A/N: I suppose I should say something here... like um, I like Harvest Moon? I'm sorry I'm not very sociable, a bit like my interperitation of Angela I suppose... Well, if you're reading this, I hope you enjoy the first chapter of what I hope will be a good fanfiction uwu. Please, do rate and review if you want.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own Harvest Moon, or any of it's characters.
Trouble Comes in Many Forms...
Chapter One: First Impressions
"It's a fine day, eh lass?"
The voice interrupted the young woman's train of thought, and she spun around to face the older man approaching her.
"Oh erm... I... I suppose yes..." She managed a weak smile, nodding a little. "It is a fine day indeed mister...?"
"Ah, I never introduced myself, how rude!" He took of his hat, bowing as a way of apologising. "I'm the ship's captain! My name's Pascal lass, no need for formalities here. And you?"
"...Angela. My name is Angela."
"A pretty name for a pretty girl!" He laughed jovially. "So you're headed to Castanet eh Angela? May I ask why?"
"..." The brunette remained silent for a moment, memories rising once more. She didn't want to speak of such personal matters to a stranger, but she didn't want to appear rude either. "I want to start up a farm... where I can accomplish my dream."
"I see. Quite the dreamer eh? Well I'm sure you'll make it lass! The people are all very nice here, and I'm sure you'll make friends in no time!"
If she were to be honest, making friends was not high on her list of priorities. She would socialise of course, but she had no need for friends, not really. "Yes... perhaps I will."
"Well, we're nearly there, it's in sight at least!"
Angela glanced behind her, eyes brightening a little at the sight of land. She wasn't very fond of the water. "I see it!" She turned back around, jogging towards the railings and studying the island with curious eyes. "It's... beautiful!" All she had known was a world concrete. Concrete walls, concrete buildings, heck, even concrete buildings. Living in the city wasn't exactly what she wanted for her life.
"That it is. Although, in recent times it's had it's troubles, but should be back to normal soon."
Troubles...? I wonder what he means... Oh well, I should focus on the now. Getting there, and claiming the deed is first on my list. Then I should meet everyone I can, possibly buy some seeds and some food. Oh, this is gonna be so much better than living back there!
As the ship traveled ever closer to the port, her hands tightened their grip on the railings, and a small smile curved onto her lips.
"Land ahoy!" Pascal bellowed out, possibly for comical reasons rather than actually needing to.
They finally reached it and, as soon as it was safely stationed, she made her way off of the deck, glad to be back on land. Looking around, there weren't many people about, but she did spot the town hall almost immediately. That was where she needed to go first.
But before she could even start to walk towards it, a short chubby man, with strangely styled grey hair jogged up to her, a wide grin stretching at his cheeks.
"Aha! So you made it safely! It's a pleasure to meet you!" His voice was quite high pitched for a man of his age, and she noticed a certain twinkle in his eyes. "You must be Angela yes? I'm the mayor of Castanet! Call me Mayor Hamilton! Welcome!"
"I see... Well, thank you for such a warm welcome. Um, I should really-"
"Come come dear! I must show you around town! Get you acquainted with the people of this merry little island!"
"But I really think I should-"
Despite her half-hearted protests, the strange man took her arm and began to lead her to another part of the island, towards some big fields. Once there, he began to tell her that the two shops in the fields were the ranch; where she could buy animals, and the farm; where she could buy seeds.
He basically pushed her inside the latter building, forcing her to introduce herself to these new people.
The lady at the counter examined her with slight interest. "Hello there, I don't believe I've seen you before."
"Um... no, you haven't I'm Angela... I just moved here..." She fiddled with the fabric of her shirt nervously, unsure what to say in the situation
"Ah yes! Mayor Hamilton mentioned a new arrival! Well you came at a rather bad time I'm afraid, for some reason the crops here won't grow as well as they used too..." The woman sighed quietly, mumbling something under her breath. "Anyhow, my name is Ruth. I run this shop with help from my son, whilst my husband and daughter do most of the farm work. If you happen to meet my husband, don't take anything he says personally, he's just a grumpy git."
A young boy, perhaps around seven or eight, came running out from a back room. He had unusually spiked blond hair, and was grinning wildly. He reminded Angela of her brother... no she couldn't get lost in those memories again, now was not the time.
"Hey mom, who's this lady?" He looked up at the brunette, keeping his air of cheerfulness.
