001. Creation Story
Once upon a time, there was a kingdom ornamented with fruitful trees and dewy soil. The water ran upwards, the flowers were abundant, and the land had an element of magic in every fiber of its being. The trees were long, and tall, serving as a canopy for the fairies and sprites born from the buds of every kind of wildflower. Although this budding kingdom flourished, there was no leader to direct the mythical creatures in the growth of their kingdom, and each one of them feared an upheaval or anarchy.
The creatures grew restless, and thus they wished the trees to bring them a queen to love and worship, a queen to take care of them and direct them in the growth of their kingdom. For days, prayers were fed into the green leaves of the trees, into the hard, brown bark, and even in to the water, hydrating the tree with hopes and dreams. One day, three great flowers began to grow in the soil among the giant oak tree, named The Creator.
The Creator was tall and wide, so tall that it towers over the other trees, comforting them with its drooping leaves and willow-y branches. There is a clear lake that nourishes The Creator, which houses the water nymphs and mermaids and all sorts of fish. One day, the trees were gossiping amongst themselves. They talked about materializing a child of this wood, one that would lead their beautiful land with justice. The Creator heard their suggestions, and soon three large, budding flowers grew from the ancient bark: a yellow daisy, a blue violet, and a red rose.
Seasons had passed, yet the buds of these flowers did not bloom. "Patience," The Creator whispered to its sprite and fairy children, "Great rulers take time to grow. Just wait three more days, and your lands will have three queens."
"Three queens?" Asked one fairy, "But we only need one beautiful and fair ruler!"
"Young one, you have much to learn. I give you three in case one turns on the other. I promise you, three queens are better than one." The Creator consoled, giving his children the solace they needed.
Thus, the fairies and sprites, water nymphs and mermaids all began to work together to create one big festival. They dressed themselves in their best garb, picked the ripest fruits, and decorated the land with every color flower imaginable. The third day came, and just as the last snowflake of winter melted off of the big flowers, they began to slowly bloom.
The first to bloom was the yellow daisy. Out came a small girl, waking from her photosynthetic slumber. Her long blond hair was smooth and silky, her cheeks decorated with the slightest of freckles. Her body was small, pale as ivory, and premature. She sat up from her flowery bed, and looked around at her fellow brothers and sisters with her curious, light amber eyes. She jumped as the The Creator's voice filled the air between them.
"Behold your first sister, friend, and Goddess of this land, for she will offer you fertile soil and ripe harvests."
The second to bloom was the blue violet. There was yet another small girl, but this one was tan, and her hair a short, brown color with thick texture. She stretched her small, naked body out, almost oblivious to the crowd in front of her. Finally, sitting up, she noticed the crowd and her cheeks turned a faint pink. Her ocean blue eyes met each one of her brothers and sisters, and they could not help but fall in love with this small child.
"Behold your second sister, friend, and Enchantress of this land, for she will enrage your hearts as well as melt them."
And lastly, the third to bloom was ripped open by the small hands of the third small child. Her wavy, thick red hair framed her small face and shoulders, and soon the entire crowd found her the most beautiful of them all. She rolled out of her flower, and into the green-blue grass below, and she was soon surrounded with her brothers and sisters. She did not seem as curious as the Goddess, or as embarrassed as the Enchantress. Instead, she looked at the smaller creatures with her black eyes, and the fairies and sprites, water nymphs and mermaids all knew she would be their true one ruler.
"Now behold your last sister, friend, and Witch of this land, for she will rule your moon and skies, sunshine and storms."
Cheers came from the crowd, and then the festival began. The three sisters were dressed in their appropriate color in silky threads, ate the most luxurious of meals, and were entertained by the best of singers and dancers. The forest was rejoicing, and after three days and three nights, the festivities began to wither. Some sprites went back to work, planting flowers, some mermaids went back to attending their seaweed patches, but one particular brown sprite called out to The Creator.
