Blackberry Season
Blackberry season only came once a year and Leah was not about to let fresh, wild fruit go without harvesting - or eating, of course. The forager donned the gloves she kept stowed away for these occasions and grabbed her woven berry basket before heading out into the misty fall morning.
After living on the outskirts of Pelican Town for several years, Leah already knew all the best harvesting locations, but that did not stop the artist from meandering through the Cindersap Forest. The fog gave the woods a spooky, ethereal atmosphere. Leah knew it would not last once the sun rose high enough into the sky to evaporate all the airborne water droplets, but for now she would have to be more mindful of her surroundings. At least, what she could see of them.
Leah kept to the shoreline of the big lake. Rather than trying to cross the narrow plant bridge to the tiny island that would be a shortcut to the blackberry bushes further south, the artist elected to take the long way around for safety. Besides, Leah enjoyed the exercise. The early mornings were a perfect time to commune with nature. There was not a single soul out in this thick fog.
Or, so Leah had assumed. Her boot caught on something underfoot and the ginger-haired forager stumbled to the ground. "Ow!" A familiar voice cried out. Leah did not see Haley right away, but eventually found the blonde prone in the damp grass.
"Watch where you're going!" Haley snapped, glaring at the woman whose boot left a mark on her rain gear. She must have worn it to keep dry in the fog.
The sculptor glanced down at Haley curiously. "What are you doing lying down in the middle of the forest?" Leah questioned, readjusting the handle of her basket further up her arm.
Haley patted the damp earth, as if looking for something. "I'm trying to take some photos of those pine trees on the island in the middle of the lake," the aspiring photographer explained in annoyance. Finally, she found her camera and made sure it had not been damaged. Gently dabbing the water from the lens, she lay back down to frame her shot once again. "It's not often you get the opportunity for landscape shots in weather like this."
Leah's grey eyes followed the direction of Haley's camera lens. She spied the silhouettes of the old evergreens towering over the water in such a way that they seemed other-worldly. As if you could blink and they might disappear. Their ghost-like presence barely reflected in the deep waters below, adding to the evanescent nature of the scene. "It's beautiful…" the forager breathed.
"Yes, but I'm also trying to get a good foreground frame for my shot with these bushes to ground it and add some contrast," Haley elaborated curtly. She was obviously still upset about being stepped upon, but her determination to re-establish her shot overrode her anger.
For a moment, Leah forgot about her blackberry picking and chose to join Haley for a while. "So… how is fog photography different from sunny days?" she asked, hoping to get some tips. While drawing and taking pictures were different art forms, sometimes techniques could be integrated from other methodologies.
Haley's blue eyes focused away from her camera. Leah noticed her pink lips curve upward slightly, though it may have been the angle from which she viewed the blonde's face. "You can't let the camera do the focusing," the woman lying on the ground answered. "The camera always wants to focus on the wrong things, so I have to adjust everything manually."
Her gaze returned to the viewfinder, as her left hand twisted the lens, adjusting the shot. "And of course you don't want a flash, because that would reflect too much off the water in the air," Haley continued. "And you have to increase the exposure, otherwise everything looks too grey."
The blonde snapped a photo, and nodded an approving smile before showing Leah the results. It was hauntingly beautiful. "I'm going to wait to see how the sun changes things as it rises higher into the sky," Haley told the artist. "I think I'll get some really interesting comparison pictures."
Leah had no idea what Haley meant by most of the explanation she provided, but deliberated her next words carefully. "I had no idea photography was so technical," the taller woman admitted, flattening her braid against her shoulder.
Haley beamed. "It was frustrating at first, but after a lot of trial-and-error, I finally feel like I have a good grasp on it!" Her concentration back on her camera, the blonde snapped a few more photos. Leah could not help but think the look on Haley's face was adorable. This was a different side of her neighbor, someone confident in their artistic ability. It suited her.
"It's a shame I can't sketch in this weather," Leah thought forlornly. "Paper doesn't like water very much," she added with a chuckle.
After a brief pause that hung in the air like the surrounding fog, Haley made a suggestion. "You're welcome to use some of my photos to practice." She frowned. "I know it's not as good as the real thing, but I would be really interested to see how it translates."
