/Author's Note: This was a prompt given by Singkatsu to tell the story of the forgotten girls of Kardia during the events of Rune Factory Frontier! There honestly isn't much else to add, but it was a fun little challenge to write and I hope it gets a giggle or two out of you. Leave a review if you feel so inclined! End Author's Note/
- While You Were Gone -
If there was one thing Felicity had missed the most when she was bedridden, it was the walks around town. She loved Kardia and all of its people – though this, perhaps, came with being the daughter of the mayor. Still, there was no greater pleasure than to see Camus and Neumann loading up shipments of fodder to be sent off, to see Sabrina filleting her latest catch to serve for the day's lunch, to see Cecilia and Nicholas scamper around, enthralled in an adventure that existed only in their imaginations.
Though there were, if Felicity was being honest, (and her father had always taught her the value of the honest word), less savory activities to behold on some days. Melody's amateur potion experiments going awry, and filling the streets with thick, multicolor smoke that smelled like overcooked cabbage; Rosetta's temper flaring up as she loudly made a scene and threw out a customer from her father's general store; Bianca strolling through town, her maid Tabatha at her side, announcing a new festival she had just schemed up that morning and demanded that everyone partake in; Sister Lara, assistant nurse to Doctor Edward, giving a shrill telling-off to any adventurers who dared to seek medical assistance; and of course, the resident oddball, Mist, whose actions were entirely unpredictable.
But today, a pleasant day in early Spring, a day where the breeze was warm and gentle, carrying loving whispers of the summer to come, there was simply… nothing.
No potion fumes; no fuming shopkeepers; no impromptu festivals; simply nothing, aside from the chirping of a few birds overhead – How long had it been since Felicity heard a birdsong in the morning? Felicity turned the corner and strolled onto the main street, basking in the peace of her village. Even after all this time, she was unused to it.
Tori stood in the doorway of the Kardian Library, sipping from a warm cup of milk tea and taking in the morning air. She gave Felicity a wave and a smile, to which Felicity nodded courteously. The foreign warrior Mei was standing in the town's center, swinging her katana in practice. She sheathed it at the sight of the Mayor's daughter and gave a curt bow, indicating respect, but did so in silence. Other townsfolk went about their business, chatting idly or humming to themselves, with nary an interruption to their usual routine.
Felicity made the rounds, ending up at the town's southern gate, and felt drained; Kardia wasn't large, by any standard, but the frail girl was easily exhausted. She stopped to catch her breath and stood to look out on the rolling hills on the outskirts of the village.
She was tired, and she could feel herself perspiring under her cumbersome clothing. But… it had been a while, and Felicity would like to see what had become of it. So she hiked up her country dress, took a few breaths, and set off.
# # #
Felicity had expected a ghost town; but as it turned out, the farm on Kardia's outskirts was still fully functioning. The monsters that had previously plagued the town were working together, coming in and out of the various Monster Huts, and had kept the farm in perfect shape since he had left. It was still strange, though, to not see the rugged amnesiac working in his fields, Mist pestering him affectionately.
Sharon, the town's local ruin "enthusiast", glided along the dirt path, her pale hair, eyes, and flowing attire giving her the luminescent appearance of a ghost. She smiled mysteriously as she approached Felicity. "Greetings, Felicity. Come to inspect the farm while he's away, have you?"
"It's been so long since they all ran off to Trampoli. It's been… over a year now, hasn't it?" remarked Felicity dazedly. "I wonder how they're all doing…"
Sharon put a thin finger to her chin and pondered a moment. "I imagine they're wrapped up in some new adventure now; perhaps Mist got kidnapped by some megalomaniacal researcher and was used as a prop in his plan for vengeance on the Kingdom of Norad and Raguna and the others had to take up arms and protect Trampoli from a grim fate brought about by the malevolence of a madman?"
Felicity blinked.
"Ooh, and I bet there was a flying whale involved."
The daughter of the mayor decided that she would try to avoid small-talk on the next little walk of hers.