Part 54: Snow Jean
Update 54: Snow JeanAh, yet another rainy Autumn day.
Music: Alliance Alive - Rainy Realm
Some guest music to hit the mood!
A whole lot of nothing happens, so I set about managing the fields for once.
no wait bush
what are you doing
It was around this point I just decided to clear all the grass. We're already somewhere around max fodder and I didn't want this to wither during winter. We have nothing else to use the RP on at least. I'll leave the other crops until the final day.
Although in hindsight, it may have been better if it withered. We'll get to why soon.
BRODIK: What is this? Are you trying to piss me off?
Oi mate, we do take care of this farm
Yer not gonna run me out of town, twerp
And since we have an oh-so welcome audience, I set to truly cleaning the field.
This also won't have mattered in a few days, but it's the effort that matters
It takes us all the way until bath time almost to get everything but a few stumps. We had to eat some of that backup food to get this far even.
BRODIK: Heh heh heh...
BRODIK: If you can't even keep your fields clean, there's no point in you staying in the village!
BRODIK: Get out! Get out now!
Tch, you try and pick up a watering can. Ain't as easy as it looks, bucko!
You know what?
Bam. Fields fixed completely. No bath required.
Whatcha got to say about that?! Huh?!
Yeah that's right! Run away!
Mess with a culinary expert and see what you get!
Bush's rivalry seems to have taken the day all the way until opening time for the bar.
The Irises are about, Noire's just kinda standing over here for no apparent reason, but is worth noting we can invite them to dates now. I think Rosetta is the only one who has to have her storyline complete to do it.
At least, it seems like it.
Their dates take place at 8:30 to 9:00 PM instead of the usual time.
GANESHA: Please don't leave.
RITA: Oh, really? Yes, I'll keep you company today...
GANESHA: *phew* To drink is to live! And to live is to...
GANESHA: No...
GANESHA: Always be in love. That's the secret to staying young.
RITA: You're quite the drinker, ain't ya?
Ganesha's just floored over here.
IRIS BLANCHE: The Spirits have stabilized recently and they are cycling to and from Whale Island and underground.
IRIS BLANCHE: That's such a relief...
All is fixed with the world. Sort of. Okay, maybe that's a stretch, but at least the town is saved.
The spirits being fixed doesn't solve the Runey Situation though. They're just broken by design.
And that's all for this day, really.
Bright and early on the 27th, I remember to admire our new curtains. I like the look! The blue's a nice spice to the mostly reddish brown wood and stone.
Music: Kross' Theme
As soon as we leave the house, there's a massive boulder in front of our door!
BUSH: Whoa!
*And then Kross begins to approach!*
KROSS: I'm sorry, Bush...
BUSH: Why are you apologizing, Kross?
KROSS: ...I'm sorry.
*And then he begins pushing it out of the way, the boulder grinding against the ground loudly.*
...How very strange! Of course, Kross continues to be both super strong and a good friend.
Why would a boulder end up in front of our house? Well, I can think of one reason...
But we've got other stuff to do, like mail!
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~"The Bathhouse" - Anette~
I sweat so much, when I'm
making deliveries, so I've always
wanted visit Melody's bathhouse,
but it's not open in the morning!
Maybe I should ask Melody to
Change her business hours.
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She's awake by 9:00 easily, I'm sure Bush can get you some sort of arrangement. We are the bathhouse's biggest patron and Melody's good friend, I'm sure Bush has some sway.
EUNICE: Ever since Iris came to live with us, the bar has become much cleaner.
Glad to hear the workload lightened up a bit.
BUSH: Do you drink, Eunice?
EUNICE: Huh? I don't. I don't know anything about alcohol either.
EUNICE: Is it weird even though my family runs a bar?
Nah, I'd say it's pretty normal.
MARCO: I actually wanted to go save Mist with you.
MARCO: But I'll just get in the way...
MARCO: That's why I'm going to train to become stronger so I can help you if anything were to happen again!
Marco remains a good kid.
STELLA: Now that Mist is back, the drinks will taste much better.
