Claire spent the next couple of days mostly confined to the house, resting and rehydrating; her friends wouldn't let her do much else. Karen had initially given Claire permission water a bit, but later that night she went to the inn and discussed the situation to Cliff. The two friends decided that they would run the farm in Claire's stead for a short while, despite the blonde's protests. In a way, she was kind of grateful for this, as her body was still screaming in protest for overworking herself. Cliff and Karen stopped by daily to check on her and the two took care of the fields. Claire would wander outside to watch her friends work, but they refused to let her help much, reminding her to stay out of the sun, per doctor's orders. Her friends had different methods of making sure she followed Trent's instructions. Karen simply yelled until she got her way, startling Claire out of insisting on helping. The farmer started to wonder if this was how the harassed grocer felt when Sasha scolded him in front of customers; it seemed their daughter had inherited her mother's strong will. Cliff was a little more subtle; he repeated to Claire time and time again that he had nowhere else he needed to be and that he was grateful to be able to help. When he looked at her with those earnest eyes, she found it rather hard to say no to his offered assistance. The farmer poured some kibble in Koro's bowl and let Tucker out to graze, realizing that these two tasks were about the only ones her friends had deemed not too strenuous for Claire to handle.

The blonde noticed that the chores weren't exactly divided evenly between the two; Cliff watered between two-thirds and three-quarters of the fields, and he only stopped because Karen stormed out of the farmhouse and wrenched the watering can from his hands. Cliff sighed, knowing all too well that Karen would burn herself out within the next half hour and toss the empty watering can at his head while he rested in the shade, talking to Claire, who kept a steady supply of drinking water available for her friends.

It was late afternoon and the farmer came outside and sat under the comfortable shade of the apple tree on her property. Karen was scolding Cliff for watering more than "his half" of the field, but she was distracted by the puppy's antics and she began playing with Koro. The young man rolled his eyes and continued to work. Claire grinned; it seemed the grocer's daughter was more bark than bite, the blonde giggled aloud at her pun as she watched Karen play with the dog.

"How are ya feeling?" The redheaded waitress was on her on her daily trip to the Goddess Spring and took a quick reprieve, plopping down on the grass beside the farmer.

"Mostly back to normal. I think I'm going to do the chores myself tomorrow," Claire beamed at her, eager to get back to work.

Ann watched the two friends out in the fields. "Cliff used to spend a lot more time at the inn," She remarked with a neutral expression, idly playing with the end of her braid.

"Oh, uh…" The blonde's smile faded and she knitted her brows in nervousness. "H-He insisted on helping me! I-I'm not forcing him to come here!" She didn't want the young man's friend to think the farmer was taking advantage of his kindness.

The redhead looked at her curiously. "I was just sayin'. When he moved here in the middle of winter last year, he didn't leave his room much. I'm glad that he's making some friends; I was kind of concerned about him…"

Claire thought of the first time she met her male friend. He had opened up with her a lot already in the short period of time they knew each other. The blonde's eyes traveled to Ann and she noticed her eyes had a very kind warmth to them as she observed the man, but Claire caught a flash of something indistinguishable in her expression that was quickly masked with a cheery smile.

"He's been going on about your farm so much lately. It looks like you've got quite a setup here," Ann's blue eyes moved over the tilled earth. "It's kind of hard to believe that this is the same land that had been overrun with weeds not too long ago… It looks good! I believe if you're going to do something, you might as well go all out!" The redhead beamed at her. "I like your style; maybe next time you come to the inn… we could hang out a bit?"

"S-Sure!" In all honesty, the farmer was growing increasingly curious about Cliff's friend. Claire noticed that Karen was rather chatty with the redhead when they passed each other on the street. She struck Claire as lighthearted, fun, and playful. Someone like that in the farmer's life would be rather pleasant.

The waitress stood up and dusted off her overalls, tightening the ribbon in her hair. "Well, I'm off to the Goddess Spring to say a prayer for Mom. See you around, Claire."

"Bye. I'll see you soon," The farmer gave her a friendly wave as the redhead bounded down the mountain path.

Claire stifled a giggle as Karen gave Cliff a rough, yet playful shove in the direction of the farmer, insisting he take a break. He scowled at the brunette, but she brandished the watering can as if it was a deadly weapon. The young man let out a sigh and a smile crept across his face as he headed to his friend in the shade, the puppy following at his heels.

