Another chappy done...

Fall—it was a season Claire enjoyed immensely. Perhaps it was the colour change of the leaves or the weather cooling down or seeing the animals preparing for winter. Something about fall just seemed magical to her.

Ordinarily, back where she came from, fall was the season of harvest, hence the holiday of Thanksgiving. But this was Mineral Town. Harvest season was, so far, every season. It sometimes would annoy her even confuse, but in a way she was thankful that the harvests were spaced out. In a weird way, it was kind of handy.

The farmer looked around her farm and declared it a masterpiece or more so than the day she had arrived. She still had to fight with the weeds from hell—surprise, surprise—but everything else was to her standards. Her animals were happy, grazing in her field. Of course, her dog Akira always was running around, making sure everything was okay. Akira would even bug Minnie, if the Tortie wasn't napping somewhere on the grounds like she usually would.

As for her crops—she always had good quality ones in previous seasons and was expecting the same for the fall. She even was considering on checking out fertilizer to further boost the quality and quantity of her crops.

Expanding even crossed her mind. Her house was the perfect size in her opinion. Perfect for entertaining and if Mr. Right ever came along—but that was the last thing on her mind. Her barn and chicken coop seemed a bit small to her though. There were plenty of room for her current animals and even for more, if she ever decided to get more; but she knew that she would to have to expand those buildings at some point, especially if she wanted flocks of cows, sheep, and chickens.

She even was considering on brand new building, a 'Study Building' as she called it. The best place for that she figured was somewhere beside Alex's stable. It was pretty empty there, therefore adding something would 'balance it out' in her mind. In that hypothetical building, she had elaborate plans to turn it to the best quiet area ever. It would be her little secret hideout and would give her space to work on projects she always had wanted to start but never really could.

For now though, it was merely a dream, one in which she was certain would come to pass. After all, one unlikely dream already had.

She hadn't given much thought to the situation relating to the 'Harvest Goddess' and 'Harvest Sprites.' It was a nice distraction from time to time, since she would occasionally visit them. But with her farm work and dealing with the drama in Mineral Town, she simply hadn't had much time to fully indulge her curiosity. One day... she thought to herself as she watered her fields.

Hand watering was another issue which bugged her. She didn't understand why it was necessary to water by hand, especially with all the technology at one's disposal. When she had brought that up to Mayor Thomas one day, well, she soon realized that even jolly people explode on the little things. She quickly dropped it and decided that maybe it wasn't so bad. Things grew faster in Mineral Town anyways; so in essence, it wasn't really that big of a deal. It wasn't too bad of a trade-off.

As soon as she finished watering her crops, she decided to relax underneath her apple tree for awhile. Everything basically was done. In her mind, she had earned a bit of time to sit and reflect. Her thoughts wondered to the last day of summer in which the lovable purple-bandana-wearing guy said his goodbyes to her for the year.

"How's my beautiful lady farmer?" a voice which the farmer knew too well came toward her.

"Fine and dandy, Kai. And busy." She emphasized the last part.

"I can see that." he stated, watching the farmer bend over in order to pull a weed out. The way he spoke to her gave Claire a very uneasy feeling—a feeling of someone giving her attention which she wasn't exactly used to much or that fond of.

"Are you here just to stand there and ogle, or are you here for an important reason?" the farmer asked, briefly glancing at her guest while continuing her work.

"Can't it both?"

"Kai, come on. I'm serious: I don't have the time for you to be, well, you today."

"You take the fun out of everything, you know..." he trailed off then continued, "If you must get down to 'business,' I'm here to say my goodbyes for the year."

"Okay, bye."

The tanned man stared at her for a bit more then decided to leave but not before nonchalantly adding a comment: "Okay. Bye. Have fun with all those rumours."

"I beg your pardon?" That perked the blonde's interest a little more than she had expected: this was Kai after all. He was known for a lot of drama. "Elaborate, Kai." Claire demanded, her work coming to a complete stop now.

"But I thought you didn't have time for that." Kai turned around, knowing he grabbed her attention.

"Oh for the love of... I should know by now that when you come by, work stops. Get your ass over here and sit with me in the dirt. You can at least meet me half way." Claire grumbled.

