I don't own Rune Factory: Frontier, or it's characters!

–

Knock knock.

I lifted my gaze from the dress in my blanketed lap to look over at the door, a clear look of boredom written across my face that I knew would be expected. Every day it was the same, as always. Every day.

Tabatha came into my room, as usual, set a tray of tea on my bedside table, as usual, and looked down at my dress expectantly. As usual. "If you need any help with getting it on, let me know. I love helping you with your attire, Miss Bianca, if you don't mind my saying that." She smiled sweetly at me, and I dismissed her, knowing that she was only trying to be nice. As usual.

I'd mentioned it before, several times in fact, to a few of the people around me, but this place was so predictable. It bothered me, how life seemed to drag on without a care in the world, nothing exciting or out-of-place every happening. People wouldn't believe it if I mentioned this aloud, too clouded by how I outwardly acted. Or perhaps it was just the fact they enjoyed the dreary, long days that drug on.

I sighed and moved out of bed, trading my nightgown for my same old dress, the same old shaw, and the same old ribbons that held up my hair. Once I was done, I walked over to the tea and poured a cup, freezing halfway on the motion of pulling it to my lips. Staring at the wall soundlessly, my mind wandered.

It had been two days since I'd gone to Erik for help, and though I was still questioning my sanity, he remained true to his word. Because of him, I knew the pattern that Eunice and Raguna used around the city, every day, making it another usual routine of this dreary place; first, they would start out either meeting one-another at the Inn, or at his farm. Then, they would wander around town together until she had to return to work, which he would use as time to conduct his daily farm duties.

After that, it varied. Sometimes they'd spend some time in the forest, or go up to the ponds until it was time to go to bed. And apparently I wasn't the only one to notice this; Erik had mentioned to me that Selphie usually fumed quietly to herself every time they walked by her book shop.

Slowly lowering my cup back to the tray, untouched, I closed my eyes and continued to think. So long did I continued this pattern, it was only when Tabatha returned to my bedroom door that I re-awoke. She stared at the untouched tea worriedly, but shook it off and walked towards me.

"Miss Bianca, you have a visitor here to see you. Actually, you have two. Raguna's here," As usual, I thought, "and so is that boy from below us, who runs the smaller farm. He sells seeds too... um... what's his name..."

"Erik," I finished for her, barely blinking a lash when she looked at me, obviously surprised. I looked down at the tea and swirled the spoon in it for a moment, then shrugged, showing no enthusiasm. "Tell them I'll be down in a moment."

"As you wish." Tabatha bowed her head and hurriedly made her way out of the room, knowingly leaving me behind in my confused thought process once more. She had a knack for telling when something was bothering me, but this time I found no room to be annoyed. As planned out as I had this, I found it almost ironic that at the same time, I had no idea what I was doing. My dad had once mentioned something about diving head-first into problems, and that I was too stubborn, but I figured it didn't have much a link to this situation. Or, at least, I tried not to think it did, as I would hate for him to have a reason to scold me. But that was rare.

Moving away from the bedside table, I made my way to the door, which was left partially cracked by Tabatha, and exited my room. Making sure the door closed tightly behind me, I didn't even make it half-way to the stairs before I heard an excited greeting from the door. Definitely not Raguna's.

"Bianca! Hello!"

That annoying voice immediately caused my eyes to narrow, yet I didn't make it too obvious as I looked up from the floor, descending the stairs, not with eyes on Raguna, but instead, on Erik, himself. "I told you to call me Miss Sainte-Coquille," I quipped, scowling at how easily he spoke my first name, like we were friends of sort. However, he either didn't catch that I was trying to be rude to him, or just didn't care, because his bright smile became even more radiant.

Raguna looked slightly uncomfortable, and that made me think about what they could have possibly have been discussing before I came down. I certainly hoped he hadn't disclosed any information to the new farmer, especially before I'd had the chance to really do anything. But he regained himself quickly and looked up at me, smiling. It was less radiant than Erik's. Probably not when towards Eunice, though... Not ever.

"Bianca! I'm glad you're home. I wanted to ask you something." I briefly wondered where else he possibly expected me to be, but didn't voice that thought, for some reason finding no reason to be cruel to him this morning.

