Friday, 19th of Summer

It was raining this morning, so Alma's work on the farm was fairly quick. She harvested the hops and had more poppies growing too, then she took care of all the animals and mushrooms. When she was finished and was organizing things in the chests, she got to thinking about her next farm structure. There was still time for a silo, she didn't have cloth for a mill … so maybe she should think about expanding the coop or barn to house different animals. She saw that if she wanted ducks, she would need a bigger coop. She figured a coop renovation would probably be cheaper than one for a barn, but there was only one way to find out.

Alma went back inside, wiping her boots on the rug at the door. She went to the telephone and sat at the table, putting her hat down next to her. As she dialed Robin's number, Bisclavret came and sat next to her, placing his head in her lap. She petted his ears while the phone rang. "Hello?" Robin answered.

"Hi, Robin, it's Alma calling on my brand new telephone!"

"Hey! Good to know it's working fine."

"I guess you're open right now?"

"Yes, I'm currently open for business. What can I do for you?"

"I'm wondering what I might need for a coop upgrade."

"Sure, it's 10,000 gold, 400 wood, and 150 stone."

Alma looked at her money. She had barely enough. She knew she had enough stone, and she remembered seeing that she was close to that in wood; one or two more trees, and she'd have it. "All right, thank you!"

"Please swing by before five PM if you need anything."

"I'll do my best. Thanks!" Alma gave Bisclavret a kiss before she put her hat back on and went outside to gather the materials. She chopped down a few trees before going into town to sell her things to Pierre. She saw on the calendar that today was Demetrius's birthday, so she decided to keep her best egg to give him as a gift when she went to go see Robin. She also bought more poppy seeds to replenish what she harvested. She noticed, though, too, that the season would soon be coming to an end; from now on she needed to look carefully at the germination period for the plants before buying any more seeds. "Thanks, Pierre!" Alma said as she ducked out the door and back out into the rain. She went north into the mountains and to Robin's shop. "Hi Robin!"

"Hey Alma! Here for that big coop?"

"Yes ma'am!" Alma got her bag and pulled out the necessary wood and stone, then she handed Robin the gold too. It nearly bankrupted her, and she gulped hard as she watched Robin take it and put it in her cash register.

"Okay! I'll start working on your coop upgrade first thing tomorrow morning!"

"Great. Thank you, Robin."

"Of course. If you need any other buildings on your farm upgraded, just ask me! You'll need to provide enough lumber and stone for the project. And it costs money, too, of course. But I'm sure you'll be pleased with the results!"

"Yes ma'am, absolutely. Now, I have a different issue to address," Alma said as she pulled her bag back on her shoulders. "I saw it's your husband's birthday today, and I brought him some farm fresh produce to celebrate."

"Aw, that's so thoughtful! Yes, he's just in his lab over there with Maru," she said, pointing that direction. "You can just go on in."

"Thanks." Alma started walking that way, and as she approached the doorway to the lab, Maru turned around and smiled.

"Oh, hello there!" she said. Demetrius turned from his microscope and acknowledged Alma too. "My dad and I are just testing some soil samples."

"Sorry, I didn't mean to intrude. I just wanted to - "

"Don't be shy! We could use a hand actually." She waved Alma over to her.

"Oh! Well …" Alma wasn't sure what she could do, but she looked at both of them and said, "Sure, okay. How can I help?"

"Could you watch this beaker for me?" Maru said, showing her the instruments. "I'm gonna grab the last batch of samples. I'll be right back."

"All right, I think I can do that." Maru chuckled and walked quickly out of the lab. Alma kept her eyes on the beaker, not sure exactly what she was watching for. Was she just supposed to make sure it didn't fall and break? Or was this a this-might-explode kind of situation?

"Thanks for helping out, Alma," Demetrius said from behind her.

"Oh, it's no problem," she answered. She smiled at him for a moment, and he smiled back, then they both turned back to what was in front of them.

Demetrius continued, "Maru's a good kid. She's my special little girl."

"I know you must be so proud of her. She's intelligent and kind, and she seems to have a bright future ahead of her."

"You're exactly right." He paused and said, "I wouldn't want anything to get in the way of her bright future, you know what I mean?"

Alma actually had no idea what he meant. It sounded vaguely threatening, but what could he be referring to? Did it have something to do with Harvey? Did Demetrius somehow know about Harvey's crush on Maru, and maybe now that Alma and him were around each other more, Demetrius saw that as a threat to Maru? No, that couldn't be it; Maru was totally uninterested in Harvey … right? What else could it be? Maybe he was just talking in general, about the fact that she was going into STEM as a girl of color. That could be a hard road.

"Just some food for thought," he said with a chuckle. Alma smiled weakly, still not sure how to respond.

Just then, Maru came back. "Hey, sorry about that," she said, coming back to the beaker Alma was watching. "I hope you two found something to talk about while I was gone."

