Proposal

Disclaimer: Monster Hunter is copyright Capcom. All the characters in this story are mine.

Edited by: Hoenn Master96 and Thomas A. Hawk

This one-shot is CANON with The Lost Civilization

One Year Since the Fall of the Alatreon

There was a celebration in Boma Village. It was nothing uncommon or astounding, just the semi-annual Harmony Festival. Or the Balance Festival, depending on who you asked. Or the Equilibrium Ceremony, if you were a bit prim and proper about the whole thing, like some of the merchant lords and nobles in the cities were.

Essentially, it was only the spring equinox, and Boma Village really didn't need to celebrate the equinox, to be honest. The fishing village had pretty standard weather most of the year, and though it had been a bit cooler during the winter with quite a bit of rain, it really hadn't called for warmer clothes or even much of a change in everyday life. It wasn't like any of the towns further north or further inland, where the time of year would bring cold weather or snow, turning the grass brown and forcing the leaves from the trees, and the equinox called for the start of planting season and warmer weather. But people just wanted an excuse to throw a party now that winter was over, and what better time than today?

Of course, they found other things to celebrate as well. There were a few birthdays this month, and those were thrown into the mix, along with the 'welcoming' of a few children that had been born over the winter. A few new fishing boats had been built over the winter, and those were going to be christened in a couple days. And, of course, two of the larger events: firstly, the village was finally putting the finishing touches on the last building that needed to be rebuilt after the World Eater's attack, signifying the full recovery of Boma Village; secondly, Marshall's three new apprentices had managed to take down a Gobul, and the older hunter had deemed them capable enough to take the hunter's exam in Orage Dell a few months away.

That was probably why Levin had been a bit despondent the last couple days. It was a subtle thing, but Ellie could tell that her lover was sulking after seeing such young men and women - greenhorns in their eyes - getting ready to earn their licenses and go on real hunts. Meanwhile, he was stuck in the village, spending most of his days just trying to get his right arm to move a little when he wasn't filling out Guild paperwork. He'd been excited a few months ago, when he thought he'd finally figured out how to get the dark arms to work like he wanted them to, but he'd clearly underestimated how long it would take to get himself back in fighting form.

Ellie didn't mind; she could wait as long as it took for him to get back into shape so they could hunt together again. She believed in him. What she did mind was seeing how depressed it made Levin act every now and then. He tried to hide it, but she could see how much he longed to join her when the village or the Guild sent her off to take down some monster that the apprentices couldn't handle; she longed for it too. Even though they were with each other while they were both in the village, when Ellie was out on a hunt, there was always a bit of loneliness for the both of them. But he had to get his dark limbs to cooperate, and while Ellie had the patience for that, Levin didn't have quite as much.

As night fell in Boma and a waxing moon rose into the sky, Ellie finally found time for herself to hunt down Levin, wherever he hidden himself away. She'd had been helping out with the festivities most of the day, most recently a play the village children had been putting on in the town square. It was an old story, some Therian fairy tale about a human who'd earned the favor of a dragon and was offered its power as a gift to become a great king, only for his sons to destroy his kingdom with their squabbling after his death… It seemed like lots of stories here were similar to that or some other cliché: raising a large monster as a pet or partner or even as a mount, talking monsters, absorbing the spirits of slain beasts, and a whole lot of 'chosen one' tales.

Ellie supposed the 'talking monsters' one wasn't really something she could critique though, as she had heard the Alatreon's 'voice' in her head many times before it had been slain…

The Lost that lived in town were telling stories too… though admittedly they were kind of cheating by telling popular tales from old Lost entertainment. Science fiction seemed to completely go over most of the listeners' heads, but fantasy stories, with magic and knights and terrible wizards, seemed to be quite popular. The villagers had really liked A Midsummer Night's Dream, but that really didn't surprise Ellie too much…

She wandered through the village, searching through the paths and alleys for Levin. It really wasn't necessary; she was pretty sure she knew where he was, and her 'searching' was taking her in that direction. Eventually her walking led her to the docks, where most of the fishing fleet had come in so the fishermen could attend the festival. There was also a Guild ship here, carrying away the Gobul the apprentices had captured, though the captain and crew had been invited to stay for a day to join in the celebration.

