Chapter 3

While making their way into the Goddess Spring, Rothe and Jamie carefully walked side by side.

"It is time for what?" Rothe asked curiously.

Jamie sighed. "I think that the interloping farmer may have... but, it couldn't be, that's impossible. Sure he's been racking up the notes lately, but... it's just... how can he accomplish such a task?"

Rothe stared at Jamie dumbfounded. "Ah... okay, what's going on here in the first place? That Jack looked really excited when he headed inside! What exactly is supposed to be in here, anyway?" she asked.

"Just keep going. You'll understand soon enough. At least, I hope you will" Jamie explained.

After a few more minutes, Jamie and Rothe finally made it to the innermost area. The Goddess Spring was adorned with mysterious lights and foliage, along with some frolicking wild animals. At the center were a few miniature garden elf-like beings, the Harvest Sprites, that all wore pointy hats. One was clothed in red, another in blue, and yet another in yellow. A few more in gray were on an upper level of earth, and eerily resembled a British rock band. Finally, surrounded by this entire atmosphere, were 9 Magical Instruments hovering around the statue of a celestial woman with a lonely look in her eyes. Standing directly before all of this, was the young man with the backwards blue cap and overalls.

Rothe looked at this entire view with wonder and curiosity. "Whoa... I've DEFINATLEY dreamed about this place before! It's almost exactly as I remember it, except that lady with the wings wasn't a statue. And... those creepy little elves were there, too!"

"How... how is it possible that she will be saved by an... outsider?" Jamie thought as the rancher's body shook in frustration.

Rothe turned to see Jamie's eyes filled with deep regret. "Whoa... I've never seen the cowboy like this before. What's going on here, anyway?" she thought to herself.

With building curiosity, the sassy city girl was about to approach Jack when Jamie held her back.

"N-no... we mustn't interfere" Jamie uttered in frustration.

"What!" Rothe exclaimed.

In excitement, the young man in the blue cap took out five radiating orbs marked with notes, and presented them to the Harvest Sprites.

"Hey everybody! It's your friendly neighborhood farmer here to perform yet another service to the community! Guess it's time to celebrate big time, today!" he grinned.

The red Harvest Sprite gasped in surprise. "Y-you mean... you actually gathered the last five notes to awaken the Harvest Goddess? T-t-t-t-this is... this is great! Just great! Quickly! Let them loose upon the Harvest Goddess, and the awakening ritual can finally begin!"

The young man named Jack nodded. "Sure thing. Well, here... we...GO!"

With a simple toss, the five note orbs were thrown right at the Harvest Goddess statue, and by magic, momentarily hovered around her. After the notes gradually faded, the nine instruments began playing a special song which filled the Spring with mystical energy.

Entertained by the music, Rothe tapped her foot to the rhythm and waved a finger around like a metronome while Jamie glared at her in disbelief.

"Easily amused, aren't you?" Jamie huffed.

"Ah, just shut up and let me enjoy the music! I have to admit, it's pretty catchy!" Rothe grinned.

The Harvest Sprites in gray were hopping about sporadically, while the colored ones sort of spun around to the melody. The animals either wagged their tails to the rhythm, or marched along with the beat. Jack himself pretended to rock out and play a guitar solo as he gestured his hands.

When a magical guitar started playing its solo, Rothe really got into the music and performed a more active dance with her body, while a weasel started to do the Worm.

Jack glared at the weasel's peculiar sight for a moment, but then continued doing his own guitar hand motions.

"You really gotta love that acoustic guitar solo!" Rothe grinned as she shone with a refreshed happiness.

Jamie was still unamused by all of this, and remained in a brooding posture.

As the trumpet started playing its own special part, Rothe ceased her dancing and looked at the floating instrument in nostalgia. "Hey, I think I remember Ein playing that thing in our old High School band, once! He was pretty good for a guy who seemed like the "Average Joe" type!"

