Harvest Moon: New Attitude on the Farm
{: This is a bit of personal-view FanFiction; and in no way does this constitute a copyright infringement. The only thing I personally lay claim to is any original characters and original concepts not found in any version of the video game. I'm not making a profit off this work; It's public domain, and should be distributed as such. The only thing I ask is that this file be distributed unedited, in the exact way it's found right here and now. :}
{: "New Attitude" is based on BTN for Playstation; but with the exception of some locations, nothing else is the same. I have changed all the names, and even made the "Farmer" a woman. This latter change is in respect to the still-untranslated version of BTN where the Farmer is a girl, and courts a sizable number of the guys in the American version of BTN. This is my personal twist on that concept. I hope any die-hard "Mooners" reading this aren't offended; This is going to be one scrambled- egg of a story......
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:: Janice vividly remembered the rainstorm, and how her boyfriend had pleaded with her not to go out in it. But she wouldn't be stopped. Having caught the third-time-loser in bed with not one but three other girls, she had exploded in an inferno that had sent the naked trio running for their hides, grabbing clothes as they scrambled out the nearest exit. She was completely volcanic, not even speaking as she shoved her few things into a pair of gym-bags and a suitcase. Finally, she yelled... something at him;... That part was fuzzy, but she remembered him recoiling like she had stabbed him. She was swearing, crying, and laughing at the same time as she strapped her stuff down. Intending to stay with an aunt in a neighboring city, she had left in the middle of the night, in a downpour that the weather service had labeled a Storm of the Century. If she hadn't been so wired up...! But why? She couldn't remember what had put her in such a foul mood that she had no tolerance for her boyfriend's almost nymph-like urges. Nothing mattered as she rocketed along the narrow mountain road which lead to her aunt's place. The world didn't exist any longer to her. She had lost her job the day before; and she had been almost to the point of begging by the time the clash occured. It was almost a blessing what had happened; It had finally given her the excuse as well as the nerve to leave him and the stink-hole city that spawned him. The rain had felt welcome; It was like the filth from that place was being washed out of her. She allowed herself to relax, and began to flow with the road. That's when the truck came out of nowhere, down the wrong side the road! She tried to swerve; but there was no time or room to escape! Having banked hard to the left, she tensed up as she felt the truck clip her wheel, somehow sending it over the guard-rail instead of underneath it. The sound of the bike's engine screaming at max-plus RPMs mixed with her own screaming, the cliff beneath her a sheer drop of better than eighty feet. She was in mid-air, hands death-locked to her handle-bars. She heard the crack of thunder, and only barely felt the lightning that wrapped itself around her. In the micro-second before what had to be the gas tank exploding underneath her, her mind jumped back to a childhood memory of the farm she had grown up on, where she had left as a teen with a vow never to return. That image... and a desire to go home... Then she felt nothing else as the world seemed to evaporate into a white light....
:: Voices....
{Man #1, a deep voice} : "... How she managed to survive the fall is beyond me;... She should be dead..."
{Woman #1, a softer teen-like tenor} : "I think the Harvest Goddess saved her...."
:: She flinched visibly, the dull pain across finally penetrating her brain. And Christ Above, was she ever in pain...!
{Man #1} : "Good; I think she's coming around. Maybe now we get some answers. Miss? Miss, can you hear me?"
{Janice, her head splitting} : "Could you please... lower your voices a bit? My head... really hurts..."
{Man #1, softer} : "Of course. I'm Doc Morgan; You're in my Clinic. What's your name?"
:: She slowly opened her eyes a bit, grimaced at the bright overhead lighting, and once adjusted to it, fully opened them. There was two people present, a tall guy in a doctor's white coat who had to be Morgan, and a young girl who wore a white nurse's apron over a blue dress. The girl looked like she was barely nineteen! The place was definately a clinic. A small one, granted; but fully equipped. The ceiling tiles were impossibly clean; and the track-lighting looked fairly new. Janice pushed herself upright, giving her head a good shake to clear out the cobwebs inside.
{Janice, opening her eyes slowly} : "Janice...; The name's Janice Harlow. Where... Where am I?"
{Morgan} : "You're in the town of Silver Dale, in the middle of Harvest Valley...."
{Janice, rubbing her skull} : "Feels like I head-butted a hillside..."
{Morgan, helping her upright} : "You were found by the foot of Moon Hill, with an operating motorbike nearby. How you survived falling off the peak is in itself amazing; That you did without you or your bike even being bruised is an outright miracle...."
