Sunday, 7th of Spring

Yet again, Alma awoke in a panic from her nightmare. Her eyes opened and she flung her arms about before she realized she was in the cabin with no harm. At this point in her life, she had gotten used to bad dreams; she was having them nearly every night for a few years now. But she never got used to the waking up. She'd be crying, or screaming, or in pain, or terrified. Hardly ever did she wake up with peace. She tried to slow her breathing and relax. Eventually, after splashing some cold water on her face and having a bite to eat while reading some more of Tips on Farming, she was ready to work.

When Alma stepped out to look over the farm, she noticed that she had missed some mail in her mailbox. She had two letters from Robin; one apologizing for some of the comments she made about the cabin on the day she arrived and also offering her upgrades for her house in the future, and the other letting her know about farm structures available to build, like a well. Robin was so sweet, Alma thought, and such a huge help to her getting settled. There was another letter she at first thought was an ad from Joja Mart, but just as she was starting to crumple it up, one word jumped out at her: "'Landslide?'" She read the note more carefully:

"To our valued JojaMart customers:

Our team members have removed the landslide caused by our drilling operation near the mountain lake. I'd like to remind you that our drilling operation is entirely legal (pursuant to init. L61091, JojaCo Amendment). Responsible stewardship of the local environment is our top priority!

We apologize for any inconvenience this accident may have caused.

As always, we value your continued support and-"

"Leave it to Joja to be so careless," she said to herself as she threw the letter in the trash. She remembered seeing some rocks blocking the road close to the mountain lake, and now that it was removed, maybe she would have time to check that out later this afternoon. But for now, she needed to get some work done.

Alma took her tools and went back to work breaking up the stones around the farm. Surprisingly, she found quite a few geodes too, and she reminded herself to try to get to Clint's before he closed at three o'clock. "Those spirits must be in a good mood today!" she joked to herself when she put another geode in her bag. She was so engrossed in the work, wanting to see all the rock cleared, that she didn't notice the sun moving quickly through the sky. By the time she was done, it was nearly one o'clock, and she wasn't sure if she had the energy to hurry all the way across town in time. She dropped her pickaxe down and sat in the dirt to catch her breath. But still, she thought, looking around her, she was proud of the work she had done, and she was glad she hadn't totally used up her energy reserves. Maybe she could still head into town to at least see what the landslide was about, and if she was able to make it to Clint's in time, all the better. She got up, dusted herself off, and headed back to her cabin to prepare.

As she went into town, she saw Dr. Harvey at his usual spot in the park near his clinic. She remembered that she wanted to ask him about the parsnip he had for dinner Friday night, but she also knew she was in a hurry. Geodes could wait, she thought. "Dr. Harvey!" He turned, smiling when he saw it was her. "I meant to ask you yesterday at the library: How was the parsnip?"

"Oh, yes! It was very good!" he said, approaching her. "I'll be anxious to buy more produce from Pierre that comes from your farm."

"I'm so glad to hear you liked it. Honestly, I don't think I've ever had parsnips before, so I saved one for myself, and I thought it was actually quite bitter. Of course, I'm sure it tastes better cooked, doesn't it?"

He looked shocked. "You just ate it raw? Like a - a carrot?"

Alma was a little embarrassed to answer. "Well, I don't have a working kitchen right now, so I'm a little limited in what I can do."

Dr. Harvey looked concerned. "You - You don't have a kitchen? Do you cook, Alma? Or do you eat all of the produce you harvest and forage raw?"

"Well … yes, for now I eat everything raw. I know how to cook, but I just don't have the means to at the moment. But Robin has already told me about her house upgrades. I'm actually hoping to go talk to her about it today."

Dr. Harvey's concern looked more serious. "Nutrition is important, so make sure you eat well. Your work on the farm requires a lot of fuel from food. Try to increase your vegetable intake."

Alma chuckled, "Luckily for me, that's about all I'm eating!"

