Other A Farm in the Forest- Chapter 56 (December 7, 2018)

Discussion in 'Fan Works' started by MagicallyClueless, May 3, 2016.

  1. Gabaw

    Gabaw Spaceman Spiff

    Chap 31 the big chap!! Swervage may or may not have occurred. I laughed, I didn't cry but I would have, and I loved the motorcycle intro. You weren't kidding when you said you'd take it slow and honestly this has been the best buildup to a relationship that I think I've ever seen from anyone other than a professional novelist. It's particularly impressive knowing how madly in love and/or obsessed you are with Seb (sebsessed). Good things come to the patient who pick the right place and the right time. I'm eager to see where things go from here but this massive milestone is worth a celebration. Well done!! Have an ultra-rare double check :confirm::confirm:
     
    • Risukage

      Risukage Giant Laser Beams

      These two goofy, fluffy bunnies are adorable and sweet and I just want to hug them both so much. You totally nailed this. *Applause, confetti!*
       
      • Iranna

        Iranna Void-Bound Voyager

        Sup Magically clueless!
        I was out against my free will in a village with no Internet and most importantly without your fanfiction (details are not needed as it will cause a furious reant and you don't deserve that). I came back yesterday and wow, things have happended since I last read your fanfic. I scrolled calmly at first, then I scrolled hard while nosebleed happened. You actually set a believable way of a relationship flourishing, the angst and doubts, (I adore your Sam and your creative way to introduce the Idea that Jade knew nothing about the mermaid pendant, Abby and Sam monitoring their bros, it was all awesome). I just can't wait for Robin's reaction, best mom has to say something about it, as I guess she always wanted Jade to be a part of her family, everything was a part of her evil plan, EVERYTHING I SAY!
        I am sorry to not to have been here to support your story, I hope nothing else will happen in the future, and gurl, you rock, your writting is becoming better and better, keep working on it!
         
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        • MagicallyClueless

          MagicallyClueless Master Astronaut

          it's ok! i hope things are working out for you and i'm glad you've kept my fic in mind, hehehe! <3

          haha yes, all that stuff is to come. making a believable and slow relationship was one of my goals and i feel really relieved and happy that i could make it happen.
           
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          • ApertureGaming011

            ApertureGaming011 Scruffy Nerf-Herder

            Wow. This chapter literally melted my heart. This was in fact the best chapter you've made after the sleep-over part. Fanfictions like these on the beautiful Stardew Valley are the main reason of my personality change (Really!). I really wish that I can learn a thing or two about how legends like you can write romance in fanfics. (Idiots like me always drew and wrote about space battles, so there.) Keep up the good work, Jade! (You or the character)
             
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            • MagicallyClueless

              MagicallyClueless Master Astronaut


              The speed in which townspeople caught word of a new couple in town was terrifyingly swift. Jade went into town once that Friday afternoon to buy some more food for herself, only to be stopped several times by excited and curious townsfolk. Marnie stopped her right outside the ranch to discuss relationships, Sam yelled for her in passing and gave her a bear hug, Maru and Penny waved and happily congratulated Jade, Alex ran up to her and gave her a real bear hug (then low-key threatening to hurt Sebastian if he ever made her upset), and everyone stared at her in Pierre’s shop, especially when Abigail emerged from her room to greet and ask how it went.

              Jade didn’t necessarily mind the attention, though she was used to just passing everyone in town. She had her friends and she would say hello to others, but she wasn’t really a presence that many went out of their way to notice. Occasionally, Lewis would approach her and ask about the farm and did ask what she was doing at the Community Center once, but he accepted her responses and allowed her to do whatever she wished. For a while, however, Jade seemed more like rumor fodder than anything else.

              Regardless, Jade happily told Abigail how the night went while many of the nearby villagers listened in with no shame and all lack of subtlety. After shopping, the two walked outside together and continued to chat. Abigail relayed her excitement for Jade’s newfound relationship and understood (or at least, tolerated) the proposition of no saloon night. When they parted, Jade went back home and honed her fishing skills right outside her farm border until she grew tired. Many fish were shipped, a couple were preserved, and the young farmer had succeeded in exhausting herself. Her last waking moments were spent playing video games and chatting to her equally tired boyfriend through a messenger. While not too many townspeople approached him, his mother was the equivalent of twenty people when it came to his situation. The mere aura of her excitement could smother him if they weren’t careful!

              Saturday arrived, and with Saturday night came game night. Both Jade and Sebastian were overflowing with positive energy and looked forward to the return of Solarion Chronicles, while Sam was entertained enough just by watching them. Robin kept herself from intervening the game as much as she could, though she had no mercy whatsoever when either member of the couple walked up from Sebastian’s basement. Unlike Sebastian, however, Jade eagerly answered any questions Robin had and expressed her feelings and gratitude towards her new partner. Robin’s grumpy son only intervened when she got carried away with her baby boy growing up- baby pictures. Those were absolutely off limits and any embarrassing story of him as a child was forbidden. The young farmer was, of course, disappointed in not getting juicy details, but she let him have that victory.

              Needless to say, Jade and Sebastian were happy together and the town knew of it rather quickly. They both found themselves more productive as the week droned on; when Jade wasn’t working hard on her farmland or sewing crafts for selling, she was fishing, swordfighting, and mining. Sebastian started adjusting his own sleep schedule to get more productivity out of his day; sleepless nights and vaguely bearable work days became restful nights and enthusiastically full work days, to the point that he could even start on his own projects.

              There were some days that Sebastian felt overwhelmed at the carpenter shop- especially with Demetrius, who had kept a significant distance ever since Sebastian’s outburst- though he took no hesitation to relax at Jade’s house. He loved that he could visit and not be pressured to do anything, not even speaking. Jade’s home was very quiet and her presence was extremely welcome, so he loved to wind down and listen to whatever she was up to while relaxing in the living room or the game room upstairs. Jade always loved him visiting as well and felt calmer and safer when he was around. Even if they weren’t always in the same room or in the mood to chat, there was something soothing about knowing how close they were.