"This is Angela, Taylor. She just moved here, so go easy on her, okay?"
"Whatever you say mom! Nice to meet ya' Angela! I'm Taylor, and one day I'm gonna be running this shop, and I'm gonna sell the bestest seeds and crops you ever seen!"
Well... he was enthusiastic, she had give him that. Angela smiled down at him, nodding her head a little. "Nice to meet you Taylor. And I'm sure you will, you can do anything if you believe."
"See mom! She agrees!"
Ruth simply rolled her eyes, leaning on the counter, her expression one of boredom. "Yes yes dear, I'm sure you will be..."
Before Angela to see any more of the unfolding scene, Hamilton came in the store and dragged her away, over to the ranch this time.
She met a girl around her age, Renee. She seemed nice enough, and seemed to have had a passion for taking care of animals. She also met Renee's parents, Hannah and Cain. Cain said if she came by the next day, he'd have a nice surprise for her.
And once again she was dragged away by the mayor (who at this point she was beginning to believe was crazy) off to the next district, where he showed her the shops but didn't force her to introduce herself to anyone else. And then it was back to the town.
Once again, he didn't force her to meet anyone this time, instead simply showing her around, chatting to her. She wasn't one for small talk, and just awkwardly nodded in agreement whenever he stopped speaking. By the time he was done, the sky was turning a shade of light orange.
"Ah well, I suppose I should let you go now Angela. But remember to pick up the deed from the town hall! My son should be there right now, and I'm sure you two will get along like a house on fire!" Hamilton reluctantly let go of her arm, and jogged away.
"Jeez... he didn't leave me a lot of time. I was supposed to go pick up seeds, and a lot of other stuff too... Dammit." She grumbled to herself, slowly making her way to the town hall. She was sure the mayor's son would be just like him, and boy would that be annoying.
How wrong she was.
The bell atop the door tinkled as she pushed it open, and she saw a blonde male sitting at the front desk. He seemed to be focusing intently on whatever he was doing, not even noticing someone had entered the room.
Angela walked up to him, simply wanting to get the deed, and go to her farm. Which, now that she thought about it, Hamilton hadn't even bothered to show her.
"Sorry to disturb you, but I need to get the deed to Melody Farm." She wasn't fond of that name, but it came with the farm, and it was better than it being called some stupid name like 'Starshine'.
He sighed, seemingly irritated, and looked up at her. His cold blue eyes focused on her brown ones, and she felt the iciness of his glare send a shiver up her body. Oh great, he was one of those people. Well, it was better than him being like his father, she supposed.
"You're the new farmer?" He arched an eyebrow, looking a little surprised. "But... you're a girl."
"Well spotted." Angela snorted, crossing her arms over her chest. "Seems you can tell what sex someone is, what do you want, a gold star?"
His brows furrowed, and he dropped the pen in his hand, rising from his seat. He was a lot taller than he seemed, standing about three inches taller than the brunette. "You think you can run a farm on your own? Good luck."
His words struck a chord in her, and she narrowed her eyes, giving him a sharp glare. "Are you perhaps implying, that because I am a girl, I stand less of a chance in running a farm than a guy? Cause I think you are."
He placed a hand on his hip, tugging at the collar of his shirt. "Well it is a proven fact that males are stronger than females, so yes, technically, you do stand less of a chance."
"Well if you wanna remain under the category of male, I suggest you shut your mouth." She growled, muscles tensing a little.
The young man seemed a little shocked she would threaten him like that. "Don't you know who I am? I'm the mayor's s-"
"I know exactly who you are, and I've met your type before. You're an asshole, snobby, smart-ass dick. Now just gimme my deed, and I'll be on my way."
"How dare you speak about me like that! You... you..."
"What's wrong, can't think of an insult sweater-vest? I'm not wasting my whole day here, so just get my deed and I'll be on my way."
The blonde, at this point, seemed furious. He stormed into a back room, muttering curses under his breath, before returning with a slip of paper in hand. "Anything to get rid of you, you... you cretin."
She chuckled at his weak insult, snatching the paper and turning her back on him. "Whatever you say, sweater-vest." It seemed she had found someone to wind up on this little island. It only made it better than he deserved it. "Hope to see you around." She drawled sarcastically, exiting the room.
The young man sat back down in his chair, embarrassed to have been insulted in such a way. And by a woman no less! The thought enraged him. "That girl... she's going to be trouble. I just know it."
