Author's Notes (8/20/18 Update): Hi! This story was originally written in 2010, then sluggishly revised from 2012 - 2017. The quality of writing varies throughout the story and there are some plotlines that I don't like very much, but after combing through it, I decided it's not that bad of a read. I uploaded an old chapter that'd I'd originally scrapped, one that goes between Chapters 14 and 15, but other than that this story will remain untouched. It's mostly finished, so you won't be left hanging if you decide to read it.
Anyways, enough rambling. Enjoy!
Friday, Spring 6
I rolled over in my bed, light from the outside shining through my window, making rays that led straight to the floor and revealed the particles that floated lazily in the air. Pain. There was an aching pain that started in my back and soon ran throughout my body as I moved more and more. Getting up now seemed out of the question since it would hurt and I was still exhausted. The sun told me that I should've been awake hours ago, but seeing as no one noticed my absence, it wouldn't hurt to sleep in a bit more. I shut my eyes, focusing only on the sound of the ceiling fan whipping in one direction and the comfort of curling up and pulling the blanket over my shoulder.
SLAM! There was a startling sound that emitted from the front of the house and shook the windows and walls of the home. As any person would be when they've just woken up, my ears were sensitive to all noise and I covered my ears in response, whining. I opened my eyes and propped myself up with my elbow, squinting at the sudden brightness. The figure became clear as my vision focused. It was Takakura, my father's best friend and co-owner of the farm.
"Hey!" He shouted, his thick southern accent flowing throughout the house – if you could even call it that. "Wake up! It's nearly noon!"
I furrowed my brows and groaned, plopping back down on the bed and paused, waiting as the sharp pain shook my body. After the pain faded, I pulled the bed sheets over my head and shut my eyes, hoping he'd be sympathetic enough to leave and let me rest a little longer. It quickly hit me that this was the same Takakura who'd forced me to work until fatigued and says 'No blood, no foul'.
"Can't I take a sick day?" I asked, but it came out more as a whine. I buried my face into the pillow, waiting for the response.
I heard footsteps walking towards me and the bed sheets were ripped off my body, cool air now surrounding me. I rolled over on my back, waited for the pain to subside and fixed my eyes towards the ceiling fan that rotated above my head.
"I'll take that as a no."
He clapped loudly, signaling me to hurry up and get out of bed. "C'mon now, time is money! You've barely got enough to buy a slice a bread, so hurry up and start tending to yer crops!" He nagged, waiting impatiently at the foot of the bed.
"Alright already!" I groaned once again. "I heard you the first time, I'll be out in a few, uncle." I sat up, trying to remember that I wasn't in my small apartment back in the city anymore. I lifted my arms up, stretching and hearing a couple of cracks and pops follow.
Takakura wasn't really my uncle but I just called him that, since Papa and he used to get along like brothers. In fact, he'd even asked me to call him uncle years ago, when I still wore pigtails and was only three feet tall. Of course, being a naïve little girl and all, I'd actually thought Takakura was my blood-related uncle until I was fifteen.
He smiled, satisfied that he'd successfully gotten me out of bed. "Farm life is too hard on ya, ain't it?" He patted my back and I let out a painful moan. "Oh, heh, sorry blondie." He apologized, retracting his hand as I stood up and walked towards the wooden chest by the foot of my bed.
Honestly, they don't even have closets here! I thought angrily, still a little frustrated with the farm – If you could even call it that.
This wasn't the same home my father had when I was growing up. Soon after he'd passed, an intense hurricane had run through Forget-Me-Not valley, devastating everything in its wake. Most of the town remained unharmed, the farmers were the only ones who'd suffered damage through their crops, but Papa's farm took the brunt of the hit. The winds were strong enough to pull a tree right from the ground and sent it flying my father's old home. It'd taken months to clean up, and in its place, Takakura had built a tiny shack for the new farmer who'd eventually be me.
I owned the other half of the ownership to this farm, as my father had written it out to me in his will. I wasn't reaping any rewards though, as no one wanted to come through and live on a farm where they'd have to split the profit. I refused to sell the deed off, either. This place held too many memories and I wasn't about to sell them away.
Just a week ago, I'd make the decision to pack what I could and move from the city back to my father's farm. It wasn't a difficult decision, as it was either move to the valley or get evicted from my apartment. This would become my new normal: living in a glorified tool shed on a neglected farm.
I rummaged through the chest. Takakura had provided me with clothing he deemed appropriate to work in, denim overalls and plaid button-up shirts of different colors.
