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Harvest Moon: Rose Red- My New Beginning 1

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   Chapter 1: Snow White and Rose Red

      Rose Red... I never liked my name. I'm not fragile, tender, or exceptionally beautiful. In fact, with my short hair and genderless clothing, I was mistaken for a boy pretty often back home. But then again, I never cared about gender as my identity, preferring the company of books to people and hard work to socializing. I'm a natural redhead, something my parents had been proud of, but I'm always dyeing my hair different colors and cutting it to a short, messy perfection I call my own.

The only thing more noticeable than my sometimes-purple hair is the blue-eyed glare I set on any nuisance that gets in the way of my work. By the way, that glare is what I was wearing as I made my entrance into the newly revived Echo Town. My cousin Weiss had been living here for almost a year, and so far he'd managed to help build about half a town's worth of buildings and draw in a few people. I was impressed by the sight of villagers milling about the land that had seemed desolate a year ago when my parents visited this place with me for the last time.

No, they weren't in a tragic accident. I was adopted in a place called Orchard Town at the age of 5, when mom and dad found out they were unable to have children of their own. The place was aptly named, having plenty of groves of peaches and apples, and even a few family-owned vineyards. I loved the apple orchard on our 5 acre plot. Weiss and I spent the Summers lying in the wheat fields and imagining pirate battles in the white clouds that sailed the blue of the sky. That was when I began writing. Paper became a canvas for my every thought, and stories were my way of improving a dull day.

About a year ago the trees started disappearing, cut for lumber by the company that had bought out our land and our livelihood. Mom and dad hit their 30th wedding anniversary a week before dad passed away of pancreatic cancer, and mom followed only two weeks behind, stricken with grief. I felt happy for them, because they believed they were soulmates and would be reborn together in their next lives. The two of them were never apart, and wouldn't have to be again, even if I couldn't see them any longer. They were buried together beneath the last surviving tree of the orchard they'd sold to pay for father's medical needs.

I think that's enough of my sappy, stereotypical backstory. Just to clarify, I'm a novelist and farmhand, so I wasn't making the move just to get away from the past. I'd heard that two writers, both journalists I think, were living in the town, but no one was there to provide stories. I wanted to be able to share my work again, so I took up on the offer Weiss had extended to me a year ago to stay in the town. But rather than living on the ranch he'd inherited from his parents (My adopted mother's sister and her husband) I'd be staying at the inn he'd helped build. After all, he was looking to settle down within the year, and if I was living with him when he turned into a sappy, lovestruck goof it could get awkward. Especially since at 24 I was still dismissing romance as silly and unnecessary, while Weiss had been girl-crazy since he hit puberty.

Let's get back to that glare; I'd just arrived in Echo Town, having trudged the last 3 miles of the journey through snow that was too deep to maneuver my guide and our horses through. Lugging my bags, I had just sat down on a fine stone bench to rest when a shadow fell over my belongings.

"Let me fix that unfortunate mess the storm made of your hair." I didn't know the voice, but judging by the distance between myself and the people who hadn't bothered to tell me where Dunhill had got off to, it was addressing me... And my hair was exactly the way I'd fixed it that morning. Well, except for the bits of stick and mud that had gotten tangled in it when I'd fallen off my horse into a snowdrift... "Excuse me," I snapped, glaring up at a guy who looked a little like myself, "What exactly's wrong with my hair?" Frowning, I studied him as he sighed and replied, "I'm a great hairstylist. Trust me, birds' nest is not your look, babe." His eyes, a darker shade of blue than mine, sat behind black-framed glasses, studying me as his lips curled into a smirk of pity and condescension.

"Hey, I cut it myself! AND added the black tips, thank you very much. Call me babe again and you'll find yourself with a black eye, pretty boy."

"It's Allen. You'd be blessed to remember that, Little Miss Birds' Nest~"

I'd pretty much had enough of this guy's judging looks, so I hopped up and snatched my bags from the ground, trudging toward the inn through the 6 inches of snow that paled in comparison to the depth outside the town. Short crisp footsteps followed mine, a beat behind, and I resisted the urge to look back, grumbling, "For your information, Allen, I'm Weiss' cousin from Orchard Town. I'm going to be living here from now on... and if you don't take back the birds' nest comments, you're going to see the resemblance between yourself and my next mystery villain."

"Oh, so you're the novelist Weiss was talking about. I haven't read your works, but I assume the author's page is awful. You can't expect to take a good photograph with your hair all scraggly, you know. At least put enough care into your appearance to wear a little makeup, or at least girls' clothes. Actually, both would be an improvement. And if you don't want me to refer to you by the state of your hair, you should tell me your name."