"And if I refuse, what are you going to do? Make me?"

"I'll beat you with a stick; that's what. So don't push me." the farmer snapped, somewhat getting frustrated with her disruptive guest.

Kai meekly obeyed her but then added, "You are quite hot when you're angry."

The farmer glared at him hard as if lasers would spring out of her eyes. He gave her a knowing toothy smile. She sighed. "Kai, come on... just spill the beans..." She had no idea why this bugged her a lot. Any other time Kai would—she threw that train of thought behind her. This was not the first time she believed his drama-causing remarks. Why would this situation be any different?

The tanned man started to fiddle with the farmer's silver brooch on her overalls, admiring it as he did. "I must confess: there's nothing to spill." he nonchalantly admitted. Claire was growing uneasy. "But of course, you must have had some doubt about that." he continued to smirk. "You're just so easy."

"Stupid Kai." she slapped his hand away from her. Then she quickly realized what he was indirectly getting at: the silver brooch. "Kai, who knows? And don't play stupid with me."

"Just me. Cliff might, but I'm not too sure. He keeps to himself. Your brother? Maybe. He is your brother but me thinks he's too busy with Ann these days to notice."

"And just exactly how?" the blonde demanded.

"It's not to hard to figure out. I stay in the same room as Gray. So does Cliff and your brother. Gray was dumb enough to leave it sitting on his bed one time. He assumed I didn't notice it, but I did; I just pretended not to. And now I see it on you. Deductive reasoning, if I say so myself."

"I hope you didn't strain yourself saying all that." Claire muttered.

"What?"

"Never mind. Just get off my farm if you are done."

"Admit it: you are gonna miss it."

"Not as much as you think."

"But you are gonna miss it a bit. It's okay to admit it. All women can't help it around me."

"Dammit Kai..." Claire rubbed her temple.

"I think I'll go before you really get riled with me." He chuckled then kissed her forehead, surprising her as he did. "Goodbye, my lovely. Till next year." He then proceeded to leave.

"You really are skating on thin ice with me, aren't you. You'd better be lucky no one saw what you did."

To the farmer's puzzlement and further surprise, the flirtatious man came back and crouched back down to her level on the ground. Before she could enquire why, he made a remark on how she was being just a little paranoid. It wasn't a big deal, at least in his eyes. But this was Kai: the one guy who usually took things one step too far.

"Now, this-" He leaned in and kissed her this time on the lips. Her eyes bulged, his closed. So many emotions boiled inside of her. It was if the past, present, and future flashed in front of her like in one big movie lasting for seconds and not the good kind. If she wasn't mad before, she certainly was now. Regaining movement in her muscles since they decided not to work at the moment, she slapped Kai on the face. Hard. The slap jerked him away. He massaged the area that was red and in pain. "Now that, you can be paranoid about."

"What the hell, Kai!?" Claire repeatedly tried to hit him. "Why would you do something like that!?"

"A guy just has to know." The tanned man tried defending himself.

"Know what!?"

"Whether or not I had any chance." He further explained, trying to sound as logical as possible. In his eyes, he thought he was doing a fantastic job at it. He was mighty proud of himself.

"Well, I think you have your answer, Mister." The farmer scowled at him, crossing her arms. Obviously, she didn't get his logic—nor did she had any romantic feelings for him. To her, he was just a guy who loved his ladies—a playboy. Nice, when he wasn't goofing off, but one nevertheless. The more she thought about it, the more she realized that this would've happened eventually. She knew the stories of Kai told by her friends in town and by the three ladies who simply loved any and all gossip.

But when one was about to leave? Even if she had feelings for him which she certainly didn't, she failed to see the reasoning behind that.

"That I do." he causally said as he rose up to leave—for real, this time—smirking. This wasn't his first slap by a pretty woman.

"Do you want me to smack that smirk off your face as well?" The farmer caustically remarked.

"Claire," The tanned traveller hollered behind him as he was leaving, "never change your spunkiness. Or anything about you for that matter. Until next summer. Don't do anything I wouldn't do!" And like that he was out of earshot and soon out of sight.

