Rune Factory 3

Beside the Laughing Waterfall.

A Marriage Proposal One Shot.

By Indogma.

Micah and Carmen were walking towards the Rainbow Falls woods with fishing rods, and tackle boxes in hand. Micah had spent all of the previous day picking the crops and managed to get them all ready before the shipment was due. It was tiring work, and Micah needed a break to relax, and what was more relaxing then fishing? Nothing came to mind.

At first he was planning to go alone, but as he walked by the general store and flower shop, he ran into Carmen and Carlos exiting the General store with groceries. It only took Carmen one look to see the rod in Micah's hands to send her running home for her rod to go fishing with him. Micah didn't even have a say in the matter— she was going with him, whether he liked it or not.

But Micah didn't mind the company. In fact he enjoyed fishing with Carmen, she was a joy to be around. But it was more then that. Micah and Carmen admitted that they liked each other once, and Carlos had given his blessing that Micah could date her. But that was more then a year ago. And Micah felt the feeling was more then like; he felt it was love. But did she feel the same way? Wondered Micah.

As they came descended onto the little inlet of land that stood in front of the Rainbow Falls, Micah looked up and saw the famous rainbow that the falls were known for creating. When Micah first heard of the waterfall's name he just assumed it was a waterfall named by Daria; showing off her obsession with rainbows. But after realizing why it was called that, he agreed that it was an appropriate name.

After Carmen caught sight of the open water, she then raced past Micah saying with an excited smile on her face, "Come on, apprentice! Don't get left behind!" Micah then raced after her down the small inlet of land.

When Carmen reached the tall grass on the inlet, she put down her rod and her tackle box to the ground on her side, held her arms out and tilted her had back and breathed in the fresh crisp air that surrounded the waterfall. Then she let out a content sigh and declared, "This place is always nice to come to." She then turned to Micah who had caught up with her and smiled at him adding: "It's so relaxing." Micah nodded, giving no arguments.

The two then sat in the grass, baited their rods and cast them into the calm water, causing the water to ripple. As Micah then plopped to the ground, but subtly reached into his pocket and felt around, he then let out a sigh of relief after feeling a small round object in his pocket. An engagement ring. He had been saving it for her, he just needed the right moment. But it never seemed to come, so he held on to it, waiting for it.

For the next hour the two just laid in the grass, swapping fishing stories and advice. As the day passed by, Carmen's stomach groaned. She had not eaten breakfast yet. Micah then smiled and asked, "Hungry?"

Carmen then grinned, "Yeah I haven't eaten all day. We were out of food in the hut, so Carlos couldn't make breakfast."

Micah smiled, he found it odd that they would not have any food since they ran a fish resort. But he was not one to judge. He then opened his tackle box and pulled out a couple of sandwiches and smiled, "Well why don't we eat some lunch?"

He then put them on a handkerchief in the middle of them. Carmen then snatch with a mischievous grin on her face, "Well if you are offering!" She then began to eat away at the boiled egg sandwich. As she chopped down the first sandwich, she then grabbed another piece and smiled, "Ah, it feels so good." She then laid her back down and nestled in the grass, she sighed, "I can feel the water from here," speaking as if she had found a long lost friend.

Micah nodded and looked around at the surrounding landscape. "It's really quite a sight," he agreed grabbing on of his sandwiches. "I can feel its strength."

"Don't you think?" Asked Carmen looking around at the little valley they were in. She looked at the grass beside her, the trees all around them, and then she got up to admire the waterfall again. It must have taken hundreds of years to get it were it was now. She then said in awe, "The power of nature is amazing…" Then she began to think out loud, "Sometimes when I go fishing, I feel like I am apart of nature. It makes me feel like I am so small in the middle of it all."

"Fishing is quite deep," said Micah speaking from his own experience. "It has a way of making you face yourself." "Yeah…" said Carmen aloud, completely understanding. Then she realized what they were talking about: fishing. It always seemed to go back to fishing whenever they got together. She then realized that she must have sounded like a broken record. "Haha…" she laughed nervously. "How did we get to talking about fishing? It always ends like this."

Micah looked at her and smiled. "I don't mind."

Relieved that she was not boring him, she looked down to her fishing rod to check her line. While doing so, she then noticed Micah's fishing pole. It was of equal quality as hers, which showed how much Micah's fishing skill had improved over the three years he had been in the village. He was now be a tough competitor in every fishing contest. Carmen was impressed by him. Then she remembered when the first met, and she then felt she was complied to apologize.

She then said, "Hey Micah. I know that I am your master but…" she then shook off her pride and said, "I'm sorry."

Micah was thrown back at the sudden apology that seemed to have come from no were. "What? Why?"

