Summary: Gray and Yuko never got along; ever. Really, they seemed to hate each other with a passion, but will that change when Gray find's out Yuko's secret?

Disclaimer: No, I unfortunately don't own Harvest Moon…

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Mineral Town was a wonderful place if you liked the peace. Everyone was friendly among one another; well almost at least. There were many shops and businesses in the Town, one of which being a Blacksmith where, in a back room, a girl sat. Why was she here? Well, this woman had come to the town to become the Jeweler, and what better place for a jeweler to work than the Blacksmith, where all the ores and gems were only a few steps away. She sat there and pushed her glasses up as she did the final touched to a bracelet she had been working on for about a day and a half. Finally, the woman held it up, bright blue eyes sparkling with glee at her newest creation.

"Yuko!" a voice boomed from the main part of the shop, causing her to jump and almost drop her newest masterpiece. The woman, whose name appeared to be Yuko, fumbled with the bracelet, finally getting it back in her grasp and wincing as the large oak door swung open.

There in the midst of the door way stood a man. His sapphire eyes reflecting the very colour of her own, his hair but a reddish-brown colour. For a reason unknown to her, some believed it to be blonde, but it was kind of hard to tell with the blue and red cap her always wore that had "UMA" printed in black bold letters against a yellow who-knows-what. The man was clad in beige coveralls, a blue tie of some sort poking out through the neck; why it was a mystery how the man didn't overheat while we worked with work-clothes like that.

The woman sighed, pushing her black bangs out of her face, looking up at the man in slightly annoyance. "What now Gray?" she asked with a hint of a growl in her tone as she swerved her black work chair so she could actually face him. "I have work to do, so make it quick."

"What work? In my eyes, there's your latest 'creation' on the table!" he exclaimed, pointing at the golden jewelry that would have cowered under his glare. The boy groaned in agitation, taking off his cap, running a hand through his hair and placing the cap back on. The girl didn't have much of a chance to see it, but she grinned slightly as she noted that his hair was indeed the reddish-brown she had thought it to be beforehand. "Stop grinning like that," the boy commanded, glaring at the girl.

Yuko returned the glare with just as much passion as she reluctantly stood, her butt-length hair dancing behind her. "And what if I don't, Mister high-and-mighty?" she asked, getting right in his face, making sure her grin widened, just to make him all the more mad at her. Though, it just didn't have the same effect since she was about a head and a half shorter.

But really, it was such a mystery why he hated her so; even though he was an anti-social jerk at most times, he was relatively kind to all the other towns people… Okay, maybe not his grandfather, but that doesn't count. Really, he could even put up with the sister-obsessed Rick, who personally in Yuko's case, scared the shit out of her. Really, it's reasonable to be protective over your sister to a point, but Rick crossed that "point" long, long ago. You couldn't help but feel a little bad for the summer-time villager. Anyways, back to the matter at hand.

Gray glared at the small woman, who was now purposely trying to make him even angrier with her antics. "Just shut up and grab your hammer already," he muttered, pushing her away by the shoulders and turning her in the direction of where he assumed the tool would be. "Gramps wants us to go up to the mines and get some more ore," he explained. Though his voice seemed much calmer now, Yuko squirmed slightly. She could tell that right now he was madder than before because of his tone, and her next comment would probably make him snap.

"Uh… I don't have a hammer… I've never mined in my life…" she mumbled, clasping her hands behind her back as she rocked back and forth on the balls of her feet. She glanced up slightly embarrassed, only to see the future blacksmith standing there, mouth a gap. The boy literally shuddered in anger before he clamped a hand around her small wrist and pulled her out of her work space. The boy dragged her into the main part of the shop where he picked up a golden hammer for himself, along with one of the iron ones; it was lighter, and probably easier for Yuko to use. Though, in most cases he would get her a heavier material, right now he needed her help and was actually showing a rare moment of somewhat kindness to the Jeweler.