{Janice, now actually at herself} : "Moon Hill? Never heard of that place before,... or any place called Harvest Valley..."
{Young Girl, surprised} : "Really? Where are you from?"
{Janice, amused at the girl's reaction} : "I use to live in a hole-in- the-wall town called Jacksburg; but I was headed for my aunt's place outside of Red Rock when I rode headlong into a storm. Lightning, thunder, rain coming down like a re-run of Noah's Ark - I had to be absolutely brain-dead to ride out in it...."
{Morgan, hands in his pockets} : "Jacksburg, huh? Have to say that's a new one on me. Of course, I haven't been farther than Moon Hill in my life, either...."
{Janice, slowly getting to her feet} : "Well, you're not missing anything but filth, trust me. Is there anybody aroud here who might know how to get to Red Rock from here?"
{Morgan, visibly puzzled} : "Well, maybe Peter might know. He's been everywhere in Harvest Valley, and then some. He should be making his usual morning round now, just before he picks up the mail at the local Post Office. If you hurry, you can catch him there."
{Janice, working her stiff limbs} : "And where's the Post Office?"
{Morgan, pointing} : "Take a left out the front door, follow the lane until it turns right, and then follow it to the end. It's next to the Mayor's Offices on your right. If you miss Peter, you can talk to the Mayor; He use to travel a lot as a young man, and might know where you want to go."
:: Janice thanked them both, grabbed her backpack from next to where she had woke up, and then headed out the door. When she stepped outside, she froze in her tracks! It wasn't the look of the small town that had caught her attention; It was the lack of any air pollution. She could vaguely remember what air without car-fumes had smelled like from her youth, which was something like a dream from ages gone-by. There was a mixture of flower-scents in the air, a little of everything from wild daisy to well-groomed rose beds, all within her immediant sight. Just where was she?! This place looked like a slice of the Ideal American Farm Town that Time had stashed away for its own enjoyment. Everything looked and felt like she was anywhere but where she had been the previous night. She shook herself back to her senses, and turned to her bike. It hadn't locked up; but it didn't look like anyone had touched it, either. A town where you could actually leave a prized ride like hers unlocked, and not find it gone when you turned back around? She saddled up, and started the engine, which surprisingly turned over without its usual fussing. And unless she had just completely lost all sense of smell,... whatever was coming out the tail-pipe wasn't spent gas fumes. In fact, even though it looked like white pipe-fume, it had no smell to it whatsoever. Something to worry about later, she decided, as she wheeled it around; Right now, she had a date with a guy named Peter.
:: She went slower than usual, since the lane was narrow and there were children around. But the town wasn't that big, it seemed. In a couple of minutes, in fact, she had reached the Post Office. It was a white building with a blue band around the top of the walls, with a blue door that had the words "Post Office. 10:Am to 6:Pm". There was a blue letter- box made to the left side of the wall, odviously for after-hour letter drops. Out of habit, she Secure-Locked the wheels, and then went inside. The place inside was small but functional, and very low-tech in construction. The wall between her and the back-area, in fact, was a low iron-grill that had a window-opening in the middle. She could have jumped it drunk! There was an old guy with a sun-visor on his forehead, the kind that Postal Workers wore way-back-when.
{Postman} : "Good Morning, M'am. You must be the girl that Doc Morgan was treatin'...."
{Janice, forcing a smile} : "Yeah;... Was treating, I mean. I need to speak with someone named Peter who's suppose to be picking up the mail soon. I need directions to Red Rock, and Morgan thinks Peter might know the way."
{Postman} : "He should know if anybody knows. Should be here.... any time now. Oh, and by the way, folks around here call me Fred. I'm Postman here, and head of the Silver Dale Postal Service...."
{Janice, now smiling in spite of herself} : "I'll keep that in mind. Name's Janice. Would it be okay if I wait for him here?"
{Fred, whiskers raised in a grandfatherly smile} : "Of course, girl; Kinda nice to have somebody to talk to besides on Tuesday. That's when Rosa comes by, with letters for her kinfolk livin' elsewhere..."
{Janice, looking outside} : "Silver Dale looks like a very beautiful and calm place. I still don't know how I got here,... wherever here is. Like I told Morgan, I've never heard of this place or Harvest Valley before..."
{Fred, visibly surprised} : "Never heard of Harvest Valley before?! Your Red Rock must be a mighty long way from here is all I have to say...!"
{Janice} : "Odviously. Fred,... I think I hear a truck coming..."
