Estelle eyed the fluffy yellow ball in her hands warily. It was cute, no doubt, but there was something about its beady little eyes that didn't sit right with her.

"I feel like this chicken has seen some shit," she said, running her finger down its gauzy back. It peeped in agreement, reaffirming her belief.

Shane snorted. "That chick was looking at the inside of an egg a few hours ago. Not much opportunity for trauma."

"I mean, you were the first person it saw. That has to be pretty traumatic."

"Fuck you," he said with a laugh. "You ready to stop dicking around and listen?"

"Yes sir Mr. Shane sir."

Shane rolled his eyes but continued. "Alright, so the first thing about new chicks is you have to keep their bedding clean. Clean up droppings at least twice a day, more if you can. They'll peck at their own shit and get sick if you leave it laying around."

"Okay, clean up bird shit. Next."

"Keep the heat lamp on until they get their feathers in. If they're huddled up under the lamp it's too cold so move it down, if they're over in the corner away from it all the time it's too hot so move it up. Just keep an eye on them and use common sense."

"Keep naked chickens warm. Next."

"Water is more important than food, and they usually can't find it themselves for the first few days. You have to take them over to it and dip their beak in until they get the hang of it."

"Dude…how do these things survive in the wild? They sound too dumb to live. Seriously."

Shane looked at her like she was an idiot. "Uh…their mother takes care of them?"

"Ohh. Right. Proceed."

He shook his head, but Estelle caught a little smile. The back and forth continued for a while, with Estelle listening diligently but still pretending not to. She really wanted to take good care of these birds, but she also really liked fucking with Shane, so…compromise.

She was actually pretty impressed by his wealth of knowledge regarding poultry, and by how he seemed to enjoy teaching her. She knew he was a good guy, and she liked their random saloon conversations well enough, but this was a side of Shane she hadn't seen before. Motivated, informed, passionate. It looked good on him, and she genuinely hoped he found a way to bring those qualities out more often.

It took a few hours, but eventually Shane had a fair level of confidence that Estelle wouldn't inadvertently murder the chicks through negligence. She also promised to keep Maki inside for the first few days, just in case. The cat had seemed to heed her warning about hunting after the last mishap, but a coop full of tiny peeping fluff balls might be too much temptation.

Estelle asked Shane to stay for a beer when they were finished with the chickens. She'd picked up a 6-pack of the good stuff yesterday, knowing it would be a decent thank you for coming over and helping her. The man was so accustomed to Joja swill that sitting back with a bottle of craft brew should be the height of luxury. He accepted and they sat together on her porch swing, lazily wasting the rest of the morning away.

"So what are you going to name them?" Shane asked, nodding towards the coop.

"Oh, I don't know. I was thinking maybe Nugget, Fingers, Wing, and Drumstick."

"Right, because no one has ever made that joke before."

"I swear you hate fun," Estelle said, mulling it over. "How about Harper, Hazel, Harley, and…I don't know, Helena?"

"What's with the H thing?"

"H is for hen."

Shane laughed, shaking his head. "You're a weird chick, Estelle."

"And you wouldn't have me any other way," she said. He conceded, and she grinned. "Anyway, how long 'til my squad starts making eggs?"

"It varies, but probably around the end of summer. Let me know when they start laying and I'll come up and build a mayo machine for you. Mayo turns a good profit around here."

"Aw, thanks Shane. That's uncharacteristically nice of you to offer."

He laughed. "Yeah, well, don't spread it around. I have a reputation to keep. Besides, I owe you for saving my girl."

Estelle would normally have said he didn't owe her anything for just doing what was right, but if a sense of debt got him to help her out with these chickens, then she was happy to let it ride.

"You know, I've been wondering about that," she said, taking a sip of her second beer. This would have to be her last one – she was going into the mines after this and couldn't chance it with a buzz. "What's the deal with you and Jas? She's not your biological kid, right?"