"Forgive me, but our queens are mere children!" He said, and the crowds grew silent. The three sisters looked at him, and back at The Creator. "How do we know these little girls will rule us properly? Like just and fair queens are supposed to?" And the crowd gasped at his insolence, at his seed of doubt and of worry.
For a while, the giant tree was silent and unmoving. One sprite screamed, "Don't listen to him, we trust your judgement!" Yet the air was filled with doubtful whispers: "What if that one sprite is right?"
The Creator's silence was one that screamed uncertainty, and then the crowds broke out in chaos. The fairies screamed, spilling their dust and flying around in crazed patterns. The sprites gossiped and fought, all unwilling to give up their free will to the children. The mermaids grew restless, and the water nymphs were so frightened they shape shifted into the fish of the lake.
At that instant, the Witch stood, and the crowds began to settle. Her sisters soon followed her.
"Why do you not trust the judgement of your creator?" She bellowed, and every mythical creature knew this was not the voice of a child, "Why do you not trust the judgement of your father?" The crowds grew silent. The Witch felt the power of the giant oak tree channeling through her body, making her emit the same red color as her flower. She turned to her sisters, and they were also glowing with the magic of the daisy and violet.
At that instant, the three sisters knew The Creator was inside of them. The fairies and sprites, water nymphs and mermaids knew it too, for their magic enveloped them as fellow subjects and servants. The three sisters were an extension and a voice of The Creator, and every one soon knew that to be true. The Witch turned to the brown sprite.
"Do you question your Creator? Your queen?"
The brown sprite moved through the crowd and up to the Witch herself, calm and collected. He did not have to scramble his thoughts to answer her rhetorical question; he did not cower in his boots. He merely took off his brown cap, and bowed to the towering Witch and her sisters.
"I already have, beautiful Witch, but do not scorn me. You know not of our land yet, and you know not of your subjects. You may be part of our Creator, but you have not seen our ways yet." And with that, the Witch grew silent, trapped by his words.
He continued, "You need a mentor, an advisor. You need a friend who knows every one of these creatures until you get the hang of things."
The Enchantress tapped the Witch's shoulder, a gesture to move aside, and the Witch did just that. She crossed her arms, looking down at him with a raised brow, "Are you saying you want to be our so-called 'advisor'?" The Goddess moved from behind her to scoop up the small sprite in her soft palms. He nodded her thanks, and looked back at the Enchantress. The Witch looked away in disgust.
"If you would honor me with that privilege..." He trailed off, finally feeling the greatness of their power. The Goddess leaned over to the Enchantress, the Sprite wobbled from the unexpected movement, and she whispered in her ear that made her sigh. "Really? You think so?" The Enchantress asked, lowering her arms. The Goddess nodded, and the Witch looked at them with her puzzled expression. The Goddess laid the Brown Sprite down, and the Enchantress snapped her fingers.
The brown sprite began to grow and grow and grow, until he too had begun to tower a few feet above the three sisters. "What is going-?" He exclaimed, touching his face and silky brown hair that covered his muddy brown eyes, then his long arms and looked down to his toned body. The Enchantress looked up at him, and smirked. "You will be our Advisor, but first, you need some clothes." The Goddess giggled, and his face grew red with embarrassment. And thus, the three sisters created the first Man of their small kingdom.
The Advisor turned around, looking at all of his now smaller friends in amazement, now seeing through clearer eyes. He could heard the birds and other forest critters through sharper ears, and looked back at the three sisters. Looking down at them, they suddenly were not all that scary or powerful-looking, but instead, actually looked like little girls, almost like daughters; however, he knew better than to regard them as his subordinates. He knew they were magnificent, and they would grow up to be the most beautiful rulers of this kingdom. At this thought, he bowed to the three of them, and the crowd behind him followed.
He lifted his head, "Well, my queens. What will you call this unnamed kingdom?"
"Woodnote Valley" The Goddess whispered, and everyone turned to the little blond girl as she spoke her first words as a Queen of Woodnote Valley.
A/N: Thank you so much for reading my first Harvest Moon "longfic". Three Reviews = Update;)