4 points for variety, uncle. I thought bitterly and grabbed a clean pair of clothes as Takakura began to speak again. "I'll let ya get all pretty then." He said, walking out the open door and grabbing the doorknob, closing it shut.
I let out an exasperated sigh. Oh, papa, I don't think I can handle this.
It was midday. The field was void of any living things, only dirt, rock, and wood resided on the land. The sun shined bright, nearly blinding me every time I looked up from the ground. I lifted my arm to both wipe away the sweat and shield my eyes from the scorching light. My stomach growled hungrily and I realized how long I'd been out here. I let out a weary sigh, looking back down at the ground that was littered with weeds.
There wasn't much I could do as of right now, the land was useless until I cleared it out. I was only able to easily clear a small area by the pond, which seemed like a convenient enough place to plant my first set of crops with the seeds I'd been given. Even with that much, All I could do was plant, water, and wait.
Waiting was a problem. I didn't have enough patience to wait for my crops to grow so I could sell them and make my first gold. On top of that, turnips weren't worth much, so becoming 'rich beyond my wildest dreams' like Takakura had mentioned before persuading me to take up the farm was not going to be as easy as I'd originally thought.
Taking a deep breath, I used all my strength to lift my sickle and swing it back and forth across the ground, cutting the weeds that were within a 5-foot radius.
"Claire!" a familiar voice shouted and I jumped. Startled, I snapped my head towards the area where the voice came. I saw a brunette with a small container in her hands making her way towards me.
"Celia!" I exclaimed, a smile curling on my lips as I dropped my tool and ran towards her, already smelling the intoxicating scent of Mountain stew flowing through the air. I'd met Celia my first day in Forget-Me-Not Valley, while I was out harvesting wild plants. She'd seen me struggling and came right over, helping me pull out the plant. She had asked that same question everyone else had and realized that I was Takakura's apprentice. I went to visit her out in Vesta's fields every day since and we became fast friends after that.
"I made you some Mountain stew since I know you can't cook and all." She smiled nervously, gesturing the container of stew towards me and placing it in my hands. The food was still piping hot as I felt the heat of the container tingle through my fingers. "I thought you might want something to eat for lunch. I hope I'm not being too forward since we just met and all."
"Oh not at all!" I assured her, staring down at the lid container hungrily. I might just be saying that partly because I really, really love Mountain stew. Something in the back of my mind told me, and I quickly shook away the thought. Ah, not like it matters!
"That's great!" She beamed. She looked over my shoulder to peek at what I'd done with the land as the topic for another conversation popped into her head. "How's the farm coming along?"
"Barely." I muttered, glaring back at the sickle on the ground and the small patch of dirt among the sea of weeds.
"Well it's your first week, but you'll get used to the work after a while! In fact, it just might get a little easier for you." My mind wandered as she continued talking about how raising crops were hard for her and anything else that fell under the category of 'farming'.
Why is it that I can't escape this farm? It wouldn't be long before the farm started appearing in my dreams. It's not like I was purposely trying to drown Celia out, but the topic of farming and farm had been all the town ever wanted to talk to me about. How come no one ever talked about their weekend or anything that could qualify as 'fun' with me? I couldn't even get away, because every single moment was work, and when I wasn't working, I was talking about it. I shook my head, trying to pay my attention back to Celia as I caught the tail of her ramble.
"...And that's just a small tip that will cut your workload in half." She smiled warmly.
Damn it! I just drowned out such a vital piece of information! I mentally cursed myself as I forced a smile. "T-Thanks Celia, I really appreciate it."
"No problem! Well, I'm gonna go now, I just wanted to drop off your lunch. Enjoy the food, Claire!" and with that, she was gone. I looked at the container once more, licking my lips as I did so. I couldn't wait to eat, and I decided taking a break was necessary.
I can't wait to eat this! I hope Celia's a good cook. I walked, heading towards the home as I stared at the lid of the container. I bet she is, it doesn't smell like it was burned or anything. I took a deep breath, inhaling the intoxicating scent of Mountain Stew. Damn, I'm getting hungrier by the minute. I mentally paused for a minute. Come to think of it, I've eaten so much lately.