              Because of his frequent visits, Jade took the opportunity to show off her practice with cooking. He often arrived when Jade was finished with farm work and eating, so he finally got to try the sashimi that Jade worked hard to make. She was extremely worried about how it all turned out, though she didn’t need to- he loved the food and joked that he should start coming over every evening for dinner. Despite the comment being a joke, he really came around often enough that it might as well have been a serious statement. Jade welcomed the change and embraced Sebastian’s attempts to include himself more, even if it was just the both of them. Sebastian usually left when he felt recharged again, but never parted without lovingly holding his girlfriend and giving her a kiss. Their routine certainly changed, but it was wonderful. More of their interactions were face-to-face and they could rely on each other wholeheartedly.

              Of course, Sebastian’s increase in visits meant that he bumped into Alex a few times more than the favorable amount. Jealousy wasn’t really the right word to use, but neither of them really liked each other and they didn’t understand how Jade found redeemable and lovable qualities in both of them. Alex was too strong, too loud, and didn’t really have any common interests with Jade other than punching things. Meanwhile, Sebastian was too smart, too quiet, and seemed too grim of a person to really be with someone as sweet as Jade. Alex and Sebastian were very much the opposite, but Jade tried her best to mediate between them and to give them both the attention they needed. She attempted to explain her sisterly feelings for Alex and romantic feelings for Sebastian, though it didn’t seem to get through to either of them. As long as they weren’t fighting or making Jade pick sides, she didn’t necessarily mind.

              Back to Jade’s farm progression, she accumulated more money than she really knew what to do with, thanks to all the fish she caught and valuable materials she found from her mining trips. Crops were also selling rather well and her rabbits were producing great wool that Jade was putting to use. Still, more could be done. She ended up buying another rabbit- a male this time- and invested in two baby chicks to settle in the same coop. She wasn’t much of a fan of having her rabbits and chickens in the same space, but at least they seemed to get along well enough. The new rabbit’s name was Bullet, for how fast he charged around the barn as well as his beautiful gray fur. The two chickens, one white and one brown, were named Mayo and Gloria. Mayo cheeped as loud as she could with all her tiny heart, while Gloria seemed like she took charge of the place. Since they were adjusting, Jade’s recent goals involved saving up for another coop and bringing the most wonderful crops to fruit.

              The pumpkins Jade planted were still growing at a snail’s pace, as was the corn. She could still harvest some of the corn she planted the previous season, and the rows of cranberries she planted had reached adulthood without any issue. With all the fruit she gained from the harvest, she had way more baskets of cranberries than she knew what to do with. Some of them were kept for herself since she was a huge fan of fruit, a majority of them were sold, and a few extras were given off to some families that would appreciate it. Alongside the families of her squad, Jade gifted Marnie for how welcoming she’d been and left her enough to share with Shane, her nephew.

              Several sunny and rainy days passed, bringing a brand new Wednesday to Stardew Valley. Jade appeared to be in high spirits, even though her allergies seemed to be acting up. Her enthusiasm was most likely because of the next day, however: she and Sebastian were going to work on some monster eradication goals and spend some alone time in the mines. She tried not to think about it too much, since she would get excited and it would make time pass by far slower. Instead, she put more focus on her plans for the day: going to the carpenter shop and getting a new building for her farmland. Increasing animals meant a lot of extra hay lying around, making the whole barn feel messy and unorganized. Having a proper place to store them would be the ticket to cleanliness, and it would give Jade the ability to store more feed.

              Jade arrived to the carpenter shop, wearing her usual farming outfit, plus a light red jacket to fight the outside breeze. She toted along her backpack that contained an assortment of materials for Jade’s normal foraging trips, as well as some books and games that she borrowed from her boyfriend. In addition, she brought some food to get on everyone’s good side for lunch time. With a grin, she waved over to the bored Robin at the front desk. “Good afternoon, Robin!”

              The redhead jolted up from hearing Jade’s voice, eyes sparkling in delight. “Jadey! Hey!” She quickly ushered the young farmer over to examine her and give her a motherly pat on the cheeks. “How’s my girl? Also, call me Mom.”

              Jade chuckled. “We talked about this already, but I’ll think about it. I’m doing pretty well, and I hope you’re doing the same!”

              “I am! Are you here for Sebby?” Robin cheerfully asked.

              The young farmer shook her head, though she still smiled. “Actually, I’m here for some farm stuff. I’ll still go see him after, but before I get to that... are you hungry?”

              “Yeah, it’s my break soon. Why?”

              “Because,” Jade began, slinging her backpack off to rummage through it. “I brought... food! Ta-da!” She brought out a lidded bowl full of freshly cooked spaghetti. “Should still be hot!”

              Robin made a noise that was between a gasp and a hungry grunt. “Aww, you shouldn’t have!” she beamed, holding her hands on her heart when Jade also brought out some plastic eating utensils for her. “It’s too late, you’re my daughter now. I’m making you my middle child,” giggled Robin. She took absolutely no hesitation to pull off the lid and start eating.

              “I baked some muffins for everyone, also. I don’t know who likes what so I used some cranberries for some and just regular mix for the others. I didn’t know what kind of lunch food Demetrius or Maru would like, so they can have all the muffins they want,” Jade continued to explain while pulling more containers of food out of her backpack. The last thing she pulled out was some specially made sashimi, which was, of course, for Sebastian. “I got some food for Seb too, but I wanna go ahead and order a new farm building if that’s okay.”

              Robin vigorously nodded. “Yeah! Of course!” Her voice was muffled due to the mouthful of spaghetti. Jade had never seen her with so much joy. “Whatchu want?” she asked, continuing to stuff her face.

              “I have five farm animals now, and it’s getting hard to keep up with organizing the hay I buy. Marnie told me that you could build a silo for me.”

              An irritated groan erupted from the carpenter’s throat despite a mouth containing pure spaghetti bliss. “Uuugh, a silo? Forreal? I hate stone,” she grumbled, still eating. “You’re lucky you put me in a good mood from this food.”

              Jade chuckled from her mannerisms. “I would still have done it anyway. I promise I’ll have some big, wonderful building ideas for you later! Ones that involve wood,” she beamed.

