Tokens of Affection

After resting in Sebastian's bed for another few hours, Violet walked home along the backwoods path to collect her grange display items and assure Bruno that she was still alive and well. The fluffy dog greeted her with an excited bark and bounded over to his human, tail wagging. Violet petted the canine's head, stretching him behind the ears. Bruno leaned into her fingertips and several satisfied whines escaped his maw. If her dog had been worried about her, Violet was confident all was forgiven when Bruno licked her hand and galloped after a rabbit.

Violet smirked as she watched her faithful companion happily pursue the smaller creature, which skillfully evaded the dog time and time again. The farmer hoped that Bruno would never catch anything and try to offer it to her like a cat. Otherwise she would feel obligated to make it into something for him to eat and neither squirrel skewers nor rabbit stew sounded at all appealing.

Once she was sure Bruno was not about to come back anytime soon, Violet approached her storage chests in front of the farmhouse and gathered her nine items to represent Fairy Rose Farm. For the animal products category, Violet had the rabbit's foot she obtained from the bear at Talla's traveling cart; a bottle of wine, a growler of mead, and a jar of honey for her artisan goods; a large herring she caught herself; an amethyst for her mineral; a starfruit and a pumpkin for the fruits and vegetables categories. And of course for the foraging category, what would Fairy Rose Farm be without its namesake? The pastel-haired woman selected the best rose among her latest harvest.

Violet did not cook anything, for fear that her lack of presentation would deduct points. The former city girl could admit that while her meals were usually good, they were messy, and the judges were likely not to actually eat whatever she made to confirm its flavor. And even if they did, Violet was not sure how long the food would have sat out on display before it came time for judging. Despite the cool autumn air that may act as an outdoor refrigerator, the newcomer did not want to take any unnecessary risk.

Overall, the newest contestant to the grange display competition was pleased with her work. Violet had not purposefully done so, but all her items were either a shade of purple or yellow, even if the rabbit's foot was more a beige. Some artistic part of her brain was especially happy that the two colors were also complementary. "This actually looks professional!" Violet squealed, suddenly more enthusiastic by the prospect of having other people critique the fruits of her labors for the past two and a half seasons.

I'll have lived here a whole year before I know it, Violet supposed. The time already spent in Pelican Town had flown by so quickly. Sometimes, Violet felt like she was being swept up with the tide and it made her afraid. But overall, the young woman was glad she quit her job at Joja Corp. and made a new life here. She had an actual house, new friends, and an affectionate boyfriend for whom she might have big "F" feelings.

How could anyone not fall for those gorgeous eyes and that seductive smirk of his? Violet reflected, blushing at the thought. She tried to avoid thinking about Sebastian coming out of the bathroom that morning and the way the little water droplets at the end of his jet-black hair made him look so perfect.

Violet could not understand why Sebastian was so shy about being shirtless. From what she had seen, her boyfriend should not have anything to feel insecure about on his upper half. She may have peeked at Sebastian more than was respectable when he was scrambling to find something to wear to class. He has a cute butt, too.

The woman shook her head violently, trying to shake out the dirty daydreams. There were plenty of other good qualities in Sebastian that were not at all physical. She enjoyed just spending time together with him and chatting about little things. They had several big things in common, but Violet felt like she was always learning something new about Sebastian's hobbies and passions, too.

Of course, there was also the completely rated-G physical contact they often shared when one another's presence. At first she had been a bit embarrassed by the constant physical contact. It was strange and new to her. But Violet quickly came to realize this kind of touch was a kind of intimacy she never experienced before. Perhaps Sebastian had not, either. Whenever they did something together, Violet no longer startled when Sebastian's hand found hers or he rested his head in her lap. And she felt protected and content when she did the same to him. It was comforting - a sign of trust. Somehow, those little moments felt just as intimate as kissing.

Even if Sebastian could be a bit of an asshole when he teased her sometimes, Violet felt secure at the end of the day that her boyfriend was being open and honest with her. Better to air out the dark corners than let poisonous mushrooms of negativity ruin what could be a perfectly good head space. Besides, Sebastian hates mushrooms, the landowner deliberated with amusement.

Violet wondered how long it would be before all her hang-ups from her first relationship would be unpacked. How much time would have to pass before she truly moved on? Before she could stop second-guessing herself or feel ashamed for things that were not her fault?

