Friday, 12th of Winter

When Alma stepped out of the cabin in the morning, she was surprised to see Abigail sitting with Bisclavret on the front step. "Abigail! Good morning!"

Abigail stood and faced Alma, looking pretty sheepish. "Hi. Um …" She wrapped her arms a little tighter around her and looked down at the creaky porch slats. "I just wanted to say sorry for acting so weird yesterday. You probably understand what happened …." She briefly looked up at Alma then back down again.

"Actually, I - "

"Uh, okay … bye." And before Alma could say anything else, Abigail hurried off the porch and back toward town.

Alma looked down at Bisclavret who looked up at her and began thumping his tail against the porch. "I dunno, Biz. Judging by that, I don't think it was the spirits speaking last night." The dog hurried off the steps of the porch and stood by his water dish, wagging his tail and looking back to Alma. "Yeah, all right," she said with a chuckle, going to the chest to grab her watering can.

As Alma did her work on the farm, she kept thinking back to Abigail. Should she say something, or just leave it? She didn't want to embarrass her further, but she also didn't want her to feel ashamed. If Abigail did have feelings for Alma, she was obviously not interested but still flattered. She knew Abigail felt very different from her family, her peers, her neighbors … and Alma wanted her to know that she was a safe place to be honest. Alma decided that the next time she got the opportunity, she would talk to her about it.

For now, though, as Alma stood in front of her chests with a bag full of produce she had gathered from the farm, she thought about what she might do today. She was about to put the watering can back in the chest but then thought … she now had the supplies to do a steel upgrade if she wanted to. It'd probably be a good idea. So she put her can back into her bag. She also saw the artifact she had picked up and thought she could take it to Gunther. Other than that and going to Pierre's to sell produce (and probably see Harvey), maybe she could get five more levels in the mines? So she made sure she took some snacks and had her tools and weapons either in her bag or in the chest at the entrance of the mines. She closed up her chests and went into town.

At the entrance to Pierre's, Alma saw a flyer from Rasmodius asking for something called a "void essence." She wasn't sure what that was, but she wondered if she might find it in the mines today, so she went ahead and ripped off the paper, sticking it in her bib pocket.

Sure enough, when Alma stepped into the store, she saw Harvey's head turn, and his sweet smile spread across his face. She couldn't help but smile too. She came next to him and wrapped her arm around his waist, and he kissed the top of her head as he squeezed her shoulder into him. "Happy Friday," she said. "Got any weekend plans?"

"Work today, library tomorrow, then, uh …. "

Alma gasped and smiled wide. "A date with me for your birthday, perhaps?"

The doctor chuckled and looked down, then as he looked back at her expectant smile, he said, "I'd love nothing more."

Alma smacked her lips. "It's a date then." Then she looked in his basket and asked, "Need any eggs, mayonnaise, milk, cheese, or mushrooms?"

"Hey hey hey," Pierre called from the counter. "You gotta go through me first, remember? No lovers' discounts here!"

"He's right," Harvey said. "But this stuff can definitely be incorporated into a healthy diet."

Alma shook her head with a smile and went up to the counter. "I mean, geez, is it just me or is there a cold draft in here?" Pierre heckled. "I think you've got the coldest shoulders of anyone in town, Farmer Alma!"

"Oh whatever, Pierre," Alma joked back, putting her bag on the counter. "You know I see you more than anyone else in this town."

"It's true!" Harvey called.

"As it should be," Pierre laughed, picking through her produce. "Any saplings today?"

"No, just selling, thanks." He counted up her produce and handed her the gold, which she then put into her bag. "And you know I'll always do my business through you. No need to worry."

"I know, I know. With Joja breathing down my neck during the off-seasons, you know, I'm just a bit more jumpy and protective."

"I get it," she said, pulling her bag back over her shoulders. "But I won't leave you hanging." She walked back to Harvey who was putting a potato into his basket. "I'm planning to go into the mines today, but I'll try to come by on my way home to let you know I'm safe, all right?"

