With the Gousim tribe eagerly pitching in with planting, some beasts had moments of free time, which they used however they pleased.

Right now, Kelp, Kale, Junn, and Coda were using their free time to build a stage in the orchard, by order of Rucci. They weren't master carpenters, but Rucci trusted them to make it safe, so they would. It was going to be a very simple structure, just a large raised platform, with a set of stairs on each side, and a backdrop of boards like a wall.

Kelp and Kale jointly lifted a board and settled it across the supports. Junn and Coda moved in to nail it down. Junn removed a nail from his mouth and began hammering it into the wood. Speaking around the other two in his mouth, he remarked to Coda, "Real clever with that duet, Coda."

The youngest otter stopped hammering to glance furtively across the orchard, to where Mrue was planting in a nearby garden. He put a finger to his mouth. "Ssh, she might hear you."

Kelp and Kale set down another board and grabbed their hammers. "At that distance? Not likely."

Kale paused before hammering to add, "And you of all beasts know Mrue can't read lips."

Coda half-smiled at the memories behind the statement. "You're right; I'm just paranoid. I hope it goes well."

"It will," the older two otters affirmed in unison.

Junn removed the second nail from his mouth and pounded it in. "All you gotta do is keep your part in it a secret."

Coda's face fell again and he muttered, "Secret or not, it won't matter if she rejects me."

The older two otters and hedgehog rolled their eyes- they'd had this conversation many times before.

"She's not going to reject you," Kelp reassured him.

"But what if she does?"

Kale was firmer in his affirmation. "She won't. So grow a spine and stop worrying."

"She still might reje-" He was cut off by a bouquet of daisies and daffodils landing on the stage, followed by a gruff voice.

"Yer too young to be worrin' 'bout things like that. If'n this maid does reject ye, yer young enough to find another. So put on a brave face and tell yer lady ye love 'er- and give 'er those flowers, compliments of me."

Coda blinked in surprise at the flowers, then turned to see Log-a-Log Lanen only a few steps away. "Er... thanks, Log-a-Log, but... why do you have flowers?"

Log-a-Log leaned on the work-in-progress stage. "I picked 'em for yer director, but she's too busy t'be courted at the moment."

Kelp and Kale lifted a board over Coda's head. Kelp's mouth faltered between a grin and a grimace. "Yeah... When we're close to a concert, Rucci kinda has a 1-track mind."

Junn nodded and reached for more nails. "I wouldn't take it personally."

"It might be a good thing, though." Coda added. "Rucci gets kinda cranky before a performance, with the stress and lack of sleep and all. And she doesn't really like flowers."

At that, Log-a-Log perked up a little. "She doesn't? I though all ladies liked flowers?"

Kelp, being the oldest- Kale just a few days younger- had had plenty of time to learn their leader's quirks and oddities. "Nope. She doesn't see the purpose in giving away something that'll die in a few days."

Kale was just as experienced as Kelp was, having joined the choir on the same day. He decided to add his own two cents, just to prove he could. "If you really want to gain her favor, keep your whole tribe quiet for the whole concert."

Log-a-Log gave him an incredulous look. "How's that gonna help?"

Coda explained, "Creatures talking during a concert is Rucci's biggest pet peeve. If your tribe keeps quiet during the concert- the concert that she's worked so hard to put on- and she knows you're the beast wot caused it, she'll be grateful to you."

Junn gave a nail one last pound. "An' then you build on that gratitude 'til it becomes something...more."

The shrew pondered for a moment. "Well..." he smacked a paw on the stage in resolution, making Coda jump. "If'n Rucci wants silence durin' her singin' show, then she'll get it."

That said, he gave a decisive nod and strode away. The four Chummers watched him go. Coda commented, "Look at us four- the Soprano section would be proud."

Junn rolled his eyes. In unplanned unison, Kelp and Kale pitched their voices high as they could and sang, "'Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match...'"

That little snippet of song is "Matchmaker' from the movie Fiddler on the Roof. I don't own either.