Author's Note: ...I decided to turn this into a tragic fic. It was supposed to be a romance at first with Kurt and Dia. But I changed it! :)

Disclaimer: I like Harvest Moon a lot! And I always play it in my spare time. However, Natsume owns it and therefore I DO NOT! :'(

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Goodbyes:

Rain poured down hard over Flowerbud Village at night. It set the moment very right. And...nothing better would be able to show the very sad and tragic mood upon the villagers.

But how did this happen anyway? Why is everybody all sad and gloomy suddenly? Aren't the people usually all happy and cheerful? These questions seem kind of tough to answer to most.

This little village has seen a lot over the years. Many, many things in fact. From the construction, finding a suitable mayor, attracting people to move in, and finally, the Harvest Goddess being unappreciated and turning to stone. Some could probably claim that the latter was because of the belief in the mystic being becoming shortened; only one person believed after that: an anti-social girl named Jamie.

Back to the current times, everybody sadly trudged from their homes to go to the hill. Where of, a funeral would be held. And nearly all of the town was going there. The funeral would be for a very bright, sweet, and hard-working young man who saved the goddess from her stone form just by moving in; Jack.

...Honestly, everybody in the village liked Jack. He was very nice and determined. When he moved in, he surprised everybody by helping them and doing anything in his power to save the goddess; which caused everybody to believe in her once again. Jack pretty much became friends with everybody. And the only people who weren't were: Jamie and Ray. But pretty much everybody else did like him. Jamie hated Jack at first and was disgusted by the fact that he tried to befriend her during their rivalry to save the goddess. But Jamie was shocked when Jack saved her; and she started actually liking him a tad. But she still claimed they were 'rivals'.

Ray didn't like Jack too much ever. Because Jack was a way better fisherman. And also because Jack and Maria went out for a little while; but they broke up after a season. Maria claimed that he forgot her birthday and didn't even react when she finally told him.

...But Jamie and Ray are still leaving for the hill. Neither would admit it, but they were sad. Well...Jamie wouldn't show she was sad either; she just appeared to be careless but she was crushed inside because just a season before he died, she realized she liked him more then just a friend. She never got to actually tell him that either.

Anyway, everybody is now heading there. All but one person...

Dia.

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Gina sighed as she walked up Dia's room of the sanatorium. She was sad as well because of Jack's tragic, sudden passing. After all, the young nurse was one of Jack's best girl friends. Her and Ellen...and Jack's best guy friend was Joe. The two both had a very strong bond and would pretty much always be together; they were like brothers. And well...Gina can just imagine how torn Joe must be. He may still have Kurt, his real brother, but it still probably wasn't the same.

"Dia? Are you in there?" Gina asked in her timid voice as she gently knocked on her patient's door.

"..."

Gina frowned more at not having a response.

"...Miss Dia? Please respond." Gina said/begged as she knocked again.

"...Come...come in..."

Gina blinked and then opened the door to enter Dia's special room. Since Dia would be staying there for a while due to her fragile health, they gave her a room of her own. Needless to say, Gina was kind of glad that her friend had her own room.

"...Um...hello..." Gina greeted timidly.

Dia looked up at the nurse from the book she was reading on the edge of her bed. She just stared at her with her dark eyes...dark eyes that Gina noticed had tear stains under them. It only took three seconds for the blue-haired girl to register in her mind just why she was crying.

"..Hey..." Dia muttered.

Gina then bit her lip as Dia stared at her; taking in her different appearance. Gina was wearing a long black dress with sleeves and some black flat shoes. Her hair was down, and her glasses were still on.

"...You...you're going to the funeral." Dia muttered.

Gina blinked and then nodded.

"Well, of course. I-I couldn't possibly not go. Especially since this is Jack-" Gina replied.

"Don't say that..." Dia said, cutting her off.

Gina gasped.

"Wh-what? What are you saying, Miss Dia?" Gina asked.

Dia looked away and closed her book. She then set it on the bed and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand.

"...Don't mention...him. He's gone now. Why even act like he's still alive, anyway? It's stupid..." Dia answered; tears threatening to run down from her eyes.

Gina's face fell.

Dia then sniffed and stared down at her hands which were clenched into fists in her lap.

