Gamer To Farmer

Chapter 15: Rebuilding Mage's Farm

A/N: Almost there! I can't believe that this fic is nearly at the 100 review mark. I appreciate every single review that you guys have given and thanks for the support that you have offered. I can guarantee two straight chapters of a more peaceful lifestyle. I'm afraid I can't guarantee anything after that.

Oh, and FYI: Mage is doing extremely well and we are getting plans ready for our joint fic.

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Jack and animals had just disapeared into the distance. I was back to where I had started, except with even less than that. Homer and Epona watched silently as I walked through the field of ashes. I still had trouble believing that my mother would go to such extremes to ruin my life.

An early morning mist had covered the ashes, giving the ruins an eerie, almost haunting appearance. Visions of hatred fueled flames destroying everything in their path filled my head. I stopped at the charred remains of a pineapple.

These pineapples were supposed to provide me with enough cash to provide for every aspect of my wedding, the house upgrades, everything. Now, I was getting all of these things for free. I would have to do something to repay the village, but I would think about that later.

"Hey! Tint! Come over here and help me!" A voice called from across the stream.

I looked over towards the source of the voice. "Sure thing, Gotz!" I yelled back. Gotz was pulling a cart stacked with lumber and he seemed ready to collapse from exhaustion. I ran up beside him and took hold of one of the cart's handles. "You sure do have a lot of lumber here." I commented, taking a look over the cart's contents.

Gotz wiped a handkerchief across his forehead. "You're telling me. There's at least thirty thousand pieces here. Plus, Kai and Rick are bringing the second cart. They should be here any second."

The two of us pulled the cart and its contents over the tiny bridge at the far end of my farm. A third set of hands helped us as Doug appeared out of nowhere. "How long did it take you to cut all of this wood?" I asked Gotz as we pulled the cart to a stop. Quite a few more villagers had popped up and were lending a hand unloading the cart.

Gotz shrugged his shoulders. "Don't know actually. My best bet would be about two years or so."

My mouth hangs open as I stared at Gotz in disbelief. Here was a guy, who was almost like a stranger to me, who was willing to give up two years worth of work just for me. The sheer size of the contribution was shocking. "Thank you." I managed to say at last.

"No problem kid. Just do me a favor and keep that mother of yours as far the hell as possible away."

"Deal!" I laughed.

Kai and Rick were just arriving with the second cart, but they had an additional pair of helpers. Neil was pulling harder than a workhorse while Stu tried desperately to make himself noticeable. I was about to call something out to them when a pair of arms reached around my stomach. "Hello Elli." I commented as I twisted around to face my fiancée. Her gorgeous brown eyes shimmered beautifully with an amazing twinkle that would make the stars jealous. I began to lean towards her mouth to give her a kiss.

"Are we ready to begin?" Gotz interrupted.

Elli began to flush a bright shade of red. I chuckled to myself as I scratched my head. "I'm ready whenever you guys are." I called out.

I got my first look at the people who had gathered to help. From what I could tell, nearly every single villager had shown up to help. Each and every one of them seemed eager to get started. I felt honored to be part of such a tightly knit group of friends.

"You guys heard him! Let's get this place cleaned up!" Gotz was turning out to be the foreman of the project.

The workers were split into two groups. Most of the people would work on cleaning out the ashes. About ten of the villagers hauled wheelbarrows full of ashes through town and out to sea. We had figured that it would be the best place to deposit the remains of my past.

The few remaining helpers were busy creating the blueprints for what the farm would look like afterwards. The group consisted of myself, Elli, Neil, and Gotz. We had decided to build most of the building exactly as they were before the fire. An extension would be added onto the barn so it would be able to house twenty animals instead of ten.

Another decision that we reached involved Neil. A second house would be built beside the stable. The house would be about the same size as my house used to be before the fire.

Regarding my actual house, many changes were going to be made. A kitchen was added on along with a small bedroom for the child when it grew up. We even decided that we were going to add a master bedroom on a second floor. I couldn't wait to see the finished project.

With the planning done the group of us joined the others in the cleanup. The farm was already beginning to look more normal. The sun was just setting off in the distance, signaling us that we should call it a day. One day of work and we had finished removing the ashes from the scene.

Day two marked the start of the actual construction. We started on the chicken coop and planned on working our way around the field. The women of the village were busy tilling the soil, preparing my field for the Fall crops that I had been given as a gift from Jeff.

It was a couple of hours after sunrise when Neil pulled me aside. "What is it?" I asked as he looked around.

"Brett… Sorry, I mean Tint. I haven't had a chance to tell you this yet, it's a secret. It's actually the reason why I came to Mineral Town with Mother." Neil began to explain.

"Hurry up and tell me. I sort of have to get back to helping the other guys." I said, motioning towards the construction that was taking place. They were just pulling the fourth wall into place.

"As you already know, Mother came here to sabotage your progress. What you don't know is why she did it." Neil stated.

I shrugged my shoulders. "That's easy! She hates me! That's why she did it."

"Partially, but not entirely true." Neil held up his finger as if trying to prove a point. "It has to do with Dad's success over the last year."

"Quit speaking around the subject and just tell me already!" I demanded.

"About five years ago, Dad was issued a challenge by a billionaire. He was given a list of twenty towns around the world and was ordered to get rid of these towns and build resorts and malls in their places. Mineral Town is on that list."

