CHAPTER 2 - A stroll around town

Disclaimer: I do NOT own rights over Harvest Moon or any of the characters mentioned in this fanfic.

I did make up some of the characters though (like Grayson).

Please forgive any spelling mistakes. My native language is not english, as you can see.

...

The next morning Jill got up, still feeling a bit overwhelmed, but she knew she had a long day ahead of her. Lazily, she took a quick shower, thinking maybe all she needed was to relax a bit.

Once she got done with her shower Jill picked up some clothes from her closet and started to dress up. She put on her jeans overalls on with a yellow shirt underneath it, yellow rubber gloves and black boots. Her new work wardrobe consisted mostly of those pieces, aside from some color variations. Jill tried her hair up in a high ponytail, her bangs falling down her forehead.

The young farmer strolled into the kitchen, her hands reaching for the shelves, but she stopped herself on her tracks.

"Duh.", she mentally slapped herself. "I don't have any coffee. I need to go grocery shopping, I guess."

Jill looked over the small table next to the leather couch in her living room. Over the table there was the telephone and a small list written in clumsy handwriting.

"Right.", she muttered to herself. "Grayson left me a list of local phone numbers." She took the list in her hands, eyes scanning through the different names and numbers.

"Found it!", she cheered, finger over the phone number of a supermarket that actually made deliveries. Jill picked up the phone, proceeding to dial the number. She was greeted by a feminine voice on the other side of the line. Thankfully, in just a few minutes she was done placing her order and was told to expect delivery by the end of the day.

Good. She still had time to take a stroll around town and visit Vesta. As soon as she put the phone back in it's proper place, Jill heard a knock on her door. She walked towards the entrance, using one amethyst eye to spy through the peephole while squeezing the other shut tightly. Not like it would prevent anything from happening to her, anyway. The lock was broken and if this was a robbery she knew she would be screwed.

A large, bearded and strong man in his late 40's stood there, a red box of tools in hand. He caught the glimpse of an eye watching him and slowly lifted the box to the peephole's level, as if to point out why he was there.

"I'm Gotz, the carpenter. Grayson asked me to come fix your lock and introduce myself.", he said in his manly, rough voice.

Jill opened the door, smiling awkwardly at him. "Thank god you are here! I am Jill, the new farmer."

Gotz shook her tiny hand firmly, trying to muster a smile aswell, but his was much weirder, he had to admit it. "It is very nice to meet you, Jill. Is this the lock that needs to be fixed?"

"Yep.", she nodded. "Surprisingly no one has tried to rob me or anything. Weird, uh?"

"Not really.", Gotz replied, walking in as she stepped aside for him. "It's a small island. If anyone ever tried to rob one of the villagers they would get caught for sure."

"I guess you are right.", Jill agreed, relieved to be living in such a safe place now. She watched as the man kneeled down next to the door and began pulling some tools out of his box. "Sometimes I forget I don't live in the big city anymore."

"You get used to it.", he winked at her, then proceeded to get back to the task at hand.

Soon enough Gotz was done fixing the lock and he was gone on his pickup. Apparently, everyone in Forget-Me-Not-Valley owned a pickup or similar vehicle. "Make sure to introduce yourself around town!", were his last words before the big man took off.

Jill smiled softly and closed the door behind her. Indeed, that was exactly what she had planned to do that afternoon.

...

Jill found herself downtown in no time that day. Her farm was really close, unlike Vesta's, which was a little further away. Jill was first greeted by Nami, a short and pink haired young woman about the same age as her and Gustafa, the local hippie that had a long beard and wore a funny green hat. Gustafa himself looked like he was on his early 30's. Both didn't really have jobs and lived their lifes like loners, which was funny since this made them look like a perfect couple. If they were together or not, Jill could not tell.

"Anyway, I'm going for a stroll on the forest and I might visit the pond. Would you like to tag along?", Nami asked.

"Not now, thanks.", Jill refused politely. "I kinda have a long day ahead of me."

"You sure? I was going to place some offerings to the Harvest Goddess. Did you know she is famous for actually making the villager's wishes come true?", Risa pointed out excitedly. She was a believer.

"Really?", Jill was a bit surprised, and curious too. "I had no idea. I am sure to check it out sometime soon, then."

"You should!", Nami smiled, her hand grasping Gustafa by the arm as she began to walk off, dragging him along.

"Guess I'm tagging along.", he sweatdropped, earning a death glare from his pink haired companion. "Later, Jill!"

...

Along that day Jill got to meet several other villagers, such as Ruby, Wally and many others.

During a short visit to the Blue Bar, Jill got to meet Muffy, a tall, blonde and emerald eyed woman who worked as the barmaid and her boss, Griffin, a man on his late 30's with a peculiar looking nose, a mustache and long black hair, tied up in a low ponytail. Both were really nice people.

