"I made it through the wilderness," she breathed heavily. The pine needles strewn throughout her hair fell down her shoulders as she exhaled.
My mates looked up from their card game and I quit blocking the doorway, unsure of what she wanted. The three of us guys gave each other curious looks as she dragged her feet inside, panting.
A female in this area was rare; the residents of Flower Bud Village jokingly referred to the nearby mountainous area as Men's Country. Eve visited her grandfather on occasion up in the mountains, and a couple of my men knew the times she liked to visit the hot springs. The saucy young woman wasn't shy about sharing the open air bath with us guys who lived in the area, and due to her grandfather's influence (and rifle), she knew that she had nothing to fear; the people of Flower Bud and the surrounding area were all friendly and harmless. Even if we wanted to sneak a peek, we were all too afraid to. She came over for a drink with us guys once in a blue moon; she was a good woman, and whoever she ended up deciding to marry would be one lucky dog.
This girl had a much different air about her. The high neckline of her drab colored dress accompanied by her religious pendant almost gave off the vibe of a nun or priestess in training. I had a feeling this kind of girl didn't hang out with our rowdy Eve. My companions seemed to have the same idea as they removed their bottles of beer from the table as she trudged through the room, sinking down in one of the chairs.
I honestly couldn't tell if she was rude or naïve. She had simply walked into our house and made herself at home with no explanation for her actions.
"Somehow…" She rolled up the long sleeves of her dress and fanned her face with her hand. "I-I made it through…" The fact that she had reached some sort of destination seemed to be her top priority at the moment.
She spoke to us with such familiarity, as if we ought to know each other. Resting her chin on the tabletop, she looked a bit undignified, and although she looked the type to care, she didn't right now. One of my men quickly poured her a glass of water and set it in front of her. Both of my workers looked at me, silently awaiting orders. I highly doubted this young woman had come to our place to share a bottle of whiskey or ask if we wanted to join her in the hot springs. She looked like the type that would faint at the very idea.
"Thank you… f-for taking me in…" She was pale as she took a sip of the water politely. "I hate to intrude like this, and I don't mean to be rude, but may I use your washroom to freshen up?"
My men looked at each other and a raucous laughter filled the room. Her posture became erect as she looked uncomfortably at the carpenters and then at me.
I had half a mind to knock my workers' heads together. In a way, I felt a bit sorry for her, even if she had shown up at our place with no warning. We carpenters may have a reputation for being gruff, but we're not heartless. "We only have an outhouse out back." I handed her a bucket and clean but stained rag. "Please use the water from the pond to freshen yourself up."
Her cheeks flushed at the men's laughter, and she stiffly stood up to retrieve the bucket from me, her small hands trembling as they clenched around the rope handle. "Thank you very much, sir. I shall be right back."
With that, she headed back outside, the laughter in the house growing louder as the beers came out of their hiding places.
"I was waiting for her to ask where the outdoor spa was!"
"A real bourgeois, that one!"
"Hey!" My voice rose to a growl and they fell silent. "You are not to disrespect our guest!" The air was still littered with muted snickers as they continued on their drinks. I tried to ignore them as best as I could, pacing about the wooden floor. "I'm assuming she's from the village. I wonder what she's doing here?"
"Maybe she belongs to the church. I saw the emblem on her neck. Perhaps a runaway nun? Or should I say a nunaway?"
His companion turned toward him. "I guess you could say she was nun too happy!"
"Maybe she picked up a bad habit and they were having nun of it!"
I stifled a snort; while they could be a hoot on the job, sometimes it was a bit hard to keep them serious. After all, a mysterious girl had shown up at our place. Was someone after her? Was she in danger? They burst into laughter again and I pounded the table with my fists, snapping them out of their drunken chortling. If I wasn't mistaken, this was the mayor's daughter. She did look a lot like the mayor's wife, anyway.
"Which one of us is taking her home?" I asked, waiting for a volunteer.
Neither of them replied, staring down into their drinks. While it was true that I had no real authority over them when they weren't on the clock, sometimes I wished they would be a bit more willing to help. The door creaked back open, revealing the young woman. Her eyes were rimmed in red as she placed the empty bucket and squeezed out rag by the entryway.