              “You are just the sweetest,” Robin replied with a smirk. She finished up her food surprisingly quickly and emitted a short, happy burp. “Ahh. That hit the spot. Alrighty, well you need a ton of stone, some copper bars, some clay and a hundred g’s for Mama. You got all that, hun?”

              “Mmhm... I’ve been keeping some stuff from foraging trips and got a nice bit of clay, and I’ve been converting my copper ores thanks to Maru’s advice. It hasn’t given me much use other than that, so I’m glad it can go to something like this.” The young farmer put the required money onto the desk and smiled with pride. “This should cover the costs.”

              “Perfect!” Robin yelled. “I hate stone, but I’m excited to return to your adorable farm. Oh! Maybe I can make Sebby help,” she cackled. “Though I probably don’t have to do that anymore. It’s so weird to get used to! He used to stay in constantly, and now he goes out almost every day. I’m so happy for him!”

              Robin’s enthusiasm was absolutely contagious. Jade loved watching her get excited about projects and her family. “Hehe, I’m sure he’ll come by if he wants to. I know he is tomorrow, since we’re going to the mines together.”

              “Aww, is it a date?” The redhead curiously leaned across the desk to better hear.

              Jade nervously giggled from the question, face starting to flush. “Yes, I suppose it is...We’re doing some guild missions together, and then we’re gonna have a picnic when we reach our milestones,” she answered. Robin filled the room with happy ‘aww’s that made the farmer all the more flustered and excited. The farmer couldn’t think of any proper response except for a tiny sneeze to the side.

              “You two are so cute, I can’t get over it!” She folded her hands under her chin and grinned at watching Jade’s mannerisms. “I hope you have fun, but please be careful. That boy used to head out to the mines by himself and get himself hurt all the time! I’m sure you two will take real good care of each other, though.”

              The young farmer shyly nodded and smiled. “Yeah.”

              “Speaking of Sebby, how are you two? Is everything going well?” Robin managed to pry her eyes off of the young farmer for just a moment to collect the offered money and write the building order down. Afterwards, she started going through all of her blueprints to find one for a silo.

              “Very,” Jade replied, watching the carpenter with a still blushing face. She was going to explain more, but then she heard the abrupt opening of the basement door and the stomps upstairs.

              “Mother, stop meddling,” snapped Sebastian as he approached. “I heard you squealing from downstairs.”

              Robin suddenly cackled, pausing for a moment to see her son. “I’m not meddling, just asking! I want to know that my baby is getting along well with his girly. Especially since you haven’t dated since like-

              Mom!” shouted Sebastian, embarrassed.

              “Oh, please, it’s not that big of a deal,” snorted his mother. Both of the young adults could tell that Robin was having fun, considering her smug grin and the looks she exchanged. “But fine, I’ll lay off~” She laughed to herself and peered away to continue searching for the blueprint.

              Jade lightly nudged Sebastian when they stood beside each other, an innocent smile perched on her face. “Well hey there,” she said playfully.

              His grumpy demeanor quickly diminished, causing him to give an equally gentle nudge in return. “Hey,” he replied in a soft voice. “From mom’s groaning before, I imagine you asked for a stone building.”

              She laughed with a nod. “Yep!”

              “How are the animals?”

              “They’re adjusting pretty well, but the chickens are still little babies. They’re so cute! My bunnies are getting along with them, luckily. I was worried about having to build another expensive coop,” explained Jade.

              “You can still build one!” piped Robin, still looking away. She finally found the blueprint, but found herself writing some additional notes onto it.

              The young farmer gave a teasing glance over to the redhead then coughed into the bend of her arm. “Hehe, I know. Eventually! Promise,” she answered, clearing her throat. When she faced in Robin’s direction, her attention went back to the containers of food she brought out. “Oh! Lunch for you.” Jade grabbed the sashimi and kindly offered it to Sebastian.

              “Aw,” he instinctively replied, eagerly taking the meal. “Thank you!”

              “You want some muffins too? I’ve just been big on cooking lately,” she continued, pulling open the tab that covered its baked goods. The scent of warm muffins and berries wafted into the room.

              “Ooh, yes.” He balanced the sashimi in one hand and dug out a couple of the cranberry muffins in the other. Cautiously, he glared over to his mother to make sure she wasn’t looking, and then delivered a peck to Jade’s cheek. “I’ll see you later,” he happily remarked, then started walking away with the food given to him.

              Robin finally looked up just as he was leaving. “Hey! You gonna leave your girlfriend just like that?” she shouted.

              Jade giggled and pat the concerned carpenter on the arm. “I think he just knows you’ll be working at my property and saying a ton of embarrassing things.”

              “Yup,” came his voice as he descended back down the stairs.

              Robin huffed and crossed her arms. “I’m not that bad, am I? Nothing is embarrassing about my sweet boy! I’m just so happy! I’ve been waiting for this. You know, I had such a feeling about you, hun. From the very first day I helped you unpack your boxes!”

              “Hehe, if you say so, Robin.”

              “It’s true! A mother has these instincts, you know. They know who is good and who is trash. Lemme tell you all the trash I came across-

              Jade laughed. “I believe you! I should get going, though, especially to set up all the stuff for the silo for you.”

              “Boo! You two won’t let me gush.” The carpenter made an exaggerated pout, then reaching for one of the muffins; the scent was too good to pass up. “I have nothing to do today, so I’ll be there in an hour or so, fair?”

              “Fair.”

              “Oh, do you want to go see Demetrius and Maru? They’re both in the lab right now if you want to go take these to them. They’ll love it!” Robin beamed, having already devoured the muffin she took. Jade glanced at the container of muffins and then nodded, taking it. She left Robin one more just in case, which was then taken immediately. Robin waved as Jade walked off. “Seeya later, hun!”

              “Hehe, see you, Robin!” the young farmer gleefully replied. She ventured out of the shop and down the hall of the family’s home, passing the basement stairs to go to the lab straight across. The lab itself was rather bright, with white tiled floors, white cabinets and counters, and white walls. Jade was surprised how her eyes weren’t hurting from how light it was, but the completely ‘clean’ appearance of the room helped with studies and experiments. Maru sat on a stool to the side of the room, writing a report about a recently completed study. Demetrius stood at the far end, peering carefully into a microscope and occasionally etching down notes.

