Yet another egg waited in the coop the next day. Evie could swear Aphrodite was actually preening at her excessive praising. Animals here were weird… Another surprise waited for her in the barn. Hera was big enough that she was ready to be milked. After a few trials and errors, Evie managed to fill an old can with milk. Hera's lowing and affectionate head-bump had Evie gushing even more praises on her fully adult cow. She couldn't even summon up the energy to be embarrassed. Turnips and potatoes were put in the sell box, only a few kept out for herself to eat. The next crop of lettuces finished, as well, but only a few were good enough to keep for Ruth. With a groan, Evie added running to Marimba farm on her list of chores. There was still a few more lettuces that would be ready in the next day or so, but getting a whole bushel of good enough crop was proving more time-consuming than she'd originally thought.

"You could try riding Hera," Finn pointed out a while later as they jogged down to the small beach on the way to Flute Fields.

"I don't think she's that big yet. It would be a lot easier to get around if I could… I might look pretty ridiculous riding a cow around, though…" Evie mused, breaking into chuckles at the image. "Since we're going over there, I think I might have enough to get a lamb from Horn farm. If I could sell wool with the milk and eggs, I could get enough to buy off my house in no time."

"Things are definitely looking up," Finn agreed, whizzing past her to pick up a shell to bring back to her. She stuffed her pack with urchins, shells, and berries, then took off jogging again.

"I'm glad we managed to find that moonstone right where we thought it was. And Garmon isn't that big, I'm sure we'll find the last one with no problem. I just wish mining for gold and rare ore wasn't so difficult ! We're so close to waking Alana up and Ringing that first Bell. It's maddening!" Evie exclaimed, mussing up her own hair in aggravation. Finn nodded so enthusiastically, he rang like a bell himself.

"Today is the day! We'll get them today!" Finn declared.

"Yeah!" Evie laughed.

Marimba loomed in front of her and she quickly managed to calm down enough to walk in without looking crazy. Ruth looked up from the counter with a little nod of acknowledgement, but there weren't a lot of words other than polite hellos exchanged. Lettuces were handed over, more seeds were bought, and Evie left soon after. She'd learned already to get in and get out before finding herself in the middle of another fight. Taylor was still missing and Ruth's anxiety over her son's situation had her tongue-lashing her husband regularly.

Horn Ranch was a much pleasanter place, full of eager, cheerful greetings. Even after spending most of the day with Evie the day before, Renee was excited to see her. In fact, Evie was almost bowled over with Renee's enthusiastic chitchat and easy hugs. When the new rancher mentioned she was going to try her hand at grilling for the first time ever that day, with a huchen no less, Hanna had briskly whisked the carefully wrapped fish away to save it from a terrible fate.

"Not even scaled or gutted yet. I say, these city girls," Hanna had muttered under her breath.

A laughing Renee had dragged a nonplussed and fishless Evie to the barn to show off the new lambs to be bought. The moment Evie clapped eyes on the black-faced trembling ball of fluff next to its more traditionally all white twin, she was in love . When it finally got familiar enough with her scent to nuzzle into her hands, long funny-looking tail wagging like a dog's, Evie had basically thrown her wallet at the Horns. Cain promised to take the sweet 'wee lamb' and a new chick to her barn, and she'd regretfully pulled herself away from the barn. Feed and fodder were added to the bill and she was sent off with more smiles, a perfectly grilled huchen wrapped in clean new paper, and entreaties to return for lunch or dinner one day soon. Renee even offered to walk her to Garmon Mines until Cain reminded her about the chickens in the Windmill she needed to look after.

Something about that tickled at the back of Evie's mind, but she shook it away and headed out. She had a long, tiring day of mining to get to after all.

By the time she finally made it to Garmon District, it was already past 11 am. Her legs weren't as tired as they would've been two weeks ago, but they weren't exactly 100% either. The bridge rattled under her quick stomping feet, and just ahead she could see Luke. He was standing outside the shop, swinging his axe petulantly and carelessly.

Evie called out,"Whoa, bro, watch it." She crossed her arms as she waited well behind him. Luke set the axe against the shop with a grin that swept away all traces of his sulk.

"You scared, Evie?" Luke teased, jogging up to her.

"Of an axe swinging around? Uh, yeah , I'm not stupid , Lu," Evie retorted with an eyeroll.