Jamie didn't really care about what Rothe had to say at this point, but the rancher's attention quickly focused on the statue, which suddenly glowed with blessed energy.

As the music wound down, the statue was bombarded by many orb notes and lights. The statue flashed a few times, then gradually changed into flesh. Her granite dress changed into a majestic light blue, her eyes changed into a shining deep amethyst, and her once stony hair became a silky violet. At the final few measures, the awakened Harvest Goddess made a few graceful twirls before making a smooth landing on the ground. After the song ended, the Harvest sprites gave ample applause, along with a thoroughly satisfied Rothe in the background.

The Harvest Goddess respectfully bowed to her savior, then welcomed everyone with a warm smile.

Rothe watched on with awe. "Wow... I didn't know Goddesses still actually resided in the world! Gosh, she's beautiful. Her warm smile... it reminds me of the way Lorelei used to greet the morning sun. If there was anyone in this world who could make a hellish day bearable, it would definitely be that lady" she thought..

Jamie meanwhile lowered a head in shame. "Why... this outsider? It should've been me" the rancher muttered in misery.

The Harvest Goddess faced Jack with a gentle expression.

"A gentle breeze caressed my cheek and brought warm melody to my ears. I'm sorry I made everyone worry. And thank you I'm... fine now. "

She then looked around her to see her beloved wildlife and Harvest Sprites. "We should not forget what is important..."

After a chuckle, the Harvest Goddess turned her attention to Jamie, which forced everybody else in the spring to stare at the distraught rancher. "Jamie... I made you worried too, didn't I?"

Rothe glared at Jamie in shock. "Waitaminute... Jamie's special someone... this is her?" she thought to herself.

With his own shame overwhelming the poor rancher, Jamie was nearly brought to tears. "I... I'm sorry! I couldn't do anything to help you!" the rancher exclaimed before running right out of the spring.

"Oh! Jamie!" The Harvest Sprite in red exclaimed.

"Wait!" The Harvest Sprite in blue shouted.

Meanwhile, the Yellow harvest sprite just stood there while blinking his eyes curiously.

Jack let out a huge sigh. "Man, I was worried this was going to happened. I understood how Jamie looked up to you and everything, but everybody here was worried... I still remember that dream from some time ago."

The Harvest Goddess nodded. "And you did a splendid job in doing so. I could also sense that Jamie had given ample effort as well. It is... unfortunate that such a child threw away so much compassion due to my careless."

She narrowed her eyes with a look of yearning as she looked towards the exit. "Surely, the day will come when Jamie understands, too."

She then turned to the others with a compassionate smile. "Let's calmly wait until then."

Rothe rushed up to Jack's side. "Why wait? I'm sure we can do something about it sooner!" she chirped.

The Harvest Goddess focused her gentle gaze at the excited city girl. "Oh, yes... it is finally nice to meet you, Miss Rothe! I'm glad you've managed to adjust to your surroundings so quickly!"

Rothe looked at the Harvest Goddess funny. "Er... thank you Miss Goddess, ma'am, but how do you my name?" She then glared at the Harvest Sprites with an even more confused look. "And what's exactly with these little elves, anyway?"

The red Harvest sprite let out a huge gasp. "W-what? You can see us, too?"

The yellow sprite gave Rothe a violent stare. "We're Harvest SPRITES, not ELVES! Get it right!"

The Harvest Goddess gave a chuckle. "How else would you have received the dream? To be clear, Miss Rothe, despite my former self-imprisonment, I can still communicate with others with my memories." she explained.

"I see... well, that I guess that makes sense. Stranger things have happened to me." Rothe noted.

"...hey! If you can see us, why aren't you shocked or anything? Don't we look a little... out of the ordinary?" The red Harvest Sprite cried.

Rothe shook her head. "You're nothing bizarre compared to my old landlord, Hector. Man, not only was he a midget, he also had a strange fashion sense and acted extremely militaristic! I mean, you wouldn't believe what he said to me before I moved out! "You WILL pay the remaining rent, Miss Rothe. For you see, my will is the judgment of the gods!" I fear the day when THAT guy tries to run the world!"