{Fred, stepping from behind the counter with a mail-sack} : "That'll be Peter. Man's so accurate, you can set your watch by him. He'll stop a second if I ask him for yah. Me and him's related, see; and I'm about the only one who understands him. Saw something up on Moon Hill once, and has never been the same since. Here he comes now...."
:: As if on cue, an old covered truck that looked Army Surplus rattled into view. Behind the wheel was a fairly huge guy with a short haircut. He looked like the bouncers at some bars she had worked at in the past. Clearly not somebody who's buttons you wanted to push, not unless you had a death-wish. The worn-but-working vehicle shuddered to a stop, the guy inside quickly getting out.
{Peter} : "Hey, Fred. Got stuff tah go?"
{Fred} : "Just the usual bag of mail,... and a young lady needing directions to somewhere I've never heard of before."
{Janice, smiling for effect} : "Yeah, I'm trying to get to Red Rock; My aunt lives out there, and is expecting me."
{Peter, rubbing his chin} : "Red Rock? I've been lots of places around and outside 'ah Harvest Valley, but never any place called Red Rock..."
{Janice} : "Then how about Jacksburg? Believe me, if you've ever been there, you'ld probably remember it."
{Peter, lighting up} : "Now I have been there before. Not a nice place at all; In fact, its downright dangerous at times..."
{Janice, with a sigh} : "That's the place, alright... Can I get a lift for me and my bike?"
{Peter, chuckling} : "No probs, lady; I had to run some stuff out there t'day anyway. I'll load yah bike up, and we can go."
{Fred, smiling} : "Now if you ever come this way again, remember ol' Fred, okay?"
{Janice, shaking his hand} : "I'll try, if I'm not busy with something else."
:: The ride was rough-going; but Janice had been on worse washboard roads before. They left what amounted to the "Main Road", and headed down a winding switch-back trail that emptied out onto a service road, which in turn lead onto Highway Sixty-Two. When they came to a roadside rest-stop, Janice unloaded, confident that she could find her way to Red Rock from there. She watched as Peter rode away, and then got on her bike. To her surprise, it gave her its usual fit, prompting her to apply her usual "remedy" to it. Namely a swift kick that released a stuck cylinder. Then it roared to life, spewing its usual mix of carbon monoxide into the air. She wrote it off as just a coincidence, and asked a State Trooper parked nearby for directions. She made good time, and reached her aunt's farm by late afternoon. The old farming-maid was glad as ever to see her "little Janny"!
{Janice, chuckling} : "Aunt Lucy, it's Janice, okay? But I'm glad to see you, too. How's the farm's going?"
{Aunt, helping with Janice's bags} : "Oh, it's not too bad; I made by this year. But where were you last night? When you never showed up, I got a bit worried..."
{Janice, not wanting to worry her} : "Oh, I got turned around in the rain somewhere, and ended up in a really weird town off highway sixty- two. Some place called Silver Dale...."
:: Her aunt gasped as if in horror, dropping the bags in her hands as if they were red-hot! When Janice looked, her aunt was holding her chest, eyes buldging several inches in width.
{Aunt, stammering} : "You were in Harvest Valley?! Why did you leave?! Now you'll never be able to find your way back, not if you tried for the rest of your life!"
{Janice, concerned} : "Aunt Lucy, calm down; You'll give yourself a stroke. And what do you mean I can never go back there? You're making out like this place is magical or something..."
{Aunt, now distant} : "Magical? That word is too shallow for such a place. No crime; No strife; Nothing but simple, peaceful ways of living. I wasn't much older than you when I first reached Silver Dale. I had been hiking when a terrible thunder storm suddenly began, as if something in Heaven was trying to wash me away for some unknown transgression. I tried to find shelter, but lost my footing by a cliff, and went over into the river below. I don't know how long I was tossed around in those torrential waters; but I finally managed to pop to the surface, and was almost immediantly rescued by a young farm-boy named Morgan. He took me inside his small house, and his mother cared for me that whole night. I found the place comfortable; so I stayed a while, helping that nice woman out as best I could. It was during this time that I learned about Harvest Valley, a secret place hidden from the rest of the world by a force that is only refered to as the Harvest Goddess. In this place, things that you would think are magical are in fact common-place. The people of Silver Dale live a good life filled with peace and happiness, and seasoned with the various trials of life common to the farm. But in the end, everything seems to turn out fine, where everyone benefits from everyone else's efforts. I was even given a small farm of my own there, a charming place just outside of town that I called the Silver Lining. Because in Harvest Valley, everything you do - no matter how badly - will yield a "silver lining" of its own..."