Demetrius quickly answered, "I was just telling Alma about the soil samples we're testing. Right, Alma?" Now he was lying about it? What did he not want Maru to know? This was definitely strange, and Alma did not want to be in the middle of whatever it was. How should she respond? He was being really weird, and she felt like Maru should know that he was being sneaky. But Demetrius was being mildly threatening, so maybe she should be careful. Alma couldn't get any words out, and she must have looked awkward because Maru shifted glances between her and Demetrius. "Well," he chimed in again, "we'd better titrate this solution before it crystallizes on us."

"Okay!" Maru answered with a nod. "Here, Alma …" She stood next to Alma and started gathering some supplies. "Let me show you how to work the equipment."

"Actually, if it's okay, I just wanted to drop something off. I have some other errands to run, so maybe I could just give it and be on my way?"

"Oh, sure. That's fine!" Maru answered with a smile. She seemed again blissfully unaware.

"It's actually for you, sir," Alma said, pulling an egg out of her bag. "Freshly laid this morning. Happy Birthday!"

"You remembered my birthday!" he laughed as he took it from her. "This is great. Thank you."

"No problem. Now, I really should be going. Good luck!"

"Bye, Alma! Thanks!" Maru said with a wave.

Alma hurried out and stood under the awning for a minute. That was really strange. As she stood there, she could see two artifacts poking out from the soil. She must not have noticed them earlier because of the rain. She took out her hoe and dug at them. One was a lost book, and the other was a large curved bone. Alma went straight to the museum to show them to Gunther.

"Ah, Alma!" he greeted as she came in. "I just finished cleaning up the lost book you brought me."

"Well, I've got another for you," she said, "and something else too." She put the book and the bone on the counter. "Looks like it may be a rib bone?"

"That's exactly what it is," he said, looking it over carefully. "It's quite old too. Prehistoric, maybe. An excellent addition to our collection." He looked up at her and nodded. "Thank you, as always, Alma."

"No problem. I'm gonna go check out that book now, if that's okay."

"Of course."

She walked to the back wall, pulled out the newest look book, The Secret of the Stardrop, and read an excerpt:

"For thousands of years, people have been intrigued by the mysterious powers from the stardrop … but no one knows where they come from!

"Professor R. J. Kutler, a leading researcher on strange fruit, says this: 'We've discovered traces of genetic material on meteorites that closely resemble the Stardrop, but it's not a proven match.'

"Regardless of where they come from, the peculiar fruit is said to be uncommonly delicious … and some even claim they grant special powers to those who eat them."

Alma thought this was very interesting. She had yet to see a stardrop, and she reminded herself they were different from a starfruit. She wondered where she might be able to find one and told herself to keep her eyes peeled. If she could cultivate them, she could make some major money! She closed the book, put it back on the shelf, said goodbye to Gunther, and headed back outside.

Alma still had some time before Harvey would be in the saloon. She wondered what she could do with a few hours. She remembered that Willy said sturgeon could be caught more often in the rain and that they were a tough catch, so maybe she could make her way to the mountain lake and try her luck. She was running out of days in the summer - probably especially rainy ones.

Alma cast out and fished, but she wasn't having much success. She caught a couple bullhead and chub, and she could tell that sturgeon were on her line a few times; but she just wasn't skilled enough to reel one in. By seven o'clock, she decided to call it quits and head to the saloon.

But right as Alma was packing up her stuff, she heard a beautiful sound. She looked around, not sure where it was coming from. It sounded like a pan flute, and though it sounded distant, it wasn't too distant. She stood and saw a light on the other side of the lake. Then she could see: Abigail was there, under a tree, with a lantern at her feet and a flute at her mouth. Alma smiled and flung her bag over her shoulder before walking around the lake to see Abigail under the tree. At first, Abigail didn't see Alma, so Alma stayed close to a bush and watched her play, quietly, and from a distance. Then, after a few moments, Alma walked closer, and Abigail opened her eyes in surprise. "Alma! Hey! Why are you out here in the rain?"

Alma chuckled and held her hand up to catch some raindrops. "Just, y'know, enjoying the weather."

Abigail laughed too, a little unsure if Alma was being serious or not. "Yeah," she said, "I guess you would be one to appreciate this somber ambiance."

"And why's that?" Alma asked, intrigued.

"I don't know! You just get it, you know?" she answered with a shrug and a chuckle. She looked down at her flute. "I came here to spend some time alone."

"Oh! Well, in that case, I'll leave you to - "

"But I don't mind your company!" Abigail backtracked.

"You sure? I completely understand if you just want to be alone right now."

Abigail looked over her and watched the rain roll off her hat and onto the edges of her shoulders. "You're getting soaked." She waved a hand toward her and said, "Come stand under the tree."

"All right," Alma said as she bent down below the branches. She stood next to Abigail and smiled. "Thanks."