The farmer held up a glass of cool water for him in greeting. As eager as she was about getting back to work, a little part of her was already beginning to miss this.

0o0o0o0

It took a bit more effort than usual to get moving the next day, but once she did, Claire started feeling a lot better. She hated to admit how much she had enjoyed having her friends run the farm in her stead and being thoroughly spoiled by them, but she was aware that it was time to buckle down if she wanted to have a successful season. She waited for a few more days before doing anything too strenuous outside of watering crops; the young woman had been eager to head to the mines to get her copper for Gray.

The blonde loved the coolness of the mines in the hot summer afternoons, but as everything in life, the setting wasn't completely perfect. She heard what she thought was the fluttering of wings in the dark cave and her skin crawled.

"Just focus on the sound of your hammer," Claire muttered to herself as she swung the tool at the crumbling stone.

It was a satisfying noise, and the crunching of the rocks gave her a profound sense of accomplishment, but she found herself choking on the dust. She blinked her watering eyes and jumped when she heard a deep voice in the shadows.

"Are you trying to give yourself emphysema or what?" The apprentice blacksmith set down his lantern on the stony floor of the mine and gave her a smirk. He pulled a red handkerchief out of his back pocket and tied it protectively around his nose and mouth.

The farmer sheepishly fished through her own pockets and felt herself redden with embarrassment as she remembered exactly where she had left her own kerchief; it was folded in a tidy square on her table at home.

Gray sighed. "Here…" He rolled his eyes and untied his ascot. "I'd offer you my handkerchief, but I kind of sneezed in it earlier. Trust me, it'll be better for your lungs to breathe through this rather than completely exposing yourself to the particles of dust down here," he offered her the piece of aqua-colored fabric.

Claire swiftly covered her nose and mouth with the cloth, grateful that it covered her burning cheeks. Even in the dim light of the cavern, she was sure her blush was visible. The fabric smelled of smoldering metal and a hint of the young man's sweat. It was the sweetest perfume to Claire; her knees felt a little weak.

"Make sure you keep your mouth and nose protected in here if you're going to be raising dust," Gray's voice was gruff. "We're both too young to be giving ourselves health problems that can easily be avoided." There was an awkward pause as the apprentice focused his eyes on the floor. "Cliff says you're doing much better… I'm glad." He turned his face away and focused on the rock formations in the mine.

"Th-Thank you," she stammered, shifting her hammer on her shoulder. "S-So… What brings you to the m-mines?" Claire tried to ignore the fact that the fabric touching her face had been against Gray's skin moments ago; it was still warm from his body heat. She focused on steadying her breathing.

"Gramps needs silver."

So he had volunteered to help his elderly relative with the grunt work… Claire grinned beneath her mask; the young man put up a tough front, but every so often she saw a crack in his gruff exterior. "I-It's nice of you to do that for your grandfather," She ventured, shifting her tool in her sweaty hands.

Gray swung his hammer a few times and grunted. "Dunno about all that. Gramps can find twice as much ore as me in half the time. He's just trying to keep me from getting underfoot at the forge." He rolled his eyes, continuing with his work.

The farmer mimicked his movements; the young man swung in a very fluid motion. This was obviously something he had done for years, and there was a certain kind of beauty to the way he moved. As hard as Claire tried to keep up, she knew her body couldn't handle it, and she took a quick reprieve, allowing her eyes to drift to the handsome young man beside her. He eventually stopped to take a break and she paused again as well, catching her breath. Gray never spoke much, and she wasn't expecting him to start a conversation, but it felt like a wasted opportunity to not say anything…

Claire was distracted by the flapping noise again and her eyes widened. "Did you hear that?" She gasped, looking up at the ceiling fearfully.

Her companion shrugged. "I didn't hear anything." There was no emotion on his face or in his voice as he took his cap off and fanned himself with it for a few moments.

She heard an echoing flutter once more, and her heart raced.

"There it is again!" She clutched his arm and her breath hitched. "Do you think there might be bats in this mine?"

Gray stared at her as if she had asked the most absurd question in the world. "No… There are no bats here… anymore…" He paused, looking around them dramatically. "You know… It could be the troglodytes…" He raised his eyebrows.

