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 21: Wedding Bells
**********
Everyone showed up at my house early that morning. Mom finished the dress just in time, and it was gorgeous, short and elegant with a matching veil. Ann was charging around, managing things, with Maria and Mom trailing in her wake clarifying them, and the whirlwind activity was not doing anything to stop the butterflies having a grape-stomping party in the pit of my stomach. Cliff was just making it worse, running back and forth to tell me what Jack was doing at that moment. Ann gave him a nice uppercut to the jaw, but he just grinned and went back out.
I got dressed, looked at myself in the mirror. "I can't do this," I informed anyone who was listening.
"Yes, you can!" Ann told me. "Now, come on. Everything's ready. The wedding starts in half an hour!"
I looked around the room at her, my mom, and the rest of the girls in the town. "Can you guys go ahead?" I asked. "I...just need to be alone for a couple minutes. I'll be down soon." Ann sighed and motioned everyone out. The door closed behind them.
I took a deep breath and sighed, trying to calm myself. Then I took a long look around. My bed, my stuff, my room...my life...this was the last time I'd ever live there. This was the last, irreversible step into adulthood.
I was ready.
I raised my eyes straight in front of me, willing myself not to look back. I left and locked the door behind me for the last time.
Then I went slowly downstairs and out of the house, and made my way to the village.
As soon as I set foot in the town, I was mobbed and propelled toward the bakery, where it appeared that my camp was located. Or something. That's what I was guessing, because it seemed like all the women in town were there, fussing over me. Through the window I caught a glance of the guys over by the tool shop, presumably surrounding Jack. In the middle of the whole thing was the pastor, shaking his head and smiling, the picture of serenity. Nice to know someone was calm about the whole thing.
"Come on!" Ann went through the crowd. "Okay, Popuri, Maria, you guys are going to sing, okay? Annnnd...Elli, you have a flute? Yes, no, maybe? All right, then, use mine. No, I can't play it, I'm in the wedding party! I can't work like this...Lillia, what happened to the bouquets? They're still there? Okay, someone run and get them. Now--Cliff, go away, can't you see we're working here?! Does anyone play the violin or anything? Someone go learn! Oh, good, here's May--where are her flowers?!" And so on like that until the church bells started to peal.
Ann froze. "Eagggh, it's time!" Maria patted her on the arm and scanned the neat rows.
"Right," she said, pushing her glasses up and straightening her dress. "Elli, Popuri, we'll go in first, and we're going to stand with Harris, Jeff, and Gray and start the music. I'll give you the cues on the organ so you know when to play. The rest of you file in one by one and take your seats. Then Ann, May, Ms. Sasha, you find the others in the wedding party and take your places, then Jack will come in, and finally Karen, you and your father. Then the pastor will speak, and we'll sing, and then the wedding party will line up outside and we'll have the processional." She smiled at me encouragingly. "It's all right, Karen, don't be so nervous." Then she brushed up to the door with the other musicians. "Now, let's go."
The three of them passed me and walked slowly outside, Maria making sure they were perfectly in step. In a few moments, I heard the music start, and then the Mayor's wife began to move. Behind her came the midwife and then Lillia, carefully helping Ellen toward the church.
My mother embraced me wordlessly and kissed my forehead. Then she left, clasping May's hand tightly. Ann looked at me.
"Good luck!" she whispered, squeezing my hand, and then she, too, was gone.
"Well, Karen, time to swing," I muttered to myself, and started walking.
My father was waiting outside. "Time to go," he said, and extended his arm. I took it, and together we started walking.
As the wooden door swung open, I saw Maria catch Elli's eye, and she began to play the wedding march. The pews were filled with the entire town. At the front of the church stood my mother, the three children, Cliff, Ann, and Kai. And there, in the center of it all, was Jack, smiling at me, looking handsome in a pristine white suit. He still had the baseball cap on.
I floated down the aisle, felt my father's arm leave mine as he took his place behind us. And then the pastor's voice--I never heard the words, only the voice, calm and smooth and warm, as he spoke. I heard him stop speaking, and then Maria started again at the organ and everyone was singing. Kai was watching me from the back, his voice rising stronger than all the others, and then he smiled. And in front of me stood Jack. Our eyes met, and I saw the corner of his mouth quirk up in a small grin. I smiled back.
