When the Stars Fall (Stardew Valley Fanfic)

Reservations

The sun continued beating down making the previous conversation about someone turning into a vampire even more strange. Glancing around, she saw a rather small beach with another just across an area that the river cut across, currently inaccessible. In the same direction was a shack on the beach, but out on the pier was another place, both of which she'd expect from a very small town rather than a beachside city.

A man stepped out of the shack, heading across the beach. He nodded his head and said, "Good afternoon. Tourist?"

"Maybe," Ardyce said.

The man in question took off, heading towards Pelican Town just like Alex and Haley did before. She stepped into the shade of the small shack the man came out of, looking out at the ocean. The summer heat made a beach visit not the most pleasant thing in the world, but she stayed none the less as Penny told her that she might find Sam on the beach and he, in turn, might help her get in contact with the person who might help her with getting the internet up and running.

Ardyce took a bottle of water out of her shoulder bag, unscrewing the cap. Lifting the bottle, she tipped it so she might remain hydrated. Already, she made up her mind that if Sam didn't show before she finished her two bottles, she'd head back to her apartment, stopping at the second house as Penny mentioned. After all, she couldn't wait too long to get her internet up and running.

Thankfully, a young man appeared, his blond hair spiked up as if he were some kind of wannabe rebel, yet a little kid with red hair following after him all wide-eyed certainly ruined that image. From where Ardyce stood, the little boy yammered on and on regarding things she couldn't hear, but the blond listened, acting completely raptured even if he didn't listen to what the boy was saying.

That was until he saw her, standing there beside the shack, just as she was taking another drink of her water, the bottle now half-filled. "Well, hello beautiful?"

Ardyce watched the facial features on the little boy's face, his mouth twisting into a frown. "Sorry. My brothers a perv."

"Vincent!"

"Seb says so."

"Seb..." The older brother let out a groan, rubbing the back of his neck. "I'm not sure he has room to talk."

"If Seb says..."

"Okay!" The blond turned and looked at her, grinning from ear to ear. "I'm Sam by the way. You're new to Stardew, aren't you?"

"So, you're Sam," Ardyce thought so from what she'd been told earlier, but didn't want to presume, nor walk up to a stranger.

One of his blue eyes winked. "So, you've heard about me. I hope..."

"Not my type." Ardyce took another bottle of water. "And your name came up in conversation. Specifically, I was told you could help me get in touch with the person who would be able to help me get my internet up and running. I kind of need it so I can work from home."

"That's..." Vincent suddenly had his mouth covered.

"Ah. They didn't tell you his name?" Sam asked, the smile twisting into a frown.

"No, they did not."

"I see." Sam pushed his younger brother away. "Go over there for a sec."

"But!"

"Just go already!"

Ardyce closed her water bottle, crossed her arms, and tucked it under her arm. "Was that necessary?"

"You don't know my little brother. He can hear something and get the wrong idea, and..."

"What's Seb like?"

Sam's eyes blinked. "Ah. Never mind that. Who told you I could get you in touch with the person who does the computer stuff around here?"

"Penny."

"And she didn't say..."

"Who he was? No."

"I meant anything nice about me?" Sam's mouth twisted. "Come on..."

"You know. I have more important things to do." Ardyce stuck the water bottle back into her bag. "All she told me was where I might find you because you could get me in touch and I really need to be able to work from home."

"Like him." The smile left Sam's face.

"Like him?" Ardyce asked.

"Never mind."

"I'd better go." Ardyce pushed away, planning on heading back to her apartment.

"Wait. Tomorrow." Sam let out a sigh, making her stop and look him in the eye. "I'll take you to see him tomorrow, but there's something you need to know."

"And what would that be?"

"Meeting up with him doesn't guarantee you getting your internet problem fixed. You may still have to seek someone from outside the village."

Ardyce's eyes blinked, her breath drawing in. "Why?"

Sam glanced over at his brother. "Look. I'm not in a position I can tell you the details beyond the fact he isn't feeling good right now. Seeing a new face though might do him some good though, though be forewarned that he might be a bit standoffish when you first meet him."

"I see. And where am I supposed to meet you?"

"On the west side of the clinic. It's a date then?" Sam asked.

"I told you. You're not my type."

"A guy can try, can't he?"

"The only reason I'm going with you tomorrow is because I really need the internet." Ardyce tugged her shoulder bag higher up. "Anyways. See you tomorrow. I'm going to head back to my apartment."

"Alright. See you!" Sam called out after her.

Things of course seemed as if they were looking up, at least in some respects, but as she arrived at the point she'd head around the back of Pierre's General Store when she saw a couple of cars drive up from the direction of the bus stop, turn left at the clinic which was adjacent to the general store. The man she'd seen earlier stood just outside. Ardyce swallowed. "What's happening?"

"The ravine dried up."

"There's a drought, so that's not surprising."

"What's surprising is that they found a body." The man nodded his head towards the missing person's poster for Maru. "The missing girl. Rumor has it that the police consider her brother their prime suspect. It would make for a good murder mystery."

"What?" Ardyce found herself rather taken aback by the man's rather candid attitude towards the situation, yet he paid her no mind. Instead, he headed back to his shack on the beach. Looking up towards the mountains where Caroline said Maru's family lived, she wanted to go and see her best friend's parents, yet felt showing up that soon would be in bad form.

Still...

Swallowing, Ardyce headed around back and up the stairs, the sound of her feet hitting the stairs as she headed towards her new home, her current home. Unlocking the door and slipping inside, she locked the door behind her. Plopping her bag onto the counter, she headed to the bathroom, getting into the shower to wash away all the sweat, sand, and frustrations.

Yet, when things got going she found herself sinking into the bathtub, sobbing, completely naked, and feeling so alone. She didn't know anybody in the valley that she could turn to, nor had she expected for that kind of turn of events her first day in the valley. A thought crossed her mind, realizing there was someone she might seek out, perhaps against her own better judgment.

Ardyce got out of the shower and sent a message via her phone as she had no internet. "Since you live in the valley DrowningWizard I suspect you've heard they've found a body in the dried-up reservoir. It was likely Maru, but I'd like your help, if you don't mind, in figuring out what happened to my friend. Contact me when you get this rather than ignoring me."