The Heart Speaks

Disclaimer: Jakuri does not claim to own Harvest Moon or any of its characters, after all, if she did, then why would she be writing fan fiction for it?

A/N: In honor of Valentine's Day, I day I otherwise loath with nearly every fiber of my being, I decided to write up something of a 'short' little romantic oneshot. I've been reading stories that are romantic and such for a while now and thought back to my last Harvest Moon story, Last Night, Good Nightand thought about how I talked about how Claire and Skye never swore to love each other eternally . . . well, that spawned an idea for this story. My most favorite song from the game Ar tonelico II: Melody of Metafalica gave me the true drive to write this story. Okay then, on with the story!

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'There doesn't exist, a single certain thing . . . even then, would you still want to share a single glass of wine with me, even then, would you still want to share a single thought with me?' –The Heart Speaks, sung by the characters Jakuri and Croix Bartel

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Love, pure, true and God-honest love, every girl dreams of it at one point or another in her life. Every girl dreams of finding a prince charming that is kind, loving, and gentle. Every single girl in the world wants to find the guy that will sweep her off of her feet, love everything about her and not judge her for her faults and imperfections . . . and marry her while swearing eternity to her, promising his everlasting love, and heart to her.

I know these things, because these are all things I wanted too. I wanted to find a guy who loved every little thing about me. Even if I am a farmer, that doesn't mean that I don't want my princess moment, I wanted to be swept off of my feet for once and have a man see beauty in me instead of just seeing the dirt that smudged my cheeks and took the shine away from my hair. . . . So much I wanted, to just find love. Even if I wanted a princess moment, the man I fell in love with didn't have to be a prince, hell, he didn't have to be handsome at all, I just wanted someone honest and good. Those things aren't too much to ask for, are they?

Problem about my dreams though, was that as much as I wanted to find love, love didn't seem to want to find me at all. The men in Forget-Me-Not Valley were all spoken for, same for the men in Mineral Town. I once remember that Muffy talked to me about my guy troubles, going so far as to mention Daryl of all people as a potential husband. . . . At the mere prospect of the idea I squeaked in utter disdain. Daryl, he was an odd man, constantly experimenting, keeping the oddest of hours. . . . Weird or not, he'd become a close friend of mine over the course of my time in the Valley, even going so far as to let me in on his secret, that he was housing a mermaid in his basement. Though eccentric, and even if he and I got along well enough, there was just no way in Hell I would even consider him as husband material.

Time went on for me after that little awkward suggestion, I got older, and my dreams and hopes of having a 'prince' or any man for that matter come along to sweep me off my feet faded into the shadows. But, around my twenty-second birthday, I wound up meeting him.

I was on my way to Lumina's manor, the rich heiress had told me to drop by sometime that day to pick up an item that she'd found that she thought might help me with my farming duties. As the day had gone on though, I'd wound up dozing off under a tree on my property while my animals grazed, and when I'd come to, it was nighttime, and far into might I add. Realizing this, I got up and darted for the Manor, hoping I wasn't too late, and I was also hoping that I had not made Lumina mad.

I ran into a man on my way up the stone stairs into the small plaza in front of Lumina's home, an odd rather effeminate man with rather striking silver hair. My heart leapt into my throat at the mere sight of him, I even had to fight to keep my cheeks from burning red. A country girl like me who had never left her small hometown much was easily overwhelmed by seeing a man with such looks. I was leery of him however, even if he seemed to physically beautiful to be real. It was late at night, I was a small girl and he was a strange unknown man, I'd of been very stupid to not be cautious. Of course it was hard for me to maintain proper composure when he complimented me. . . .

After finding out that this man was a thief however, I made sure to get back at him for steal from a friend of mine with a swift punch to the jaw, hard enough to my point across, weak enough to not leave any permanent damage. The thief went by the name of Skye. . . .

And after I had gotten back at him for thieving, he and I ran into one another several times late at night, and despite my better sense telling me to stay away from him, I found myself attracted to the man for both his charm, and beauty, shallow as it sounds. As time went on, and after my failed attempts at stopping him from thieving repeatedly, I began to find myself falling for Skye for more than just the shallower aspect that composed part of him. I began to note little things about him, small things he'd do, actions that seemed to be a habit, quirks in his seemingly perfect smooth talking personality. . . .

And though my better senses kept telling me that Skye was a thiefand that I needed to stay away from him for my own personal safety, I continued to go to him, night after night. Whether it was because of my once long lost dreams of finding my prince, or for the fact that I really wanted Skye to know me as I had begun to know him, I can't say for sure. All I do know for certain, is that I did come to truly love him for who he was, I even became comfortable with the thief label that came with Skye.

Stupid of me? Yes.

Really, it was stupid of me to be okay with the man I loved being a thief! But . . . it was something I couldn't help. Over the course of the following months, Skye continued to visit Forget-Me-Not Valley late at night, never slipping any notes to the citizens of the Valley to warn them of his coming to relieve them of some item in their possession. . . .