"Well, you're in for a world of hell since we're going farther into the mine than I've ever been, which will probably make a beginner like you faint," he said, with a smirk of grim –and slightly evil- amusement on his face. "But don't worry. If you do faint, I'll come back for you before the coyotes get you; Gramps would kill me if he found out I left you unconscious in the mines for too long."

Yuko's jaw dropped, glasses sliding down the bridge of her nose slightly. She yanked her arm out of his iron-like grasp, rubbing her wrist as a bruise started to appear. "Well, watch your back. Knowing the klutz I am, the hammer might just 'slip' from my grasp and knock you unconscious." The girl smiled sweetly as Gray returned her comment with a hate-filled glare. She flicked her long black hair over her shoulder, taking the golden hammer from his grasp and easily resting it on her shoulder as she walked out of the Blacksmith, hearing Saibara laugh slightly at his grandson's loss for words.

The two walked with Gray a good five meters behind Yuko, the echo of their steps the only sound as they walked down the path that led to the entrance of the abandoned ranch. Soon, the only sound that filled the silence was muffled by the grass that grew around the land filled with weeds, branches and stones. "You know," she started as they neared the other end of the ranch, "You'll look like a stalker if you keep walking behind me like that. Not like you aren't already one."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" the man growled, keeping his distance still as he kicked a rock while they neared their destination with every step. He had grabbed a silver hammer, the one he used before his strength grew and allowed him to swing the only golden hammer in Mineral Town with ease, resting it on his own shoulder. "Though it's not like I want to go to the mines with you."

"Well you follow me home every day, and last time I checked, that's called a stalker in most cases. There are other names, but stalker and creeper tend to be the most popular," she replied, face still staring straight ahead which hid the smirk from the man's view. "Oh, look at that; we actually have something in comment" Oh, what fun the woman got out of teasing her co-worker, no matter how much it increased his burning hatred for her.

"We live at the same place!" he exclaimed with utter disbelief, sapphire eyes widened as he quickened his pace so he could stand in front of the girl who simply pushed him aside, crossing the bridge that hung over the small stream. Though, all the same, he always had to leave a few minutes after Yuko due to his grandfather always pestering him about the small details like. There had been maybe three days since Yuko started working at the Blacksmith a year ago where Gray had actually left before the dark haired girl, only due to her having to finish small extras on some of her pieces.

"Still," she replied with a shrug, "You always follow a few meters behind me, so it feels like you're stalking me. Even Ann noticed." The woman Yuko spoke of was a girl who worked at the Inn she and Gray lived at along with traveler Cliff, and Summer-time visitor Kai. Actually, Ann was Gray's sister, though she slept in the back living area along with her father, whilst the blacksmith used the customer rooms for some odd reason. The girl has vibrant red hair that was usually braided, tied high on her head with a pure white ribbon. Her eyes were the same blue as her brother's, but almost everything else about her was as opposite as could be; she was cheerful, kind to everyone, and Yuko's best friend.

"Please, Ann doesn't count; she's my sister," he replied with an annoyed tone, quickening his pace slightly so he walked in front of Yuko. With a grin, he turned his head slightly to look at her, "Now who's the stalker?" he asked. Due to the fact he was looking at the girl, he hadn't a clue what was in front of him. The boy walked straight into a tree, speechless as the girl walked by with a grin.

"Still you," she said, a skip to her step as she followed the path that led by a wooden hot spring. Yuko had been meaning to use it for a while now, but never had the chance. Perhaps after she and Gray finished mining? Of course, she would have to send him ahead of her. Who knew what kind of pervert could be lying inside of those blue orbs of his? She passed the Goddess spring, its water as clear and sparkling as ever. The girl smiled at her reflection as she passed, continuing to the opening in the side of the high, rocky ledge.

