Harvest Moon
The Secret Lullaby
By- Sleepy Sheep
A.N~ First fanfic, so if it sucks you know the reason why. FanFiction.net is trying to be a bitch to me so the format may be screwed up. I only own myself and also own any names I give to previously nameless characters but obviously not the characters themselves. I am using Final Fantasy's currency because Gil is better than G, isn't it? I altered house designs to make it more realistic. Where do Harris, Rick, and Saibarra sleep? How about this: Where do the adults sleep? The Vineyard only has one bed ya know. Where is the bar owner all day? So many questions. This is not a "List of good questions fanfic"... so I will stop. This will be a HM 64 / Save the Homeland crossover probably. I have not played Back to Nature yet but anyways, here is the first chapter or whatever.
Chapter 1-A trip to see Grandpa
I had always hated all the noise of the city. Lived with it all my life. The constant noise of traffic going down the road. The blare of the horns in rush hour. The smell of the air.. disgusting. I never could get used to it. I was cursed to put up with it so long. All that would change tomorrow.. My grandpa was very sick . He had a farm out in a small backwater village far off. Twenty years of living in the city, I was glad to leave even if just for a day. Maybe I'd stay for a while; the fresh air would do me good and I would get much more peace and quiet out there.. I looked over to my Metallica CD's, maybe not.. heh heh. I decided I would take some clothes in case I could stay for a few days. No way was I going to leave my Metallica either. It would be a long trip after all. I didn't like living here, maybe I could find a place to live there. I know Grandpa's house is small so I don't think I can stay there at his house. Come to think of it.. it had been about fourteen or
fifteen years since I had been there. I stayed at the farm during the summer with him and Grandma. When she died, my dad didn't have time to take me. It was his mother, why didn't he go? I sometimes can't understand him. Honestly, I almost never can understand his way of thinking. I was glad to be going back though. Dad criticized Grandpa for not coming to the city. Dad doesn't understand the value of the fresh air and the quiet atmosphere of the country. I missed it a lot. I worked with my dad. He runs a business. I had a boring desk job. I was off today so I was just sitting around in my little apartment, watching TV. There was nothing on so I decided to think about tomorrow. I was worried about Grandpa, dad said he was in bad shape. I was pretty bored so I eventually took a shower and went to bed early.
I dreamed that night, of what I can't remember, before I knew it, it was time to wake up. An early start for a long ride. I changed clothes then I grabbed my walkman and CD's and walked out the door. As I walked out I looked back. An old beaten up couch, plain white walls with many stains scattered across them, a TV, my Nintendo Sixty-Four with several games that I had already gotten tired of, a kitchen and a small bathroom. What a dump. It made me glad to be leaving, made me want to stay gone in fact. Short, dark brown hair, brown eyes, a short goatee, that's me. By the way, my name is Shane. Since it will be a long trip I'll tell you more about myself. I'm listening to a Metallica CD but I will try not to sing along while I am talking. I was an only child, born a few days before Summer; the twenty-sixth of Spring. My mother died when I was eight.. My grandma died when I was seven.. They both sang to me to put me to sleep when I was very little. I don't really remember much
else about them because I was so young when they passed away. Dad told me I was never the same after that; who would be? I don't feel like saying anymore about that. School was boring, but I was the smartest in class. I never felt like doing my homework, so eventually my grades started dropping. Dad got upset because of that and made me do my homework before I did anything. I'm glad all that is over now. I did well but I hated school. Dad blamed that on my mother's death. So much he blamed on that. My mother.. was she just an excuse to him? I don't have anything against him, but it isn't right.
My dad packed sandwiches for the trip, so I grabbed one and looked inside. Ham, cheese, and mayo, white bread. I took a bite out of it and looked out the window. We were passing a field and along side the road there was an old barb wire fence. Far beyond the fence, there were cows grazing. One blankly looked towards us as we passed by and resumed it's eating. Hours passed and nothing happened so I turned off my walkman and laid back in the seat and closed my eyes. I wasn't tired enough to sleep but I thought long and hard on what I was going to do when I got to Grandpa's farm. He'd certainly be glad to see me again. I hoped he would be okay. Dad looked like he was thinking about something too. More hours passed, full of thoughts, Metallica, and a little sleep. As the sun began to set, we pulled in to a motel. I looked at him.