I wondered why it was he was still bothering to come to the Valley when it was obvious that he'd gotten everything he wanted already in his previous jobs. So, I stupidly asked him. . . .

I got his answer with a long drawn out breath and a melancholy, "Claire. . . ." before he quietly confessed to me that he wasn't good with these sorts of things. He set his hands on my shoulders, gripped them tightly, it was obvious he was a bit nervous, "I have come to realize that I quite like you, maiden. . . ." he said to me, the confidence that normally overtook his voice was gone. The only thing there then was raw and tender emotion that showed that Skye was taking a leap of faith by confessing that to me. The normally suave thief who showed no true signs of attachment, was opening his heart to me, and also exposing it to utter rejection and pain by telling me that he'd come to 'like' me.

I looked Skye in the eyes; a serious expression on my face, his face was as pallor as ever, due to a lack of sun I supposed, and his eyes were alight with anxiety, fear and trepidation. After a moment of silence, I saw no signs of him lying to me in the least. A small, honest smile played over my lips as I stood on my toes and gave Skye a small kiss on the cheek. Telling him softly, "I'm glad."

After this, a small, somewhat awkward relationship began to bud between Skye and I. I knew deep in my heard that I loved him, I loved Skye dearly. But, this wasn't a matter to push, I knew from his confession that Skye was not a man comfortable with relationships, which is what made ours so very awkward. He was, after all, a thief. He was probably used to charming women, smooth talking them and feigning interest in order to get by. Chances were that, developing real feelings was something that did not occur much for Skye.

Our relationship developed slowly, it took much time for it to progress, handholding, hugging and even our first kiss had been very uncomfortable situations for Skye, I could tell. This was something I found myself okay with, I wanted a prince charming my whole life, right?

Skye . . . was probably as close to one as I would ever get.

Besides, I loved him. I could wait for him to adjust to the new intimacy and the deeper connections we were developing.

As we grew closer and closer, I had wound up ordering a Blue Feather from the general store in Mineral Town. I made the mistake of carrying around with me in my rucksack from the day I got it, to the day that Skye found it. I came to see him, night at the Goddess Pond, like always, only, that night I tripped over a loose stone on the walkway. My rucksack somehow flew off of me, and opened, spilling everything I was carrying inside of it, the feather included. I had honestly forgotten about it. With an embarrassed smile I got up to my hands and knees and began gathering my things back up, nervously laughing and saying, "Silly me."

Skye came over to check on me, making sure I hadn't severely hurt myself in my fall. When I confirmed to him I wasn't hurt very badly, he began to help me pick my things up. . . .

It was his breathy, shocked, "Claire," that caught my attention from gathering my scattered belongings. Still on my hands and knees, I looked over to him, my heart skipping a beat at the sheer amount of hurt that was in his voice.

"Skye. . . ?" I echoed him, my voice questioning why he sounded like a knife had been pierced into his heart. "What's wrong?"

Slowly, very slowly the thief turned to me, a fluff of bright blue gripped tightly in his hand. Realizing that the feather had been in my bag since I had bought it sometime before, my eyes widened and my breath hitched in my chest as my eyes went from the unmoving feather to the betrayal on Skye's face.

"Why," he started slowly, "Why is it that you possess this?"

"I-I-I just. . . ." I started, stuttering like mad. I knew Skye had issues with our relationship progressing too fast, and that he didn't do well with large leaps. The feather and its meaning meant taking a huge leap. . . .

His grip around the Blue Feather intensified, to the point where I could see his fist shaking as he turned his gaze away from me. "So, you are planning on giving your heart to another?"

"What?" I cried out in shock, "S-Skye, I-I, n-no!" For him to even think that I would want to, that I would even think of marrying another. I loved him! Though I had not told him such, I did love him.

Again, he looked at me, his eyes cold, but full of regret, and pain. "You hurt me, Claire, so long we've been together and for me to find out that you are going to give your heart to another in this manner. . . ."

"I'm not-!"

"I apologize for not being talented in matters of the heart and deep levels of intimacy Claire, but I did believe that everything was going smoothly between you and I despite the time it took for us to reach deeper levels. . . ." Skye stood to his feet, the feather still tightly clutched in his hand. "I shall now take my leave, dear maiden, and clutch onto what little dignity I have left." He locked eyes with me then, and as soon as he did, my muscles froze in place, my joints locked up.

I knew full well what was wrong with me, Skye had used his magic and spells to temporarily paralyze me so he could leave without protest. He didn't want to hear what I had to say, because he thought it was going to be something devastating, and even more painful then what he had already assumed.

"Farewell, I wish you the best in life maiden, may happiness bless you." Skye said in a monotone voice as he gracefully walked by me, on the way out of the Goddess' grove. Along the way, he dropped the Blue Feather that was now mangled and crushed from the vise-like grip Skye had on it. I watched, helpless as it gently wavered in the air, spinning a bit as it floated to the ground.

