Listen to Me Chapter 1: A Strange Encounter, a harvest moon fanfic

Listen to Me

A/N: Since there are some martial arts involved, there will be some terms that you should probably know. A keikogi is a martial arts training garb. And the term men means a lot of things. It is one of the five strikes in kendo and it also refers to the part of the kendo armor that protects the head (the masks in this story).

Disclaimer: I do not own Harvest Moon.

Chapter 1: A Strange Encounter

"Haa!"

The masked swordsman, dressed in a keikogi and armor, performed one last strike on his opponent's head with his wooden kendo sword; a final blow that caused his target to stumble and fall onto the hardwood floor. The old inspector decided that it was over.

"Enough! Bow!"

The man on the ground, dressed similar to the masked swordsman, paused for a while as if he was expecting his opponent to help him up. But the victor did not help him out; all he did was let out a rough grunt through his protective mask.

The fallen opponent got up by himself and dusted himself off. The two swordsmen bowed in unison and went back to their original positions, next to the other students. The old inspector, with his arms behind his back, stood tall in the center of the dojo despite his short stature.

He is Saibara, the owner and head instructor of the Akiyama kendo dojo. A man who is old yet tough for his age, Saibara has been teaching students, young and old, the art of kendo for 50 years during his lifetime. He taught his only daughter when she was at a very young age, but through some unfortunate circumstances, she died when she was still in her twenties years ago.

Before she died, she had two illegitimate children who were already attending elementary school. Her partner was left to raise them for a while, but he had to go back to Dublin, his hometown in Ireland. Before leaving for his hometown, her partner talked with Saibara about the children; he could not take them both. Saibara decided that he would raise the boy, leaving the father to take his daughter with him. Since then, the old man has been teaching his grandson the art of kendo even to this day.

"Everyone, that is all for today!"

His students bowed and left the dojo together – everyone except for the winner of the last spar, as he was called out by the old man.

"Gray! Stay here."

The student named Gray went up to the old man. He took off his mask, revealing red shaggy hair, steel blue eyes, and a serious expression.

"What?"

"What do you mean what? You call that a spar, boy?"

"I won didn't I? Isn't that what matters?"

The Saibara massaged his wrinkly face with his palm, a gesture that told Gray that he was tired of his ignorance. It was a gesture that Gray saw every day, and every time the old man did it, the red head's blood would boil with frustration. Saibara grunted.

"Hmph! Yesterday, I told you to focus on hitting the other strike zones. Did you do that?"

"Yeah. I did exactly what you told me."

"No, you did not! In the last spar, all you did was the men strike. That's the only strike that I have ever seen you do – nothing else. You must acknowledge all the other strike zones! A great swordsman does this."

The old man let out a deep sigh.

"You still need more training."

"…Tch. Whatever."

"It's true."

"I know that! You just don't have to rub it in my face every day!"

"Well I have to, since it seems as though my words cannot get through that foolish head of yours!"

Gray always had this talk with the old man after every practice; it was almost like a routine. They argue so often that every student knows about the constant bickering between Saibara and his grandson. Tired of seeing his grandpa's angry face, Gray avoided his eyes, looking at everything but the old man. He looked at the clock.

"You know what; I don't have time for this! I've got to get to work."

"Hey! You come back here! I am not done with you!"

Gray ignored him and walked out of the main training room and went upstairs to his room on the second floor. Living in the Akiyama kendo dojo was both a curse and a blessing, he thought. Although living in the dojo has made his passion for the kendo art stronger, it also has brought him close to what he hates – his grandpa.

Gray took off his keikogi and quickly dressed himself in his work uniform. For his work, he has to wear a light-brown jumpsuit and a baseball cap with the word "UMA" on the front of it, which means "horse" in Japanese. Gray was not very excited to go to work, even if it meant getting paid or having time off from his grandpa. He hated his job in Harvestland.

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Clad in his work uniform, Gray sat down on his booth and measured the height for each kid that was next in line for the merry-go-round ride. One of the kids turned out to be too short.

"How old are you?"

"Twee"

Gray sighed. 'Why can't people read the rules?' he thought.

"Sorry kid, but you can't ride unless you have a chaperone. Where are your parents?"

"I donno. I'm wost. I don need dem. I wanna wide the hoswees!"

"Nope. Can't let you do that. You got to step out."

"BUT-I-WAN-HOSWEE!"

"Hey look, see this? This means you're too short. Now get out."

"HOSWEE! HOSWEE!"

If the boy wasn't a kid, then Gray would have punched him in the face. But kid or no kid, an amusement park was never a place for physical violence.