And suddenly, it's a new day. What a shocking thought that was- just blanked out an entire afternoon!
And, um another?
Bush, you okay?
Yeah, maybe you should just take a nap at 6:06. Might be all those weeks of 6 hour sleep nights catching up to you.
Hm? What's that music?
Music: Snowy Day
It's snow!
This music track is rather nice. I just wish I knew why rain gets silence while this gets it's own music.
I guess it's just because the snow wouldn't make any noise falling and you'd have real dead silence?
But with the snow falling, so does our last few plants in the field. These were just kinda here, not nearly as pivotal as the tomato fields of last month.
o7 all the same, yams and peppers
ANETTE: Did it surprise you? Every year during this time, the sun doesn't come out.
ANETTE: It doesn't get bright even when it's morning, so it makes delivering mail much harder.
ANETTE: Of course, if you go outside the village, you can see the sun. But this day is still really mysterious.
So apparently, Trampoli gets a localized, whale-based eclipse on this day every single year.
Seriously, this town seems like it'd be a huge tourist spot. It just... isn't.
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~"All prepared for winter?" - Erik~
Did you know that it'll be winter
starting tomorrow?
You won't be able to grow anything
during the harsh season, so you
better start stocking up on monster
feeds and such now.
-----------------------------------------------------
Erik, this letter is pretty late. Should've sent this a week or two back, when we still had time to grow fodder.
But we're also pretty much maxed on fodder so whatevs
BIANCA: I don't mind the snow. I just hate the cold.
BIANCA: It's quite an interesting day to see how it's still dark even after sunup.
BIANCA: Why don't you do festivals on this day?
This town does not have good festival planning, it's true. Noted festival connoisseur Bush is frequently disappointed.
Well, since this seems to be a Whale Island thing, perhaps we should ask the Irises.
BUSH: Iris, Whale Island always covers the sun on this day. Do you know anything about it?
IRIS NOIRE: I didn't know that even happened.
IRIS NOIRE: I was underground the entire time so I didn't notice that the island covered the sun.
...Well, asking Blanche is probably the better idea.
BUSH: Iris, Whale Island always covers the sun on this day. Do you know anything about it?
IRIS BLANCHE: I didn't know that even happened.
IRIS BLANCHE: I lived on top of Whale Island so I didn't notice that it hid the sun.
...Also true.
Welp, I guess we'll try asking the whale itself.
EUNICE: For some reason, the sun doesn't come out on this day every year. Plus, it snows, too.
EUNICE: It'll be sunny again tomorrow, but I don't like how I can't dry the laundry.
Seriously, how do we not have a festival for a guaranteed snow day?
MELODY: This is it! It stays dark even during the day!
MELODY: Maybe someone forgot to open the curtains?
Wasn't us, Bush keeps those open!
SELPHY: It's dark even during the day because Whale Island hides the sun.
SELPHY: Whale Island of this village is something so strange that I've never even read it in a book.
SELPHY: I won't be surprised no matter what happens now. Anything can happen.
You got sucked into a brain eating book and were also present to grant Bush anime friendship powers in an alternate reality time void less than two weeks ago.
I think Whale Island is the least surprising thing at this point
-----------------------------------------------------
~Constellation: Whale~
"The Whale is a constellation that appears in any season just before midnight. However, it can only be seen during a full moon. (15th and 16th of every month)"
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Got a number of new books to read.
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~Yui's Diary~
"Summer, Day O
I went to the beach today. There were many jellyfish in the water, and they hurt me, so I punished them."
"Autumn, Day △
I watched the moon today. My mother once told me that the moon is made of cheese, so I brought some cheese from home to compare it to the moon."
"Winter, Day X
We had a snowball fight today. The snow made my hands cold so I tried to warm them, but the snow melted. I was sad."
"Spring, Day *
I went flower viewing today, but there were no flowers, so I warmed everything up, and many pretty flowers bloomed."
---------------------------------------
Yo, it's more stories of the magical preschooler!
More questionably, how is her diary just here in the library? Continuing to be a really eclectic collection you've got here, Selphy.