The blonde blinked at him curiously as he returned his hat to his head, concealing the tousled red locks underneath.

"Y-You know… Cave dwellers. Oni." The young man pulled his cap over his eyes.

A grin slowly formed across her face as she realized he was attempting to joke around with her, but she was sidetracked when she heard the sound another time. "There it is again!" She repeated, turning toward the back corner of the cave. She had never ventured that far into the mine before, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to start. "It's coming from over there. Do you feel that draft?"

"I guess…?" He didn't look convinced. The young man fished a few slivers of ore out of the rocks with gloved hands and went back to work.

The farmer bit her lip. Why was he suddenly treating her like a child? "I'm g-going to see what that sound is…"

The young man swiftly caught her by the rucksack. "Don't go over there unless you want to lose a finger."

The farmer froze in her tracks and the blood drained from her face. "Wh-What?!" Her eyes grew to the size of saucers and her jaw dropped behind her cloth. "B-But you said that there were no-"

"I said there were no bats. You stay out that area and you'll be fine." His voice was gruff and commanding, but he didn't let go of her bag.

Claire's blood ran cold; she nearly fumbled her hammer. She turned toward him and he finally let her go, realizing she wasn't going to rush out into the darkness by herself. "S-So… What is it?" Maybe he wasn't trying to joke about the oni…

The apprentice knitted his brows and looked around them nervously. The playfulness had gone from his eyes a while ago; he tugged on the bill of his cap. "It's none of your concern." He finally said with a tone of finality that echoed his grandfather's, returning to swinging his hammer.

She felt like she had been slapped across the face. And just as they were starting to get along well, too… They worked in silence for several moments, both aware of the tension Gray's last line had caused the both of them.

The young man cleared his throat and let out a weak chuckle. "Mary says oni have teeth strong enough to crush rocks…" There was a twinkle in Gray's eye as he looked back at her.

She would have normally swooned at his expression, but Claire was past the point of kidding around. Why was it always about the librarian with him? The blonde gritted her teeth and stubbornly took another step in the direction of the sound.

"Why don't we take a break at the inn? Let's get Ann to cook us something, eh?" Gray caught her bag again, this time pulling the kerchief off of his face and giving her a grin.

The apprentice succeeded; the farmer's attention was immediately drawn away from the mysterious corner of the mine. Claire's heart throbbed in her ears. Gray was actually asking to take her out? His not-too-subtle tone of voice had suggested that this was a command rather than a request, but Claire didn't mind in the least; he wanted to spend time with her, and that was all that mattered. She didn't feel like sorting through the pile of conflicting emotions bouncing through her head at the moment. "Wha…? O-Okay!" She managed to squeak out with an emphatic nod and eagerly followed him out of the mine, nearly forgetting her lantern in the process.

0o0o0o0

They weren't the only ones at the eatery that afternoon. Claire saw a familiar brown ponytail on the man sitting at the bar as Ann sang a silly rhyming song about cooking behind the bar.

"Yay! It's ready!" The redhead flourished a spoon to the young man across the counter with a cheery grin. He reached for the offered utensil, but she slapped his hands away with her free one as she noticed the pair enter the room. "Open up, silly." Her jolly facial expressions did not change despite her use of violence.

Her companion opened his mouth and accepted the offering. He sat in thoughtful silence for a few moments, contemplating the flavor. "More miso."

"Huh, you think? I don't want it to get too salty…" She refilled the spoon in the pot behind her and took a slurp. "I dunno…" Her eyes moved to the two new customers. "Hey, you two! Come and sit!" She pointed at the bar with her metal spoon.

The brunette whirled around on the stool. "Oh, hey, y'all…" He gave them a courteous nod, and his eyes curiously traveled to the familiar piece of teal fabric loosely tied around the young woman's neck.

"Good to see you, Claire! … Gray." She said the second name like it was bitter in her mouth; the apprentice had left his dirty laundry on the floor of the shared bathroom again this morning and had gotten an earful from Ann about it. When Gray insisted that his roommate didn't seem to care, he was met with a broom handle to the back of the head. "We're trying to save this pot of soup. It tastes like nori and water," Ann explained with a sheepish giggle. She reloaded the spoon and tasted it. "Yep… It's definitely missing something…" She dipped it back into the pot and nearly rammed the spoon into Gray's mouth.