Claire didn't have anything else to really say to herself or even think. All she did was shook her head as a slight redness crept onto her face. That guy seriously knew how to get underneath her skin.

That same redness crept back onto her face. "Stupid Kai..." She muttered.

"Now what did he do?" A voice she expected to hear at least at some part of the day spoke up. "Considering he's probably in a different country at this point." The voice continued.

The farmer looked from her dog who was paying attention to the origin of the voice up to the man wearing the UMA hat, "Nothing un-Kai-like." The farmer said matter-of-fact.

Gray grunted then changed the subject. "So," He started as he sat down and leaned against the apple tree. Akira came closer and he started stroking her. "are we going to sit here for the rest of the afternoon or are we going to do something?"

"You can go do something. I kind of want to just sit here, do nothing, and perhaps reflect on things."

"Okay."

Claire actually enjoyed it when the blacksmith visited her on her farm, but that didn't mean she thought it normal. She always wondered why he would. What made her and her farm so special? She was just another person; her farm was just another place. Nothing too special, right?

More importantly, why hadn't he gone back in visiting Mary? The farmer thought by now that he would've. The whole misunderstanding with Mary was resolved in Claire's eyes. They weren't buddy buddies but they got along. So there's no reason why he wouldn't go now to the library. But like all things, it just wasn't all that simple.

"Gray, I changed my mind." The farmer broke the silence, not liking where her trail of thoughts were leading her. "And I have an idea what to do."

"And what if I'm content here?"

"Then I along with Akira, if she wants to, will go into the woods to further explore around. And if anything happens to me, then it would be your fault for not coming—and if my brother finds out, he certainly would blame it on you." The farmer stood up, ready for departure.

Gray too stood up. "Yeah, well, not likely to happen."

"Then why did you... Never mind then. If you are coming, then come."

The two of them as well as Akira headed towards the south exit of her farm, which was passed Claire's chicken coop. Akira danced around like a maniac, scaring every little creature nearby. The farmer shook her head at the antics of her dog.

"It's such a perfect day." Claire marvelled at her surroundings, once her group passed by Gotz the woodcutter's cabin and towards the path to the lake. Suddenly, the cool crisp autumn air gently blew the leaves in a welcoming dance around their audience in a sea of scarlets, golds, and coppers. They settled down amongst the bed of other kindred leaves.

"It's not bad." Gray mumbled as he noticed a squirrel scampering off in the distance.

"You sound so excited." The blacksmith shrugged; however, the blacksmith's 'excitement' wasn't going to dampen the mood for Claire. "There's this one place I accidentally found way back when I was fairly new here which I'm dying to know what it looks like now. But I have no idea where it is." the farmer inserted.

"Let me guess you got distracted at the time."

"Maybe... but I fail to see how that's relevant." Claire said matter of fact then quickly continued, "It had this big hill and surrounding it were a sea of trees—oh, and long grass everywhere. I saw a deer there too. Never really got the chance to go back there, considering stuff and of course my farming and those stupid weeds."

"Do you wanna go back there?"

"Well, yeah but... you know where it is?"

"Yeah. Don't seem too surprised there."

"I'm not really..." The farmer trailed off then quickly continued. "Lead the way, Gray! Daylight won't last forever."

The two of them started their trek through the nearby forest. This time, Claire paid attention to where she was going instead of losing herself in her thoughts. She quickly realized that there was no way she would remember every tree, rock, and grass on the way to the open space she had previously found.

"Are we there yet?" the farmer whined. "It's not as if I'm complaining. It just..." Claire stopped in mid-sentence and in walking as she stared at her surroundings. The tall grass dancing in the crisp-cool autumn breeze, the enormous hill relaxing in the sunlight, the odd creature popping in and out of their hiding spots—this definitely was the place she had found a couple seasons ago. However, she found no dear like she did before.

"I take it you never realized how close this area really is to the lake." Gray commented.

"Well, I will admit: patience is sometimes a virtue I don't have." Claire unknowingly admitted.

"Everyone in town knows about this place but pretend they don't. They only really come when they don't want to be around people." The blacksmith added, ignoring the farmer's statement.