With a sigh, I hefted my suitcase over my shoulder, mumbling, "It's Rose, alright?"

Allen gave an amused 'hmph,' replying, "Rose? That's a pretty cute name for someone so hostile." Allen's voice drew further away as he walked off toward the building I assumed was his shop, but I heard him clearly. "If you come by later I can take care of your look! With my skill maybe you could do justice to your name!"

"No thanks, Ego-boy! I've got self-freakin' confidence, so you can go-" I froze, looking down at the chubby kid standing by the door to the inn. I put on a fake smile, glad I hadn't finished that sentence, and addressed him. "Er- Uh, hey, I'm Rose. I think the inkeeper's expecting me?" With a timid nod, he pointed at the door. "He's in there, ma'am..."

"Thanks," I replied, opening the door and slipping into the inn. Then I dusted the snow off my shoulders and gave a sigh at the warmth of the building. "Hey, Hossan? It's Rose, from Orchard Town." The man waved from behind the counter, calling, "Welcome to Echo Town, Rose. Your room is upstairs, take the right, last door on the left. Here's the key." He slipped a silver key across the desk to me, too busy writing to look up. "Sorry, I'd show you to the room, but I'm doing the ledger for Fall. If you go to Dunhill later, he'll explain about the shops, festivals, and customs of the town. You're lucky to come at this time of year. We've got some great Winter festivals. If you need anything for your room, just ask."

I took the key and gave Hossan a nod that he likely didn't see, hauling my belongings up the stairs and to my room. When I opened the door, I expected a quaint little room with a bed and a desk; obviously, Weiss had decorated it before my arrival. One wall was lined with bookshelves, and in the corner there was a writing desk with a typewriter. It had a window with red linen curtains that opened onto a view of the forest behind, and the bedsheets were patterned with felt apples that my cousin and I had made years ago. I unloaded my clothes into the mahogany dresser and set up my books by authors' name on the shelves, stacking up unfinished writings on the desk, beside the typewriter.  Then I set a picture on the desk in its frame. It was of myself and my parents, but Weiss was in it too, waving from the corner. His naturally white hair had earned him the nickname Snow White, from the same Grimm's Tale as my first and middle names, Rose Red. Without letting the photo get me all sappy, I peeled off my jacket and sat on the bed, taking in the surroundings. Maybe this place'll be alright, as long as I can avoid that annoying hairdresser.

Weiss had told me about a few of the villagers. Dunhill, whom I'd met, was friendly and wanted what was best for the town. 'Allen' was a self-satisfied, controlling stylist who Weiss didn't want me hanging around anyway. There were two journalists: Tina, a young girl who loved a good scoop and was a fan of interesting finds, and Soseki, some guy who acted older than he was and was in my cousin's opinion lazy but harmless. Then there were Rod and Neil, the animal guys. Polar opposites socially, both loved their livestock, though Weiss said he was friends with Rod but never really talked to Neil, who was callous and sometimes mean-spirited toward humans. Then again, Weiss and I were like that. He'd always been the one people came to when they needed a friend. I was the one who told them honestly what I thought, and it wasn't generally what people wanted to hear...

Hana, the woman who ran the general store, was kindly and would cut a deal with anyone who brought her some fish. Weiss hadn't told me much about the restaurant, travel agency, clinic, or tailor's, but he did mention two other people: Yuri and Felicity. He'd become friends with both of them since their coming to the town, but Weiss had confided in me that he was planning on inviting one of them to some star-festival in about 4 weeks. The problem he had was deciding which girl he was interested in as more than friends.

I REALLY wasn't the person to come to with his relationship problems, but since I was the only relative he spoke to, I guess he needed a friendly ear. In my opinion, he should've been focusing on the town he was still working on reviving, but he was allowed to enjoy himself too... Weiss wanted me to meet these girls and give him my opinion. I guess after I visit Dunhill and check-in with Weiss, I'll give 'em a once over and tell him my opinion. And then it's back to holing up and writing.
My name is Rose Red. I'm a writer. My cousin, Weiss Snow, is the man chosen to revive Echo Town a year ago. After mourning my parents' deaths I accepted Weiss' invitation to live in Echo Town, and his challenge to attend the Starry Night Festival. But with prophetic nightmares and my own inhibitions in my way, could a journalist with a dark past be the key to my new beginning?
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LilyVulpes's avatar
What Harvest Moon game is this based on? So I can sort.