Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Saturday, Fall 13, Year 0 - Birthday Wishes
Abigail wakes with a start. It’s a gut feeling, but she knows it’s just a couple minutes before her alarm would usually go off. Excitedly, she blinks away the tiredness from her eyes and hunches to her side to pick her phone from the charger and look at the time. 7:56. Damn. Much too early for today, now she’ll have to wait awake for a whole hour before leaving her room. Pierre told her something about a “special surprise” and yada yada “don’t leave your room until 9 or you’ll ruin the blah blah blah”. She didn’t remember the details, but she knew exactly what it meant. The one thing she had wanted for her birthday… Journey of the Prairie King COLLECTOR'S EDITION! She'd dropped hints for almost a full year to Pierre about what she wanted, and there’s no way her dad could be dense enough to miss it. Maybe she should have told her mom a couple more times, but Caroline wasn’t the type to yield to childish requests like this. Abigail still laid in bed buzzing with excitement, she couldn’t wait. For all that work she put in, it was at last time to reap the rewards of her mastery in the skill of subtlety. Well- it was almost time. Again, she still had like an hour to kill.
Abigail unlocks her phone and sees a familiar photo staring back at her. It’s a photo she took of Sam and Sebastian at their first group jam sesh, well before they even finalized their band name. They started off pretty bad, to be honest- It was certainly a learning phase but calling yourself Goblin Destroyer and saying your music was “experimental noise” sounded a lot better than calling yourselves Eardrum Destroyer and saying you “didn’t know how to play instruments yet”. She takes time to look back through Ye Olde Camera Roll to see what fond memories pop up.
She sees pictures from the last week of their Solarion Chronicles campaign. Sam got all dressed up as a warrior for their session and had to take off his armor halfway through the game because he got too hot.

However, soon that reminiscing gave her an idea…

Annoy Sam and Sebastian.

< Sam!
< Sam!
< Sam!
< Sammie!
< Samuel!
< Ham Samdwich!

She texted the poor boy over and over again until he too woke up early. His notifications rang loud enough to wake him before his alarm, which made him quite irritated. Without even opening his eyes, he picks up the phone and messages back

> what is it
> better be good or i'm not coming over to celebrate

< Good Morning Princess! I just wanted to see how you were doing!

> prince

< Shut it, princess.
< By the way, whatever do you mean… Celebrate? Can’t for the life of me see why? 🤭

> well now i’m not gonna say it
> too bad, you lose, you can’t fish for it that hard
> i’ll be over later and say it then, ok my “princess”?

< Acceptable, and Sebby?

> he’s sleeping, like hard. he crashed on the floor with a sleeping bag and fell asleep before we even started our movie marathon last night!
> totally weak

< Ugh, get him awake and ready to hang out! I don’t care if he looks like a corpse today again, I wanna see my special peeps on my special day!

She sees the typing bubble appear and disappear a couple of times.

X Abby, i’m awake and i was reading this the whole time. corpse, really? How hurtful…

< What about it! I’m right! Now go shower Sebby! I do actually care what you look like and don’t wanna party with a zombie.

X Fine, ill think about being clean.
X Anyways.
X 3

< 3 what?

X 2
>2!
> oh he’s doing it
< What, a countdown? Counting down to what??