"No problem." Abigail turned and looked out over the lake with a sigh. "It's impossible to describe this feeling … watching the curtains of rain whisper above a silent lake."

"That's beautiful, Abigail. I think you actually did a very good job of describing it." Alma put down her bag, and when she did, she noticed a little something hiding in the bush next to their tree. She squatted down, pulled it out, and looked at it with confusion.

Abigail turned around and gasped when she saw it. "Hey! A mini-harp! You're full of surprises, Alma. I'm impressed."

"Well, I mean, it's not mine. I just found it right here. Probably an artifact or something that we should take to Gunther at the museum. But," she said, turning and smiling to Abigail, "I'm sure it can't be too hard to play. How about we play together?"

Abigail's face lit up. "Okay, yeah! Let's try it!" She began playing the tune on her flute, and Alma plucked some strings along with her. They didn't sound too bad! They both bounced along as they played and watched the rain fall. When they finished, Abigail put down her flute and smiled. "That was fun!"

"Yeah, it was. Didn't know I had it in me," Alma laughed. "Here," she said, handing Abigail the harp. "You can have this. Or give it to Gunther, maybe."

"Thanks! I will." She took the harp and watched as Alma put her bag back on her shoulders.

"I'd better go. Harvey's waiting for me at the saloon. It's our … rainy day tradition."

"Oh! Well … see you around then?"

"Yeah, of course! Enjoy your alone time!" They waved to each other, and Alma continued down the path to the saloon.

Alma opened the door and took off her hat, running her fingers through her wet hair. There was Harvey at the bar, drinking a cup of coffee. Alma came and sat next to him, placing her hat on the bar next to her. "I have to admit," he said as she settled in, "I look forward to rainy days now."

"It gives you an excuse to come enjoy a nice cup of coffee, huh?"

"And some good company. It's nice to have a friend in town. Can I get you anything? Wine maybe?"

"I'm all right for now, thanks. I may get some later. I've, uh … I've had a bit of a weird day."

He raised an eyebrow. "You wanna talk about it?"

"Well, is there …?" She looked around and quieted her voice a bit. "Is there a chance Demetrius might suspect something about you? Or me? Or … something?"

Harvey furrowed his brow, confused. "Suspect what?"

"I don't know," she said, rubbing her eyes. "I stopped by to give him a birthday present, and he was acting really weird. He sounded almost … threatening."

"Threatening? Dr. Demetrius?!" Alma gestured for him to keep his voice down, and he asked more quietly, "What did he say to you?"

"He and Maru were working together in the lab, and Maru asked if I could help her watch a vial while she went to go get something. And while she was gone, he started about how she was a good kid, she was his special girl, she had a bright future, and then he said something like, 'It'd be a shame if something got in the way of that, you know?' And when I didn't respond - because I was trying to figure out what the heck he meant! - he just laughed and said, 'Just some food for thought.' Like, what does that mean?! He makes it sound like I'd get in the way of her future, but I - What would I do?! And then when she came back, he covered it up and lied about what we were talking about!"

Harvey smiled a little and shook his head. "I can't believe I'm saying this to you instead of it being the other way around, but I, uh, think you might be overthinking it. I don't think Demetrius meant anything to you personally. Everyone in town knows Demetrius is very protective of Maru. Maybe this was his way of letting you know too."

"You really think so? You don't think I should be worried or something?"

"No, don't worry about it at all. Demetrius is all bark and no bite. He's one of the nicest men in town."

"Okay. If you say so. You know the people in town better than I do." Alma looked ahead of her and saw Emily filling up some drinks. "Emily, could I have a glass of wine please?" Emily nodded and went to fill up a glass.

"So what else has made your day weird?" Harvey asked.

"Well then I just now saw Abigail playing a flute in the rain, and when I came to join her, I randomly found this harp in the bushes and … was actually kinda decent on it."

"B-But you're always finding tools and things like that around town. I don't see that as strange at all. And I, uh … I'm sure you are full of surprising talents."

"I guess you're not wrong," Alma chuckled after thinking a moment. "Oh! But I did buy a coop upgrade today!"

"Wow! Didn't you just buy the barn and cows?!"

"I did! I'm almost completely broke!" Alma laughed. "But this is exciting because it will allow me to have ducks - and an incubator! So I can hatch my own eggs instead of buying chicks from Marnie."

"That's good! Sounds like a worthy investment then."

Emily put the glass in front of her and looked at Alma with concern. "You look tired, Alma. Don't overwork yourself or you might end up in Harvey's clinic!" she said, gesturing toward Harvey. Alma and Harvey exchanged looks before she walked away.

"It's not always such a bad thing," Harvey said quietly before taking a sip of coffee. He looked at her out of the corner of his eye. Alma tipped her glass to him, and he touched his mug to her glass. "Doesn't have quite the same satisfying sound, does it?" he said before taking a drink.

She swallowed her sip and said, "Sounds fine to me."