"You're telling me that our Dad is the one who is putting all this pressure on me to succeed! He's the one who wants to buy the town! I can't believe it!" I admitted in disbelief.

Neil placed his hand on my shoulder in reassurance. "I know. They're both heartless greedy idiots. Willing to betray their own kids to make some decent money."

"How come I never heard about this challenge before?" I asked.

"I never learned about it myself until after they found out you went to Mineral Town. Apparently, they wanted to keep it a secret so that neither of us would remember anything about Grandfather's farm. Now take a look at us; we're living where they least wanted us to be."

This wasn't making much sense. Why would my parents not want us to remember anything about this place? What had happened here that made them hate this place so much? I asked Neil these questions, but he had no better idea than I had.

"Are you guys going to sit there and do nothing or are you going to help us with the roof?" Somebody asked from the chicken coop.

"Sorry, we'll be right over!" I called over, then to Neil, "I'll ask around and see if I can find out anything." He nodded in response and made his way over to the construction.

A few hours had passed and I had yet to find out anything of interest. Nobody I talked to had any idea about my parents other than my mother's recent activities. According to the villagers, my grandfather had kept to himself mostly.

The next person on my list was Barley. He was the oldest member of the village, so if anyone knew anything it would be him. I found Barley watching over Stu and May as they played with Epona. "May I ask you a question?" I asked Barley as I stepped up beside him.

"Go ahead and ask." Barley replied, his eyes never leaving the children.

I cleared my throat before asking my question, "Do you know anything about my parents?"

I saw Barley was having trouble forming a response to the question. After a few second he finally came up with an answer. "Your grandfather was a great man. He took excellent care of this farm, just as you have been doing. In fact, you remind me of him when he was your age."

"Thanks." I said, blushing a little from the compliment.

"Anyways, your grandfather was an amazing family man. He treated his wife with the utmost of respect. The same went for his son, your father. Well, when your father was sixteen or so, a wealthy family made a visit to Mineral Town. The wealthy family stayed in Mineral Town for about a year.

To simplify the events that occurred, your father fell in love with the daughter of this family. He ended up proposing to this young lady and they got married. Now, your grandfather was very happy for your father, mostly because he know had a family to pass his farm down to when he retired. But, everything didn't go as planned."

Barley paused his story. I could see that it was becoming difficult for him to tell this story. "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to." I offered.

"No, I will continue. You should know this story. Your grandfather had offered the farm to your father and his wife. Your father would have gladly accepted, but his wife's parents refused to let their daughter live and work on a farm. Your father had a choice to make. He could either live on the farm as his father wanted or he could move to the big city with his wife's family. You can guess what he chose."

"He chose the city." I stated.

Barely nodded his head. "Now, your grandfather was heartbroken. His wife passed away later that year. Everything was going horribly for him, but he continued on with the farm. It was about seven years after your father left when another visitor arrived. This visitor was you. You were only three or four years old at the time.

From what your grandfather told me, your parents had left on vacation and didn't want to take you. They just dropped you off here and left you to fend for yourself. They never even asked to see if your grandfather was still alive. Your parents are truly heartless people.

Your grandfather was overjoyed to have family at the farm once again. You had so much fun when you were here. But then one day, your parents arrived and hauled you back home. Ever since you left, your grandfather told everyone in the village that he was going to leave his farm to you. Everyone thought that he was crazy, mostly because they had thought that his child had died along with his wife.

I know that it is your father who is threatening to destroy Mineral Town and build that mall. Its part of a contract that was inserted into your mother's parents' will. Your father had to remove all traces of his life before he got married. Mineral Town is in the way of his inheritance. I'm afraid I don't know anything more than that."

I was stunned. So my parents did have messed up reason for hating me. It was all because they were willing to remove all traces of my father's past just to inherit some money. That explained why my mother was so desperate to get rid of me. It was all beginning to make sense. "Thanks for clearing some things up." I said to Barley before returning to the construction.

The chicken coop was now finished and the workers were moving onto the main house. I found Neil and quickly explained the history to him. He was just as amazed as I was. "Are you telling me that we should've been living in riches?"

I chuckled at his response. "Yeah, sure. Mother's parents were billionaires and we lived like ordinary folks."

"At least we now get to make our own paths in life." Neil proclaimed.

The remainder of the construction took four more days to complete. It was the twenty-seventh of Summer. Tomorrow was going to be my wedding. The guys had decided to take me drinking to celebrate my final night as a free man.

A bunch of us were sitting at the bar at the Inn. Doug was providing us with free drinks for the night. "How do you like the farm?" Gotz asked from his chair.

I thought back to the beautifully constructed buildings. The work was truly amazing. "I love it!" I exclaimed to a round of cheers.

"Sort of hard to believe that you and Elli are getting married. Do you have any regrets?" Kai asked.

"Hell no!" I proclaimed before downing a drink.

I have to admit that I was getting a little scared. I was about to take a major step towards proving that I was an adult. But it was also taking another major step towards losing the freedom that I had grown to love here in Mineral Town. Hopefully, it was going to be worth it.

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A/N: There you have it. A little history about why Tint and Neil don't get along with their parents. Next chapter is the wedding! Can't wait and I hope you like it when it comes out. I have planned my updates for over the Christmas holidays. I plan on uploading 22 chapters in the 25 days left until the end of holidays. I will have at least one update for nearly every one of my stories. Please enjoy my hard work.