X 1…

Suddenly, a group of four burst into her room: Pierre and Caroline calmly walked in while Sam was pushing past them to get in first with Sebastian content to wait his turn. Her parents and Sam had beaming smiles on their faces, and Sebastian tried his best to smile. Together they shouted a grand “HAPPY BIRTHDAY ABIGAIL!”.
Abigail quickly hopped out of bed and ran to hug her parents, they weren’t usually the type to do surprises like this, but it still filled her heart to see they put thought and care into getting her friends here early enough to surprise her. When she let go of the hug, the boys lifted her up onto their shoulders to try and awkwardly carry her to the den of their home, only hitting her on the doorframe a little bit.
“Ow- You guys! You don’t have to do this okay?” She said, chuckling and rubbing her elbow. “I’m fine to walk through my own house on my birthday!”
“nah, birthday shoulder chair” said Sam
“Agreed, and we’re already doing it anyways” added Sebastian
Sam continued his chant of “birthday shoulder chair” while they marched along, eventually placing her in Pierre’s favorite armchair that had been moved from his bedroom to the den, in front of the fireplace. Pierre had set a folding table up in the den, complete with their finest paper plates, decorated paper napkins and plastic silverware and their aging plastic chairs. Caroline had been hard at work all morning preparing a breakfast of whipped cream and fruit on waffles, a pitcher of hand squeezed orange juice, and Abigail’s favorite -chocolate cake- with colorful candles for them all to enjoy. The couple sat across from each other at the table, one on either side of Abigail. Sam pushed the armchair in to the head of the table as gentlemanly as he could and took the remaining seat across from Seb at the end
“speech! speech! speech!” Sam said, banging fists on the table. Pierre shot him a look, and he immediately stopped his clamoring. Abigail responded by clearing her throat, standing up from her throne, and spoke in a decorated tone “Thank you all for attending the festivities on today the 13th of fall! As you may know today is my birthday, and while I cannot thank you enough for coming, I’d like you all to join me in feasting on the banquet brought by the royal chef, whom I lovingly call Mom. Thank you again, the waffles look delicious. Regardless, I’d like to say that today should be remembered for all that it will hold. I know not what, but I believe it will be important! Blessings be on you all today, and with that, let the feast begin!”
Sam immediately tore into his stack of waffles like a wolf, occasionally stopping only to gasp for air before diving back back into the pile. Caroline watched in horror as her poor waffles were decimated, and turned to her daughter’s conversation to distract herself from the carnage.
“Well, Abby, I think it’s time we light the candles on the cake! Just make sure you blow them out before the wax melts and gets all over the cake this time. I’m not completely sure of your tastes, but It’s likely you’re not a fan of waxy cake.” Turning to her husband as a realization hit her the something was missing, she commanded him excitedly “Oh-! Pierre, go get the gifts! I want to get her reaction on video!” She hopped up the table and rummaged around for her ever so useful digital camcorder in the nearby drawers. After wiping the thin layer of dust off of the top, she started filming the kids still at the table. “Oh you guys are so cute! I remember when it was just like this while you were half your size!”
Pierre came waddling back in with a few gift wrapped boxes piled up in his hands. Years of stocking the shelves of the general store made him an expert in carrying small towers of unwieldy boxes, yet he still pretended they were like small blocks of lead to impress his family and their company. He set them out on the table behind the cake before he took a matchbook from his pocket to light the small candles. Sam turned off the overhead lights and left the room illuminated by the glow of the candles and the lamp in the corner. Together, her parents and Sam sang her a happy birthday tune, and smiled wide. Sebastian hummed and gave her a weak smile complimented by a thumbs up.
“Remember to make a wish, and you gotta blow ‘em all out or else it won’t come true!” Pierre added just before she was taking a deep breath.
“Yeah, yeah, whatever. I’ll make a wish if it waters your crops-” She chuckled at her dad’s sentiment, but still thought to herself. What WOULD I wish for?
“I wish for-”
“AH! Nope! You can’t say it out loud either! You gotta just keep it to yourself.”
Pierre had cut her off…
“Right, yes, thank you.” She cleared her throat, closed her eyes tight, and blew out the candles in one clean swoop. Surely Yoba would have to grant her wish with a display like that. Backing up from the cake, Sam flicked the lights back on and the birthday celebration carried on. They ate more, shared cake and memories, and opened the gifts. Much to Abigail’s dismay, not one box held her dreamed copy of Journey of the Prairie King… Though she hoped there was always next year. Next year, yeah right. Nothing much happens in Pelican Town, it's just the same old people having the same old days. That’s the one thing she wished would change, just something to add some spice to life. When she was blowing out the candles, she did make a wish. A bit childish to believe it would happen, but all the same she believed it would work.

I wish for something new to happen.