"Thanks, I might actually take you up on that!" Leah countered, her lips tugging up toward her ears. "Fog is so hard to mimic on paper," she lamented with a wistful sigh. "You captured it really well in these photos," the artist complimented Haley, her head bobbing in the blonde's general direction. "I'd love to see them once they're developed."
Haley seemed oddly withdrawn. "Maybe I'll show you my darkroom sometime," she offered quietly, avoiding Leah's eyes. But before the ginger-haired woman could question it, her grey orbs noticed movement in the mist beyond.
There was an inhuman shape approaching them from the shoreline of the lake. Even in the fog, Leah noticed parts of the figure seemed to disappear and then reappear elsewhere. It did not make sense for a flock of birds to be flying this low to the ground and she could have sworn she heard a multitude of voices through the thick curtain of the fog. "What is that?!" Leah questioned in alarm.
Haley snapped a photograph before she rose to her feet and watched with a mixture of morbid curiosity and anxiety. "I don't know…" she admitted with a whisper. "But I think it's too late to run."
Violet received a request from Linus in the mail that Monday morning to help him locate his missing blackberry basket. The farmer wanted to go to the mines, since the medium predicted slight luck today, but with the heavy fog rolling over the valley, Violet supposed this was an excellent opportunity to ask the Junimos for assistance without bumping into anyone, allowing the little forest spirits to roam freely without worry of being discovered by the rest of the villagers. Once I find the blackberry basket, I'll head over to the mines, the hopeful explorer decided.
The young woman had no idea where to begin the search for Linus' missing basket, but with the sheer numbers of the Junimos, Violet figured the odds would be in their favor. She also knew that the Junimos requested fifty blackberries and twenty wild plums for the local wildman through the old Community Center board. She could forage for the berries while looking for Linus' basket, Violet realized happily. The former city girl loved being efficient with her time whenever possible.
Work smarter, not harder, Zach always told her. Their parents of course wanted them both to be high achievers, but did not typically care how the results were obtained. While she was unsure of how exactly her older brother did so well in school when he did not seem to attend it very often, his grades did not suffer. It was around that time that Violet became aware that Zach was someone who enjoyed to follow the letter of the law rather than the spirit when it best suited him. Then again, her obnoxious sibling always found a way to defend his actions when he wanted the opposite to work in his favor. That was probably why he went into law in the first place. It suited his personality.
Violet, on the other hand, learned all sorts of basic time-management skills that served her well in the long run. Among those were many time-saving functions on the computer, which later helped her do so well with her position at Joja Corp. before everything boiled over. But before she entered the workforce, Violet learned to use her free periods to actually do her homework so that her parents could not object to socializing after school. As long as their daughter kept her grades up, her parents let her do as she pleased to a certain extent. It was only when Violet's friend group became blended with members of the opposite sex that her mother became more rigid with rules, resulting in more arguments than Violet cared to count.
Not that it mattered anymore, Violet realized. She had moved out of both her parents' places years ago. She owned a house for herself and a cute boyfriend, all at a comfortable distance from her family. Violet reflected on these facts as she strained to find Linus' blackberry basket in the fog underfoot. Maybe I should have gone to the mines first, the agriculturalist reflected regretfully. But at this point, Violet may as well harvest blackberries and any other wild forageables she found.
The Junimos checked the secret woods before anything else, but they only returned with a few mahogany seeds. Violet praised each embodiment of nature for their efforts but also made it clear that the basket still must be found. So, the search party then traveled south near the ridge on which the wizard lived. As her minions hunted for the lost item, Violet watched the stone building towering over in the mist with a wary eye. She still did not trust Rasmodius after that first encounter. Though with Talla away, Violet reluctantly admitted to herself that he was the most likely source to get information about the magic of the valley. Perhaps another day when the weather was not so… ominous. And on a day she had back-up that did not consist of ambulatory fruit.
Still, after an hour of combing the southern cliffs of the Cindersap forest and working her way back up toward Marnie's Ranch, Violet and the Junimos were unable to locate Linus' missing blackberry basket. The rookie forager was able to gather a good number of the seasonal fruits, however. Still, she had a ways to go before she had enough.
