Author's note: Hello there! I'm glad to see my story has interested you!
This fanfiction will be Sunshine Islands/ Another Wonderful Life Oriented, chapters 1 and 2 will be set in Forget-me-not- Valley.
I really hope you like it, and please, review!
I do not own Harvest Moon.
Chapter 1: We Don't Fight Fair...
"I just don't see why I have to go through with this." I say again to my mother. "I mean, we've—well, I've lived in the valley since I was born, why should I have to leave now? My friends are here, my memories, my life. How come Jack gets to stay, but I have to go take care of grandpa's farm?" I say, distressed.
"Honey, please don't start this again. We've already agreed you should have a fresh start somewhere els-"
"Who is 'we', mom? You and Ross? He just doesn't want me around, and you know I-"
"Ross and I have decided that it would be best for you to live your life somewhere else besides a small town where everyone knows everyone, honey, don't you think your friends will leave, eventually move away? You need to meet people, you need to try and socialise somewhere apart from the valley and the market side of mineral. I mean, come on, hon, you don't really think that your...friends are going to live here forever? Surely you don't think that they will decide to go somewhere else to have their...fun?"She says 'fun' while making air quotes. What a bitch, I decide.
"Mom, we're not talking about the fucking future, for goddess' sake, I'm eighteen! Everyone else isn't going anywhere for a while, and, if they are, I doubt it'll be far from their roots. Just cause your mom-"
"This has nothing to do with me; this has to do with the well being of my only daughter!" She says shrilly, folding a pair of jeans into my suitcase. Her voice softens. "You can always visit, honey, I'm not banishing you, for Goddess' sake. Jack's upholding the farm, I wouldn't expect you to sever ties with your brother."
I give her a blank look. She never mentioned this to me before.
"Did I not tell you?" she asks questioningly. "Oh...Well, Ross and I decided to move up North... To a place he grew up as a kid. It's beautiful, honey, he's showed me pictures. There's lakes, forests, fields..." She trails off, a gleam in her eyes. "Anyways. What's done is done, and tonight, people are expecting you!"
I glare at her as I clasp my packed suitcase together and hoist it off the bed and set it on the floor. "And if I don't?"
A rough voice comes is heard from the doorway. "Then it's me you'll be dealin' with."
I instinctively shrink back. I regain my composure quickly, though, and stand right back up to him. "I shouldn't have to listen to you," I say, looking to mom for backup.
Instead, I hear her mumble an excuse to leave the room right before Ross grabs me roughly by the arms. I feel all ten of his fingers dig into my arms and I'm fully aware that's it's gonna leave some slow-healing bruises when he growls in my face, all country twang and chew tobacco and yellow teeth. "You should be glad, I'm payin' for your new life, something your Ma wanted you to have before you keel over, y'ungrateful bitch. And if I ever hear you questioning who's authority around here, your sorry little ass will find out and you won't like the consequences." He squeezes my arms harder for a few seconds, and I have to grit my teeth and shut my eyes so as not to cry out. I hear him give a satisfied grunt, and he abruptly let go. I learned not to hold my arms (or wherever the pain was inflicted), because I learned the hard way that he'll do it again, worse than before. He looked at me right before he left, and I glanced up to see him giving me and ugly smile and say, "Be lucky I went easy on ya, wouldn't want your pretty lil' face bruised when you meet yer neighbours." He gives me a nasty wink and slams the door.
I shudder. He's right, I am lucky. I recalled a time when he damn near beat my face in when I didn't haul in enough fish for supper. Turn out when I got home and started cooking, there was only enough for three people. So I got taken out back I woke up eight hours later with Jack mending my broken wrist, nose, concussion, and bruises all over my ribs and body. Those few months were Hell for Muffy and everyone else, who could only come and see me when Ross was at work up in Mineral Town, or overseas.
I jump a bit when I hear someone knock and look up to see Jack coming in, something in his hands.
"Y'ok?" he mumbles.
"I'll survive," I whisper. "S'not the worst that's happened, ya know."
He looks into my eyes and holds out his hand. "Here," he says quickly. "Not much time before he realises something's up. Take this, and don't say I don't love you. Use it, Jill." I smile at the nickname. We're twins, Jack and I, and one day a few years ago, Lumina thought it'd be funny to call us 'Jack and Jill', and it's stuck with Jack ever since.
He shoves the money in my hand. "It's my savings for the past six months. Since you told me you're leaving. I know Ross won't give you any, so you need some-" I start to protest, but he cuts me off by saying, "Jill, shut the fuck up." Which shuts me up.
"What are you gonna eat, huh? Dirt? Didn't think so. Take it," He says, taking the wad of money from my still-open palms and putting it into the secret compartment in my rucksack that he sewed on when he found out about the weed parties I had with Muffy and Gustafa. "Don't tell anyone." He says quietly. "Never know who'll spread word." He's just done pulling the drawstring on my rucksack closed when we can hear Ross' footsteps getting close to the door. We improvise.