"Nah. I was what, 17 when she was born? My dad would have beat my ass purple if I had knocked up some girl before finishing high school," he said with a little chuckle. She recognized the tone behind it though. A touch of bitterness, tinted by the rose-colored filter we tend to put over memories. Even bad ones.

"Jas is my brother's kid. There was a fire when she was little and her parents didn't make it." He took a long swig of his beer, stuffing the empty bottle back into the sleeve and popping a new one before continuing. "My mom is gone, and her other grandparents are gone, so it was either I took guardianship or she ended up in the system. I like to think she's better off with family, but when family means me I'm not so sure."

Estelle had the urge to reach out to Shane, give him a hug or even a pat on the back, just something to offer comfort and understanding. But she didn't. Shane wasn't a touchy feely kind of guy, and she knew from experience that all the hugs in the world couldn't fill the kind of hole he was dealing with.

"I'm sorry about your brother. And for what it's worth, I think what you did was amazing."

He glanced up at her, and what she saw in his eyes broke her heart. Had no one ever told him that before? Had no one ever stopped to consider how his life was turned upside down? Sure, he was abrasive and kind of a dick, but how could there be such a lack of empathy for him?

"I mean it," she continued, wanting to drive the point home. "Taking in a little kid when you were barely grown yourself, putting her future ahead of your own…that's amazing, Shane. And Jas knows it. She thinks you're a fucking superhero, and honestly I kind of agree with her."

Shane was quiet, staring into his beer without really seeing. Estelle gave him the time he needed to work through his thoughts, silently rocking the swing back and forth a few inches as she waited. When he spoke again his voice was soft, with no trace of the cynical sarcasm he usually employed.

"You know, my whole life I've been told I'm a piece of shit. A worthless, pathetic joke. After a while it just became a self-fulfilling prophecy. But maybe… maybe if Jas sees something more in me, and if you can see something more in me… then maybe I still have a chance to be better than that."

"Thanks Estelle."

Evening was approaching by the time Estelle stumbled out of the mines, exhausted and filthy. She had made some great progress in exploring the winding tunnels over the last week, journeying deeper with every trip. Marlon had given her some fuses to plug into the elevator controls, so now she could get back to the deeper levels right from the get-go. This was particularly helpful because she was quickly learning that the deeper she went, the better treasures there were to find.

That was probably because the 'beasties', as Marlon called them, were fucking terrifying down there. No one was going down to claim the gems and ore that lay 30, 40, 50 levels deep when one wrong move would turn you into a snack for monsters. And though she hesitated to use that word, because dammit monsters weren't real… there was no other descriptor that fit. What else could you call human-shaped creatures that were black as coal with glowing eyes and skin as tough as leather?

Monsters or not, they could still die, and Estelle was getting really good at killing them. She liked to think she was 'leveling up', because hell, if she was going to fight actual monsters she was at least going to save some her of sanity by pretending it was a video game. Dissociation may not be the healthiest coping mechanism, but so far it was working well enough.

And the risks to her life weren't without rewards. In just one week Estelle had brought back enough precious resources to get her pickaxe upgraded, pay off her tab at the saloon, and start saving up a new emergency fund. At this rate she was hoping to commission Robin to expand her house at some point over the summer. Robin wouldn't accept money for the coop, but Estelle could at least give her some business as thanks.

Speaking of Robin, Estelle needed to ask her for that map of her farm. She'd been thinking more about it, and Robin was right – she had a ton of land that was currently going waste. She had found a book of blueprints in the library, and was considering the possibility of using some of that land to build an apiary. The bee hives didn't seem too difficult to construct, and if she could get a nice group of them together the honey would be a great, effortless source of income for her.

To hell with growing crops. She was going to fill her farm with birds and bees.

The shop was closed at this hour, but Robin would probably be home anyway. Estelle followed the lake south rather than heading west towards the mountain path she normally took home. Bonus – this gave her an excuse to cut through town and stop for a drink before heading home. The mines had been rough tonight, so she'd earned it.