The sun was finally high enough in the sky to evaporate some of the heavy fog as she crossed the wooden planks that bridged the far side of the forest to the opposite shore. Violet would not have dared to use this route if not for the Junimos, whose bright colors clearly marked the path in front of her as they marched across the bridge ahead of her. Singing a happy little tune, the small keepers of the woods kept close to Violet. She enjoyed the company of the forest spirits and it was nice to have them around without disappearing every so often at the slightest noise.
As they stepped back onto the solid ground of the northern shore of the lake, Violet swore she heard a voice nearby. Leah does live close by… she reasoned silently. The cultivator signaled to the Junimos and began to approach the source of the sound. Upon realizing others were nearby, the sentient bushel of apples quickly dissipated from view with a soft popping sound.
"Who's there!?" a feminine shout demanded. To Violet's surprise, it sounded like Haley.
"Uh… it's just me," Violet answered, though she realized that her words were entirely unhelpful to those not acquainted with her voice. "Farmer Violet!"
"Violet?" This time, it was Leah. The pastel-haired woman wondered what the two were doing out here together and in such damp weather. Finally, the pair came into view. Haley looked like she had just seen a ghost and Leah did not look much better.
"What are you two doing out here?"
Haley's brows knit with annoyance. "Taking pictures of the fog!" she replied defensively. "What are you doing scaring us like that?!"
Violet's cobalt eyes fluttered innocently. "I didn't mean to scare you," the agrarian responded truthfully.
Leah tilted her head, as if expecting someone else to be with her. "You looked way bigger in the mist," the artist informed her with an anxious laugh. "Were you really alone?"
This was one of those times that Violet did not want to talk about the magical aspects of Pelican Town with those who likely knew nothing about it. Sure, everyone in the band, Emily - and now that she thought about it, possibly Shane - seemed to have some idea about the non-human elements of the valley. But as far as the farmer was aware, most villagers still believed their quiet little coastal town was perfectly normal. Violet did not want to risk sounding like a crazy person with no physical evidence to back up her statement regarding the existence of Junimos. So, she lied.
"Yeah, I'm foraging for blackberries while I look for Linus' blackberry basket," Violet explained. She had a horde of forest sprites accompanying her, but the rest was true. "Have either of you seen it?" Violet asked, referring to the woven basket.
Both women shook their heads. "No, but it's not anywhere around here. I'm sure I would have seen it otherwise," Leah stated confidently. "Maybe try the backwoods?"
"Wait!" Haley interjected, still standing slightly behind Leah. "Why were you glowing?" the blonde demanded to know.
Violet laughed nervously and exhaled sharply. At least she had an answer for this one. "You mean my glow ring?" the shortest of the three women removed the glow ring from her finger and held it in her open palm for the suspicious photographer. "See?"
While she could not explain how the glow ring worked, Violet could honestly say she originally considered it possible with modern technology. Sure, it was magic, but not something that could not potentially exist without magic. There were small keychain flashlights and neon-colored glow sticks, so why not a glow ring? It was just close enough to reality that neither of her neighbors questioned the object once she presented it to them.
"That's really cool!" Leah complimented the accessory. "I might have to get one myself."
Sounds like I'll need to either find more in the mines or craft a few extra, Violet thought to herself. Still, it was doable and would keep one of her many secrets safe from suspicion for a while longer.
Haley finally lay her suspicions to rest in the hopes of attaining something better. "Hey, would you two go stand over there by that lone tree on the little island?" the blonde requested. "I want to get a few more silhouettes in the fog before it disappears completely."
"No problem!" Lean grinned, grabbing Violet's hand and leading the way. "You don't mind, do you Violet?" The floral-haired woman saw no reason to object if all she had to do was stand there and Leah already had a firm grip on her arm. "You can catch me up with what's been going on since you keep ditching Elliott and I on Friday nights lately."
Violet could tell that Leah was teasing, but she did feel a bit badly about abandoning the artistic duo. The farmer always had a great time with them, so they had done nothing wrong. Her life just began to change so drastically, they had grown apart recently.
Violet glanced back at Haley and could have sworn she saw a jealous look on the woman's face, but she scoffed at the idea. Why would Haley be jealous of her?
Emily stood at the kitchen counter, halving jalapeño peppers for her lunch with Shane later that day. She planned on driving him to his usual appointment in ZuZu and so getting all the prep work done ahead of time would allow them to enjoy more time cooking and eating together. Shane was officially one season sober and she wanted to celebrate by making all his non-alcoholic favorites and hopefully introduce him to a few new things he might like.
