You Found Me
Fall 19
Mineral Town – The Duke's Castle
7:22PM
It was always like this. Father would throw a luxurious ball—the ladies he had chosen for me lined up; waiting for me to take one of their waiting hands. He wanted me to get married and be the next Duke. And really, it isn't as if I cared about any of that. For nights like these, I've formulated a routine. I would go, then knowing me, I'd decide it was boring and it wasn't worth my time. I'd leave, retire to my quarters or ride out into town, at least until the party is over at the castle. My father didn't notice anything because he is too focused on getting me wed than my person. I stared at the sea of faces in the ballroom. Mineral Town was a sad place; full of wenches and sluts who weren't worth a second look. Occasionally though, there would be this pretty face who would come, with the right morals and all, but boring beyond my mind's comprehension. Women, especially the pretty ones, should have the brain to back them up. This town needs women who aren't merely ornaments; women who were capable of thinking for themselves—that was what this place needed. What I wanted was a woman who had something else on her mind except the latest embroidery pattern. In other words, someone with the charm, intelligence, and wit—but that was a gamble of long odds.
After getting out of my reverie, I doubled back and made my escape using the doors which lead to the east wing of the castle. My younger brother, Skye, was enjoying the company of a sultry wench and was making a bee-line for his chambers. I rolled my eyes. That had to be the seventh one in two weeks. I started to make my way to the balcony. The castle was built on the peak of Mother's Hill, so it had a decent view of the town. As I opened the doors to one of the only peaceful places left inside the castle, I was surprised to see a girl there—she was wearing what seemed to be like a sapphire blue tailcoat with white ruffles at the end of the cuffs, and her slender legs were encased in a white hose, she didn't put her long, strawberry blond hair up. More interesting, was the rapier in her left hand side.
She turned around and her eyes met mine. She had such feminine features—small nose, blue eyes, naturally pink lips… Her blond hair was parted from the left side, a portion of her hair which was shorter than the rest slightly covered her right eye. Her facial expression softened, and her body relaxed. She gave me a tiny smile, and I approached. I knelt in front of her, took her hand and gently kissed it.
"To whom do I owe the pleasure of your company tonight, milady?"
She looked at me and chuckled. "You owe it to my father, Lord Marius von Bielefelt."
Oh, so she was from the Von Bielefelt house! No wonder. Even the women from that house were trained in the art of war, as their manor was located near the border, making them susceptible to enemy attack. Lord Marius must be commended for having such a lovely daughter… though I'm sure this girl is much more skilled than I am with the sword, as much as I'd hate to admit.
She pulled back her hand as I began to stand up. It was a chilly, autumn night, I was surprised that she wasn't getting a chill from all this.
"I believe I don't know your name?" I said, trying to imitate my brother's smooth talking voice; but desperately failing.
"Claire von Bielefelt, eldest daughter of the Von Bielefelt house." She said, but I didn't know what to make of her voice. She was either bored, or preoccupied with something else, but it was full of authority.
"And you? What is your name?" she said, in the same deadpan voice.
"Gray Michael Vincent von Voltaire III, second son of Duke Von Voltaire." I said, trying to mask my surprise. Not only was this the first time that a woman didn't throw herself down at my feet, showering me with praise and offering her company, this was also the first time a woman didn't recognize me! I was having fun. And I was enjoying every second of this. It was new. Exciting. It was… different. It was like nothing I've ever been though before, which, is in itself sort of true because really, no woman in this land--or so I thought, didn't know who I was!
She seemed surprised when I said my name, and immediately, she knelt down.
"I'm sorry for not recognizing you, milord." She said, and lifted her head a bit. "I'm terribly sorry for my insolence."
Wait. It wasn't right for a girl to kneel; even if they were in front of a Lord. She wasn't an ordinary girl… could she have been knighted already? If she had… wait, they don't knight women, do they…? Or are my court laws already out of date? Bah. Whichever came first.
"Rise," I said. "It isn't right for you to do that, milady." I offered her my hand, and helped her up. Her cheeks were tainted pink because of her embarrassment. She smiled gently, and then looked away.
---
I actually got the idea of this from DS Cute's setting. It's set 100 years into the future of More Friends of Mineral Town, but still, all the characters remained the same. Just so you know, Claire's last name is pronounced Bee-lah-felt. So… hallo. It's Le Petite Knight, here with another story. Hopefully, this one is good. I just finished about seven books, and I've got the morale to write (wow, that's raaaaare.) Oh yeah. I know that I've been lazy in some parts here and there, and that this is probably one of the most half-assed fics ever, so I hope you forgive me. ;__;
No, I do not own Harvest Moon. If I did, Gray/Claire would be a cannon. ;D
Reviews are appreciated. Concrit even more so. I don't have a beta-reader, so please excuse any grammar surges or any imperfection in general.
-- LPK.