{Janice, stunned} : "That explains why my bike worked so good and without smog there. Aunt Lucy, did you ever go to a place called Moon Hill ?"
{Aunt, nodding} : "Many times. It's said that the Moon Goddess exists there somewhere in a physical form, possibly that of a beautiful, elven woman who is always surrounded by the pure glow of the moon itself. But why do you ask?"
{Janice, swallowing} : "Aunt Lucy, I have to appologize;... but I actually ended up there because of an accident on my bike last night. This truck came out of nowhere, and forced me off the road. I went over the embankment, and passed out. When I woke up, I was told that someone found me and my bike at the foot of Moon Hill, without even a scratch on me or my bike. Oh, and I meant someone named Morgan, a doctor with his own Clinic...."
{Aunt, smiling a mile-wide} : "So he finally became a doctor! I'm so happy to know that, Janny..."
{Janice, narrow-eyed} : "Aunt Lucy,... I'm going to find my way back to Harvest Valley. If this place is all you say it is, protected I mean, then there has to be a reason why both of us ended up there during a thunderstorm. When I was there, I felt like I belonged there. I've never felt like before, except here on the farm."
{Aunt, sighing} : "Janice, I never have been able to talk you out of anything before;... so I'm not going to try now. But before you go, there are a few things you'll need to stake out a homestead there..."
:: Lucy took her across the farm to the barn where Janice had played for hours as a child. There had been horses as well; but they had been sold years before, a set of tack and bridle hanging off an old saddle being the only notion they had ever been there. Janice watched as her aunt opened up the root-cellar where Janice had spent many afternoons canning and preserving everything from apples to jellies. Now the only thing down there was an old footlocker with an impressive lock hanging off the front. Janice doubted if someone could have removed it with a shotgun! With a key from underneath it, her aunt had it open in a few seconds. Inside was an old dress covering a backpack and a lot of boxes and bundles.
{Aunt, holding the dress up} : "I almost forgot I had this. Wore during the Spring Festival, and had the available guys hanging off me like cobwebs..."
{Janice, grinning} : "Aunt Lucy,... I never took you as that kind of girl..."
{Aunt, giving a sigh} : "That was a long time ago. But enough about me;... This is what I was talking about..."
:: Removing and then opening the pack, Lucy started showing Janice a variety of things.
{Aunt} : "You'll find this stuff handy if you make it to Silver Dale. This is proof of ownership to the Silver Lining Farm; You'll need to take that to the Mayor first-thing to have it recorded into the Town Records. Don't loose it; Without it, you'll have nothing but grief in Harvest Valley! The key to the farmhouse, and not to leave your person even after you've had your ownership recorded. This key is your link to the Silver Lining, and will give you... certain privledges inherent to all farm owners there. This.... is your work-belt. It belonged to the farm's owner before me; and the pockets are special. Once in Harvest Valley, each one will hold a different item you'll need to work the farm, no matter how big that item might be. Finally, and most importantly since it exists even there,... my money-card. There is no paper currency; but coins are used for incidentals like a drink at the local Inn. You'll also need it to mail letters, use phones, and check out books at the library. Once you're recorded with the Mayor's Office, and settled in at the Silver Lining, I strong advise you spend a few hours there brushing up on the "Need To Know" points of life in Silver Dale and Harvest Valley. Keep the pack; It'll come in handy. I'll fix you up with some food and other stuff to hold you over until you're on your feet...."
{Janice, puzzled} : "If you're so certain I won't make it there,.... why are you packing me up like I will ?"
:: Once her aunt had closed the foot locker, she turned, and smiled at Janice....
{Aunt} : "There's always been something about you that's felt like the time I spent in Silver Dale,.... like the feel of being around an old friend you haven't seen in years. Being painfully honest, you never fit into this world. Most times, I don't think you ever tried. But you were happy in Silver Dale, right?"
:: Janice just nodded...
{Aunt, smiling} : "You belong in Silver Dale;.... and something tells me that you'll find your way back there. When you do, tell Morgan.... that an old, wrinkled wildcat he fished out of the river one night said hello...."
{Janice, smiling} : "I sure will, Aunt Lucy;... I'll make sure of it...."
:: With that, as evening was beginning to darken the skies, Janice packed up her bike again, and started back for the one place where she had felt she really belonged. She quickly reached the side-road that Peter had used, and with a prayer for success, she headed down the roadway, which seconds later covered over with mists before vanishing completely....