Eventually Skye's magic induced paralysis wore off of me, leaving me to collapse in a heap. How could he think such things? I thought to myself, tears slipping out of my shut eyes. I loved Skye with my whole heart. I wanted to give that feather to him someday. . . . I wanted to give him my heart, no one else could have it. I opened my eyes, and reach out for the feather, picking it up ever so gingerly. I . . . I would still give it to him, no matter what Skye had said, even if he intended on vanishing out of my life forever, I just couldn't let him go now. I was in too deep for that.

Even with the paralysis giving Skye a head start, he could not have made it too far away from me. . . . Without giving it much thought, I hurried to my feet, promptly turned on my heels, sprinted out of the grove, and headed for the path that connected Forget-Me-Not Valley to Mineral Town. The pass was suppose to be dangerous at night, but Skye travelled it every night, so why couldn't I? I kept the Blue Feather clutched tightly to my chest as I darted through the mouth of the pass, disregarding the Harvest Sprite that popped up to warn me of the dangers of the pass at night. This was more important than anything like that. . . .

I began panting maybe an eighth of the way through the pass, the trail was windy, steep and difficult to navigate in the dark. . . . There was still no sign of Skye, chancing it, I called out to him, "Skye! Skye, please answer me! The feather, you didn't understand!"

My voice echoed throughout the whole pass, resounding several times in the bleak silence of the night. "Oh Skye. . . ."

I continued onward, no longer even sure how far into the pass I was now, my mind was set on one thing; Skye.

"Skye!" I called out, not minding my footing on the pathway I was now travelling on.

A crumbling noise came from under my feet, and I lurched to the side, gravity's hand clutching onto me tightly, pulling me down the mountainside. Realizing what was happening to me, I screamed out loudly as I rolled down the steep cliff. I was sure that I was going to die. . . .

My head slammed into a rock, and everything went black before my fears came to be realized fully. . . . The next thing I remember is waking up warm, a jacket wrapped around my arms and torso, as well as my upper body being cradled by something soft and well, warm. A dull throbbing did not escape me though, my skull throbbed with fresh pain, which, at least meant I didn't die from falling down the mountainside. But just who was holding onto me? Day had broken, at least, so I was able to see. I turned my head around trying to see who the person was. . . .

"Skye. . . ." I whispered, my heart skipping a beat as a bit of a smile came to my face.

My voice stirred him from his sleep however as he let out a slight groan and opened his eyes, looking down to me. "You are awake it seems maiden."

I nodded, unsure of what to say to him. I tried to chase him down last night to explain the feather to him and to make him understand everything . . . and that did not end well. "H-How did you find me? And why am I not dead?" I asked him.

"I heard you scream out, like you were in trouble. Even if you are intending on giving your heart to another, I could not let something terrible befall you. As for why death did not come for you, before you were to hit the ground, your shirt became snagged on a branch." he answered. "Now that you have awakened we should return you home-"

"Skye wait!" I shouted, interrupting him before he could say anything more and continue making assumptions. "Last night, the feather, you don't understand anything about it!"

With those words I felt him freeze, his arms locked around my waist. "Am I now? If so, then do correct me."

"The feather . . . it was never for anyone but y-you."

"I-Is that so?"

I nodded and swallowed, my mouth going very dry now. "Yes, that feather was never intended to be for anyone but you Skye. My heart, only belongs to you. . . ."

"Claire, are you saying . . . are you saying that you love me?" I heard Skye whisper lowly into my ear, him having adjusted his head so that it was resting on my shoulder.

"Yes Skye, I am." I whispered back. "I want to be with you forever."

"I see," he muttered quietly, "Before you go making any proposals with me Claire, there is something you should first know. I do not believe in 'forever' Claire."

"What? What do you mean?"

Skye nuzzled his head into the crook of my neck before he answered, "I believe in love Claire, but I don't believe in eternal love, or the concept of forever. Love is something too fragile to swear eternity too."

"A-Ah. . . ." I answered.

"If you ask me to marry you Claire, I will, but I won't swear eternity. I can only promise that I love you right then, and now. If you can accept that, then I will be happy to be with you until either one of us passes on, or one of use no longer loves the other."

Sometime ago, I wanted a prince to sweep me off of my feet, someone who would promise to me eternal love and devotion. . . . I wanted a prince who would love me no matter what, but my prince who loved me did believe in eternity. Was that something I could live with? Something I could accept, limited happiness, but happiness none the less?

"Skye, I love you. Even if you cannot promise to me eternity, I want to be with you for as long as time allows, or as long as our hearts allow us." Skye nodded in agreement to what I said, and held me to him tightly, we can't love each other forever. And that's something I can live with. I have love right now, and the knowledge that our love is so very fragile, so very unstable makes the time I have with Skye even more important. The time we have together is a blessing, a gift. . . . Our love might not last, so the happiness we can get might be so very limited, but that limitedness is what makes our time so precious, and our love so beautiful I guess. . . . This is something I think I can live with.

-Fin

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Never forget the beautiful moments. . . .

-Jakuri