"Thank you." She gave him a kiss on the cheek and patted it before heading her way out again. "I love you."

"Love you too. See you later!" Alma went next through town and to Clint's smithy. It always felt good to get inside on these cold winter days. "Hi Clint! How are you today?"

"Not too bad," he said, wiping his hands on his apron. "So how are your tools holding up?"

"So far, so good! I'm actually here because I'd like to upgrade my watering can."

"You're not using it much in the winter, huh?"

"Not too much. I can go without it for a few days. I'll have to find another way to give my dog some water and take care of the plants in the greenhouse. But they'll all survive." She put the iron bars, gold, and watering can on the counter.

"Thanks. I'll get started on this as soon as I can. It should be ready in a couple days."

"Thank you, Clint. Have a good one!" She turned and walked out then made her way south to the museum.

"What have you got for me today, Ms. Alma?" Gunther asked, drumming his hands on the counter. She dug in her bag and pulled out the strange object she had dug up a few days before. "Wow, what a rare disc!"

He looked it over with great enthusiasm, and Alma always enjoyed his childlike excitement at a new specimen. Then she remembered: "Oh! Gunther!" He looked at her, a bit startled. "Sorry, but do you know anything about dwarfish?"

"E suom o nennnu."

"Which means …?"

"Just a touch. Why do you ask? Aren't you the one reading The Mysteries of the Dwarves right now?"

"Yes, and I haven't come across anything about translating or something like that. But I met a dwarf! In the mines! We tried talking, and … well, the conversation didn't last very long."

"Hm … No, those dwarf scrolls you brought in might be able to be used as a translation tool, but I believe we'll need more text than what you've provided. Maybe a few more scrolls would do the trick. So just keep searching! And keep reading in that book. Maybe it will tell you something too. Our dear Mona was the resident dwarf expert, I believe."

Alma nodded. She was a bit disappointed but also hopeful. She just needed to keep going. "All right. Thanks, Gunther."

"Stay safe out there," he said with a tip of his hat. She waved before going out the door.

Alma trudged north through the snow into the mountains, and as she went into the cave, she looked off to the tunnel to the right. Even if she couldn't communicate with the dwarf, she could still be friendly with him. She stepped into the pathway, flashed him a quick smile, and waved. He looked at her with a puzzled expression, slowly moving his hand back and forth in the air. Then she turned and went back down the hall to the mine entry. She traded out some things in the chest by the door, then went into the elevator and rode all the way down to the seventy-fifth floor.

Mining went pretty well today; the spirits must have been happy! She was on level seventy-eight when she found another secret note - a note of Maru's:

"Parts still needed for my greatest invention yet!

- Gold bar

- Iridium bar

- Battery pack

- Diamond

- Strawberries"

Alma wondered what this invention could be. It seemed mechanical … except for the strawberries. She also wondered if this meant Maru had been down this far. Alma knew she came into the mines, but it seemed somehow unlikely that she made it down this far. But maybe so! She shrugged, folded up the muddy note, put it and the magnifying glass in her bag, and continued on to the next level.

Before she knew it, Alma was on the eightieth level, looking at another treasure chest in the middle of the cavern. She also noticed that the environment was decidedly different. The ground felt almost warm beneath her feet - a sharp contrast to the frozen brick she had been walking on for the past ten levels or so. The dirt looked almost reddish purple. She wondered how deep inside the ground she really was. She moved toward the chest and opened it cautiously. Inside was another pair of boots. They looked to be made of leather, but when she felt along the inside, there was soft insulation but absolutely no give - like it was lined with metal. "I've heard of steel-toed boots, but … are these completely steel-lined?" The red laces on the front were tucked into the boots to keep them from tangling on the outside. They seemed very durable and probably heat resistant, Alma thought. She took off her tundra boots and put these on, and yet again, she was surprised that they fit her like a glove. Despite their sturdiness and weight, they were still comfortable and not burdensome. Her feet felt well protected, and she smiled as she put her old boots in her bag.