"What did I say about Lu, huh?" Luke growled, wrapping a thick arm around her neck and tugging her close. She wriggled and flailed, snort-snickering inelegantly.

"That it's cute and adorable?" she said with auburn eyes meeting his golden ones unrepentantly.

"Argh! You're the worst!"

" Luke Carpenter !" boomed a very displeased voice behind them. They both jumped and turned to see a frowning Dale in the doorway. "I thought I said to get your butt to the mine cart and help Bo out? It's been taking too long to fix that damn thing-" Dale broke off, expression lightening when he caught sight of her. "Well, good morning t'you, Evelyn. Don't let my boy get you in the middle of his messes, ya hear?" Dale warned with a huff. "He knows what he should be about."

Evie saluted from her awkward, half-crouched position under Luke arm. "Yessir."

Luke rolled his eyes and sighed over dramatically. "I'm going, Pops. Right now. I was just waitin' for Evie to tell her I can't help her mining today," he explained, ending in a cheeky grin. He waved at his dad and tugged Evie away with him. "See you at lunch, Daddy-o!"

"It's not like you've been a lot of help down there. Half my bruises came from your over-enthusiastic hammer swinging," Evie scoffed, finally getting loose.

"Hey, we found a bunch of silver ore together. It was a team effort," Luke protested good-naturedly.

"Yeah, yeah, you did help with the silver," she allowed with a shake of her head. "But I'll be fine. I'm gonna come back up here with a sack full of gold and rare ore, you just wait. Today is the day," Evie pronounced, flexing one arm with her fist in the air. Luke laughed and clapped her back.

"If anyone could do it just by believin' it, it'd be you. You've got good luck followin' you," Luke agreed easily. Evie blinked, but smiled genuinely at him.

"That's probably one of the nicest things anyone's ever said to me, Luke. Thanks," she said sincerely. Luke blushed slightly and rubbed the side of his nose.

He muttered, "It's nuthun'."

"I have to stop in the general store, go ahead without me. I'm sure Bo would appreciate your help more than I need it," Evie suggested with a little wave. Luke shrugged and waved back. She watched him go, then headed inside.

Barbara Kettles, whom Evie had met recently and had sold her a nicely priced blender and pot, was sitting at the counter as per the norm. A little TV was playing a daytime show, some drama or another that had the green-haired woman utterly engrossed. Only Evie's slightly too loud cough could interrupt Barbara's attention to the screen.

"Oh my! I didn't even hear the door! Jane and Michael are finally getting married and it's so hard to tear my eyes away. Sweet man, I knew they'd be happy together, but of course, that Petra's twin is mucking everything up with Rafael…" the shopkeeper tutted, eyes flickering back to the screen.

"That sounds… interesting… but I was hoping to buy some matches? A grill kit, I think? I got this fish, I guess I don't have to grill it now, but I figured it's good thing to have in the future?" Evie explained poorly. Barbara laughed and bustled over towards the section piled high with purple boxes. She reminded Evie very strongly of Hanna, with that similarly busy and cheerful personality.

"Of course, I got just what you need. I'll ring you up in a jiffy. How goes your gold search?"

"Slow," Evie grumbled irritably. Barbara laughed louder.

"I would get my daughter to help you out, she's got a knack for mining, my girl. She knows the best spots for all sorts of different things. Always bringing home rocks in every pocket and chugging away in that lab of hers. But she still hasn't come back home. My husband been raising a fuss with me, anxious twitterpate that he is," she said fondly, taking Evie's money and ringing it all without even looking at her hands. She paused, change in hand, as concern flittered over her face. "I tell my husband she's an adult, and she takes care of herself very well, no need to be harpin' after her like she's still a child, but… She has been gone for a while. I'm gonna get worried myself soon enough."

"If I catch sight of her, I'll make sure she knows you're worried. I'll tell Owen, too. He gets around more of the mine than I do," Evie promised. Barbara smiled in relief and handed over the change.

"Thank you, sweetie. That'll be just the thing. I'll tell my husband and maybe it'll calm him down a bit, too. I'm close to locking him in the closet to shush up that busybodyin' of his," Barbara confessed with a wink. Evie laughed and backed out of the store.

