She found that while the trip to the church had been healing, it had also been emotionally exhausting; Claire spent the rest of the day at home resting. The young woman sat cross-legged on her bed, listening to the birds outside while she scratched a sleepy Koro's head. Part of her wanted to go over to the grocery story to talk to Karen about the dance, but she felt too preoccupied with her conflicting feelings about Gray and Mary. She didn't have to worry about whether or not the young man was interested in her; he obviously wasn't, and in a strange way this meant a major source of stress in her life was gone.

At the same time, she mourned the fact that they would likely never have a romantic relationship together and he would never be hers. That scent of machine oil and smoldering metal would never signal her lover's arrival. She'd never snatch his worn ball cap and playfully put it on her own head, demanding a kiss in exchange for the return of the headwear. She remembered the last time she had seen him without his hat. It was that very morning and she had been holding back her anger, wishing that a simple slap across the face would have sufficed for his transgressions.

She replayed the conversation in her mind over and over, absentmindedly stroking her young dog's floppy ears. Her emotions wavered between being overwhelmed with sadness and being frustrated that she cared so much. Dwelling on it didn't seem to do much than other tire her out further, and her sadness slowly faded into the background as the day went on. She left the napping Koro on her bed and tidied up her house while she thought and made herself another batch of iced herbal tea. She was finally starting to feel a little better about the whole thing.

There was a knock at the door and Claire's calm demeanor shattered. The visitor she already had today didn't exactly provide good news for her. What if it was Gray, coming to apologize again? Or maybe it was Mary? Her stomach twisted uncomfortably in knots.

"Claire, you home?"

The farmer immediately relaxed as she heard her friend's cheery voice. Now that Karen had come to her, she found that she really wanted the company. Claire reached into her refrigerator and produced her pitcher of tea and some glasses to drink from. "The door's unlocked. Come on in."

Karen held a paper sack between her teeth as she removed her shoes in the doorway, her blonde streaks falling into her eyes as she leaned forward. Claire forced a smile on her face. Now that her friend was here, she was filled with the insatiable desire to cry on Karen's shoulder and tell her how awful her day had been. Right now wasn't the proper time to tell her about Gray though, she reasoned. Her friend had probably come to talk about the dance and her budding relationship with the poultry farmer, and Claire was determined to allow her friend to bask in her happiness and tell to Karen about today's events at a later time. The farmer searched within her heart. She would be confident tonight, Claire convinced herself. Karen was not to think anything was wrong. The farmer straightened her posture and willed her eyebrows to stop furrowing.

"Hey!" Karen was in a playful mood as she looked up from the paper brown paper sack she was rustling in her hands. She had brought over a bag of sweets to share from the supermarket.

The farmer decided to start off with a cheerful demeanor. "You didn't walk your own date home last night," Claire cocked an eyebrow before pouting and folding her arms across her chest. The blonde snatched the bag of candy and boldly opened it, selecting a vanilla caramel crème with a smirk before shoving it back into the young woman's arms.

Karen turned a violent shade of red, oblivious that her friend had been acting a little out of character. She set down the bag of candies on the table, nearly knocking it over in her flustered stupor. "Well, about that-"

Claire felt her pain dissolve at the sight of Karen's blush. She carefully removed the wax paper around her piece of candy and bit into it, licking the cream from her lips. "And you were the one that told me I didn't need to find my true love last night! Have a seat, you hypocrite!" Claire popped the rest of the confection into her mouth and chewed, savoring the sweetness of the treat. She was eager to hear some good news today. Perhaps if she continued with her cheerful act, it would start to feel a little more natural and she could stop pretending to be in high spirits.

Karen took a seat next to her friend. "Hey, we both did pretty well for ourselves last night," the brunette gave her a flirty smile, shuffling through the sack and setting a few pieces of candy aside for herself.

Claire rolled her eyes in response to her friend's comment as she poured the tea. "I got one awkward dance with Gray," she let out a wry laugh, shaking her head. Why did she bring him up? Claire bit her lip and forced herself to smile. She was determined to keep the apprentice on the backburner and focus on something happy instead. However, the mere utterance of his name caused her brave front to unravel a bit.

