"'You don't want to do this,' Nix pleaded, squeezing her eyes shut as she struggled backward, ripping her face from his meaty hand. 'A business isn't worth a human life!'
'Oh, please,' [̸̥̉͠Ḛ̴̏r̶̺̋͋͜r̵̖̥̒ǫ̷̓̿r̵̖̘̄͗]̸̣̾͝ spat, his face contorting with disgust. 'You're barely human.'"
After her world comes crashing down on her, Nix Weekly quits her job and moves to her grandfather's old farm in Stardew Valley, Capricorn Grove. Her life can't get any worse, she figures. Besides, a half-blood like her? Perhaps she'd be better off in a place with less people to snicker and sneer at her appearance. It's not like her father's looks ever did her any favors anyway.
Because Nix looks like a frog.
And humans don't like frogs.
Or so she thought.
Because when Sebastian looks at her, all he can think about is how beautiful she would look in the rain.
It's a shame someone wants her dead.
------
Man, I love frogs.
*TW // Blood, swords/knives/guns, war flashbacks, violence, vulgar language, death, potentially disturbing imagery, the selling of people* ; This is one of the darkest fanfictions I've ever written, so keep these TWs in mind.
Word count: Approx. 60,700
[Characters belong to ConcernedApe and Chucklefish, with the exception of Nix and a handful of minor characters. The story is original, apart from key details and heart events that make Stardew Valley recognizable.]
Ardyce Holmes was the first person to see Maru before she disappeared, but a mysterious message from someone going by the username drowningwizard draws her to Stardew Valley in hopes of finding out the truth regarding her friend. Of course, someone didn't expect the resevour drying up to reveal the truth.
Disclaimer - I don't own Stardew Valley. This is written for ONC, but the prompt used for this novella is number five. "There is a terrible drought ravaging the land, but when the waters recede from the local lake/reservoir, they reveal something no one expected to find."
Warning: Sebastian is dealing with mental illness as well as issues with being on the spectrum. Certain characters are stalkers based on subtext from the games.