Evie's plan today was to start mining on the lowest floor she could get to (level nine) and work her way up. She had noticed that the closer to the lower floors she got, the more silver she'd found. It seemed like a safe bet to think gold would probably be deeper as well. Rare ore was more like rolling dice at a craps table, there wasn't much planning for that other than hit every likely looking rock and hope for the best. It took the better part of two hours to get straight down to the lowest floor, with a hidden staircase and a misplaced hammer blow resulting in a foul-smelling gas run-in. At long last, Evie sat on the ninth level cross-legged with a grilled huchen laid out on her lap and a handful of wild mushrooms. The noxious smell of gas still lingered on her clothes, but she ignored it gamely enough. She also took the opportunity to try out the fire kit and a tiny fire crackled just in front of her after a few false starts. Finn sat near the fire, tiny hands held out to the warmth and his glow dimmed by his not-quite-conquered fear of the mines.

"It's scarier without Owen or Luke. Why can't we find Owen first? What if he's right downstairs?" Finn whimpered fearfully.

"What, I'm not heroic enough for you?" Evie joked, stomach growling at the smell of fried fish filling the stale cavern air. Her mouth actually watered as she began to chow down, uncaring of how much it had cooled in the hours since being cooked. She barely managed to give a few bits of flaky white flesh to Finn to nibble, she was so hungry.

"The more people, the less creepy and dark it seems," Finn said as Evie carefully navigated her teeth around bones.

Evie replied staunchly, "We'll be fine. We've been coming down here for days! Ain't nothing gonna happen, I promise." Finn buzzed up to her breast pocket and tucked himself in, shivering and yawning, ready for his full-belly-induced nap of the day.

The fish was eaten too quickly, but she felt energized and fresh, so nothing kept her sitting other than her own tired bones. Leaning back on her hands, she watched the little fire flicker and dance, eyelids drooping dangerously. The moment she felt her chin hit her collarbone and her head jerk up too quickly, Evie knew it was really time to get up. The rancher got to her feet groaning, hands bracing on her knees a moment, then she stretched her arms up high and quickly snuffed the fire with the last of the tea in her thermos she'd stuck in her rucksack with the fish. She swung her hammer up onto a shoulder and grinned down at Finn.

"I hope you're ready to start?" she teased. Finn blinked slowly and drowsily up at her.

"Uh huh, you can do it," he mumbled before he slid deeper into her pocket. A chiming snore greeted her a second later.

Snickering, Evie marched over to the first likely looking pile of boulders. Once she had a rhythm going, mining wasn't too difficult. The hardest parts were getting the hell outta dodge when a blow struck gas, or moving out of the way if big chunks of rock sprayed towards her unprotected skin under the blows. A few junk ores and an iron ore later had her optimism floundering. Finn was still curled up in her breast pocket, refusing to be helpful at all, and without either Owen or Luke to chat with, it was getting lonely fast. A rock shattered under her hammer and a dark yellowish rock tumbled to her feet.

She froze, hammer mid-swing, then shrieked in glee. "It's gold! Finn, Finn, look! It's really gold!" She jumped and danced around giddily; Finn snorted himself awake and stared woozily at it. "We're almost done, Finn!"

"It… it's really gold !?" Finn gasped, ears perking up and wide awake. "We only need one more, Evie! You did it! I knew you'd find it!" the sprite cried happily, whizzing around her head in his familiar exuberance.

When another hammer blow found yet another gold ore, Finn actually stayed out of the pocket to chatter on and on about Alana and Collin and Bells and the Harvest Goddess. They moved up to the eighth floor, then the seventh, but their optimism refused to flag when they found only more silver and coppers as they went. On the sixth floor, they were discussing how to find the next couple Bells, what leads they might have forgotten, when one rock busted apart and strangely-tinted ore bumped her shoes. Evelyn frowned and leaned down to peer closer.

"Is that an iron? It looks kinda like iron?" Finn asked, hovering over it. His glow, much brighter thanks to his cheerier disposition, lit up the blue sheen of the ore. Evie fell to her butt, gaping.

"Finn, that's rare ore," Evie said breathlessly.

"What? Really? No way! It is !" Finn exclaimed. They stared at each other for a long moment, and then began to laugh. Evie grabbed the ore and launched to her feet, shoving it into her rucksack with a little jig.

