Disclaimer: I do NOT own any of these characters/places/stuff, Nintendo does. C:

The Moon Will Still Fall

Anju's Story

It had been days, no weeks, even a month since I had last seen him. I was never good at telling time... He disappeared about a month ago, and I miss him dearly. Oh, Kafei, why did you leave me? Did you truly not want to marry me? Do you not know how I cry?

I was too busy thinking when the mailman jogged in. It was a little after one in the afternoon. He came over to my desk and surprised me, pulling out a letter. "Wh-what?" I gasped. The letter read 'To Anju, from Kafei'. The mailman said "I have delivered this to you!" like it was the best thing in the world. For me, it was. "Where did you get this?!" I asked. "From the postbox." Came the reply. "I almost groaned. "From the postbox where?" "From the postbox somewhere!" This time, I did groan. "That's not what I mean! Please, tell me!" He simply said. "It's a secret." Exasperated, I said "I must know!" But he ignored my plea and jogged out the door.

Shakily, I opened the red envelope. Unfolding the neatly written letter inside, I read:

"Dear Anju,

I'm sorry for not being there for you. I know you must be worried sick for me. I hope you haven't cried."

I sniffed, tears already welling in my eyes. I smiled, knowing he was being sarcastic. He was always such a tease.

"I really miss you, but I can't say why I have been missing… yet. Something happened to me, and it is in both of our best interests if you don't see me until I sort this out. No, Anju, I'm not running from the law. It's too complicated to explain..."

Sometimes I could swear he read my mind.

"Do not fear, my love, I will return to you soon. I will come for you on the morning of our wedding day, and we shall proceed as we had always planned. Wait for me, please. I know the moon may frighten you, but no exaggerated rock will ever shatter our love. I will come for you, wait for me. We will no longer be fiancés, but a husband and wife.

I will love you for eternity,

Kafei"

I quickly wiped the tears from my eye and gently folded the letter back into the envelope. I slipped it into a drawer beneath the desk. He would come for me. I knew he wouldn't let me down! Oh Kafei was so wonderful… He was my knight in shining armor. Yes! I would wait for him. I would wait forever for my Kafei.

Then I gasped. Oh Goddesses! I had almost forgotten to make my wedding dress and mask! I will finish it before the wedding day, with my mother's help. Although... she might be reluctant..

After Kafei had been gone for a few weeks, rumors began to spread. They said he had left for Romani Ranch… For Cremia. Cremia was my best friend, ho worked and lived at that dairy farm. I had always known she had a thing for Kafei, but she wouldn't ever steal him from me. She knew that his heart belonged to me… right?? I hope so... He would.. never.. leave me like this. Would he?

Later that night I wrote a response to Kafei's letter. UI wrote it as nice as I could. Wanted him to know I would wait for him. My letter read:

"My dearest Kafei,

Of course I have not been crying, I'm not a limp noodle without you! Although, I truly miss you with every fiber of my being. People have been saying.. Things.. about you and… Cremia. But I know you wouldn't leave me for her, especially after reading your letter. I will wait for you; I will always wait for you. Do not worry about me. I will be waiting for you in my room. I'll leave the front door unlocked for you. Please, hurry. I can't wait for us to be wed!

With all the love I can muster,

Anju"

That was what I had written but... I was scared. I don't even know why. I just couldn't bring myself to go to the mailbox and just slip it in. If I could have, I would have asked someone to do it for me, but there was no one. I couldn't do it. I tried to all night until dawn, but I couldn't. I threw the letter away.

I hoped beyond hope that we would just think I was too overjoyed to write back. He always seemed to know what I was thinking, so perhaps he would already know I will wait for him.

Yes, he would know. He always knows when it comes to me. Oh Kafei… we'll be married soon.

The next day was rainy. For some odd reason, I was sad. I asked my mother to man the Inn for me, took my umbrella, and went for a walk. Despite the rain, the bombers still ran around playing. They loved to splash in puddles. I smiled, fondly remembering when Kafei and I were their age... He was a member of the bombers; his purple hair sticking out from beneath is bandana. I wanted to join the gang too, but he and the other boys said. "No girls allowed!" I still giggle at our childhood ignorance.

I found myself at the laundry pool, a back alley with a small waterway and a bridge. Across the bridge, there was a door I heard led to an apartment behind the Curiosity Shop. The man who worked there was Kafei's best friend, but he never said anything about my fiancé.

Sighing, I sat down at the bench that was there, hearing a frog croak. My face began to feel wet, which was impossible because I was holding an umbrella. Then I realized I had been crying. I put my face in my hand and wept. I missed Kafei so much, but I was too much of a coward to send him a letter. After a few hours, I walked back home, and went in my room.

I gazed at my wedding dress, displayed on a wooden mannequin. It was so beautiful. It was a pure, silvery white, with upturned folds on the skirt. I intended it to look like flower petals, and it came out just right. There were two holes in the long sleeves for my shoulders to be exposed. The sleeves were long, and ended in gloves that covered the thumb, but left holes for the fingers. A beautiful veil sat atop the mannequin's head, and a bouquet I had made of dried flowers and long, flowing vines stood on a stand in front of it.

There was only one thing missing, as I pulled out a piece of wood and gold and silver paints. I took out my carving knife and began to carve my heart out into the wood. I was making a mask.