"I'm serious," he said, and Alma lowered her grin. "You need to take care of yourself on that farm. You're working a lot harder than I think you realize." He sighed and looked down, sticking his hands in his pockets. "I - I'm sorry. You didn't ask for my medical opinion."

"No! No, don't be! You're absolutely right!"

"I need to remind myself of this, too. I don't eat as –- as well as I should. Home cooked meals are the best. They provide more well-balanced nutrition that will give you the energy you need." He looked at her. "I hope you get your kitchen addition soon. Forgive me if I overstepped my bounds."

"It's fine, Doctor. No need to apologize." She looked out of the corner of her eye and saw Mayor Lewis going up the stairway into the other park. "Do I remember that today is Lewis's birthday?"

Dr. Harvey looked up and also saw Mayor Lewis. "Yes, actually, I do think I saw that on the calendar."

"I'd better go and wish him a happy birthday then. I can give him one of the daffodils I picked this morning." She turned back to Dr. Harvey and smiled, "It's always nice to talk to you."

"You too, Ms. Alma. Take care of yourself."

"I'm trying!" she said with a wave as she went to follow Lewis. She went up the stairs and saw him go past the fountain toward the old abandoned building nestled there in the trees on the cliff behind Pierre's shop. He stopped in front of it and stood there for a while, looking quite wistful and deep in thought. She didn't want to interrupt him, but she wanted to see if he was okay. "Mayor Lewis?" she asked as she approached.

"Oh, hi there." He looked back to the building and sighed. "What an eyesore."

"What is this?" Alma asked.

"This is the Pelican Town Community Center … or what's left of it, anyway. It used to be the pride and joy of the town … always bustling with activity. Now just look at it. It's shameful." He shook his head. "These days, the young folk would rather sit in front of the TV than engage with the community." Alma tried to think of something to say, but in the silence, Mayor Lewis chuckled. "But listen to me, I sound like an old fool." He stepped closer to the door and looked all over the front of the building, eyeing the broken clock, the boarded up windows, and the ivy-covered steps. "Joja Corporation has been hounding me to sell them the land so they can turn it into a warehouse. Pelican Town could use the money, but there's something stopping me from selling it. I guess old timers like me get attached to relics of the past." He turned back around and released another heavy sigh. "Ah well." He put his hands on his hips and said, "If anyone else buys a Joja Co. membership, I'm just gonna go ahead and sell it." Alma could hear the defeat in his voice, and he let out another sigh and looked at her. "Here, let's go inside." He undid the padlock and kicked the bowed front door open, its weight causing it to wobble as he pushed it inward. It scraped across the old wooden floor.

When they went inside, Alma looked up at the holes in the ceiling and watched the sunlight move through dust particles. Ivy had broken through the walls and floorboards and was crawling up the walls. "Hm? What's this?" Mayor Lewis approached what looked like a small hut in the corner of the entrance room. "I guess Vincent and Jas must've been playing in here." He looked up into the ceiling too and said, "This place is even more dilapidated than I remember."

Just then, Alma saw something she couldn't believe. A little green creature popped out of nowhere behind Mayor Lewis. Alma squealed, "What is that?!"

"What?" But when he turned around, it just as quickly disappeared. "What's the matter? Are you ill?"

"I - I don't think so?" she said, looking all around her. "I thought I saw something over there behind you, like a little green … bubble … thing." She walked around Mayor Lewis, trying to see a sign of the little creature.

"You saw something? Hmm … I wouldn't be surprised if this whole place was filled with rats."

"No, it didn't look like a rat ..." Just then, another - a blue one - flashed behind him again. "There! There's another one!" Alma cried.

But again, when he turned around, it was gone. He slowly turned back to her, saying, "You're worrying me, Alma."

"I … I'm sorry," she said breathlessly, "but I just thought for sure I … I saw …."

"Look, I think I'm going to head home. I need some lunch."

That reminded Alma-"Oh yes, by the way," she called as he walked away, "happy birthday!" She reached into her bag and threw him a leek.

