to visit Popuri and buy more chicken feed from Lillia.
I found Popuri in the chicken pen feeding the chickens. She didn't notice me yet because she was pouring a bag of chicken feed into the feeding troughs. I vaulted over the wooden fence and approached Popuri with the Pink Cat flowers in my hands.
"Hey there," I called.
Popuri stood up and turned around.
"Oh, Pete! It's you."
"Yep, it's me, and I got you your favorite flower," I gave her the Pink Cat flowers.
"Thank you, Pete. You're such a nice guy," Popuri said gratefully, blushing.
"Yeah. I always find time to interact with me friends, especially you," I said.
I don't know if that was a flirty pick-up line or not, but I liked the way it sounded, though. Popuri nodded in agreement, much to my relief.
"I admire the way you run the farm on your own," Popuri said.
I could feel my heart fluttering in my chest at that moment. Something tells me that she is starting to flirt with me.
"Uh, thanks. A guy's gotta do what a guy's gotta do," I said.
"I mean, cutting tree stumps with your ax, breaking stones with your hammer, and caring for your livestock and pets... It gives me the impression that you're a strong and nice boy," Popuri said with a soft, soothing voice, blushing as she slowly circled around me, sizing me up.
Okay, I could obviously tell that's a flirty pick-up line.
"Gee... Thanks," I said slowly. What else could I say? I didn't know what else to say.
"My brother says good things about you. I have respect for you too," Popuri said, still blushing and circling me as she reached out at my face with her right hand and rubbed my cheeks.
Ohhh lord... I felt like I was going to faint Her hand felt gentle and soft like cream puff...
"Ohhh, holy cow..." I moaned softly and then... I fainted. Yeah. I fainted.
"Pete?!" Popuri exclaimed, startled that I fainted suddenly.
I don't know how much time has passed since I fainted, but I woke up laying in a couch. I came to, and as soon as I opened up my eyelids, I saw Popuri sitting on a single chair in front of me. She has been waiting for me to wake up for quite a while.
"He's awake! Pete is awake!" Popuri exclaimed.
Rick, Lillia, and Sasha came to check on me.
"Are you okay, Pete?" Popuri asked me in urgent concern.
I shook the grogginess and snapped myself fully awake, sitting up.
"Uh, I'm fine, I'm fine. Hey, how long have I been out?" I asked Rick.
"About an hour and 15 minutes," Rick replied.
"Shoot! I better get back to work! Oh, Lillia, here's $210. Have Rick send 21 units of chicken feed to my ranch. I need it ASAP," I said before bolting out the door.
I went to the clinic and bought some Bodegizer from The Doc and went back into the forest to chop up more tree stumps. When I felt all fatigued, my arms and legs burning on the inside, I drank the Bodegizer and continued working when the burning feeling in my arms and legs cooled down. I went back home and fell asleep at 8:14 p.m.
Wednesday, 9th Of Summer, 2000
I came outside to water my crops and feed my chickens, not to mention King and Dash as well. I never forget to brush Dash either. He has definitely taken a liking to me. When I left the farm to chop up more wood, he tried to follow me out of the ranch!
"Hey! No! No, Dash! Stay here. Stay," I ordered.
King placed his rump down on the ground and looked up at me, panting.
"Good boy. Stay. I won't be gone long, I swear," I promised him.
I gotta say, though chopping wood eventually makes my arms burn with fatigue, which I hate, it is good exercise for my arms, at least. I could feel my muscles building up a little bit. I was chopping wood near the hot spring. Ann and Popuri were sitting near the small river, watching me work.
"He's at it everyday, isn't he? All work," Ann sighed.
Popuri sighed too.
"Yeah... Pete is amazing at his job..." Popuri said dreamily, blushing.
Ann looked at Popuri in confusion. "What? What are you saying? You sound like you have a crush on him," Ann asked.
Popuri nodded.
"But how? Why? I know your type of guys, Popuri, and Pete is NOT your type. You're into famous or stylish cute guys like Leonardo DiCaprio," Ann stated in disbelief.
"You're right, Pete is not as flamboyant as Kai, he's not as cool as Aaron Carter, but still, there's something that I like about him, still. *sigh*... I don't know how to describe it, but I'm not going to deny it," Popuri replied.
Ann nodded. "I see," she smiled. "So there is something about him that you like, but have difficulty describing?"