ERIK: The sun won't come out. What should I do...?
ERIK: I better start preparing for winter.
Again, you're kinda late for that, pal.
LARA: What happened...? Whale Island is hiding the sun... And it's snowing... ...in autumn...
Lara's just very confused.
It's also the last day of Autumn, so is it really that strange it's snowing? Just an early start, really.
STELLA: Are you surprised? For some reason, Whale Island hides the sun on this day.
STELLA: It's inconvenient how we can't dry our laundry, but it's only for a day.
One would think you could adapt your laundry schedule to work around this extremely predictable day.
KANNO: I see... So it's dark during the day because Whale Island hides the sun! And there's snow during autumn!
KANNO: I am very interested as to why this happens.
KANNO: I wonder if we can find out if we ask the whale itself...
I'm getting to it, gramps!
...at least I think I am. I've forgotten if I did go and check.
CINNAMON: The Scorpion Constellation can only be seen on nights with the new moon.
BUSH: The new moon?
CINNAMON: The new moon refers to days when there is no moon showing.
CINNAMON: The new moon comes every month on the 1st and 30th. Look up at the sky when it's near midnight.
This one will be easy to catch. The Whale one will still be a while off.
Alright, I did go and check Whale Island today.
Oh, um. Nothing happens, I guess.
MIST: It has been dark the whole day today. Plus it started snowing, too... I wonder what happened.
Mist hasn't gotten up to speed with the situation.
The legendary golden turnips are almost done...
Oh, look who it is. The dink himself.
Music: Brodik's Theme
BRODIK: How did you move that rock?
BRODIK: Uh, I mean...
BRODIK: What kind of weirdo puts rocks In front of their house? Well, It's not like you have friends anyway so it's perfect!
BRODIK: Ha ha ha ha!
Our buddy Kross has our back in this rivalry.
...But it does beg the question, why was he apologizing?
BRODIK: Why does it snow today? It's still autumn. What's with this village?!
It's a strange place overall, yeah. Still, I don't think it snowing a day early is THAT big a deal.
Anyways have fun being outstanding in the snow, gonna go sleep.
And so it becomes Winter!
It's also Lara's birthday.
Music: Winter
And truly, Winter has arrived. Everything is already blanketed in snow and icicles. The seasonal theme is very solemn, melancholy almost.
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~"It's never too early!" - Rosetta~
Winter begins today!
Have you finished preparations
for this harsh, cold season?
Unfortunately, no crops grow
in winter, but you can use the
spare time to buy accessories
to present to that special someone.
-----------------------------------------------------
Rosetta still on point to make a buck. Only the RF games with Bush in them lack Winter crops, so this is the last game where it is a really nothing season.
-----------------------------------------------------
~"Winter!!" - Uzuki~
It is finally winter!
I have been waiting for this
wonderful season.
When will the first snow fall?
How exciting...
-----------------------------------------------------
Uzuki really loves winter. She has somehow failed to notice it has already snowed though.
And so the possible reason for letting my field get filled with withered grass presents itself. The snow automatically counts as untilled land, and sticks and rocks will relentlessly spawn again.
The withered grass might've blocked that.
White and Black Grass can spawn naturally now though.
Too bad we don't need it anymore.
UZUKI: It is the same with all things, but the foundation, or the lower half, that is the most important.
UZUKI: That is why I run everyday to train myself.
Uzuki does not skip leg day. And leg day is every day.
Bush has her beat though, he runs everywhere, constantly. It is possible for him to walk, but he has no reason to.
BUSH: You used to live in a large town, right, Eunice?
EUNICE: Yes. Dad used to work at an inn there.
EUNICE: He had a dream of owning his own inn and that's when he heard about this village from Stella.
EUNICE: It was really hectic after that. He told the owner of the other inn, made preparations, then we moved here...
EUNICE: At first, we didn't have a lot of customers and I cried to Dad about wanting to go back.
EUNICE: But looking back, it's just another memory now.
I think we've heard a bit of this story a long time ago, but here's the full little tale.
We head on into Rosetta's store today...
ROSETTA: Hey, Bush!