              Jade watched the two of them for a moment, wondering if they were too busy or not. Robin said they would love the snacks, but...

              Maru turned her head towards the young farmer after completing her report. “Oh, hello Jade!” She hopped out of the chair to properly greet Jade, causing Demetrius to lose focus and see the commotion.

              “Hi Maru, and hello Demetrius,” Jade shyly began. She was used to Maru’s presence and liked her as a person, but her interactions with Demetrius were very limited and unpleasant. The first time, she recalled, was freshly after an argument with Sebastian; Demetrius himself seemed to be in a rush, and only after that has Jade heard of him in a negative light. The second time was, of course, a confrontation after the Dance of the Moonlight Jellies. Since Maru seemed to look up to Demetrius, Jade hoped that she just had rotten luck in her interactions, though being in the same room as him didn’t make her any more comfortable. “I, uh... I made muffins for everyone. Would either of you like any?”

              The young scientist blossomed a pleasantly surprised expression. “Wow, you made these? Thank you!” She took no hesitation to wash her hands in the lab’s sink and grabbed one of the muffins close to her. Demetrius wandered over and made a calm smile, seemingly unbothered by the intrusion.

              “Jade? Thank you for coming by. I may have one of these, right?”

              “Of course! Have as many as you want. Both Robin and Seb took a couple.” She nervously laughed. “I made them for all of you, so I hope you like.”

              Maru gave a confident nod. “I’ve been hungry this whole time, hehe.” She took a bite of her snack, then grinned. “This’ll help me tide until work here is done. I didn’t know you liked baking!” she exclaimed. Jade smiled as the two helped themselves to the muffins- she caught everyone at the right time, it seemed.

              “Ah, I don’t really consider myself much of a baking person, but I’ve just been trying to expand my horizons.”

              Demetrius took a mental note of the farmer’s statement. “Honing your various skills can certainly expand your potential future. Smart decision.”

              “Haha, thanks, I suppose... I hope I didn’t interrupt anything,” Jade murmured. She shifted her feet somewhat uncomfortably.

              Maru shook her head. “Not at all!” Her expression suddenly vanished as she came to a realization. “Oh, no-- I left one of my experiments running in my room. I’ll be right back,” she hurriedly stated, quickly running out of the room. Jade watched Maru leave with a pained look on her face. She didn’t want to be left alone.

              “Ah, heh, there she goes. Maru can be focused on so many things at once that there are the few occasions she forgets,” Demetrius said with a nostalgic laugh. “She has a great head on her shoulders. I’m proud of her.”

              Jade nodded in agreement, though she wasn’t really sure what to say.

              “Speaking of... she has talked about you in a couple of instances. Maru is fond of you, so I hope you two can be great friends.”

              She didn’t necessarily doubt they would keep their friendship. The farmer felt rather awkward in this conversation. “I hope so too, Maru is very nice.”

              Demetrius finished the muffin he was eating, though he didn’t seem to be interested in more. Jade didn’t mind the fact, and instead just waited for him to continue their talk: “I’m sure Maru would love if you visited more often.”

              Yoba, this was awkward. Jade felt like he almost didn’t know. “Uh... I actually visit all the time, since, y’know... Sebastian lives here...”

              His whole demeanor changed. It was as if his body twitched in irritation from hearing the name. Demetrius slowly peered down at her, more serious and stern, before forcing himself to soften his glare and look away. “I see,” was all he said.

              “Y-yeah... um... for the past while now, I’ve been playing board games with him and Sam just about every Saturday night. I also just like to come by and visit, especially since he takes the time to come see how I’m doing after work. It’s a long walk, but it’s worth it. My bunnies love him, too.”

              Demetrius didn’t really reply, but Jade still felt like she needed to keep talking:

              “Did you know he’s trying to quit smoking now? Not only is it a bad habit, but he knows the smell bothers me, and he’s using gum to help suppress the urges.” She smiled, though it was obvious she was stressed about Demetrius. He didn’t seem to notice. “He was trying to keep it a surprise for me until he felt more confident, but I felt the gum in his hoodie pocket.”

              “Hm.” The older scientist frowned. He seemed bothered by something.

              “He... he’s really smart too, you know! I was having computer troubles just a few days ago, and it didn’t even take him a minute to figure out what the problem was. And he fixed it!” Her voice started to shake. “He wants to build me a nice computer someday, because mine is just store bought and it’s nothing fancy. He’s really sweet. Even if we weren’t dating, I-I think he would go out of his way to do something so nice.” She took a deep, hesitant breath. “B-because...”

              Maru had returned with a face full of soot, but she felt pretty accomplished with herself. She frowned when she saw Jade shivering, Demetrius peering at her with melancholy. “I’m back...?” the younger scientist muttered.

              Jade put down the baked goods onto the nearest counter. “E-excuse me,” she stammered with a weak, breaking voice. Quickly, she left the lab. Both Maru and Demetrius watched her leave and immediately turn to walk down towards the basement.

              Sebastian was working at his computer, typing away with occasional mouse clicking. An unwrapped plate with only trace amounts of sauce left had been set at the edge of his desk. He heard his door open and quietly close, followed by a thump against the wall. Curiously, he leaned up from his computer chair to see who it was, then stood when he saw Jade hanging her head and hugging herself. “What happened?” he asked, heading over to her.

              She shook her head and limply held out her arms. Sebastian took her pitiful gesture as a request to be held, which he did without question. Her arms tightly latched to his sides and back and she buried her face into his chest, bringing comfort to them both. Eventually, the programmer let out a sigh.

              “I understand. Being beautiful is hard work,” Sebastian nonchalantly stated. Jade muffled out a snort, causing him to grin. “What? Am I wrong?”

              Jade lifted her head and released one of her arms to tiredly wipe one of her eyes. “Is Sam teaching you pick up lines?” she quietly asked with a shy smile.

              He chuckled and continued to hold her close. “Maybe.”