Popuri gave Ann a single nod.
"I guess what I like about Pete is he doesn't see me as a kid, he sees me as a mature woman, just like Kai does, and I get the feeling he thinks about me a lot since he named one of his chickens after me," Popuri said.
"So you like him because he treats you like an adult and he gave one of his hens your name? Sorry, I'm confused," Ann said, scratching her head while frowning in a confused manner.
"There's more to it than that, Ann. See, Rick sees me only as a child. He tries to control my life, control who I hang out with. I've known Kai ever since I we were teenagers, there's no reason for Rick to dislike him so much. Pete, however... he has a charm that is hidden under the surface, and I want to find out what makes him tick. I hope he feels the same way about me..." Popuri said, concluding her sentence with a dreamy, contented sigh.
Ann smiled and gave Popuri a pat on the back.
"I'm sure he does, Popuri. I'm sure he does. If you think Pete is better for you than Kai, then who am I to argue? Anyway, I better get back home. Dad and I are expecting a shipment of eggs from Pete today," Ann said, then stood up and walked away, leaving Popuri by herself, and as soon as Ann walked down the stone stairs, Popuri let her body lay flat on the grass, her face facing up at the sky, then she closed her eyes and relaxed.
At 1:00 p.m., I headed on over to the Inn with the three eggs Ann requested me to deliver to her daily. As soon as I walked in the door, there was Ann, waiting for me.
"Did you bring the 3 eggs?" She asked me.
"I sure did," I pulled them out of my rucksack and showed them to her.
One gold egg and two normal eggs.
"Great. Give them to me," Ann smiled.
I politely handed them to her.
"Thank you. Wow, these look good. Here... Payment for the eggs." Ann gave me some cash- $1000! Now I got $3645! Next, I went to the beach to see Kai and buy a pizza. He was there, all right.
"Oh... hi. Want something to eat?" He asked me.
"Is that a rhetorical question? After 7 1/2 hours of work, I need to eat!" I replied incredulously. "Give me a pizza," I added.
"Okay, wait a sec..." Kai nodded.
He disappeared into his shack for a minute and came back out with a beautiful, full plate of cheese pizza!
"Here you go. Enjoy it," Kai offered me my lunch.
"Thanks, man!" I ate each slice of pizza one by one.
Man, the cheese with the tomato sauce combined melting in my mouth tasted and felt great!
"Kai, you cook some mean pizzas! If my Dad was here, he'd put you out of business!" I said.
"Really? In what way?" Kai smirked in amusement.
"He'd eat everything you're selling until you're out of stock!" I replied.
Kai gasped. "... Oh... Sorry I asked," he said, looking a bit dumbfounded.
I wiped my fingers with a napkin.
"Hey, no problem. Well, I better get back to work. See you later," I said then I left the beach.
I went back to chopping some wood for the rest of the day. When I got too tired to go on, I now have 443 pieces of wood now! That's perfect! At 7:58, I decided to go to the Inn before going to bed and drink some water.
Thursday, 10th Of Summer, 2000
Not much happened today. The onions are ready for harvest, so I put the mall in the shipping box, I sent 3 more eggs to Ann at noon, and after that I bought two more bags of onion seeds and a bag of grass seeds, which made me go down to having nearly $3000, much to my disappointment because I want to upgrade my hen house ASAP.
Friday, 11th Of Summer, 2000
After watching half of the James Bond marathon films from Dr. No to Moonraker, I watched the newest episode of Mechabot Ultror, the episode in which Red uses his new power suit to rescue Yellow from the mysterious cloud. When the show ended, I went outside to find that the tomatoes are ready and ripe for picking! I picked them all and threw them in the shipping box, then I watered my corn stalks, tomato plants and newly planted onion seeds then played with King and Dash for a while, then I went to the mines for a while. At 2:58 p.m., I delivered the eggs to Ann and now I got $4825! I got enough to get the hen house upgraded! For my lunch break, I stopped by Kai's shack at the beach to try out his spaghetti, then I headed on over to Gotz the woodcutter's house ASAP... But when I tried to open the door, I found that it is locked. Shoot. I grumbled to myself. I decided to go to Yodel Ranch and chat with May and Barley for a while. When I returned to find Gotz has returned to his house, he told me that he's on his break right now. Bummer. Guess I'll wait until tomorrow...