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{: This is a bit of personal-view FanFiction; and in no way does this constitute a copyright infringement. The only thing I personally lay claim to is any original characters and original concepts not found in any version of the video game. I'm not making a profit off this work; It's public domain, and should be distributed as such. The only thing I ask is that this file be distributed unedited, in the exact way it's found right here and now. :}
{: "New Attitude" is based on BTN for Playstation; but with the exception of some locations, nothing else is the same. I have changed all the names, and even made the "Farmer" a woman. This latter change is in respect to the still-untranslated version of BTN where the Farmer is a girl, and courts a sizable number of the guys in the American version of BTN. This is my personal twist on that concept. I hope any die-hard "Mooners" reading this aren't offended; This is going to be one scrambled- egg of a story......
===================================================
:: Janice vividly remembered the rainstorm, and how her boyfriend had pleaded with her not to go out in it. But she wouldn't be stopped. Having caught the third-time-loser in bed with not one but three other girls, she had exploded in an inferno that had sent the naked trio running for their hides, grabbing clothes as they scrambled out the nearest exit. She was completely volcanic, not even speaking as she shoved her few things into a pair of gym-bags and a suitcase. Finally, she yelled... something at him;... That part was fuzzy, but she remembered him recoiling like she had stabbed him. She was swearing, crying, and laughing at the same time as she strapped her stuff down. Intending to stay with an aunt in a neighboring city, she had left in the middle of the night, in a downpour that the weather service had labeled a Storm of the Century. If she hadn't been so wired up...! But why? She couldn't remember what had put her in such a foul mood that she had no tolerance for her boyfriend's almost nymph-like urges. Nothing mattered as she rocketed along the narrow mountain road which lead to her aunt's place. The world didn't exist any longer to her. She had lost her job the day before; and she had been almost to the point of begging by the time the clash occured. It was almost a blessing what had happened; It had finally given her the excuse as well as the nerve to leave him and the stink-hole city that spawned him. The rain had felt welcome; It was like the filth from that place was being washed out of her. She allowed herself to relax, and began to flow with the road. That's when the truck came out of nowhere, down the wrong side the road! She tried to swerve; but there was no time or room to escape! Having banked hard to the left, she tensed up as she felt the truck clip her wheel, somehow sending it over the guard-rail instead of underneath it. The sound of the bike's engine screaming at max-plus RPMs mixed with her own screaming, the cliff beneath her a sheer drop of better than eighty feet. She was in mid-air, hands death-locked to her handle-bars. She heard the crack of thunder, and only barely felt the lightning that wrapped itself around her. In the micro-second before what had to be the gas tank exploding underneath her, her mind jumped back to a childhood memory of the farm she had grown up on, where she had left as a teen with a vow never to return. That image... and a desire to go home... Then she felt nothing else as the world seemed to evaporate into a white light....
:: Voices....
{Man #1, a deep voice} : "... How she managed to survive the fall is beyond me;... She should be dead..."
{Woman #1, a softer teen-like tenor} : "I think the Harvest Goddess saved her...."
:: She flinched visibly, the dull pain across finally penetrating her brain. And Christ Above, was she ever in pain...!
{Man #1} : "Good; I think she's coming around. Maybe now we get some answers. Miss? Miss, can you hear me?"
{Janice, her head splitting} : "Could you please... lower your voices a bit? My head... really hurts..."
{Man #1, softer} : "Of course. I'm Doc Morgan; You're in my Clinic. What's your name?"
:: She slowly opened her eyes a bit, grimaced at the bright overhead lighting, and once adjusted to it, fully opened them. There was two people present, a tall guy in a doctor's white coat who had to be Morgan, and a young girl who wore a white nurse's apron over a blue dress. The girl looked like she was barely nineteen! The place was definately a clinic. A small one, granted; but fully equipped. The ceiling tiles were impossibly clean; and the track-lighting looked fairly new. Janice pushed herself upright, giving her head a good shake to clear out the cobwebs inside.
{Janice, opening her eyes slowly} : "Janice...; The name's Janice Harlow. Where... Where am I?"
{Morgan} : "You're in the town of Silver Dale, in the middle of Harvest Valley...."
{Janice, rubbing her skull} : "Feels like I head-butted a hillside..."
{Morgan, helping her upright} : "You were found by the foot of Moon Hill, with an operating motorbike nearby. How you survived falling off the peak is in itself amazing; That you did without you or your bike even being bruised is an outright miracle...."