              “You’re such a dork.”

              “Hey, it made you smile.”

              “It was a smile out of pity,” the young farmer giggled.

              “Uh huh.” He kissed her head and leaned against her for better holding. Jade emitted a gentle breath that showed her improving mood.

              After their moment of closeness, Jade decided to speak up: “I just wanted Demetrius to know how wonderful you are.”

              “Huh?”

              She buried her face again. “He kept avoiding us as a topic and it made me upset.”

              Sebastian scoffed. “You shouldn’t worry about that... mentioning me is a lost cause to him.”

              “But I wanted to,” squeaked the farmer. Her gentle yet desperate sounding voice made him chuckle.

              Sebastian backed away so that he could see his partner’s face. He let go of her to pat her shoulders. “Hey, it’s fine. Why should I care about a loser for a step-father when I have an even bigger loser right beside me?” He asked with a smirk.

              “Aw, now you’re just trying to flatter me,” Jade laughed. She playfully hit his chest, then grabbed the collar of his hoodie to pull him over to her. They exchanged a loving kiss and then gazed into each other’s eyes. She chuckled and just as easily pushed him away. “Ew, you taste like fish,” she mentioned in a lighthearted manner.

              Sebastian seemed surprised at first, but then settled with a bashful smile. “That’s your fault. Wait, how do you taste? Come here.” He casually pulled her back over to him for another smooch, causing her to laugh and let out a dramatic ‘nooo!’ They spent a moment exchanging playful banter, then held each other when they were content.

              “Want me to take you home?” he eventually asked, bumping their foreheads together.

              Jade slowly nodded and took his hands to hold. “Please.”

              He smiled. “Alright.”

              The two of them walked back upstairs, his right hand intertwined with her left. Demetrius and Maru heard Jade sneeze loudly from the other side of the house, followed by Sebastian laughing and teasing the person in question. Some muffled conversation and a booming yell from Robin later, the young lovers seemed to have exit the house. Demetrius still seemed to be in somewhat of a funk after Jade’s little act. He peered over to Maru, who was tweaking a gadget on the lab counter.

              “Maru,” he started, his expression revealing his personal conflict. “Tell me more about this... Jade. What is she like?”

              Maru saw the look in her father’s eyes and knew he was lost about something. When he couldn’t figure out a problem, he would most likely obsess over it... it happened to be such a quality she inherited from him, too. With that, the young scientist emitted a knowing sigh. “Dad... I can tell you what I know, but you know who you should really be asking.”

              “I’m very well aware.” Demetrius decided to focus back on an experiment he was doing with his microscope. “I would like you to humor me.”

              The young scientist, with such concern painted on her visage, finally nodded. “Sure, then.”

              Without any more quarreling, Maru agreed to tell her father what she knew and liked about Jade. Shortly after, Robin left via truck to begin planning out the silo. The rest of the day was spent building with provided materials at the farm while Sebastian and Jade decided to practice their sword fighting. Robin was all too obnoxiously commentating on how adorable they were with each other, which prompted Sebastian to take their practice to the woods.

              Jade thought his reactions were hilarious and she didn’t necessarily mind Robin’s innocent prodding. It was almost like she was getting a family again, which had a very welcoming feeling.

              She missed them.



              Had quite a few different ideas for this chapter, but this was the end result. Pretty happy with it since I wanted to bring Demetrius back (Jade has only seem him twice before!) and to start building up his character. At this point, the cast is pretty dang big so this is probably all the people we'll see... until we get into some surprises later down the line :^)

              This chapter is more of an info dump than anything since a lot of time passed between the last chapter and this one. We're starting to get into the more lasting plotlines, helping Sebastian's family and we'll eventually start learning the facts about Jade's as well. It'll be a good time.

              As always, hope you enjoyed the read!
               
                Risukage and Gabaw like this.
              • Gabaw

                Gabaw Spaceman Spiff

                Ok first yes I'm RIP. but also i love bullet he's the best bunny and a great name! Robin is best mom as always and she's right good moms kno who is a good person to interact with their child and who isn't generally speaking. its like permanent pre-school or something they just know :p I like that Jade stood up for Seb in front of Demetrius. It wasn't a fruitless effort but he seems more interested in what kind of person would date someone he thought so poorly of. but if he heard that pick up line seb delivered it would be even worse than before :rofl: omg that was bad lmao. well there's probs more to come and also i read the post-writing first so don't be mad plz. Looking forward to the next chap!
                 
                • Risukage

                  Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                  Fruitless? So, no tomatoes, then? :p
                   
                  • MagicallyClueless

                    MagicallyClueless Master Astronaut

                    ZING
                     
                      Gabaw and ApertureGaming011 like this.
                    • Kid Absurdity

                      Kid Absurdity Big Damn Hero

                      Peak bazinga.
                       
                      • Iranna

                        Iranna Void-Bound Voyager

                        Another chapter with best mom, anda nice background for what it is to come! Ladies and gentlemen, watch Magically Clueless make an awesome fanfic, and she is not even trying! What's our public reactions, mistress?

                        -Nerf Magically Clueless, much writting skills so talented, wow

                        - Sign this paper to ban Demetrius for this fanfic, only 99.99, just today!

                        - I want more embarassing moments, Seb didn't have enough embarassment!

                        - I rate this fanfic a solid 5/7. Best mom did her best today, Seb is going to live with Jade soon, I guarantee it

                        Thanks everyone for your opinions! Wait for the next chapter, she has more surprises for us! (Man I will be 22 tomorrow and I still do this things. Awesome)
                         
                        • MagicallyClueless

                          MagicallyClueless Master Astronaut

                          happy early bday!
                           
                            ApertureGaming011 likes this.
                          • MagicallyClueless

                            MagicallyClueless Master Astronaut


                            Thursday had arrived once more, just a few days before Abigail’s birthday and a little less than a week from the Stardew Valley Fair. On this particular day, Jade felt... groggy. When she woke up, her head was pounding and her face felt like it was on fire. No sunburn or flustered thoughts, but her cheeks were flushed a deep rose. It didn’t take long for her to realize she couldn’t breathe through her nose, and her whole body just felt so weak and flimsy. Several coughs, sneezes, a discouraged nap and a half-hearted shower later, Jade readied herself for a day of exhausting farming, with a date to the mines afterwards.