"And that would be?" My usual snobby tone came into play, and as I reached the bottom of the stairs, I crossed my arms. I found a random speck of color on the wallpaper to stare at, anything to make him think I was less than interested in where this was going.

"Well, a few of us are going to the beach later, and I wanted to know if you were interested in joining us. I know the weather isn't great yet, but we thought it'd be nice to start off the season before it's blazing hot outside."

I stared at him, then looked to Erik, whom had an urgent expression on his face. I narrowed my eyes at him, this time making it noticeable. "Possibly," I answered, then leaned my weight over onto one heel. "Unless you have something to share?"

"Actually..." He looked between the both of us, then regained his usual composure; rather he was trying to be goofy or stupid was unknown to me. "I was going to ask if you'd like to go somewhere with me today, but if you'd rather accompany the group down to the beach, I would happily let you do so, fair maiden!"

I stared at him, Raguna stared at him, and even Tabatha had looked up from what she was doing on the other side of the room to stare at him. It wasn't that he was asking me to accompany him somewhere – I figured it had to do with the 'research' he was doing – but it was the mere fact that he, Erik, seemed to be asking me, Bianca, to 'hang out,' as the peasants would put it. I was quite aware we did come off as the two who would never dare speak to one-another, we were so different.

Passing up a chance to be with Raguna, even in a group, was unthinkable, yet Erik was my key to getting him to spend time with me – just me – alone. Wait, no... no, that wasn't it. It was just so I could get rid of Eunice. They just didn't look right together, that's all.

"Sorry, Raguna," I said quickly, before I could even get a grasp on what I was saying. My thoughts rolled around in my mind so frantically, I must've been acting solely on the jeal-... annoyance of the current coupling situation. "I'd like to head off with Erik for a while."

Raguna, holding no grudge but obviously very surprised by my decision, nodded in understanding. "I-I... okay." He looked between us again, and I almost thought he seemed weirded out, before he smiled kindly. "I hope you two have fun." With that, he waved at me, nodded towards Erik, then made his way out the front door. Tabatha was still staring at us owlishly.

"This had very well better be worth my time." I turned my gaze back to Erik, and almost cringed when I noticed that he was smiling victoriously, like he had been expecting it to go that way from the start. If I weren't so focused on looking as if the decision I made meant nothing to me, a look of disgust would have passed my features. "When do you want to see me?" I asked finally, sighing in defeat.

"Come meet me near the lake on the mountain at noon. I have something more to tell you about Raguna. Also..." He paused, stared at me for a second, then smiled brightly. "You're basically my partner-in-crime now, right? So we should be friendly with one-another! It's the least you can do. But don't get too excited, because that's not how you're paying me back." I was about to make an angry quip at him, but he exited the door with a loud farewell before I got the chance.

Raising my gloved hand to my forehead, I rubbed at my temples, softly. "Of all the people I could have gone to..."

Tabatha quietly returned to her job, shooting a small glance at me every few seconds. I could feel her questioning gaze.

–

I wasn't there for any particular reason; just thought I'd stop by the Inn before Raguna got a chance to... oh, who was I kidding? Everyone stared at me when I entered, right down to the cashier who I'm pretty sure had forgotten my existence before now. The only people who really knew me were Raguna, Erik, Tabatha, and Kross, and that was solely because I lived near them all.

Eunice was off to the side, clearing off a few tables from the visitors that'd eaten breakfast there, while what I assumed could possibly be her father, maybe, went back to working the cash register. He noticeably muttered something under his breath, and if I'd sneezed, I would have known why.

Walking over to one of the tables, I pulled out a chair and scowled as I forced myself to sit down, horribly put-off by the lack of cleanliness, at least to my standards. It only took a few minutes for Eunice to come bounding over to me, all smiles and sunshine. She didn't even realize the headache she was giving me.

"Hi there! You're Bianca, if I remember correctly." She seemed to day-dream for a moment, no doubt considering the worst scenario of forgetting who I was before remembering my presence. She smiled sheepishly, and I immediately noted the lack of self-confidence that displayed; wonderful, I already had something to go by. "Anything I can do for you? We don't open back up for a while, but I could spare some time for you, before I have to get back to cleaning. We don't see you around often."