Chapter Text

Pt. 2 Thursday, Winter 25, Year 0 - The Feast of the Winter Star

Abigail’s alarm went off, and she already knew it was going to be a sluggish day. A special day, but sluggish nonetheless. It was the 25th of winter, the day of The Feast. She had plans to hang out with Sam and Sebastian later, but it was more of what they did every year. Mayor Lewis always made secret friend gift exchange lists for everyone in town, but he made sure to match the trio with each other. He’d done it subtly at first but pretty soon they all caught on and just expected to get a gift for the others.
There were no morning surprises from her parents, no excited voicemail from Sam, no texts from Sebastian. Something about it all felt… different.
Abigail hopped out of bed and changed out of her pajamas and into warm clothes quickly, trying to escape the creeping chill of ice that had permeated the house. Bundled up in her favorite sweater, she stepped out of her room and hurried to the kitchen where she heard some faint conversation and clinking plates.

“... I just don't know what they’re gonna be like!”

“Pierre, please, anyone who’ll help out your business is good in my book. All I care about is that they’ll help you turn a bigger profit. Any more than that, and I’ll be pleasantly surprised.”

“I know, I know, but… You know how I feel about new things in Pelican Town. Change is scary!”

“Yeah, and spiders are scary too. And the Spirit’s Eve maze. And that “shadow person” you saw. You know what else is scary? When Lewis puts the star on top of the tree every year, you should go see if he needs help! Go hold his ladder or something, you’ll be fine.”

“Right, yes. Of course. I’ll grab my coat and step outside. Love you.”

“I love you too, now scoot!”

Abigail waited until her father’s footsteps faded before walking into the kitchen. Her mother looked at her with a gentle smile before handing her a cup of green tea. The warmth of the tea slowly spread throughout her body as she took her first sip.
Some people were coffee people, hard workers who were used to using their hands, much like her father. Other people were tea people, still hard workers, but more likely to be working hard at the newspaper’s daily crossword than using their hands to stock the shelves of a mom and pop general store. Caroline was a tea person. Such a tea person in fact, that she had Robin convert their old sunroom into a greenhouse for optimal tea leaf growth to make into her own custom blends. Above all she prized her green tea recipe. Abigail shared her mom’s appreciation of tea, but to a lesser extent. Just enough to make their morning tea a staple in both of their days.

“Hey, mom, I was wondering, did we have any special plans for today? Or is it cool if I go hang out with Seb n’ Sam?”

“You know, I was thinking we could go help set up your father’s stand in the town square, but I'm sure he’s alright without you for that.”

“So?”

“So go have fun with your friends and have a good time! Just make sure you wrap up your gift to your secret friend, and don’t tell them what it is before they open it this year!”

“That was ONE time! And he already knew I got him new guitar strings! It’s not every day you catch someone with a bag from that guitar store in Zuzu City!”

“Alright, alright, I’ll stop pestering you about it- for now. Be back in time for us to go to the feast together! So be home around… Is 4 alright? I know you want to hang out with the boys, but we want to get ready earlier.”

“4 is good, I’ll be back then. Maybe.”

Abigail gave her mom a quick hug before walking to the front door. She braced herself before opening the door incase there was a cold gust of wind waiting for her just outside. Finding relief in the absence of Jack Frost, she stuffed her hands into her pockets and started walking up the mountain trail to Sebastian's house. It was a long walk, but that never stopped her from making the trek before. Even if she wasn't too much a fan of the cold, she still found small joys in the winter season. The snow crunching beneath her feet, the noise of the water running through the river that cuts through town, the familiar scent of the clean, clear air- all of these things and more were small joys to make the winter easier to bear.
When she got to Robin's shop/house, she shuffled in through the front door and shook off the snow from her boots. Robin and Demitrius were busy chatting away in their at-home-lab, something about wanting to do research on bats or mushrooms that needed to get done. It was interesting chatter to eavesdrop on, but not why Abigail was here. She continued up the stairs to Sebastian's room. He was already there waiting for her, Sam too, they were laying on the floor setting up for a session of Solarion Chronicles.
They spent the day together, battling monsters, collecting treasures, and grappling with the consequences of their poor choices. Empty canned drinks and bags of chips started to surround them as they fought with an extra powerful evil wizard. Finally, as the wizard was drawing his last evil breath and speaking his last evil words, he was cut short by a phone ringing. Abigail quickly fished it out of her pocket and answered the call from her mom…

"Hey Honey! just wanted to make sure you were on your way home so we can get ready for the feast! Did you sprain your ankle on the mountain again?"

