Rain was a good omen in the farming world. It meant crops would get enough water. It meant more individual time with caring for animals. It meant other good things that Adrien didn't care about, because today was his birthday, and damn it, he didn't want it to rain on his birthday!

For the first time since starting up his ranch, Adrien glared at the thunderheads through the window. Really, there was no reason for his being this upset. Rain was, as previously mentioned, quite a good thing indeed. Furthermore, it wasn't as though as he'd been planning some grand party to celebrate his twenty-third birthday, and even if he had, only a handful of people would have shown up—he was still feeling very much the new kid on the block. Maybe Jin would have, but judging by the birthday card he'd received in the mail (Dear Adrien, Happy birthday and try not to work too hard; you don't want your asthma flaring up. Sincerely, Jin) he figured the doctor only knew his birthday because he had access to Adrien's medical forms. Not very celebratory.

Anyway, yeah, so he was sulking without much cause. It wasn't like anyone in the town had a reason to know his birthday. Adrien wasn't the type to tell everyone that his birthday was coming up. If someone asked, "Hey! When's your birthday?" then he'd tell them, but one would be surprised by how infrequently such a conversation topic arose.

"Well, whatever," Adrien muttered, stepping away from the window. Well, whatever indeed. He didn't like being in such a foul mood, and trying out the recipe for blueberry pie Chase had given him seemed like a pretty good remedy. He rifled through his rucksack until he found the slightly crumpled piece of paper. Pie crust, egg, blueberry. Seemed simple enough, and he knew where he could get all the ingredients. He could probably just buy a pie crust from the inn, he had some blueberries stored from Spring, and Horn Ranch would almost certainly have eggs on hand. Easy stuff. He didn't really relish the thought of traipsing all over creation in the rain, but such was life. Winning Luna's heart demanded such sacrifices.

He was halfway across Fugue Meadow when he realized the faint sound in the distance was actually his name being called. Several times, actually. He turned, squinting through the rain, until he could make out red hair and a surly expression under a blue umbrella.

"Chase? What are you doing out in this?"

"I was looking for you, actually. Now that I've found you, what are you doing?"

Adrien blinked water droplets out of his eyes. "I was getting eggs."

"Eggs."

"Yeah."

"Without an umbrella."

Adrien flexed his right hand, and to his surprise, no umbrella handle made itself known. Whoops. "I suppose so. I totally meant to grab one, I swear."

Chase rolled his eyes, a gesture that Adrien was quickly becoming used to. "What was so important about eggs that you forgot to carry an umbrella when it's clearly pouring rain?"

"Shut up?" Adrien said, starting to grin before a shiver cut him off. "Okay, I was going to bake that pie recipe. I was just getting groceries from around town."

Chase was shaking his head before his bro was even finished speaking. "Before I remind you that you live on a farm, for the sake of the Goddess, and thus shouldn't need to get groceries—"

"I think you just did, actually."

"Before I do that," he repeated loudly, "we are going to your house, because that's why I was looking for you in the first place. Also, you need to, I don't know, not be freezing and catch a cold. Let's go."

"But I—"

"Not up for debate."

"—the groceries—"

"I'm going to punch you in the gut very soon if you don't shut up."

Adrien shut up, and they made the walk together to the farm, Chase refusing to let Adrien under his umbrella because "I'm not your freaking girlfriend, Adrien; you should have brought one." Clearly, Chase was trying to teach the birthday boy a lesson, and while said birthday boy would have liked to complain that the lesson had been learned and now he was cold, any time he tried to open his mouth, Chase would shoot him a poisonous glare.

It was with gratitude that Adrien stepped into his modest farmhouse, and it was with practice born of use that he stepped around the puddle of water that had accumulated by the door thanks to the leaky roof. Adrien was accustomed to it by now, but this was the first time Chase had ever been in his home, and so it was with a rather colorful vocabulary with which the chef greeted said puddle.

"Maybe you shouldn't wear sandals when it's raining," Adrien said cheerfully.

Another glare as Chase took off his sandal and shook it off. "Maybe you should shut up," he compromised.

Adrien undressed, wringing out his clothes in a bucket and selecting an outfit identical to the previous one. When he turned around, fully dressed once more, he frowned at the sight on the table. He clearly did not remember a box being there before.

"Open it," Chase said. "It's your birthday, right?"