Emily's personal favorite was the survival burger, which was just a way of saying an eggplant burger without scaring off the more carnivorous eaters right away. After salting the slices of the vegetable and dabbing them dry, the barkeep brushed on some olive oil mixed with her secret blend of spices that gave the eggplant that meaty taste most people enjoyed with beef burgers. The spiritualist knew it was not an exact replica to a regular burger, but she hoped that paired with pepper poppers and a nice flavorful cranberry punch, Shane might be convinced it was a suitable replacement.
The home chef beamed at her work and packaged everything away in the fridge until they needed it that afternoon. As she wiped the oil from her hands with a towel, she heard Shane's footsteps enter the house. Emily liked that he felt more at home here lately and no longer felt the need to knock and wait at the door for someone to let him into the house.
"Oh, shit," Shane groaned, seeing all the mess in the kitchen. "We didn't have a breakfast date, did we? I could have sworn you said you wanted to eat together after my session…"
Emily turned to face him and shook her head to assure Shane. "No, silly. I just wanted to get things ready for when we got back." It was then she noticed the dark-haired man's hands were behind his back. Her bright brown eyes twinkled. "Oh, Shane, you shouldn't have!"
Taken aback, Shane scoffed. "You assume whatever's behind me is for you!" he grumbled.
The sapphire-haired woman kissed his lips and loosely wrapped her arms around his neck. "You wouldn't be hiding it from me if it were for someone else," she reasoned, tapping his nose with her finger playfully.
Shane sighed, acknowledging defeat. "Yeah, okay…" he admitted, offering Emily a bouquet of red roses that matched the shade of her dress.
Emily gasped with delight. "They're beautiful, Shane!" She squeezed him tightly and went to retrieve a vase from under the kitchen sink. "It's a shame flowers don't last long, but I love to admire them while they last…"
Her boyfriend mistook her commentary on the nature of impermanence for criticism. "Oh, sorry…" he apologized. "I'll try to get you something better next time."
Emily frowned. "That's not what I meant," she corrected his erroneous assumption. "I only mean that memories of time spent together are more important to me than material things." She chuckled to herself. "Unless you find some quality channeling crystals! Then feel free to give me as many as you want." After filling the crystal vase with water, she carefully unwrapped the bouquet her boyfriend gifted to her and slid the stems into their decorative container.
"'Channeling crystals?'" Shane repeated, obviously confused by the wrinkling of his forehead. Emily adored those little lines on his face.
The aura-seer bobbed her head, tucking a lock of her sapphire hair behind her ear. "Yes," she proclaimed, the excited energy in her tone palpable. "I'm thinking of hosting a 'Rock Rejuvenation' class in the near future!" Emily informed the chicken rancher happily. She tapped her finger to her lips pensively. "But I think winter would be the best time for that," the red-clad woman mused aloud. "It tends to be a time of year when people miss the sun. An aura-cleansing party would definitely help chase away those seasonal blues!"
"So in the future, you would prefer doing things together over gifts," Shane reiterated to clarify. Then he smirked and raised an eyebrow to emphasize his amusement. "... Unless it's a rock."
Emily giggled, "Yes, exactly!" she confirmed with a giddy expression plastered on her face. She placed the vase of roses on the kitchen table as a centerpiece before grabbing the car keys. "Now," Emily announced purposefully, "Let's get going! Better to arrive early so you're not so stressed during your conversation with Lynn."
Shane followed his bubbly girlfriend out the door. "You make it sound so casual." Emily noticed that this time, he reached out to hold her hand first. She could hardly contain her joy.
"The next few days are something to celebrate!" Emily declared, swinging their coupled hands as they walked side-by-side. "You're a whole season sober today, and tomorrow is the mayoral election!"
An exasperated moan escaped from Shane. "Don't remind me," he begged, groping his face with his sturdy hands. "I think I got ahead of myself with this whole idea," the dark-eyed man admitted reluctantly. "There's so much responsibility tied to being mayor. I… I don't know if I can do it." He stole a quick look at Emily, his frown deepening. "Maybe I should just drop out..."
