Disclaimer: I don't own Harvest Moon, Karen, or any related characters or
events; to the best of my knowledge, they're all owned by Natsume. Any
resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or events is purely
coincidental. This story is based primarily on the plot of Harvest Moon 64.
Wine Red no Kokoro
by flame mage
Part 16: When I Quit Wine-ing
**********
Another week went by. Cliff proposed to Ann, who ran squealing to me, fluffy little bits of blue still shining in her hair. We danced around and laughed and cried and hugged a lot. She was so happy, and I was happy for her. Cliff came by to see me later, beaming.
Actually, the whole village was in a pretty good mood. Winter is a very social season, more than anything else. There's less work to be done--nothing to pick in the mountains, nothing to harvest, very little to fish--and so everyone goes visiting instead. The bar was jammed every night--not just the regulars, but other people too. And every night we didn't spend there, we spent by the fire in someone's house, talking over cake. The bakery and the bar were doing a ton of business. Winter is a good season to relax, look around, and talk to people. Even Lillia and Popuri, who can't stand winter, were generally content.
The only person who didn't seem to be happy was Kai. When I get down, I drink too much, but Kai came to the bar less frequently, maybe realizing that if he started drinking, he wouldn't have been able to stop. Instead, he spent more time in his room, writing letters or looking glumly out the window. He put in long hours in the wine cellar, too. I didn't know what he did in there. Once I came in to find him just wandering around, bleakly.
"Are you okay?" I asked.
He smiled. "Winter is such a cold month." Then he looked out the window. Ann and Cliff were passing in the crossroads, laughing. "They look so happy..."
I didn't know what to say, so I just left before he started muttering about roots going down deeper in arid land. Sometimes Kai just needs to be alone.
We all learned card games--blackjack, poker, go fish, crazy eights, war, everything. And Maria hauled out some big catalogues she had of things we could order from the mainland. We ordered some Monopoly sets. It was the first time any of us had ever played, but we got a lot of practice.
Ann and I figured that our project to draw Maria out of her shell was starting to be a success, actually. She and Harris started a chess club that winter, so we all learned that, too. It got so half the time in the bar all you heard was "checkmate!"
Jack and I spent more time together, too. We went up in the mountains a lot, especially the hot springs. They got built that winter, and they were one of the best things to happen all year. There is nothing better than a hot bath after you've been working hard. One day we went out in the snow and saw Ann's Pika bunny. We'd take care of the animals in the mornings, and then I'd practice dancing. At night he came to the bar a lot, and I'd sit down on the edge of the table and hang out for a while.
Mostly what we did was talk, though, which I liked. Sometimes I'd have a fight with my dad, and I'd reenact the whole thing while he listened. Sometimes there'd be a storm that blew away half his fence or he'd get a letter from his father that made him mad, and I'd listen to him. Sometimes we'd both talk--about everything or nothing, it didn't matter. I found that like with Ann, he and I thought the same way a lot, and we understood each other pretty well. I think I really needed someone who could understand.
It was a snowy morning in midwinter, and I woke up and figured it was a day for the wine cellar.
I was heading out the front door at the same time Kai was racing in. We collided, and both of us ended up on the floor. He was on his feet first, helping me up. "Come on!" he cried, grabbing my hand and pulling me toward the cellar. He was reminding me strangely of Ann, so I figured I'd better go see what was up.
"There!" He slammed to a stop in front of one of the aging barrels. "THAT is the first new wine of the year!"
Dad came up the stairs with a bottle of wine in his hand and Mom trailing behind him. He handed the bottle to me. "The first of it. Just finished putting it in the keg," he grunted. "Try it."
I slid a glass off the rack, dusted it off. They all gathered around as I uncorked it and poured myself a glass. Slowly, I placed the edge of the wine glass on my lips and took a tiny sip, closing my eyes and letting the flavor soak into my tongue.
It was incredible.
"Here!" I thrust the bottle at Kai, who was the nearest. "You've gotta try it!" He took the glass and poured a little for himself, closing his eyes and taking it in slowly as I had.
His eyes flew open and he let out a whoop of joy and, in an incredibly uncharacteristic action, threw his arms around me. "You did it, Karen! This is it! This is it!" He picked me up and swung me around the room, and then we started dancing, ecstatic.
My mother was smiling as she handed the bottle to my father. As he drank, I saw a single tear run down his face.
Jack was just coming out the door when I raced onto the farm. "Hi there!" I called. "Good morning!"
"Hey, Karen!" He jogged over. "You're out of breath. You've been running? In this weather?"
I inhaled slowly. "Hey, we finished making the wine!"
"Already?"
I explained, "Some of it is still being aged, but this is the first wine of the year." I took out the bottle. "Try it."
He looked around. "Come on inside," he said, holding the door for me.
We went inside, and he dragged over two wooden chairs. "Sorry it's not much," he apologized. "I just had these made."
"Not at all." I looked around. The rug on the floor was new. It made the room feel a lot warmer and more comfortable. "This place is starting to look really nice, Jack."