"Dad? Why are we stopping here? It isn't that much further is it?"
"I have an important meeting tonight, so someone from the village will come pick you up and take you the rest of the way to your grandpa's from here," he replied.
"Can't you just skip this meeting dad? This is more important than work."
"I really wish I could Shane, but this is a very important meeting."
He took his job very seriously, but I guess you have to in his line of work if you want to succeed. No one slacked off on the job when he was around. I worked for him.. I knew. He even kept track of our output rates. We couldn't goof off when he was gone either because he knew approximately how much work we should have done by the time he got back. Dad was well respected.. not well liked. My co-workers all called him a slave driver and I couldn't argue. The price of success..
Dad had went to collect the room key so I stood at the car while he took care of everything. I didn't see anyone waiting for me so I looked over at the motel office. A sign in the window said "Help Wanted" and through the window I could see dad and the manager talking and then the man handed dad the key. I watched dad walk out and he handed me the key.
"He hasn't gotten here yet so you can wait in the room until he gets here. I have to go now, take the key with you when you leave. Its for room eight. I'll meet you at Grandpa's house tonight after my meeting, okay?" Dad opened the car door and got in and pulled it shut.
"A'ight... why tonight? Why can't you blow off this one meeting? What if grandpa..."
I couldn't finish the sentence; I hadn't really looked at it like Grandpa could die tonight.. or was already dead.
"I'll tell you tomorrow about everything. Your ride should be here soon. I'll see you later," he said, and then cranked up the car, pulled out of the parking lot, and drove off in the direction we came from. There was no point in waiting out here. Spring had just started and it was still cold at night. I walked over to the rooms and found the door, it was missing the eight but the paint was faded around where it once was. I already had a bad feeling about this room, but I was cold so I put the key in and unlocked the door. When I opened the door, I was hit by a gust of air that nauseated me. What the hell died in there? I reached in and found a light switch by the door. No way I went in without that on. I flipped the switch and... the room was trashed. Completely trashed. There was an apologetic note from the manager for the condition of the room, but this was a disgusting sight. Old pizza covered in mold, beer cans, vomit... The bare light bulb stared at me from the
ceiling, the TV was broken, and I couldn't breathe. Damn it, I had to piss too. In here though? I really had to go. I held my nose and headed for the bathroom. When I opened the door, I found the bathroom to be much more disgusting than the mess I had just walked through. The toilet was full to the brim with dark brown water and it had spilled over too. The floor had brown stains all around the toilet but I really had to go. I looked at the bathtub and found a similar mess there too. Still holding my breath, I quickly pulled down my pants and boxers and urinated in the bathtub. I couldn't hold my breath anymore so I jerked my boxers and pants back up and ran outside and not a moment too soon. I closed the door behind me and exhaled forcefully and inhaled deeply. My breathing was heavy but it slowed down as I caught my my breath. My chest ached but it could be worse. I would have dad send the Board of Sanitation down here later. I wanted to drag the manager out here and lock
him in the room until it was clean, but a truck drove into the parking lot then. The man motioned for me so I guess this was my ride. As I got into the truck the man looked at me before driving off. The man was huge and wore white suspenders, a grey shirt, and jeans. Both shirt and jeans were old, faded, and stained. Was I on my way to Hickville?
"So, you are Eddie's grandson?"he asked.
"Yeah, how well do you know Grandpa?"
"He was a great man. I used to do most of my business with him,"he replied,"but he has been too weak to run his farm for years."
"Is he gonna be okay?" I was beginning to worry more and more now. I didn't know he was in such bad shape.
"I don't think so... He hasn't been out of his bed in over a week now."
"Oh...," I guess things were much worse than I thought. But I really didn't know anything except he was sick. "I didn't know he was that sick."
"He has taken a turn for the worse since word was sent to you and your dad. No one expects him to live through the night now."
"......" No words would come out. I tried to talk but it was if my throat closed up. He seemed to notice how I was feeling now, and he stopped talking about it. I noticed that I left my walkman, CD's, and my clothes in my dad's car. We continued down the highway for what must have been at least an hour, I was absorbed in my thoughts and didn't pay any attention. Then he turned onto a small road.
"We're almost there,"he said turning to me. "Flower Bud Village is a small place, so no one needs a car to get around. Naturally there aren't any roads there so you will have to walk to Eddie's from my house."