Emily stopped dead in her tracks and spun to face Shane. She reached up and cupped his face in her hands, making direct eye contact. "You, Shane, are a gentle, hard-working man who - despite all past hardships - has a brilliant, dazzling gem of a soul!" Unintentionally, Emily squished Shane's cheeks slightly as she continued to address him, but that did not stop her motivational speech. "There is a nasty little voice in your head whispering terrible things to tear you down because it is jealous of all that you could be!" the woman declared assertively. "So until your own voice is louder than that envious creature inside you, believe me when I say that existing in this world is enough to deserve love, care, and respect." Emily's eyes sparkled with sincerity as she loosened her grip on Shane's head and brushed a few sable strands of hair out of his face. "I love you, Shane."
His onyx-black eyes blinked, her reflection captured in their deep, rich hue. Shane pulled away, embarrassed that those very same eyes began to well up with tears. "I…" he choked up, unable to continue.
Reaching out, Emily grasped his hand tenderly. "There's no need to say anything," she promised him, stroking the back of his hand with her thumb. Her ruby red lips pulled back into a comforting smile. "Come along, now," she coaxed him quietly. "We can talk on the way to ZuZu, if you want."
Penny sat on the old wooden bench just south of The Stardrop Saloon, waiting for Maru to arrive from her shift at the clinic. Now that Maru was running the clinic, their time together was more precious, even if they did not have as much to talk about. Penny was not allowed to know much about her neighbors' private appointments, after all.
The brunette grinned as her best friend approached and took a seat beside her. "Long time, no see," Maru teased. It was a tradition of theirs to meet on Sundays and Mondays, so the gap varied greatly going one way, but not the other. There was always more to talk about on Sundays, but Penny still wished to see her friend regardless.
"How is living in town?" Penny inquired, turning her head to watch the migratory birds starting their journey south for the winter. "Are you still getting used to it?"
Maru leaned back against the bench. "I'm still not entirely used to not seeing my family every day," the young scientist admitted. "But it's not a bad thing to have some independence. I'm getting a lot of work done on some projects I didn't have time for before and it's easier for me to coach Alex through a few things throughout the week."
Penny's emerald eyes flickered toward her best friend. "How are things going with Alex?"
The schoolteacher could not tell if Maru was being purposefully oblivious or if she genuinely misunderstood. "Oh, he's plateaued in terms of his weight lifting training right now if he doesn't want to bulk up anymore," the amateur personal trainer revealed. "But he's improving his running endurance and building his lung capacity in the process."
"I see," Penny responded, contemplating how to get to the kinds of answers she wanted without being too direct. "I hear Alex stops by the clinic a lot lately…"
Maru nodded, verifying Penny's information. "Yeah, he's been coming by to eat lunch with me," the bespectacled researcher stated. "He keeps telling me that Granny keeps making too much food, but I have a feeling he just wants to hang out because he's bored."
Penny had another interpretation for Alex's actions, but Maru did not appear to be getting there on her own. The introverted woman wanted so much to talk with her best friend about the men in their lives, but how could they do that if Maru did not understand Alex's feelings? Then again, Penny was old-fashioned in her ideas. In her mind, Alex should tell Maru that he liked her, the teacher thought with a sigh.
"It's not a bad thing," Penny insisted bashfully, "to have other people care about you…" Her slim fingers fidgeted with the hem of her skirt. "Or to want to be around someone else because you enjoy their company."
"You're right," Maru agreed, "but I wish he wouldn't make unnecessary excuses."
Penny shifted in her seat. "Maybe… he's worried that if he doesn't have a reason to swing by, you won't want to see him." As soon as the words left her lips, the woman realized she was not just talking about Alex anymore. Penny wondered if her going to the library to read on her days off would be tolerated by Elliott if she did not claim to be searching for new materials to teach Jas and Vincent or looking for a new book to read. She knew eventually she would run out of reasons. Did Elliott know her true intentions, or was he just as blind as Maru was to Alex?
Maru's response jostled Penny from her anxieties. "That's silly," she dismissed the teacher's hypothesis. "I enjoy having him around, even when I have work to do."
"You should tell him that," the brunette advised. "It might give him the courage to be more honest with you."
"I hadn't considered that Alex might be shy," Maru conceded, contemplating Penny's suggestion. "I suppose I could give it a try." The researcher's eyes focused behind their thick lenses. "So… did you want to gush about Elliott or not?"