"Where'd you have it last?" Jack says loudly, then kicks the bedframe. "OW! Not under the bed."
"Your head okay?" I say, facing away from the door. We do this all the time, jack and I are probably professional liars by now.
"Hey! I think I see it up there, can you reach it? I can't go without it."
"Yeeeah. Here." He stretches the word, authenticating the 'reacjing' line..
"Yes! Thanks!" I say, grabbing his bandana out of his pocket and stuffing it into my jeans pocket.
"TIME TO GO!" Ross yells from outside the door, making us both jump.
As I exit to the main room, Mom's there. She opens her arms for a hug. I see Ross glaring, so I wrap my arms around her, but that doesn't stop me from spitefully and quickly whispering into her ear, "I'm glad I'm gone, you know? I won't have to put up with your neglect." She flinches away, and I moved forwards again, pecked her on the cheek, and went back to whisper, "and don't forget the scars your 'boyfriends' have given me, they will never heal. They didn't want you, they wanted me." I pulled away, still facing her, and stepped backwards towards the door. "And when they came back to visit, they didn't care about you, they never did! They only cared about how well your daughter looked in cropped shorts and tank tops." I reach the door.
I hear her gasp and look to see her hands flying up to cover her mouth in shock. "…Why they never went to the hotel… I didn't…I never… I never thought…"
So, she remembers.
"Yep. Tear your heart out, huh, Ma?" I say maliciously. "Every. Fucking. One." She stares at me in shock, then slowly turns to look at Ross, aghast.
"Oh," I say, mock surprise in my voice. "Don't worry about him. He's all yours. Not that he hasn't touched me." I hold up and arm that clearly displays a line of bruises. She's seen those, though, so I pull up the bottom of my shirt to reveal a colourful medley of bruises scattered in different sizes all over my stomach and chest. "But he goes at me in a more…forceful way, don't 'cha, Rossie?"
I open the door just as he snaps. He grabs me by the arms, enough that his small fingernails dig into my skin enough to break it, and I feel some fresh blood come from the new wounds. Not to mention the grip he has on me is sure to have me sporting new bruises by tomorrow.
"GET THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!" He roars, throwing me on the ground outside. I see Jack try and run out after me, but Ross throes his arm out to stop him. He gives me one last hateful glare, and slams the door on me.
As I'm getting to my feet, the door opens, and I look to see see my suitcase thrown out by my feet.
I grab my suitcase and head to Takakura's, feeling exposed without my rucksack. I wish I hadn't set it down.
Out of the corner of my eye, I see Jack jump stealthily from his bedroom window. He followed the way to Takakura's from behind a line of trees, out of sight from my former house. I don't even bother to knock, Takakura's like my other brother, the kind of family me and Jack want. I see him pouring over this week's order sheets. I say nothing but a simple "Jack's coming," and, picking up an order receipt so he can continue reading it, he stands up and unlocks his window.
As he was setting the paper back down on his desk, Jack jumped in through the window with my rucksack, thank Goddess. I helped him to his feet as Takakura re-locked the window.
"You make it out okay?" I ask him as he dusts himself off.
"Oh, yeah, I just played up a hissy fit, claiming that life wasn't fair, stomped around a bit, grabbed your bag, stomped into my room and slammed my door. They'll leave me for probably…another ten minutes, maybe?"
I sit on the edge of Takakura's bed. "…Can't believe she'd… such a terrible thing….her only daughter!" I hear Takakura muttering.
"Hey, now, don't make it any worse than it already is, Kura!" I glance up to see Tartan waking up, stretching his leaves.
"Shut up, you," Takakura grumbles miserably. "Or I'll put carrot shavings in your mulch."
Tartan instantly closes his mouth, but doesn't stop his smile or wavy-dance.
"Tartan…" I say, his brutal honesty almost comforting right now. At least I know one person who's not pitying me.
He turns to me, almost as if seeing me for the first time. "Hey there, Jill!" he quips happily. Unfortunately, 'Jill' was the first name he heard when meeting me, so from now on, in his mind, I will always be known a Jill, or the farm girl.
I sit and chat with Tartan for a few minutes when I realize Takakura's gone. I'm only able to say, "Where's-" when I'm cut off by him re-entering with a few things: a button-up shirt (much like what Marlin wears), and 2 large bags of seeds.
I notice, upon close inspection, I see that the seeds are breadfruit, and….Shit, what's the name? Fuck, I forgot it. Is it Rary? It's a fruit that looks and flashes like a light bulb. They're either Yellow or Blue, we have both seeds mixed in the bags, they're the same hybrid.
Within the next few minutes, I have the oversized button-up hanging over my shoulders, not having bothered to button it, my rucksack over my back, suitcase in hand, goodbyes said, and I'm ready to leave. I give Jack one last hug, to which he whispers into my ear, "Take care of yourself, and keep in touch... I'll miss you," he adds, just before clambering back out the window and going back through the trees. I hitch my rucksack up over my shoulder some more, and prepare for the goodbyes to life as I knew it.
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xoSoul