Levin was sitting at the end of a smaller dock, one that was only used when the village got a lot of maritime traffic. Which, Ellie supposed, it had since the World Eater had come through and the Alatreon had been slain. But today it was empty, and that's where Levin was. He really seemed to like this spot for some reason… probably because this was where he and Ellie had first confessed their feelings for each other after slaying the Lagiacrus so long ago. They'd come here often enough since returning from Loc Lac, sitting together and talking as they watched the ocean. It was such a familiar setting that Levin even knew she was approaching without looking. As soon as he heard her footsteps, he scooted over from where he sat, making enough space for her to slip down beside him after kicking off her sandals.

"Found you," she murmured.

"So you have," he replied with a grin.

The pair of them sat in silence for a long moment, Ellie kicking her feet in the water a little bit as they stared out to sea. Off in the distance, Ellie could see a ship passing by, heading north, probably off to Orage Dell.

"You know, you… missed the speech Marshall gave the apprentices. The big 'good luck with the exam' speech."

"...Did I? That's a shame," Levin replied, trying to sound disappointed. Ellie knew better. That speech was the entire reason Levin had ducked out in the first place. Knowing that the apprentices were able to do something he wanted to was hard enough for him; hearing the entire village celebrate it was too much.

"Yep. You missed the three of them telling their story about the big hunt too. Likely they'll tell the story again a few times tonight, of course, but… Well, the big telling's out of the way. They're moving on to… other shows and acts now. So…"

"You see the hunting horn player back there?" Levin asked, trying to change the subject. Ellie wasn't fooled, but she played along with it.

"That ridiculous giant harmonica? Yeah, I saw it, but I didn't get to hear the musician play. Marshall had me run off and help the fishermen haul the Lagi skull from the Guild booth for some play the village kids are putting on."

"Oh, then you missed the real show!" Levin laughed.

"What, she was actually able to play well?"

"No… Well, I thought she was pretty good, actually. But the real bit was in the middle of the song. You know that hunting horns are supposed to, you know, bolster hunters during a hunt, right? Anyway, I guess this particular horn is designed to defend hunters against the intensity of monster roars, among other things. Halfway through the song, I guess the huntress accidentally played just the right series of notes, and the audience goes half-deaf for a couple minutes."

"No!" Ellie gasped, giggling at the thought.

"Yep. So all of a sudden, the whole audience, myself included, thought that the musician just started playing really softly. A few of them started yelling at her to play a little louder, since it sounded like it was this really upbeat part of the song, but we just couldn't hear it well. So - and admittedly I really feel bad for the girl - she starts really trying to belt it out, but it's not helping at all. Soon more and more people are shouting at her to play louder, and she's trying her best, but people just aren't hearing her. I'm actually surprised you couldn't hear it, even if you were off getting the Lagi skull."

"Oh, no…"

"Oh, yeah. Anyway, I don't know what might have happened if this had continued on, but right before the finale of the song, the effects of the song finally wore off, and everyone affected by the music could suddenly hear again. So right at the big finish, the entire audience gets their hearing back, just in time to receive the full-force of a blaring, giant harmonica. I think about half the audience, mostly the people in the front, fell out of their chairs. There was so much confusion that people almost didn't notice that the poor musician had nearly passed out from exhaustion. It took a little while for people to figure out what had happened, but thankfully the audience got a good laugh about it, though the musician was really embarrassed about the whole thing."

"That poor girl," Ellie muttered. However, she could hear the twangy sound of the harmonica playing, even this far from town square. "I guess they let her keep playing though, right?"

"Yep. Despite that little debacle, the audience really liked her music. She's not playing as enthusiastically as she was before, since she's trying extra hard to make sure something like that doesn't happen again, but it's still a really good show if you have time to go see it."

"I'll have to remember that," Ellie said, grinning as she kicked at the water below her.

The pair of them sat idly on the pier for several minutes, listening to the waves splashing against the support pillars and lapping against their feet. Back in the village, they heard the musician kick up another song on that ridiculous hunting horn, playing some vibrant dance number. Ellie thought she could recognize the tune, so it might have been some Lost song. She could hear Levin humming next to her, and her attention turned to his dark limbs, hanging limply down from where they attached to his body. She stared at them thoughtfully for a few moments, before sighing to herself.

"I guess I'm not as patient as I thought…" she murmured.

"Hmm? What'd you say?" Levin asked.

"Nothing…" she replied, returning her gaze to Levin's face. "Hey, Levin?"

"Uh huh?"

"Will you marry me?"