"We're finally ready. I can't believe it! Today really was-" Evie heard a crunching noise and felt the ground under her foot give. She glanced down, saw the warning 'X' mark Owen had placed over weak ground, and barely took a breath before she was tumbling down. She screamed in shock more than fear, barely even registering the odd way her foot turned under her weight. Especially when her knees and hands slammed painfully to the ground seconds later and jarred her whole body like a tuning fork.

"EVIE!" Finn shrieked, hurtling down the hole after her.

"'m okay, Finn, really," Evie groaned and sat up. She winced, blowing on her hands and trying to move her legs around to check her knees. "I didn't fall far- oh, ow, shit-taki mushrooms," she wheezed the moment she put her foot to the ground. She grasped her ankle, body shaking with the pain stabbing through her leg. "Oh, snapcracklefrackin pop , I think I twisted my gorramn ankle falling."

"Your ankle?! It's twisted!? E vieeee !" Finn wailed, throwing himself at her collar and clutching her desperately, huge tears streaming down his face in worry.

Evie barely managed a smile and pressed her cheek to his head. "It wasn't so bad, Twinkletoes. Just a little twist. I used to do it all the time as a kid, weak ankles. Let's go get these ores to Mr. Ramsey."

"Are you crazy!?" Finn screeched, now circling her in agitation. "You need to go to the doctor, Evie! Your ankle is twisted ! Ankles shouldn't get twisted ! That sounds painful! Are you in pain? Can I help?"

"I'm fine. Calm down, Finn," Evie tried to laugh. She got her hands under herself and attempted to push up, only to fall back down with a short cry of pain at the burn in her hands and ankle. She held up her scraped up palms and uselessly blew on them again, grimacing at Finn's renewed wailings- mainly because of the sheer terror in his voice rather than any sort of irritation. She didn't like the idea that her clumsiness had him terrified .

"Evie!" Finn sobbed pathetically as he crumpled against her throat again, wings tickling the underside of her chin.

"Okay, so it hurts a lot. I'll just rest a minute and I'll be fine," Evie allowed, trying to smile for Finn's sake even while tremors overtook her leg.

"Evelyn? Is that you?" a deep, male voice echoed throughout the chamber. "I thought I heard a rockfall… ah." Owen came to a stop, one hand on his hip, the other holding the hammer braced on his shoulders. " You were the fall."

"I might've gotten too excited and forgot to watch my feet," Evie admitted with a scowl. Owen pressed his lips together to keep from laughing and got down on his knees. "I'm fine. I just gotta rest a minute and I'll be up. Don't think I didn't catch that insinuation about me being the same as a rockfall, Owen."

"Lemme check, a'right? I've gotten every kind of injury down here," Owen offered diplomatically. Evie scowled harder, then released a breath and nodded.

She winced and flinched through his ministrations, fingers curled into fists and lips white. It was only Finn's keening sobs that kept her so silent, though- otherwise she would've been cursing a bluestreak or crying herself. Owen patted her knee and gently set her foot down.

"It's definitely twisted. It'll be fine in a couple weeks if you keep off it, no more mining until then. Ramsey's got a couple old ankle braces in the smithy. We'll get you suited up in no time," Owen assured her with a big smile. Evie nodded mutely. It had hurt a whole damn lot more than she'd expected. At least he had confirmed she hadn't broken it.

Evie nodded after a long moment of chewing her bottom lip and said, "Okay, I can do this. Just maybe... hand me my hammer? It should be long enough." Owen laughed outright.

"No way am I gonna let you hobble up seven flights of stairs in the dark, Evelyn. You can ride piggyback. Come on," Owen ordered as he squatted next to her. Evie punched his shoulder, hard . "Oi! What was that for?"

"Don't tell me what I can or cannot do, Gravel. I'm not gonna let you carry me all the way up with all my gear. I'll lean on your shoulder and hop."

"You're serious," Owen stated blankly. He shook his head, perplexed. "I carry giant boulders around all day, Evelyn. I can give you a piggyback ride," he argued adamantly.

Finn dithered between them, his tiny hands wringing anxiously. "Evie, you should do the piggyback ride. If he says you need it, maybe you do!"