"Dia..." Gina said as she bravely took a step forward and extended her hand. That caused Dia to look up at her, and she sighed. "...Dia, are you saying you aren't going to attend the funeral? Is that it? Because it isn't like you can't get around. After all, your health has improved a little more..." Gina finished as her face fell.

Dia blinked and then hung her head.

"I am not going. You can't make me. I-I couldn't possibly bear it..." Dia said.

Gina gasped when she saw Dia try and stand up. She then ran over to her and grabbed her shoulder.

"Dia! Your health-" Gina said.

Dia grunted, cutting off what Gina was about to say.

"I don't care about my darn health right now! Move aside, Gina!" Dia snapped.

Gina yelped and jumped back from the woman.

Dia then sighed and slowly and carefully walked over to the window; staring out at the thick rain. The goddess was definitely sad about the tragic loss as well: ran that thick hasn't been seen in years.

"...Dia..." Gina muttered as she sadly looked at the crippled woman who stared out the window.

Dia then clenched her hands into fists by her side as she stared. Gina noticed that and her face fell as she walked closer to her.

"Miss Dia?" Gina asked.

Dia took in a deep breath and turned around to face the blue-haired nurse with a single tear in her eye.

"He's...gone. Gone...why did have to be so soon?" Dia asked her.

Gina blinked.

"WHY?" Dia snapped as she got right up in her face making Gina gasp.

"I-I-I-I-I-Dia! I don't-" Gina stammered as she backed up.

Gina was cut off by Dia sniffing as her shoulders started shaking.

"...Save it. Don't waste your breath answering!" Dia yelled.

Gina yelped and dodged as Dia threw the same book she was reading at her in a sad/upset fashion.

"DIA!" Gina shouted in shock as she panted.

Dia sighed and her shoulders continued to shake. Tears were now going down her eyes uncontrollably.

"...Sorry. Pl-please just...leave, Gina. Go to the funeral without me..." Dia hiccuped as she looked away.

Gina gasped slightly and then crossed her arms. Tears were starting to well up in her own eyes too.

"...No. I am not leaving without you. You really do need to come with me. If you do not, you'll only regret it in the future..." Gina said.

Dia sobbed and then looked at her curiously.

"...What? What's the big deal? I-it's just a funeral, after all." Dia asked.

Gina clenched her hands into fists as tears now freely ran down her eyes.

"The only reason why you don't want to go, is because you loved Jack!" Gina boldly shouted.

Dia gasped and stared at her.

"...Gina..." Dia said, warily as she blushed.

Gina shook her head.

"I'm sorry, Miss Dia! This must be said. You loved Jack! You loved him ever since you first met him! Everyday you would wake up in this sheltered room and only go through the days of your illness because of him! It was all him! He even brought you gifts that you loved...everyday! And although you acted cold when receiving them, I couldn't help but see that happy smile cross your face when you'd take it to your room!" Gina continued shouting.

Dia just blushed even more as she continued. She shyly shifted her gaze to the floor as tears continued to run.

Gina paused shortly to breath and continued; just like the rain outside which refused to stop.

"...You knew you loved him! Admit it, you truly knew! Just like how I feel about Alex! And you really wanted to tell him that! I could just see it! You wanted nothing more then to just tell him all of that! About how you felt, about how you acted differently around him: more sweeter and more confident, and also about how you dreamed of someday getting married to him and raising a family together! But you...you didn't!" Gina shouted. She sighed and looked at Dia before continuing in her timid tone. "...And now you regret it all, Dia." Gina finished.

Dia looked at the nurse speechless. But she knew deep in her heart; Gina was right and all of that was exactly true...every word was. Dia then wiped her tears with the back of her hand and sadly walked back over to her bed to sit down. She suddenly felt weak.

Gina then sighed and walked over to the bed and sat down by the edge with her. She couldn't stand to see her friend so sad and regretful; it was awful to look at.

"...Gina, all you said was true. Word by word...it all was fit down to a 'T'." Dia muttered as she closed her eyes.

Gina continued to frown and briefly glanced over at the window; rain was still flowing from the sky and it really set the mood which was very depressing...but because of this tragic loss of a good citizen, there was a good right to be depressed.

