A/N: I've always wanted to do a New Year's resolution that I could actually stand a chance at keeping. So, what is it? I'm going to try and post a one-shot story every month. So, stay on the lookout for them. This month, the community is Harvest Moon.
Hope you enjoy!
Sylvia
My fingers were denting into my palms as I watched the latest episode of "Search for the Legendary Chef!" Misa had to uncover the riddle in order to proceed.
"Now give me the answer!" said the statue. "It grows and, but only in being broken is it complete. What is it?"
"Wellllll, seeing as this is the Egg Temple, I'm gonna hedge my bets and answer eggs," said Misa.
The statue stayed silent for a moment. I watched in anticipation wondering if Misa got it correct.
"...You are correct!" said the statue.
"Woohoo! I did it!" Misa cheered.
My eyes narrowed as the explorer received her prize. If this chef was so legendary why was this puzzle to get to him so easy? The consistency of this show was a little off sometimes.
My ears were then perturbed by the sound of something hitting the roof of my house. It sounded like the pitter patter of… My eyes turned to the size of golf balls at the realization. Rain! I ran outside quickly towards the barn. The animals weren't in the pasture, so I wandered into the barn and found John just leading the last cow inside.
"Oh, there you are!" I said. "Thanks for the taking the cows in for me! I was really worried."
"Hey, you were on break, sis," said John. "They were my responsibility at the time. So, how was that new show?"
"Not the greatest episode, but I stopped watching halfway to check up on you," I said, as John walked over to restock the fodder. The animals seemed a little perturbed from a getting a little wet.
"These poor things…" said John. "Maybe they should get some treats for their trouble. Aw, but we don't have any… Maybe we should ask Neil…"
I let out an aggravated sigh.
"C'mon, not that guy…" I whined.
"Hey, who else is an animal dealer around here?" said John.
"I suppose you're right…" I said.
"So… Not it!" John quickly said.
"What?!" I said both shocked and angry.
"C'mon, Syl," said John. "You're on break. You can do it. I've gotta stay here and dry off the animals."
"Then let me dry the animals," I said. "You go see Neil!"
John sighed.
"C'mon, I went last time," said John. "You do it."
"I really don't want to," I said. "He always tries to make us look incompetent."
"That's why we gotta prove to him we're not by getting those treats," said John.
"Ugh, he'll probably find something to make us look incompetent by that, too…" I grumbled. "Fine, you big baby! I'll go!"
"Thanks, sis!" John said, happily.
"Yeah, yeah…" I said, walking out. "What are sisters for?"
I quickly slipped back to the house to grab an umbrella. Then I went back out to head to Echo Town's plaza. Hopefully, Neil will only just be starting to close up so I get some quick treats from him. They didn't even have to be the animal specific ones. They could just be the all-purpose ones. I just wanted to get this over with.
Some of the people were quickly rushing to a place inside. Others were taking their time with their umbrellas out. I know Toni was probably having a blast with this rain, searching for frogs or bugs to prank people with. I wondered where Dunhill was. I remembered him talking about wanting to attract more people to the town, but I think we were good for our population for now. Sure, we weren't as populated as it was it in its glory days, but we were doing pretty good right now. Besides, more people meant more buildings needed and those buildings weren't going to build themselves.
The walk was a little tough with the ground getting all muddy. I was thinking about talking about that at the next Restoration Committee meeting then I finally approached the town plaza.
There he was! The animal dealer himself, Neil. He was at his stand and some the Animal Sanctuary people were loading the animals into the carts. I walked up to him, expecting his usual annoyed look to be there, but instead, he didn't seem to respond to my footsteps.
"Neil?" I said, as I finally approached him.
"Huh?" Neil said, raising his head from looking down on the desk of the stand. "Oh. It's you."
Something seemed off with him. He was all spacey and his nose seemed a little red.
"Yeah…" I said, trying to ignore what I was thinking about. "Can I get some treats?"
"What?" said Neil. "But we're closing!"
Suddenly, Neil turned away to sneeze really loud. He rose back up wiping his nose on his sleeve and sighing like he was really tired.
"Just… They're in the cart…" said Neil. "You can get them right?"
"Uh… sure?" I said. "How much do I owe you?"
"Just take it and go!" said Neil.
"Fine, fine!" I said.
I walked over to the cart and picked which treats to take home. Since Neil was surprisingly giving me treats for free, so I took my time and picked out the animal specific treats. When I was done, Neil was walking up to collect his cart, he seemed tired from just walking over here.
"Um… Neil… Are you okay?" I said.
"I'm fine…" Neil said, sounding a little grumpy. "Did you get what you needed?"
"Um… yes," I said. "But-"
"Then you're done here…" said Neil. "Good-bye."
"But-" I tried to say, but Neil had already collected his cart and went off with other Animal Sanctuary people.