"DAMMIT KID! I'M TELLING YOU, YOU CAN'T RIDE!"

The boy's eyes grew wide. He let out a small whimper and cried loudly.

"WAAAH! YOU'RE MEAN! I HATE YOU!"

The boy ran out of the line, and the rest of the kids hesitated to go up to get measured by the intimidating 'rancher.' They all looked at Gray with horror.

"What are you kids looking at? Do you guys want to ride the merry-go-round or not!?"

All of the kids whimpered. They did not want to get yelled at, but they all waited in line for the ride for quite a while. The kids went on the merry-go-round platform after they were all done being measured.

Gray turned on the microphone attached to his booth and tapped it. He hated this part of the job. This is where he has to speak through the microphone and act 'in character' in front of the kids. Gray cleared his throat, only to speak through his microphone with an apathetic tone.

"Hey there kids. I'm Gray the Rancher. Are you ready to ride my horses?"

Dozens of kids all squealed in unison like mice.

"YEAHHH!"

"Ok. Pick a horse to ride on and fasten your seatbelts."

The kids all picked a horse and Gray double-checked to see if they were wearing their seatbelts. After the quick safety check, he went back to his booth and spoke through his microphone again.

"Yee-haw."

Gray pulled the lever, activating the merry-go-round ride. As the carousel horses started moving up and down while the platform rotated, the children shouted with glee.

"Yayy! Yipppiee!"

The young ride operator fixed his cap, folded his arms, and sighed.

'…I hate my job.'

After finishing his shift, Gray stopped by at the food stand labeled 'Pierre's Gourmet.' He was still at the amusement park, much to his dismay. But he was hungry. And he needed something to eat now.

Gray took a look at the window on the food stand. No one was there.

'Isn't it still Kai's shift?' Gray thought.

Kai is Gray's best friend. He was always in the same class as him since kindergarten. Even now, as seniors, they still have the same classes together.

He was never really interested in being his friend in the first place; in fact, he was never really interested in being anyone's friend. Kai just happened to be there wherever he went. And whenever Kai tried to talk to him, Gray would either ignore him or talk to him in 5 words or less. But with Kai's perseverance, Gray began to open up to him more and more, without realizing it.

After Gray sat down on a table near the food stand, a tan young man wearing a purple bandanna on his head popped out from under the table, making the red head flinch. Gray's natural instincts came into play as he subconsciously defended himself by swinging his fist at him. The tan boy dodged quickly.

"Too slow. You have slow reflexes, man."

"Shut up."

Kai sat down on the table and took off his bandanna, showing off his short black hair. He spun it around with his index finger; the purple cloth made his head itch all day.

"You know, I've always wondered – why do we have to wear these weird get-ups?"

"I heard that this theme park was based on a video game. I guess the characters in the game wore these outfits."

"Oh, that's right. It was based off of a farming game, wasn't it? Who plays farming games nowadays?"

"Beats me."

Gray took off of his hat and ran his fingers through his hair. He rested both of his elbows on the table and placed both of his hands on his face. He had a long day.

"Rough day, huh?"

"You don't even know."

"I know your grandpa's a dick."

'Everyone knows that', Gray thought.

Kai walked back to his stand and picked out two cans of soda from the cooler. He went back to the table and tossed a can to his friend.

"Here."

"Thanks."

Gray guzzled down the cold beverage and wiped his mouth with his sleeve. Nothing beats drinking a cold drink after working for hours.

"So then – anything happened at work today?"

"Yeah. Yelled at a kid today. Wouldn't leave when I told him that he couldn't ride without an adult."

"Man, wasn't your supervisor around?"

"He took a quick break that time."

Kai took a gulp of his soda. "Ha, lucky. I'm kind of surprised that you got the position. You, my friend, are not exactly a people person, much less a kid person."

"It's not hard to get a job at an amusement park. Though, I regret ever applying in the first place."

"Come on, your job can't be that bad. Just be happy that you're getting paid. It's just part-time. And you're only a senior."

The two boys just sat there on the table. The sky was already dark and almost everyone was out of Harvestland. Kai stood up from his seat.

"I'm gonna grab some food for us to eat from the food stand. What do you want?"

"A burger. And some fries."

"Alright. Hold on a sec."

Kai left the table, leaving Gray to ponder by himself.

'I've always been so busy with everything lately,' he thought. 'It was always just work, school, and training.'

Gray always thought that focusing his time on a busy schedule would help him avoid appearing weak and vulnerable. He did not want to show any signs of slacking off and give his grandpa an excuse for being incompetent. If there was anything that he wanted to get rid of in the world, it would be his grandpa's constant criticisms. It seemed that no matter how hard Gray worked, all of his efforts were futile in the old man's eyes. But Gray kept trying, for he did not want to end up like his late mother.