                            Work was slower than she expected. She went out of breath constantly, barely had any energy to water her crops, spent too much time tending to the land and she felt like she couldn’t keep up with her hyperactive farm animals. She opened the gates to feed them, kept a safe distance from them, and let them all out to safely explore the farmland. Jade had a feeling that something was amiss, but she still refused to believe it- she acted as normal as she could, despite wobbly standing and coughs that nearly knocked her off her feet.

                            Robin was working on the silo right beside the building it would supply. Jade did notice her, though the two assumed they were too busy to really chat. Working with stone was less natural for the carpenter, so she had to apply a lot more concentration to successfully get the job done. Unfortunately, she never noticed the farmer’s odd behavior to do anything. Time passed and Robin head home, Jade doing the same when all of her excruciating farming chores were completed.

                            There was an engine running in the distance in the later parts of the afternoon, followed by a knock at Jade’s front door. The sound caused her to sport a groan at her realization. She didn’t get enough rest and the date with Sebastian was just around the corner. The young farmer spouted a guttery yet enthusiastic, “I’ll be right there!” before trudging out of bed and waddling to the door. She lazily fixed her hair while simultaneously reaching for the door, then opened it to reveal Sebastian.

                            Sebastian warmly smiled at seeing his girlfriend. “Hey, you ready? Uh...” he asked, his voice then fading. His expression twisted into concern. “You don’t look so hot.”

                            “Excuse you, I’m sexy,” coughed Jade to the side. “I’m all packed for the ice caverns, let me just go get my stuff-

                            “No, come here.” Sebastian gently took her by the arm when she tried to go back into the house and brought her close to him. “You sound and look sick,” he said with a frown, caressing the sides of her face and then feeling her forehead. “... Yoba, you’re burning up.Wait... did you actually do your farm work today?”

                            Jade huffed and tiredly blinked her eyes. “Of course I did... S’my job, Seb.”

                            “You look like you’re about to pass out. You shouldn’t be doing anything when you’re feeling like this. Change of plans.”

                            “But... We’ve been planning this all week! I just got a stuffy nose and a cough, that’s all-” She interrupted herself with a sneeze, then groaned as she regained herself. “... I still want to go!” she desperately whined.

                            “Oh, we’re going somewhere.”

                            “Really?” Her eyes, as foggy as they were, brightened upon being thrown a metaphorical bone.

                            “To the clinic,” Sebastian said with a glare. “You’re sick.”

                            “Ugh...” Jade coughed into the bend of her arm. “Do I have to?”

                            Sebastian walked her back inside to get her out of the cold weather, then continued to check her. “Yes... Damn, Jade, how did you get so sick? And you’re not wearing warm enough clothes.”

                            “It’s fine,” Jade insisted. There was a chill in the air, but she wore her regular farm clothes as she always did. Sebastian knew she was experiencing serious denial, since her arms were covered in goosebumps and she kept hugging herself. He pulled his hoodie off and tossed it to her.

                            “My hoodie is very warm. We’ll be on my motorcycle so you need it,” he explained. Jade grumbled something under her breath, but she obeyed and slipped on the hoodie that he wore just about every single day. Her mannerisms quickly improved, since she was overcome with his jacket’s warmth from body heat and relaxed from being surrounded by his scent. He fastened the hood over her head and smiled. “Better?”

                            The young farmer couldn’t complain. She gave a shy nod and sniffled, passively reaching to hold his hand. Her eyes drifted to his torso, since she rarely if ever saw him without his hoodie. He had a dark blue sweater on, which kept his dark fashion sense and would keep himself warm even without his hoodie. Jade was always surprised with how thin he was, but she found him very cute.

                            He held her hand in return, seeming relieved. “Good,” he said after a heavy breath.

                            “If I’m sick, I don’t want to get you sick too,” she weakly murmured.

                            Sebastian rolled his eyes. “No if, you are sick. And don’t worry about me.”

                            Jade still insisted she would, but a sneeze caused her to forget what she was sleepily arguing about. When all was said and done, Sebastian led the sickly patient out of her house and drove her off with his motorcycle. The drive itself caused Jade to accept the fact that she was sick, since her head was spinning and she practically had a death grip on Sebastian’s waist as they went to their destination.

                            While the drive lasted a few minutes at the most, Jade was too frazzled to really notice. She groaned when the motorcycle came to a stop and waited for Sebastian to guide her after dismounting the vehicle. He led her over to the clinic, ushering an exhausted snort from the farmer. “I’ve only been here once before, and you were the one to take me. Maybe you’re the one making me sick,” she joked, then fully leaned on him as they walked. “Love sick,” she loudly whispered in a raspy voice.

                            “I’m going to abandon you at a church’s doorstep,” he deadpanned in response. Jade emitted a tired laugh from his reply and followed with a little more cheer when they entered the clinic.

                            The place was the same as before: bright walls, tiled floors, light colored furniture everywhere. Maru, donned in her nurse’s uniform, lingered behind the front desk. Before, she boredly organized her desk supplies, but then lifted her head when she heard them enter. She stared in confusion upon seeing the two guests, since Sebastian was never one to see his half-sister and Jade looked different with a hood over her head. “Um... Welcome?” Maru began with a question, unsure of what to do.

                            “Hey. Jade’s sick, is Harvey here?” The raven-hair seemed more understanding for the time being, as he didn’t really give Maru any attitude or a passing comment unrelated to the situation.

                            “Oh, my...” Maru frowned, looking at the sniffling Jade. “He’s here, but what’s wrong?”

                            Jade mumbled something that she couldn’t really hear, then yawned afterwards. Sebastian merely sighed and let go of her hand to hold her around the shoulder. “She might have just caught a bad cold, but I just think it’s a good idea to check,” he stated.