Karen held her tongue and unwrapped a piece of candy, swallowing it in one bite. "You got a lot of dances last night," she said with a chuckle and a hint of a smirk. She took a sip from her tea before she ended up saying something she was going to regret. The herbal blend tasted bitter compared to the caramel she had just eaten, but it was better than to tease her friend too far.

Claire rolled her eyes, but her cheeks felt warm as she reminisced about Cliff's gentle guidance. "Yeah, but none with my actual date!" She realized that she actually welcomed the distraction from the day's drama. But that was all it was – a diversion. The realization of this made her stomach sink. She had just been trying to forget the ugly truth that Gray didn't love her.

Karen laughed heartily and dug into the candy, lining up her favorites beside her. A caramel, a peppermint, and a licorice sat in a colorful tidy row beside her. "Once Cliff swooped in, I don't think he would have shared you even with me!" She couldn't help herself. She gave Claire a nudge and was surprised when she shrank back. "Hey…" Karen looked at her with concern.

The blonde hated that she was still so emotional. Her friend's mild teasing about boys was too much for her to handle right now. The last thing she wanted to talk about was her love life, or lack thereof.

"Huh… did something happen between you two? You both looked so happy last night..." Karen's eyebrows furrowed. Cliff was a good friend of hers, but if he hurt Claire, he was going to get an earful at the very least.

She didn't want her good friend to take the blame for her unhappiness – she was quick to defend. "Oh, no! We had a great time," Claire absentmindedly waved her hand, desperately trying to find that cheery persona once more. "The dance was great! So… how about you?" she weakly attempted to change the subject. She topped off her glass of tea out of nervousness and took a large gulp so that she wouldn't be obligated to speak again right away.

Karen cast her a suspicious glance but made no further attempts at prying for the time being. Her friend was, and always had been, terrible at hiding her emotions. The brunette wasn't blind to her companion's tearstained face and forced upbeat demeanor the moment she arrived, but she'd let her bring it up when she was ready. Claire didn't seem the type to hold these kinds of things in for very long. She kept her conversation lively. "If you're asking how I liked the dance, I had a blast! Duke can really get down when he's buzzed. Did you see him?"

Claire shook her blonde head, a little embarrassed that she hadn't focused much on her surroundings the night before. She thought of Carter's words – not to let her memories be tarnished. "I learned a lot of moves last night. I'd show you some, but my legs ache so much." She found a rueful smile make its way across her face. The memory of moving in rhythm to the music filled her heart with a warm glow. She felt like she had become so much better at dancing in just one evening, and it was kind of exciting.

Karen laughed. It was good to see the farmer relax a little bit. Once her best friends started dancing together, she hadn't seen them take a break for the rest of the evening. "I'd imagine you'd be sore. You were a regular pro by the end of the night, huh?" She started on her soft peppermint.

"Yeah, sure," her friend laughed with a smirk. "After I collided with Cliff a few times. He's a good sport, though." Claire played with the drips of condensation on the side of her glass of tea. The drink wasn't the best choice paired with confections, but the cold glass felt nice and comforting between her hands – it had been a hot day. Recalling her male friend's patience further soothed her. She took an absentminded sip.

Karen knew their mutual friend probably would've still been over the moon even if Claire stomped on his feet all night, so long as he was by her side, but the farmer's slightly defensive aura kept her from teasing any further. "The kid cleans up good," the brunette commented innocently, moving on to her piece of licorice.

"Yeah. He looked really nice," she allowed her smile to grow a little bit despite her inner thoughts. Don't make this about another guy, she scolded herself.

Karen nodded her head and gave her friend a hesitant look. Claire wasn't opening up to her like she normally did. She decided to test the waters. "Cute, cute, cute. My two best friends. I'm so glad you had fun and didn't spend the evening pining over Gray."

She couldn't stand it anymore. Claire's mask shattered and she stared at the table's surface, fruitlessly attempting to blink away her tears. She clenched her fists in frustration at losing her serenity and for being so selfish. Karen had obviously been building up to talking about Rick, and the farmer had stolen her opportunity by making the evening about herself.

The brunette rose from her seat. She knew something had been bothering Claire, but for her to be moved to the point of crying in front of her? "What did he do?! I will kill him!" her eyes flashed dangerously as she scowled; the black licorice had darkened her teeth and making her look all the more terrifying.

