You may not know this, but I'm a bit of a gamer.
Legend of Zelda, Mario, Epic Mickey, the Sims, Diner Dash, Papa's Hotdoggeria... and my personal favorite at the moment, Harvest Moon. Specifically, Harvest Moon DS, or A Tale of Two Towns, as I like to call it.
At any rate, the game gave me a great idea for a story. I've assigned more complex personalities to all the characters, added a bit of swearing for older characters, and made the world of A Tale of Two Towns more dangerous.
This is why this story isn't rated K, K+, or K-. It took over a year to turn the sweet, innocent E for Everyone game into a rated T romantic and family drama. I honestly hope you enjoy it.
"Katie, are you sure about this?"
Mary Anne looked at her two children nervously.
"Yes, Mama," her daughter answered, tossing one last bag in the cart.
"We'll be fine!" Jason assured their mother. "I'll keep an eye on her while I'm raising crops."
"I'm just worried about you two, living on that mountain, so far away…"
"I'll miss you too, Mama, but it's time for us to go out on our own," Katie said as she hugged Mary Anne goodbye.
"Bye, Mother," Jason added as he hugged their mother, too. "We'll send you a letter as soon as we get settled!"
He and his little sister climbed into the cart and Jason snapped the reins. They took off for the distant mountain, ready for whatever was to come.
The mountain was just the tiniest bit slippery in the rain, making the path treacherous to travel on. Katie had her slicker on over her head, protecting her from the heavy rains that pelted the cart. Jason focused on trying to see through the rain.
Suddenly, a fox ran across their path, spooking the horse and causing it to buck the cart loose. Its riders were knocked aside as the cart crashed.
Reina walked up the mountain as soon as the storm stopped to check the damage to all the different plants. Hopefully, they weren't too damaged to be studied.
She spotted some debris from a cart on the walkway. Her heartrate increased as she followed the trail of wooden shards and splinters to a crashed cart lodged in a bank of trees.
She needed help.
"Neither is critically injured, but our Jane Doe has some slight trauma to the cranial region while our John Doe has severe bruising to the abdominal region."
"Yes, Doctor Ayame." Hiro scribbled down the diagnosis while his teacher changed the IV drips for both patients.
"When will they wake up?" Ying asked quietly.
"Hopefully soon," the doctor replied. "The male should wake up first, since he had slightly less severe injuries."
As if to prove her right, the boy let out a pained groan.
"W-what happened…?" he mumbled.
"You crashed," Ayame explained simplistically. He opened his eyes and looked panicked.
"Where's Katie?!"
"Shhhh… she's right nearby. You need to rest."
"What's your name?" Hiro asked.
"Jason. Her name is Kaitlynn, but call her Katie."
Hiro wrote down their names on their patient charts.
It turned out that even the residents of Bluebell had come to the hospital, once Dirk had delivered the news. They all seemed equally worried about the two strangers.
It didn't take long for the twins to heal, and once they did, Mayors Ina and Rutger asked them to meet at the top of the mountain to decide their living situations.
"You both wished to be farmers here, correct?" Ina inquired.
"Yes, ma'am," Katie replied.
"What kind?"
"Huh?" Jason asked.
"Here in the valleys, we have two towns: Konohana and Bluebell. Konohana mainly focuses on crops while Bluebell raises animals. Both towns currently have an empty farm."
The twins glanced at each other nervously.
"Live in Bluebell!" urged Rutger.
"No! Konohana!" snapped Ina. They glared at each other.
"Can you give us a minute?" Jason chuckled.
"We'll have to split up!" Katie whispered to her brother.
"I know. It seems like visiting each other won't be easy, too."
"I can take care of myself, and so can you. You live in Konohana. They'll have more space for your crops there."
"And Bluebell will have larger barns." They nodded in agreement.
"I'd like to take your offer of the Bluebell farm," Katie informed Rutger.
"Wonderful!" he replied. "Follow me down to the village and we'll get you settled…"
"I'll accept your offer," Jason sighed to Ina.