Saturday, 12th Of Summer, 2000
Today is my birthday! As usual, I woke up around 6:00 a.m. I was watching the weather forecast as I was eating a double ham and cheese sandwich with mustard and mayo. It's been sunny all summer, no rain or hurricanes. My Dad told me once that he never experienced a hurricane during his farmer days. I guess I won't either, but I'm not holding my breath. I changed the channel to channel 25.
"It's time for What's Your Passion?! Today, I, Mako Mizuta, will be hosting the show by myself this time. And in place of our normal host, we have a guest here today. Please welcome fortune-teller Polyphenol Love," Mako said, gesturing to his guest to take a seat next to him.
"Hello," Mr. Love shook Mako's hand as he took a seat.
"You know, I always thought you to be a woman. I can't believe you're such a big guy with a name like Love!" Mako exclaimed.
Mr. Love laughed.
"I get that a lot," he claimed.
Mr. Love's build reminds me of Zack, the only difference is he appears a bit scrawny compared to Zack, not too buff.
"It's rumored that your fortune telling is very precise," Mako commented.
"Thank you," Love nodded.
"Well, I was wondering if you could tell my fortune..." Mako said.
"Sure, no problem. Could I take a look at your forehead?" Mr. Love asked Mako.
Mako frowned in confusion. "My forehead? That seems like a funny place to fine my fortune."
"People's lives are condensed onto their foreheads. Let's see here..." Mr. Love pressed his left hand on Mako's forehead.
"... What do you see?" Mako asked, looking up at Love's hand.
"Mako... You missed your chance to marry," Love said with mild depression in his tone.
Mako recoiled a bit, his eyes wide as he gasped loudly! "What! Seriously?! ...Uhmm. You really can tell that from my forehead?"
"Yes. Your next chance will be 20 years from now."
"Uh, really..." Mako seemed sad that his next chance is years away.
I feel sorry for him.
"Well, don't worry too much," Love assured him.
"I guess so... Well, ahem, we've run out of time. Thank you Mr. Polyphenol Love for joining us today."
"My pleasure, Mizuta-san," Mr. Love nodded.
"We will see you next week. Good-bye..." The program ended and a deodorant commercial came on.
Instead of watching it, I flipped through five channels, and after skimming past the Sci-Fi channel, I stoppedo n the channel that details the various festivals held in Mineral Town each season every year, and I learned that today is the Tomato Festival! I turned off the television and left the house.
Outside, I played with king for a minute.
"Hey there, boy," I petted his head.
"Woof woof!" King barked and panted happily.
I gave him some dog food and took care of Dash, brushing him, talking to him and feeding him. Then I watered my plants while whistling the tune that the mystery girl I met when I was five- no, six years old always sang. I felt sad, because here I am years later in Mineral Town, and i want to let that girl, whoever she is, that I kept my promise and I have returned, but who is she? I don't remember her name or how she looks. All I do know is that she is close to my age, the same age as me or a year younger, so it's either gotta be Elli, Karen, Mary or Popuri. I could ask them if they have met me when we were six, but what if neither of them are that girl? What if she and her parents moved out of Mineral Town a few years ago before I showed up? What should I do? Argh, so many roadblocks...! But for some reason, I feel at ease around Popuri... I have no clue why, but I like her. Eh, maybe the word "like" is a bit too weak to describe my feelings. After watering my plants, I noticed that a few new weeds have grown in my garden, around my crops!
"Argh... Darn weeds..." I growled to myself in annoyance because dealing with weeds is the last thing I want to do out in this unforgiving heat.
I walked up to the weeds and yanked them out of the ground one by one, roots and all. Afterwards, I checked on my chickens. Popuri, my 4th chicken is now an adult!
"Yes!" I cheered.
I walked over to the chicken feed spout and pulled out 4 pieces of feed and put them in the little cubicles for my chickens, then I left the farm. I spent the next 3 hours relaxing in the forest, daydreaming. I was in the area of the forest where the lake is, where that small, unreachable island is. It looked like a mine entrance of some kind. Anyway, at 10:00 a.m., I ran to the Square. I got to the Square from the road where Doug's Inn is.
When I got there, I saw everyone I knew, and I also saw dozens of barrels filled with tomatoes littered around the place. I looked to my right and saw Cliff near a large rectangular crate full of tomatoes. He was examining the tomato filled barrels and getting into brief conversations with Rick, Duke and Gray. I walked up to him when he finished talking to Gray.