"...okay..." I muttered, still not paying very much attention. I just wanted to get there before it was too late. I had to see him before he died. The pavement ended and the road below us turned to dirt as we continued to press onward toward his house. The house came into view and the truck stopped beside it.
"Well, this is it," he said, opening the door and climbing out of the truck. I did the same. This guy was at least a foot taller than me, maybe a foot and a half. After stretching my legs, I decided to set out and find the farm on my own. He joined me before I left his yard. We passed a large house surrounded by ivy. It was a nice house, but I knew it wasn't Grandpa's. Of course not. Nearby in the same direction was a small shack, somewhat the opposite of the house we had just walked by. There wasn't a farm with it but he stopped there anyway.
"You go on ahead," he said. "I'm going to see my little girl and my mother. Just keep walking and you can't miss it. Its straight ahead," he added, pointing in the direction we had been walking. I looked past the small house and saw several other buildings obscured by the darkness of night, made visible by the soft light of the moon overhead. As I passed a larger house, I noticed a chocolate brown dog watching me. It barked at me and momentarily a door opened and an old man looked at me and nodded, knowing why I was here. He pointed too, the same way the other man had pointed. The dog barked again and trotted up to the old man and the door closed. It seemed clear that my destination was further ahead. I came upon a wide open area with no houses next. I could see a path leading back and far to my left, what appeared to be a farm on a hill. Beyond I made out a bridge and heard water sweeping calmly by. So peaceful... Wait, that's not why I am here... He said straight ahead, so
I walked straight ahead. There was a fence grown over with weeds and an open gate with a sign. I examined the sign but the lettering was faded and was no longer legible.
I looked through the gate at a small shack, worn from many years of rain and wind. Through a dusty window I noticed a faint light. The house wasn't painted and was rather ugly. Was this the place? It was smaller than I remembered, but they say everything seems bigger when you are a kid. I guess that is true. I walked across the yard trying to see in through the window. When I got to the window I could barely see through the dirty glass. I couldn't distinguish anything apart because of the grime so I knocked at the door. There was no reply and that worried me. I knew this was the farm; there was an old barn nearby and the path ended at the gate behind me. I made up my mind and decided to let myself in. The door wasn't locked and it creaked as it opened. I looked in hoping to find Grandpa alive and saw him laying on the bed, pale as a ghost. His eyes were closed but he was breathing. His thin hair was gray, nearly white, and he had a slightly thicker mustache but still rather
thin. As I approached him I saw his eyes flicker and then open slowly. They wandered a bit and then focussed on me.
"So he finally let you come back," he said as traces of a pained smile began to appear on his face but quickly vanished.
"I'm sorry I couldn't have come sooner," I replied, nodding to what he said.
"No," he said shaking his head,"it isn't... your fault. " He was losing his breath and that worried me. I felt bad not coming sooner. I was sure that I could have talked Dad into letting me come sometime in my teen years, and I should have come up when I got my license. But then again, I didn't know the way.
"I should have bugged Dad more about bringing me..."
"No.. Shane...," he interrupted, "Do you... remember why he wouldn't... let you come back?"
"No," I shook my head, beginning to frown slightly.
"I.. see..," he said coughing. "Your Grandma... really wanted to see you again before... she... died."
"I love you Grandpa," I said, bending over and hugging my frail grandfather.
"I love... you too...," he replied, hugging me back weakly, coughing harder now.
"Are you okay?" I asked. His health was fading away before my eyes and I could do nothing to stop it or slow it down.
"Listen... Shane, I.. have to.. tell you something...," his voice was weakening. "I... want... you.. to......," his voice then became a low, distorted mumble and I couldn't understand what he was saying.
My eyes welled up with tears; I knew he had breathed his last and died as the mumbling stopped. I checked to see if he was breathing but I already knew he wasn't. The tears slowly ran down my cheeks and I sat on the floor to think and wait for Dad.