He rolled his eyes and grinned, looking a little embarassed. "Thanks. I have enough money for a greenhouse, but if I get it now I won't have any money for crops or animal feed come spring. So I decided that this winter I'd work on making this place look a little more like a home." He smiled, his cheeks a little red, from the cold, I guess. "So, do I get to try this incredible new wine or not?"
"Coming right up." I set the bottle on the table and withdrew two wine glasses from my bag while he lit a fire. When he returned to the table, I poured us each a glass.
Jack raised it. "A toast," he said, "to the return of the Moon Mountain Vineyard!"
"To the vineyard," I echoed. Our glasses clinked in the firelight.
We drank slowly, savoring the taste of the wine. Jack was silent for a long time, and then he said, "This is...amazing."
I smiled. "Good, isn't it? It's totally different from before. This might even become as good as Grandma's wine."
"Better," he said, reaching across the table to take my hand in his. Without his gloves on, I could see that he was wearing the bracelet I'd given him for his birthday.
"You're wearing it?" I asked.
"Of course. I always wear this," he said. Then he grinned. "It's lucky, remember?"
I stood up and came around the table so I could kiss him, and then we sat back down to drink the year's first glasses of wine.
"Good evening," I greeted Jack as he came up the beach.
"So, explain it to me again...what's this Star Night thing?" he asked.
"It's kind of a year end festival. Some people go to the church, Popuri goes up on the mountain...everyone looks up at the stars and reflects on the year. It's kind of an introspective festival," I explained. "And a lot of people spend it...with the person they care about..."
He looked sideways at me. I coughed and sat on the sand, trailing my fingers in the water. The first streak of starlight caught my eye, and I leaned back and laid on my back in the sand to watch it.
"Look!" I pointed upward. "Isn't it great? We'll be able to see lots of shooting stars tonight."
Jack stretched out next to me and we watched in silence for a long time.
The breeze left strands of hair flying into my mouth. I sat up and wrapped my arms around my legs, shivering.
"What's wrong?" Jack asked, also sitting up.
"The sea breeze feels chilly..." All right, so it was the oldest cliché in the book, but I really was cold. Goosebumps were standing out on my bare arms. I began to wish I'd brought a jacket.
He laughed softly and scootched closer to me, his arms around me.
"Oh, you can be so considerate..." I murmured. Why not go for broke? "My hands are cold. They get cold so quickly."
He took off his gloves and took my hands in his. For the first time, I felt the calluses on them, felt the strength within them. He wasn't the same city kid he'd been less than a year ago. Something in him had changed. I could feel it.
"Your hands are...warm," I said.
"Yeah, well...you know. I work a lot." He shrugged, the movement sending a shiver through my spine.
I turned in to him. His face was lit up by starlight, and he was smiling at me.
With one motion, we leaned in toward each other and our lips met.
Wine Red no Kokoro
by flame mage
Part 16: When I Quit Wine-ing
**********
Another week went by. Cliff proposed to Ann, who ran squealing to me, fluffy little bits of blue still shining in her hair. We danced around and laughed and cried and hugged a lot. She was so happy, and I was happy for her. Cliff came by to see me later, beaming.
Actually, the whole village was in a pretty good mood. Winter is a very social season, more than anything else. There's less work to be done--nothing to pick in the mountains, nothing to harvest, very little to fish--and so everyone goes visiting instead. The bar was jammed every night--not just the regulars, but other people too. And every night we didn't spend there, we spent by the fire in someone's house, talking over cake. The bakery and the bar were doing a ton of business. Winter is a good season to relax, look around, and talk to people. Even Lillia and Popuri, who can't stand winter, were generally content.
The only person who didn't seem to be happy was Kai. When I get down, I drink too much, but Kai came to the bar less frequently, maybe realizing that if he started drinking, he wouldn't have been able to stop. Instead, he spent more time in his room, writing letters or looking glumly out the window. He put in long hours in the wine cellar, too. I didn't know what he did in there. Once I came in to find him just wandering around, bleakly.
"Are you okay?" I asked.
He smiled. "Winter is such a cold month." Then he looked out the window. Ann and Cliff were passing in the crossroads, laughing. "They look so happy..."
I didn't know what to say, so I just left before he started muttering about roots going down deeper in arid land. Sometimes Kai just needs to be alone.
We all learned card games--blackjack, poker, go fish, crazy eights, war, everything. And Maria hauled out some big catalogues she had of things we could order from the mainland. We ordered some Monopoly sets. It was the first time any of us had ever played, but we got a lot of practice.
Ann and I figured that our project to draw Maria out of her shell was starting to be a success, actually. She and Harris started a chess club that winter, so we all learned that, too. It got so half the time in the bar all you heard was "checkmate!"
Jack and I spent more time together, too. We went up in the mountains a lot, especially the hot springs. They got built that winter, and they were one of the best things to happen all year. There is nothing better than a hot bath after you've been working hard. One day we went out in the snow and saw Ann's Pika bunny. We'd take care of the animals in the mornings, and then I'd practice dancing. At night he came to the bar a lot, and I'd sit down on the edge of the table and hang out for a while.