When Kafei proposed to me, he asked that we wed on the day of the carnival of time. The carnival was also known as the carnival of masks, so we decided we would both carve intricate, beautiful masks to wear and exchange on our wedding day along with our rings. He would make the mask of the sun, and I the moon. They would be beautiful together, I was sure. He had probably finished his mask the very night he proposed, but I always put things off until the last minute. Soon, I was painting the mask. The paints were actually laced with real gold and silver, to make it look like the metals. The paints were very expensive. Soon I was finished, just before 9:30.

I held the mask out at arms length, admiring it. The face was silver, with eyes, nose, and a smile. A golden crescent framed the face. I couldn't wait to see his face at my work of art. I always loved to make things with my hands. I stood up and placed the mask on the face of the mannequin. All that was missing now was a handsome groom, and me in the place of the mannequin.

I sat in admiration of my work of art for about half an hour. Before I could go to bed, however, my mother came in. "Anju, I must speak with you." "Yes, mother?" I asked, still cheerful. She looked at the beautifully dressed mannequin, sighed and sat down on the bed opposite of me. "I need to talk to you about Kafei and... that moon."

My muscles tensed. "Yes.. Mother?" I asked, apprehensively. "Anju, we're leaving in the evening for the ranch. Cremia will take us in. She is your best friend, right?" I was completely shocked. I looked sadly down at my shoes. "I wonder if Kafei is really at Cremia's place.." I said sadly. Then my mother shouted "If Kafei is there, your mother will give him a smack." I looked up, a little shocked. "Besides, think about Cremia." She started "She needs strength from a partner and business support from Madame Aroma." I sighed a little. "If Kafei really has run off with Cremia, she'll get both. Please don't be sad. How happy could you possibly be... marrying a man who runs off when he's about to be married?" I stared at her. "It would make your life unhappy ...just like your mother's."

I looked down again. I knew she was right. But he had said.. "But in the letter it said he definitely would come back..." I argued. "Come back to what?!" She snapped. "Won't this town be crushed beneath the moon the morning after tomorrow? Forget about that letter. For now, just try to survive." Then she said softly," Everything else will follow..." I nodded slowly. "Yes... Mother, thank you."

The next day I spent sweeping the larger, lower class bunk room. My mother manned the Inn downstairs. So, I was giving up. My mother was right. Even if Kafei returned, the whole town would be destroyed. What's the point in dying while waiting for someone who probably isn't coming? I sighed. I soon found myself crying again, the tears streaming down my cheeks. I had let Kafei down, but he had let me down too. HE ran away from ME! Why did he run in the first place?! Thinking about it made me so mad.. He abandoned me, and made me go through days of suffering, then sends me a letter out of the blue. I can't believe him!

The day he went missing went by like any other, Kafei informed me that some of our friends were holding a party in honor of our engagement at the milk bar, and he wanted me to come. I gladly obliged, and agreed to meet him there at ten. When 10:00 pm came, I was standing outside the bar with our friends. Kafei was not one to be late, but we didn't worry and went inside. Half an hour passed, and everyone was uneasy. There was an awkward silence. After two hours had passed, I began to panic. The curiosity shop man escorted me home. Two days later, Kafei was reported missing.

I finally finished packing my suitcase when my mother stepped in. "ready to leave?" She asked, I nodded, and we abandoned our Inn, and I abandoned my hope for Kafei. When we arrived at Romani ranch, Cremia let us in. I noticed her little sister, Romani, looked dazed. "What happened to her? And I can't hear the mooing of the cows..." I inquired. Cremia looked away and said "Something… bad happened. I don't want to talk about it." Then she looked back at me. "And what about Kafei?" At the very mention of his name, I ran up the stairs and sat of the bed to cry.

My mother came up, rolling my old grandmother in her wheelchair. Cremia's dog followed them in. "Perhaps I was wrong..." I whispered. My mother sat down across from me, staring at me with concern. I continued, a little louder. "But he said so... The morning of the ceremony... He'd come meet me in my room..." I began to cry/ my mother came and sat down next to me, affectionately putting her arm around me, to comfort me. "And I promised him I would wait... But...already...it's too late, isn't it?" My mother looked at me. Her reply was. ".. Anju, it's better this way."

I didn't fall asleep that night. As the moon drew ever closer, the earth rumbled and shook. I snuck outside and gazed up at it. It was ugly. The moon had wide, red and orange eyes, a large nose, and an evil grimace with tombstone shaped teeth. In the distance, I suddenly heard the clock tower bell gong, and the sound of fireworks. If I squinted, I could even see the flashes of colorful lights.

I stood there, for what seemed like hours, until I saw a faint light over the horizon. The bell kept ringing ever since the stroke of midnight. The moon was dangerously close now. I began to cry, and dropped to my knees. I buried my face in my hands and wept. I was supposed to get married today. Why did everything bad have to happen now? It was all so confusing and horrible. I heard an explosion, and looked up quickly enough to see it.

The moon had struck.

I could see the clock tower crumble, fire and explosions consuming it and the entire town. The tears continued to stream down my face as I stared in horror.

For a brief moment, I thought I heard Kafei's voice.

His gentle and now weak voice said "At least Anju is safe…"

"Oh, Kafei!!" I yelled out loud, and then screamed in anguish at the top of my lungs. If I woke anyone up, there was no time for them to come to me.

A sudden wave of flame coursed from the town, and destroyed everything. In a brief second, horrible pain shot through my body, then my vision went red, then white, and then… nothing.

The moon fell on me, on clock town, on everyone.

The moon fell on Kafei.

The moon fell on my Wedding day.