Music: To You
*We get a CG! Rosetta stands in the doorway of the shop, illuminated by the morning light.*
ROSETTA: After getting my father to drink that medicine you gave me...
ROSETTA: ...he's been recovering fast!
ROSETTA: It's like a miracle.
BUSH: Really? That's great to hear!
ROSETTA: This is all thanks to you!
BUSH: What are you going to do now?
ROSETTA: My father is going to hire some people so this won't happen again.
ROSETTA: But I'm still worried so I'll check in on him from time to time.
I
ROSETTA: 'm going to continue running the store here. It is mine, after all.
ROSETTA: Besides...
*She starts to say something, but stops herself and looks away nervously.*
ROSETTA: No, never mind.
ROSETTA: Be sure to come to "Materia" often, Bush.
And so her questline is finally complete! Good to hear Jean got better.
For anyone wondering, the exact requirements is visit the store on a weekday during regular hours at least 4 days after you give her the potion. Visiting early before hours on weekends seems to mess with this and delay a bit though.
(Ignore that the image names gives away this happened two weeks later, and I kept messing this up for a really long time)
And so we can finally ask her out on a date if we wanted to, and leaves only one( two?) bachelorette with a story left to complete.
ROSETTA: There's some traveling poet that often came to my father's store when I was there. He'd harass me all the time.
ROSETTA: I haven't seen him since I came here, but I wonder what happened to him.
ROSETTA: Th-that doesn't mean I'm worried about him or anything!
Lukas was a big dork who seemingly did nothing in life but hang out in the store trying to hit on Rosetta. He probably left to go annoy some other girl.
You actually had the option to sell him Rosetta's specific marriage item.
ROSETTA: ...Hey, Bush...
BUSH: Yes?
ROSETTA: I... N-nothing...
ROSETTA: I just don't think a girl should be the one who says it first.
BUSH: Oh...
Come on, go for it! Be assertive!
...Don't beat around the Bush!
(Disclaimer: resulting response will be determined by the unpredictable voices in his head)
In other news, the forbidden turnips have finished growing. We have successfully saved an endangered species! Maybe!
Mist, what in the world are you doing
she's just over here tapping a duster against the top of the wardrobe
i have no idea
MIST: I didn't feel scared even when I was captured.
MIST: I believed that you would rescue me, Bush.
MIST: Thank you, Bush.
Eh, Bush uprooted his whole life in a previous town to come find you one time, what's the difference in that and the forgotten parallel world of the Spirits?
Anyways, I use a timeline manipulation to give her a golden turnip.
MIST: Thank you. I don't know why you're giving me this, but I'll accept it anyway.
At first this response may seem strangely lacking in acknowledgement, yeah. After all, it's the perfect merging of the Turnip and the Emery Flower! Why wouldn't she be all over it?
But no, having this means she knows what we've done. The sabotage of the last festival.
Woah, why'd that timeline suddenly shut off? Anyways-
Lute! My main man!
LUTE: Is it true that Tabatha will go back with Minerva?
BUSH: It's not true. Tabatha will stay as Bianca's maid.
LUTE: I see. I'm glad it was just a misunderstanding...
Bush is polite enough to not ask what country and what reason Lute seems to be spying on the Former Queen of Elf Country for. It's some top secret business, I'm sure. She's even just standing over there.
We instead buy his latest painting, "House in a Forest".
LUTE: I'd appreciate it if you'd give me your opinion on it again.
BUSH: Lute, why do you paint?
LUTE: That's a difficult question... Well...
LUTE: This probably sounds weird, but one day, I want to paint the ultimate sky that can engulf everything onto canvas.
LUTE: That's why I picked up the paintbrush.
LUTE: I have to keep a grand goal so I always remember at least this
The man's got an image in his head, and he's trying to make it real. I know the feeling. Although "engulf everything" does sound mildly worrying.
I'm sure it's nothing though!
We have cash, so I go ahead and buy some Elegant Curtains too. I liked the old one, but hey, anything for our merchant friend.
CINNAMON: In this season, you can see the "Hairpin Constellation."
