'My BIGGEST Mistake Ever' by Elli (by Freyashawk)

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'My BIGGEST Mistake Ever' by Elli
Written by Freyashawk

When people think of Karen, they immediately think of fun and romance. She's every one's idea of the most beautiful girl any one could imagine. She loves poetry and long walks along the beach. What might come as a surprise to some one who doesn't know her well is the fact that she can drink any man under the table! Don't make the mistake of thinking that she isn't serious when she needs to be though. She basically runs the Supermarket for her father Jeff. If it weren't for Karen, that business would have been bankrupt by now. Jeff is the sweetest, kindest man in the world but he can't stand up for himself. It is Karen who makes certain that all the bills are paid.

In fact, if you think Karen's ability to drink huge amounts of alcohol isn't a useful skill, think again! She was able to win a bet with Duke to force him to pay his bar tab by besting him in a drinking contest. Jeff was too cowed by Duke to demand his rights. Duke is a bully, but Karen won't let ANY ONE bully her!

When any one thinks of Mary, they immediately think of books. She is the librarian here in Mineral Town and she is a successful novelist as well. Mary is extremely intelligent. It runs in the family, you know. Her father is a famous botanist and has written many academic books. Mary doesn't write that sort of book, although she could if she wished. Mary knows more about every subject under the sun than any girl I ever met, but she writes mysteries. Both Mary and her father Basil have won awards for their books.

Ann has earned the reputation of being a tomboy because she won't wear frocks and hates jewelry and make-up but she actually is quite feminine. She is a marvelous cook and dreams of the day when she can have children and a family of her own.

Popuri is childish but that is part of her charm. She is the only girl our age who visits all the houses and farms on Pumpkin Day to beg for sweets! For all her childlike enthusiasm, however, she wants to be taken seriously. She resents her brother Rick sometimes for treating her like a child and always was determined to prove that she could run the Poultry Farm singlehanded. She now has her chance in Forget-Me-Not Valley.

That leaves me. When people think of me, they usually feel sorry for me. I wish they wouldn't, but it's 'poor Elli'. 'Elli makes so many mistakes'. 'Elli has to take care of her grandma and her younger brother.' 'Poor Elli never has time to have fun...'

Yes, I have made a few mistakes, but who hasn't? And by the way, one of the BIGGEST mistakes is named after me. It's called 'Elli Leaves'. Elli Leaves are made from every mistake you possibly could make in cooking. Put them all together and you create a medicine that is better than any other! There wouldn't be any 'Elli Leaves' at all if it weren't for the mistakes I made.

Even so, I wish I didn't make so many mistakes. I try to be like Dr. Trent, who never makes ANY mistakes in medicine. He devotes his entire life to the pursuit of science and healing. I admire him tremendously but I do wish sometimes that he would devote a little time to romance. He is the most handsome man in the world and the most dedicated.

He wants to prove that negative ions can work better than any medical potion but after years of working by his side, he gave his negative ion machine to Freya! I love Freya like a sister, but why, o why did Trent do that? Surely he knows how much I appreciate his work.

I suppose I should tell you about my most recent mistake, although I'd like it to remain a deep, dark secret if I could. Dr. Hardy seems to know about EVERYTHING that happens in the Valley, though, even when he isn't there. I wonder if that eye of his is all-seeing! He knew about Hugh and the explosion even before he walked through the door of the Clinic again.

It was the first time I'd been left alone to 'man' the Clinic in Forget-Me-Not Valley. I was so excited and pleased! Freya came round to visit and unfortunately, she is part of my BIG mistake. In fact, if I weren't a nice person, I suppose I could say that the BIG mistake really was HER fault. She was the one who chose the bottle, but Dr. Hardy is right: it WAS my responsibility and I shouldn't have involved what he calls 'amateurs'...

Hugh had scraped his knee and wanted to be fixed up. He is always cutting or banging himself, far more than my brother Stu ever does. Stu is more likely to eat or drink something that disagrees with him than he is to injure himself physically. I think it's because of his parents that Hugh is so completely PHYSICAL. They actually have a series of 'Projects' from A to Z to train him as an athlete. Wally and Chris are obsessed with the idea of Hugh becoming a world-class athlete. I wonder what they would have done if he had been bookish! Poor Hugh... I kind of feel sorry for him sometimes. Kate is the only other kid in the Valley and she has a very mean streak. She is mean to every one, even her own father! She'd probably say it is because she doesn't have a mother, but Stu and I lost our parents at an early age and I think it made me more compassionate. I hurt so badly that I don't want any one else to hurt the way I do. I suppose that's part of the reason I always wanted to be a nurse. I can't stand the thought of any one in pain. My Grandma is in pain all the time. Her legs ache so and there doesn't appear to be any cure for it. I don't think the pain is the worst part for her though. I think it's the fact that she can't walk now. She used to love to take long walks in the mountains, but now she only has her memories. One day, I'm going to arrange a picnic for her by the Lake. I know that Saibara would be thrilled to be allowed to help carry her to the Lake. He fancies her, you know, although he would die rather than let any one else know THAT. It's too bad old people are so shy when it comes to their feelings. Sai and my Grandma could be happy together, but they're both too proud to really do anything about it!