The woman heaved a heavy sigh. Well, even now, some things were her fault, but Violet could own up to her own mistakes. Sebastian had not used emotionally manipulating logic against Violet to make her feel badly. So, while the farmer was a bit nervous about the conversation he wanted to have later, she and Sebastian were in a better place in their relationship than they were previously.

Still, Violet hoped Sebastian did not chew her out too much when they met to chat after the Fair. She knew what she did wrong and in Violet's defense, she had not technically made the same mistake twice. The first time was simply ignorance that luck actually mattered and last night's fiasco was because she underestimated the monsters and the time it would take to slay them. It was not as if Sebastian could ban her from going to the mines alone.

If he tries that, it's not gonna fly, Violet grumbled internally, though truthfully she knew she messed up. What must have gone through Sebastian's head when she found her unconscious? What if she had found him in a similar state? Violet frowned when she realized it would probably be similar to the way Sebastian reacted.

In light of her own self-reflection, Violet guessed she deserved a little bit of tough love. Either way, they would have to talk things out and that was something for later. For now, Violet was going to try and enjoy herself at her first Stardew Valley Fair. Gently packing the goods in her backpack, she set off toward town.

Alex could not help but smile as Maru's eyes lit up at his display of strength at the stone crusher game just outside the clinic. Sure, you had to be able to swing the sledge hammer, but balance and timing were important, too. He flashed his best grin at her. "See? I told you I could do it!" the athlete declared confidently, hoisting the enormous mallet up to rest on his broad shoulders as he received the maximum score.

"I never doubted you," Maru assured him, smiling back at him. "Would you like to go look around for a while? I think now is the best time to investigate the mystery of the acid splashes since all the villagers are here for the Fair."

It was hard to argue with that, Alex realized. "Sure, why not?" It was not as if he had any solid plans other than spending the day with Maru when she did not have to worry about work at the clinic. He returned the pickaxe to the shirtless bodybuilder who manned the attraction and was awarded a single token for his efforts.

Alex noticed that she was not wearing her usual outfit today. Instead of overalls, she wore a long-sleeved grape-colored dress. It was kind of weird to see his friend in girlier clothing, but the young man was not about to complain. Maru looked nice.

"So… where do we start?" Alex supposed aloud, shifting his weight from one foot to the other as he scanned the crowd. Pelican Town was full of tourists in the square as well. Maru pulled out a small notepad from her bag and flipped to a page with their notes from their previous discussion on the matter.

"We should first figure out for sure who might have been on the square that day," Maru decided, tapping the end of her pencil to her chin. She did that a lot, Alex noticed. He thought it was cute.

Alex tilted his head to better see their initial list of suspects. "So we just go up and ask them 'what were you doing the night of the 11th?' like some old school PI?" he asked incredulously.

Maru's brows furrowed, considering the problem. Her warm eyes swept over the surrounding area and she breathed in loudly. "Let's start by checking that calendar on Pierre's to see if anything was going on that night!" Usually, the calendar only had the villagers' birthdays listed, but sometimes other people wrote in special events.

For example, someone had written "Art Show 4 PM" on the upcoming Saturday. Alex did not recognize the handwriting, but that was not really important right now. The jock's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Hey, that was the same day as Jodi's birthday," he noticed, pointing to the woman's photo on the date square.

"Hm…" Maru wrote that down, "that could be relevant information. Perhaps we should ask her about it."

They did not see Jodi right away, but Caroline was close-by. Abigail's mom was best friends with Sam's mom, so maybe she would know something. Alex approached the woman casually. "Hey, Caroline," the jock greeted the green-haired woman. "How's it going?"

She looked surprised that Alex was talking to her, but smiled and answered, nodding toward Maru to acknowledge her presence as well. "Oh, just enjoying the hustle and bustle of the Fair," Caroline exhaled dreamily. "It's not often we get so many visitors to our little town."

Alex hesitated, unsure of how to continue the conversation while still getting to the question he wanted to ask. He improvised. "Yeah, as long as no fights break out," he commented with a grimace. "I heard two people arguing last week and it sounded nasty."

Caroline took the bait and Maru winked at Alex in approval. "Oh? I hadn't heard about that? Do you know who it was?"

Maru took a turn. "We're not sure, but I found something…" his friend looked around, as if making sure no one else would hear. The glasses-wearing woman leaned in toward Caroline and whispered, "Sensitive that might belong to one of the people involved and want to return it. Do you know of anyone who might have been in this area last Wednesday evening?" Alex was impressed how smoothly Maru lied - if he would really call it that. She was being hazy with the details on purpose, which Caroline probably assumed was to respect the other person's privacy.