"No Mom, I'm okay- I'm just- walking home right now!" She said, flustered about forgetting the time limit they had on their game. Pinching the phone to her ear with her shoulder, she hurriedly cleaned up the game with the boys and continued speaking with her mom. "Game ended early and I am totally ready to get ready to go... right now."

"You're sure you're ready? The feast starts in an hour, and I don't want you running down the mountain and getting your cute sweater all snowy and wet when you trip."

Abigail noticed the tired concern of a mother that sees this exact scenario happen every year. Maybe she should be careful this time... Nah, the feast starts soon, it's time to hurry-

"I'll be right there, don't worry!" She had finished boxing up the game and Sam had already ran out the door, sure that his mom was upset he hadn't turned up either.

"Walk slowly, you'll be okay getting ready as long as you just don't slip on any ice or snow. I love you, okay? BE SAFE! Goodbye."

"Ugh- ok, I love you too, I will be, and goodbye to you too-"

Abigail hung up the call, and started out the door, racing down the trail over tree roots and slick patches. Confident in her ability to make it down the mountain safely, she let up her guard around the community center before stepping directly into a patch of ice and sliding across. A little shaken up, but having not fallen the whole way down, she decided to take it safe from there and walk.
Pierre and Caroline were both already ready for the feast, so they had been waiting for Abigail to go. When she entered her home, they handed her the gift she had gotten Sam, a new guitar pedal. It suddenly struck her that she had indeed forgotten to wrap the dang thing, and that it would need to be done before they could go and take pictures under the tree together at the Feast. She hurried to her room to look for any serviceable bag and maybe some kind of tissue paper to stuff the bag with. Eventually she came back to her parents almost proud of the rushed job of wrapping. It did work well enough.
They walked out into the town square as a family and asked Mayor Lewis to take some pictures for them of how lovely they were in front of this year's specially chosen Feast Tree. Abigail broke off after the photoshoot because too many people had shown up and she didn't want them to know that she had stooped down to taking nice family photos... ew. Especially not Haley.
As the evening continued, Abigail took some time to play with Jas and Vincent. They had gotten each other hacky sacks because they looked fun, but had no idea how to actually use them, and needed some guidance from a pro to get started. She also talked about the new sewing projects Emily was working on and together they made a plan to make a cute new vest Abigail could style with in each season. She judged a sparkling juice chugging competition between Sam and Sebastian, and had to make a run to other tables trying to get enough juice to keep the competition going. The winner, Sam, won his bagged guitar pedal. Seb got a consolation prize from Sam of a new set of high-quality headphones. Sebastian gave Abigail her gift, one of his favorite eyeliners... He scratched off the label to keep her from finding out the secret and getting more for herself, but the thought was there all the same. Finally everyone settled to eat and had pleasant conversation on all sides. Pleasant, but… it’s all familiar.
It was an average celebration, but that didn't mean bad. It was very homey, and cozy, but... it was the same celebration she'd always been to. That was, until Mayor Lewis got up in front of the tree with a glass of juice that he tapped gently with a knife to ring out the signal for an important announcement.

"Everybody, listen up, I've got something to say..." Pam laughed loudly and shouted from her table.

"HAH! Yer finally stepping down from mayorship? Yoba bless!"

"No, Pam..." He sighed. "I've got some news regarding the old man's farm. Rest his soul."

"We're tearing it down to make room for a brewery?" Pam squawked as a response.

"Pam, please, let me continue. You can be happy with what you get from Gus. No, there will not be a new brewery in town... I think. I've already let Pierre know, but I think it's time I let you all know that we'll be having a new face in town soon. On the first of spring, we will be welcoming the old man's grandchild to Pelican Town."

Everyone froze. Someone new was coming to Pelican Town...?