Hi! This is my first Harvest Moon fic, and it is a crazy one! But first, I need to straighten out a couple of things. This, as I mentioned in the summary, this is kinda AU. It still takes place in Forget-Me-Not Valley, but the characters are wildly different from their game counterparts. You will soon see what I mean by that, but first I need to fill you in on a few changes. Everything is the same as when you first start in the first chapter, with the following exceptions:

Samantha, Grant, and Kate live in the Valley. Nina has already passed away, with Galen living in the house by her grave. Hardy lives in Galen's old home. Here is a list of the ages of the children characters:

Jack-18

Mimi-15

Nami-19

Celia-18

Muffy-18

Lumina-16

Hugh-19

Kate-15

You think you got all that? If you're confused at all, you can ask me any questions via review.

And now that we're all cool, you may proceed to the main attraction.


Welcome to the Valley!

It was hard to say what Jack was feeling. He was on a train, going to a place he'd never heard of, to attend the funeral of a man he hardly knew. This man, his father, Avery Golden, was dead. This man had left Jack and his mother, just after the birth of his little sister Mimi. And now, Jack and Mimi had inherited their father's farm, in a place called Forget-Me-Not Valley. Jack couldn't even point out this Forget Me Valley on a map. It was a little farming village, as far as he knew. He and Mimi were only going to look and put the farm up for sale. Or, at least, that's what Jack and his mother wanted to do.

Mimi was incredibly curious. She had never known her father. He left shortly after her birth. She'd seen him in pictures and heard his voice when he called twice a year to say hi, and wish her or Jack a happy birthday. She didn't feel sad, like she thought she would, at her father being dead. Maybe it was because she'd never met him. She wasn't feeling much of anything really, besides curiosity and a bit of excitement. Not exactly what you usually feel before a funeral. But more importantly, she and her big brother had inherited a farm. All her life, Mimi had wanted to live on a farm. Her mother condoned such an attitude, but Mimi thought her dream was perfectly acceptable. And this was her chance to live it!

"What was Dad like, Jack?" Mimi asked quietly, rolling her head over to look at her big brother.

Jack stared out the window, "I don't remember."

"You gotta remember something."

Jack glanced at her before looking at the red upholstery covering the seat in front of him, "He liked to sing. He had this real deep voice. He would...sing me to sleep at night."

Mimi smiled, "Is that why you like music so much?"

Her brother shrugged, "I guess." He returned his gaze to the window.

"Attention passengers. This is your conductor speaking. We will be arriving in Mineral Town in five minutes. Thank you for using Express Railways."

"That's us," muttered Jack. He picked up his backpack, which lay underneath his chair. Mimi grabbed her messenger bag and purse and bounced a little in her seat.

"This is so cool!"

"Whatever."

The train slowed to a stop, and the brother/sister duo stepped off. They looked around the bustling station. An older man, a bit hunched over, held up a sign with 'Jack and Mimi Golden' scrawled across it in bold letters. They pushed through the crowd to get to him.

"Hey," called Mimi, "We're the Goldens!"

"Oh, hi," said the man, letting his arms drop to his side, "I'm Takakura." He held his hand out for Jack and Mimi to shake. "Go grab your luggage and bring it over, okay?"

"Sure," said Mimi.

She and Jack headed to the baggage car and found their two suitcases. Takakura loaded them into a small wagon, pulled by a single horse. The horse was chestnut brown with a darker brown for his mane and tail. His powerful legs stamped the ground impatiently.

Mimi squealed with delight, "Oh isn't he wonderful! What's his name?"

"Ezra," replied Takakura, helping her into the wagon before climbing in himself and taking the reins, "He was your father's most prized animal. You'll never find a better horse in all the country."

"Wow," breathed Jack. He reached put and petted Ezra's nose. The large creature nuzzled the young man gently. Jack smiled for the first time since the news of his father's death had arrived.

"Come on, Mr. Golden," called Takakura, "We can't be late."

Jack pulled himself into the wagon and settled down next to his sister. He felt a little brighter. Maybe this trip wouldn't be quite so unbearable.


"We are gathered here today to honor a man, a man who was dear to us all. He may not have been the best farmer, or the luckiest in love, but he was a great friend to us all. We are all affected by his loss."

Jack closed his eyes. 'This is so stupid,' he thought, 'complete drivel.' He opened his eyes and looked at the man delivering the sermon. He was tall and handsome, with bulging muscles. Jack had never seen muscles that big, the legs especially. 'He must run all the time.' What had Takakura said his name was? Jack and Mimi had been quickly introduced to all the thirty villagers before the funeral began. Wallis...Walter...Wally! His name was Wally.

Mimi's gaze drifted over to the row of girls. They were (in order from left to right) Muffy, Celia, Kate, Lumina, and Nami. Mimi's eyes strayed on Nami for a moment. She looked utterly bored, and was probably thinking about all the places she'd rather be. She sensed eyes upon her and glanced at Mimi. She smirked. Mimi blinked; she gave the young woman a smile, and looked away.