{Janice, now actually at herself} : "Moon Hill? Never heard of that place before,... or any place called Harvest Valley..."
{Young Girl, surprised} : "Really? Where are you from?"
{Janice, amused at the girl's reaction} : "I use to live in a hole-in- the-wall town called Jacksburg; but I was headed for my aunt's place outside of Red Rock when I rode headlong into a storm. Lightning, thunder, rain coming down like a re-run of Noah's Ark - I had to be absolutely brain-dead to ride out in it...."
{Morgan, hands in his pockets} : "Jacksburg, huh? Have to say that's a new one on me. Of course, I haven't been farther than Moon Hill in my life, either...."
{Janice, slowly getting to her feet} : "Well, you're not missing anything but filth, trust me. Is there anybody aroud here who might know how to get to Red Rock from here?"
{Morgan, visibly puzzled} : "Well, maybe Peter might know. He's been everywhere in Harvest Valley, and then some. He should be making his usual morning round now, just before he picks up the mail at the local Post Office. If you hurry, you can catch him there."
{Janice, working her stiff limbs} : "And where's the Post Office?"
{Morgan, pointing} : "Take a left out the front door, follow the lane until it turns right, and then follow it to the end. It's next to the Mayor's Offices on your right. If you miss Peter, you can talk to the Mayor; He use to travel a lot as a young man, and might know where you want to go."
:: Janice thanked them both, grabbed her backpack from next to where she had woke up, and then headed out the door. When she stepped outside, she froze in her tracks! It wasn't the look of the small town that had caught her attention; It was the lack of any air pollution. She could vaguely remember what air without car-fumes had smelled like from her youth, which was something like a dream from ages gone-by. There was a mixture of flower-scents in the air, a little of everything from wild daisy to well-groomed rose beds, all within her immediant sight. Just where was she?! This place looked like a slice of the Ideal American Farm Town that Time had stashed away for its own enjoyment. Everything looked and felt like she was anywhere but where she had been the previous night. She shook herself back to her senses, and turned to her bike. It hadn't locked up; but it didn't look like anyone had touched it, either. A town where you could actually leave a prized ride like hers unlocked, and not find it gone when you turned back around? She saddled up, and started the engine, which surprisingly turned over without its usual fussing. And unless she had just completely lost all sense of smell,... whatever was coming out the tail-pipe wasn't spent gas fumes. In fact, even though it looked like white pipe-fume, it had no smell to it whatsoever. Something to worry about later, she decided, as she wheeled it around; Right now, she had a date with a guy named Peter.
:: She went slower than usual, since the lane was narrow and there were children around. But the town wasn't that big, it seemed. In a couple of minutes, in fact, she had reached the Post Office. It was a white building with a blue band around the top of the walls, with a blue door that had the words "Post Office. 10:Am to 6:Pm". There was a blue letter- box made to the left side of the wall, odviously for after-hour letter drops. Out of habit, she Secure-Locked the wheels, and then went inside. The place inside was small but functional, and very low-tech in construction. The wall between her and the back-area, in fact, was a low iron-grill that had a window-opening in the middle. She could have jumped it drunk! There was an old guy with a sun-visor on his forehead, the kind that Postal Workers wore way-back-when.
{Postman} : "Good Morning, M'am. You must be the girl that Doc Morgan was treatin'...."
{Janice, forcing a smile} : "Yeah;... Was treating, I mean. I need to speak with someone named Peter who's suppose to be picking up the mail soon. I need directions to Red Rock, and Morgan thinks Peter might know the way."
{Postman} : "He should know if anybody knows. Should be here.... any time now. Oh, and by the way, folks around here call me Fred. I'm Postman here, and head of the Silver Dale Postal Service...."
{Janice, now smiling in spite of herself} : "I'll keep that in mind. Name's Janice. Would it be okay if I wait for him here?"
{Fred, whiskers raised in a grandfatherly smile} : "Of course, girl; Kinda nice to have somebody to talk to besides on Tuesday. That's when Rosa comes by, with letters for her kinfolk livin' elsewhere..."
{Janice, looking outside} : "Silver Dale looks like a very beautiful and calm place. I still don't know how I got here,... wherever here is. Like I told Morgan, I've never heard of this place or Harvest Valley before..."
{Fred, visibly surprised} : "Never heard of Harvest Valley before?! Your Red Rock must be a mighty long way from here is all I have to say...!"
{Janice} : "Odviously. Fred,... I think I hear a truck coming..."