"Hey, Cliff."
"Hey, Pete. Everyone looks so excited. Are you going to participate, Pete?" He asked me.
"Ohh, yes!" I nodded with a grin.
"Well, I wish you luck. Gray told me how well you did at the Chicken Festival. I believe you'll do well in this one," Cliff smiled.
Just then, Gray came up to us.
"Hey, Pete. Hey, Cliff," he greeted us.
"How's it going, Gray?" I replied. m"Are you gonna be participating?" I asked him.
Gray softly clamped his fingers on the brim of his cap and shook his head.
"Nah. I've been under much stress lately, thanks to my grandfather... I may not be able to stop myself if I go wild throwing tomatoes. Hey, Pete, if you're going to participate, you better go join a team, and quick." Gray advised me. "Okay, thanks." I nodded.
I left Cliff and Gray, searching for Popuri and Rick. I found them near the northeast corner of the Square. As I was heading for them, Kai caught my attention.
"Oh, hey, Kai," I greeted him.
"You entering, Pete?" He asked me.
I nodded. "Yeah."
"I like the Tomato Festival, know why?"
"Why?"
"Because there are so many people worth plastering," Kai said with a evil-looking smirk.
I slowly nodded, grinning back. "I oughta plaster you for that snarky remark," I said.
"We'll see. We'll see," Kai promised.
At that moment, Kai and I noticed Popuri coming towards us.
"Pete! Kai!" She called to us happily.
"Hey, Popuri!" Kai and I said in unison, then we glanced at each other briefly, but turned our attention back to Popuri.
"Pete, do you want to join our team?" She asked me.
"I sure do," I nodded.
Popuri seemed happy about my answer, but Kai seemed surprised she asked him first.
"Really? Then I have to talk with Rick about it," Popuri said.
Then she walked away from me and Kai, approaching Rick and discussed plans on putting me on their team.
"I can't believe that she chose you over me..." Kai said to me in disbelief. "I used to be on their team every year," he added.
"Huh. Looks like you're not doing any plastering this year," I said.
Kai sighed, slowly shaking his head. "This is unexpected..." He looked at me. "What do you have that I don't?" He asked me.
"Beats me," I replied with a shrug.
The next few minutes later, we were asked to line up behind barrels. I was behind two pairs of barrels, facing Stu ahead of me, who is also behind a pair of barrels. To my right, Popuri is behind her set of barrels, facing May. Rick was between us and a few feet behind us, facing Elli.
"Alright, everyone, here are the rules. The objective is to strike your opponent with tomatoes. The barrels provide cover for you, and tomato ammunition. Just reach into the barrel and pull out a tomato. If you are hit by a tomato, you're out of the game. That is the rules. Everyone ready?" Thomas announced.
"Yes!" Everyone said together.
"Okay, let's start. We have the Chicken Team, led by Rick!" Thomas introduced us.
Popuri Rick and I waved at the people watching us as they cheered.
"We have the Sheep Team, led by Stu!" Thomas introduced our opponents.
Stu, May and Elli waved at the audience.
"All right. On your marks..." Thomas got ready to give the signal.
We grabbed our tomatoes.
"... Begin!" Thomas shouted!
Almost immediately, Stu, May and Elli launched a barrage of tomatoes at us!
"Duck!" Rick shouted!
We crouched behind our barrels! When I thought the barrage was over, I popped up and threw a tomato, targeting Elli then I quickly grabbed another and threw it! Popuri and Rick popped up and began throwing their tomatoes! Stu threw a tomato at Rick! Rick was focused on trying to hit May, so he didn't see Stu's tomato coming at him from the corner of his left eye in time to dodge it!
"Doh!" Rick grunted when the tomato hit his face, almost causing his glasses to fly off his face.
He crouched down behind his barrels in defeat, cleaning tomato juice off his glasses lens with his blue apron.
"They got our leader!" Popuri exclaimed to me as we crouched back down behind our barrels, hearing tomatoes splatter against our barrels, and the ground near us.
"Then let's get even!" I replied to Popuri.
She nodded, then she popped up from behind her barrels and threw a tomato at Elli's location! When Elli popped up when she was sure that we weren't throwing tomatoes at her to avenge Rick. Boy did she think wrong! The tomato Popuri threw hit Elli smack on her forehead!
