As a little holiday surprise, I'd like to share a few scenes that were removed from the scripts due to word count limitations. There are spoilers from the final 2 episodes in this entry. I've simplified the script slightly so that it's more reader-friendly, removing adjustments for path branches.
Context: Chapter 9, while exploring the Diamond Breeze with Sunny and Phoebe
Sunny: Do you believe in ghosts?
Phoebe: No, but I believe in the unexplained. What about you?
Sunny: My parents did. Not spooky ghosts, though—ancestors. Maybe there's something to it.
Phoebe: Oh. Hmm... what about you, Lori?
Lori: I think there's something to it. Why else would so many cultures have ghost stories? (Inspiration Path)
Context: Chapter 10, while hanging out in the Shanty the night before Solstice
Chand: But Pheeb, you're one to talk...
Phoebe: No...
Sean: What did you do?
Lori: Phoebe?
Phoebe: Pram and I... God we were so stupid.
Chand: Go on, this is like Homeport lore now.
Phoebe: Okay, okay... So, we were up at the Taylor farm... I was twelve, I remember. And little Bobo kept following us around.
RJ: The weird goat?
Sunny: Oh, I think I might have heard about this...
Phoebe: Yeah, that Bobo. Well, I don't know whose idea it was, but there were these old candle lanterns in the barn...
Eltanin: ...
Phoebe: We'd spent all afternoon gathering green beans, and it was getting dark, so we thought he could be our little flashlight while we finished.
Chand: I still can't believe you did this.
Phoebe: He was fine with it at first! And he looked so cute!
Phoebe: But then he started doing that goat scream thing and took off.
Lori: Oh, poor Bobo.
Phoebe: Yeah, he managed to light a pile of mulch on fire, and then everyone was trying to catch him before he got anything else. And of course, they're all wondering how he got a damn lantern around his neck.
Phoebe: Pram and I, we panicked and hid in a root cellar, like that was going to help. But we weren't trying to start a fire, we were just trying to get some stupid beans!
Sean: Haha...
Chand: I hear all this shouting and screaming, so I open the door and Bobo goes tearing through the yard with Anna and the whole Taylor family chasing him.
Chand: And then Luis launches an inquisition—you'd think there'd been a murder. He's going door to door with Anna and Nina, grilling everyone: "Where were you at 6 PM?" Gods, if I hadn't had an alibi, I would have been so screwed.
Phoebe: At least no one got hurt. We were both grounded the whole winter... I... you know, I'm actually starting to miss it.
Chand: Being grounded?
Phoebe: Oh shut up. You know what I mean.
Context: Chapter 10, after Todd's arrival, Lori is talking to him about how he got there.
...: I know those routes, though, and the timing doesn't add up, unless...
Lori: Wait, you hiked across and left from Kake, didn't you?
Todd: Wow, nothing gets past you!
Lori: Nope! Well, not when it comes to sailing, at least. I feel like you're going to keep surprising me.
Todd: In a good way, I hope.
Lori: How does it feel being away from Juneau?
Todd: You know those dreams where you're a kid again and you realize you forgot all your clothes?
Lori: You're hiding it really well.
Todd: It's not quite that bad, but I keep getting the feeling that I'm forgetting something.
Lori: The starter's okay?
Todd: Yep, it's in good hands.
Lori: You didn't leave any ovens on?
Todd: Nope. Triple checked.
Lori: Well, you definitely brought the most important thing.
Todd: Flowers?
Context: Chapter 10, while discussing the Hoppy Solstice championship trophy
Chand: Please tell me it has a frog on it.
Lori: That sounds right.
Eltanin: A... frog?
Chand: ...Okay, so they're these pre-Collapse animals that could swim or go on land...
Eltanin: Like a seal?
Chand: Yeah, but a tiny seal with huge back legs so they can jump really far, and giant eyes, and they're slimy. And they eat people...
Phoebe: Really?!
Chand: Wait, that was a movie... they might not eat people, but I think they kill them or something? And people ate them, or licked them... or both?
...: I shrug, and RJ looks completely appalled.
RJ: That actually... sounds mostly true?
