Disclaimer: All your Harvest Moon are belong to Marvelous Interactive and Natsume.

"Preparations for the seedling are now complete. All you have to is send your child on her journey…"

Her Fond Farwell

Some time ago, at a lake by Regulus Farm, two boys used to go fishing together each and every day after school. As they aged, one grew to love his work at the Garmon Mines by his mother's side, while the other became the guru of their shared craft to two girls he later befriended. Both girls felt affection towards him, but he could only fully reciprocate one. Yet his compassion was boundless, and he found more than enough room in his heart to value her as someone precious. But now the two have grown; the boy now a young man with love at his grasp, and the girl now an independent young woman with the greatest friends she could hope for. With the girl anointed as one chosen to save a faraway land, she spends the noon of her last day with the very young man who still keeps her close…

1st Farewell: Tale of a Melody

It was a normal summer day at Castanet as the sun radiated with relieving dry heat. At Regulus Farm Lake, a young lady with short, green hair was assuming her daily task of catching fish for food and profit at with a gold rod fashioned by her father. On this warm day, she chose to wear a short-sleeved denim jacket with matching skirt, a clean white blouse, and red and white sneakers.

For much of the afternoon, she had been at this blissfully by her lone self, until another avid fisher decided to pay a visit.

"Saria!" a voice called out, "I see you weren't up to changing up your daily routine today. Have you been at it since the morning again?"

The green-haired girl turned her head to see an squinty-eyed older guy with short brown hair in a blue wool vest and jeans.

"Oh, Matt!" the young girl greeted back, "Oh, no! I just got back from Garmon Mines' Mountaintop. I've had, maybe, two hours to get at this?"

"With all that fish caught?" the young marveled, "I'd hardly believe it! Looks like my fishing lessons have really sunk in."

"I did have some good teachers, after all. You and Angie are really good at this!" Angie replied in earnest.

"Thanks. But I think Angie's already shown initiative to surpass me. She may have found her calling in fashion, but my honey's really been into this since I met her. Meanwhile, my apprenticeship under Captain Pascal has actually been keeping me away from the craft these days. You'd be surprised how many days I've spent by the water without fishing I've gone while working with that man." Matt sighed.

Saria chuckled. "It's like Angie's started a "who can be best everything first" contest with her cousin, Vivian. But Vivian's the smart one. I don't know how Angie's going to win this one."

"But Angie's the dexterous one… er, I mean she's good with her hands and stuff, so that's her edge," Matt debated, "Anyway, you just told me you came from Garmon Mines a few hours ago. Does that mean you finally joined Marich and your mom for a mining campaign?"

The green-haired fisher started looking uneasy.

"N-no. I went with my dad. Actually, it wasn't even for mining. Papa read some magic runes by the entrance and it magically took us to the top where there was a hot spring. It was… for something important. I finally grew the goddess seedling this morning, you see," She explained.

"Oh" Matt simply uttered.

"So I guess this means I'm finally leaving for Waffle Island Tomorrow. I really would have liked it if I could leave by boat and finally see you in action by the helm, but Finn, Papa's sprite pal, made this really big rainbow across the ocean after the goddess seedling grew. I think that's my bridge to the island, so-"

"It's okay. Besides, it'll be a good excuse to go back to Goddess Spring like we always used to do as little kids. Fun times." Matt smiled.

"Yeah. I remembered Big Brother and the rest of us would play "adventure time" and I'd be the guardian of the forest, just like the elf I was named after from Papa's stories. And Roy would always play the part of the legendary hero of time." Saria reminisced.

"That was back when he had a crush on you, wasn't it? Sounded pretty convenient, if you ask me." Matt teased.

Suddenly, Saria's face turned pink.

"But Vivian was always Princess Zelda! S-shouldn't she be the one Roy have been doing all the mushy stuff ?"

"Something about the appeal of childhood friends, I guess," Matt shrugged, "besides, roleplay didn't always have to go by the book. I don't recall the forest sage and the hero saving great tree… together."

"I just wanted a more active role in the story. Besides, it wasn't him that I liked! I-"

"Relax, relax. I know." Matt answered understandingly.

Saria clearly remembered the days of her childhood. It was because she used to spent a lot of time by Roy's side in the forest adventures that everyone else thought they really liked each other. But it was her interest in fishing that acquainted her more with the very person that stood before her.

" To be honest, I didn't think that time would be coming soon. I was about ready to treat this like every other day, but since things seem to be coming to a head, I was glad to be reminded of old times…" he voiced aloud curiously.

Saria noticed Matt grasp something from a side pocket. He held it out to reveal a wooden flute.

"Hold on. Is that Dakota's Father's-"

"Mr. Chase' flute? No, no. He caught me after a lesson with Captain Pascal one day and thought it would be fitting if he passed on his knowledge of music to me, so he whittled this out just for me. You know the only thing Dakota's interested in inheriting from her father is his cooking, and the only musical instrument she's interested in is her voice. I must admit, her singing's not half-bad." Matt mused.