"I said no ." She glared at both the fairy and the miner stubbornly. "Also, strike two on the comparing me to giant rocks, bro. You want me to hop my way up by myself or are you gonna lend me an arm?" Evie snapped, exasperated, dragging her hammer over and using it to lever herself onto her good leg. Owen stood with her, scratching his head before shrugging.

"We'll do it your way." His arm wrapped around her waist tightly. "Hop along then."

"Shut up, Gravel," Evie muttered darkly. Then, she proceeded to hop ungainly towards the stairs. Owen just laughed and kept his hold secure.

Finn sighed, "You're not being very nice, Evie." She scoffed under her breath.

Like drunken three-legged race contestants, Owen and Evie slowly staggered their way up the mine stairs. The ores rattled and smacked painfully against her spine, and the slightest weight on her ankle had her biting down sobbing yelps. However, Evie still refused to ask to be carried- especially after so forcefully rejecting it in the beginning. Her lip was almost bleeding under the sharp edge of her teeth, but she diligently limped at Owen's side. Owen, for his part, never repeated his offer, instead discreetly bearing more of her weight when she sagged with fatigue, or catching her before she could fall when she stumbled. Even though he mostly thought she was being stupidly bullheaded, Owen couldn't help but be impressed when they made it outside at last, and it was written all over his face.

"Hey, Evie! Owen! You're out kinda early. It ain't even dinner time- wait, Evie, are you limping?" Luke shouted in consternation.

Evie looked up with a pained grin to see both Luke and Bo hurrying towards them from the cart. "Nothing's broken, it's cool." Evie tried to shrug it off nonchalantly, only to gasp and groan as she accidentally stepped forward with her bad leg.

"That doesn't look like nothing," Bo demurred worriedly.

"You let her walk like that?" Luke snapped at Owen. He actually looked mad , gold eyes flashing in the sunlight and arm slicing through the air in Evie's direction. Her eyebrows snapped low as she snarled,

" Let me? Excuse frackin' you!"

Owen held up his one free arm supplicatingly. "She refused any other help, man. Climbed eight staircases like a boss," Owen told them- almost proudly.

"That's just stupid," Luke said, utterly baffled and staring at her.

"No one lets me do anything, Carpenter. I am not baggage and I am not going to be conveyed as though I am!" Evie retorted shortly, pain and insult sharpening her words.

Luke snorted. "Okay then, princess ." His lips curved into a mischievous smirk. He managed to situate himself on Evie's opposite side and, before she could figure out his game, swept her off her feet— princess-style.

"Put me the jiminy down! " Evie shrieked. Her attempts at flailing or kicking her way free ended abruptly when the movement had her hissing in pain and unconsciously curling towards Luke's chest.

"Sure thing, ya' highness. Once we get to the smithy or my house, choose," Luke replied cheerfully. Owen and Bo wisely kept any humor quiet while Evie sent a poisonous glare to the side of Luke's face.

"The smithy," Evie grumbled, arms crossing over her chest. "We need to give Ramsey the last of the ores I found."

"We'll get around to that, Evelyn. Your ankle comes first," Owen disagreed politely.

Evie grumbled again, but even Finn was vehemently agreeing— right into her ear.

Getting her ankle wrapped was an easy enough job for the veteran miner, Ramsey's old, calloused hands sure and familiar with the Ace bandage. He was a bit too familiar with his good-natured scolding, but he made up for it by being genuinely glad to get the last of the ores. It made the teasing worth it to see the relief on his tanned and weathered features. A little bit of unspoken gratitude that almost had her feeling like the hero the Goddess believed her to be. Ramsey sat back with a quietly amused huff.

"All done here. Time to blow that bell outta there," Ramsey announced while standing.

"Oh, oh! Lemme help, Gramps! Pleeaasse?" Chloe begged, jumping up and down.

"You can help with the bellows if you skedaddle the second I tell you to," Ramsey acquiesced with thunderously bushy brows lowered.

"Sir, yes, sir," Chloe agreed with a salute.

"I wanna be outside for this. I gotta see it happen," Evie stated while she struggled to her feet. She slapped at Luke's hip. "Get crackin', Prince Charming," she sneered imperiously. Luke laughed and swept her up effortlessly.

"Whatever milady wishes," Luke joked blithely.

