EPISODE FOURTEEN
Dia awoke to a pounding headache and purple. "Jamie…?"
She tried to move her arm and found that she was still holding the book. She sighed. So I'm still alive, she thought, not sure whether to be happy with this or not.
She almost closed her eyes again, forgetting all about Jamie who was scowling and standing over her, but suddenly she was being pulled to her feet.
Dia opened her eyes, feeling a little dazed as she stared back at Jamie.
"Stupid…what are you doing out of bed? You just passed out a few minutes ago for no reason," Jamie snapped.
"Sorry," Dia mumbled, pulling away from Jamie's grip and stumbling over to the table in the corner of the room where she sat down in one of the chairs, catching her breath before opening the book.
"What's that?"
"A book," Dia said, barely paying attention to Jamie as she scanned the table of contents. She couldn't afford to spend time talking with Jamie. It took enough energy just turning the pages…
Jamie let out an irritated growling sound and stomped back over to her bed.
---
"I didn't know you came here, Katie. Did you come to see Gwen? She works here."
"I saw her, all right," she muttered.
"What?"
"Um…well…what are you here for?"
"To see Gwen."
"I don't think that's…a good idea," Katie said nervously, pausing for a moment in mid-sentence when she thought she heard another giggle.
"Why? Did something happen? …You're acting really strange," he said, raising an eyebrow and stepping around Katie to push open the kitchen door.
No, wait! Katie cried out in her mind, willing every muscle in her body to stop him from entering the kitchen. But it was too late. He was already inside.
"B-bye Joe. I-I gotta go!" she yelled suddenly, bolting for the door and escaping the Inn, never stopping until she got to the Calloway Café.
---
As Dia read, she could feel Jamie watching her the entire time. When she would look over her shoulder, the girl would quickly look away, like she'd never been staring. But she could feel the eyes locked on her as she turned another page.
It was stupid. There was nothing in this 'magic' book. But she couldn't give up…Jamie might have stopped trying, but Dia wasn't about to let her fate be put in the hands of a statue.
She finally closed the book, yawning and laying her head on the table.
"Jamie, what are your dreams like?" she asked, wondering if Jamie could hear her. But she got no reply, and so she sighed a little, deciding to ask Martha more about the Harvest Goddess in the morning.
---
Katie ran into the café, panting and out of breath from running. Her chest hurt and she coughed a little, leaning on a table for support.
"Katie?" Carl's voice called, and he appeared in the doorway. "How did it go with Ronald? Did you find the Phone? …And are you okay? You look out of breath."
"I…I…I…" Katie said, searching for the right words. "…Yes. It went fine. I ran because…I didn't want to make you worry," she lied, smiling a little. "But now I'm tired, so I think I'll go to bed now, all right?"
She walked past him, towards the back to her bedroom.
"Good night."
---
When Dia awoke again, she found the book missing.
She lifted her head, blinking and looking around in confusion until she saw Jamie holding it, reading it intently. When Jamie noticed that Dia was awake, she shut the book quickly and threw it so that it slid across the floor, skidding to a halt at Dia's feet underneath the table.
"What are you doing with that book? A book on magic? How stupid," Jamie said mockingly.
"I thought…that it might…help us…" Dia said, struggling to reach the book from her chair. "Because I don't know…what else to do…about the Harvest Goddess…"
"I can fix it all on my own!" Jamie said coldly. "I don't need the help of a human to save her!"
Dia's hand brushed against the book as she tried to figure out what Jamie meant. She decided not to argue with her when Gina came in.
"Jamie! Please, the Doctor has told you several times to stay in bed…and Dia! What are you doing at the table?" Gina glided across the room, snatching the book off the floor and replacing it on the bookshelf before taking Dia's wrist rather roughly and leading her back over to the bed, sitting her down, seemingly accomplishing all of this in one motion.
Jamie grumbled something and went back over to her bed on her own, sitting down with her back to the rest of the room.
---
"Gina, what day is it?" Dia asked, as Gina handed her a glass of what Dia assumed to be more nasty medicine.
"Fall 22nd," Gina answered, gesturing for Dia to drink. "Harvest Festival's coming up."
"So is my birthday," Dia murmured, sighing a little. "In Winter."
But Gina didn't seem to hear her. "But I'm afraid you won't be able to attend," she continued. "You know how the Doctor feels. Now, please get some rest, and---"
"Gina, I would like to speak with Martha, please."
---
"Oh, come on, Carl! You've got to let me go this time! Please? Please!" Katie begged, clasping her hands together and looking at her manager pleadingly. She'd heard of the Harvest Festival that was taking place on the 24th, and she wanted to go.