{Fred, stepping from behind the counter with a mail-sack} : "That'll be Peter. Man's so accurate, you can set your watch by him. He'll stop a second if I ask him for yah. Me and him's related, see; and I'm about the only one who understands him. Saw something up on Moon Hill once, and has never been the same since. Here he comes now...."
:: As if on cue, an old covered truck that looked Army Surplus rattled into view. Behind the wheel was a fairly huge guy with a short haircut. He looked like the bouncers at some bars she had worked at in the past. Clearly not somebody who's buttons you wanted to push, not unless you had a death-wish. The worn-but-working vehicle shuddered to a stop, the guy inside quickly getting out.
{Peter} : "Hey, Fred. Got stuff tah go?"
{Fred} : "Just the usual bag of mail,... and a young lady needing directions to somewhere I've never heard of before."
{Janice, smiling for effect} : "Yeah, I'm trying to get to Red Rock; My aunt lives out there, and is expecting me."
{Peter, rubbing his chin} : "Red Rock? I've been lots of places around and outside 'ah Harvest Valley, but never any place called Red Rock..."
{Janice} : "Then how about Jacksburg? Believe me, if you've ever been there, you'ld probably remember it."
{Peter, lighting up} : "Now I have been there before. Not a nice place at all; In fact, its downright dangerous at times..."
{Janice, with a sigh} : "That's the place, alright... Can I get a lift for me and my bike?"
{Peter, chuckling} : "No probs, lady; I had to run some stuff out there t'day anyway. I'll load yah bike up, and we can go."
{Fred, smiling} : "Now if you ever come this way again, remember ol' Fred, okay?"
{Janice, shaking his hand} : "I'll try, if I'm not busy with something else."
:: The ride was rough-going; but Janice had been on worse washboard roads before. They left what amounted to the "Main Road", and headed down a winding switch-back trail that emptied out onto a service road, which in turn lead onto Highway Sixty-Two. When they came to a roadside rest-stop, Janice unloaded, confident that she could find her way to Red Rock from there. She watched as Peter rode away, and then got on her bike. To her surprise, it gave her its usual fit, prompting her to apply her usual "remedy" to it. Namely a swift kick that released a stuck cylinder. Then it roared to life, spewing its usual mix of carbon monoxide into the air. She wrote it off as just a coincidence, and asked a State Trooper parked nearby for directions. She made good time, and reached her aunt's farm by late afternoon. The old farming-maid was glad as ever to see her "little Janny"!
{Janice, chuckling} : "Aunt Lucy, it's Janice, okay? But I'm glad to see you, too. How's the farm's going?"
{Aunt, helping with Janice's bags} : "Oh, it's not too bad; I made by this year. But where were you last night? When you never showed up, I got a bit worried..."
{Janice, not wanting to worry her} : "Oh, I got turned around in the rain somewhere, and ended up in a really weird town off highway sixty- two. Some place called Silver Dale...."
:: Her aunt gasped as if in horror, dropping the bags in her hands as if they were red-hot! When Janice looked, her aunt was holding her chest, eyes buldging several inches in width.
{Aunt, stammering} : "You were in Harvest Valley?! Why did you leave?! Now you'll never be able to find your way back, not if you tried for the rest of your life!"
{Janice, concerned} : "Aunt Lucy, calm down; You'll give yourself a stroke. And what do you mean I can never go back there? You're making out like this place is magical or something..."
{Aunt, now distant} : "Magical? That word is too shallow for such a place. No crime; No strife; Nothing but simple, peaceful ways of living. I wasn't much older than you when I first reached Silver Dale. I had been hiking when a terrible thunder storm suddenly began, as if something in Heaven was trying to wash me away for some unknown transgression. I tried to find shelter, but lost my footing by a cliff, and went over into the river below. I don't know how long I was tossed around in those torrential waters; but I finally managed to pop to the surface, and was almost immediantly rescued by a young farm-boy named Morgan. He took me inside his small house, and his mother cared for me that whole night. I found the place comfortable; so I stayed a while, helping that nice woman out as best I could. It was during this time that I learned about Harvest Valley, a secret place hidden from the rest of the world by a force that is only refered to as the Harvest Goddess. In this place, things that you would think are magical are in fact common-place. The people of Silver Dale live a good life filled with peace and happiness, and seasoned with the various trials of life common to the farm. But in the end, everything seems to turn out fine, where everyone benefits from everyone else's efforts. I was even given a small farm of my own there, a charming place just outside of town that I called the Silver Lining. Because in Harvest Valley, everything you do - no matter how badly - will yield a "silver lining" of its own..."