"...I know you're sad, Dia. But...but it will all work out. And...and I believe that Jack would have wanted you to attend the funeral if he was still...alive. It probably would have made him happy." Gina said.

Dia stared at the floor as tears threatened to spill over again. She clutched the blanket on the bed tightly and her shoulders started to shake again.

"...I-I couldn't possibly attend. It isn't that I don't want to, Gina." Dia pointed out. Then she sighed and turned her head around to face Gina who was blinking. "...How could I possibly? After all...I couldn't face it...I'm so weak...and maybe I could have told him my feelings already but...now it's too late..." Dia finished as the tears now freely ran.

Gina frowned and then gazed at the floor. She knew it was too late. Dia was right about that. But how could Dia not accept things and go? Gina knew better; she knows Dia.

"Dia...I know it's too late. But...going to the funeral would be best. That's what I believe. I know you really loved him and now you feel awful." Gina finally said.

Dia sniffed and wiped the tears from her eyes with her left hand. She then avoided eye contact with her friend. She didn't even notice the nurse stand up and walk over in front of her.

"...Dia. Change into one of my dresses. We don't want to be late for the funeral."

Dia gasped and looked up at Gina's face; she was smiling in a comforting way and had her hand on her shoulder.

Dia just stared for several seconds. And then closed her eyes and stood up and brushed past the other girl. Gina took all of this as a hint that she accepts.

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As the rain continued to soak the entire village, Gina and Dia trudged through it and to the hill. They were both getting soaked with rain, but they didn't care at all. And Dia was wearing a long black dress that was low-necked and had long sleeves and had on black, flat shoes. She also had her hair in a ponytail and had a moondrop flower in her hair since it was Spring; moondrop flowers were Jack's favorite thing to plant and would always stop by and give them to various people including her.

Gina and Dia finally made it to the hill that overlooked the outside of the small village. And almost all of the townspeople were there and the mayor was standing in front of a coffin with a very sad look on his face.

"...Well...here we are." Gina muttered.

Dia's face fell the minute her eyes laid on the coffin. That coffin held a very wonderful person and a good example of a fine citizen. Somebody who worked completely hard to help people and start a ranch with blood, sweat, and tears poured into it. And not only that, but it also held the dearest person in the entire village to the sickly young woman. In a nutshell: it held Jack. And it made tears begin to prick in her dark eyes.

Gina sighed as she and Dia stopped walking and stood in between Liz and Kurt. Liz was freely crying and holding back nothing. And Kurt was able to control his tears back. But Dia saw the emotion cross over his face.

Gina looked ahead and saw Alex, Joe, Katie, Jamie, Maria, and Ray. Alex was just...staring blankly at the coffin itself. But she sensed the way he felt useless. Joe was crying and so was Katie. They both were hugging and sobbing seemingly not caring who saw how dramatic they were. But then again, it was a perfect moment to be dramatic. Jamie looked just plain hurt. She looked as if someone came and broke her heart into two then ran over it with a wheelbarrow. Gina had never seen the purple-haired rancher look so emotional...ever. And Maria was sobbing into Ray's shirt as he stared at the sky with his arms crossed.

Mayor Theodore sighed as he looked around at all the sad villagers. The ran just seemingly picked up.

"...Looks like everybody is here. Let's begin then..." He said sadly.

Dia tried to fight back her tears

Just as Mayor Theodore opened his mouth to begin, Nina suddenly cried out from among the audience, which cut him off.

"WAAH! WHHHHHHY? JACK! HE WAS SO YOUNG AND SWEET! WE CAN'T POSSIBLY GO ON NOW! HARVEST GODDESS, TAKE US TO THE PLACE WHERE YOU TOOK HIM! LET US DWELL WITH THE SWEET ANGEL FOR ALL ETERNITY!"

Everybody all set their eyes on the young pink-haired girl, who was clinging to Basil's arm and crying her eyes out. She was hiccuping and her shoulders were shaking awful fast. Basil looked depressed and just watched his girlfriend of three seasons weep.

"...Okay, let's begin now." The mayor said as he rubbed the back of his neck.