"About roping you into fishing," said Carmen. "I just thought I might have forced that fishing rod on you," she explained.

Micah smiled, "No you didn't. In fact I'm rather glad you did teach me how to fish. I like it."

"Really?" Asked Carmen, surprised to here Micah was not angry with her. She then smiled, "Good, let's keep it up then."

Micah then smiled and said, teasing her, "Yes, master." She teased back by punching him in the arm.

After the sandwiches were gone, the two of them checked their lines and cast them off again. It seemed like the fish were not hungry today. As the time dwindled by, Carmen then listed through her head, things she could ask him about that would hopefully not lead back to fish. Then a question that had bugged her before pop up. "Hey," she asked softy, "what's it like living by yourself?" Micah then looked at her, "What?"

Carmen shrugged, "I'm a little bit interested."

"Oh really? That's a little surprising."

"I'm really jealous of you an Daria." She explained, and added with a little annoyance in her voice, "Living with Carlos can so annoying sometimes." Then she said enthusiastically wanted to know: "So what's it like?"

Micah then thought about the question, the tree house that he was living in was nice. But whenever he went home, it seemed empty. Like it needed more people then himself. Like a family…

Micah then answered slowly, "The tree house is so big, I think it is meant for a family. Not a bachelor like me." Then he smiled cheerfully, "So it makes me want a family."

"Really?" Asked Carmen, not understanding. She could not make sense that why anyone alone would want to not live alone. While she loved her bother; she at times wanted to choke the life out of him with his own fishing line. But not only sharing a house with someone, but with a family? The thought never crossed her mind before. "You think about stuff like that?" Micah nodded, and Carmen looked back at the water. "I see," her mind was now in a storm of thoughts now with the idea of her having a family, "Family, huh…"

Micah then looked to the sky and saw how late it was getting. "Ha he, time sure flies when you are having fun. It's going to get dark soon. We better start packing up." Carmen shrugged, "Lets give it an other five minutes. I want to leave here with something."

Micah shrugged and put his rod away and cleaned up the area a bit. After he was finished he then looked at Carmen. He decided now was the time; he was going to ask Carmen to marry him. He gabbed the ring from his pocket and held it in his palm. He watched her as she fished to find the right time to ask. Carmen sighed disappointed, "I guess today was a bad day for fishing. Oh well," she smiled, "I'll try agai—" then there was a tug on the line. And she turned her eyes to her line, with intense focus. Then another tug and another. Then the tugging stopped and it seemed like the fish had abandoned the bait. And for a brief pause, the line remained motionless.

Then there came a hard pull on the line, the fish had not given up, and was now on the hook. "Got one!" Shouted Carmen cheerfully. She then tried to pull the rod up, but found the fish very strong and she could not force the rod back. Micah then dropped his gear and helped her grip the rod. Together they pulled the rod up and forced the fish to surface. It was a love snapper. A very rare and hard fish to catch.

As soon as the fish fell back into the water, the pulling then continued with a lot of force. And the tow of them tried to pull back, to force the fish closer. They were not about to lose a love snapper. As the tug of war continued between Carmen Micah and the fish, the line was under a lot of tension. And all of a sudden, it snapped the line and fish broke free. The snap of the fining line cause Micah and Carmen to fall on to each other, Micah fell to the ground first and then Carmen fell on top of him.

For a moment the two just lied their, still making sense of what just happened. Then they opened their eyes and realized where they landed. Micah was on the ground while Carmen was on top of him, when their eyes met, they blushed and became warm. Quickly Carmen got off of him, placed her fishing rod on her right shoulder and brushed her shorts. "Heh, I guess that was bad luck," she said laughing awkwardly. "We'll get him next time, right Micah?"

Micah then got up and sighed, "Yep next time." He then put his hands into his pocket, only to have him realize something. The ring, it was gone. He then frantically searched in his pants and at the group below his feet, but he could not see it.

Carmen just raised an eyebrow and looked at Micah suspiciously. "Are you ok?" She asked. Micah then froze where his was a realized she could see him, he then stopped fumbling around and scratched the back of his had saying, "Ah, I just though I saw a bug on me…" he made up on the fly. "Huh? A bug?" Asked Carmen. "Yeah," said Micah adding more to the lie, "It was big, and startled me."

Carmen then lowered her rod, and shook her head. She didn't understand. As she slid her rod down her shoulder, there came a tickling sound, followed by the feeling of something metallic on her thumb and pointer finger. Both her and Micah looked down to where her pole was clasped in her hands. It was the silver and ruby engagement ring. Some how it had managed to catch itself into the shaft of the rod, and slid down on to the top of Carmen's hand.

