Birds Dance For a Reason

Alex jogged along the shoreline bright and early that Monday morning, still mulling over what happened over the weekend. Haley skipped her daily visits to him during his shift at the ice cream stand after their fight. The jock had not seen the blonde since and wondered if he should seek her out or let her have some time to herself. Alex hated these ambiguous situations. Haley could have just told her from the start and none of this would have been a problem!

The spiky-haired brunet leaned forward, putting on speed in the hopes of quieting his mind, but he could not help but dwell on the fact that his relationship with Haley had changed. Alex realized he did not like his best friend that way, he just reacted to her the way people expected of him without realizing. The guys on the team always talked about how hot Haley was and he echoed their sentiments. It was not a bad thing to think their friend had it going on, right? Good for her.

Alex could not help but wonder if he had not been so clueless in high school and Haley had been more direct, they might have worked out. No one would have been surprised by it, either. It seemed natural to be around Haley. But Alex would be lying to himself if he even considered dating someone seriously before going pro. Not until Maru.

So in expanding his horizons by accepting Maru's help and everything that came after, the jock had inadvertently driven a wedge between Haley and himself. It sucked. Alex felt his body begging for rest, he had been running laps along the beach for at least an hour now.

He wanted to keep going, but it was no use. Alex sat in the wet sand, panting, until he finally collapsed on his back and stared up at the clear blue sky. Then there was the other problem: Zach. The jerk really did run faster than him and he was so damn smug about it. Maru witnessed and verified the timed results herself. The city dweller consistently ran a mile in about five minutes. Alex's was closer to seven. Sure, the athlete knew that his muscle-building slowed him down somewhat and that Zach was a dedicated runner, but he had no idea he was this far behind.

Sure, he could probably still run circles around bigger guys, but the fact that some random guy came along and put him to shame that easily annoyed the hell out of Alex.

Even when Zach left town, he was smug about it. "Better luck next time, man," the blond said, handing him the list of running times. Alex could not be completely mad about it, though. Zach had also thanked him for "understanding" about the night before. It was weird, knowing that someone else knew his secret, but then again, the jock knew Zach's too. It was an even trade, he supposed and it felt freeing to air out some of his secrets.

Zach had even given Alex his phone number in case "things get to be too much" and that the jock was welcome to stay at his place in NuNu City if he came by for try-outs. Alex had to admit that it would be nice to see a familiar face and staying with Zach would mean one less thing to worry about. Working the ice cream stand did not make him a rich man, after all. If Alex did not want to ask his grandparents for assistance, he would have to find another way to fund his trip.

So in the end, Alex supposed that Zach raised the bar for his performance and he would have to meet the challenge. The brunet was not about to let himself be discouraged this late in the game. He had a dream to achieve and no one was going to stop him. Not his drunk father, not Haley, not Maru, not Zach. Alex was going to go pro for the NuNu Nighthawks someday. Soon, people would be spewing out seasonal statistics for him, breaking records, and bringing his team to victory at the Big Game. Alex Mullner: Lucky 13.

Emily heard a knock at the front door and knew it was nearly time to drive Shane to his counseling appointment in the city. "It's open!" she hollered from her room. The sapphire-haired woman listened for the sound of the door opening and Shane's heavy footsteps entered the house.

"Come in, Shane!" Emily beckoned her neighbor into the room. "I want to show you something!"

Shane peered into the bedroom suspiciously. Ah, of course, Shane had probably never been into a girl's bedroom before and was nervous about it. What a sweetie! Emily put on her biggest, friendliest smile to assure her friend everything was okay. "It's my secret hobby…" she giggled conspiratorially. "I've been practicing for months."

The red-clad woman pulled the slate-colored stool from her computer and gestured for Shane to take a seat. "Now, sit back, relax, and allow yourself to be carried away to a better place… okay?"