"I have a lot of business to attend to, usually," I lied, propping my elbow against the table, then my cheek against my balled-up fist. I figured the elegant appearance I always bore didn't clearly match up with me at the moment; I was definitely out of place in this Inn, and I knew it.

It felt like stepping into enemy territory, almost.

"I came here to talk, actually. Would you consider yourself to be dating Raguna?" I knocked my pride to the side for a moment and faked a look that was so curious, she must have thought it was genuine, because she didn't notice the smugness behind my question.

"O-Oh... well..." Her blush was enough to answer on its own, causing my fist to tighten underneath my cheek. It wasn't like I cared. It was just for the good of the town, that was all... they didn't fit together. And I kept on telling myself that.

"I see..." The comment was enough to make her understand I got it, and she shuffled her feet, smiling secretly to herself. It almost made me scowl. "Eunice, pardon my asking, but do you consider yourself self-cautious? Raguna has mentioned it to me a few times. That's why I'm here. I figured I could help."

Her gaze snapped up from the floor at that, and I knew I got her. She stared at me, wide eyed, still politely, but surprised. "He... huh?"

"Well, I mean, about your..." I trailed off, looking to the side. I wasn't totally cruel, at least not while intentionally trying to be. I couldn't bring myself to say it, and she knew that right off. Her face went slightly pale, but she faked a smile.

"Maybe a little. I've thought about it from time to time, but it's never been a big problem with me. I like who I am, but... I guess I could be a little healthier." She looked down at her stomach, then glanced to the side, her eyebrows knitting together. I studied her closely. "It runs in the family."

"If you ever decide you're interested in changing your diet, then, just stop by my house some time. My father never stops eating, so I can relate perfectly. I think he enjoys the way he looks, though, seeing as it practically broadcasts how much he enjoys food." I sighed quietly, closing my eyes. Yes, his love for food. Food, food, food. It was always about food. "In the meantime, maybe you should ask Raguna why it is he feeds you so many chocolate cakes if he knows your self-cautious about it."

I stood up from my table and forced a small smile, although I could practically imagine the sickened feeling rising in my stomach that related to once again stepping on my pride. I exited the Inn before she really had a chance to answer, but I noticed her blank stare as I left.

Without even realizing it really, I had officially moved my plans forward.

–

Grumbling angrily under my breath as I stomped up the mountain, simply appalled by how much effort it took, I almost sighed a breath of relief when sparkling blue water came into my view. Making my way over to it, I leaned down and stared at my reflection, blowing an annoying strand of hair from my eyes. My pigtails had lowered a bit, affecting by the walk up, and my dress definitely had dirt stains on the bottom. I would kill Erik for this, mark my words.

Provided it didn't go the other way around, lest he cause my own death.

"Pretty, right?" I hardly noticed the male walking up behind me, but I was expecting it, so if he was hoping to get a speck of reaction from me, it wasn't there.

"I suppose, if you're into sentiment." I scoffed and stood up straight, turning to face him. He was smiling. As usual. "To me, it's just boring."

"You're hard to please, you know?" He shook his head, the smile faltering for a moment, but only for a moment. But it was a moment I noticed.

"What was it you wanted?" I moved by him and made my way over towards one of the docks, eager to get straight to the point. Maybe if we finished quickly, I could still make it down to the beach. He followed me and when I stopped at the edge, he stopped beside me, staring down at the blue ripples the wind created in the water.

"Just wanted to let you know that Raguna was talking to me the other day, going on about a few things having to do with Eunice. Nothing you haven't heard already, but Selphie walked in while he was still there, and things got really awkward. No fights or anything, but it was really obvious she was jealous..." Erik shifted uncomfortably. "I don't know what you're doing, Bianca, but..."

He didn't finish, and I was glad. He didn't realize how much confirming Selphie's jealousy was going to help me though; Eunice would be easy to put suspicion into, especially with her low confidence. Throwing the book keeper into it would be like icing on the cake to me, though my stomach suddenly knotted up at the thought of involving another girl who was interested in Raguna.

My face must've become a mix of bland and solemn, however, because Erik was studying me closely.