Anyway, that's not part of THIS story. This story is about the terrible explosion in Dr. Hardy's Clinic.

Here's what happened.

As I said before, Freya came round to visit. Dr. Hardy had been called out on some sort of an emergency and had insisted on taking Trent with him. I offered Freya some tea, but before we could sit down to enjoy it, Hugh arrived with a scrape on his leg.

Hugh: I fell down a second ago when I was running... I scraped my leg.
I said, 'Oh, that's terrible. You need some medicine. Will you help me, Freya?'

Freya nodded. The real reason I asked her to help me is because I didn't want her to be bored. I was trying to include her so she wouldn't leave...

I told her: 'This shelf has medicine. Grab some and I can mix it.'
I go to the back shelf.

What I didn't realise was that there were three different types of medicine on that shelf. There was a Yellow Bottle, a Green Bottle and a Red Bottle. Freya brought me the Red Bottle.

I said, 'Thank you. All right. I'll make it now.'

I mixed the medicine and suddenly saw it sparkle. In fact, we all noticed it sparkling and wondered what it might mean.

Well, we found out soon enough! There was a blinding flash of white light and a terrific explosion. I thought the world was coming to an end or at least that the house was tumbling down about our ears, but in fact, there was only a little black spot afterwards on the table. (I tried to cover it with a pretty white cloth I brought to the Valley the next Wednesday, but Dr. Hardy wouldn't allow it.. He said I should be reminded always of the dangers of making mistakes in medicine! He can be very strict but he is the best doctor I ever knew and I am privileged to be allowed to study with Trent. After all, I'm only a nurse and never went to medical school like Trent.)

The three of us were stunned and shaken by the explosion.

I exclaimed: 'That was shocking...'

Hugh: Wah... I'm going home!!

After he left, I said to Freya: 'I can't believe that happened...'

I was hoping that we could sit down to a nice cup of tea to calm our nerves before the others returned but:

The door slammed and:
Hardy: I'm back.
Trent: I'm back.

I said, 'Oh, welcome back.'

I then tried to deflect the conversation away from OUR day by asking, 'How was the patient?'

Hardy: It was no big deal. No need to worry. Hugh left in quite a hurry. Did something happen?

As I remarked, Dr. Hardy appears to have his eye on EVERYTHING.

I began to explain: 'He scraped his leg so, I was going to put medicine on it, but it exploded...'

Hardy: E-Exploded?!
Trent: How in the world did that happen?
I told them: 'It happened when I mixed the medicine that Freya gave me...'

Hardy: You're not supposed to let amateurs help you. Be more careful.
Trent: Good grief...

And I found myself saying once again as on so many other occasions: I'm very sorry. I'll be more careful.

Before Freya left, she spoke to the others. I could hear the conversation:

Trent: Hm, it's no good...
Hardy: What kind of medicine is this?

Indeed, what kind of medicine WAS that and what was it doing on the shelf in the first place? Why would Dr. Hardy need a substance that would explode like that? But I wouldn't dare ask...

I guess I must be one of the unluckiest girls in the world. I get into so much trouble and I never mean any harm to any one! Look at the Witch Princess and how much mischief she makes and she never suffers for it! I try to do what's right always and yet I cause more damage than most mischief-makers. Oh well, I'm not going to give up, no matter what other people may think of me. I am going to be the best nurse in Mineral Town and the Forget-Me-Not Valley. And you know something else? I am going to discover a cure for my Grandma and help her walk again. And even if I can't do THAT, I am going to make her life better by organising a surprise picnic for her next week. I'll talk to Saibara about it. I have to be very careful not to let him know that I know his secret! I'll just tell him that I'm asking him because he's so strong. Blacksmiths have to be very strong, so he would be the natural choice for some one to help. I'll ask Gotz too, because then Sai won't feel so self-conscious about it.

Don't you think that's a good idea? See, I'm not completely useless. And no one ever will forget that I'm the one who invented 'Elli Leaves'. As they are named after me, they CAN'T forget that I did make one contribution to medicine!

Recipe for Elli Leaves:

Turbojolt XL
Bodigizer XL
Failed No Tool Dish
Failed Mixer Dish
Failed Frying Pan Dish
Failed Steamer Dish
Failed Oven Dish
Failed Pot Dish

Elli's Big Mistake based on Elli's 200 FP Event at Hardy's Clinic, experienced on a sunny Wednesday, 9 Summer of the 1st Year at 9.30 a.m.
The story refers to the Doctor's Blue Heart Event in MFoMT as well, experienced in Freya's first year on Tuesday, 24 Spring at 11.40 a.m.