"You remembered my birthday!" he laughed, catching the leek. "Thank you. This is great!" He started to walk away, the floorboards creaking beneath him. "Hey, I'll keep this place unlocked from now on." He turned back to Alma and said, "Maybe you can help catch that rat if you have some extra time." And he stepped out of the community center and went back into town.

Left in the stillness, Alma was trying to understand what just happened. She looked at the small hut-like structure next to her in the corner. "Strange," she thought. "I'll have to come back and explore this building further." She took out her journal and made a note to examine the community center. She looked at her watch; it was now after three, so she had missed her chance to see Clint. But maybe she could still go see Robin. As she made her way out, she kept her eyes open for anything else but still saw nothing. She shook her head when she got back out into the fresh air. As she continued up the mountain pass to Robin and Demetrius's house, she thought maybe Dr. Harvey was right; she was working harder than she imagined and was having … hallucinations? It seemed unlikely to her, but she didn't have much of another explanation for what she had just experienced.

"Hi Alma!" Robin said as she came in. She chuckled a bit, "You all right? You look like you've seen a ghost."

"I'm fine, I think," she answered. "But listen, I wanted to come talk to you about building some things on the farm."

"Ooh, all right! What are you interested in?"

"Well, you mentioned to me before that you could do a kitchen add-on to the cabin? What would I need for that to happen?"

"It will cost 10,000 gold, and I'll need 450 pieces of wood too."

"10,000?!" Her reaction was visceral, and she quickly toned it down. "Sorry, but … that seems pretty insurmountable right now. The wood is no problem, but it's going to take me a while to get quite that much money."

"How about something for the farm then? Maybe a coop, barn, or fish pond?"

"A coop is what I'm thinking. I'd imagine chickens are cheaper than cows, and I'm not very good at fishing yet."

"Sounds good to me," Robin said. "It's 4,000 gold, 300 pieces of wood, and 100 stones. Got that?"

"4,000 for that too? No, I'm sorry, it'll probably be a few more weeks before I'm close to that." Alma took a heavy sigh.

"Well, you got my letter about the well, right?"

"Yeah, but honestly, I've got two bodies of water on the farm already. I don't mind refilling my watering can at either of those. I'm not watering enough for it to be inconvenient."

"Maybe it's just better to save up for now then?"

Alma nodded. "I think so."

Robin felt a little sorry for her. "Hey, remember: Rome wasn't built in a day. I saw how that place looked when you moved in. It's taking a lot of time and effort to get that up and going. You're working hard, and I see that. Don't feel so hard on yourself."

"Thanks."

She could see that Alma was still a bit dejected. "Have I told you that I built our house from the ground up?"

Alma looked up at her, shocked. "No!" She looked around the room and examined the construction with new appreciation. "Wow, Robin. That's an incredible accomplishment."

Robin looked around too, nodding with a proud smile. "It's definitely been the highlight of my career so far." She looked back at Alma. "And it took me a long time. A lot longer than I was anticipating."

Alma nodded. "Thank you, Robin. I'm all right. It's only been a week."

"It's only been a week," Robin repeated. "And I'll be here ready to work for you when you've earned what you need to expand. You got this!" Alma smiled, and they said their goodbyes.

When she stepped outside, Alma took another deep breath. She walked up the mountain path a bit further and saw where the landslide had been cleared. There was a cave carved out in the cliff's wall. Alma started the day ready to check it out, but now the sun was going down, she was a little deflated from the conversation with Robin and a little puzzled still from the experience at the community center. She decided maybe tonight would be a good night just to go back home and relax with the TV. She turned back and made her way home.

When she came down the stairs into town, she saw George grumbling outside his house. He lifted his eyes and called, "Ah, you turned up at the right moment, miss."

"Is something the matter, Mr. Mullner?" Alma asked, approaching him.

"Could you do an old man a favor?"

"Yes, sir, of course."

