Here's a oneshot I just came up with when I was looking up the meanings of random names online. All the definitions are pretty much true, you can even look them up if you want. But ya'll know I'd never lie to you, right? :D
And, I couldn't resist putting in the tiniest bit of GrayxClaire fluff, just because. It's nothing much though, so don't get too excited. Anyways, on with the story!
Read and review, pretty please!
Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon or any of it's characters. If I did, I would've given the people names that make sense.
Claire walked into the Inn, letting the cool air hit her. She had just finished harvesting over half of her field's corn crop, and she was tired and burning up hot, not to mention short-tempered.
"Come on, come on! What's it about?"
Claire heard Ann sulk from behind the counter at the bar. She was talking to Elli and Popuri, who were sitting on two stools right next to her, huddled around something. Claire walked over and took a seat next to them, sighing.
"Hey, Claire! Guess what" Popuri sang in her high-pitched voice, that was annoying the heck out of Claire. Claire rolled her eyes.
"What?" She asked, not bothering to guess. Popuri noticed this and pouted for a moment.
"You didn't even try to guess, Claire!" The pink-headed girl said, crossing her arms.
"Oh, it doesn't matter Popuri. Let's just tell them what we got!" Elli exclaimed, obviously excited about something. This got Claire slightly curious.
"What did you get?" Ann and Claire said simultaneously, though Claire seemed not nearly as interested as Ann, who was practically shaking with eagerness.
"We got a book from the Library!" Popuri exclaimed, jumping up and down. Claire and Ann gaped. Was this seriously why they were so excited?
"Woah woah woah, wait," Claire said, putting her hand up and stopping Popuri's bouncing, "That's it? THAT'S why you two are so damn wound up?!"
Elli nodded vigorously. "Mmhm! It's a book with the meaning of people's names! We-"
"STOP," Ann shouted suddenly, causing everyone to jump, "You better tell me my name's meaning RIGHT NOW, or," She paused and cracked her knuckles, "I'll be forced to look it up myself."
'Same old Ann, making hollow threats for no reason. No wonder she doesn't have a boyfriend! Imagine the abuse!' Claire thought, chuckling.
Elli and Popuri's eyes widened at Ann's remark, and they quickly ripped open the book and searched through the names under 'A'.
"Ann," Elli started, holding back a giggle, "means merciful or gracious."
Claire cracked up; laughing hysterically at the irony. This got Popuri and Elli laughing as well, leaving Ann confused.
"What? You guys think I'm not gracious?" She asked innocently. Claire stopped laughing for a moment and shook her head as she wiped a few tears from her eyes.
"N-no, Ann! We don't!" She yelled, and then started laughing again. Ann rolled her eyes, but soon joined in the frenzied laughter.
Cliff and Gray came downstairs a few moments later with confused –and in Gray's case, annoyed- expressions glued on their faces.
"What's so funny?" Cliff inquired, inspecting the bar for any indications that the girls were drinking. Popuri managed to compose herself enough to explain, and the laughter finally died down.
"So… Ann's name means… Merciful?" Gray asked, clearly shocked. Elli nodded.
"Yep. And," She paused as she skimmed through the book that was still open, sitting on the bar, "Cliff's name is a diminutive form of Clifford, which means 'from the cliff ford'." She finished and looked at Cliff.
"Wow. My name's dull." He said, unimpressed. Ann threw an arm around his shoulder, causing him to flush brightly.
"It's okay. Not everyone's name can mean something as deep as mine does." Cliff laughed nervously.
"Yeah… It's okay, Ann. I'm fine… What does your name mean, Elli?" Cliff said, changing the subject. He never liked to be the topic of a conversation.
Elli's eyes lit up as she searched through the thick book. "My name means something along the lines of 'The Lord is my God'. Hm…" She scratched her head, "I suppose my name isn't all that amazing, either."
"Well, it explains why you're such a goody-two-shoes, Elli." Popuri said, beaming. Elli glared at her.
"What about Gray?" Claire asked, trying to stop the two girls from brawling. Gray widened his eyes.
"Wh-what do you think my name, Gray, will mean?!" Gray said, trying his best at using sarcasm even though he was caught off guard.
"Jeez Gray, why so surprised? We were going to look up your name, anyways," Claire said. She smiled sweetly at him and added, "Besides, I like the name Gray. It's original."
Gray's face turned a vivid red, similar to that of a cherry. He lowered the brim of his hat down to hide it, but Claire had already seen and was giggling under her hand.
"Gray," Popuri said to get his attention, "You're name means 'color'."
Gray raised his eyebrows. "You sure it doesn't mean 'dull' or 'boring', Popuri?"
"You're not dull!" Claire shouted, apparently much louder than she had intended to, because she immediately blushed and turned towards the wall, embarrassed. Ann smirked.