As Estelle turned away from the lake onto Mountain Road, she heard weird clanking noises coming from the house. Thinking it was Maru building something, she walked right up to the garage with a smile, ready to see what crazy awesome tech she was working on this time.

Instead, she saw a motorcycle. And a pair of black-clad legs hanging out from underneath.

She briefly considered walking right past the garage to the front door, or just backing up and circling around to the mountain path. That would be the smart thing to do. Sebastian clearly didn't want to see her, as evidenced by the way he had not-so-subtly been avoiding her for the last week.

Her logic was overruled, however, by her ever-increasing need to know just what the hell his problem was. She could deal with his apathy towards her, but she couldn't deal with this blatant anger without even hearing him give a reason. Crossing her arms in a preemptively defensive stance, she decided that she wasn't going to leave this garage until she knew for certain where they stood.

"Hey."

Sebastian rolled out from under the bike, looking up at her in surprise. As soon as he realized who it was his eyes hardened slightly.

"Hi."

"Nice bike. Is it yours?"

"Yep."

This would normally be the part where Estelle bailed. She wasn't the type to force conversation out of people, and terse, one-word responses were not something she tolerated under the best of circumstances. Regardless, this time she just steeled her resolve and pushed ahead.

"I haven't seen it around. Do you ride or is it just for show?"

He held her gaze for a moment, defiant glare against defiant glare, until finally he sighed and rolled back under the bike.

"I ride it. Mostly at night."

She was considering what to say from there when, to her surprise, he continued unprompted.

"There's nothing else like it, blazing along the empty stretch of road toward the faint city glow. Once I've saved up enough money I'm going to head out on my own, to the city and beyond. Just me and my bike."

For reasons she didn't quite understand, his words caused a pit to form in her stomach. She knew he was planning on leaving Pelican Town, but hearing him talk about it in that wistful, dreamlike tone filled her with a sadness she hadn't expected. For the first time, Estelle realized she would miss him.

Not that she'd ever tell him so.

"What about Sam?" she said, transferring her sudden, unvetted feelings onto their friend. "He'd cry himself to sleep every night if you left."

Sebastian laughed once, humorlessly. "He's got you now. He'll be okay."

"Me?" Estelle said, disbelief clear in her voice. "I've lived here for three months Seb, that hardly makes up for losing his best friend."

"Yeah, well, girlfriends can make up for a lot of things."

Estelle almost wished he wasn't under the bike so he could see the complete confusion written all over her face.

"Girlfriend? What the fuck are you talking about?"

The clanking stopped suddenly, but he didn't roll back out. It took her longer than it probably should have, but eventually it became evident what had led him to that misguided conclusion.

"Are you talking about the party? No, dude, it's not like that at all. That was just a product of way too much tequila."

"…oh."

That was probably all that needed to be said, but Estelle felt the need to make things very clear. "Don't worry, I'm not going to break your boy's heart or anything. We talked, and he's not interested either. We're cool."

"Okay."

After another minute of silence, the clanking resumed. Estelle wasn't sure where to go from here. It didn't seem like there was anything left to say, but she didn't want to leave yet either. Luckily, the clanking stopped shortly after it began, and Sebastian rolled out.

Sitting up on the creeper, he grabbed a nearby towel and began to wipe his hands clean. "There, oil's changed," he said, looking her over with a frown. "You look like shit."

Estelle raised her eyebrows, laughing in surprise. "Fuck off, so do you!"

There it was. That sideways smile she'd grown to love.

Like. Grown to like.

"No, I mean you look like someone beat the hell out of you." He stood and walked over to her, turning her elbow to get a better look at the side of her arm. "And you're bleeding."

Estelle craned her neck to check it herself as Seb grabbed a clean towel. She couldn't see the full extent of the damage, but it didn't look that bad. Nothing that would need stitches. Still, she winced when he pressed the towel firmly against the wound. "Ow! It didn't hurt 'til you did that."

"I'm not trying to explain to Mom why there are bloodstains in the garage. Keep pressure on it."

"Fair point," she conceded, replacing his hand with her own and pressing down.