Her friend still looked a bit unsure, but Emily bent down to press "play" on her boom box and stood before Shane, awaiting her cue. The music started out strong with a rhythmic drumbeat and Emily bobbed along with it, her knees bouncing and her hips swaying to and fro. A high-pitched whistle added its voice to the music and the dancer greeted it with high-knee kicks and clapping. Even the parrot perched behind Emily chimed in as the notes softened, and it became more of a techno blend of synth and down beats.

The sapphire-haired woman let herself feel the pulse of the air in her body. She spun, hiking the skirt of her ruby dress up the length of her leg slowly up toward her thigh, then dropped the material as she lifted her arms above her head to tousle her hair and wink at Shane with a wide, giddy grin. The music made her feel intoxicated with joy and she wanted to share that sunshine feeling with the world.

Shane blushed, but Emily ignored it as a flute joined in on the melody. The woman giggled with delight as the music became more playful and so she gyrated her body to match its effect on her. Her sapphire hair bouncing as she stepped, Emily clapped and undulated and beamed until the music came to an end with the sound of a cymbal.

Emily panted, folding herself in half and resting her hands on her knees. "So…" she gasped. "What did you think?"

"That was… so totally you, Emily," Shane replied slowly. Emily's face fell, thinking it was an insult, but the stubbly man smiled at her gently. "It was amazing. Don't ever change."

The fear of rejection melted away and Emily beamed at him. "Thank you!" she responded breathily. "That was quite a workout!" Her body shook with laughter. "I haven't been this sweaty since I ordered the pepper platter at Abigail's graduation fiesta!"

Shane only felt a little badly for out-spicing Emily that day.

Emily glanced at the clock. She still had some time before they had to go. "Well, I'd better take a quick shower," she informed Shane. "You can wait in the living room and I'll be out in a jiffy!"

Shane immediately made a quick escape when he heard the word "shower" and waited as he was on the red couch in the main room as instructed. True to her word, Emily was quick and emerged about five minutes later. The woman dabbed her wet hair on a small towel and Shane caught a waft of a pleasant, flowery scent.

"What's that?" Shane inquired with a curious sniff to the air.

Emily laughed, "I thought it would be rude to get in the car all smelly in case I still sweat a bit, so spritzed some lavender oil." Her warm brown eyes grew wide with alarm. "I hope that's okay!"

Shane paused for a moment. "It… smells nice," he admitted hesitantly. Emily assumed it was because so many people thought flowers were too feminine for men to enjoy.

"There is no shame in enjoying the gifts of nature!" Emily assured him, patting his back gently. She grabbed the car keys to her parents' vehicle. "Now let's get going to ZuZu, shall we?"

Shane spent most of the car ride distracted, debating with himself whether or not Emily had attempted to seduce him with her dance or if he was reading into the situation far too much. Her movements were so fluid, free, and raised the temperature in the room. Shane could not help but be in shock and awe. But what really got him was the way she ran her fingers through her hair and locked eyes with him before winking with the happiest, sensual look on her face.

But maybe it was just Emily being herself - with no idea how that dance might have been interpreted as alluring. In that moment, Emily reminded Shane of a bird of paradise trying to attract a mate with a display of bright plumage and dance moves. But if Emily were an exotic tropical bird, Shane was at the other end of the spectrum as a plump chicken. Surely if Emily meant to seduce him, he would be fully aware of it. The more he scrutinized the scenario, the more ridiculous his idea became, and yet… Shane could not help but think of how erotic it looked when Emily moved her body like that.

"Are you alright, Shane?" Emily asked, glancing at the man in the passenger seat beside her.

He coughed slightly to buy some time. "Just… thinking about what to say to my therapist today," he lied in a panic, hoping Emily would buy the hastily-formed excuse. "Sorry!"

Once they arrived in the city, Emily pulled the car over to the curb, allowing Shane to exit the vehicle safely. "I'll be back in an hour, okay?" the sapphire-haired woman called from the open window. "Same spot as last time!" she reminded her friend as she merged back into traffic to do her own errands in the city.