Neil didn't seem like himself. I swore he was sick. But hey, Neil's a big boy who can take care of himself. If he says he's fine, then it's not my business to interfere. And with that, I headed back towards the farm. Before I did, though, I thought I should bring some food home. So, I headed to the restaurant.
Despite the rainy day, Michelle was still putting on her shows, and as usual, the people were impressed. I still don't understand why. Yet, I guess even bad things about people can be overlooked for a good show. I tried to avoid her and talked to Clement about getting me the usual for myself and a little something for John. The place was packed due to Michelle's little show, so the service took a little bit but I didn't mind. I just got a drink or so and played with a napkin or two.
"Here you go!" Felicity said, cheerfully, handing me a to-go box. "Sorry, about the delay. We have tons of people here."
"It's okay," I said. "So, Michelle's show is still going strong, huh? Even after everything?"
"Yes," said Felicity. "But Clement says it's good for business. Most of the people who watch are tourists nowadays, though, so they probably don't know."
"Yeah…" I said, grimly. "I should get going."
"Okay," said Felicity. "Be careful on your way home."
"I will," I said.
I got up to go, but then Rod came in through the entrance. He glanced around and came over when he saw me.
"Hey, Sylvia," Rod said, sounding out of breath. "Have you… Have you seen Neil?"
"Um, no," I said. "I saw him an hour ago, but I thought he went off to with the Animal Sanctuary people to get the animals home."
"Neil just guides them out of town," said Rod. "He should've been back by now, but he's not. We were suppose to hang out at my house. So… I know you know the layout outside of town better than I do. Would you mind helping me look for him."
I let out a sigh. I didn't want to, but another part of me was saying I had to. Neil was a jerk, but it wasn't in me to not worry about someone, no matter how rude they were.
"Take this to my house and tell John where I am," I said, handing Rod my food. "I'll go out to the usual forage spots and check."
"Thank-you, Sylvia," Rod said, relieved.
I ran into the rain with my umbrella and headed out of town by the east side. The area there had a river running through it and a couple of bridges for people to cross. I remember this was the entrance to the area Echo town was in. The Animal Sanctuary was outside of the Echo Town region, so I thought to head there, but I found Neil before I took a step in that direction. He was slumped next to a tree in a sitting position. His eyes were closed and he wasn't moving.
"Took you long enough!" said a voice.
I turned around and saw Alice, the Harvest Sprite.
"What?" I said.
"He's been there for a while!" said Alice.
"You're a Harvest Sprite!" I said. "Can't you just teleport him home?"
"We can't just do that!" said Alice. "If we just went around flaunting our magic to anybody, we'd be discovered in less than a few seconds!"
"Well, I didn't know!" I said. "Geez…"
"Grr… Who's there?" Neil mumbled.
Alice ran and hid in the bushes. I walked up to Neil and shook him awake. Neil pushed my hand away and opened his eyes slowly, grabbing his forehead with one hand.
"What… What are you doing here…?" he grumbled, softly.
"Saving you…" I said in a huff. "C'mon. I'm taking you home. You're obviously not well."
I grabbed him by the arm to try and pull him up, but he wasn't helping at all.
"I'm not-" Neil tried to say.
"Don't even start with me!" I snapped. "John does this all the time when he's sick! I don't need this from you! I'm not leaving you when you just passed out in the river area."
"I didn't pass out!" said Neil. "I was just… resting. Besides, I have to help with the animals."
"Yeah, and did you think about them?!" I said. "You could've gotten them sick by being around them! I thought you cared about animals!"
Neil growled at my remark, but then he grew silent. He knew I was right. His head hung low. He didn't want to admit it… He began to shiver.
"Just… get me out of here…" he said in defeat.
I got down to his level and pulled one of his arms over my shoulders. Then I helped him up and we walked back to town together. Neil didn't want to be seen in this state, so I tried to avoid any people walking by and eventually we made it to his house.
I sat Neil on the bed. He took off his coat and set it aside. Then he kicked off his boots and I laid him down on the bed.
"Um… I can make you something…" I said.
"There's ingredients in the kitchen…" Neil muttered.
Wow… No resistance or anything mean this time. This was a first.
I walked into the kitchen and started cooking some soup. There was medicine in the cabinet so I tried to find the best one. I wandered back into Neil's room and saw him already fast asleep, breathing through his mouth with a slight snore. I pulled the blanket over him and went into the bathroom to find a small towel, ran cold water on it and placed it gently on his forehead. He winced slightly at the sensation, but continued to sleep.
Finally, after almost half an hour, someone knocked on the door and put an end to the silence. I opened the door and found that it was Rod.
"Hey…" I said.
"Hey, did you find Neil?" said Rod.
"Yeah," I said. "Passed out in the river area."
"What?!" said Rod.
"Don't worry," I said. "I brought him here. I think he'll be fine."
I led Rod inside and showed him the scene. He went upstairs to check on Neil and I went to get a bowl of soup for him.
"Well, you did a good job getting him here," said Rod. "Last time it took me a long time to get him to see Klaus when he got."
