Roses and Sonatas [Harvest Moon: Tale of Two Towns]

Chapter 4

I woke early next morning to the sounds of songbirds greeting the sunrise. Stretching, I sat up and looked out at the dark silhouettes of trees against the lightening sky, enjoying the luxury of waking on my own—without anyone knocking on my door. I made a simple breakfast, then went out to take care of my animals. Afterwards, I went to make my daily rounds in the village, dropping off the requests I'd already filled and accepting a couple of new ones. I even managed to give a few gifts, mostly wildflowers and herbs that I'd foraged. Cam was back in town, and he seemed especially pleased by the little bunch of fresh herbs and flowers I gave him, and sniffed them appreciatively before placing them in a little glass of water on his counter to keep fresh.

After greeting everyone in the village, I hurried back home. I grabbed a quick sandwich for lunch, using the last slices of Jessica's bread. I'd need to bake some bread soon, I thought as I popped the last bite into my mouth. I put my cow and chicken back inside for the night, then saddled Lady up and headed out to forage on the mountain again on the way to Konohana. I hoped to get there earlier this time, so that I would have a chance to meet the rest of the villagers there and hopefully be back earlier that night. This time I had a better idea of good spots to forage, so I made much better time, arriving at the village gates at about mid-afternoon. I dismounted, and leaving Lady tied to a hitching post next to a grassy spot by the gate, I headed into the village to check the message board and see the town.

By daylight, I could see that the town had a definite Oriental flair, with Asian-style houses decorated with red paper lanterns and little stone statues and shrines dotting many of the gardens and yards. Most of the houses there had at least a small vegetable garden or a fruit tree or two. It was a very pretty and charming town, albeit in an entirely different way from Bluebell. As I strolled along the dirt road, I saw Kana's shop. His sign said he was open for business, so I stepped in to say hi. Several dogs came trotting up to sniff my legs, wagging their tails and barking happily. A few cats lounged around on high shelves and the tops of cupboards. And there behind the counter was Kana.

Cam was definitely one of the most beautiful men I'd ever seen, but Kana had to be the manliest. And in addition to his rugged, muscular appearance, he seemed confident, friendly, funny, and good-natured. In other words, although he was very definitely masculine, he thankfully was not at all macho. He talked a lot about horses; so much so that when I later stopped by the small store in town, run by Diego and Enrique's triplet brother Raul, and saw that he had horse treats for sale, I smiled and, with some of my meager funds, purchased a package. On my way back out of town, I stopped by his store and gave the treats to him, mostly as a joke. However, his delight with the gift was so genuine that I resolved to purchase more as soon as I could.

I returned over the mountain, watching for anything I might have missed on my first pass that I could use, sell, or give to someone as a gift or to fill a request. I found a few items I'd overlooked before, and I reached my farm much earlier today. My clock said it was just past 9 when I walked in after settling my pony for the night. I hesitated a minute, then decided to go drop in on Cam, Laney, and Howard, if it wasn't too late, and maybe even to Jessica and her family, too.

I walked briskly up the road to town, arriving at the café about twenty minutes later. The café was still open, and since Laney and Howard were busy with a customer, I just waved to them and headed back to where I'd learned Cam's room was. I knocked, and he opened the door, looking surprised to see me. He stepped aside and let me in, although he commented on the lateness of the hour. I agreed, apologizing for the late visit and asked if he'd rather I leave. He hesitated, then shrugged and said I could stay if I wanted, it didn't matter to him.

I took that to mean that he at least didn't mind that I'd come to visit, but it was hard to tell since I didn't know him well yet. So I struck up a conversation with him about his favorite subject: flowers. I asked him about the flowers he sold and the wildflowers I'd found on the mountain. At first he just mumbled some brief replies, but soon his interest had been engaged and he began to actually converse. I told him about some of the flowers my mother had in her garden that I'd never seen anywhere else, and he seemed very interested in that. After a little while, I heard the sounds of Howard closing the café and realized I'd been there for over half an hour. Not wanting to keep Cam up too late, I said I should be going. As I left, I promised to see if my mother could save him some seeds or get him some cuttings from some of the plants I'd mentioned. He seemed so pleased by this, that I determined to write to her soon, that night if possible. I hurried on out the door, waving goodbye to Howard and Laney, and headed for home.