A.N~ In case you haven't fell asleep yet, I am writing a note here. It may take a month for me to write another chapter because I am a slow writer usually. Writer's block is my unwanted house guest/roommate/pain in the ass/etc., and wherever I go, it goes with me. So if next year rolls around and there still isn't a second chapter... then I probably exploded from frustration. O.o;;;;
The Secret Lullaby
By- Sleepy Sheep
A.N~ First fanfic, so if it sucks you know the reason why. FanFiction.net is trying to be a bitch to me so the format may be screwed up. I only own myself and also own any names I give to previously nameless characters but obviously not the characters themselves. I am using Final Fantasy's currency because Gil is better than G, isn't it? I altered house designs to make it more realistic. Where do Harris, Rick, and Saibarra sleep? How about this: Where do the adults sleep? The Vineyard only has one bed ya know. Where is the bar owner all day? So many questions. This is not a "List of good questions fanfic"... so I will stop. This will be a HM 64 / Save the Homeland crossover probably. I have not played Back to Nature yet but anyways, here is the first chapter or whatever.
Chapter 1-A trip to see Grandpa
I had always hated all the noise of the city. Lived with it all my life. The constant noise of traffic going down the road. The blare of the horns in rush hour. The smell of the air.. disgusting. I never could get used to it. I was cursed to put up with it so long. All that would change tomorrow.. My grandpa was very sick . He had a farm out in a small backwater village far off. Twenty years of living in the city, I was glad to leave even if just for a day. Maybe I'd stay for a while; the fresh air would do me good and I would get much more peace and quiet out there.. I looked over to my Metallica CD's, maybe not.. heh heh. I decided I would take some clothes in case I could stay for a few days. No way was I going to leave my Metallica either. It would be a long trip after all. I didn't like living here, maybe I could find a place to live there. I know Grandpa's house is small so I don't think I can stay there at his house. Come to think of it.. it had been about fourteen or
fifteen years since I had been there. I stayed at the farm during the summer with him and Grandma. When she died, my dad didn't have time to take me. It was his mother, why didn't he go? I sometimes can't understand him. Honestly, I almost never can understand his way of thinking. I was glad to be going back though. Dad criticized Grandpa for not coming to the city. Dad doesn't understand the value of the fresh air and the quiet atmosphere of the country. I missed it a lot. I worked with my dad. He runs a business. I had a boring desk job. I was off today so I was just sitting around in my little apartment, watching TV. There was nothing on so I decided to think about tomorrow. I was worried about Grandpa, dad said he was in bad shape. I was pretty bored so I eventually took a shower and went to bed early.
I dreamed that night, of what I can't remember, before I knew it, it was time to wake up. An early start for a long ride. I changed clothes then I grabbed my walkman and CD's and walked out the door. As I walked out I looked back. An old beaten up couch, plain white walls with many stains scattered across them, a TV, my Nintendo Sixty-Four with several games that I had already gotten tired of, a kitchen and a small bathroom. What a dump. It made me glad to be leaving, made me want to stay gone in fact. Short, dark brown hair, brown eyes, a short goatee, that's me. By the way, my name is Shane. Since it will be a long trip I'll tell you more about myself. I'm listening to a Metallica CD but I will try not to sing along while I am talking. I was an only child, born a few days before Summer; the twenty-sixth of Spring. My mother died when I was eight.. My grandma died when I was seven.. They both sang to me to put me to sleep when I was very little. I don't really remember much
else about them because I was so young when they passed away. Dad told me I was never the same after that; who would be? I don't feel like saying anymore about that. School was boring, but I was the smartest in class. I never felt like doing my homework, so eventually my grades started dropping. Dad got upset because of that and made me do my homework before I did anything. I'm glad all that is over now. I did well but I hated school. Dad blamed that on my mother's death. So much he blamed on that. My mother.. was she just an excuse to him? I don't have anything against him, but it isn't right.
My dad packed sandwiches for the trip, so I grabbed one and looked inside. Ham, cheese, and mayo, white bread. I took a bite out of it and looked out the window. We were passing a field and along side the road there was an old barb wire fence. Far beyond the fence, there were cows grazing. One blankly looked towards us as we passed by and resumed it's eating. Hours passed and nothing happened so I turned off my walkman and laid back in the seat and closed my eyes. I wasn't tired enough to sleep but I thought long and hard on what I was going to do when I got to Grandpa's farm. He'd certainly be glad to see me again. I hoped he would be okay. Dad looked like he was thinking about something too. More hours passed, full of thoughts, Metallica, and a little sleep. As the sun began to set, we pulled in to a motel. I looked at him.
