✿ IN BLOOM .

@ohvalleys // "Nooooooooo!" Emery panicked shrilly knocked over a tub of bait. No matter how many times she did it (the bait shop's corners were very tight), she would never get used to the way the worms looked wriggling on the floor. She choked back a gag and quickly looked away to find the scoop to get them back in the tub...but where did she leave it?

"   emery! what are you doing?!   "   the frustration leaks into her voice despite cordelia's best intentions. they had only hired emery a short while ago, with the promise of good work, and nothing had worked out so far. knots that were tied fell apart, fish weren't cut propely, the bait was never stored right... or now, like before, were on the floor.

@ohvalleys ( from here ) // "Cordelia, just stop it, if you're going to keep bringing that up, then I don't know what to tell you anymore. That was when we were kids, and it's not the same thing," Maude felt herself growing frustrated again. She laid it out as simply as she could, one last time before she ran out of patience. "You know, I don't even care that you danced with someone else? I care that you didn't tell me, and I care that you won't even say sorry." Even though Maude hadn't exactly apologized for her wrongs yet either...

"   i was excited,   "   they manage, trying to curtail their upset.   "   i didn't think you would be upset. i didn't think it would matter to you.   "   mostly, cordelia thought maude danced with her because neither of them had anyone else to dance with. or maybe, somehow worse, because maude was the only one who was willing to dance with cordelia. she'd tripped over her own two feet to accept when that had been proven wrong, and tripped faster when she felt the distance between her and maude growing. now they feel embarrassed, and guilty, and trapped in a web of their own insecurity, so much so that she says what maude hasn't, just so cordelia will feel like she can breathe again:   "   i'm sorry.   "

"Excuse me?" Taeng urgently called over the first passerby in the Town Square. She had to shout to be heard over the pouring rain. Emotion knit her brows together as Taeng tapped on the glass and pointed out her own note about Conrad, Jai and herself from the bulletin board and held it out to her neighbor. "Do you know who posted this?"

conrad squinted, but he didn't have his reading glasses, so it took him a few minutes to read out the squiggles on the page   —   and when he did, he grumbled and snatched the paper from taeng.   "   you know, i try and do so much for this town, because i love it so dearly... and what do i get for it, taeng? someone spreading rumours and falsehoods about our connection. and tying us to that wretched jai.   "   he's lucky he's a measured man and can keep his cool around such a beautiful lady.

Beads of green rain landed on her forehead and Whitney tried to dab them away with her handkerchief as discreetly as possible. It wasn't the most comfortable place to be, sweltering under the late summer humidity and drowning in this mysterious green rain to pass out free ponchos and umbrellas, but she was so focused on her work that she hardly noticed her discomfort. As part of her master plan to dominate the Joja ladder, etc., she hoped the protective Joja swag would only heighten the goodwill Joja gained after the mine incident.

the valley was a weird place, and clarke had spent just enough amount of time there that they understood that. but they also weren't truly valley born and bred, so when it came to things like green rain, mostly they just tried to keep their head down and get through the day. and dry.    "   is there a reason you're out here trying to help anyone out?   "   was someone at joja making her do this? clarke looked around, before taking refuge under an umbrella. free. nice. 

She taps her fingers on her arm and smiles. "You know what? If your designs really have been... pilfered... you wouldn't mind putting off a fashion show sometime." Her smile widens. "For the whole town."

"   oh, come on!   "   scoffs marcel, though he was now a little worried. who kept facts in their back pocket like when gucci was born? you could have told marcel he was gallileo or gaga, and he'd nod sagely as if he knew the whole time.   "   haven't you ever heard of a predecessor? he's the name. the next generation are the thieves. and i will gladly put on a fashion show for the entire town   —   of course, it must be secret. so there's no confusion over whose ideas are whose. which leaves me but with one choice as a model.   "

@ohvalleys || Though she'd lived her entire life in Stardew Valley, Maude was not one for the mines. What she lacked in emotional regulation, she made up for in common sense and will to live. However, her mom insisted she participate in this new event, and that the mayor had put safeguards in place, and plenty of people knew what they were doing, so here she was with her partner stomping down to a new level of the mines. When she arrived, she only stood there with her arms crossed and stared straight ahead. "I don't see a clue."

"Sure, whatever," Jai drawls, seemingly unbothered. He was an awful swordsman, as much as he liked to gloat about his skill in every area of life. He looks worriedly between the twigs and Conrad, a rebuttal on his tongue, but eventually fading away as he refuses to admit defeat. "To the death, decapitation, or until one of is surrenders?" Jai thinks he might know what all of that means. Maybe.