Saria looked at the flute in disbelief.

"You see, my gift for you shall be a melody" Her musically-armed friend clarified.

Before Saria could answer, Matt started playing a toe-tapping melody. After being exposed to it for a bit, she immediately recognized it.

"That forest melody? The one tied to the role I used to play?" she asked.

After receiving that answer, Matt stopped himself.

"Oh, so you do remember. I swore I heard that song in my head so many times after making our way to the spring that I thought there was a live orchestra hiding somewhere in the forest just to mess with us."

"Really? Papa used to hum it to me as a lullaby from time to time. It was a little strange, since it's not the most soothing song around, but it did the trick. I never knew you heard the same melody while going through the forest." Saria said in amazement.

"I hope this doesn't mean anything wrong…" Matt quipped nervously.

"You're just more in tune with nature, I'd say." Saria noted cheerfully.

"Huh. Just like Dad, huh?" added Matt with a chuckle.

For a moment, the duo exchanged amused grins.

"But there's still the matter of this song I've been meaning to teach." Matt reminded.

"Right! Of course!"

Matt then proceeded showing her some flute basics before working on the composition. He explained the best kind of breath to release to produce the best sounds for longer and shorter notes, then went over the finger positioning of an entire scale. Luckily for the both of them, Saria was able to pick up some of the essentials quickly enough for him to show her his gift melody note by note. For a number of tries, Saria was forced to take it very slowly before she could pick it up to a pleasant manageable pace. Fortunately for her, Matt had correctly told her just how easy and repetitive the song was. By the time their lesson was done, evening was approaching.

"See, you're a natural." Matt complimented.

"Really?"

"Yeah. Your fingers adapted pretty quickly, and you found out the right breathing almost immediately. I ended up embarrassing myself a lot in front of Mr. Chase before I could even exhale properly. Most of the sounds coming out of the flute sounded really weird, but that was only if I was lucky enough to make them." He confessed.

"Ha. Wow… I never thought I could be a prodigy at this sort of thing." Saria grinned.

"I don't quite think what you accomplished is "Prodigy" level, but you're really good at this for a beginner." Matt assured her.

"Yeah, thanks. It's too bad I won't have time for any more lessons for a while." Saria lamented.

It was then that the serene young man gestured the flute towards her.

"Then this is why you'll have to teach it to yourself."

Matt then handed his flute to his personal apprentice and secured it in her hands.

"Wait. You're also giving me your flute?" asked Saria.

Matt nodded.

"This all seems very ironic, doesn't it?" Matt smirked.

A familiar story immediately ran through the green-haired girl's mind, and gasped at her friend's insight.

"This song… and a musical instrument…it was an ocarina… but… wasn't my namesake the one that offered the gifts to a chosen one?" she realized.

"It looks like you're taking on the role of the chosen one, this time." Matt pointed out.

Saria clutched her free hand as she remembered the corresponding moment being read to her by her father, recalling just how sad it felt as it reached her ears. Even as she was assigned the task of a great journey a few days ago, she never fully realized she would be enacting the exact same sorrow until just this moment.

Relcutantly, she looked up and straight into Matt's eyes, remembering him as the cute older boy that used to always hang out with her older brother. Secretly, she considered it one of the greatest days of her childhood when he decided to spend more time with her to teach her the ways of fishing, yet her mind lingered to memories another connected to him. She was his current girlfriend, her former rival-in-love. But first and foremost, she was her best friend at heart.

"I wonder how Angie must be feeling about all of this…" she suddenly thought to herself.

"Thank you…" she uttered softly.

She then fixed the flute securely underneath her jacket.

"You know, it would feel better to let out any tears you may have kept to yourself, "Matt advised, "But… they're not for me, are they?"

Saria simply shook her head.

"I see. Well then, how about we meet Angie at Harmonica Town, take one last look at the place, and then maybe squeeze in some fishing at the harbor before dinner? I think we can manage that with the remaining daylight." Matt suggested.

"If we're quick, then perhaps. But yes, that would be nice." Saria agreed.

Without a moment's hesitation, the two started off towards Harmonica Town, where they would meet their mutual friend at the Tailor's. As they made the journey, Saria recalled more memories of the three of them playing around together with happy smiles. She also remembered the few precious moments where Matt fought to preserve her friendship with Angie, just as hidden feelings threatened to tear them apart. With these thoughts in mind, a bright smile made its way to Saria's face.

"I guess…I may be over you now, but I'm glad you cared that much to keep us all together like that. So thank you. Maybe I'll find another like this at the end of the rainbow…"

All throughout the brief venture, Matt resumed humming the very gift he offered her, as if to make it last as long it could…

Up Next:

DINNER TIME!

OoT references galore for this chapter, eh?