"Dad? Why are we stopping here? It isn't that much further is it?"
"I have an important meeting tonight, so someone from the village will come pick you up and take you the rest of the way to your grandpa's from here," he replied.
"Can't you just skip this meeting dad? This is more important than work."
"I really wish I could Shane, but this is a very important meeting."
He took his job very seriously, but I guess you have to in his line of work if you want to succeed. No one slacked off on the job when he was around. I worked for him.. I knew. He even kept track of our output rates. We couldn't goof off when he was gone either because he knew approximately how much work we should have done by the time he got back. Dad was well respected.. not well liked. My co-workers all called him a slave driver and I couldn't argue. The price of success..
Dad had went to collect the room key so I stood at the car while he took care of everything. I didn't see anyone waiting for me so I looked over at the motel office. A sign in the window said "Help Wanted" and through the window I could see dad and the manager talking and then the man handed dad the key. I watched dad walk out and he handed me the key.
"He hasn't gotten here yet so you can wait in the room until he gets here. I have to go now, take the key with you when you leave. Its for room eight. I'll meet you at Grandpa's house tonight after my meeting, okay?" Dad opened the car door and got in and pulled it shut.
"A'ight... why tonight? Why can't you blow off this one meeting? What if grandpa..."
I couldn't finish the sentence; I hadn't really looked at it like Grandpa could die tonight.. or was already dead.
"I'll tell you tomorrow about everything. Your ride should be here soon. I'll see you later," he said, and then cranked up the car, pulled out of the parking lot, and drove off in the direction we came from. There was no point in waiting out here. Spring had just started and it was still cold at night. I walked over to the rooms and found the door, it was missing the eight but the paint was faded around where it once was. I already had a bad feeling about this room, but I was cold so I put the key in and unlocked the door. When I opened the door, I was hit by a gust of air that nauseated me. What the hell died in there? I reached in and found a light switch by the door. No way I went in without that on. I flipped the switch and... the room was trashed. Completely trashed. There was an apologetic note from the manager for the condition of the room, but this was a disgusting sight. Old pizza covered in mold, beer cans, vomit... The bare light bulb stared at me from the
ceiling, the TV was broken, and I couldn't breathe. Damn it, I had to piss too. In here though? I really had to go. I held my nose and headed for the bathroom. When I opened the door, I found the bathroom to be much more disgusting than the mess I had just walked through. The toilet was full to the brim with dark brown water and it had spilled over too. The floor had brown stains all around the toilet but I really had to go. I looked at the bathtub and found a similar mess there too. Still holding my breath, I quickly pulled down my pants and boxers and urinated in the bathtub. I couldn't hold my breath anymore so I jerked my boxers and pants back up and ran outside and not a moment too soon. I closed the door behind me and exhaled forcefully and inhaled deeply. My breathing was heavy but it slowed down as I caught my my breath. My chest ached but it could be worse. I would have dad send the Board of Sanitation down here later. I wanted to drag the manager out here and lock
him in the room until it was clean, but a truck drove into the parking lot then. The man motioned for me so I guess this was my ride. As I got into the truck the man looked at me before driving off. The man was huge and wore white suspenders, a grey shirt, and jeans. Both shirt and jeans were old, faded, and stained. Was I on my way to Hickville?
"So, you are Eddie's grandson?"he asked.
"Yeah, how well do you know Grandpa?"
"He was a great man. I used to do most of my business with him,"he replied,"but he has been too weak to run his farm for years."
"Is he gonna be okay?" I was beginning to worry more and more now. I didn't know he was in such bad shape.
"I don't think so... He hasn't been out of his bed in over a week now."
"Oh...," I guess things were much worse than I thought. But I really didn't know anything except he was sick. "I didn't know he was that sick."
"He has taken a turn for the worse since word was sent to you and your dad. No one expects him to live through the night now."
"......" No words would come out. I tried to talk but it was if my throat closed up. He seemed to notice how I was feeling now, and he stopped talking about it. I noticed that I left my walkman, CD's, and my clothes in my dad's car. We continued down the highway for what must have been at least an hour, I was absorbed in my thoughts and didn't pay any attention. Then he turned onto a small road.
"We're almost there,"he said turning to me. "Flower Bud Village is a small place, so no one needs a car to get around. Naturally there aren't any roads there so you will have to walk to Eddie's from my house."