Penny gasped, staring at her dearest friend in disbelief. "How did you know?" she demanded to know, scanning the area to make sure Elliott was nowhere in sight.
"You've mentioned him with increasing frequency in our conversation these last few weeks and when he passed us on his way to the saloon yesterday, you actually spoke to him," Maru chuckled knowingly. "I had a feeling that meant you have a crush on him."
"I-Is it that obvious?" Penny stammered, panicked that she had given herself away without realizing. "Does Elliott know?"
Maru pondered the question, then finally shook her head. "No, Elliott doesn't strike me as the type to assume that a woman likes him just because she's nice to him." The young scientist frowned. "I understand that to be a frequent problem in modern Western culture."
"I suppose..."
The auburn-haired woman leaned forward with interest. "So, tell me!" she ordered in a professional tone. "What are your symptoms?" Maru teased, whipping out her signature notepad and a writing instrument. "And when did you first notice them?" she added with a wink.
Violet emerged from the mines, exhausted but pleased with her haul. While she had only advanced another five levels, the farmer mined a good number of iron ores, an aquamarine, and two of the objects she desired to find most: yeti tears.
Sure, Sebastian had technically called dibs on all of them, but what her boyfriend did not know would not hurt him. Besides, Violet had plans for these and the sooner she mailed the materials to NuNu City, the better.
Still, the solo adventurer had one more errand to run before she went home for band practice that evening. Linus was not around his tent when she first arrived at the mines, so unfortunately, his blackberry basket took up one of the precious pockets in Violet's backpack. As she climbed the ridge up toward the resident camper's dwelling, she heard another man's voice from above her.
"... No one by that name lives in the capital. At least, not anymore. We believe Janelle Allard was a stage name." Violet had heard that gruff voice before, but could not imagine his face. The young woman did not want to eavesdrop, however, so she continued her ascent and rounded the bend. There, Violet saw Marlon kneeling before Linus reverently, but as soon as the white-bearded gentleman noticed they were no longer alone, he tried to yank the crippled man to his feet. Not expecting the sudden shift in his center of gravity, Marlon lost his balance, resulting in the both of them tumbling into the dirt with a loud thud.
Violet approached cautiously. "Is… everything alright?" she asked hesitantly.
Marlon fumbled his words, but Linus intervened. "I was just helping my friend Marlon back to his feet after a minor stumble," the man in hand-sewn clothing answered quickly as he rose to his feet and dusted himself off. "But it took more strength than I expected, so we both fell over."
Part of Violet was dying to know why the two middle-aged men looked so frightened by her presence, but she knew they were unlikely to continue their conversation now that they knew she was within earshot. "I, uh… have your blackberry basket," the wavy-haired woman announced awkwardly, holding out the woven container toward its rightful owner. "I'm just returning it now."
Linus smiled genuinely, the wrinkles around his amber eyes showing. "Ah, thank you, Farmer Violet," he replied appreciatively. "I'm grateful you found it so quickly!"
Violet laughed nervously. "I may have had a little help…" If not for the swarm of Junimos - and Leah's advice - the young woman doubted she would have found it anytime soon. Luckily, Honeycrisp pointed it out from the trail above and floated down to retrieve it for her.
The wild man accepted the basket and shook her hand in thanks. "It doesn't matter how you found it, so long as I can treat myself to some fresh blackberries!" Linus assured her. He glanced back toward Marlon, who still looked pale from shock. "If you both will excuse me, I have a dinner date with some brambles," he cackled, taking a barely marked trail further up the mountainside.
Violet watched the mysterious man disappear out of sight before she turned her attention back to the eyepatch-wearer behind her. But Marlon had fled down the ridge back toward the Adventurer's Guild without as much as saying good-bye. "I guess he's okay if he can move that quickly," Violet mused verbally. A chime went off from her phone to alert her that it was almost time to meet Sebastian as he came back from ZuZu City.
"Guess I better get going," The farmer murmured, pocketing her phone and heading southward down the pine-sweet mountain as her breath formed plumes of steam in the fading light of the setting sun.
Author Note: Just warning you now, readers. I'm going to be traveling a lot in the next three weeks starting this Friday. I don't know when I'll have the next chapter up. I know you're used to my frequent updates and I don't want you to worry. :)