Jill had been sitting at the wooden counter for a few minutes now, drinking non-alcoholic beverages (hey, it was still too early) and making friends with the charming Muffy.

"Muffy, do you happen to know where Vesta's shop is?", Jill asked abruptly. The blonde girl blinked, cleaning a glass with a piece of white fabric.

"East of town, honey.", Muffy explained in her sexy, very feminine voice. "You cross that bridge and you'll be in Vesta's store in no time."

"Thanks.", the brunette smiled, taking the last sip of her soda.

"By the way, have you met her brother yet?", Muffy asked, letting her inquisitive nature show.

"Who, Marlin?", Jill looked slightly annoyed. "Yeah."

Muffy giggled, placing the glass in it's place. "Personally, I think he would be the perfect guy... if only he kept that pretty little mouth of his shut!"

Both girls laughed loudly. Clearly Marlin was known around for his "tough" personality.

"Well, I gotta go. Thanks Muffy, it was a pleasure talking to you.", Jill said, leaving the money on the counter, along with the tip.

"Anytime, darling!", Muffy smiled kindly as she watched Jill walk out the door of the bar.

...

That afternoon, Jill strolled across the bridge that led to Vesta's shop, happily humming a song to herself. Once on the other side of the island, she could see a large house and a barn in the distance. She also noticed the silhouette of a girl, calmly sweeping the floor in front of the store.

Jill approached the girl, who was about the same age as her (around 22 years old). She was also a brunette and had alluring chocolate eyes. She smiled brightly, letting go of her broom and adjusting the white apron she wore. "Good afternoon! I'm Celia. May I help you?"

"Hey.", Jill smiled right back at the pretty girl before her. "I'm Jill."

"Oh, you must be the new farmer! How exciting!", Celia concluded. "We were informed you would probably come by today. Do come in, Vesta is inside!"

"Marlin...", the young farmer thought, figuring he was the one who had informed them of her arrival. Boy, did he know how to take care of the family's business. "Say, Celia, do you work here?"

"I do indeed!", was the reply, as Celia opened the door and let the newcomer inside.

"So you are related to Vesta and Marlin, yes?", Jill asked, out of curiosity. Celia looked nothing like Marlin, and she was much more pleasant than him too, apparently.

"No, no.", Celia chuckled, stepping inside and closing the door behind them. "I came to this island a while ago. Vesta let me live with her and I work to pay for my stay and expenses."

"Sounds fair.", Jill said.

"She didn't want me to work here at first though. Not for that reason, but I insisted because I'd highly dislike to be a burden. Vesta is such a kind woman, I tell you.", Celia rambled. "Oh, there she is!"

Jill looked forward at the counter. There stood a tall, bulky woman around the age of 40-45ish. She had small bright eyes and wavy blonde hair tied in a low ponytail. Her eyebrows were as thick as her brother's, which gave her kind of a masculine look.

Celia took Jill's hand and walked with her towards the older woman, whose attention shifted from the bills in front of her to the two girls standing there. "My, my. What do we have here, ladies?"

"Vesta, I would like to introduce you to Jill.", Celia said in her sweet tone. "She is the new farmer in town."

Vesta extended her hand at Jill, who took it and shook as firmly as she could. She kinda wanted to impress Vesta, knowing she was the most influent woman in town and all. "It is very nice to meet you, Jill!"

"You too, Vesta.", she smiled.

Suddenly, there was a noise and the door flung open. A very sweaty Marlin came in, his white shirt unbuttoned. He looked like he had been working all day nonstop. Vesta quirked a brow at her little brother, annoyed at his manners.

"Marlin.", she called, with authority in her tone. "We have ladies over here. Button your god damn shirt!"

Celia and Jill quickly turned on their heels, both blushing a little at the sight of his exposed chest. Marlin, taking notice of their awkwardness towards him, began to button up at first the bottom first three buttons of his shirt.

"Have you been overworking yourself again?", Vesta questioned, noticing how sweaty he looked.

Marlin rolled his blue eyes at his sister and motioned towards one of the brunettes. "Celia.", he called in his deep voice.

"I'll be right with you!", Celia said almost too happily, as Marlin walked out, leaving the three girls alone. She ran her hand through her hair before turning to Jill and her boss. "Girls, I'll leave you to it."

Celia left the store, running after Marlin in a hurry. Vesta shook her head slowly in disappointment. "Poor girl. She just doesn't know when to give up."

"What?", Jill asked, shooting the older woman a confused glance.

"Nevermind.", Vesta chuckled. "Now, I'm sure you have many questions for me, yes?"

Jill nodded, leaning against the counter. "You have no idea. So many doubts."

"Well, shoot away!"