"I can feed myself, dammit." He grumbled. "And use a fresh spoon! I hope you're more hygienic when you're on the clock!"

Ann rolled her eyes. "Are you afraid of cooties? Don't talk to me about hygienic, you slob! Taste it, and quit being a baby." She continued to hold out the spoon stubbornly.

The young man mimicked her facial expressions and Claire nearly laughed out loud; if she didn't know any better, the two could easily be mistaken for siblings.

"Sooo… What's it missing?" The waitress eagerly bounced on the balls of her feet.

"Flavor."

Ann rapped the apprentice's knuckles with the spoon without warning and Cliff bit back a snicker as Gray swore under his breath. The young woman ignored their behavior and added more soup to the spoon, turning toward the farmer. "Your turn, Claire. What's it missing?"

The young woman obediently opened her mouth and blushed as the other three watched her curiously. Apparently, cooking practice at Doug's Inn was very serious business. She closed her eyes and concentrated on the flavor, trying her best to ignore the fact that the last one to have the spoon in their mouth was Gray. "Miso… Soy sauce, too… It needs a punch."

Cliff gave Ann a triumphant grin. "Told you."

He got a smack on the knuckles as well, and Claire giggled aloud. "You only suggested miso," Ann retorted, tasting another spoonful of soup.

"It's all going to be gone if you keep 'testing' it," Gray snickered, quickly removing his hands from the bar counter.

He was met with a sour look as the waitress turned around and began adding seasonings to the pot, continuing with humming her repetitive song.

"S-So… What brings you to the inn, Claire?" The brunette rubbed his red knuckles and gave her a kind smile.

The farmer's eyes widened. She thought that Gray had just been melodramatic with his cursing; it seemed that Ann didn't pull any punches when it came to doling out punishment. She felt a little bad for laughing when his hand got struck.

"Gray and I bumped into each other in the mine," Claire excitedly explained. She turned to face toward Cliff and felt the unfamiliar weight of Gray's scarf tied around her neck; her face felt hot, but it wasn't due to the warmth of the extra strip of fabric.

"Find anything good?" He asked politely, looking up from his hands.

"Not much," Gray replied from the other side of her, folding his arms across his chest. "I got some silver for Gramps, but I know he'll ask why I didn't get more."

"Sp-Speaking of…" Claire's heart pounded as she reached for her pack.

The apprentice turned burgundy as he cut her off. "I-It wasn't a very fruitful trip… Y-You should ship everything you found today." He nervously pulled on the bill of his cap to hide his face.

Claire's eyes moved to the floor; her heart broke. She thought it would mean more to him to be the recipient of the single piece of copper she found today for that very reason. She didn't notice the keen look Ann shot at the apprentice, nor did she hear the faint shuffling of the stool beside her.

The waitress held out another spoon to Claire. "Check it out; I added a few different things. Open up!"

The redhead's cheery demeanor shook Claire from her depressive state; she truly did enjoy cooking and experimenting in the kitchen, after all. Ann had a way of making her forget about her problems. The blonde smiled and eagerly opened her mouth and gave the soup a taste. It was quite an improvement, but it still needed something. "Hmmm… What did you put in it?"

"Come back here and I'll show ya!" Ann winked at the farmer, beckoning her over with a finger and a grin. "You can help me perfect it!"

Claire remembered their conversation at her farm about a week ago; she was eager to spend a little one-on-one time with the bubbly young woman. The farmer stood up and brushed past the brunette before coming behind the bar, unaware of how closely the two barstools had drifted together in the past few minutes.

"Oh! S-Sorry, Cliff!" She let out an embarrassed giggle.

"I-It's fine…" He gave her a shy smile as a hint of pink flashed across his cheeks. His eyes followed the farmer to the bar and he jumped when he looked back at the bar stool and saw his roommate sitting there instead.

"Hey… She's getting a little too curious about your corner of the mine," Gray kept his voice low.

Cliff's eyes widened and his eyebrows immediately furrowed with worry, but he didn't say anything.

"She was going to walk over there herself for a moment. I had to stop her, and she wasn't satisfied with my oni story."