"...okay..." I muttered, still not paying very much attention. I just wanted to get there before it was too late. I had to see him before he died. The pavement ended and the road below us turned to dirt as we continued to press onward toward his house. The house came into view and the truck stopped beside it.
"Well, this is it," he said, opening the door and climbing out of the truck. I did the same. This guy was at least a foot taller than me, maybe a foot and a half. After stretching my legs, I decided to set out and find the farm on my own. He joined me before I left his yard. We passed a large house surrounded by ivy. It was a nice house, but I knew it wasn't Grandpa's. Of course not. Nearby in the same direction was a small shack, somewhat the opposite of the house we had just walked by. There wasn't a farm with it but he stopped there anyway.
"You go on ahead," he said. "I'm going to see my little girl and my mother. Just keep walking and you can't miss it. Its straight ahead," he added, pointing in the direction we had been walking. I looked past the small house and saw several other buildings obscured by the darkness of night, made visible by the soft light of the moon overhead. As I passed a larger house, I noticed a chocolate brown dog watching me. It barked at me and momentarily a door opened and an old man looked at me and nodded, knowing why I was here. He pointed too, the same way the other man had pointed. The dog barked again and trotted up to the old man and the door closed. It seemed clear that my destination was further ahead. I came upon a wide open area with no houses next. I could see a path leading back and far to my left, what appeared to be a farm on a hill. Beyond I made out a bridge and heard water sweeping calmly by. So peaceful... Wait, that's not why I am here... He said straight ahead, so
I walked straight ahead. There was a fence grown over with weeds and an open gate with a sign. I examined the sign but the lettering was faded and was no longer legible.
I looked through the gate at a small shack, worn from many years of rain and wind. Through a dusty window I noticed a faint light. The house wasn't painted and was rather ugly. Was this the place? It was smaller than I remembered, but they say everything seems bigger when you are a kid. I guess that is true. I walked across the yard trying to see in through the window. When I got to the window I could barely see through the dirty glass. I couldn't distinguish anything apart because of the grime so I knocked at the door. There was no reply and that worried me. I knew this was the farm; there was an old barn nearby and the path ended at the gate behind me. I made up my mind and decided to let myself in. The door wasn't locked and it creaked as it opened. I looked in hoping to find Grandpa alive and saw him laying on the bed, pale as a ghost. His eyes were closed but he was breathing. His thin hair was gray, nearly white, and he had a slightly thicker mustache but still rather
thin. As I approached him I saw his eyes flicker and then open slowly. They wandered a bit and then focussed on me.
"So he finally let you come back," he said as traces of a pained smile began to appear on his face but quickly vanished.
"I'm sorry I couldn't have come sooner," I replied, nodding to what he said.
"No," he said shaking his head,"it isn't... your fault. " He was losing his breath and that worried me. I felt bad not coming sooner. I was sure that I could have talked Dad into letting me come sometime in my teen years, and I should have come up when I got my license. But then again, I didn't know the way.
"I should have bugged Dad more about bringing me..."
"No.. Shane...," he interrupted, "Do you... remember why he wouldn't... let you come back?"
"No," I shook my head, beginning to frown slightly.
"I.. see..," he said coughing. "Your Grandma... really wanted to see you again before... she... died."
"I love you Grandpa," I said, bending over and hugging my frail grandfather.
"I love... you too...," he replied, hugging me back weakly, coughing harder now.
"Are you okay?" I asked. His health was fading away before my eyes and I could do nothing to stop it or slow it down.
"Listen... Shane, I.. have to.. tell you something...," his voice was weakening. "I... want... you.. to......," his voice then became a low, distorted mumble and I couldn't understand what he was saying.
My eyes welled up with tears; I knew he had breathed his last and died as the mumbling stopped. I checked to see if he was breathing but I already knew he wasn't. The tears slowly ran down my cheeks and I sat on the floor to think and wait for Dad.
A.N~ In case you haven't fell asleep yet, I am writing a note here. It may take a month for me to write another chapter because I am a slow writer usually. Writer's block is my unwanted house guest/roommate/pain in the ass/etc., and wherever I go, it goes with me. So if next year rolls around and there still isn't a second chapter... then I probably exploded from frustration. O.o;;;;