The mother paused. "That was Jodi's birthday. I had a girls' night with her at The Stardrop Saloon, but I know Gus stepped out the back a few times," Caroline revealed. She directed the duo toward the playground. "He's over grilling burgers for all the guests if you want to ask him if he heard anything."

Alex nodded appreciatively. "Thanks, ma'am." He turned quickly and began to head up the stairs, following the mouth-watering scent of burgers. Damn, I could really go for a few of those right now anyway, the spiky-haired brunet could feel the saliva forming in his mouth. Maru caught up with him pretty quickly before Alex realized it would have been politer to wait for her.

Either way, the pair found the mustached barkeep tending to a long line of grills, all lined with slowly cooking burger patties. "Are these free?" Alex asked with disbelief as several out-of-towners took several off a serving platter and dressed them to their taste.

The round man laughed, "All you can eat, just for today!" Gus announced proudly. Alex was blown away how the guy could cook so many at once without burning them all into hockey pucks. That did not stop the athlete from taking a small mound of burgers for himself, however.

Maru kept more on task, though. "Hi Gus!" she began to make small talk. "This is a really impressive operation you've got going." Her face turned to look at all the food. "You have this down to an art!"

Gus puffed out his chest, eating up the compliment like Alex was wolfing down burgers. "Well, I've been doing this for years, and after a while, you learn a few tricks of the trade." He winked at Maru. "Your friend seems to be enjoying a few burgers. Why don't you sit down and enjoy one yourself?"

Maru got a plate and obliged. "Mmm, this is delicious, Gus!" she praised the chef. "I'll bet people will be dreaming about these burgers for months."

Alex was not sure if Maru was serious or trying to butter up the older man, but either way, flattery seemed to be working. "We're on a bit of a wild goose chase right now," the brunette admitted to Gus. "The night of Jodi's birthday, there was an argument somewhere in the square. Did you happen to hear anything that night? Caroline mentioned you stepped out the back a few times."

Alex sat back and admired the results of Maru's legwork as he sunk his teeth into another juicy hamburger. Gus rubbed the cleft of his chin, flipping a few half-cooked patties as he tried to recall that night. "You know, I had a minor tiff with Pam that night and she got to shoutin' a bit about being locked outta the bar," the chef confessed. "But now that I think about it, I did hear a younger pair hollerin' for a little bit, too."

Gus closed his eyes, as if trying to relive the moment. "I think at the time, I suspected the young lady was Abigail," the mustached man recounted. "I occasionally overhear her arguing with one of her parents when I go to the General Store," the pudgy man reported with a grimace.

Alex added to the friendly interrogation through a mouthful burger. "Do ya nou hu shi mighta ben rellin' at?"

The tavern owner's lips twitched to one side. "I remember thinking that maybe she and Pierre were getting into it again," Gus stated, shaking his head. "But the man's voice didn't sound right."

Alex's eyebrows rose and Maru turned to wink him before twisting her torso back toward Gus. "Thank you so much!" Without waiting for him to finish, Maru grabbed Alex's hand and hurried off back the way they came. Alex did not fight it, but he really wished she had let him finish that last burger.

Gus chuckled, pulling back his hand to avoid the sizzling grease staining his mustard yellow jacket sleeve. "Anytime, kids."

Elliott spent some time with his dear friend Leah before he spied Miss Penelope appearing rather despondent off to the side near The Stardrop Saloon. The man's honey-hued eyes scanned the area to see if there was someone nearby who could have caused the maiden's forlorn face, but they were surrounded by the faces of strangers. "Leah," the poet spoke up, yet before he even uttered another word, the artist seemed to understand his plight.

"Go on!" Leah shooed him away with a smirk upon her lips. "Find out who dishonored your lady."

Elliott knew that Leah was merely jesting, but he could not hold back the desire to discover the meaning of this. "Oh, I do appreciate your thoughtfulness, Leah. I shall return to your side as soon as I am able," he vowed. Leah rolled her heather-hued eyes.

"Don't bother making promises like that," she huffed with thinly veiled annoyance. "Last time you said that I didn't see you again for days." Elliott realized with shame that Leah was indeed correct. He intended to be a man of his word, but had failed his companion.