Gina and Dia looked at each other as tears freely ran down their eyes.

"We are gathered here at this spot, to say our final goodbyes to a very brilliant young man who dramatically changed our lives..."

Jamie furrowed her eyebrows together and crossed her arms as she stared at the coffin. Tears were freely running down her eyes and Gina noticed. She couldn't help but feel for the other girl.

As Dia looked around more, she saw Ellen crying and hugging Carl who was patting her back. She also saw Ronald and Dan crying along with Eve and Lyla.

"...He changed our lives dramatically. And now he's gone. I'm sure each of you have had great memories of him during his time. And although we don't know the cause of his tragic death, we do know that the Harvest Goddess will always watch over him in the afterlife."

Meanwhile, Jamie heard the those words and she clenched her hands into fists; probably thinking about all the memories of her rivalry with Jack.

"...Jack was a great young man. And a good example to all of us. Maybe our lives will be different from now on, but if we all work hard then we can build back our lives and all..."

Dia wiped her eyes

Eve then stopped her crying long enough to speak up.

"H-h-h-h-h-who w-w-w-will ge-get the r-r-ranch?" Eve asked as she wiped her eyes.

Mayor Theodore sighed.

"Well, I'm not sure. But if I can attract more-" Mayor Theodore replied but a female voice cut him off.

"...I will."

All eyes fell on Ellen who had a determined look on her face with her hands clenched into fists.

Gina's face fell.

"...It's settled then, it seems." Maria commented as she wiped a tear from her eye.

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After the funeral was over, the rain continued to soak the village and showed no signs of stopping. It was then safe to assume that the Harvest Goddess was even crying herself; taking it out in rain.

Everybody had already left the area and sadly trudged back to their homes to go to bed. But Gina and Dia still remained. They were both standing in front of the grave that held Jack.

"...Please rest in peace, Jack. You truly deserve that..." Gina said in almost a whisper as she took off her glasses and wiped her eyes.

The blue-haired nurse then sniffed and started walking away from the grave. However, Dia was still standing there and her shoulders shook as tears freely ran and dripped off to the dirt and through it.

"...Dia?" Gina asked as she turned around.

Dia continued to stare. Several different flashbacks had flashed through, but only one stood out the most:

Flashback:

Dia sighed as she paced her room of the sanatorium. She was bored to death, and Gina told her that since it was raining it would be too risky for to take a short walk with her fragile health. The dark-eyed girl truly hated being so sickly all the time; why couldn't she be healthy? Why couldn't she get the pleasure of taking long strolls and not being cooped up in a sanatorium pretty much waiting to die?

"Hi, Dia! I came to visit!"

Dia gasped and sharply turned around to see Jack standing there in the doorway. He was soaking wet from being out in the rain but he didn't seem to mind at all; he was smiling. And Dia loved his smile...it was so full of life.

"...Jack? What do you want?" Dia asked as she straightened her dress.

Jack walked closer to her.

"Well, Gina told me that you're all depressed about not getting to take a stroll. I figured that I could stop by and hang out with you. We could talk or something." Jack replied.

Dia's eyes widened and she blushed.

"Me? But...what about your ranch work?" Dia asked.

Jack rubbed the back his neck.

"There's not much to do today. And it's raining anyway. Nothing would be better then visiting a friend!" Jack replied.

Dia blushed even more as those words sunk in.

"But...but I'm not really worth talking to. I never have much to say, and I'm not exciting at all. I'll just depress you..." Dia said as her face fell.

Jack's face fell too.

"Dia, you're wrong. You are a good person to talk to. And besides..." Jack said. He paused and pulled a moondrop flower out of his rucksack. "...You are just like these flowers." Jack finished.

Dia blinked as Jack handed her the flower.

"...Take it." Jack insisted as he smiled.

Dia's eyes widened and her face was now on fire as she grabbed the flower.

"Ummmm...th-thank y-you...J-J-Jack..." Dia responded with a small smile on her lips.

And then the two talked for the rest of the day. Dia secretly loved it and wished it could last forever.

End Flashback.

Dia's face fell and she took the flower from her hair. Gina saw that and raised an eyebrow. Then Dia took the flower and planted it within the fresh dirt that covered the grave. Not even the cold rain or the winds harmed it.