Claire shook her head, but the tears wouldn't stop as she stumbled over her words. She was frustrated that she had derailed the conversation. "He… and Mary… they're a couple now." She returned her hands to her lap and wrung them nervously, awaiting Karen's assessment of the situation.

Her friend's expression relaxed only slightly. "And how did you find out the news?" If Claire had found out by seeing the couple acting romantic together, Gray should be praying the grocer's daughter would be merciful enough to grant him death.

She wanted to say that it wasn't a big deal and that they should talk about something else, but the words came out before she could stop them. "He came over… this morning… t-to say he wasn't interested in me," Claire hiccoughed and sniffed, "and then…Mary said she wanted to be the one to tell me they're dating…" she sheepishly wiped her eyes on her sleeve, ashamed she was crying so much today.

The strain melted from Karen's features as she flew to her and put her arms around Claire. She didn't bother with making her friend explain the confusing situation to her; she was obviously upset and repeating the whole ordeal wouldn't make things any better. "Hey… he's not worth your tears. He's a damn coward." Karen stroked her friend's blonde locks. She knew this day would inevitably come, and she had already prepared the words long ago. "Don't you pay them any mind," she continued in a soothing voice, "you're too good for him anyway. You deserve someone better, and you'll find someone better." It had taken him until he was actually dating Mary to spell out his feelings for Claire? Karen would be paying the apprentice a visit later this evening and having a word with him.

Claire didn't want to think about anyone else for her. She cried into her friend's shoulder for a few minutes. He never liked her and she had wasted so much time and emotion on it all. Karen held her quietly, patting her back as she let out her tears. The farmer was grateful that her friend didn't pass any judgment on her for being so emotional. As Claire began to stop shaking, Karen brushed the blonde hair out of the farmer's face.

"Hey, look at me."

Claire quietly obeyed, wiping her eyes on her sleeve.

"Everything will turn out alright," Karen's voice softened. "I know your heart probably feels stomped on right now, but it will pass. There are other guys in the village who would be lucky to be with you," She stroked her friend's hair.

Claire could see Karen was trying to cheer her up and the effort didn't go unnoticed. The young woman sniffed and grinned as she chuckled weakly, sniffing. "Like Rick?" Claire got up to get a handkerchief and dabbed at her raw eyes.

Karen realized that she looked a little more like herself. The brunette stuck out her tongue. "Taken." She swiftly took another swig of tea and her friend followed suit.

The farmer was the first to finish drinking. "Yes, tell me how that came to be," Claire smiled mischievously and blew her nose, apologizing as she did so.

She hesitated. "You sure?" Karen caught the glint in Claire's eye as she nodded eagerly and took it as an okay to talk about her new relationship. She felt the heat rise in her cheeks. "Well, as you know, Rick and I have been friends for most of our lives. We both grew up in this town together. Last winter, I realized I liked him as more than just a friend," she casually threw her hair over her shoulder, but she let out a nervous giggle. "But I didn't say anything. I wanted to see if he felt the same way." Karen wrapped her hands around her glass, staring into the contents to avoid making eye contact.

Claire had calmed down and finished off her tea while her friend was talking. Now that she had cried a little bit, her mind felt much clearer and she was able to focus more on her friend's words. "Cliff said he noticed there was something going on between you two the moment he first saw you both together," she replied with an arched eyebrow.

Either the young man was very astute, or Karen wasn't good at hiding her affections. She didn't really care to admit either. "Well, Cliff can go… jump off a cliff," Karen dismissed this with a wave of her hand, laughing. "I noticed at the Cooking Festival when Rick congratulated me on my dish he seemed a little flustered. I got pretty hopeful."

Claire rested her arms on the table's surface and laid her chin on top of them. "So why didn't you do anything about it then?" She looked up at her companion with wide blue eyes.

"Huh?" Karen was taken by surprise. She jolted out of her relaxed posture.

The farmer tilted her head to the side; she thought that she had been blatantly obvious. "Why didn't you tell him that you loved him? Why didn't you tell him that you were learning how to cook so that you'd be able to help support him?" A smug smile played at the young woman's pink lips.

