Thank You Always

Hey, Aldo!

Hello, Tia. Did you want something?

Yeah, um... Can I ask you a favor?

Sure thing. Ask away.

I...umm...wanna give Enoch a present.

You do? Is it his birthday or something?

Nope, I just wanna thank him. He's always so nice to me. Even when I'm crying, he still finds a way to put a smile on my face.

I see, so you want to thank him with a gift? How nice. So, do you know what you want to give him?

Yeah! I'm gonna give him somethink nice to put round his neck.

Um, what's it called again? A pen... pendon?

A pendant?

Yeah! That's it, a pendon! That's what I wanna give him!

(Guess there's no point correcting her again...)

But I can't make one all on my own...

Ah, I see what you're getting at. I'd be happy to help.

Yay! Thanks!

So what kind of pendant do you want to make for him?

I drew a picture of what I wanna make! For decoration, I want this pretty pattern. And I want the stone to be red.

Same color as his hair... Teehee.

Let's have a look. Oh, it's lovely. This will make a great pendant.

Can you make it?

Yes, I think I can.

Okay, so I'll need a beautiful stone, wood for the frame, and something to stick them together... Then if there are any materials in the toolbox, that should work.

Yay! You're sure?

I'll look for the materials and make the pendant. Will you help me with the finishing touches?

Finishing touches?

Yes. That's the most important part. We want to make something nice for Enoch, don't we?

We do! Okay, I'll try my best!

Okay, I'll go look for the wood. But it might be tough to make something this delicate out of regular wood.

It will?

Don't worry, it will be fine! I'll find something!

Okay, I think I'll need a soft wood that's easy to work with. But I don't know much about wood. I should ask someone who knows about the plants on this island...

Ah! I know who I could ask.

Hey, Andre.

Aldo! What's up?

I'm looking for some soft wood that can be worked into something small and delicate... I figured if anyone knows about the trees of this island, it's you, Andre.

Yep, I can help you with that!

Or, well, I wish I could. But you remember that book from the basement you gave me? I reckon you'll find all you need to know there.

Of course not! Here you go!

Thanks. Let's see now...

A variety of trees grow on this island, and their materials often vary depending on their surroundings. Investigation found that trees by the coast have soft wood suitable for relatively fine processing.

I see... So according to the encyclopedia, I need to search around the coast.

Thanks, Andre. You're a lifesaver!

You're welcome! Glad I could help!

Okay, this wood seems like the one from the encyclopedia. This should work for the pendant. Next, I need a red stone... Hm, didn't someone mention stone- collecting recently?

Hi, Elias. I was wondering if you could tell me about the stones of this island?

Stones? Sure, I collect 'em for fun, so I can tell you all about 'em. But how did you know about that? I only ever told Monica, and I told her to keep it secret...

Oh, erm... She didn't tell me anything! I'm asking all the kids the same thing. I used to collect stones when I was little, so I thought maybe you all do too.

Really? You like to collect stones? Ooh! Lemme show you my stone collection!

Are you sure? That would be great!

Yeah! Wait right there!

Wow! You've got so many beautiful colored stones! (Aha! And he's got some red ones!)

Elias, would you mind giving me one of those red stones?

You want a stone? Um...sure, for you. But will you do me a favor in return?

Of course!

We can't go deep into the forest 'cause of all the monsters. It's way too dangerous for us out there. So I only ever get to gather stones near the house... But I bet there's loads of rare stones even prettier than these deep in the forest.

So if you find me a stone in the forest, I'll swap you this red stone for it!

Sure, I can do that. You've got yourself a deal.

Hey, Elias. Would you take a look at this stone I found in the forest? Here it is...

Whoa! I've never seen anything like it! You sure I can have it?

Of course. I'm glad you like it.

Okay, I'll swap you my red stone for it. Here you go.

Thanks, Elias!

No, thank you!

Okay, that's all the materials I need. Now I just need to make the pendant and take it to Tia!

Hi, Tia. I've made you that pendant. Let's finish it up together!

Whoa, you really did it? Okay, I'll do my best!

If I put this here... Like this?

Okay... We've got this...

There! Done!

Whoa! It's so pretty! It looks just like my drawing!

It came out pretty well, didn't it? I'm sure Enoch will love it! Okay, let's go give it to Enoch right away.

Okay!

Eek!

Tia? Are you okay?

Ugh... My pendon!

Oh no, you must have stepped on the pendant when you fell. A tiny bit of the wood is missing.

But it's okay, we can fix⁠...

Waaargh!

I-It's okay, Tia! We can fix this...

*sniffle* Waaahhh!

It's no good. She's not listening to me. Maybe I should call someone. The only one who can comfort Tia is...

Enoch!

Aldo? Why're you in such a hurry?

There's no time to explain! Can you come with me?

Huh? Oh, um... Sure!

Waaahhh!

Tia? What's wrong?

The thing is, Tia and I actually made a gift for you...

For me?

But no sooner had we finished it, it got broken. I tried to cheer her up, but I don't think I can get through to her.

Ah, so that's why you brought me here.

Hey, Tia. I heard you made me a present.

*sniffle* Waaargh!

Oh, is it a pendant? It's so pretty!

*sob*

The stone's even the same color as my hair! Was that on purpose? You're so thoughtful, Tia!

*sniffle* But...I broke it...

Did you? It doesn't look broken to me.

What do you think? Looks pretty cool, huh?

Yeah! It really suits you!

You worked real hard to make this for me, didn't you? That alone makes me so happy. Thank you, Tia!

Teeheehee...

Haha. I knew it. I was right to bring Enoch along. She handed over the present and⁠...

Aldo?

Yes, Tia?

Um, thanks for helping me. Here, take this. It's my treasure. It's yours now.

Are you sure? This must be really important to you...

Okay!

Thank you. I'll cherish it.