"I think some of the festivals should be here—or at the very least create new ones that take place here." The farmer continued to awe at her surroundings.

"Now that's a very pleasant thought." a voice out of nowhere chimed in. The two young adults turned around to find none other than Pastor Carter. "Don't look too surprised." Carter proceeded further in the conversation. "I may spend most of my time at the church, but I do know this island inside and out. There's not much that I don't know here."

"I'm sure there are some things you don't know." Claire pointed out, thinking about the secret she knew about the 'Harvest Goddess' and her friends.

"That is true." the pastor agreed, "But not everything is known. Some things we just have to accept it is what it is."

"Like on faith?"

"Something like that." Carter smiled. "What brings you two out here anyways?" he changed the subject, "Date, perhaps?"

Gray, growing red, pulled down his UMA hat.

"N-no." the farmer stuttered, growing a bit red herself, "Just two adults trying to have a stress free afternoon while doing a bit exploring—Gray here was just showing me where this place was cause back in the Spring, I found this beautiful place by accident, along with my dog, but never knew exactly where it was. And today seemed like a nice day, and-"

"You don't have to give him a play-by-play." Gray snapped out of his uncomfortableness. "I'm sure Carter has places to go." Claire glared at the blacksmith.

"Actually," Carter began, "I was thinking maybe you two wouldn't mind joining me. Occasionally, I come out here for a picnic and end up always bringing with me more food than I actually eat. Usually on my way back to town, I drop off the leftovers at Gotz's house but since you two are here..." he trailed off.

"Sure. Why not." Claire said. "Lead the way!"

Carter led them to a quaint lone tree near the enormous hill. By the look of the wrinkles on the trunk of the tree, Claire assumed it was very old and probably lived through quite its share of hardships. At the same time though, the farmer was sure this lone tree witnessed many romantic gestures.

The three of them settled beneath the lone tree while Akira dashed around the open field, scaring any potential wild life that could appear. Shortly after, Carter distributed the food. "Why do you come out here by yourself, Pastor Carter?" Claire broke the silence.

"I'm never alone, Claire." the pastor chimed. The farmer knew exactly what he meant. She knew what the 'Harvest Goddess' really was, and that she was definitely not a goddess. Telling Carter was completely out of the picture since the information would most likely devastate him, at least in her mind it would.

But would it? Maybe he already knew, but that definitely brought up more questions—questions in which she didn't exactly have the time to explore. Nevertheless, she decided to explore them anyways, considering silence had overtaken them.

If he knew, then why was he keeping it from everyone? To protect her? Or to continually deceive those that still thought she was a goddess? She immediately threw that recent question out of her mind: from what she could tell, Carter wasn't the type of person to do that. He really did seem like a cool guy. If he knew what she knew, then logically in her eyes he must be keeping quiet about it to protect her; however, the thought of him still looking up to her as a goddess or as some supreme being did cross her mind. Perhaps also he knew that if word got out, governments from all over the world would converge on Mineral Town, ask questions about a potential 'threat,' and even search the premises. That wouldn't be good at all for the town, considering even more secrets would come out.

But if he had no idea, was it really her place to say? Did she have the right to completely turn his life upside down? It wasn't as if the 'Harvest Goddess' was enslaving everyone to do her bidding, like the Goa'uld did in Stargate SG-1, a show she watched the DVDs to from time to time. However, that certainly wasn't the case. Deception still was there though; and in her eyes, the truth of anything is powerful. But it can be quite hurtful too... she thought.

"Claire?" the blacksmith's voice echoed in her thoughts, distracting her train of thought. She quickly concluded that if Carter didn't know, it wasn't her place to tell him.

"Hmm?"

"Carter was asking you a question."

The farmer blinked. "Sorry, Carter. I kind of wasn't paying much attention." She could almost hear the blacksmith rolling his eyes. She ignored his annoyance. "Do you mind if you repeat the question?" she asked sheepishly.

"Would you join the upcoming Music Festival?"

"Umm, well, I don't know how to play an instrument." the farmer commented, assuming this Music Festival was one where people played instruments.