"Thank you very much for your hospitality," she murmured, looking at the stained rag with a bit of repulsion. She forced a small smile on her face. "If you don't mind, may I stay here for a while?"
"Sure, but only if you answer a few questions," I replied quickly.
She took a seat back in front of her glass of water and nodded awkwardly. It was apparent to see that she didn't spend a lot of time up here in the mountains, and I had no doubt she had a touch of altitude sickness.
I asked the most obvious question first. "Who are you and what are you doing all the way out here?"
She opened her mouth and closed it again silently, struggling for the right words. Her face screwed up in a frown and her eyebrows furrowed; she had the look of a small child that was on the verge of tears. She remained like that for a moment and closed her eyes, swallowing deeply. A few seconds later, she greeted the world with calm brown eyes and an expressionless mouth. "My name is Maria… I-I needed some time away from mother and father." She barley spoke above a whisper as she fussed with the wrinkles on her skirt.
"So, you're feeling smothered by your mummy and daddy?" My companion's voice was mocking, his words syrupy sweet. He took a deep drink of ale and leaned back in his chair, a smirk showing through his grisly brown beard. "Let us know when you have a real problem, eh, poppet?"
I was sorely tempted to throw the empty bucket at his head. I shook my head, dismissing his words with the wave of a hand. "Ah, don't listen to him. He's a grumpy drunk – lost his parents in an earthquake when he was young." I looked into her troubled eyes. "Maria… you're the mayor's daughter, aren't you?"
She frowned at my friend for a moment, a sympathetic look spreading across her face. Her eyes widened as she nodded slowly, gulping as she folded her hands tightly in her lap. "Y-you're not going to tell them I'm here, are you?"
She had such a pleading look in her eyes that I was tempted to do whatever she said. I broke eye contact with her and let out a sigh. "That remains to be seen," I replied, sitting down at the last empty seat at the table. "You've got to give us a little more information. Why did you leave home?"
My men fell silent, and one of them hurried to the ice box to retrieve some meat and cheese, along with something else. A bottle of stout was slid toward her and she almost dropped it in surprise. A couple of snickers escaped their lips. "Bet you've never drank a drop in your life. Still want me to open that for you, poppet, or would you prefer milk?"
She straightened her posture and looked at him, her russet eyes challenging him. "This is fine, thank you."
He popped the top off of the bottle, the metal cap falling into the floor with a clatter. "Hear that, the little lady's going to drink!"
"Don't feel pressured; ignore those nincompoops," I murmured. I didn't know how long she had been out there, but I didn't particularly want a drunk girl on my hands. "Just be sure to eat something as well. If you don't care for it, there are people in this room who won't mind finishing it," I added quickly.
She gave me a sharp look, raising one eyebrow as she took a sip from the drink, her pinky slightly extended. She paused for a moment, contemplating the taste before taking another. It was impossible for the alcohol to hit her so quickly, but the fact that she was doing something new seemed to have unleashed a wealth of courage in her. "There are so many things I still want to do with my life, but my parents are pressuring me to get married. There's a nice boy in town who has been courting me for a few months, but I'm not really sure if he's the one or even if I feel ready to take the next step."
I held my breath, silently praying for my mates to keep quiet and respectful. Surprisingly enough, they sipped on their drinks and began cutting the food into pieces for sharing, but they gave her dubious stares.
"Oh, I know it must sound silly to you, but I really worry that there's nothing left for me after I wed." She took a hearty drink from her bottle and choked a bit. She was offered a small piece of cheese and meat and she washed it down with a bit of water, staring contemplatively at the surface of our scuffed oaken table. "I don't want to simply be confined to a different prison, after all."
"Another prison? What is it you want to do?" I asked, grabbing a bit of cheese for myself.
"I do a lot of reading. I think it would be wonderful if there was a library in town. I would run it myself." Her eyes lit up like a couple of jewels as she spoke. She suddenly let out a deep sigh, a frown returning to her face. Her eyes moved back to the surface of the table. "No one's expressed much of an interest for it, but I'm sure if the option was available to them," she twisted her hands in discomfort, "… maybe they'd change their minds."
She was cut off by a snicker. "You really think a bunch of hicks like us are going to be interested in reading, little lady?"