"That was almost too 'Princess Bride' for me. Don't make it weird, Lu," Evie warned with an amused twitch of her mouth despite herself. Owen and Luke both snorted loudly. Bo hurried to open the door and the four of them walked out onto the road. Owen led them far enough down the way that they could see the top of the chimney. The moment they stopped, Evie began to squirm. "Okay, down now. I'll lean on you like an old lady, but I'm gonna be on my feet."

"Ok, ok! Jeesh, you'd think I was copping a feel or something," Luke complained. Evie only laughed and patted his cheek condescendingly.

"Heads up, I'm seeing smoke," Owen cautioned. Evie jerked her gaze back to the chimney and Finn chimed beside her shoulder.

"Not a lot of it," Bo said dubiously.

"The bell is probably blocking most of it," Evie pointed out.

"It's also gonna take awhile before it gets hot enough to throw the ores in. Let's hope Gramps and Chlo can pull it off… I think I'll go back and help." Owen took off jogging before he even finished the thought aloud.

"I hope this works!" Finn said fervently.

Evie muttered under her breath, "me, too."

A few tense minutes that felt like hours later, a loud yet muffled clapping noise followed by an even louder boom echoed from the smithy. Evie actually tightened her grip around Luke's arm at the feeling of the ground vibrating under her feet. The door of the smithy burst open, clouds of black smoke and three coughing Gravels pouring out the opening. But Evie and Finn had their eyes on the sudden thick plume of smoke escaping from the chimney. Amidst the ash and smoke, a dully gleaming scarlet object toppled through the air.

"The Bell!" Finn and Evie both exclaimed.

"Whoa!" Luke stumbled back when Evie abruptly moved away. Even limping, she moved fast, mouth gaping and eyes on the Bell. The brace on her ankle was really the only reason she hadn't already crumpled- that and sheer force of will. With a loud, wordless holler of triumph, she held out her arms and caught the Bell. Of course, the next step was on the wrong foot and down like a sack of bricks she went.

"Evie!" "Miss Evelyn!" Luke and Bo shouted together. Evie was laughing and wincing and Finn flew dizzying circles around her.

"You caught it! You did it! We've got the Bell!"

"We did it," Evie agreed through gasping laughter.

"You're crazier 'n me, Evie, but that was an awesome catch," Luke cheered.

"I only do my best," Evie joked with a groan.

"It's too late to Ring the Bell today, but we can come back bright and early tomorrow, right?" Finn asked excitedly.

Evie looked up to see the sun indeed sinking below the mountain line. There was no way she would be able to make it down ten floors before twilight, especially with her busted ankle.

"Tomorrow then," Evie sighed.

"Tomorrow what?" Bo asked curiously as he knelt beside her; one hand was hovering as if ready to help her up.

Meaningfully lifting the Bell in her hands, Evie replied simply, "I have to put this back where it belongs."

"What? Tomorrow you should stay home and take care of yourself. The Bell can wait," Luke disagreed, confounded.

"I didn't know you could be such a motherhen," Evie said with a truly baffled look on her face, tipping back her head to squint up at him. He made a face down at her, but wisely kept his hands to himself when she struggled to push herself back up, hissing at the pain in her hands and knees.

"Hey, guys! Did you manage to see the Bell?" Owen called over. He, Ramsey, and Chloe were all making their way towards them, still coughing slightly and wiping soot off their blackened faces.

"Actually, Miss Evelyn caught it," Bo supplied.

"Oh, wow! You're so cool!" Chloe exclaimed in awe. Her wide green eyes looked dazzled as she gazed at Evie.

"Uh, thanks?" Evie shifted awkwardly and tried to feel cool.

"Chloe has something else she needs to be sayin'," Ramsey prompted gruffly. Chloe immediately looked down, shame-faced, and scuffed her tennis shoe.

"I'm sorry I caused so much trouble. Thank you for helping with the Bell I got stuck."

"It's no problem. At least it's okay. No cracks or dings, just a little dirty. No harm done," Evie reassured her easily.

"Well, not to the Bell ," Owen said pointedly with a grin.

"You just twisted your ankle, no problem, right?" Luke mocked, nudging her arm and knocking her off balance.

"It was my own clumsiness, not a fault of Chloe's. And now I'm going home." Evie turned and haughtily began to limp away.

"Hey, now! Don't get all uppity, Princess. Lemme sweep you off your feet again."