The Harvest Goddess and the Sprites stared at Rothe peculiarly, while Jack stood by in amusement.

Rothe cleared her throat before she continued. "Anyway, I'm not the kind of girl that can just stand back when someone's going crazy like that. I hope you understand that, 'cause I'm going after that rancher!"

The Harvest Goddess nodded in understanding. "Very well, then. Just understand that Jamie doesn't easily have such a change of heart. I wish you the best of luck."

Rothe smiled. "Oh, okay! Thank you! And nice to meet ya!" she cried before she ran outside while waving her hand at the Goddess.

After fulfilling his amusement at Rothe's antics, Jack turned to face the Harvest Goddess. "Interesting little lady, that Rothe is. I have a strong feeling she's going to bring a lot to this place" he grinned.

"Well, you've certainly lived up things during your stay, Jack!" The Harvest Goddess smiled.

"By the way, why'd you just let Rothe go like that? Out of everyone in this village, I think she's the one person that Jamie actually despises the most! Jamie actually hates Rothe even more than me, and I've accidentally found numerous ways to get under her skin!" Jamie pointed out.

The Harvest Goddess remained composed while considering an appropriate answer. "Well, I've actually seen into Miss Rothe's mind before. Those two... have found themselves in plenty of similar situations. I believe she may be the only one to sympathize with Jamie at the moment, if Jamie is willing to trust others again."

Jack turned to look beyond the Goddess Spring with worry in his eyes. "In that case, I wish her luck as well..."

By the Waterfall, Jamie was curled up in a ball while holding in tears.

"How could I have let this happen? She entrusted me with her very life... and yet I faltered, and let that... outsider out do me! Why did I let her down like this? Did she... did she feel too much pity to scorn me, like I deserved? I... I am no longer worthy of her kindness"

Rothe came sprinting towards the forlorn rancher at full speed, then made a screeching halt as she neared her target. She gave a brief pout, then gave Jamie a disgusted look.

"Haven't we been through this, already?" she sighed.

Jamie clutched even tighter while trying to shoe away Rothe. "JUST LEAVE ME ALONE!" the rancher shouted.

Rothe folded her arms. "Geez, what's the matter, you big crybaby? You finally have your precious Harvest Goddess back, so it's kinda ridiculous to be acting all emo now! Why can't you just chuck your crap out the door and be happy about something for once? Get over yourself, already!" she shouted.

"N...no... I have... disgraced myself... I was beaten... by him... I don't... deserve her compassion" Jamie muttered.

Rothe groaned. "Man, why can't you take a hint, you thick-headed moron? You should just be grateful that you've found someone so sweet and patient to be with! But, what's your personal deal with her, anyway? Is she the one being you've found that can deal with your angst? Did you fall in love with her beauty at first? Is she a precious maiden you ran into one day, and now you've devoted your life to her?"

Jamie stood up in an instant, with wide, hopeless eyes staring blankly at Rothe's direction.

"She granted me her life..." Jamie uttered softly and silently.

Suddenly, Jamie's expression switched to teary-eyed fury. "SHE SAVED MY LIFE!" Jamie shouted before fleeing towards Jamie ranch.

A picture of the dying crimson-haired woman flashed into Rothe's mind right now. She then looked towards Jamie with somber eyes.

"Oh..."

Author's Note: Wow, that whole Goddess Awakening scene sort of went out the window, huh? Unusually zany for the mood I was going to. A REALLY big contrast to the more serious previous Chapter. Whatever. That's probably the last time I make a weasel do the worm. So, anyway, I managed to drag out this fic from what was originally intended to be a oneshot fic. There was a whole lot of random humor I started adding to what I planned to be mostly serious. Well, good luck, Rothe. I'm really loving this girl's unconventional place in Flower Bud Village. Please Review, readers!