                            The nurse nodded in cooperation and scanned the counter in front of her. Quickly, she took a clipboard that had a pen chained to it, then slid it over to the guests. “Fill this form out and he’ll be right with you.” Maru took no hesitation to walk off into the other reaches of the clinic.

                            The young farmer sleepily wiped her eyes and slowly blinked at the sheet of paper, then walked over to get a better look. She grabbed the pen and sluggishly scrawled her name and information on the clipboard. “... Dang, do I have to pay? I left my wallet at home,” she sniffled.

                            “Don’t worry about that. If worst comes to worst, you owe me.”

                            “I can’t exactly take a day off if I’m too sick to work... who would do my chores for me?” Jade finished filling out the information and slid the clipboard back to the other side of the desk. She retired back over to Sebastian and leaned against him in exhaustion.

                            He put his arm back around her and pat her on the head. “We’ll take care of it. Maybe Marnie or someone will do the animals for you.”

                            Jade stood up straight to scramble for a nearby box of tissues on the front desk. She grabbed a tissue just in time and sneezed into it. “Ungh... Good, they’re my babies... I don’t want to make them sick. I tried to not mess with them much today anyway. Can bunnies and chickens get colds?”

                            Both Maru and Harvey entered the main lobby to see their new patient. Jade hadn’t seen Harvey too many times before, but she was just as surprised at how tall he was. And that luxurious moustache! She was probably too sick to really understand her thought process.

                            Harvey had a strange amount of excitement behind his expression of concern towards the farmer. One could estimate that his behavior was due to not getting too many patients, though getting sick was never fun to witness. Nicely, he urged the farmer in through the door to the other areas of the clinic. She started to follow, but then glanced sadly over to Sebastian when she noticed he wasn’t going with her.

                            “I can’t come with you, but I’m waiting for you right here,” the raven-haired man said with a smile.

                            Jade didn’t like the answer, but she accepted. Without much more fight, she went with Harvey to the patient room. Sebastian found a nearby seat in the waiting room and sighed, taking out a phone from his pocket to kill some time. Maru had gone after the other two, but after a few minutes, returned to the front desk until she was needed once more. She had a decent view of her half-brother to her left and discreetly watched him for a little while. “Thank you,” she eventually said.

                            Sebastian didn’t look up from his phone, but he heard her: “For what?”

                            “You’re waiting here instead of going into the patient’s room,” his sister recalled, regarding his last clinic visit with Jade. “I’m just saying I appreciate it.”

                            “Oh... No problem.” Sebastian was surprisingly tame. He could have returned some attitude, but decided not to. Maru wasn’t necessarily sure if he was more focused on Jade to be rude, or if he had actually begun to tolerate his family again. Either way, progress was progress, and she thought it was nice to see him care for others.

                            Meanwhile, Jade had been taken to one of a few patient’s rooms and was instructed to sit down on the examination table. Harvey had taken her temperature and gasped aloud when he saw it. “102.1 fahrenheit... Goodness, you’re burning up. I’m surprised you could even get here,” he stated, surprised.

                            The young farmer shrugged. “I wanted to go out today,” she whined. “We were gonna go on a nice date... kick some monster ass, have a nice picnic, and-” she coughed away from the doctor. “And I was hoping for smooches.”

                            “To be honest, you sound a bit delirious,” Harvey pointed out, sweating nervously. “Th-that’s not to say what you’re saying is bad, you just sound very tired.” He cleared his throat and decided to stop talking, since he probably would have made it worse. Jade felt a little too lightheaded to really recognize she was supposed to be offended, if at all. Instead, she just let him do all that was required of him as a doctor. As was expected, Jade had come down with a significant case of the flu. “You just need a lot of rest, fluids, and Maru will send you home with some medicine,” he stated, scribbling a doctor’s note down for the medication. “With a lot of care, you should be back to normal in just a few days. Week at the most, but hopefully you’ll recover quickly.”

                            “Goodie,” Jade tiredly cheered. “Though the idea of lying around for that long is... bleh... I at least want to play games or something,” she yawned.

                            Harvey gave her a gentle pat on the back and handed her the note to give to Maru. “It’ll be fine, Ms Jade. Just be sure to do what I said and you’ll be taking the world by storm again.”

                            Jade nodded and then left the patient’s room, Harvey finishing business up in the room before going off to his office to complete some paperwork. Sebastian stood up and walked over to her when she entered the main lobby again, then stood beside her when she handed the note to Maru.

                            “Everything going well?” the nurse cheerfully asked, getting the medicine for her. She offered all the required materials in a small bag and then smiled. “I hope you’ll feel better soon, Jade. Don’t worry about money right now, bill gets sent in the mail.”

                            “Double goodie,” wheezed Jade. “I hope so too. Thanks for being adorable as always,” she said with a wave.

                            Sebastian took the bag and started guiding her back outside. “What did he say? Few days of rest?”

                            “Uh huh.”

                            “You’ll be better in no time. If I see you sneaking out to work, I’ll have your ass.”

                            “I’m so scared,” the young farmer laughed. “In any case, be gentle.”

                            He rolled his eyes and put the medicine in one of the motorcycle’s compartments, then got on the vehicle, waiting for her to join him. “Why are you so sassy with me? Sick people are supposed to be sad and cute, like senior citizens.”

                            “Hey, I’m not cute!” Jade sat behind him as usual and hugged him. “I’m sexy, I told you already.”

                            “Haha, alright. Let’s go, then.”

                            When they rode back to Jade’s home, Sebastian made sure that she dressed in her pajamas and went right back to bed. She kept on the hoodie because she seemed all too comfortable in it, and he didn’t really want to increase the odds of catching her flu. Plus, she seemed really precious, bundled up in a dark hoodie and surrounded by all of her blankets. With a groan of dismay after taking her flu medicine, she settled her head into her favorite fluffy pillow and watched Sebastian with a puppyish look.

                            She coughed to the side before she spoke: “Are you gonna stay here with me?”

                            “Yes, you shouldn’t be alone when you’re sick like this.”

                            “Awww... you’re so sweet,” Jade softly complimented. “I can rest easy.”