Despite this unfortunate truth, Leah was unfazed. "I just saw Violet over there," the fellow creative beside him indicated with a delicate finger. "I'll just hang out with her and we can meet up later if you want." Leah waved her hand to indicate her departure, thus freeing him from their social engagement to do as he so pleased.

Elliott felt oddly flustered now that he was keenly aware of his romantic interest toward Miss Penelope. Is my hair properly groomed? Is my breath inoffensive? Does my waistcoat appear clean and pressed? It was difficult to judge properly without a mirror to assist the cause, but he did his best to assess his needs based purely on his own senses before approaching the lovely lady.

Miss Penelope stood near a shrub brightly bronzed by the autumnal season, her sparkling emerald eyes downcast. The warm tones of the brick building behind her only complemented her figure. Her lustrous brunette locks fell gracefully to one side in a stylish bun at the nape of her neck and her canary yellow attire only added to her brilliance. "Miss Penelope," Elliott addressed the woman in his most soothing tone. "Whatever is the matter?"

Her cheeks flushed a rosy pink, as if disconcerted that someone took notice of her sorry state. "I won the wheel of chance ten times in a row and now the man won't let me play anymore," she explained demurely, shuffling the toe of her flat into the dirt beneath her feet.

"I-I was trying to get enough tokens to buy something from the shop, but I'm afraid I spent too much money on silly things," Miss Penelope continued to elaborate, twisting a loose strand of her dark tresses absently with her finger. Elliott noticed this nervous habit caused the segment to curl slightly as she twirled it around. Her gemstone eyes darted toward the bespectacled villain in the ill-fitting suit and equally distasteful top hat.

"Spending is not silly so long as it brings you joy," Elliott assured his companion. "And how dare that scoundrel refuse you?"

The slender woman did not take his words to heart, however. "It's a shame, really," Miss Penelope respired wistfully. "I was doing so well in that game. I might have had a chance."

Elliott felt a small flame light in his core as corrected his posture to stand to his fullest height. "In that case, I shall obtain the necessary coinage for your prize, Miss Penelope!" the silky-haired author swore solemnly. He offered the crook of his arm to the young woman before him. "Come, we shall not give this charlatan any further business," Elliott professed, making sure to look down at the rascal scornfully as they passed.

Miss Penelope shyly accepted his arm and while she did not join him in shaming the man, she did not deign to give the scoundrel a second thought. "You really don't have to do this for me," the lady insisted, but Elliott would have none of it.

"I feel I must," he declared earnestly. Despite how crowded the square had become, Elliott did not have trouble escorting Miss Penelope through the throng of visitors. Perhaps it was his posture and graceful manner in which he walked, but the masses yielded to his will as he made way toward the fishing tent. "There is at least one game here in which I believe I can aid your cause."

Miss Penelope bobbed her head curiously. "You fish?"

Elliott was abashed by the truth, but acknowledged his shortcomings to her of his own free will. "I am quite a fine fisherman until it is time to remove the poor creature from the hook." He folded his hands in front of him. "Which is why I only partake in the sport when Mister Willy is available. I offer half of my catch as payment for his assistance."

Polite as ever, Miss Penelope hid her amusement behind a delicate hand. "You really are a gentleman through and through."

Elliott knit his brows. "You are not bothered by it?"

The woman lifted her gently sloping shoulders indifferently. "I think it demonstrates how gentle you are," she answered him, her lips tugging back toward her adorable ears in an upward curve. "It's cute."

Completely unprepared for such an assault on his sensibilities, felt the tell-tale warmth of blush on his face. "I see," Elliott responded simply, turning his attention toward the bearded man who stood behind the table at the tent.

"Try your hand at some fishing?" an individual whose head was adorned with a fine cotton turban solicited Elliott. "You could win big!"

Elliott paid the gentleman his entrance fee and took up the offered pole as he entered the tent. He blinked, nonplussed, when he realized that it was a small rod with a magnet attached rather than a real fishing pole. "How am I to catch fish with this, sir?"

Before the game master could reply, Miss Penelope's laughter rang out like a melodious song. "They aren't real fish, Elliott," she informed him with an amused expression. "The fishing poles have magnets at the end of the line to catch the plastic fish in the pond."

His amber eyes inspected the pole once again, suddenly relieved that he would not have to shame himself by attempting to remove a fish from an actual hook. "Oh, thank heavens!" Elliott sighed with audible relief. The man would no longer be required to embarrass himself in the presence of a lady.