Shane entered the tall, grey building and climbed the stairs to the third floor. It upset him how out of breath he was after so few flights, but everything was a process. Opening the bright green door, Shane entered the waiting room and checked in for his appointment with the secretary.

She was a loud, friendly woman with a big smile and a pile of curly, chestnut hair pulled up into a bun atop her head. Vanessa? Or was it Valerie? Honestly, Shane had not learned her name since their interactions were so brief, but now that the man realized he did not know her name, it bothered him. Maybe he should ask…

Either way, it was too late. His therapist appeared in the hallway to call him back. "Come on back, Shane," the short, grey-eyed woman waved him over. At first he was weird out by the fact a therapist could look so normal. Lynn always wore neat and well-fitting clothes, but he supposed the pant suit look might be too intimidating to clients, so his counselor wore dark-wash jeans and a stylish blouse each time they met. Perhaps it was part of the reason he felt so comfortable - the doc was not nearly as stiff as he thought she would be when he first arrived.

The two sat down in her office and Shane immediately went for the plush sofa across from her similarly comfortable-looking armchair.

Lynn grinned at him, resting her notepad on her lap as she crossed her legs. "So Shane, when we first met, you expressed concern about your medication. We talked about your concerns and you decided to go forward with it. Has your overall mood been better now that it's had time to take effect?"

The dark-haired man nodded. "Yeah," he explained gratefully. "I'll admit I was hesitant at first, but I feel like I can get out of bed in the mornings without Marnie having to come get me up, which is good."

Nodding, Lynn scratched some notes onto her notepad. "I'm glad to hear you're getting some relief," she stated calmly. "We'll keep you at this dose for now and if you want to discuss adjusting it in the future, we can certainly do that." She leaned forward slightly to address him. "We made a few goals for your work together last week: explore and practice new coping skills to reduce your internal negative feedback loop, talk about your relationships with your friends and family members and discuss some strategies for reconnecting - especially with Samantha," the dark-haired woman smirked cheekily, "and 'find something better than fucking Joja Mart.'"

"You didn't bother converting to therapist talk on that one," Shane snorted. Lynn was not what he imagined when Doctor Harvey suggested going to see a mental health counselor.

Lynn tapped the end of her pen on her clipboard, "Keeping a person's vernacular can help with motivation," she elucidated with a casual, unapologetic shrug.

"Well, about that…" the poultry farmer began. "I've started an application for a job I think might be worthwhile."

Her eyes lit up. "That's great news, Shane! Do you mind telling me a bit about it?"

"A guy from out of town recommended it," the bristly man acknowledged, "but I think after all the work I've done for Marnie lately, I might have some actual qualifications for the job." He cleared his throat and corrected his posture. "But, I actually want to talk about something else today."

"Then let's board the motivation train while it's at the station!" The mental health expert stated excitedly. Putting her notes down on the small table next to her maroon armchair, Lynn let her client take the lead.

Shane was nervous, he had not expected a therapist to go along with an off-topic subject so willingly. "I-I've been - you know - feeling more things now that I'm not in a depressive, beer-soaked funk all the time," the rancher-in-training began, twiddling his thumbs between his knees. "I watched my best friend dance this morning and the way she looked at me when our eyes locked…" He swallowed nervously, averting his gaze toward the window across the room. "Something in her eyes made me realize how I feel."

"And what did you discover?" The country man knew that Lynn probably knew what he meant, but it was important to say it aloud.

"I knew I liked her before. She's an incredible friend," Shane explained. "But this morning, I think things finally clicked for me…" Shane's dark eyes met Lynn's for a moment before he confessed. "I'm in love with Emily."

Violet still wore gloves when harvesting her mutant crops and kept them well away from her normal produce in storage until she figured out what to do with them. While they were incredibly interesting from a visual standpoint, a deep, basal instinct told her that they were not safe for human consumption. The farmer was not about to take any chances until she heard from Maru regarding her findings.