"Ahh!" Elli yelped and fell back behind her barrel, likely wiping the tomato juice off her face using her apron.
"They got Elli!" May cried.
"Don't worry, May! We'll get them back!" Stu assured May and threw a tomato at me!
"Whoa!" I cried and quickly crouched down, and the tomato nearly hit me by four inches! If I were a fraction slower, I would have been hit!
*SPLAT! SPLAT! SPLAT!* I heard more tomatoes splatter on my barrel! Popuri popped up from behind her barrels and threw a tomato at Stu! Stu crouched behind his barrels to dodge Popuri's tomato on time, and May threw a tomato at Popuri! She barely dodged it, it only grazed her head! Popuri looked over at me. I was still hiding behind my barrel, feeling a little nervous about getting plastered by two 5 year old kids.
"Pete! They got us pinned! What do we do?" Popuri asked me.
I formulated a plan in mind. If we switched targets simultaneously, that might give us an advantage!
"Divide and conquer!" I whispered to Popuri.
She nodded. We popped up from behind our barrels! I threw a tomato at May, Popuri threw a tomato at Stu, then I quickly picked up another tomato and threw it at Stu, and Popuri threw a tomato at May! We need to make it difficult for Stu and May to figure out who is being targeted by who. After dodging my next tomato, Stu quickly popped back up and threw a tomato at Popuri! Taking the opportunity, I threw a tomato at him while his attention is focused on Popuri for that near split second!
"Arrgh!" Stu grunted from being smacked by the tomato, then he sank behind his barrel with the broken tomato attached to his face. Popuri threw a few more tomatoes at May, but she kept dodging them. When May popped back up again, she had no time to dodge the tomatoes Popuri and I threw at her while she was hiding behind her barrel, she got plastered by both of our tomatoes!
"Ahhh no!" May whined, wiping tomato juice off her face.
"The game's over! The winner is... The Chicken Team!" Thomas announced.
Our next opponents are Doug, Ann and... Gray?! He lied to me! I thought he wasn't going to be in the contest!
"Ohh man..." I grumbled.
I remembered what he said about being under a lot of stress. If he vents his pent up rage here, Popuri, Rick and I will be in deep trouble...
"... The Chicken Team, led by Rick!" Thomas announced.
Everyone cheered.
"The Star Team, led by Doug!" Everyone cheered.
"On your marks..."
We grabbed our tomatoes.
"...Begin!" Thomas shouted!
Tomatoes started raining everywhere! I saw dozens of them coming our way! We ducked behind our barrels to take cover from the barrage! I could hear the tomatoes Doug, Ann and Gray are throwing at us splatting against the barrels! I popped up and threw my first tomato at Doug! Direct hit!
"Augh!" He moaned from the impact of my tomato hitting his chest.
Gray was throwing tomatoes like madman! And Popuri got hit twice in a row!
"Arrgh!" Popuri crouched down, wiping the tomato juice off her face and hair.
Rick popped up from behind his barrels and threw a tomato at Ann!
"Ooof!" Ann got hit square in the head!
"All right... NO MORE MR. NICE GUY!" Gray roared.
He threw a barrage of tomatoes at us!
"Duck, Pete!" Rick shouted.
"Aah!" I yelped and crouched down, as I was almost hit in the head by a tomato.
Gray is like a tank! He really is using his rage to gain an advantage over us! It was difficult to find an opportunity to expose our heads without the risk of getting hit as soon as we stand up. Rick found the courage to pop up from his hiding place and threw a tomato at Gray! Gray saw the tomato coming and ducked down behind his barrels! I popped up and threw a tomato after Rick threw his! Gray popped back up but immediately ducked down as soon as he saw my tomato coming!
"Ready, Pete?"
"Yeah."
"3... 2... 1... Now!"
Rick and I simultaneously threw tomatoes at Gray nonstop, pinning Gray in his hiding place. Unfortunately for Gray, he responded to his rage too early, wanting to plaster us with tomatoes so badly when he thought of how rough Saibara is treating him, and he popped back up only to get plastered by three tomatoes- two in the face, causing his hat to jump off his head, revealing his dark blond hair, and one on his chest.
"Urrrghh..." Gray groaned in defeat as he slumped down.