The elderly gentleman blew a whistle to indicate Elliott could begin and the amateur fisherman cast his line into the water, hoping to reel in a fish with a high number to win as many star tokens as possible for Miss Penelope. At first, his strategy was to go for the largest fish possible. It was a considerable size, gleaming with gold paint, and the number 500 written on its body. However, much to his chagrin, Elliott noticed that not only was it in a difficult spot, but the golden fish also seemed to repel the end of his line whenever he got close.

Even those who did not know much about magnetism could quickly discern that there was something askew with the polarity. Perhaps the like poles are too close together? Elliott deduced.

He did not want to accuse the man of fraud, but the method was likely devised for fair-goers to waste precious time attempting to capture a more difficult target when so many little fish were close-by, therefore collecting more money from especially stubborn players. Elliott adjusted his strategy, reeling in as many smaller artificial fish as possible within the remaining time. Luckily, the magnet was large enough that he caught multiple on several instances, thus making up for the lost time he spent trying to obtain the decoy fish.

When the whistle blew once again, Elliott had amassed a decent haul. The man who hosted the game counted up the little 10, 15, and 20 point fish until a fine total of 405 points. Nodding at the impressive amount, the man clad in muted golds awarded Elliott an equal number of tokens to his winnings. "You are a clever man!" the elder congratulated the player with a wink. "The best things in life are little things."

Elliott noticed the man's attention shift behind him and the poet turned on his heels to find Miss Penelope throwing her arms around him. "Elliott, that was incredible!" she proclaimed, embracing him with a charming expression of gratitude.

While thoroughly trapped by his companion's arms wrapped around his, Elliott did not mind the display of affection. "I can certainly try again if you require more tokens for the object you so desired, Miss Penelope," he stated, trying his best to conceal the tint of color on his cheeks.

Penny released him and bobbed her head to indicate the contrary, her elegant bun bobbing against her shoulders. "No, it's okay," she declined the offer. "I almost have 300 myself, so that's plenty for what I wanted to buy."

Elliott took her hand in his and deposited the tokens carefully so they would not fall to the floor. "Then these are for you, Miss Penelope," he declared. The brunette tucked away the novelty coins in her bag before they exited the tent and the man in dandelion tones raised a single brow with a smirk that suggested he knew that Elliott was attempting to win over Miss Penelope's affections.

Adjusting his tie, Elliott cleared his throat and thanked the gentleman for his time before swiftly shuffling out of the boldly striped tent. To make sure that Miss Penelope did not attempt to question the old man's expression, the well-dressed man began a conversation of his own. "If I may be so bold to ask, Miss Penelope, to which activity did you provide your patronage?"

She clutched her bag and downcast her eyes. "I… went to see the fortune teller," the schoolteacher professed sheepishly.

While Elliott himself had never employed a medium, he had to concede it was a curiosity of his. "Were you satisfied by the predictions made by the seer?" he inquired. He did not want to make his companion uncomfortable by asking about her fortunes directly in case they were a private matter.

The breath-taking brunette frowned. "Well, she knew that Maru and I were best friends, which is true," Miss Penelope stated. "And she assured me that the children appreciated my lessons, but…" the graceful woman paused, as if unsure of how to best articulate the situation. "But when it came to my final fortune, she shoved me out of the tent!"

Elliott turned his head to glare askance in the general direction of the fortune teller. "My word! It seems I met with you after your second mistreatment at the Fair today." The man felt righteous indignation, whipping around so that his coattails flew behind his imposing form. "I must correct this at once!"

Miss Penelope reached out a gentle hand and took hold of his wrist. "Please don't!" she reasoned. "Madame Welwick still gave me my fortune, it's just…" At this the woman's entire face began to redden.

Elliott leaned down to her level with concern, brushing her bangs away from her forehead, and placing the back of his hand to her forehead. "You seem a bit warm, Miss Penelope. Are you feeling ill?"

"I-I…" The poor woman must have been suffering, Elliott believed with a panic. Yet here he was dragging her around the Fairgrounds like an inattentive imbecile. Lowering his body, Elliott swept Miss Penelope off her feet and carried her to the nearest resting place to properly attend to her needs.

"W-what are you d-doing, Elliott?" Miss Penelope stuttered in her delirium, writhing in what he assumed must be agony. He did his best to carry her through the throng of visitors without jostling her unnecessarily.