Micah then blushed so red that it would put to shame any red apple. But Carmen just stared at it. Let it slide off the pole and held it in her left hand palm and looked at it, not knowing what it meant. "What is it?" She asked out loud. Micah was to embarrassed and anxious to answer her. "Wait," said realizing, "is this…?" She then looked at Micah and her fears were realized. It was and engagement ring, and Micah had planned to ask her to marry him.

"I-I don't want it!" She said without thinking. Then she realized how it sounded, and tried to correct herself, "I didn't mean…" but then didn't know what to say. The she know what to say. She just stared at the ring, trying to brush aside the idea. Then a thought came to her that made far more sense, "Oh, wait, are you teasing me?" Then the reason why he would have teased her came to her, "Just because I like you?" It made sense in her mind. She never knew any kind of lover other then her brother's, and he teased her often just to show his love. Carmen wanted to believe Micah was doing the same thing. "This is a cruel joke!" She added, forcing a laugh from her mouth.

"Carmen," said Micah softy and sincere, to prove it was no joke. He had recovered from his blushing, after seeing Carmen blush wildly after realizing what the ring was for.

Carmen then stared at the ring in her palm, and tears began to fill her eyes. Her heart was beating fast, and she did not know why. She was liked by Micah, but why she could not understand. She didn't feel like she could ever be liked, and that this was a dream, she just couldn't believe that Micah liked him.

She then let out a cry, unable to hold back the tears, the turmoil of emotions inside of her was too much for her to handle. After inhaling, she let out another cry and even more tears flowed down her face.

"Carmen…" Micah said again. This was the first real time he had seen her cry before.

But then Carmen slowed her tears and batted away his soft voice, "I'm the worst!" She said rubbing her eyes, "I'm such an idiot! I'm clumsy, and now guy would ever want me!" She then turned around, closed her eyes and shook her head, "even now my head is just a mess!" She then turned at looked at Micah, "I was just happy to fish with you!" She said pouring her emotions out to Micah, "Why does my chest hurt so much?! Why do I like you so much?"

"Carmen," said Micah, still softly but with purpose, "listen to me." Carmen then stopped her tears and looked at the blonde young man standing opposite of her. "I'm nervous too," he said explaining his feelings, "Even now, I am having a hard time breathing…" He then smiled, "You are not the only one going through these feelings." He then scratched the back of his head and embarrassingly admitted, "I mean, I want to look cool for the girl I like, but I end up looking like a fool instead."

"Micah," said Carmen brushing a tear from her eye. To her he wasn't looking foolish, but honest...

Micah then saw her fishing rod on the ground and knew what to say next: "I always thought you were nice since the first time we went fishing together." A smile then slowly grew on her face and she began to blush. "That's why I was so happy when you told me how you felt." He then had his deep blue eyes stare deeply into her sea blue eyes, "I invited you today because I wanted to tell you that." He then took a breath in and made up his mind, it was do or die now: "Will you marry me?"

A moment passed, and she just stood quietly there, staring at Micah with her sea eyes. "I want be with you until we're both old and wrinkled…" he added for effect, to show his honesty.

The tears again began to build around Carmen's eyes as she smiled, "Micah!" She then nodded, and they then walked closer together and hugged.

They both embraced each other softy, and did not move. Micah then happy admitted, "I love you."

But Carmen's reaction was less then sublet, she then began to shout again, but this time with excitement instead of sorrow. Then she yelled, "I'm so happy!" She said through her tears of joy, "I'm so happy!" Micah smiled, pulling away from her and holding her shoulders, "I'm glad."

But the tears did not stop, they just continued to flow from her eyes, but she had the largest smile through her tears, "Oh no," she said short of breath, "I can't stop crying. I'm so happy I cannot breathe! Help me!" She then reverted back to her defensive move, and began to punch him hard in the stomach to help her try to stop laughing and crying.

Meanwhile, in Sharance, just outside the Diamond General store, Hazel was placing a fresh basket of produce from Micah's farm he had gathered the day before. As she wiped the sweat from her brow, she could hear a loud noise of laughter. She then determined that it had came form Rainbow Falls. As she walked back into the shop, she then said out loud: "The falls are really laughing today. They must have seen something…" She then saw her daughter, Karina behind the counter with her chin on the counter and her eyes closed, as if she was asleep.

"Karina!" Shouted Hazel, trying to get her daughter to get back to work. "Get up, we still have finish putting out the rest of Micah's produce." Katrina's eyebrows then lowered annoyed, and she sighed, "Fine…" not moving from her spot.

End Notes-

Sorry if my story does not add up, or is missing some important details. It has been some time since I lasted played the game and my Rune Factory 3 is a little rusty.

I also wanted to practice my romantic writing a little, so see if i could do it. Let me know what you think and what could use improvement.

Anyway Enjoy!

Indogma.