While Gray's rage was his greatest weapon in the tomato fight tournament, it was also his greatest weakness and it wasn't hard for Rick and I to exploit it.
"The game's over! And the winner is... The Chicken Team!" Thomas announced. Everyone cheered!
"Yes! Whoo!" Popuri and I cheered.
A few minutes later, after everyone dried off all the tomato stains from their clothes and faces, Thomas congratulated us all.
"Well, that was another great festival. The winner this year is the Chicken Team! You other teams fought hard, too." Thomas said.
Rick, Popuri and I gave each other a high five!
"Yes! We did it!" Popuri cheered.
"Yeah! We won!" I said.
"We did it, Pete! Let's play together on the same team next year, too." Rick said.
"Hey, sounds good!" I nodded.
"Please work hard so that we can harvest enough tomatoes for the next Tomato Festival. Thank you, everybody," were Thomas's closing comments.
I was talking to Cliff and Gray when I felt someone tap my shoulder. I turned around and saw Duke and Manna. Duke didn't look happy.
"Hey, Pete, why didn't you join our team?" Duke asked me.
"Well, I-" I stared to say.
"Yes, Duke was useless. But if you had joined us, we might have won," Manna said, interrupting me.
"See, I-" I tried to say.
"What are you saying? I just had a bad day, that's all," Duke snapped at Manna, interrupting me again.
"You're not a spring chicken anymore, you know," Manna retorted.
I've never seen her frown up before, it's kinda scary, honestly.
I headed to Elli, Stu and May, to congratulate them.
"Great game, Elli," I shook her hand.
"Thank you. Congratulations to you too. Uhh... I feel exhausted..." Elli replied, looking a little tired.
Then I felt someone poking my leg. I looked down and saw Stu, glaring at me.
"I lost this time, but I won't lose next year. I'll be bigger next year, so you better watch yourself," Stu growled at me.
It scared me a bit to see him glaring at me like a rabid dog. He looked a little intimidating for a 5 year old.
"We'll see. But remember, just have fun," I replied to him.
"Yeah, easy for you to say since you won." Stu grumbled, crossing his arms.
After celebrating with Rick and Popuri at Poultry Farm, I came back to my farm and got some rest. The Tomato Festival sure was fun!
Sunday, 13th Of Summer, 2000
I ate a boiled egg that I made last night while watching the Shogi Hour. At 6:30, I came outside. When I stepped out, I saw King waiting for me.
"Hey, boy! come here!" I picked up King and scratched his ears.
"Did you sleep well last night?"
"Woof woof woof!"
"So did I," I replied.
When I looked to my left, I saw Mayor Thomas coming.
"Oh! Mayor Thomas! Good morning!" I greeted him.
"Good morning, Pete." He shook my hand.
"What brings you out here?" I wondered.
"I have a favor to ask."
"Sure. What is it?" I asked.
"I'd like you to deliver an apple pie from the Inn to Elli's grandma Ellen. I usually take it to her, but I have to go to the neighboring village Forget-Me-Not Valley today. Can you do it?" Thomas asked me.
"Sure. It's no problem for me," I replied adamantly.
"Thanks. I knew I could count on you," Thomas smiled.
"Don't mention it, Mr. Mayor," I smiled back.
Thomas turned around and headed for the exit, but after 7 steps away from me, he turned around to tell me something.
"It's for Ellen, okay? An apple pie from the Inn," he reminded me before really leaving this time.
With Thomas gone, I began my everyday farm work. I watered my crops, brushed Dash, then I went out to chop some wood for a while.
At 12:59 p.m., I headed for the Inn, passing by Poultry Farm and Yodel Ranch. On my way by Poultry Farm, I saw Rick and Popuri leaving their house to get somewhere.
"Hey, Pete!" They waved at me.
"Hiya!" I waved back.
I also met up with May on my way to the Inn.
"Good afternoon, Pete," May smiled as we walked side by side to the Square.
"Hello to you, May," I replied.
When we got to the Square, I took the road to the Inn, May took the road to the church. At the Inn, Ann was cleaning the tables while Doug was counting the cash earned from his customers.
"Hello, Doug. I'm here for the apple pie," I told Doug as I walked up to the bar.
Doug looked at me in a confused manner for a second. Then he shook his head in a
"Oh, how silly of me to forget!" kind of way.