Eltanin: You answered the question, but not at all.
Chand: One of my many talents.
Context: Chapter 10, discussing children with Chand
Lori: I've never wanted kids.
Lori: And I don't think I ever will.
Chand: Really?
...: I don't know what I was expecting him to say, but it wasn't that.
Chand: Sorry, that came out weird, and this might too...
Lori: Just say it.
Chand: You have strong mom energy.
Lori: Okay, that is weird.
...: He shrugs helplessly.
Chand: I just meant that you make things happen, you aren't afraid of anything...
Chand: And you're always looking out for your crew.
Lori: That's... just me being a responsible adult.
Chand: Yeah... I should have said that. You seem like you'd make a great parent, so I assumed you'd want to be one.
Lori: Oh... that's really sweet. You aren't disappointed?
Chand: No, not at all. I always figured there were already more than enough people on the planet, even after the Collapses.
Context: Chapter 10, discussing children with Phoebe
...: All the preschoolers gather at a starting line a hundred feet or so from the tree with their parents hovering nearby.
Phoebe: It's a crime that we never did this in Homeport.
Lori: It sounds like you and Pram were too busy trying to burn the place down.
Phoebe: Because we didn't have goofy junk like this!
...: She frowns.
Lori: Sorry, I shouldn't tease.
Phoebe: No, no... I just see all these families with their kids, and...
Phoebe: I wonder if that could be us someday.
Context: Chapter 10, adoption choices for love interests. The one for Phoebe is missing only because I'd determined that I needed to cut these before it was written.
(Sunny)
Lori: I want to adopt.
Lori: The idea of providing a loving home to a child who needs it... I don't really want to have a baby of my own, but I would love to do that for someone.
Sunny: Oh...
Lori: Are you okay?
Sunny: Yeah, I... I really like that idea.
(Chand)
Lori: Sometimes, I think about adoption.
Lori: There are kids out there who need parents.
Chand: Yeah, you're making me think of all those poor kids out on the raft. But adoption?
Lori: I know it's a huge responsibility, and it comes with its own challenges...
Chand: Hey...
...: He sits up and kisses my cheek.
Chand: One of the most special things about you is the way you care, Lori.
Lori: ...
Chand: It just never even occurred to me. That could be really good, though.
(RJ)
Lori: I think I want to adopt someday.
Lori: It's always made the most sense to me. What do you think?
RJ: Well, I can't help thinking about how my mother's adoptive parents kept her in the dark. It makes me angry.
Lori: Oh, I'm sorry...
RJ: No, it's... I know I want to be a father, but I've never given adoption any thought. It's a good idea. I want to give someone else what my dad was able to give me...
Lori: ...
RJ: And there are a lot of children out there who need parents. It makes me think of Liberty.
Lori: Yeah...
(Todd)
Lori: I'd thought about it before, but what I saw out there just made me more sure. There are kids who need parents.
Todd: You're talking about the rafters?
Lori: Not adopting one of them, necessarily, but seeing them all like that definitely affected me.
...: He squeezes my shoulder gently.
Todd: I've never even thought about adoption, and... I'm almost sure my parents would need some time to warm up to the idea, but... that's the point of talking about these things early, right?
Lori: Right.
Context: When Lyra shows up at Solstice, originally Trix would show up with her.
...: And she isn't alone.
Trix: ...
Trix: Hi.
Lyra: Trix even joined me.
Trix: Yeah, I wanted to see you.
Lori: What do you think of it here, Trix? (Pragmatism Path)
Trix: The ground feels weird, and it's too tall...
...: She glances at the mountains before holding up a yarrow sprig with a spray of tiny bright white flowers.
Trix: But I like these.
...: She walks over and plops down next to Chand as the band begins to play.
Trix: What's that weird noise?
Chand: That's music.
Trix: Is something going to happen?
Eltanin: No, you just listen to it, Trix.
Trix: Okay...
...: She keeps glancing around as though she's trying to tell if she's doing it right, and I can't help smiling.
That's all for now. I hope you enjoy the bit of extra content!
Wishing you all the best,
~Yim