Maru swung by Fairy Rose Farm that Tuesday morning with the news. "I'm not sure what to call it," the young scientist admitted, laying out a pile of notes on Violet's kitchen table. "But from comparative research, the closest match seems to be flora that have been exposed to irradiation."

The farmer paled. "Does that mean my crops are poisoned?!"

The bespectacled young woman shook her head. "Not all of them. The 'contamination' seems to only be present in the mutated samples," she assured the panicked farmer. Maru tapped the eraser-end of her pencil to her lips. "And although they don't seem to be leeching radiation into the soil or surrounding environment - some plants do in fact absorb it - I wouldn't call the mutant berries and hops safe for human consumption."

While Violet was relieved about the rest of her crops and her farmland overall, she was disappointed that she could not safely sell her mutated hops and blueberries. The farmer's alarm renewed when she thought about the gift she gave Sebastian. "Is the blueberry bush I gave your brother safe, then?"

Maru's warm eyes flickered toward Violet's face. "You gave one to Sebastian?"

Violet nodded. "Yeah, since he helped create them," the farmer cringed when she realized she just spilled the beans about Sebastian's magic, so she tried to explain it away. "He was the last one to water the plants before they started to look like this," the pastel-haired woman detailed vaguely.

"Perhaps this has something to do with his recently developed magical abilities," Maru thought out loud.

The pastel-haired woman tilted her head. "Wait, you know?" That was a relief.

"I may have been a bit pushy," Maru recognized with a chuckle. "But Sebastian demonstrated what he can do so I can try to figure out what's causing it." A small spiral notebook seemingly materialized in Maru's hand as she wrote down a few notes. "Now that you're aware that I already know about Sebastian's magical talents, what else can you tell me about the origins of these plants?"

The farmer pondered the question carefully, so not to provide Maru with bad data. "Well, let's see… I only used the - we'll call it 'special water' - once," Violet informed the researcher. "Sebastian filled my watering can for me and since then I've used regular water from the pond over there." Violet pointed to indicate which body of water she meant. The farmer continued. "The only reason I didn't water more of my plants with it was because Bruno knocked me down. The rest spilled out of my watering can."

Maru perked up at his detail. "Do you remember where the water drained out?" The eager scientist rose from her chair and Violet followed her outside so she could show Maru the location outside.

"Hm…" Violet tapped her chin as she examined the earth beside her garden. "Bruno knocked me back, but the can didn't go far…" the woman recollected verbally. Tracing a line with her boots, the farmer created a perimeter. "This is the area I'm most confident about," Violet clarified. "The rest, I'm not so sure."

While there was nothing growing on that patch of soil currently, Maru knew there was a possibility for more data within that soil. "Maybe I take some of this dirt home for further testing?"

Violet chuckled at the request. "Be my guest," she insisted, grabbing some supplies to dig. "You're the one doing me a favor."

Maru dismissed the statement entirely. "I'm always eager for new discoveries!" She accepted a trowel from Violet and scooped up enough to fill a large jar. "It's one of the many joys in life." Gently lowering the jar of dirt into her bag, Maru checked the time. "Well, I ought to get going to work," she informed the farmer, shouldering her bag. "But thanks for the additional data and soil sample!"

"Thanks again, Maru!" Violet articulated appreciatively. "I'll be sure to keep these mutant plants well away from the sales bin." The farmer watched her friend leave the farm toward town when Bruno bumped against her for attention. Violet laughed as the German shepherd rushed away with a stick, forgetting that he was supposed to give it to her to play fetch. Instead, she played tug-of-war with the fluffy canine until the small branch snapped in half from a thrash of Bruno's enormous head. The chase resumed with the remaining half and Violet followed Bruno to the Cindersap forest where he quickly lost interest in their game and dropped the stick as he ran off the dock and into the pond.