"Is that a joke? Of course you do." Seline has to resist adding another eye roll to her repertoire. "Have you seen what you're wearing? Do you look in the mirror before you leave the house?" Seline is getting heated, pissed off at being asked such an obvious question. Of course Marcel looked like a loser. Marcel was a loser.

Seline rolls her eyes so hard she feels like it somehow echoes around her skull and creates a dull throbbing sensation. Surely that could be it, and not just Marcel's tendency to give her a headache at every given opportunity. "Be sure to let them know I prefer papers served with a smile," she says drily. "You better be serious about that. I'm not having anything — or anyone — get in the way of us winning." She'd lock him up in a closet if she had to.

"   do i look like a loser to you, seline?   "   marcel folded his arms across his chest. as if! 

"If it's a duel you're gunning for, consider yourself challenged." Jai puffs out his chest, stands up straighter, and puts his hands stubbornly on his waist. Looking around, Jai spots two tree branches nearby. He nods his head to them, and then looks back at Conrad with a stern glare. "Those will suffice... we don't need to scare any children when I inevitably win and you're all covered in splinters." He then laughs, pleased by his own joke.

conrad doesn't laugh at jai's joke   —   in fact, he takes this very seriously.   "   if you're requesting a battle of twigs, that tells me you're not ready for what a real fight may look like.   "   it was practically snarled.   "   for the sake of the public, i accept your bid for now. but tonight after nightfall, i demand a real duel. sword to sword.   "

“I think you’re being idealistic,” he says, “Look around you - I’m far from the only person here that obviously wishes they were somewhere else. Does that feel ‘real’ to you?”

conrad squared his jaw. who exactly did this jester think he was? the valley was beloved, and for good reason. he keeps himself restrained, but his eyes narrow when he speaks to chandran, voice clipped:   "   if you don't like the valley and its traditions, perhaps you should see yourself out of it.   " 

"   i'm sure we will have a lovely time together,   "   cordelia promises, already thinking of all the things she'd like to have maude sample, in addition to any special requests.   "   i will tally the nights the moon dips out from the sea.   "   this is of course, cordelia's unique way of promising maude she'll be counting the days. 

Watching Conrad play pack mule was kind of entertaining, actually. It wasn't really his element, so Maude couldn't help but smirk a bit when he heaved and hoed. "You okay, Conrad?" she feigned a bit of concern. He was fine.

"   doing fantastic, maude! thank you!   "   he chirps, oblivious to the fact that his former student is clearly making fun of him. with another heave, the umbrella is brought open to cover them both, and conrad takes a moment to catch a labored breath before sitting.   "   hopefully..... the shade will.... help.   "

"   most fish avoid dead coral. they know nothing already gone can sustain them. even those who do not need it prefer the growth.   "   cordelia mused, not really answering taeng's question as much as she thought she was.  "   perhaps its in their spirit like ours.   "

"   oh! thank you! it is... very... cotton!  "

"You better stay," Emery pointed a threatening finger at Marcel, but her giddy grin diluted the intimidation a bit. "I think we thought of the best idea in the world, and it's one of the things the valley is missing. Is there anything else you need me to do before we open?" Marcel had a better handle on entrepreneurship, so she'd let him handle most of the business side of things so far, but she continued to offer her help. She would hate to be the one who didn't contribute to their club's success!

"   we need to make sure the club is packed tonight, emery. this can't be a failure!   "   marcel whined, and loudly, as if most of the things he had done in his life hadn't been failures. but that was of no importance: he and emery were going to be successful.   "   we need to go to zuzu city. and hand our flyers. even if everyone in the valley showed up here, it would be a disaster. there'd be no one new to meet!   "   and no one new to scam...

"And what a pleasure it is to connect with you," Taeng sang back, her eyes square on Conrad's. Hook, line, and sinker, she ate up every corny comment he had to deliver, and she was happy to bat them right back, though she lacked his subtlety. "But I do love that answer; I find it delightfully inspired, considering I would say the same of my own writing. Where would my life's work be without the inspiration from the world in which we live and breathe?"

"   exactly,   "   conrad enthused. he tried to keep a suave exterior, but he was absolutely buzzing from the conversation with taeng   —   how rare for someone so beautiful to roll into the valley, and think all the same things as him! he wondered if she had any thoughts on his favorite authors, or the merits of a furthered presence of joja in the town.   "   in all my travels, i've met many brilliant minds. people of all sorts of unique positions. but what's really important is where you find your home.   "   he jabs one of the saloon tables for emphasis.   "   and how you bring back the rest of the world with you.   "