Jack peered at the men. They all looked drunk, drugged out, or both. He tried half-heartedly to remember their names. He saw Tim and Rock first. Rock was half asleep, and Tim was nibbling a rice ball. The old man, Galen, stood a little ways away from the group, his heavily lidded eyes darting about. Marlin and Griffin huddled together. Hugh sat away from them, with his mother. Sebastian sat by the old woman her worked for. Kassey and Patrick were giggling to themselves near the back. Daryl, Carter, and Hardy sat closer to the front, not even trying to hide their bored looks. Gustafa sat next to Cody, fingering his guitar absentmindedly. Grant sat next to his wife.

Mimi dragged her eyes away from the girls and surveyed the women of the village. Ruby sat away from Tim and Rock, eyeing her husband somewhat angrily. Chris sat next to her son, patting is hand gently. Romana was next to her butler, looking a bit too prim and proper for a funeral. She wore a lacy black dress, a large black hat with a gaudy feather from huge bird sticking out, and arm length black gloves. She dabbed her dry eyes with a lacey black kerchief. Vesta sat alone, eyeing Jack weirdly. Mimi couldn't help but shiver at the sight. She turned to gaze to Flora. She looked pretty and studious, her bright eyes staring longingly at Wally. Samantha looked pretty and delicate, her darker eyes staring longingly at Flora.

Jack glanced around once more. His gaze settled on a small man, with flies buzzing around his head, standing next to three tiny creature-people-things. Jack blinked. The three creature-people-things smiled and waved at him before walking away. The man, who looked like he needed a bath desperately, fixed Jack with a hard stare. Neither one looked away until the man nodded and left. Jack scratched the back of his head. This was a bit too weird for him.

"And I'm sure Avery would have been pleased to see his two children, Jack and Mimi, here with us," Wally said, snapping the two children to attention. All eyes were on them now. Jack sank down in his seat, and glanced at Mimi. Her cheeks were red and she was staring at the ground. Jack caught her eyes and smiled reassuringly. Mimi gave him a small smile and laughed embarrassedly.

"Goodbye, Avery," Wally finished, "We'll miss you."


"Wow," whispered Mimi, barely able to contain her excitement. She spread her arms out, taking it all in. The fresh air, the sweet wetness of Spring, the pink blossoms, the mooing and neighing and clucking of all the animals; she pulled it all inside herself, feeling complete.

Takakura smiled tenderly down at her, "Would you like a tour?"

"Oh, yes, please!" Mimi cried, her green eyes shining. Jack only shrugged and mumbled something about there being nothing better to do.

Takakura took them to the barn first, and showed them the shed next to it. He showed them the storage area and explained how he took all their crops, dairy products, and eggs to the city to sell. He brought them around to the pasture to where a large female cow rested, a littler cow by her side. A bull stood a little ways off, grazing.

"The big cow is Daisy. The little on is Mona and the one with horns is Jesse," Takakura explained, "Since Mona was just born, Daisy has started to give milk. You can milk her twice a day, everyday, for a good profit."

He showed them the three different fields. The largest one was filled with apple trees. Takakura told them the apples would grow in Fall. The second largest had a row of tomatoes and a row of watermelons, according to Takakura. The children couldn't really tell from the sprouts that just barely poked up from the soft dirt, but Takakura assured them they were plants and not weeds. The smallest field had no crops.

In the chicken coop, the children were introduced to the three chickens and roster. Takakura said Avery had not bothered to name them, since they were only chickens. Mimi promptly named all four: Elli, Karen, Popuri, and Matt.

Last was the house. It had two main rooms: the bedroom in front, and the kitchen in back. It had two side rooms, one with a toilet and sink, the other with a combination bathtub/shower and a large Jacuzzi tub.

Takakura then left the two and returned to his home on the edge of the property, but not before promising them he could answer any questions they had.

Mimi threw herself down onto the queen sized bed and giggled with shear joy, "Isn't this amazing?"

Jack stood in the open doorway, his head resting against the frame, staring out at the farm that now belonged to him and his sister, "How is it amazing?"

"This, all of this, is ours," she cried, opening her arms to indicate the whole farm.

Jack didn't look at her, "It's hardly amazing."

Mimi smile at her brother's back, "You'll grow to like it."

"I don't plan to. We're selling this place ASAP. Got it?"

"What!" Mimi jumped to her feet, "You can't be serious."

"I'm completely serious. This is just some beat up old farm in a little village. It's not worth our time and energy. I, for one, have better things to do."

"But Jack," Mimi whimpered, "This is the one thing I've always wanted, to live and work on a farm. You know that better than anyone. Can't we at least give it a try? Please."

Jack turned to see his sister's eyes brimming with tears. "Mimi..." he tried to come up with a convincing argument, his resolve was already beginning to slip. He sighed and shook his head, "Mom would kill us if we stayed," he muttered.

"Mom needs to lighten up," Mimi said with a wave of her hand, "It'll be good to get away from her for a while. You'll see. Besides, we both need more fresh air and sun shine. Mom won't mind as long as we stay active, and eat balanced meals, and all that stuff she talks about."

Jack ran a hand through his thick, brown hair, "Alright," he sighed, "We'll stay for a little while. But if anything happens to turn me off to this place, we're gone."

"Yay!" Mimi squealed, throwing her arms around her brother, "You're the best, Jack."

"I try."


What do you think? It's gonna get really good in the next chapter, so you have that to look forward to. Reviews are welcomed and loved dearly.