CINNAMON: A hairpin?
BUSH: It's the ornamental kind from foreign countries.
BUSH: Uzuki showed me one of hers the other day.
CINNAMON: ...That's interesting.
CINNAMON: Then let me tell you when you can see the Hairpin Constellation.
CINNAMON: You can see it right after it gets dark. Be sure not to forget.
Included an extra screenshot to prove that's how that conversation goes. It does feel like Bush and Cinnamon had their roles swapped midway through, but maybe that's just all of his KNOWLEDGE shining through now.
Speaking of constellations, Bush then proceeeds to stand at the observatory spot for 14 hours staring at the sky.
He's got a lot to think about.
BUSH: That's...
Found Hairpin Constellation!
BUSH: That's...a hairpin? I guess...
Not actually the one we were here for, but we'll take it! This showed at about 6:00 PM. It's very early.
This is for Uzuki.
Also just wanted to take a second out to note again that the game properly angles character shadows based on the time of day. It's an incredibly small detail, but I can't help finding it to be pretty cool.
Found Scorpion Constellation!
(This showed at 00:13 AM.)
BUSH: It really does look like a scorpion. That's really strange.
This corresponds to Noire. Whale corresponds to Blanche.
ANETTE: You know Tabatha? Isn't she's so mature, slender, and beautiful? I wish I were like that...
Bush gets some sleep and begins tomorrow talking with Anette. She's been saying this a lot recently, really.
UZUKI: You sure are up early, Bush.
BUSH: You seem to be working hard every day.
UZUKI: It is what we maidens do. Despite how I look, I like to get some exercise.
UZUKI: But after coming to Trampoli, I could not find a good sparring partner so my skill in battle may have waned.
BUSH: I know! Bush, would you please have a match with me?
BUSH: What?! But...
UZUKI: Do not cower, Bush! En garde!
Um, Bush doesn't currently have a weapon out...!
*clink clank clink CLASH*
UZUKI: That was a good match. Daily training makes all the difference, Bush.
Bush's sword skill went up!
BUSH: Haha...
Nevermind, Bush can just fight back barehanded
Besides, we already retired from fighting things. Bush is even more of a pacifist than he already was- what need have we for sword skill?
But thanks anyways
24 Weapon skill. Compared to 71 Lumber/Axe.
EUNICE: Uzuki has been going outside at night recently.
EUNICE: I get worried because she returns so late...
She's got a naginata and Cicada Dad. She'll be fine. Someone has to go look for her brother after all.
That is what she's here for. I suppose.
IRIS NOIRE: Bush, you're still fighting monsters on Whale Island...?
BUSH: Yes.
bush, you don't have to lie
there's no shame in retiring the axe
IRIS NOIRE: Please run away whenever it gets too dangerous.
BUSH: Thank you. I will.
BUSH: Just hearing you say that makes me feel like I can run away even faster now.
...W-wait, you have an angry portrait? Why have you never used it before?! Now I have to make a new portrait image!!!
IRIS NOIRE: Oh, you...
Bush's strength went up!
Not bad, can't ever complain about free stat ups. I think this one's pretty substantial too, although I'd need to check again.
IRIS NOIRE: We used to exchange clothes and act like we were each other. No one ever noticed.
BUSH: What?! Really?
IRIS BLANCHE: Yes. We used to change our hair and eye colors, too, so no one ever noticed.
BUSH: Really...
I'm sorry, vampire girls, but Bush is going to have to press X to doubt here.
Hey, I wonder how the runeys are doing? I've only gotten a little lazy on managing them.
oh okay
well, i guess that's what happens when I don't touch it for 2 weeks
Time for bed!
...What? Bush is done with the Runey Situation. What more do we need to grow? Bush is just an eccentric culinary artist now.
(That and I just wanted to see how fast it'd collapse if I didn't touch it so I havent since we beat Gelwein. The answer is "pretty quickly"!)
Anyways, next time, we get a real festival, one where Bush gets to use all that acquired KNOWLEDGE of his.
Catch ya then!
Music: Goodnight