Tom Nook Seals The Deal
Chapter One
"Are you sure your friends won't mind?" Celeste asked Blathers as they left the Observatory.
"Oh, of course not, hoo!" Blathers ruffled his feathers in amusement . "I say, you're a big girl now, able to stay up past the crack of dawn. Besides, our little morning get-togethers are very informal, just sharing news and such, wot wot!"
As the pair reached the museum lobby, Celeste noticed the Able sisters already making their way downstairs to The Roost. They had their heads close together, and were talking intently.
"All the same," Blathers paused before starting down the stairs to the cafe. He shuddered a bit at the sound of a cicada coming from the insect exhibit hall and continued. "Some of what's said at these gatherings is private, Celeste, and a certain amount of decorum is expected... You understand?"
Celeste just nodded, her curiosity piqued, as she and Blathers followed the smell of Brewster's coffee downstairs.
Brewster tossed a casual wave at Blathers as he came in with Celeste and took a seat at the bar. He raised the coffee pot in silent question.
"Oh no thank you, hoo!" Blathers waved off the coffee. "At my age, I'd be up all day."
He turned to Celeste, to ask her if she would care for a cup, but her attention was on the small table at the back of The Roost. There, Pelly and the Able sisters were deep in conversation. Every few minutes, a shrill chorus of giggles erupted from the group.
"We starting early, wot wot? Tom's not even here." Blathers looked over at them and furrowed his brow.
Brewster shrugged, then, rolling his eyes at more giggling, went back to wiping the bar.
"I wonder what they're talking about..." Celeste said.
""Hoo! I wouldn't get too excited, Celeste. Judging by the sound of it, I'd say they're deep in the middle of discussing the latest exploits of our little town's only human!" Blathers leaned closer to Celeste and continued. "Strange creature, isn't it? Digging holes all over town and such. Why, I once saw it continually firing its slingshot into the air, but at nothing!"
Celeste sighed, and looked longingly over at the girls' table.
"Generous to a fault though, why, most of the museum's exhibits are its donations..." Blathers was still contemplating the town human. "If only we had a human exhibit, it would certainly boost attendance. Hoo! Maybe our little friend would consent to giving a demonstration of the stranger human behaviors... on a temporary basis, of course."
As Blathers looked to be settling in for the long haul on the subject of humans, Brewster heard the tell-tale puffing of Tom Nook on the stairs. As the sound got louder, it seemed as if a switch had been hit; all the giggles stopped and the volume of conversation at the back table dropped noticeably. Well, thought Brewster, as Tom Nook made his appearance in The Roost and took a seat beside Blathers, isn't that interesting...
As he filled Tom's coffee, Brewster came up with a plan. He slid a tray along the bar and put three cups on it, filling each with his best Pigeon Milk coffee. He motioned to Celeste, who had also noticed the change in the girls' conversation, and, nudging the tray in front of her, pointed at the back table.
All right, thought Celeste, this is finally getting interesting. She carefully balanced the tray on her wings and stood up. She looked over at Blathers, but by now he was deep in discussion with Tom about the human.
"...shaking trees, for some reason! Must've been stung two, maybe three dozen times, wot wot!"
As Blathers and Tom chuckled, Celeste hefted her tray and discreetly slipped away.