Adrien blinked, a memory slowly pooling in his mind's eye. Adrien, giving Chase a jar of marmalade for his birthday. Chase, reluctantly offering to return the favor. Adrien, laughing and saying he had plenty of time, that his birthday wasn't until the eighth day of Summer.

"I can't believe you remembered," he said, stunned. Chase waved him off.

"Neither can I. Just open it."

Inside the box was a gently used cutting board and rolling pin. A nice gift, and expected from a chef, to be sure, but…

"What would I use 'em for?"

Chase face-palmed. Wait, what? Did he actually just put his palm to his—oh, wait, he was talking. What was he saying? "—because if you're going to make a pie crust for your beloved Luna, you probably should have one of these."

A laugh burst out of him before he could stop it. "Chase, I'm just going to go to the inn and pick one up. I think making a pie crust is beyond me."

A long-suffering sigh. What an ass. "You live on a farm, Adrien. It is so easy to make a pie crust, especially when you have fresh ingredients, that it would actually cost less to make it yourself."

"But money!" Adrien argued, clutching the cutting board regardless. "But selling!"

"But buying," Chase snapped back. "If you're looking to be frugal, this is the way to go. Just follow my directions and you'll have a pie to give to her by the end of the day."

It took some coaxing—well, yelling—to get Adrien to retrieve his duck egg from the shipping bin, but it happened eventually, and though Chase was muttering not very complimentary things under his breath while Adrien rolled dough, the pie crust was coming along pretty well. The atmosphere in the room was this side of antagonistic, but Adrien had grown used to that, hanging around with Chase. Unhealthy? Maybe. But things always worked out eventually, usually in the form of food.

"There. It's done cooking. See how easy that was?"

Adrien peered suspiciously at the fork Chase had just stabbed into the pie. "You sure? I saw this thing when it was still raw eggs and bacteria."

"See the fork? When it comes out clean like this, it's done. Also, the bubbling filling shows—okay, I see you've stopped listening."

"Huh? No, I totally was."

Chase laughed tiredly, which usually was what happened when Adrien couldn't annoy him any more than he already had. "I'm going home. I can't believe I wasted my afternoon teaching how to bake a simple pie, but whatever. Go get her, or something."

Adrien grinned. "Thanks, Chase. I mean it. I'm sure she'll love it. Is it okay if I told her I made it all by myself?"

"Sure, whatever." And with that, Chase and his umbrella were gone. Adrien placed the pie in a circular piece of plastic, covered it, grabbed his own umbrella, and was out the door almost immediately after.

The walk to Harmonica Town was slightly more pleasant now that he wasn't being rained on, and the promise of Luna, her eyes shining with gratitude like the girls on television did, kept his spirits high all the way to Sonata Tailors. He grabbed the knob and pushed—

The door was locked.

"Crap!" What day was it? Yesterday had been Saturday, so today had to be—yep, they were closed. And since it was raining out, Luna would undoubtedly be spending the day at home.

"Luna!" he called, knocking on the door. The rain was too loud; he doubted she could hear him. He sighed and stared down at his forlorn pie. "Is it too much to ask," he asked it, "for a guy to want to spend his birthday with the object of his affections?"

Apparently so.

The next door he opened was decidedly unlocked, but the man in the room beyond didn't seem to be especially pleased to see him. "Oh, for the love of the Goddess," Chase groaned, putting down his flute. "What is it now?"

"Don't kick me while I'm down," Adrien said, feeling an irrational rush of hurt well up in him. "Sonata Tailors is closed, and Luna unattainable."

"Oh." Chase cleared his throat. "Um, well, I'm sorry to hear that, actually. She wouldn't even come to see you on your birthday?"

"She doesn't know," Adrien said moodily, plopping himself down at the kitchen table uninvited. "No one but you and Jin do. I'm alone on my birthday."

There was a strangely awkward pause. "Well, I'm here," Chase said, looking bemused. "I can make you a cocktail if you want."

Adrien didn't understand Chase's sudden niceness, but he did understand booze. "That sounds great, yeah."

They drank wheat cocktails until the sun started to set, Adrien's pie left in Chase's fridge.

"To brodom," Adrien tried, lifting his glass in a toast. "Who needs women, anyway?"

"I'm not your bro," Chase grumbled, but he ching-chinged anyway. "Happy birthday."