"Oh, that's right, the Mayor said you'd be getting the pie today. You're a good guy. Here, take this," Doug handed me a small plate with one slice of apple pie.
Boy, it smelled so good and fresh. While restraining the urge to eat the pie, I took the plate in my hands.
"Thanks, Doug. See you later," I said as I left.
"Later, Ann," I called as I walked out the door.
"See ya," Ann replied.
I turned left and walked up the road, carrying the apple pie. The aroma of fresh apple and sweet cinnamon drifted into my nose as I walked. I felt hungry all of a sudden. I haven't eaten lunch yet, and I'm hungry, but I had to restrain myself from eating the pie. It didn't take long to reach Ellen's house at the northwestern part of Mineral Town. I opened up the door and came in.
"Who is it?" Ellen called, half asleep.
"It's me, Ellen. It's Pete." I replied as I approached her, being careful not to drop the plate.
"Pete? Oh, it's been a while. How are you?"
"I've been doing fine. I brought you something on behalf of Thomas. Here's your apple pie." I gently gave it to her. She slowly took it into her hands.
"Oh, thank you. I just adore the Inn's apple pie. I always look forward to the Mayor on Sundays. Thank you very much. Here, take this as a tip," Ellen tried to offer me some money.
"I don't need a tip, Ellen. I'm just doing a favor for a good friend," I replied, holding my hand up to refuse the money Ellen offered me.
"Oh, don't hesitate... take it," Ellen insisted.
I wasn't expecting to get any money for this, but if Ellen insists, oh well. A second later, Elli came in.
"Grandma, here's the apple pie," Elli said.
"Elli, why did you do that?" Ellen questioned Elli, confused.
"Huh?" Elli looked confused, but when she looked at me, she gently slapped herself on her forehead.
"Oh, that's right... I forgot Pete would bring apple pie. I got one too."
"Oh dear, thank you. Why don't you give it to Pete," Ellen suggested.
"Elli's face brightened at Ellen's idea. "That's a good idea. Here, Pete. Thank you for your trouble," Ellen gave me the plate of apple pie.
"Gee, thanks, Elli," I smiled.
She nodded and left.
"Come again," Ellen smiled at me.
"I will, once I got free time from work," I replied then left.
As soon as I stepped outside, I began eating the apple pie. Mmmmm! To feel the sliced apples, sweet cinnamon and pie crust swirl in my mouth... It's unbelievable! Ellen is right, the Inn does make good apple pies! For most of the evening, I relaxed on the beach watching the sun set with Popuri. We also ate pizza together, courtesy of Kai. Thanks to Popuri, she convinced Kai to let me have a free pizza. That was great.
Monday, 14th Of Summer, 2000
The next morning, when I popped outside after watching the newest episode of The Fairy and Me, I heard somebody say: "Hey, Pete, I'm back!"
It sounded like Thomas.
When I turned around, I saw him coming! He really is back! He carried a plate with a slice of chocolate cake with icing and a cherry on top. I shook his hand.
"Mayor Thomas! Great to have you back! I finished your favor yesterday," I informed him.
"Thanks. I visited Ellen today. She was very happy you went there like that," Thomas said in approval.
"I'm glad to hear that," I nodded proudly.
"Doug was impressed, too. So I bought some cake from the Inn for you," Thomas offered me the cake he carried here.
I was shocked. First the apple pie Elli accidentally bought, now this cake?! The people here are so generous, I feel like crying happily... I took the cake.
"Thanks, Thomas," I smiled.
I took the fork into my right hand and began eating the cake. It tasted great, especially with the frosting on it.
When I ate the cherry, wow! Explosive sweet flavor!
"Well, see you later," Thomas waved bye and left.
"If you need another favor, just let me know. I'm always open for business or favors," I called to him.
"I'll keep that in mind, thanks," Thomas called back as he walked away.
After he left, I did the usual stuff I do at the ranch, taking care of King, Dash, Kali, Red, Violet, and Popuri, and even watering my crops. I wonder when the corn will be ready for harvest. They sure do take a long time to grow... Anyway, I plan on asking Gotz to upgrade my hen house, but I know that early in the morning, he won't be at his woodcutting house, so I killed time going to the mine and digging for ores. I dug my way 8 floors down until I got too tired to keep on going. But it made me wonder how far down does the mine go? Next time I'll bring some food with me to keep my stamina and energy up. I checked my watch as soon as I left the mine.