Violet shook her head at her dog's antics, but decided to forage in the area since she was here anyway. As she searched, the woman found a young tree which had been scratched up by a large animal's claws. Probably to sharpen them. While Violet intended to show Talla her newly learned skill, this was the perfect opportunity to try her luck with what the Junimos showed her.

Placing her hands over the wounded bark, Violet closed her eyes and imagined the bark as it would have appeared before the gouge was formed. She felt a warmth - like that of warm, fertile soil - radiate from her hands and her grandmother's pendant glowed at her neck. Violet peered through her fingers to find a completely unmarred tree trunk. The woman gasped, her lips stretching back in exhilarated joy. "I did it!" she shouted to no one in particular as she bounced up and down like a pogo stick.

When the Junimos demonstrated for her over the weekend, Violet assumed the forest spirits needed to be present to perform this kind of healing. But no, the pastel-haired woman could do it all on her own. She pulled the pendant away from her body at the full length of its cord. "Is it because of you?" Violet asked the jade quizzically. Originally, the farmer thought the traveling merchant was teasing her with a tall tale that she was more than happy to use to keep her brother away from the syren, but now Violet began to believe Talla was serious when she said they were distantly related.

Harvey regularly maintained a healthy diet, but was significantly sub-par in terms of daily exercise. His mounds of patient paperwork often led to a sedentary lifestyle and by the time his day was over, the doctor just wanted to curl up with a good book. So when several of the villagers set up a weekly aerobics class, Harvey saw it as a great way to keep himself accountable. Peer pressure was a fantastic motivator when it came to something he did not want to do.

The town doctor was a bit embarrassed to be the only man in the dance class, especially because he often had a difficult time keeping pace with the women - some of whom were over a decade older than him. Sure, Harvey held hand weights during the class to add an extra element of difficulty, but they were only a pound each.

The mustached man felt especially self-conscious about his lack of physicality when Talla inquired about the condition of his heart. He quickly found out that she was referring to his love life - or lack thereof, but it got Harvey thinking how far he let himself go.

Caroline was a merciless instructor, she smiled the entire way through like a sadist. It was almost unfair how quickly she moved sometimes, yet the others were able to follow without any noticeable trouble whatsoever. As the techno music played, Harvey could feel the moisture being absorbed on his brow by his headband and knew that he was getting a good workout, even if the others did not seem to be breaking a sweat.

"Alright! That concludes our aerobics class!" Caroline declared, her leaf-green eyes alight with enthusiasm. "Are you breaking a sweat?"

Caroline always queried the group in this manner at the end of class each week, but today Harvey could have sworn it was directed to him. "... Yes," he replied between heavy breaths. The doctor felt the warmth of his face and as the others gathered around to socialize, Harvey realized he needed to go clean up before returning to work.

As the local doctor exited the gathering room and down the hallway toward Pierre's shop, the bespectacled man bumped into someone. It was his assistant. "Maru! You were watching me?" Harvey cried in alarm, his eyes wide with shock.

"Not purposefully, Doctor Harvey," the young woman answered. "I came to grab some ingredients for lunch and Pierre told me that Marnie would still be here after class." She held up a bag from the general store to prove her alibi.

"How embarrassing…" the disheveled doctor moaned pitifully, quickly removing his head and wrist bands and tucking them away in his pocket. "I didn't want anyone to know. Least of all you." The frown on his face liken his mustache to a moping caterpillar perched on his upper lip.

Maru's bright eyes blinked behind the candy red rims of her glasses. "I don't see a problem with participating in a dance class…" she stated in confusion. She gestured to the room, where Caroline, Emily, Pam, Jodi, Marnie, Robin, and Leah all stood around chatting.