She could faintly hear Gray coming up behind her, causing a smirk to spread across her lips as the scene of him walking straight into a tree replaying in her mind. "Shucks, I was hoping you would have been knocked out after walking into that tree," she mumbled with a small, yet dramatic sigh. The woman reached into the pocket of her gray skinny jeans, pulling out a hair elastic of the same violet that the fabric of her V-neck T-shirt was, bringing her hair to the back of her head to tie it in a loose but effective ponytail. It was always a pain to have such long hair during physical activities such as these. Well, Yuko tended to cope with it quite well one way or another.

Gray just passed her and glared, picking up a lantern at the mouth of the cave, wooden beams supporting the roof and sides so they wouldn't collapse easily. There was still a chance on the beams giving out, but they usually weren't very large odds. "Well sweetie pie, shall we go in?" she asked with a smug smile, only to earn a slap upside the head; a hard one at that. "Ow!" Yuko complained, rubbing her scalp, "What the hell was that for?"

"Never call me that again," he muttered, lighting the lantern and heading into the dark cave. Yuko followed him into the depths, walking down stair case after stair case until there were no more. Not to mention if you were just outside the radius of the lantern, you weren't able to see your hand in front of your face. "Well, it's time to get to work," he commanded, voice booming as it echoed throughout the mine.

Yuko nodded, taking her hammer and starting to smash a stone with all the strength she could muster. Finally, by her fifth smashed rock, the girl sighed, slumping against one of the other stones. "I don't think there's anything down here," she said in between heaves, her chest rising and falling in deep breaths, unable to get enough oxygen in her lungs.

"You just," he said, swinging his hammer down with enough force to split the ore-hider on only the third hit. "Haven't been looking hard enough retard," he panted, crouching down as he picked the shining silver out. He slipped the shining raw ore into a rucksack he had brought along before walking over to Yuko's work space, "See?" he said, breathing slowly returning to normal as he kneeled down, turning a shard of one of her broken stones in his hand. "Copper. You have to look harder wimp," he said, taking off his cap to wipe his brow of the collecting sweat."

The girl just glared as he insulted her, taking everything she had not to return the insult with one of her own. Right now, she hadn't a clue on how to get out of the mine, and didn't plan on letting Gray have a reason or motive of some sort to knock her unconscious, just so she could find her own way out in the middle of the night.

Gray continued picking up pieces of the stones Yuko shattered, prying out anything that shined in the lantern's gleam. The girl was just about to stand when the only light source flickered until it existed no more. "G-gray?" she muttered, setting the hammer down gently, feeling around with her hands until she felt to rough material of his clothing. "What just happened?"

"I'm not exactly sure…" he mumbled, whacking the girl's hand away from his back. "Should get back to the entrance though. Strange things come out if you don't have light down here." The boy rose to his feet, picking up the burnt-out light source, Yuko once more grasping his jacket as to make sure she didn't lose him. They went in the direction of the stair case, freezing solid in their tracks as they heard something.

"Gray, please tell me that growl was your stomach…" the Jeweler mumbled, eyes widening in the dark, her hand gripping his clothing that much tighter. Gooseflesh rose over her body, a small trembling spreading rapidly through her body in slight fear.

"I was hoping it was yours," he replied weakly as if his throat was parched like the desert. Yuko and Gray turned slowly in unison, both tensed as they saw a pair of red eyes gleam in the darkness.

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A/n: Before you say anything, yes, I will be finishing A Hint of Magic, but there's only going to be another chapter or two plus an epilogue. It was gonna be longer, but I lost inspiration as soon as I thought up my OC in this story, and when I started getting ideas for it.

But man, this reminds me of my first fan fic, "Yumiko's Little Secret" just because the title, the OC in this one has the an insanely similar name, plus she has the same long black hair as Yumiko, and this is also a Gray fic. Go figurexD But rest assured, the story lines will be much different :3 Plus, I'm a much better writer now (thankfully).

Though, I must say, this chapter didn't turn out the way I believed it would. But look at that, first chapter and there's a cliff hanger! Go figure right? Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed this chapter :3