Levin's eyes darted to Ellie's face, a look of clear surprise in them. In a few moments, a gamut of emotions crossed his face, and Ellie noted that his gaze darted momentarily to the dark limbs hanging limply at his side, worry and doubt appearing in his eyes. But a moment later he sighed, looking back up at Ellie and smiling.

"Yeah, of course I will."

Ellie smiled back. "Wonderful," she said, before leaning forward and kissing him gently. The pair stayed like that for a long moment, embracing as the trill music from the festival played behind them. Eventually, they pulled apart, both of them smiling sheepishly at each other. Then Ellie reached forward, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Just remember, I love you. And I always will, no matter the circumstances. So cheer up, Mr. Levin. You wouldn't want to worry your fiancé by acting so despondent all the time, would you?"

Levin blinked in surprise at the words, and then sighed, grinning to himself. "I can't hide anything from you, can I, Miss Ellie?"

"Ha, never," Ellie laughed, pushing herself back to her feet. "Now come on. It's a festival! We're supposed to be celebrating! Let's get back now… After all, I think we may have something to announce that can be added to the celebrations."

"I guess we do," Levin chuckled, taking her hand and letting her help him to his feet before walking with her back into the village.

"Hey Marshall! Mel! I have great news!"

"You two are finally getting hitched?" Marshall asked curiously, looking up from the Guild booth, where his grandson Theo was intently drawing on a piece of paper.

"Actually, we're-" Ellie sputtered to a halt, and Levin gaped in shock at the old man. "How did… We haven't even…"

The old man chuckled to himself in amusement, though Mel's face lit up in excitement. "Wow, really? Oh, that's wonderful! Congratulations to both of you!"

"What's 'hitched'?" Theo asked, looking up at Marshall, who smirked.

"When two stubborn fools finally do something that needed doing a long time ago."

"Oh," Theo replied, though he clearly didn't understand. He didn't seem to mind that much either, because he immediately went back to his drawing.

"D… Darn it, Marshall, this was supposed to be a surprise," Ellie grumbled. "How'd you know?"

"Mostly just guessing, to be honest," the retired hunter admitted with a shrug. "I figure if I'd answered such questions from you or Levin with that response, I'd be right eventually. But putting that aside, I suppose congratulations are in order. It's wonderful to hear of your betrothal, and I wish you two nothing but the best for the rest of your lives together."

Ellie blushed sheepishly at the kind words, and Levin chuckled in mild embarrassment as well, but both of them were grinning happily. "Thank you," Ellie said gratefully.

"Yeah, thanks, old man," Levin added.

Marshall chuckled a bit. "Well, it's the least I can do to wish you well, all things considered. And it wasn't as though it wasn't inevitable, anyway. I'm sure the two of you will find plenty of happiness together, with or without my well-wishes."

"At least you guys weren't betting on this one," Ellie chuckled. However, her laughter petered out as Mel put on a forced, awkward smile, and shot a nervous glance over to Marshall. The old man simply smirked in amusement as Ellie's gaze darted between them. "You… you weren't betting on us again, right?"

It seemed Marshall had been holding back, because the retired hunter let out a bellowing laugh. Ellie felt her face flush in embarrassment, and she could feel Levin's grip on her hand tightening as his own face reddened as well.

"As I said before, it was inevitable. Just like last time, we were wagering on when, not whether it would happen." The older man was still chuckling as he turned to Mel. "So tell me, Miss Melanie, who won this time?"

"You've gotta be kidding me…" Levin groaned.

"Sorry…" Mel chuckled sheepishly, lowering her eyes. "Let's see, it's almost April, so… Oh, damn it! Leif won again!"

"What?!" Ellie snapped. "That traitorous little… I'm gonna feed that cat to the sharqs…"

"Please don't Miss Eleanor," Marshall chuckled. "Despite his… accidentally skillful gambling abilities, I don't think killing Leif is quite the right way to deal with the issue… Though I suppose if you did, that would mean that I won the bet instead…"

"I'm more concerned about how the village is still betting on our relationship!" Ellie growled. "What the heck, Mel? How come we're the only ones getting this treatment?"

"Oh, you're not," Mel replied.

Ellie frowned at that. "Really?"

"Of course! You just don't pay attention!" Mel huffed.

"I wouldn't go that far, Miss Melanie," Marshall chuckled. "Hunters simply don't spend as much time gossiping as the rest of the village does. Too much time spent hunting or preparing for hunts to worry too much about who's dating who or who said what about someone else."