To be fair, he did have a point; none of us read much more than the newspaper on a regular basis. We were far too busy to be bothered with sitting down and cracking a book open. At the end a hard workday, we were exhausted and we preferred to wind down with a cold brew and game of cards – perhaps some fishing on a day off.
Her cheeks flashed pink and she gripped her small hands into fists. "Well, maybe… if you gave it a chance…"
"It's not about swaying one or two people, poppet. It's the culture here. No one is going to waste their time in a library! That's just not what people around here do!"
Maria gave him a dirty look and stood up, stamping her heel on the ground with a sharp click. "I know this is a good idea! You might not see it yet, but it is for the good of the future of the town!" She lost her temper as she gripped the edge of the table, her knuckles turning white as she yelled over their laughter.
"Well, isn't it just peachy that people like us are going to fund your silly little pipe dream with taxes whether we want to or not?" My companion spit out the sardonic words at her and she flinched at his inflections. "Doesn't sound like much of a prison if the jail keeper is willing to buy you whatever you want."
"Th-that's not what I meant!" she sputtered, tears threatening to overflow. "I will raise the money myself! I don't need my father's influence to make a difference in my community! I didn't ask to be born into this position!" She blinked and a couple of large tears splattered onto the surface of the table. "No one takes me seriously. They all think I'm a spoiled brat and I get whatever I want. They have no idea what my life is like! The expectations, the formalities… It's so incredibly lonely!" Maria's voice cracked as she sat back down, her shoulders shuddering. "You don't understand the freedom you have!"
My mind hunted for the right words to say, but it kept drawing a blank. To be honest, I didn't know how she felt. We laborers always stuck together and I could never truly say I felt lonely. Heck, sometimes I preferred to have a little more privacy.
"I suppose I don't," I said quietly, folding my hands in my lap and looking down at them. My men remained silent. "But it might help to try to talk to your father about it, even if it does hurt his feelings."
She bit back a small gasp and nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes with her hands. My mate handed her a handkerchief and she accepted it gratefully, dabbing at her tears delicately.
There was a sharp rapping at the door and Maria jumped a bit in her seat. "Oh, no. I'm sure it's Father…"
"Just talk to him and things will work out," I reassured her.
That didn't stop her from ducking behind the bunk bed when I got up to answer the door. It was the local farmer. I had to admit I was a bit surprised to see anyone other than the mayor. He removed his hat and gave a polite bow. I gave him a bow in response; he was a good guy and all of us carpenters liked him alright.
"I'm looking for a girl in the village who is missing."
Knowing she hadn't been in a hurry to be found, I feebly shook my head. "Uh… I know nothing about a girl," I lied. My companions shrugged their shoulders and shook their heads; I had no right to complain about their lack of acting ability, as I wasn't very good at it myself.
The young woman peeking out from behind the bed frame didn't help things. The farmer walked over to her and she screwed up her face like she was about to cry again. She was quiet for a moment as she put back on her calm mask. "I'm sorry… I'll come home a-and talk things over with father… Thank you for coming."
He looked at her curiously as I'm sure he saw her defenses break for a moment; it was likely he was unaware of the nature of her disagreements with her father. He silently put an arm around her shoulders and she shyly leaned in, giving him a peck on the cheek. The worry on his face eased a bit as they headed for the door, both nodding in gratitude as they left.
My mates quickly got back to their card game, cracking open new bottles of ale as if nothing had happened. I sat thoughtfully in my chair, looking out the window at the world I thought I knew so much about, suddenly feeling ashamed at living so ignorantly. The mayor, the priest, the midwife… Eve… I had always assumed that they had no conflict in their lives. I realized how foolish I had been in assuming that.
I guess everyone's got their own set of problems. Sure, they're not the same ones that I have, but they exist. We had laughed at Maria trapped in her own little world, but we hadn't realized that we were living in one of our own.
I guess we're not so different at the end of the day.
0o0o0o0
The End! Thank you so much for reading!
Author's Note: Harvest Moon for the SNES was my first HM game. I based this off of the heart event for Maria, and I thought it would be fun to write it from the point of view of the nameless carpenters. I found it hard not to allude to her other appearance in Magical Melody, and after watching an event with her in the GBC version, I felt the idea of her parents pressuring her to marry didn't seem too unrealistic.
I hoped you enjoyed! Please feel free to let me know what you think!