Gina smiled very slightly when she saw that.

"...Goodbye, Jack." Dia whispered as she stood up and stared at the grave.

Then the wind suddenly whipped sharply in Dia's face; she took it as some kind of sign. And then she sniffed as she turned around started walking up to Gina.

As the two walked silently back to the clinic, they passed by Jack's ranch. Dia stared at it for several seconds.

"...I'm going in there." Dia said as she started walking off.

Gina blinked and extended her arm.

"Wait! Dia! It's wrong to go into a dead person's home!" Gina shouted through the ran and gusty wind.

Dia ignored that and walked up to the door and let herself in. Gina sighed and ran after her.

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Dia glanced around the empty and deserted house. It had a sad feeling within it. And it was easy to understand why. Gina meanwhile, was petting his pet dog, Racer. And as she did, she felt sad that he really didn't have an owner anymore.

"...Dia, are you done? We really shouldn't be in here at all." Gina asked as she held Racer in her arms.

Dia shook her head and walked over to Jack's bed where there was some blood stains on the floor and the covers were tousled. Her eyes gazed over to the nightstand and fell upon a suspicious piece of paper sticking out of his diary. Dia frowned as she took the paper out and read it.

The piece of paper was slightly torn and had blood stains on the edges. The handwriting was Jack's but a looked like it was written quickly and messy in a hurry; she read it anyway.

Gina rose an eyebrow when she saw Dia's eyes widened. She then put down Racer and walked over to her and read the note over her shoulder silently:

Dear Anybody Who Finds This Note,

First of all, you should know this: I'm dying. Yes. I can't continue on much longer. As we speak I'm coughing up some blood. I don't know the cause.

I'm going to go out to the cliffs of this village and die there by falling. That was the place my life changed dramatically and it will end there too. Don't think this was suicide. It wasn't. I just know that I will die anyway.

I really hope that everyone continues their lives normally. Please don't dwell on the past...I wouldn't want you to.

As for my ranch, I trust that to Ellen. Ellen if you're reading this, then please take over the ranch for me. And if you don't want too, then Jamie can. I also trust her too. She isn't a bad person. And I want her to take Racer and adopt him, if not her then Basil.

And also, I want Joe to know something. Joe, if you're reading this, then please take my possessions if you want. And there's another thing you should know, I talked to Katie last week and asked her what she thought about you. She said that she really likes you. So...since you've liked her all this time, you can get her now. I really do hope it works out for you both. Because...it's too late for something like that to happen for me.

Before...before I leave for the cliff, I have a few last words to be written. Dia, if you're reading this, then...I love you. Okay? I do and always have for a long time. And well...I feel real stupid for not telling you that. I had planned on proposing to you. For some time but...that's impossible now. I just really wanted you to know that.

Well, this is it. Like I said, don't dwell on the past. The Harvest Goddess will always look after me and all of you. After all; I have done my job.

….Goodbye, everybody. My ending notes are, I really wish that it didn't have to be this way.

-Jack.

There were more words past that. But they were covered in blood.

Both Gina and Dia were wide eyed. And Dia's face was on fire.

When thee two finally recovered from surprise, they sadly trudged out of the house and threw the note outside in the rain as it raged on.

But as Dia walked away with Gina back to the sanatorium, the words of the letter echoed in her mind. And a single sentence responded to that as she closed her eyes while tears pricked in them.

'Goodbye, Jack. I will not dwell on the past any longer for you.'

Meanwhile, the forgotten note was rained on for the rest of the night. The blood stains washed off to, revealing more words that would never be seen:

….Actually. This was suicide. You see, I've done my job in this village. There's really nothing left for me at all. And I'm of no use to the townspeople. In my final few seconds as I fall from that cliff awaiting my fate, I will thank the goddess for giving me a great life, and many wonderful friends.

…...Thank you for everything.

…...

The End.

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Well...that's it. How is it? I don't write a lot of sad stories so...I figured I'd take a shot with one.

I loosely based this entire fic on a song I heard recently on Youtube. I randomly went there to see if I could see the video for the wedding with Alex, and found it. Weird huh? :\

Read and review!