"Pah. Where's the fun in that? Anyway, like I was saying, you're not the only ones we gamble on. You know Marshall's new apprentices?"

"Yeah…" Ellie muttered cautiously. "Agatha, Gil, and Tarvek, right? They're pretty good kids, and decent hunters too… Pretty friendly with each other and really good when it comes to teamwork. Why?"

"Well, word has it there's a little bit of an old-fashioned love triangle going on between them!" Mel squealed excitedly. "They're all polite and decent when they're in public and out hunting, but word has it that both Gil and Tarvek have a thing for Agatha, and they've gotten in more than one fight over her! And Agatha's torn because she really likes both of them, but she can't decide between them because Gil is a real sweetheart and Tarvek's really gentlemanly, and-"

"I think she gets the picture Miss Melanie," Marshall said, cutting her off.

"Oh! Oh, right. Well anyway, there's a bit of a pool going on betting on which of the two Agatha will pick in the end, or even if she'll pick one of them at all! My money's on Gil; he's really got that lovable goofball act going for him. The pot's gotten quite large actually, bigger than it was when we were betting on when you two would start dating! It's quite the interest here in Boma!"

"And I suppose none of the hunters themselves know about this?" Levin asked wryly.

"Did you know about our betting on you two before you started dating?"

"Uh…"

"There you go. Anyway, the odds are pretty balanced between the two gentleman hunters, but if you bet against both of them, you get a twenty-to-one payout! Not bad, huh? There's even one longshot wager with a five hundred-to-one payout, if you're feeling lucky."

"Five hundred?" Levin asked, his eyes widening in shock. "What bet gives you that much of a payout?"

"Apparently one person bet that she'd just make both of them her boyfriends," Mel shrugged, and Ellie and Levin glanced at each other in confusion. "Like I said, it's a longshot. A really long shot. Honestly five hundred seems a bit low to me."

"Who bet on that?" Ellie asked.

"You know, I never checked," Mel admitted, reaching under the counter and pulling out a very thick notebook covered in bright pink leather. Ellie and Levin glanced at each other nervously as Mel flipped through it. "Let's see here… the Apprentice Trio Betting Slots… ah, here we go. Dark horse bet goes to… Leif…"

There was silence between the four of them as they looked at each other in awkward silence. Mel chuckled nervously to herself, glancing between Ellie, Levin, and the notebook. The quiet was broken when Marshall began to chuckle.

"Well, I suppose stranger things have happened," he laughed. He reached back over the counter, snapping the book shut. "Let's leave things like betting and the like aside for now, shall we, Miss Melanie? After all, there's something new and wonderful to add to the spring Harmony Festival, and I'm sure the rest of the village will be as overjoyed to hear about it as you were."

"That sounds like fun," Ellie replied enthusiastically. She looked up at Levin, smiling nervously. "You know… there's supposed to be a couple's dance coming up soon. I know… I know that the village will want to see us out there after we announce our engagement. I wouldn't… I wouldn't mind that myself. But if you… if you're not comfortable with that, I don't mind if we-"

Levin smiled at her, however. "I would love to dance with you, Ellie. No matter how… ah, awkward I might be doing so." He chuckled sheepishly and scratched his head. "I'll have to warn you though, I, uh, kind have two left feet. Well… one left foot and, er, something different."

"I can work with that," Ellie grinned, grabbing hold of Levin's hands and pulling him towards the central square. "Now come on: let's go give the village something else to be happy about, my dear husband-to-be."

Levin grinned, squeezing her hand and following after her. "As you wish, my dear wife-to-be."

Author's Note: Please Review! I keep forgetting that I'm supposed to be releasing these on Saturdays from here on… Hyrule Warriors didn't help either. Oh well, at least it's not Sunday yet.

More shameless fluff in this chapter, as well as another blatant shout-out to Girl Genius in this chapter… I regret nothing.

Also, I don't know why, but I kept writing typos in this chapter. In TLC, I'd sometimes write 'killed' instead of 'kissed', which was awkward enough. But in this little one-shot, on at least three different occasions, I wrote 'slimed' instead of 'smiled'. Needless to say, going back and reading through this during editing left me in fits of laughter.

Reading: The Master Corps by Thomas A. Hawk, Faber et Filia and Lessons by Hoenn Master96
Playing: MH3U, Animal Crossing New Leaf
Listening: Oasis, Lenny Kravitz, Collective Soul, Pet Shop Boys
Watching: Guardians of the Galaxy