Carl looked uncertain. "Well, I was planning to go also, so I guess that…"
"Yay! Thank you!" Katie said quickly, and before he could say anything else, she scooped up the Cakes from the counter and whisked them away, out to the tables, grinning as she did so.
"Enjoy!" Katie said cheerfully to the man she'd delivered the last of the Cakes to before turning back around, almost bumping into the person standing very close to her.
"Oh! Hello," she said, stepping back and raising an eyebrow, her smile remaining. "Can I help you?"
The girl had a genuinely pleasant expression on her face (unlike the fake and sometimes nervous smiles on the faces of some of the villagers, Katie noticed), smiling back at Katie. She had short brown hair and was pretty plain looking, dressed in mainly neutral colors.
"Hi! You work here, right? I think Carl mentioned you to be before. But anyway, could you tell him I need to speak with him?"
"Eh, he's in the back and kinda busy right now, but I could get him if you need him…what's your name?"
"Ellen," she answered and Katie nodded.
"I'm Katie. I'll be right back."
She turned and went back to the kitchen, seeing Carl at the Oven. "Hey, Carl? I can take over for you right now. This girl Ellen's out there looking---"
"Ellen?" Carl said, instantly perking up. "Thanks, Katie. And please take the Pie out of the oven when the timer goes off." He was already out the door before Katie could even respond.
"Um…you're welcome," she muttered, the timer suddenly making a small ding! sound. Katie moved over to the Oven, taking out the Yam Pie and breathing in deeply.
Mmm, Carl's really good at this, she thought, smiling and bringing it out to the tables.
---
"Martha, what else do you know about the Harvest Goddess?"
Dia sat on the edge of her bed, Martha sitting next to her. She could see Jamie out of the corner of her eye. She seemed to twitch a little, as if she were surprised by Dia's questions. But she didn't make any other movements.
"The Harvest Goddess? Hmm. That's a little complicated, Dia. What do you want to know?"
"I want to know…" She paused, unsure of how to word her question. She wanted to know what the Harvest Goddess was, what she was made out of. "…What could make her turn to stone?"
Martha seemed to grow serious when she heard Dia's question. "Unhappiness. She might've been unhappy with how things are in this village."
Dia shot a glance at Jamie, to see how she reacted to this. But she didn't move.
"What would make her unhappy?" Dia asked, looking back at Martha.
"When the peace is disrupted," Martha said, looking almost sad. "When people doubt her existence. When people become selfish."
Dia quickly looked back at Jamie, almost jumping when she saw her out of bed, standing up with a very angry expression.
"You old hag! You don't know anything about her!" she spat. Martha looked a little surprised, but not offended. She stood up, smiling gently as she moved towards Jamie.
"Jamie, please lie down," she said, reaching out a hand towards Jamie, but Jamie swatted it away.
"Don't touch me!" she said, practically yelling now.
"Jamie! Don't talk to her like that!" It hurt to raise her voice, but Dia was upset. How could Jamie treat Martha like this?
Jamie's eyes widened like she'd been slapped. She looked at Dia, perhaps amazed at the fact she'd spoken so loudly. But she quickly regained her angry expression and climbed back into bed, glaring at Martha and Dia.
Martha just kept on smiling her gentle and kind way, walking back over to Dia. She also seemed surprised by Dia's outburst, but didn't mention it.
"Now, I think we've had enough excitement…please lie down, Dia."
Dia nodded, obediently lying back onto her pillows. "Martha…I have one more question."
"Yes, dear?"
"May I go to the Library?"
---
As Katie hurried back and forth from the kitchen to the tables, trying her best to make up for Carl's part also, she couldn't help but notice how enthusiastically Carl and Ellen were when they spoke. And how close they stood to each other. And how Carl would Ellen would randomly touch Carl's arm as she laughed at some joke he made.
Of course, it's probably his girlfriend or something, Katie told herself, her stomach churning at the thought of this. Not that I care.
But Katie nearly dropped three Cakes when she heard Ellen ask Carl if he'd be able to make it to Harvest Festival this year.
"Of course," he said, smiling and blushing a little, not even noticing Katie's clumsiness that would usually give him a heart attack.
But I should've expected this, right? Katie thought, remembering what Carl had said.
'Well, I was planning to go also, so I guess that…'"Okay! Bye, Carl!" she said happily, waving a little and leaving the café. Katie felt a little relieved as the door shut behind her. She stopped to talk to Carl as she passed him on her way back to the kitchen.
"So who was that?" she said, trying to sound like she was teasing instead of jealous. Not that she was jealous.
"Oh, a friend," he said, seeming out of it as he walked back to the kitchen, Katie watching him go for a moment before finally following after him.
---