Karen took her final piece of candy, fat caramel, and raised her eyebrows at Claire as she unwrapped her treat. "You could tell that then, huh?" she took the whole caramel in one bite. "Well, you can't just say that to someone," she continued, her mouth full.

"Well, why not?" Her friend thought Karen could tell anyone anything.

She let out a sigh of exasperation at her friend's naiveté. "Because I didn't want to get rejected if he didn't feel the same way. Don't play dumb; this is basic relationship stuff, Claire," Karen chortled, but more color had come into her cheeks. "Anyway, we had been spending more time together lately, and at the dance he said that he has started to realize how much I meant to him," her eyes had a faraway look in them. "So, naturally, I played it cool and spent a lot of time talking with him."

Talking with him… That was something she and Gray never did too much of… She shook the thoughts from her mind. "Did you ever end up dancing with someone else's date like you said you would?" Claire asked in an attempt to distract herself from her thoughts of the apprentice blacksmith.

"Hmm… I danced with Duke. And see? The world didn't end!" Karen shrugged. Claire was surprised she didn't notice the two dancing together during the party. "Manna didn't care. She danced with the doc for a while. Anyway, I talked with Rick at the bar and got a few drinks into him. He loosened up a bit after that," she laughed heartily, twirling a strand of brown hair around her finger. Claire was uncomfortable; it seemed there were quite a few things she didn't pay attention to last night.

She had no doubt that this was part of her friend's plot to reel in the poultry farmer. "Oh, don't tell me you had to get him drunk first!" the farmer teased, brushing off her embarrassment.

Her companion dismissed this with a wave of the hand and rolled eyes. "He wasn't drunk, just a bit tipsy," Karen insisted with a giggle. "He just needed a little extra courage to say what he needed."

"And what did he say?"

Karen blushed and looked at the floor, debating whether or not to tell her his exact words. They were, in truth, a bit sappy, and she didn't want her friend to be reminded of her own loneliness. She stole a glance at the farmer, who was watching her friend with wide, curious eyes and a bright smile. It seemed Claire had forgotten about her own pain at the moment. The brunette continued, her cheeks burning. "We were getting ready to head out and he said, 'Karen, I've waited too long to say this: I love you. I've loved you for years, but I've been afraid to tell you. We've always been good friends, but I want us to be more.' Of course I agreed."

That must have been shortly before the kiss the farmer had witnessed. The young woman's heart felt light; she was glad that Karen and Rick had finally made their relationship official. "I'm so happy for you," Claire smiled at her friend. "You two are perfect for each other."

Karen's face was still red. "Thanks. That means a lot to me… Last night was pretty amazing, huh?" She rested her chin on the palm of her hand.

"Yeah," Claire admitted.

Karen recalled how this whole conversation had started. "Sorry I didn't walk you home." She sincerely doubted that her companion cared; the blonde had seemed quite occupied when Karen left with Rick.

"Oh, that's fine." Claire wasn't sure why she decided not to share that someone else had done that for her.

The brunette smiled. Things were going to be alright with Claire; she just needed to get past this rough patch. "You really did look cute last night dancing, Claire," Karen smiled, recalling seeing her friend giggling as she twirled. There truly was something very special about the night before – seeing Claire let her guard down in a social setting and enjoy herself completely was a refreshing change. The blonde's dancing partner had behaved in a similar way. Karen smiled; it seemed both of her friends were slowly becoming more comfortable around other people and she was genuinely happy for both of them.

Claire shyly rubbed the back of her neck, messing up her hair a bit. "You mean flailing around with Saibara?" The farmer giggled.

"You know what I mean."

The young woman's heart gave an uncomfortable jolt like it did last night. She looked into her empty glass. "Well, thank you for lending me the dress," she stammered, too embarrassed to steal a glance at Karen.

"No problem," she studied her friend's face. "Hey… I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable," she offered gently.

"N-not at all!" Claire said a little too loudly. She poured herself another cup of tea and noticed her hands were trembling. She quickly shook it off; the news of Gray and Mary had made her too emotional about everything.

"Well, the fireworks festival is coming up next month," Karen changed the subject.

