For those that think of my Danny Phantom fanfics when the farmer's name is Jack, that isn't the case. Different Jack, from Harvest Moon.

Was playing Harvest Moon again- Back to Nature version. Hired the Harvest Sprites to help me water crops, and I always kept wondering what the heck Budum meant.

So I wrote this short fanfic.

Harvest Moon (c) Natsume

Jack woke up to pounding rain against his window one cold autumn morning. He groaned and stretched and released a yawn. He enjoyed rain- it limited his work to just livestock, not that he had to worry about watering crops, anyways. Recently he hired the Harvest Sprites to water his crops when he found himself to be overworked between juggling fields of crops, livestock care, delivering a daily gift to the girl he crushed on, and chopping wood to expand his barn.

He had enlisted the help of the sprites for a week, and it been a few days already. He forgot to check the next day's weather before hopping into bed last night, so he had not been expecting the rain. He sat up and changed into his usual overalls and his cap. Jack cooked up a quick plate of scrambled eggs (eggs fresh from his farm, no less) and ate. Right as he was about to head out to the barn, he heard a knocking at the door.

The knocking had caught him by surprise; he didn't know many who would wake up at six a.m. and then walk in the rain to come talk to him. He opened the door and as he looked forward and saw nothing, and then a small voice caught his attention. "Budum?"

Jack looked down and saw Aqua in fancy blue raincoat. He was even holding a miniature umbrella. "Hi, Budum."

"Hey, Aqua. Please, come in. I mean to come tell you guys to obviously not worry about work today, not that you needed much of a clue. Oh, and to bring you guys those bags of flour that Chef likes to cook with." he said. Aqua stepped in and wiped his boots on the mat.

"Thanks, Budum. Say, I got this new outfit just for rainy days. Isn't it lovely, Budum?"

"Of course. So what's up? Can I interest you in anything to eat, Aqua?"

"No, Budum; I already ate, but thank you. I just wanted to come tell you we weren't working today, Budum, on account of the fact the rain watered your plants for you. It gave me an excuse to wear my new clothes, Budum."

"Alright." Jack paused. A question that had long been in his mind came up to his thoughts. He nervously began playing with his hat. "Uh, Aqua?"

"Yes, Budum?"

"...Why do you always say 'Budum' when you're talking to me?"

Aqua paused. He thought for a minute, and then shrugged. "I don't know, Budum. Mostly force of habit, Budum. It's a word us Harvest Sprites have used for so long, over hundreds of years. It's a polite term, Budum." he responded. Jack blinked.

"Oh. Thanks."

"No problem. Goodbye, Budum." he said, taking his leave. The farmer he left behind frowned. It was kind of Aqua to tell him, but now that he knew that not even the Harvest Sprites knew exactly what "Budum" meant other than it was an ancient and endearing term, he could only wonder one thing still.

What the heck does Budum mean?