"That so?" I said.
"Yeah," Rod said, sounding a bit embarrassed.
"Hey, do you mind telling my brother where I am," I said. "I'm sure he's worried about where I am."
"Sure," said Rod. "Do you want me to get anything while I'm out?"
"No, I think we're good here," I said.
"Alright, then," said Rod. "Take good care of him."
"I see what I can do," I said.
Rod left the house. I set the tray of soup on the nightstand and shook him awake.
"Hey," I said. "You want to eat something?"
Neil groaned softly and I reached over to help him sit up. The small towel I had put on his forehead fell into his lap and he set aside.
"Here," I said, setting the tray in his lap. "I'm not the best at cooking, but-"
"Just let me eat," Neil grumbled.
"Whatever," I said, stepping back.
Neil grabbed the spoon and had a taste. I had never actually had anyone other than John eat my cooking before. So… this was a bit nerve wracking. Why should I care, though? It's just Neil.
"...Not bad," he said, flatly.
I turned to him when he said that. He continued to eat it and he seemed to be feeling better with every bit. Once the bowl was empty I walked over with the medicine.
"I found this in the cabinet," I said. "It should help get your fever down."
Neil huffed. "Fine. I'll take it."
I gave the Neil the medicine with a spoon. He took it despite his reluctance and the grimace at the taste. After a few minutes he started getting sleepy again and he laid down. I had nothing else to do right now, so I just sat there.
"...I'm sorry," Neil muttered.
"For what?" I said.
"For being… so bossy…" Neil said. "You're just.. Trying to help…"
"Shut up," I said. "That's the fever talking."
Neil said nothing else after that and fell asleep. It was quiet after that and I too fell asleep, sitting on the chair.
When I woke up, it had been a few hours or so. I checked on Neil and his fever had finally gone away. A wave of relief washed over me. I decided not to disturb him.
"Hey, you're up," said a voice.
Rod walked into the room.
"I got here a few minutes ago," he said. "So, how's our patient?"
"Better," I said. "He just needs more rest."
"Well, that's good to hear," said Rod.
"Yeah…" I said, staring back at Neil. He woke up as I did.
"Rod?" Neil said, sitting up slightly. "What're you doing here?"
"I came to check on you," said Rod. "We were suppose to hang out today."
"Oh… right…" Neil said, laying back down. "Look, Sylvia. Rod can take it from here. Just go home now."
"What? I can't stay?" I said, irritably.
"...Why would you want to stay?" said Neil.
"...Good point," I said. I walked towards the door. Then I turned to Rod "You got this, Rod?"
"Yeah, no problem!" said Rod.
"Alright, then," I said. "Bye."
I walked downstairs and left the house. As soon as I took a few steps away I looked back.
He's gonna be fine! I thought to myself. And I walked home after that…
John was waiting for me when I walked into our house.
"There you are!" said John. "I was starting to get worried."
"Don't worry," I said, walking in. "I just had to take care of Neil for a bit, since he got sick."
"Oh… really?" said John.
"What?" I said.
"Well, you two don't really get along," said John. "I'm surprised you'd help him."
"It was the right thing to do!" I pouted, crossing my arms. "I wasn't going to just leave him out there in the rain! That was all! An obligation. Why?! Did someone tell you otherwise?!"
"Wh-What?! N-No!" said John. "I was just wondering! Calm down!"
I realized that I got a little hot tempered for a second and took a deep breath.
"Right…" I said. "Well, I guess it's my turn to make dinner."
"Nah, I'll do it," said John. "You deserve it."
…
"So, why did you make her leave?" said Rod.
"She was only here, because you weren't!" said Neil. "What makes you think anything else?!"
"What?! Nothing!" said Rod. "I was just asking!"
"Anyway, she was just there at the right time," said Neil. "She brought me here safely and out of the rain, like any human with a heart would."
"I thought you said humans were heartless," said Rod.
Neil laid back down.
"Shut up," he said.
"...Okay," said Rod. "I'll be downstairs if you need anything."
Rod left Neil to himself and headed into the living room. He heard a knock on the door and went to go answer it. It was Hana.
"Oh, hello," he said. "What brings you by this time of night."
"Oh, Neil wanted me to drop off something for him from my shop," said Hana. "Is he here right now?"
"He got sick, so he's upstairs, resting," said Rod. "I'll take to him if you want."
"Well, how nice of you," Hana said, sweetly. "Okay, here you go. Make sure it gets to him safely."
"Okay," said Rod. "Be careful on your way home."
"I will," said Hana. "Goodnight."
Rod was given a very small bag. It was blue with a white ribbon tied around it to keep it shut. He went back inside and felt a bit snoopy. He promised he would tie it back up as soon as he saw what was inside. A gasp escaped his mouth when he pulled out a ring from the bag.
"Oh, by the Harvest Goddess…" Rod tried not to say out loud.
...
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