He pointed to the side of the house. "Could you go around the corner and scare off those raccoons for me? They've been causin' a real mess."

"Sure, I can try!"

"Thanks. Make sure you give 'em a good scare so they never come back."

She laughed. "Well, I'll do my best." He rolled his wheelchair back into the house and locked the door for the night.

Alma went around the corner quietly, her arms raised. But before she could yell, she gasped. "Linus! What are you - " She saw the opened trash can there. "Oh."

He lowered his head. "It was me. … I'm sorry." Alma wasn't sure what to say. He put the lid back on the trash can and said, "I find a lot of hot, fresh food in these cans … stuff that will go to waste if I don't take it." He approached Alma, and his face was a mix of determination and embarrassment. "Do you think there's something wrong with what I'm doing?"

Alma thought about her possible answers. She didn't want to embarrass Linus more, but she also didn't think it was a great idea to go digging in the townspeople's trash. There had to have been a better way for him to get food. But still, if the food was good, and he didn't mind, maybe it was okay. "No, I don't," she said. "It's a shame for food to go to waste. If you can enjoy it, you should."

Linus sighed and smiled. "Thanks, Alma." He bowed a little bit to her. "I knew you were an open-minded person." He looked into the town, almost wistfully. "It's hard for some people to understand. I'm not to be pitied; this is the life I chose. I feel good about what I'm doing. I'm not harming anyone. But still," he said, looking at the Mullners' house, "if George doesn't want a ruckus, I won't make one." He looked at Alma. "You can go on home. I promise I won't rummage in George's can anymore. You can tell him you scared off the raccoons for good." Then Linus laughed a little, "Although I don't know how you were planning to do that."

Alma laughed too. "Yeah, I don't know either. Goodnight, Linus."

He nodded to her, and she started walking back home. He went his way too, heading toward the saloon. As Alma walked away, she could hear someone else's voice: "Wait." It sounded stern and serious, and it made Alma stop in her tracks. She turned around and rushed behind the saloon. She saw Linus frozen in his path, the voice coming from behind him. He slowly turned around, and Gus approached him. "I know what you were doing, Linus." Linus stayed quiet, expecting another reprimand. But instead, Gus put his hand on his shoulder and smiled. "If you need food … just ask. I don't want anyone in Pelican Town to go hungry." This made Alma relax. She let out a deep breath and smiled. "Here. I've got a basket of zucchini fritters for you. Just make sure you dip them in my spicy marinara!" She could see Gus holding out the basket and Linus hesitating. "Go on … take it."

Linus slowly accepted. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. Have a good night." They both went their ways, and Alma quietly went hers.

Alma stepped outside of her tent in the mountains, the campfire still smoking slightly from the night before. She stretched and yawned and looked into the morning sun, wondering if today would be good to her. She scratched at the itchy fur and leaves that covered her body, got her basket and her sign, and went into town.

She took her normal seat on the bench next to the old community center, placing the basket in front of her. She propped the sign next to her on the bench, making sure it was clear for passers-by to see: "Anything helpful. Yoba bless you." And she sat on the bench and waited.

At one point, Maru came down on her way to start work at the clinic. "Good morning," Alma said. There was no response. Not even a glance. A few other people passed by, and Alma would always greet them. But no one even acknowledged she was there. Eventually, she fell asleep, slouched over herself.

She woke up to the sound of footsteps coming close. Alma looked up and saw Linus, dressed in his suit and tie. One hand was tucked inside his coat, and the other was holding his hat to his chest. "Alma," he said. "Get up." She sat up, not wanting to look him in the eye. "No. Stand up." She took a moment and stood up, right in front of him. She still kept her eyes to the ground. "If you can stand," he said, "you can work. Get a job and stop living like this." He walked away and mumbled, "Lazy bitch, looking for handouts." Alma watched him walk until he was out of sight. She looked down at the basket in front of her. It was still empty. She sat back down, hugged her arms around her, and went back to sleep.