"If I eat too much, I might get FAAAAAT!" My foot must have tripped on one of those stupid stones or something because now I was falling and bracing for impact. My body slammed against the ground, sending a huge shock of pain throughout my body and I hissed, flinching. That's when I noticed that the container of food had flown across the air, and I could have sworn a part of me died as I watched my precious lunch fly. I don't know how, but it landed perfectly a couple of feet away, and the worse that happened was the lid popped off and only a spoonful of stew followed the lid. Other than that, my lunch was perfectly fine.
I let out a sigh of relief, tempted to wipe my forehead and flick my hand in exaggeration. I kneeled and got up, wiping off the dirt and...
"Turnip?" I looked down at the ground and my face darkened. I had landed on three of my crops, and one of them had already sprouted. the one crop that finally grew completely... was the one that I crushed. Bits of turnip decorated my overalls and I almost let a tear fall. All the built-up frustration that I had been quietly bottling up from every single mishap since Monday was all let out by one loud scream.
"AAAAH!"
It was ten o'clock. The moon shone high and bright in the dark sky. Shadows hid weeds and stones and it became harder to clear out the field. My hair was tied up in a messy bun, stray strands of hair sticking out and bouncing around. I had put it up earlier in the afternoon when the sun was at its hottest. I was too preoccupied with the field to put it back down when the sun started to set and now the breezes had cooled me off and dried up all the sweat. Ugh, I need a shower.
I looked over at Takakura's house, the light that came from within shining out the window and onto the ground. The light soon flickered off, which meant that he – along with the rest of town – was going to bed.
I straightened out my back, placing my sickle blade down and supporting myself up on the handle. Looking over at the entrance of my farm, I thought for a moment. Why don't I go out? Everyone's asleep by now, which means no one would be able to talk to me about the farm. Just that one fact made me want to drop my tools and run out into town. Maybe I can find something fun to do.
The town wasn't anything like the city – obviously, I knew that – which meant that there wasn't bars and nightclubs around every corner. It meant that the town was lit up by the moon at night, not by street lamps and cars. That also meant there wasn't thousands of stores and restaurants to eat and shop at. There weren't any huge shopping malls. The town sleeps, the city never does.
Memories of the city began to run through my mind as I dragged my heavy feet across the ground, clouds of dust forming then falling as I did so. Who knew I missed home so much? Heading out into town, I pulled off the hair tie holding up my hair and brushed it out with my fingers as it fell and landed on my back and shoulders. I followed the cobblestone, not heading for any place in particular until I reached the foot of a hill. I slowed to a stop. A hill? Where could this possibly lead? There were huge cherry blossom trees lining both sides of the path. I looked around, looking for a sign that said 'No Trespassing' or 'Do Not Enter', but there were none.
What if the signs are at the top of the hill? It would be a pain to walk all that way just to come back down. I thought about the pros and cons – either go home and fall asleep or go uphill and see what awaits. Even if there was a sign that would prevent me from going any further, I could probably use the exercise from the walk up and down the hill. I decided that no matter which way I look at it, it'd still be better than going home and going to sleep.
So I began. The long uphill walk that would take me somewhere that wasn't the dreaded farm. It reminded me a lot about high school, that was also on a hill took a twenty-minute walk to get to. High school... pretty fun while it lasted. I was the captain of the girls' volleyball team my third year, and I was fairly popular among the girls.
Among the girls...
I was never very popular with boys in high school. They never looked at me, I never seemed to catch their attention, and I've... never had a boyfriend. Of course, I've had my first kiss, even if it was at a friends' party playing truth or dare. But I'm sure that counts! I mean, I kissed someone other than my parents, even if there weren't any feelings behind it. But come to think of it, I did develop a crush on the boy I kissed...
I was heartbroken when I found out he had gotten a girlfriend the next day when we went back to school. I was just that naïve when I was younger. I've thrown in the towel with men. Of course, I do think now and then it would be nice if I had someone to get my mind off my newfound farm life but men have no interest in me.
"Hello, beautiful. Walking alone at night?"
Like that. No guy has ever called me beautiful before, so hoping for that special someone would be –
"B-Beautiful?"
I quickly looked up and was shocked to see that there was a tall, slender man standing in front of me, with long silver hair that was swept off to the side and adorned his face. Although I'd only seen his eyes for a moment, they were a bright, memorizing turquoise. Pale fair skin and a chiseled face. Every feature of his face seemed to balance out perfectly. No crooked nose, no wide-set eyes, just perfect symmetry. Who is this guy?