"So, going to tell me what happened?"

Estelle leaned against the wall, letting herself slide down it until she hit the floor. Standing took more energy than she was willing to expend at the moment. "Oh, I don't know. It was probably the bat. Or maybe those blue slimes, they get pretty brutal when they group up."

Sebastian just stared at her for a minute before realization hit him. "The mines? You've been going into the mines?"

"Yeah?"

He looked genuinely upset by that. "Why the fuck would you go into the mines?"

"Uh, because I'm fucking broke Sebastian. And there's tons of shit in there I can sell to make ends meet."

"People have died in there Estelle."

"I'll be fine. I'm tougher than I look." He looked like he was about to argue again, so she cut him off. Good intentions aside, he wasn't going to talk her out of her one reliable source of income. "Anyway, check this out. I found something today I thought you might like."

She dug through her bag until she found what she was looking for; a blue crystal droplet the size of her palm, that wasn't simply cold to the touch – it seemed to actually radiate the cold from within. She held it up to him and his eyes widened, taking it as he crouched down to sit on the floor beside her.

"A Frozen Tear? How did you—"

"I told you, there's all kinds of stuff down there."

He shook his head, turning the crystal over in his hands. "No, I mean how did you know I always wanted one of these?"

"Oh. I didn't. I just found it and thought, hmm, looks like a tear, super cold… I bet my favorite emo kid would be into this."

"You know, I'm going to get a complex if you keep calling me an emo kid."

"If you get a complex that's just gonna make you more emo."

He laughed, handing the crystal back to her. She shook her head. "You can keep it."

"Really? What about the whole being broke thing?"

"I mean yeah I'm still broke, but if you like it that much it's yours. Besides, I have a whole bag of stuff to hawk when I get back to town. I swear Clint has been giving me bedroom eyes all week," she said with a grin.

"If you're sure, then…thanks."

"You're welcome."

They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes, long enough for Estelle's eyes to slowly begin closing and blinking back open in a fight for consciousness. She needed to get home soon or she was going to pass out in Sebastian's garage.

"Hey, Estelle?"

"Mm?"

"Sorry for being a dick to you."

"It's okay. You can find some way to make it up to me."

"Oh yeah?" he said with a smirk. "Hmm…what if I took you for a ride some day?" he said, nodding towards his bike.

Estelle scrunched her nose. "To be honest I'm kind of afraid of motorcycles."

He chuckled, shaking his head in disbelief. "So let me get this straight. Risking your life in the mines is totally fine, but you draw the line at motorcycles?"

"I didn't say it was rational."

"Well, there's no need to worry. I'll make sure you're safe."

Somehow, she believed him.

A shadow creeping across the garage floor caught her eye, and she looked outside to see the sun rapidly making its way towards the horizon. Well, shit. Now she was going to have to walk home in the dark, and find something in her house to…eat…

She cursed, jumping up from her spot on the floor. "I have to get home and feed Maki."

Sebastian looked at her like she had three heads. "Maki?"

"Yeah, my cat," she said, zipping up her bag and pulling it over her shoulders. "If I don't feed her she's going to find a way out and eat my chickens."

"…you named your cat Maki?"

The humor in his tone gave her pause, and she stopped to look at him. "Why not? I love sushi. Cats like fish. It works."

"Right." He grinned but didn't comment further, instead taking on a thoughtful expression as he stood. "Hey, would you want to get sushi with me some time? No one else will even try it, so I haven't gone in forever."

A teasing smile spread across Estelle's face. "Are you asking me on a date Sebastian?"

His eyes widened by a hair before he dropped his face and shut down any further expression. Still, she caught the flush on his cheeks. "No. Just forget it."

"Relax, I'm kidding," Estelle said with a laugh. "I would love to get sushi with you. Maybe we can even take your bike."

Sebastian looked back up, a little smile playing at his lips as Estelle turned to leave. When she reached the threshold of the garage, she glanced back over her shoulder with a smirk.

"Later emo kid."