"Oni?" The apprentice was met with a puzzled look.

Gray rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I told her there were some oni living in the mine." He kept his voice low.

Cliff let out a soft chuckle. "Well, this mine is a bit too close to civilization…"

The apprentice gave his roommate a sideways glance and snorted; he looked up at the bar and the two women were too busy chattering away to notice. "You believe those fairy tale creatures exist?" He cocked an eyebrow.

The brunette stared at him incredulously. "Th-They're not fairy tales! After all, there are tengu up in the mountains and there's a kappa in the lake!" He nodded more to himself than his roommate.

Gray scoffed; Cliff was rather superstitious to believe that a kappa actually lived just outside of Mineral Town. "Well, that's beside the point," He dismissed this with the wave of a hand. The apprentice carefully watched Claire and Ann for their reactions, and the two of them were too busy giggling over the boiling pot. He let out a sigh of relief. "If she keeps nosing around, she's going to get hurt in the mine, and it's going to be on you. Does Gotz know about your… arrangement?" He whispered with a frown.

The young man nodded and his face was scrunched up in concern. "Yeah, but Harris doesn't… I kind of want to keep it that way if possible… Rick hasn't said anything to him or asked me any more questions about it, thank goodness… Alright… I'll have to tell her, at least. I'll… do it soon," He did a poor job of hiding his apprehension on the subject as he absentmindedly played with his fingers and glanced behind the bar at the two young women.

The waitress watched curiously as the blonde rifled through the bottles of seasonings.

"… And a little bit of this," Claire added a few drops of sesame oil to the pot.

Ann's bright blue eyes lit up as she took a taste from the ladle. "That was it! Smells good!"

"Not quite… Just a touch more miso," The blonde stirred the pot and gave it one more test. "That'll do it." She nodded proudly and handed the utensil to Ann.

The redhead slurped the liquid and gave an emphatic nod of approval; the city girl didn't strike her as the type to know her way around a kitchen. "So, did your parents teach you how to cook, too?" The waitress lowered the heat on the pot and idly twirled the spoon in her fingers.

The young woman returned the cap to the bottle of oil. "Yes. I cooked dinner a lot for my family as a teen before I moved out. I used to work at a restaurant, too."

"Cooking's a good skill to have," Ann commented, drinking a ladle of soup. "Everyone should learn how to prepare a meal."

The farmer nodded in agreement. "Mum always said it was a skill necessary to reel in a man," She shrugged her shoulders and let out an innocent giggle. Claire's mirth was halted when she looked up and saw the livid expression on Ann's face.

"Your mother sounds like Dad…" The waitress bit her lip. "I-I don't need a… b-boyfriend," Her voice was bitter as she thrust the ladle back into the pot, sloshing a bit of soup onto the counter, and the farmer noticed that the redhead's eyes flicked to the young men talking at the bar and she bit her lip.

"N-No, of course not! Not unless you want one!" Claire gave the young woman an awkward smile, feeling an uncomfortable sensation rise in her stomach.

Ann could see that the farmer was trying to be agreeable, and her facial features relaxed. She let out a sigh. "Boys can be stupid," She whispered, giving the pot an idle stir. Claire was surprised that the waitress was wearing an apologetic smile rather than her usual grin accompanied with a laugh. "Gray is sometimes as dumb as the rocks he digs up, huh? He means well… Hey… Don't worry about him, okay?" She spoke with a gentle voice as she ladled the soup into four bowls and deposited a spoon in each of them. Claire helped her set them on the bar counter. "Alright, idiots, time to eat!" Ann rapped her metal spoon on the bar counter.

Both young men jumped in surprise, and Claire laughed out loud at their reactions. Gray looked up at the waitress with a scowl, and Cliff gave her a rueful smile.

"Sit beside me, okay?" Ann shot the farmer a playful grin and a wink as she got out the napkins. "We girls gotta stick together!"

0o0o0o0

Author's Note: Thank you all for your feedback! As you can probably tell, friendships in this story are about to get a little more complicated.

Do you know what or who is dwelling in the cave? I've been dropping hints since Chapter Two. Haha, I hope I didn't make it too painfully obvious! Thanks for reading, and feel free to let me know what you think!