"Yo! Time to dig in!"

Kai brought a tray of freshly-made burgers and fries and placed it on the table. The two boys wolfed down their food, and Kai decided to speak after gulping down a big portion of his burger.

"So…I was thinking. You know Karen right - the hottest chick in school?"

"…Yeah. What about her?"

"I was thinking about asking her out tomorrow."

"…"

Gray may not be experienced when it comes to dating, but even he isn't dumb enough to get a clue.

"Kai…what did you just say?"

"Huh? You heard me; I'm gonna ask Karen out tomorrow!"

"Yeah. So tell me…why does it feel like we've had this conversation before?"

Kai just scratched the back of his head and stuck out his tongue.

"Oh…well…mmm, I think I have a chance this time. I just have this feeling."

'This guy is an idiot,' Gray thought.

Karen is apparently the "hottest" girl in Gray's high school. Personally, Gray never really found her that interesting, but Kai thinks otherwise. Kai has always been head-over-heels in love with her, ever since their freshman year. And every year before his senior year, he always asks her out and fails miserably. Kai has a reputation as a ladies' man, so it would make sense for any girl to not take his offer for granted.

"You know, Karen's got to know that I'm serious about her!"

"If you really want to show that you're serious, then going on dates with other girls isn't such a good idea. That's pretty much common sense."

"Ok…then I won't date other girls this time…"

Gray sighed and threw away his garbage in a trash can near the table.

"You know, I have no idea how your head works. I've always doubted your feelings for Karen."

"Well you should know better than anyone that I'm crazy about her!"

"She's turned you down every time, Kai." Gray sighed again, thinking about why he is wasting his time talking to this idiot.

They both stood out of the table and began to walk their way to the bullet train station. Gray spoke.

"I don't get it. What's so special about her anyways? I don't see how you could like her after all of that."

Kai closed his eyes and smiled, patting his friend's back.

"Gray, Gray, Gray. Have you ever been in love?"

"What? D-don't change the subject!"

Gray was feeling uncomfortable with Kai's question.

"See Gray, if you've ever been in love, you would know why I still love her after all of that."

Kai contemplated at the thought of Karen and smiled a goofy smile. Gray looked at him strangely.

'This guy makes the dumbest faces' he thought.

"Karen is just amazing in every way. I love everything about her. The way she plays with the tips of her hair when she's confused, the way she carries herself. She is just…perfect!"

"Okay…"

Kai turned his head to look at Gray. He stared at him as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully.

"Hmm, you know…tell ya what,"

Kai hanged his arm around his friend's neck, one of the many Kai gestures that Gray disliked.

"I'll hook you up, man."

Gray raised his eye brows and shrugged off Kai's arm around his neck. "I don't need anyone to do me favors. Especially you."

Ignoring Gray's comment, Kai looked ahead and his mouth shaped an 'o'.

"Shit! It's my stop!"

Kai did a quick playful jab on Gray's shoulder and started to take off to his train.

"Hey man, see you at school tomorrow. I'll get you a chick, I promise."

"Hey! Kai-"

Gray reached out his arm and called out to him, but the tan boy was already out of his sight. He looked around the station and took a seat at the bench nearest to him. The red head slumped over his seat and sighed.

'School tomorrow? Fuck…'

The teacher called out each of his students in a clear and mellow voice.

"Akari?"

"Here!"

"Kurt?"

"Here."

Next to the back window was a tired-looking Gray dressed in his school uniform. The young student stayed up all night doing his homework. He looked out the window pensively, resting his head on his right fist.

In front of Gray was Kai, who did not look tired at all. He was full of energy and a bit jittery; knowing that today's the day he will ask Karen out.

After the young teacher paused to let out a cough, a girl with long blonde hair and clear blue eyes walked inside the classroom. The teacher looked at her and smiled. He offered her a chair that was next to his desk and continued on with the roll call. After he was finished, the teacher looked at the blonde girl and the girl stood up. She walked up in front of the class and the teacher cleared his throat.

"Class, I would like to introduce to you a new student. This is Claire Belgarde. She is an exchange student from France."

The new student bowed and smiled.

Whispers were heard across the room. Some of the male students were ogling at her while some of the girls shot her dirty looks.

Kai turned around and nudged at Gray with his elbow. He whispered.

"Yo man, that new girl – seriously cute. Try asking her out."

Gray rolled his eyes at him and continued looking outside the window.

The teacher scanned the room to find an empty seat for Claire to sit in. He spotted an empty seat near the back of the room. It was next to Gray's. The teacher pointed at it.