"Eat dirt, Lu ." Luke only laughed, scooping her up the minute she stumbled. "Dagnabit, Luke!"

...

The next morning, Evie limped and hobbled around her house as quietly as possible. Candace and Renee had come over at Luke's phone calls. Ostensibly to help around the farm, but it felt more like being babysat. Like all her so-called friends didn't trust her to stay home and take care of herself. The fact that she was sneaking out of her house at the ass-crack of dawn to go tottering around a mine, therefore decidedly not staying home and resting, was a moot point.

She's an adult , damn it.

Plus, it's really hard to get heroic magic-y things done if people were up in her business being concerned .

"Are you sure you're okay to do this?" Finn asked anxiously. He fluttered around her shoulders as she staggered doggedly towards Garmon. The brace Ramsey had given her, and the icing and elevation she'd done all last night while overly-superciliously ordering her friends around from her bed, had already significantly improved her ankle.

"We don't have time to just wait around. Once Alana Rings the Bell, I'll have a whole four days to wait for the lettuce to grow for Ruth. I'll rest then."

" Okaaay , but let's be extra careful in the mine."

"Deal."

Evie checked her watch as they made it to the bridge, sighing in relief seeing it was barely seven. She had forgone checking over her animals before leaving for just this purpose (though it had been ridiculously difficult to do so). Most of the Garmon residents would either be sitting down for breakfast or not even up yet. She didn't want to sneak around more than she had to already. She stopped outside the mine just long enough to pick some wild, edible mushrooms; she'd need to snack pretty soon, given she hadn't eaten breakfast.

"Once more, unto the breach," Evie quoted softly. Her ankle twinged uncomfortably going down the first flight of steps, but she just breathed heavily through her nose and kept on.

The going was slow, but steady. She lucked out on the stairways being clear, if sometimes difficult to find. Her slow pace, along with Finn's light guiding the way close to the ground, made it easier to keep an eye out for weak spots in the floor. She couldn't help but worry that her friends would catch up and drag her bodily back home before she managed to get the Bell Rung. It took most of her willpower to keep from running just to get it over with. Finally making it down to the tenth floor was the end of the most nerve-wracking and painful ninety minutes of her life. That included final exams in college . Evie collapsed onto a pillar on the tenth floor with a loud, relieved gasp.

"We're here! Evie, you made it the whole way here! All on your own! Wait till I tell Mother. She's gonna be so amazed at you!" Finn gushed proudly.

"There is nothing inherently amazing about that statement," Evie panted wryly. "I think you'll have to explain the bum ankle first."

"Oh, I guess you're right… Come on, Evie! Get the Bell! The Bell!" Finn shrieked, tugging at the rucksack.

Evie rolled her eyes, but swung the sack around to flip the top open. The Red Bell lay right on top of everything else, gleaming ruby red in the low-torchlight around them. She pulled it free, letting the pack drop with a hollow thwump , and began the slow, limping journey to the Arch. The second her foot touched the slightly raised dais, the Bell shook madly in her hands, gleaming brighter and brighter. Evie dropped it with surprised shout, but it jumped into the air before it hit the ground and flew towards the Frame. It attached itself to the equally shining Arch, and then flashed so brightly Evie and Finn had to cover their eyes.

" Aaaaahhh , that was a really nice nap!" yawned a warm, sleepy voice. "Oh, is that Finn?"

"Alana?" Finn whimpered hesitantly.

Evie and Finn blinked away red spots to see the small, crimson-glowing figure hovering down to their eye level. Like Collin, Alana looked like a larger Finn, but in red tunic and stocking-cap. Her pointed little ears quivered while her lips curled into a wide, pleased smile.

"Yes, it's me. It's so good to see you again, little brother," Alana giggled with her tiny arms open wide. Finn released a happy cry and flung himself into her arms. She stroked his head fondly, her eyes peering over his head to meet Evie's. "And you're the hero. You're finally here."

"Evelyn, actually. Finn calls me Evie, though. It's nice to meet you, Alana," Evie greeted, a little dazedly.

"It's fan tastic to meet you! I feel like I've been asleep for ages and ages. I can't wait to see Mother again," Alana sighed, now nuzzling Finn gleefully. "Thank you so much."