11:42 a.m. He should be home by now. I headed on over there. When I entered the woodcutting house, there was Gotz and Louis, the weird elderly guy in the green clothing.
"Pete! What's up?" Gotz greeted me.
"It's been a while, Pete. You remember me, don't you?" Louis asked me.
"Yeah. Louis, right?"
"That's right." He nodded.
"Anyway, Gotz, I'm doing great. I just wanted to ask you a favor," I said.
"Oh really? What's that?" Gotz asked.
"Well, see, I want my hen house upgraded. I want the hen house to hold more than four or five chickens, understand?"
"Yeah, I understand, but keep in mind that the job costs $5000 and 420 pieces of lumber. Is that okay?" Gotz asked me.
"I got everything ready. Lumber, money, everything," I nodded.
As soon as I agreed, Harris came in, visiting Gotz from his morning rounds around Mineral Town.
"Okay, we'll begin work tomorrow," Gotz agreed.
I nodded. Then I decided to talk to Louis for a while.
"Do you catch bugs or something? If so, how's the bug hunt?" I asked him.
"I haven't made much progress, but I'm doing okay," Louis shrugged, sitting back on Gotz's couch.
"Really? how many bugs have you seen?" I asked him.
"A lot, but I'm more focused on bees right now. Yes sir, there are lots of different kinds of bees," Louis sighed.
"I'm looking for a very rare species," He said.
"Well, I hope your hunt goes well. I'll see you later. Bye." I headed for the door. I waved at Harris before going out.
I went to the Blacksmith and gave Saibara and Gray the ores I found.
"Thank you very much, Pete!" Saibara smiled.
"Thanks! It's very important to have friends!" Gray happily remarked.
"That's right! Well, I gotta go! I hope things go well for you guys."
I left the Blacksmith shop and headed for the Orchard. When I walked in, I saw a staircase in front of me. i walked past it and found a door leading into the kitchen. Manna, Duke's wife, is in there washing dishes.
"Afternoon, Manna," I greeted her.
She slowly looked at me, and I noticed that she looked sad for some reason.
"Oh, hi," she said sullenly.
"What's wrong? Is something bothering you? Maybe I can help," I said in a comforting tone. Manna sighed.
"Maybe I shouldn't be telling you this, but my daughter left the village and ever since then, Duke, my husband, drinks himself to sleep every night."
This explains why Manna looks said, and why yesterday Duke and Manna nearly had an argument. The departure of their daughter had a negative impact on them.
"Ohh...I'm sorry to hear that..." I said with sympathy.
Manna nodded slowly.
"I'm surprised though. I've never seen you, the gossip girl, look sad before," I remarked, trying to lighten the mood.
"Do you mind if I keep talking?" She asked me.
"Yeah, go on if you feel like it," I replied.
"Well, anyway, I feel lonely too, so I talk with people to get things off my mind, although of course the loneliness that I feel because my daughter's not here could never be relieved by just talking," Manna commented.
I scoffed. "That's no surprise there," I remarked.
"It'd be different if she got married, but... Oh, you came here on your own, didn't you?"
"Yeah."
"Why was that...?" Manna wondered.
I shrugged. "I guess you could say that I'm feeling a little lonely myself. Away from my home and family... My parents still live in the city, my brother is in his own farm in Forget-Me-Not Valley... But I'm fine. I'm doing fine," I assured Manna.
"That's great, I'm glad to hear that," Manna smiled.
"Well, nice talking to you, Manna. I gotta go."
"Okay, Pete. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me. I really appreciate it."
"Sure thing!" I replied before leaving.
At 1:00 p.m., I visited Mary and her mom for a while and followed them to the Supermarket. There, I bought two bags of onion seeds then I returned home for the day.
Tuesday, 15th Of Summer, 2000
Not much happening. I finally get to harvest more tomatoes! I used my garden hoe to soften new ground to plant my new onion seeds, then I went to Poultry Farm at 12:15 to buy 31 units of chicken feed, leaving me with $605, but I had to do it, otherwise no more eggs for a few days. My dad told me about that too. He told me all the basics about farming and taking care of livestock. The grass I planted in the other side of the ranch seems to be growing the rest of the day I spent chopping up weeds with my sickle, that's about it, while Gotz was hard at work on my hen house.