"I'm just trying to stay healthy," the man clarified, adjusting his green jacket nervously. "As you get older, it requires more effort." Harvey's frown deepened. "I'm not in very good shape, though… I can hardly keep up with them." He felt self-conscious talking about his physical inadequacies around Maru, who spent most of her free time around fit young men nowadays. His bright, young assistant – or any other woman for that matter – would never look at him as a potential partner. Not when there were virile men as a stark contrast to his deficient physique.

Still, he wanted to get into better shape. If not to catch a certain woman's attention, then for his own health and wellness. Though it would look hypocritical if the community members found out he was so out of shape when he constantly reminded his patients to increase their physical activity. "Look… Don't tell everyone in town that I'm doing dance aerobics, okay?"

Maru nodded. "Of course, Harvey," she assured him. "It's important, for those in the medical professions especially, to be discreet."

"Thanks, Maru. I appreciate that."

A queue had formed behind the man of those waiting to leave the building. Harvey flushed with embarrassment when he realized some of them may have heard his discussion with Maru. "I will see you back at the clinic after your lunch!" he called to the overall-clad woman, making a hasty retreat toward the door.

The older members of the dance class cackled at the doctor's bashful behavior. Maru stepped aside to let them pass, but stopped the rancher for a moment. "Marnie, I was hoping to speak to you about an idea. I wanted to run it by you before I talked to Shane…"

Marnie beamed at the prospect of something new involving Shane and beckoned Maru back toward the meeting room. "Let's hear it!"

"You want me to what?" Shane questioned in disbelief, staring at the young woman sitting opposite him at The Stardrop Saloon.

Maru pushed a pile of notes across the table toward him. "Alex has progressed well over the last few weeks, but the main problem is that he has no one else with whom he can practice," she reiterated. "So I am wondering if you would be willing to practice with us at least once a week as a defensive player trying to…" her gaze flashed down to her notes, "'sack' him."

Shane still could not believe his ears. "You want me to tackle Alex. Repeatedly, over the course of a few hours each week?"

The overall-wearing woman grinned. "Yes, that's exactly what I'm asking!"

His dark eyes watched the tiny bubbles in the drink Maru bought him. A carbonated drink, rather than an alcoholic one. Probably for the best, since he had already had some unpleasant symptoms from no longer consuming any beer over the past few weeks, especially right after the incident at the cliffs. "I mean… I haven't played in ages, so I can't say I can catch Alex," Shane countered honestly.

Maru waved her hand dismissively. "You don't have to catch him necessarily, he just needs the added pressure of the threat that someone is going to tackle him," the amateur gridball coach assured her potential second player. "If anything else, he can work on his dodging as well."

Shane sat back in his seat, rubbing the scruffy hair on his face. "It's not like I have anything else going on…" he mused aloud. "And I am supposed to be getting more exercise," he admitted reluctantly.

Then, Emily came by with a plate of pepper poppers and placed them in front of Shane. "From Maru!" the sapphire-haired woman announced, winking at the woman who ordered the poultry farmer's favorite bar dish.

The scientist smiled knowingly. "I'm prepared to use food as compensation," she informed the ex-gridball player. "As shown here," she gesticulated toward the hot plate of food in front of her target.

The man chuckled. "You sure know how to drive a hard bargain, Maru," he teased, popping one of the steaming appetizers into his mouth. The insides were lava-hot, so he had to vent steam out through his open mouth as he blew outward. Still, his remaining functioning taste buds caught the flavor of the spicy peppers within. "You've got yourself a deal," he confirmed, offering his hand to shake.

Maru's lips turned upward at the corners and she held out her hand to complete the movement, sealing the deal. "Excellent," she exclaimed happily. "I'll see you in an hour!" she informed Shane, quickly standing and approaching the bar to pay for her order.

Shane's face fell. "An hour?!" He was going to have to down these peppers if he wanted to get home to prepare. The dark-haired man's mouth was on fire, tears streaming down his face. Where was his old gear anyway? Did it even still fit him? He really ought to read the fine print before agreeing to these kinds of things.