Claire was grateful her friend had dropped the subject of boys. While she enjoyed Cliff's company immensely, the topic of men in general made her thoughts inevitably drift to Gray. She felt like she had been reliving this morning's conversation with the young man all day, and, quite frankly, she was tiring of it. The young woman had been crushed, but it was exhausting to remain in that state. The thought of fireworks was a bittersweet one, though, as she had often spent summer holidays alone, catching up on office work when she lived in the city, trying to block out the sound of merriment and booming fireworks as she focused on her fiscal reports. Seeing the other city folk dressed up in their yukatas and festival wear made her heart throb with a vehement jealousy.

She was certain Karen would want to watch the fireworks with her new boyfriend, and she didn't want to kill the mood for them with her presence.

"You'll sit with us, right?" the brunette's words surprised Claire.

"S-Sure," she stammered, playing with her fingers. She found that she was choking back a giddiness about the event and the notion of being included.

Her friend looked up at her curiously. "What's got you so wound up?"

"Ah…" the farmer was embarrassed at being caught in such a flustered state. She felt a lump form in her throat. Her eyes drifted to the box that she kept in the corner of her room where she kept her clothing. "I'll… I'll finally get to wear my yukata," she murmured quietly, avoiding eye contact.

Her friend grinned. "Oh, that's right!" Karen's face lit up; she could tell that it meant a lot to Claire to finally be able to wear this piece of clothing that she had kept hidden away for so long.

A warm glow swelled in Claire's chest. "I'm gonna do my hair, too!" she added enthusiastically. She immediately thought of the areas along the mountain trail where the most flowers grew and which ones would look nicest with her outfit.

Karen stuck out her tongue and giggled. She could tell the farmer was thinking in depth about preparing for the event, and she wanted to encourage her to be excited about something. "We'll be the cutest ones there."

Claire gave an emphatic nod although she knew Karen would be the one attracting the lion's share of the attention. She realized with a small shrug that she didn't really care. She was eager to watch the night sky light up while being free from worries or work. "In the city they had fireworks festivals too," Claire reminisced.

Karen giggled. "Well, you're in for a treat! You'll get to attend a real festival here! There are games in the square, fireworks, and bon dancing!"

A dreamy smile crossed Claire's lips as she felt a strong wave of nostalgia. "Ah, I haven't danced the bon since I was a kid. I don't know if I'd remember how."

"I wouldn't worry too much," Karen snorted. "When someone like Thomas leads the dancing…" her voice faded with a snicker. "Not many people actually dance. It's funny to watch – I'll give it that. The man has two left feet."

Claire clung to her fantasy of the fireworks. "I can't wait!"

The thought of looking forward to something gave her a glimmer of hope for the future. It was just as Carter had said – she had friends who cared about her. Mineral Town wasn't a loss. Her throat relaxed as she imagined an evening with her friends. Maybe they'd even do some traditional dancing; she found herself giggling with delight at the very idea. The notion of a group dance sounded lovely. It was hard to believe that just a few hours ago she wanted to be all alone. Perhaps she was healing a bit already, she wondered. The concept left her a little baffled. Swinging from hopelessness to glee in such a short period of time made her feel a jolt of guilt. She was supposed to be mourning, after all. Still, the thought of the Fireworks Festival left a small smile on her face. She remembered the priest's words once more about the love her friends had for her. Surely she shouldn't spend all of the time focusing on the pain.

"I'm psyched for it, too! After all, there will be different alcohol vendors there!" Karen giggled.

Claire rolled her eyes before giving her friend a playful shove.

0o0o0o0

Author's Note: I know these last few chapters haven't been posted as quickly as I usually do, but I'm going through some emotional stuff right now. Kinda hard to write about someone who is distraught when it hits a little too close to home.

Cultural Note: Bon festivals are held in Japan in late summer and feature fireworks, various stalls, and traditional dancing, to name just a few activities. Bon dancing a group dance that is performed in a circle to honor the dead. Fun fact: different areas have their own bon dances and songs based on the region. I decided to write the Fireworks Festival as more of a Bon type deal. Should be fun!

Things are starting to look up for Claire! Please let me know what you think of the story so far or any questions you have! :) I truly appreciate every hit, favorite, follow, and review immensely!