"You're not happy with that discovery? And here I thought you wanted me to play detective!"

I blinked myself out of it, and looked over at him. "Do you take nothing seriously? Honestly." I exasperatedly threw me gloved hands up a bit, then placed them on my hips. "No, no, that will do. You have been very useful, and I thank you kindly on behalf of the Sainte-Coquille's." My voice held a note of snobby sarcasm, and I knew he caught it. Yet he still smiled.

"Glad to see you're easier to please than I originally thought." Erik paused, then leaned over. "Hey – look! There's a fish monster!"

I stared at him, then none-the-wiser, leaned over as well. "Where? I don't see anything–" I felt a small pressure against my back, and before I knew it, my horrid interest with monsters landed me a quick swim in a pool of water. I should have been smart enough to realize that would happen.

At first, I remained submerged, debating over what'd just happened. After it clicked in my mind, I angrily rose to the top of the lake and glared up at a laughing male, doubled over and clutching his stomach. His cheeks were flushed red, either from laughing, or fear of what he thought would come from it. I couldn't tell.

"How dare you?" I hissed, annoyance all over my features, even though there was a bit of a light flutter to my actual thoughts on the situation. That was new – something that didn't happen every day. No, not being thrown in a pool of water with who-knows how many germs, but someone laughing.

At me.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, it's just..." He couldn't finished his sentence, but took enough of a breath to lean down and grab me by my arm, helping me climb back onto the dock. I didn't say anything, and simply got to my feet, dripping wet as I glared at him. This was the very first dress I'd ever ruined, at least since I was a kid.

What would Tabatha say? Honestly...

"Don't you ever smile? It's not that bad, it's just water..." Erik studied me, then sighed, apparently having gotten over his fit. "Fine, fine, just don't hurt me." He held up his hands in a defensive manner, which caused me to scowl even more. What did he take me for, a peasant?

I wasn't like him. I was classy.

"How very childish of you. I should make you pay for this dress. Hmph." I crossed my arms, then looked to my side. Erik shrugged, care-free, then walked behind me. I tensed, expecting another push, but instead, he untied the ribbons from my hair.

"Here, I'll at least dry these out for you. They're real silk, aren't they? I wouldn't want them to be ruined because of me." I stared at him once he took the second ribbon out, leaving my blue hair to fall over my shoulders lazily. He carefully folded the ribbons, and I briefly wandered how he could tell the difference... he was a farmer, what did that have to do with silk? Materials he used every now and again, perhaps?

"Don't bother. I have more." Resisting his kind offer, I huffed and turned my head away from him again. I could practically imagine his smiled behind me, as bright and radiant as before, when he had been standing in my home that morning.

"Right," was the only answer I got, before he brushed by me. "If you want, I think you could make it down to the beach, still."

I studied him as he leaned down to play with the water, then walked forward and nudged him slightly so that he stumbled for a moment to catch his balance, but didn't quite fall in. He looked up at me with wide, dare I say, amused eyes. I simply scowled, acting as if it had fully been an accident, and I wasn't aware it'd happened at all. "And let them see me soaking wet? I think not! That's a suggestion only a low-life peasant could make."

I huffed and moved past him, fully ready to get down the mountain, get back home, and change into something less soaked. I felt his eyes watching me from behind, and vaguely hear him call out to me as I started to disappear down the first hill, "If you say so! Have fun with whatever you're planning, Bianca. And you should wear your hair down more often; it makes you look befitting enough to be a bride!"

My body tensed slightly... I convinced myself it was because he still refused to call me 'Miss Sainte-Coquille.'

I'm alive. :D

With the release of Rune Factory 3, I just recently finished the main storyline (I know I'm slow at playing games, hush up :P), and it got me back into wanting to go over this story. I love me some Erik. 8D And Bianca, of course, can't forget her.

Suggestions, reviews, anything of the like are always welcome. I'll spare you the excuses on why this update took so long, haha.

As a reminder, let me know if I start straying to an out of character behavior with any of these people. It's the last thing I want. D:

Also, pen-name change, if any of you didn't notice. Yes, it's still LovelyxxMelody. XD!

-Matron of Madness.