"Oooo, Claire likes Gray!" She sang, causing Gray to blush as well. Claire snapped around, her hands covering her cheeks.
"W-well, what about you! You've had the hots for Cliff, since, like, ever!" She hollered, and Ann's eyes widened almost as much as Cliff's did.
"Y-you… D-do…?" Cliff asked, confused. Ann blushed ferociously. Elli grabbed the book to try and distract the four blushing young adults.
"Hey! Let's look up- um… Carter's name! Yeah, let's see what the pastor's name means, guys!" She said enthusiastically, and Ann and Claire immediately agreed.
'Whew, saved.' Ann, Elli, Popuri and Claire all thought.
'Wait… Does she actually like me?' Gray and Cliff thought, but both decided to leave the subject for another day.
"Carter's name means…" Elli paused as she scrolled through the pages, "Oh! How silly," She exclaimed, and Popuri read the caption.
"It means 'driver of a cart'! I actually didn't see that coming!" She giggled.
Just then, Rick came in with Karen. He was shocked to see his little sister sitting at the bar.
"P-Popuri! Have you been drinking?!" He asked, somewhat angry. Karen hit the back of his head.
"Of course she hasn't! The bar doesn't even OPEN for ten more minutes, and Doug wouldn't serve her anything alcoholic!" She explained.
"W-well, I knew that!" He stated, rubbing his head where Karen had hurt him.
"Oh! What does Rick mean?" Elli asked Popuri, who was still holding the book. She flipped towards the center and scanned the pages as Rick and Karen sat down.
"Rick means 'Idiot-chicken-lover-Kai-hater'," Popuri said matter-of-factly. Claire rolled her eyes and grabbed the book to read the real definition before the two siblings could start bickering.
"No, it means 'brave ruler'," Claire read, then everyone laughed. Karen cackled so hard she fell off her bench and landed on her head with a huge 'THUD'.
Rick snatched the book from his uproarious sister, frustrated with everyone. He was certain that this would become the newest joke around town, unless he found someone with a more 'hilarious' meaning.
"'Pure'?! Give me a break! Karen, your name means 'PURE'!" He exclaimed, and everyone quieted.
"Well, that's unexpected, huh?" She said, and Rick started laughing really loudly.
No one else did, though.
They just stared at him like he was crazy.
"Uh… Rick?" Claire asked, stopping his laughter by tapping him on the shoulder, "What's so funny?"
Rick flushed and looked around, humiliated. "I- Uh- …Bye. Popuri, we have to go."
"But-" Popuri's protest was cut off by one of Rick's shouts.
"NOW." He screamed and dragged Popuri out the door, despite her objections.
Everyone was quiet for a few minutes, until Cliff picked the book up off the ground where Rick had dropped it.
"What about Claire?" He asked. Claire snapped out of her thoughts at the mention of her name.
"Huh?" She asked. Cliff turned through the pages, and then stopped suddenly.
"Um, how do you spell your name, Claire?" He asked, scratching his neck, embarrassed. Gray rolled his eyes and snatched the book away from him.
"I'll do it." He said as he flipped a few pages, with all eyes on him expectantly. He studied the page, "Um… Claire means 'illustrious', 'bright', or… Um, 'Beautiful'," He blushed brightly for the second time that evening, "At least I think." He finished and gave the book back to Elli, who read the page.
"Oh!" She gasped, then giggled quietly under her hand. Ann gave her a quizzical look, as did Karen.
"What?" Ann whispered. Elli turned towards her.
"It doesn't say 'beautiful'! Gray made it up!" She whispered to Ann and Karen, who smirked. Gray and Claire were too busy explaining to Cliff what 'illustrious' meant, so none of them heard.
Ann opened her mouth to say something, but was interrupted when someone ran through the door. Everyone turned to see a frantic looking Mary run up to them.
"Has anyone seen my book-" She stopped as soon as she spotted the name dictionary sitting on Elli's lap, and let out a long frustrated sigh. "Elli, you didn't tell me you and Popuri were checking that out!" She shouted.
Elli smiled apologetically. "My bad. Sorry, Mary,"
Mary rolled her eyes. "You can't take a book from a library without checking it out first! IT'S LIKE STEALING!" She screamed, more annoyed than anyone had ever seen her before. She reached out to seize her precious book, but Claire was faster.
The blonde farmer opened it up and skimmed through the book extremely quickly, letting out a small smirk when she stopped.
"What?" Mary asked, irritated. She never did like Claire, ever since she 'stole her Gray away from her'. Claire looked up and chuckled.
"Mary means 'bitter'." She snickered, and everyone howled with laughter as Mary fumed out of the Inn with her beloved book.
Sorry, Mary lovers! I was in a mood to ridicule someone, and, I decided Mary was the best choice. Actually, it was when I looked up her name and saw it meant "bitter" that I decided to write this fic, just to make fun of her.
Review, please! :D