"Since you're feeling unwell, as a gentleman I must-" Elliott glanced down and stopped himself mid-sentence. There was a desperate, pleading look in Miss Penelope's stunning green eyes. He set her down gently beneath the canopy of a tree away from the masses, feeling abashed. "You've not taken ill, have you?" he realized too late, hiding his shame behind his open hand.

"No, it's just…" Miss Penelope's face quickly matched his own crimson complexion. Finally, the young lady grasped the fabric of her skirts in her fists, and mustered up enough courage to speak her mind. "M-my love fortune was about you, Elliott," she confessed breathlessly.

The silky-haired man did not have time to compose himself as his hand fell away from his face and their gazes locked for the first time since they greeted one another. "I… beg your pardon?"

Abigail sat on a barrel along the fence, munching on a handful of kettle corn as she and Sam watched the tourists milling about. "We already beat all the games…" the amethyst-haired woman complained. "Now what?"

Sam shrugged, leaning back onto the barrier with an exaggerated yawn. "I dunno," the blonde replied, wiping the tiny tears that formed at the corner of his eyes from his drowsiness. "We could go check out what they have at the shop with all the tokens we won."

The woman shook her head. "They never have anything good except for stuff to decorate a house, and I like my room the way it is."

"You wanna duck outta here?" Sam asked his girlfriend, inhaling the last of his caramel apple and licking his fingers clean.

Abigail polished off the last of the kettle corn and crumpled the bag, tossing it toward a trash can. She missed. "Oh, c'mon!" she groaned in annoyance, sliding off the barrel, and landing on her feet to retrieve the litter.

"Hey, Abi," Sam called out Abigail. "Since there isn't anything you wanna get with the tokens, do you mind if I give them to Vincent?"

The woman reacted instantly, tossing the pouch containing all her tokens to her boyfriend. "Go for it!" Abigail figured once Vincent saw how many prizes he could get with the winnings she earned, it would restore some of her gaming credibility with him after failing so miserably at "Journey to the Prairie King."

Sam flashed her a smile. "Thanks, babe! I'll be right back." The blond disappeared into the crowd and Abigail reclaimed her people-watching perch. It was a shame she was out of snacks, though. If only the prize shop sold food. Supposedly there was some kind of space fruit that the merchant sold only to those "worthy," but Abigail doubted its existence since she had never seen it.

As her cerulean eyes fixated on the churning mass of sightseers, Abigail noticed something odd. Someone towered over the rest of the Fair attendees at an unnatural height. Abigail blinked to make sure she was not seeing things. While it was true that Maru's face was high above the rest, Abigail discovered that it was because Sebastian's little sister was sitting on Alex's shoulders.

Maru's sharp gaze caught sight of Abigail and pointed in her direction. Are they looking for me? the amethyst-haired woman wondered skeptically as they made their way toward her. Abigail had no idea what this might be about. She was not really friends with either of them, though technically Alex had a bit to do with why she asked Sam out and Maru was her friend's sister.

Surprisingly, Alex had not let Maru down from his shoulders and whether or not the jock could tell, the woman seemed to enjoy the view from so high up. "Hey, Abigail!" Maru shouted with a giggle from her lofty position. "How's it going down there?"

Abigail waggled her hand at her wrist, indicating she was so-so. "It would be better if there was more to do," she admitted, still slightly sullen that there were not any more games for her to win.

Alex grinned. "You up for a challenge, then?"

Eyeing the athlete suspiciously, Abigail countered his question with one of her own. "What kind of challenge?"

The spiky-haired ball boy chuckled mockingly. "Maru seems to think that at least one of you girls in town can actually come close to my score at the rock smashing game." Alex sighed despondently. "I'd ask the farm girl, since obviously she's the strongest working on that farm all day, but I can't find her." He rolled his eyes. "I guess I'm stuck with a weakling like you."

Abigail could feel the fire of competition bursting to life in her core, urging her to action. She cackled maniacally, accepting the contest. "You're so going down!" she vowed, racing into the crowd toward the game without waiting for Alex or Maru. "Race you there!"

One thing Abigail forgot, of course, was that Sam returned to their spot shortly after she left and found it empty. The blond blinked, looking around for his girlfriend. "Abi?" he shouted. "I got you some things I think you might like for the mines!" Sam sighed, though not out of surprise. This was not the first time Abigail got distracted and ran off. He tucked the fair food and the glowstone ring back into his pockets. "Guess I better go find her…" he told himself.