We stood like that, the song echoing all around us, for a long time. And then the rest of the wedding party filed out, slowly, still singing. When my parents, the final two, were out the door, he took my hand and we started slowly out.
Outside the door, we stopped, and Pastor Brown stood between us.
"Jack," he began, "do you take Karen to be your lawful wedded wife?"
"I do," Jack said, his eyes locked on mine.
"And do you, Karen, take Jack to be your lawful wedded husband?"
"I do," I said, feeling the rhythm of our heartbeats and his hands in mine.
"Then I now pronounce you man and wife."
We turned, slowly, and walked to the end of the line, everyone singing quietly. Then I turned back to Jack.
He was still smiling, his eyes shining quietly.
Slowly, I leaned forward and felt the pressure of his lips on mine.
Everyone cheered.
We ran up the stairs to the square, where the wine was already flowing. The presents were piled high on a table to one side--a full wine rack from my parents, two chickens and a knitted blanket from Ann, a beautifully crafted baby cradle from Cliff and the carpenters, fresh oranges from Kai.
The cake was delicious, three layers of strawberry perfection. The music was great, too, and the entire town was up well past midnight dancing. Ann didn't have to force Gray to dance this time--"Maybe next time he'll do it on his own without me prompting him," she muttered to me--and he and Popuri surprised us all with an incredible reel.
The sky was pitch black by the time everyone finally gathered at the edge of the square to wish us well. Jack went down one set of stairs; I crossed down the other. We met in the center, clasped our hands again, and held them above our heads. A huge cheer went up, and rice rained down on us as we left the town behind.
We walked through the crossroads alone together, still holding hands. And then we were at the gates of the farm, and in the moonlight I could see our fields, and our dog curled up under the shelter of his doghouse, and there was our house.
"I love you," Jack whispered.
The door closed.
Wine Red no Kokoro
by flame mage
Part 21: Wedding Bells
**********
Everyone showed up at my house early that morning. Mom finished the dress just in time, and it was gorgeous, short and elegant with a matching veil. Ann was charging around, managing things, with Maria and Mom trailing in her wake clarifying them, and the whirlwind activity was not doing anything to stop the butterflies having a grape-stomping party in the pit of my stomach. Cliff was just making it worse, running back and forth to tell me what Jack was doing at that moment. Ann gave him a nice uppercut to the jaw, but he just grinned and went back out.
I got dressed, looked at myself in the mirror. "I can't do this," I informed anyone who was listening.
"Yes, you can!" Ann told me. "Now, come on. Everything's ready. The wedding starts in half an hour!"
I looked around the room at her, my mom, and the rest of the girls in the town. "Can you guys go ahead?" I asked. "I...just need to be alone for a couple minutes. I'll be down soon." Ann sighed and motioned everyone out. The door closed behind them.
I took a deep breath and sighed, trying to calm myself. Then I took a long look around. My bed, my stuff, my room...my life...this was the last time I'd ever live there. This was the last, irreversible step into adulthood.
I was ready.
I raised my eyes straight in front of me, willing myself not to look back. I left and locked the door behind me for the last time.
Then I went slowly downstairs and out of the house, and made my way to the village.
As soon as I set foot in the town, I was mobbed and propelled toward the bakery, where it appeared that my camp was located. Or something. That's what I was guessing, because it seemed like all the women in town were there, fussing over me. Through the window I caught a glance of the guys over by the tool shop, presumably surrounding Jack. In the middle of the whole thing was the pastor, shaking his head and smiling, the picture of serenity. Nice to know someone was calm about the whole thing.
"Come on!" Ann went through the crowd. "Okay, Popuri, Maria, you guys are going to sing, okay? Annnnd...Elli, you have a flute? Yes, no, maybe? All right, then, use mine. No, I can't play it, I'm in the wedding party! I can't work like this...Lillia, what happened to the bouquets? They're still there? Okay, someone run and get them. Now--Cliff, go away, can't you see we're working here?! Does anyone play the violin or anything? Someone go learn! Oh, good, here's May--where are her flowers?!" And so on like that until the church bells started to peal.