"It's very rude to stare, fair maiden. I'm well aware that I am quite handsome, but you've just been standing there for a while now." He placed his hand on my cheek, snapping me out of my trance. I quickly swatted his hand away and jumped back, staring up at him in bewilderment.
"D-Don't touch me! I don't even know you! Walking around here, calling girls b-b... b-beau.." The word was stuck in my throat. I don't know why I was so flustered. Although he seemed a bit cocky, I couldn't deny he was very good-looking.
He chuckled and brushed his hair out of his eyes with his hand. "You've probably heard of me since I'm quite the ladies' man and a prince of the stars." He gestured towards the sky, a smirk curling upon his lips.
I blinked, raising a brow at his statement. A bit cocky might have been an understatement. He definitely thinks highly of himself. Ladies' man? Prince of the stars? What the hell? This guy can't be serious! "That attitude will get you nowhere but trouble."
He chuckled once more. I heard a loud slam and turned in the direction of the noise. I let out a tiny gasp, realizing what it was that sat atop of this hill. A mansion?! A large stone fountain stood in front of me, quietly gushing out gentle streams of water. A brick pathway circle around the fountain, leading to the iron wrought doors of the mansion. It seemed like an old estate, but you'd wouldn't be able to tell from the condition. A colonial-style mansion with large windows decorated the front of the home, with a beautiful double door in the middle. I felt so small in comparison to such a home. Who could live in such luxury?
As if to answer my question, a familiar female voice screams from the other side. "Hey! Aren't you that famous thief that warns his victims ahead of time?" I heard footsteps as the face of the voice began to come around the fountain.
"Lumina?" She lived in a mansion? How come she'd never mentioned this before?
More importantly, did she just say thief?
"Sorry, but I'm a bit pressed for time. I'm about to jet out."
"Hey wait! What the hell? Where are you going? Could you at least tell me who you are?" I nearly reached from him, stopping myself as my fingers brushed against his arm.
The silver-haired thief paused, turning around and letting out a small chuckle. How many times is he going to do that? "Call me Phantom Skye. I have a feeling we'll meet again, it's in the stars." He looked up at the sky once more, then winked at me. I watched, dumbfounded, as he made his way downhill.
I wonder what it was that he stole. Probably some jewels. After all, a mansion in such a small town just screams 'steal from us, we're richer than you!'
...Wait, why aren't I doing anything about this? Just as I'm about to chase after the thief, I hear Lumina shout and storm after him angrily.
"Wait right there!"
He stopped, turned to look back at Lumina and as his eyebrow twitched in the process. What was up with this guy? He seemed annoyed that we were stopping him from getting away but what did he expect? This thief... isn't a very good one. I'll just let Lumina handle this one.
"Hold up beautiful. Don't let such raw anger steal away your beauty."
Was it the way he looked at her when he said it or was it more the way he said it? Either way, Lumina seemed to melt. Her face gained a red tint and she blinked a couple of times before a 'shot-with-cupids-arrow' look replaced her once angry face. "What a smooth talker… Phantom Skye…"
His reaction was a smirk, knowing he'd accomplished what he wanted to. Not looking back to see my shocked expression, he continued on the downhill path that would take him back to town.
"L-Lumina!" I shrieked. "Go after him!" I placed my hands on her back and gave her a gentle push, urging her to go and catch him. She walked forward at a leisurely pace and I let out a groan. She's walking so slow! I darted after him, trying my best not to trip forward as I ran downhill but it was too late. The darkness of the night seemed to swallow him and once I'd reached the end of the hill, he was nowhere to be found.
I stood there, staring at the foot of the hill waiting for Lumina to catch up with me. A minute later and she appeared, walking at the same pace as she was at the gates of the mansion. She must have seen that he had already escaped and going down any further would just be a waste of time. "Phantom Skye! He… he got away from me!" Even though she'd said that I knew she didn't feel any sort of resentment for letting him get away.
"Somehow I don't feel like you regret letting him go at all..." I muttered under my breath, a bit exasperated from all this.
She smiled like an idiot and giggled. "That thief is cool!"
"Yeah. Real cool." My words were drenched with sarcasm. I couldn't believe I was wrong in my judgment of letting Lumina get the thief herself.
I left Lumina to her own devices as I begrudgingly took the cobblestone path back to the farm Something very interesting had happened in this plain old town and I know his name. His words still echoed in my mind and as they did I began scheming.
"I have a feeling we'll meet again, It's in the stars."
Oh yes, we will, Phantom. And when we do, I'll be sure to capture and arrest you!