"Claire. Please sit over there, next to Gray."

The new student walked gracefully towards the empty seat. Kai turned around again, raised one eyebrow and smiled at the annoyed red head.

"You are so lucky."

Gray just sneered at him.

The new girl took her seat and the students next to her greeted her. She smiled at them and then turned her head to look at Gray, who was still looking out the window. Kai turned around counter-clockwise and whispered.

"Dude, she's looking at you."

Gray whispered through clenched teeth. "Shut up and turn around."

The tired student stopped looking at the window and turned his head slightly to take a glance at the new girl. She was smiling at him. Gray quickly looked away and stared outside the window.

'Why is that girl staring at me?' He thought.

The girl's smile faltered slightly when he looked away. She decided to turn her attention to the teacher and focus on the lecture that was going on during class.

When class was over, the students went off their separate ways. Gray headed for the stairs and Kai caught up to him. Gray sighed.

"Why are you following me? Don't you have a swim club meeting to run?"

"I rescheduled it." Kai smiled.

"Why? So you could bother me?"

"No, man. Remember? Karen?"

'Oh, that's right' Gray thought.

Kai lightly jabbed his friend's shoulder.

"So, how about that new girl?"

"Not interested."

"Come on man! She's perfect for you! She has that whole 'I want you to carry me over to the threshold' kind of look."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

Kai clasped his hands together and imitated a girly voice.

"Oh Gray, please protect me. I'm so helpless; I need a strong man like you."

He looked at Gray while batting his eyelashes in a feminine manner. The annoyed student swung at him, but Kai dodged.

"Haha. Anyways, I'm gonna go on ahead now and ask Karen. Wish me luck, man!"

"Right. Whatever."

Kai dashed down the stairs with determination and Gray sighed.

'The poor fool.' He thought.

Gray continued walking down the stairs, placing his hand in his pockets. He noticed something missing. It was his wallet.

'Dammit, I left it in my locker.'

Gray went back up the stairs, heading for his locker. He abruptly stopped when he caught a glimpse of a girl with familiar blonde hair from afar.

"Huh?"

It was the new girl. Next to the girl was a girl with a brown pigtail and freckles.

Gray hid himself near the stairs and took a peek. It looks like there's some kind of commotion going on near the lockers.

"So you think that you could just waltz in here and steal glances from my guy, new girl!" The freckle-specked girl glared at Claire.

The blonde girl just stood quietly and stared at her.

"Don't look at me as if you're innocent! Just what's so special about you anyways?"

The new student ignored her, turning her attention to the blue notebook she was holding. She opened it, took out a pen, and began writing. Enraged, the pigtailed girl grabbed her notebook and slammed it onto the ground. Claire managed to clench onto the piece of paper she was writing on before the girl grabbed the notebook. The girl pushed her onto the lockers.

"Rrr…don't ignore me! I'm talking to you!"

Gray felt the need to go up and help the new girl out. But as he continued watching, it appears that she did not need any help.

Claire glared back at the girl. She crumpled her piece of paper into a ball and threw at her face. This infuriated the pigtailed girl even more.

"That's it!"

The pigtailed girl made an attempt to slap her, but Claire quickly raised her hand to block it. Claire then slapped her in return. The pigtailed girl rubbed her cheek.

"You bitch!"

The girl tried to slap her again, but Claire ducked to pick up her notebook. The girl made an attempt to kick the blonde girl while she was on the ground, but Claire caught her kicking foot and tripped her other leg, making the pigtailed girl fall onto the ground.

The blonde girl walked off, heading towards the end of the hallway, where Gray stood and watched the whole scene. He was dumbstruck.

'W-what the hell was that?' he thought.

Claire stopped at her tracks when she saw Gray near the stairs. Their eyes met. She just stared at him, which made him flush a bit. It was quiet for a while, but the young man scratched his head and decided to speak.

"W-what? Can I…help you?"

The girl just shook her head. She walked past him and quickly went down the stairs.

Gray then looked over where the scene took place. The girl was still lying on the floor. He decided to go up to the pigtailed girl and help her up. It wasn't right to leave a girl by herself like that.

"You okay?"

She rubbed her head.

"Yeah. Damn that girl! I just...rrgh!"

She stormed off and went back inside the classroom she came from.

Gray decided to leave the hallway, but stopped when he noticed a crumpled ball of paper. It was the paper Claire was writing on. Curious, Gray picked it up and unraveled it.

It seems that she wrote only two words: 'fuck off.'

Gray stared at the end of the hallway, where Claire took off.

'Strange girl…'