"Great! Come on and I'll show you the farm!"
Their new lives had begun.
Dear Mama,
How are you and Papa doing in the city? I'm doing fine on Circle Farm (that's what I named it). I have two farm animals already: a cow named Bessie and a chicken named Coco.
Things didn't exactly go as planned when Jason and I got here. The cart crashed when Juniper got spooked by a fox and we both got hurt. We're better now, though.
On top of that, there are towns on either side of the mountain: Bluebell and Konohana. The towns don't like each other much. Bluebell, the town I live in, focuses on raising animals. Jason lives near Konohana, where they mostly grow crops. I guess it's for the best, if we're really going to make it on our own.
As for the people in my town, they're all pretty nice. I've made a few friends.
Where to start?
Well, I guess I should start with the Jones family, who run the feed and livestock shop. Jessica's the mom, and she's always happy to see me; she even taught me how to milk and how to shear sheep! Ash is a little older than me, and he's really sweet and a bit goofy; he gives me lots of tips on raising animals. Cheryl's the baby of the family, even though she's ten. She's pretty cute and friendly, although I worry about how attached she is to her brother.
The mayor of Bluebell is Rutger. He's the one who gave me the farm and keeps me informed of any events in town. His wife's name is Rose. She gave me a dinner when I moved in.
There's three other families in Bluebell.
First off, there's the Smith family, a father and daughter team who run the horse, cart, and pet store. Grady taught me how to fish by hand on my second day in town. Georgia taught me how to catch critters and things like that. She's cheerful and is always ready to cheer me up with a joke.
Next is the Jacksons, who run the café and flower stand. Howard is a big, tough-looking guy, but he'd never hurt a fly and has some of the best cooking I've ever tasted. Laney's his daughter. She's my best friend and is always up for a chat. Cam's technically not Howard's son, but he does live in the café, too. He's quiet and shy, but really sweet and serious.
The only other family in town is the Diego brothers: Enrique and Diego. They're a bit… odd. They also have a third brother, Raul, but he lives in Konohana. All three run general stores in both towns and ask me if I have any money-making schemes.
There's one person in Bluebell I haven't talked about, and that's the carpenter, Eileen. She's a bit clumsy and distracted, but helpful and smart. We talk whenever we happen to be exploring the mountain at the same time.
I'm really happy here, Mama, and I'm learning a lot. It's so much fun, but I miss you and Papa! Maybe I can pay for you to come visit when I save up a bit of money!
Write back soon!
Love and XOs,
Katie.
Mary Anne read the letter aloud to Peter as soon as it arrived in the mail.
"It sounds like she's all settled in," she remarked.
"It certainly does," Peter agreed.
"We should go visit sometime. Maybe next spring?"
"I think that sounds like a great idea."
It was official: Jason and Katie Hall were farm folk.
And done!
Whoo! That took longer than I expected. I know there wasn't much drama or romance or really anything I said there'd be, but it was just the first chapter. It's a lot longer than most first chapters I tend to write, and that comes from me adding the letter. Now, every chapter will conclude with Mary Anne and Peter reading a letter from one of their children.
Now, for the extras! This time, it's… my thoughts on each of the available bachelors in Bluebell!
Ash:
Ash is like that guy you'd want as your brother. He's sweet, loyal, and a bit of a doofus. It doesn't hurt that he's one of the cuter available guys ;). Ash is personally my choice of the bachelors in the game, as he seems like he'd make a great husband and companion.
Cam:
Cam is a bit quiet and shy, making him an enigma to me. He's a florist, meaning he has access to plenty of flowers. He's also pretty serious and keeps you on your toes with wondering what he'll do next.
Mikhail:
To be honest, I don't care for Mikhail that much. He seems just a bit… sleazy. Since he travels during the summer, there's no guarantee he doesn't have another girlfriend… or a dozen. I might be a bit unfair to him, but I'd rather have my guy around all year.
That's all, folks!
So long and thanks for all the fish!