Ann froze. "Eagggh, it's time!" Maria patted her on the arm and scanned the neat rows.
"Right," she said, pushing her glasses up and straightening her dress. "Elli, Popuri, we'll go in first, and we're going to stand with Harris, Jeff, and Gray and start the music. I'll give you the cues on the organ so you know when to play. The rest of you file in one by one and take your seats. Then Ann, May, Ms. Sasha, you find the others in the wedding party and take your places, then Jack will come in, and finally Karen, you and your father. Then the pastor will speak, and we'll sing, and then the wedding party will line up outside and we'll have the processional." She smiled at me encouragingly. "It's all right, Karen, don't be so nervous." Then she brushed up to the door with the other musicians. "Now, let's go."
The three of them passed me and walked slowly outside, Maria making sure they were perfectly in step. In a few moments, I heard the music start, and then the Mayor's wife began to move. Behind her came the midwife and then Lillia, carefully helping Ellen toward the church.
My mother embraced me wordlessly and kissed my forehead. Then she left, clasping May's hand tightly. Ann looked at me.
"Good luck!" she whispered, squeezing my hand, and then she, too, was gone.
"Well, Karen, time to swing," I muttered to myself, and started walking.
My father was waiting outside. "Time to go," he said, and extended his arm. I took it, and together we started walking.
As the wooden door swung open, I saw Maria catch Elli's eye, and she began to play the wedding march. The pews were filled with the entire town. At the front of the church stood my mother, the three children, Cliff, Ann, and Kai. And there, in the center of it all, was Jack, smiling at me, looking handsome in a pristine white suit. He still had the baseball cap on.
I floated down the aisle, felt my father's arm leave mine as he took his place behind us. And then the pastor's voice--I never heard the words, only the voice, calm and smooth and warm, as he spoke. I heard him stop speaking, and then Maria started again at the organ and everyone was singing. Kai was watching me from the back, his voice rising stronger than all the others, and then he smiled. And in front of me stood Jack. Our eyes met, and I saw the corner of his mouth quirk up in a small grin. I smiled back.
We stood like that, the song echoing all around us, for a long time. And then the rest of the wedding party filed out, slowly, still singing. When my parents, the final two, were out the door, he took my hand and we started slowly out.
Outside the door, we stopped, and Pastor Brown stood between us.
"Jack," he began, "do you take Karen to be your lawful wedded wife?"
"I do," Jack said, his eyes locked on mine.
"And do you, Karen, take Jack to be your lawful wedded husband?"
"I do," I said, feeling the rhythm of our heartbeats and his hands in mine.
"Then I now pronounce you man and wife."
We turned, slowly, and walked to the end of the line, everyone singing quietly. Then I turned back to Jack.
He was still smiling, his eyes shining quietly.
Slowly, I leaned forward and felt the pressure of his lips on mine.
Everyone cheered.
We ran up the stairs to the square, where the wine was already flowing. The presents were piled high on a table to one side--a full wine rack from my parents, two chickens and a knitted blanket from Ann, a beautifully crafted baby cradle from Cliff and the carpenters, fresh oranges from Kai.
The cake was delicious, three layers of strawberry perfection. The music was great, too, and the entire town was up well past midnight dancing. Ann didn't have to force Gray to dance this time--"Maybe next time he'll do it on his own without me prompting him," she muttered to me--and he and Popuri surprised us all with an incredible reel.
The sky was pitch black by the time everyone finally gathered at the edge of the square to wish us well. Jack went down one set of stairs; I crossed down the other. We met in the center, clasped our hands again, and held them above our heads. A huge cheer went up, and rice rained down on us as we left the town behind.
We walked through the crossroads alone together, still holding hands. And then we were at the gates of the farm, and in the moonlight I could see our fields, and our dog curled up under the shelter of his doghouse, and there was our house.
"I love you," Jack whispered.
The door closed.