Evie suggested sardonically, "Um, maybe before that… you could ring the bell?"

"Hm? What's that?" Alana hummed. She blinked over at Evie, then down at Finn, blinked once more, and then burst into giggles. "I totally forgot, didn't I? Of course I'll Ring the Bell! We sprites might've failed to fulfill our duty at first, it's not too late to complete our mission now, thanks to you. Get back to your hero, Finn, and watch your big sis work," Alana told Finn, patting him one more time with a wink. Finn zoomed over to Evie's shoulder, quivering and twinkling in excitement. Alana turned to her Bell. "Ahem, Bell of Fire! Ring out your strong and burning melody! May your tune carry across the entire land!"

It may have taken a whole sixteen days to ring a bell , but it was beyond worth it. The cavern filled with a pulsing, red light that somehow felt inviting and joyful rather than the typical intimidating. Then the Bell Rang , the sound escaping softer and higher than such a large bell denoted. It reminded Evie of a jewelry box song. The nostalgia the image evoked had Evie's heart swelling in her chest, growing big enough to burst. The warmth she'd felt before filled her from her toes to her fingertips to the crown of her head. It was as if fire and sunshine had bloomed in her very bones. Her eyes seemed to close on their own, but behind her eyelids she could still… see . An image of Garmon Mines and all the people that lived there stepping out into the sunshine was branded into her mind. The whole group, clad in pajamas and slippers and yawning sleepily, was looking up into the air, smiles on every face, as the melody resonating throughout the mines trailed through the air outside the mountain. Suddenly, she could see every oven, stove, and forge fire burst into bright, orange flames. Light after light in the mines burned bright, leading deeper into the heart of the mountain. The very earth beneath Evie's shoes felt warmer, pulsing as if it had gained a heartbeat, breathed back to life by a simple, sweet melody.

"It's done," Alana sang happily.

Evie slowly blinked her eyes open, lids heavy- as though she were pulling herself out of a waking dream. In front of her, Alana floated down, smiled, and cutely bowed.

"Thank you, hero," the red sprite said solemnly. With another wink, she glowed ruby and disappeared.

"We did it!" Finn cried, colliding into the side of Evie's head, nuzzling and laughing. "We finally Rang a Bell!"

"We did. Wow. It's… real. It's all real," Evie murmured blankly. Reaching up, she snagged Finn to pull him down into a proper cuddle-hug. "Four more to go. No problem, right, partner?"

"Me? Partner?"

"Of course!" Evie smooched his pudgy cheek. "The best partner in the whole world. Now, let's get home and rest this ankle."

"Sounds good to me!"

Gradually, they trudged up the stairs. It was easier going with the torches now brighter than ever, but her ankle was shakier than when she'd come down. The long morning finally seemed to have caught up with her injury.

"I wish the stairs went just straight up and down, you know? Instead of these games of hide-n-seek every jammin' floor," Evie huffed as she leaned against a stone wall. Sweat slid down her temple and her knee shook dangerously when she stepped away.

"We made it up three whole floors already, Evie. You can do it!" Finn encouraged. The victory of the Bell was beginning to fade slightly as he now hovered around her anxiously.

"I know, but it would help if I could grow wings of my own. Or maybe had a crutch or-"

"EVIE! Watch out!" Finn shrilled-

One second too late.

Her bad foot hit a rock, knocking her just off balance enough to step right onto a weakened area. A scream rang through the stale mine air as down, down, down she fell. A flash of red light and smooth, crumbling walls, then her feet hit the ground with a thump and an ominous, sickening crack followed. Another, shriller, pitchier scream tore from her throat before she fell on her face, sobbing into dirt.

"Evie! Evie, are you okay? How can I help! What happened? Your leg looks funny, Evie! Evie!" Finn's voice sounded so strange, distant and fuzzy, like from the other end of a tunnel filled with towels. She would've laughed at such a stupid thought if a burning sharp knife wasn't digging into her leg mercilessly.

"Get… help… Luke… please," Evie gasped out. Her eyes rolled back and the red walls of the tenth floor became black.


A/N: I'm going to pause updating on this HELLISH CLIFFHANGER (lololol). The next chapter IS finished, I promise, and is already in the to be beta'd. I think... not before the 3rd of February. (I swear it's for a good cause!)