{Janice, stunned} : "That explains why my bike worked so good and without smog there. Aunt Lucy, did you ever go to a place called Moon Hill ?"
{Aunt, nodding} : "Many times. It's said that the Moon Goddess exists there somewhere in a physical form, possibly that of a beautiful, elven woman who is always surrounded by the pure glow of the moon itself. But why do you ask?"
{Janice, swallowing} : "Aunt Lucy, I have to appologize;... but I actually ended up there because of an accident on my bike last night. This truck came out of nowhere, and forced me off the road. I went over the embankment, and passed out. When I woke up, I was told that someone found me and my bike at the foot of Moon Hill, without even a scratch on me or my bike. Oh, and I meant someone named Morgan, a doctor with his own Clinic...."
{Aunt, smiling a mile-wide} : "So he finally became a doctor! I'm so happy to know that, Janny..."
{Janice, narrow-eyed} : "Aunt Lucy,... I'm going to find my way back to Harvest Valley. If this place is all you say it is, protected I mean, then there has to be a reason why both of us ended up there during a thunderstorm. When I was there, I felt like I belonged there. I've never felt like before, except here on the farm."
{Aunt, sighing} : "Janice, I never have been able to talk you out of anything before;... so I'm not going to try now. But before you go, there are a few things you'll need to stake out a homestead there..."
:: Lucy took her across the farm to the barn where Janice had played for hours as a child. There had been horses as well; but they had been sold years before, a set of tack and bridle hanging off an old saddle being the only notion they had ever been there. Janice watched as her aunt opened up the root-cellar where Janice had spent many afternoons canning and preserving everything from apples to jellies. Now the only thing down there was an old footlocker with an impressive lock hanging off the front. Janice doubted if someone could have removed it with a shotgun! With a key from underneath it, her aunt had it open in a few seconds. Inside was an old dress covering a backpack and a lot of boxes and bundles.
{Aunt, holding the dress up} : "I almost forgot I had this. Wore during the Spring Festival, and had the available guys hanging off me like cobwebs..."
{Janice, grinning} : "Aunt Lucy,... I never took you as that kind of girl..."
{Aunt, giving a sigh} : "That was a long time ago. But enough about me;... This is what I was talking about..."
:: Removing and then opening the pack, Lucy started showing Janice a variety of things.
{Aunt} : "You'll find this stuff handy if you make it to Silver Dale. This is proof of ownership to the Silver Lining Farm; You'll need to take that to the Mayor first-thing to have it recorded into the Town Records. Don't loose it; Without it, you'll have nothing but grief in Harvest Valley! The key to the farmhouse, and not to leave your person even after you've had your ownership recorded. This key is your link to the Silver Lining, and will give you... certain privledges inherent to all farm owners there. This.... is your work-belt. It belonged to the farm's owner before me; and the pockets are special. Once in Harvest Valley, each one will hold a different item you'll need to work the farm, no matter how big that item might be. Finally, and most importantly since it exists even there,... my money-card. There is no paper currency; but coins are used for incidentals like a drink at the local Inn. You'll also need it to mail letters, use phones, and check out books at the library. Once you're recorded with the Mayor's Office, and settled in at the Silver Lining, I strong advise you spend a few hours there brushing up on the "Need To Know" points of life in Silver Dale and Harvest Valley. Keep the pack; It'll come in handy. I'll fix you up with some food and other stuff to hold you over until you're on your feet...."
{Janice, puzzled} : "If you're so certain I won't make it there,.... why are you packing me up like I will ?"
:: Once her aunt had closed the foot locker, she turned, and smiled at Janice....
{Aunt} : "There's always been something about you that's felt like the time I spent in Silver Dale,.... like the feel of being around an old friend you haven't seen in years. Being painfully honest, you never fit into this world. Most times, I don't think you ever tried. But you were happy in Silver Dale, right?"
:: Janice just nodded...
{Aunt, smiling} : "You belong in Silver Dale;.... and something tells me that you'll find your way back there. When you do, tell Morgan.... that an old, wrinkled wildcat he fished out of the river one night said hello...."
{Janice, smiling} : "I sure will, Aunt Lucy;... I'll make sure of it...."
:: With that, as evening was beginning to darken the skies, Janice packed up her bike again, and started back for the one place where she had felt she really belonged. She quickly reached the side-road that Peter had used, and with a prayer for success, she headed down the roadway, which seconds later covered over with mists before vanishing completely....
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