She checked the time; it was still early afternoon. She might be able to go five more levels! With a deep breath, she climbed down the ladder. The first few levels were easy; she didn't even see any monsters! But she did notice that this was now much different: she felt the heat emanating from around the ground and rocks. Could there be a hot spring or … maybe a volcano nearby? She knew there were volcanoes around this part of Stardew Valley, but surely she wasn't … in one or something, was she?

On the eighty-third level, Alma was met with monsters she had never seen before. When she dropped down from the ladder, she heard a strange pinging sound, and she shot her head in that direction, only to see a green fireball heading right toward her. Alma screamed and felt a wave of heat fly over her, suddenly making her feel weak and slow. She pulled out her sword and walked toward the figure that had shot the fireball: a shadowy figure with a large tribal mask on. She swung her sword and struck his mask, knocking him backward, but with a moan and a flick of his wand, he was covered in a green haze and came at her again. "Did you - heal?!" She swung her sword again and again, and soon, he disappeared in a cloud of smoke, dropping a small, dark orb. Alma carefully nudged it with her sword, and it rolled over like a cloudy ball. She thought back to Rasmodius's ad. Was this a void essence? She carefully picked it up in her hand and put it in her bag.

Then Alma heard something else approach her from behind. She quickly turned, her sword in hand, and saw a small helmeted figure waddling toward her. She struck him with her sword, only to hear it clink against his metal helmet. "You have protection too, huh?" He kept coming at her, and she did notice a dent in his helmet where her sword met it, so she knew damage could be done. So she kept striking him. He kept getting knocked back, then coming forward, and she would strike him again. Eventually, the helmet dropped off, and he fell into the soil.

Alma stood and wiped her brow. She was starting to feel exhausted. But it was level eighty-three! Could she make it two more levels? She checked the time; it was now about five in the evening. She had time. But did she have the energy? She had already eaten all of her snacks. She would just have to be more intentional with swinging her pickaxe. She cleared out what she could with the sword first and was relieved to see a ladder already poking out of the ground.

She dropped down onto the eighty-fourth level and gripped her sword. No enemies that she could see or hear yet. She weaved her way through the rocks, knocking away red slimes, red bats, and red rock crabs as she went. When one of those rock crabs got knocked out, she noticed a note in its pincer. "I'll take that, thanks." This one was just an image: an X marked a spot near railroad tracks. Alma immediately recognized it; that was to the north of the bath house, on the other side of the tracks. She wondered what might be there. She would have to go check it out, she thought as she folded up the note and put it in her bag. She kept working her way through the level and was thrilled to see another ladder.

And so she made it to level eighty-five. Ten levels in one day was a big accomplishment for her. And though Alma was feeling tired, it was still so early in the day, and the spirits were obviously happy. Maybe she could try for five more? She spotted the ladder to the next level and went down, just to see. But as soon as her feet hit the floor, she could hear monsters all around her. "Nope, nope, nope!" she cried as she turned and ran toward the elevator. She quickly pushed the button to take her back up to the surface and held her sword ready as monsters approached the elevator. But the door closed before any of them could get to her. Alma sighed and leaned against the back wall of the elevator as she rode all the way up. "Eighty-five levels, Alma. Good job."

When the elevator door opened, Alma exchanged some things in the chest by the door then walked out of the cave and back into town. The sun was down, and the air felt much colder now that she wasn't in those warmer levels. She moved slowly through town and stopped in front of the clinic. Alma looked up and saw the light on in Harvey's apartment. She pulled out her slingshot and picked up a small rock from the ground, shooting it up at his window. She could see the shadows moving in his room as he came to the window. He opened up the window and called down, "You okay, sweetheart?"

"Yeah, I'm all right. Just tired. I made it ten levels!"

"That's, uh, great! Do you need anything?"

"No, I'm going home to sleep."

Harvey nodded and smiled. "Goodnight then. I love you."

She blew a kiss up to him, and he pretended to catch it in the air and bring it to his lips. She smiled and turned to go on to the cabin.