Mostly what we did was talk, though, which I liked. Sometimes I'd have a fight with my dad, and I'd reenact the whole thing while he listened. Sometimes there'd be a storm that blew away half his fence or he'd get a letter from his father that made him mad, and I'd listen to him. Sometimes we'd both talk--about everything or nothing, it didn't matter. I found that like with Ann, he and I thought the same way a lot, and we understood each other pretty well. I think I really needed someone who could understand.
It was a snowy morning in midwinter, and I woke up and figured it was a day for the wine cellar.
I was heading out the front door at the same time Kai was racing in. We collided, and both of us ended up on the floor. He was on his feet first, helping me up. "Come on!" he cried, grabbing my hand and pulling me toward the cellar. He was reminding me strangely of Ann, so I figured I'd better go see what was up.
"There!" He slammed to a stop in front of one of the aging barrels. "THAT is the first new wine of the year!"
Dad came up the stairs with a bottle of wine in his hand and Mom trailing behind him. He handed the bottle to me. "The first of it. Just finished putting it in the keg," he grunted. "Try it."
I slid a glass off the rack, dusted it off. They all gathered around as I uncorked it and poured myself a glass. Slowly, I placed the edge of the wine glass on my lips and took a tiny sip, closing my eyes and letting the flavor soak into my tongue.
It was incredible.
"Here!" I thrust the bottle at Kai, who was the nearest. "You've gotta try it!" He took the glass and poured a little for himself, closing his eyes and taking it in slowly as I had.
His eyes flew open and he let out a whoop of joy and, in an incredibly uncharacteristic action, threw his arms around me. "You did it, Karen! This is it! This is it!" He picked me up and swung me around the room, and then we started dancing, ecstatic.
My mother was smiling as she handed the bottle to my father. As he drank, I saw a single tear run down his face.
Jack was just coming out the door when I raced onto the farm. "Hi there!" I called. "Good morning!"
"Hey, Karen!" He jogged over. "You're out of breath. You've been running? In this weather?"
I inhaled slowly. "Hey, we finished making the wine!"
"Already?"
I explained, "Some of it is still being aged, but this is the first wine of the year." I took out the bottle. "Try it."
He looked around. "Come on inside," he said, holding the door for me.
We went inside, and he dragged over two wooden chairs. "Sorry it's not much," he apologized. "I just had these made."
"Not at all." I looked around. The rug on the floor was new. It made the room feel a lot warmer and more comfortable. "This place is starting to look really nice, Jack."
He rolled his eyes and grinned, looking a little embarassed. "Thanks. I have enough money for a greenhouse, but if I get it now I won't have any money for crops or animal feed come spring. So I decided that this winter I'd work on making this place look a little more like a home." He smiled, his cheeks a little red, from the cold, I guess. "So, do I get to try this incredible new wine or not?"
"Coming right up." I set the bottle on the table and withdrew two wine glasses from my bag while he lit a fire. When he returned to the table, I poured us each a glass.
Jack raised it. "A toast," he said, "to the return of the Moon Mountain Vineyard!"
"To the vineyard," I echoed. Our glasses clinked in the firelight.
We drank slowly, savoring the taste of the wine. Jack was silent for a long time, and then he said, "This is...amazing."
I smiled. "Good, isn't it? It's totally different from before. This might even become as good as Grandma's wine."
"Better," he said, reaching across the table to take my hand in his. Without his gloves on, I could see that he was wearing the bracelet I'd given him for his birthday.
"You're wearing it?" I asked.
"Of course. I always wear this," he said. Then he grinned. "It's lucky, remember?"
I stood up and came around the table so I could kiss him, and then we sat back down to drink the year's first glasses of wine.
"Good evening," I greeted Jack as he came up the beach.
"So, explain it to me again...what's this Star Night thing?" he asked.
"It's kind of a year end festival. Some people go to the church, Popuri goes up on the mountain...everyone looks up at the stars and reflects on the year. It's kind of an introspective festival," I explained. "And a lot of people spend it...with the person they care about..."
He looked sideways at me. I coughed and sat on the sand, trailing my fingers in the water. The first streak of starlight caught my eye, and I leaned back and laid on my back in the sand to watch it.
"Look!" I pointed upward. "Isn't it great? We'll be able to see lots of shooting stars tonight."
Jack stretched out next to me and we watched in silence for a long time.
The breeze left strands of hair flying into my mouth. I sat up and wrapped my arms around my legs, shivering.
"What's wrong?" Jack asked, also sitting up.
"The sea breeze feels chilly..." All right, so it was the oldest cliché in the book, but I really was cold. Goosebumps were standing out on my bare arms. I began to wish I'd brought a jacket.
He laughed softly and scootched closer to me, his arms around me.
"Oh, you can be so considerate..." I murmured. Why not go for broke? "My hands are cold. They get cold so quickly."
He took off his gloves and took my hands in his. For the first time, I felt the calluses on them, felt the strength within them. He wasn't the same city kid he'd been less than a year ago. Something in him had changed. I could feel it.
"Your hands are...warm," I said.
"Yeah, well...you know. I work a lot." He shrugged, the movement sending a shiver through my spine.
I turned in to him. His face was lit up by starlight, and he was smiling at me.
With one motion, we leaned in toward each other and our lips met.