"I am confident you would pick up the ocarina quite quickly." the pastor beamed.

"Oh. I tried that instrument once at a con. Couldn't quite get a good sound out of it."

"But you're familiar with it, right?"

"Yeah, I guess. But like I said: I don't know how to play it."

"Let me rephrase: would you be willing to learn how to play the ocarina for the Music Festival? Popuri used to but years ago—well, put it this way: she doesn't now for reasons."

Well, that's vague and mysterious and interesting. But it's not my place to pry. Well, at least not much. She thought. "Uhhhh," she began, quickly realizing she had to answer, "if Popuri doesn't mind giving me a crash course on it, then I guess it wouldn't hurt."

"Oh, thank you!" Carter breathed a sigh of relief which puzzled Claire.

"Forgive me if I sound intrusive," the blonde started, "but you sound a little too happy about this. And I'm guessing it's not because you adore this festival."

"You can ask your brother on that one." Gray spoke from his silence.

"My brother?"

"Yes. What Gray says is quite true." the dirty blond haired pastor confirmed, "Years ago, when he first came, I asked him if he wouldn't mind playing the ocarina at the festival. He accepted, of course, just like I figured he would."

Carter cringed at the next part of his story, "However, as soon as he started playing for the festival, complete disaster followed. I don't say this often about people cause I believe in the support and uplifting of a person, but your brother was horrible on that instrument. He does not have the knack for a musical instrument."

Claire stifled a giggle.

"I can count on you though, right?"

"Carter, I'll give it my best shot! But I'll have you know that I do pick things up quite quickly."

"Sure you do." the blacksmith coughed out, earning him a death glare from the farmer.

"Wonderful!" the pastor chirped as he started to gather the remains of the picnic.

Claire tried to help, but Carter motioned that he didn't need any. The farmer shrugged her shoulders and stared out into the open field. She quickly realized that Carter was then saying his goodbyes to her and the blacksmith. She quickly waved. "Bye, Carter!" She spoke as he walked away.

"I do wonder what exactly goes on in that pretty little head of yours." Gray commented.

"Stuff you obviously can't handle." Claire retorted and smacked his arm.

Gray raised his eyebrows, giving her a blank look. He then stood up and started to head towards the direction of the lake, thus leading him back home. Claire got the message and quickly followed suit.

When they arrived at her farm, Gray didn't stop but rather continued his trek northward, leading into town. "You're not going to stay longer?" The farmer inquired.

"Nah. I sort of promised Ann that I would be back as soon as possible. She says she has something 'planned,' whatever the hell that means." Gray muttered the last part.

"And if you aren't there by X time, it will be ten times worse." Claire stated, knowing what Ann would do.

"Exactly. Can't risk it. You're welcome to join."

A warmth crept onto Claire's face but quickly subsided. "Thanks but no thanks. I still have stuff to do—you know, make sure everything is okay. That sort of thing. Have fun though."

"Ha! I'll try..." The blacksmith muttered, faking enthusiasm.

When Gray left her sights, Claire quickly scanned across her field. "I guess back to work." Akira, out of nowhere, barked in agreement, somewhat startling the farmer.

"Go do stuff, Akira." With that, her dog dashed across the field in search of finding something to do. The farmer shook her head and laughed. She then walked towards her animals and decided to escort her animals back into their respective shelters. Akira quickly decided to help her mistress, much to the farmer's delight.

Claire's thoughts, as she was completing her selected task, then led her to learning to properly play the ocarina and the Music Festival. She was confident she would nail the learning and the performance. Music is a bit like math, so I've been told. How hard can it be?

Yeah. Update on me: I now am enrolled an an university. Taking summer courses and building from there. For now, I have a bit more free time, since I've cut down on working. So I juggle work, TV shows (and there are LOTS of them: stupid summer shows lol), and university. But from time to time, I try to squeeze some writing in like when I have break during class.
I'll post Chapter 22 as soon as I can, but don't expect it to be that quick (unless I get super inspired - that does happen).
Thanks those who still keep up with this. You people are awesome!
Till next time! Keep your stick on the ice! (I had to.)