                            “Damn right you can. I need to go back home to get some stuff if I’m going to end up spending the night,” Sebastian explained, walking to the doorway of the bedroom. “I’ll be back soon, though. Do you need anything before I leave?”

                            “Nah... I’m gonna settle down,” she yawned. She murmured a goodbye as she got more comfortable, watching him until he left. Her eyes closed once she had been left alone, slipping off into unconsciousness in an instant.

                            --

                            “Hey.”

                            Jade felt a gentle nudge at her shoulder. Slowly, she opened her eyes and grunted at whoever dared to wake her.

                            Wait, she recognized that voice. “I didn’t want to wake you, but you need to eat.” Sebastian helped prop her up in bed and continued to examine her. Poor thing was barely awake.

                            She merely mumbled, “okay...” and yawned. “What time is it?” She seemed relatively calmer thanks to the medicine, though her nose had still been blocked up.

                            “It’s just after 7: 30. You’ve been sleeping all afternoon, which is good. Uh... I’ll bring you some food, but you should know...” Sebastian suddenly appeared to be nervous.

                            Despite her sickness, she knew that expression brought trouble anytime. “What?” She coughed.

                            “... Sorry,” he muttered.

                            “... About?”

                            “Uh...” Sebastian scratched his head, then stared at the door to her room. “I... may have been followed-”

                            Sebby!!” boomed a voice from the other end of the house. Jade appeared shocked at first, but then laughed to the best of her ability. Robin couldn’t stay home knowing one of her new babies were sick.

                            The raven-haired man sighed in irritation. “She wouldn’t take no for an answer. But... she did make you some soup, albeit by using your kitchen. I’ll, uh, go get it.”

                            Jade spread a knowing smile as he left the room, returning momentarily with a bowl of soup and a mug of hot tea. She could see steam rising from the bowl, then noticed its warm reddish color when Sebastian carefully placed it on her lap. He set the tea down to the nightstand beside her bed.

                            “Careful, it’s hot,” he said.

                            She wished she could have smelled then, since the soup made her very curious. She stirred the contents around with the spoon that waited at the rim of the bowl and glanced to Sebastian with curiosity. “Is this tomato soup?” she wondered aloud.

                            “Pumpkin soup, actually. You probably can’t taste it very well, but... it’s one of my mother’s home cooked dishes.” Sebastian softly urged her to take a spoonful. “Try it.”

                            “I’ve never had pumpkin soup before,” murmured the farmer. How disappointing; she wanted to be able to taste something new. Even so, she still took a spoonful and carefully sipped the soup’s broth. Its consistency was rather nice and she was able to consume the soup without much difficulty. Its warmth was soothing on her sore throat, which prompted her to sigh in contentment.

                            Sebastian watched her as she drank the soup, relieved that she seemed to like the dish. “Mom used to make me pumpkin soup all the time,” he quietly mentioned. “It was my favorite meal as a kid. She made it when I was sick, too. I liked getting to laze in bed all day and having a ton of pumpkin soup at my disposal,” he chuckled.

                            “Aww, little baby Seb,” Jade reminesced while taking a break from her meal. “I bet you were a nightmare.”

                            “Hehe, I was. It’s a lot harder for me to get sick now, since I fell down with all kinds of illnesses as a kid. I went outside a little too much and was a little too daring with some stuff...”

                            Jade snorted. “That’s an interesting thought... it’s kind of the opposite now, isn’t it?”

                            “Maybe. I do like staying inside, and nothing outdoors really captures my attention anymore. I always thought that was just a part of growing up... for me, at least.” Sebastian paused to grab a napkin and wipe a bit of soup that spilled onto Jade’s blanket.

                            She quietly thanked him and continued to consume her meal. In another break, she smiled to him. “Funny... it’s the opposite for me.”

                            “Really?”

                            “Uh huh... when I was a kid, I stayed inside all the time... truth be told, I stayed inside even as an adult... I hated going outside to do even the simplest tasks.” She frowned. “Not that home was much better. I fought with my brother constantly, and-” She coughed to the side, away from her partner. “I wasn’t allowed to see my parents.”

                            The raven-hair didn’t reply, though he was closely listening. A frown had cursed his visage.

                            “That’s... that’s a complicated story. Maybe I’ll tell you when I don’t feel like crap. But... Anyways, after I escaped and moved here, I just... I want to be outside all the time.” She shared a cheerier expression to show that she was fine. “I do love being inside and goofing off, but everything is so new and exciting here. The forest, the beach, the mines... I love it all.” Jade radiated with childlike wonder. “I’ve learned so much since I started living here, and I’ve done more here in half a year than three at my old place. I never even knew Junimos, or slimes, or anything existed. Or, well... they just seemed like something from a storybook.”

                            Sebastian’s expression softened. He didn’t seem very pleased, but he felt calm from Jade’s smiling. She continued to down the soup, so he assumed it was his turn to talk: “That explains why you’re so stubborn about accepting when you can’t do something.” He smirked and avoided the light slap she was going to give his arm. “It also explains why I like exploring with you so much.” He folded his arms on the bed and lay his head down, still watching her. “I may not get too sick, but your excitement is contagious.”

                            “Aw...”

                            He suddenly blushed and laughed. “Sorry, that was lame, wasn’t it?”

                            “No, we’re dating. You’re supposed to say lame things.” She finished her food and reached to drink some tea.

                            “Are you an expert about this?” He suppressed more laughter and instead lifted an eyebrow.

                            “Totally. I have watched so many romcoms,” she joked. Sebastian laughed and sat up, then taking the bowl from her.

                            “Alright, you’re officially sleep deprived.” He leaned over to kiss her on the head. “Nice talk. Get some rest, now.”

                            “Yes, Sebby.”

                            “... Jade-”

                            “Sorry, I know that’s your mom’s nickname. Let’s make some new ones.”

                            “Please. No.”

                            “Sebaestian. Because you’re my bae.” Jade let out an obnoxious chortle.

                            “Holy Yoba...”

                            “You my boo, then. Seboo.”

                            Sebastian died a little on the inside. “Why am I nice to you?”

                            “Because I’m what makes you Seb-last-ian.” Jade laughed even harder. She looked and sounded drugged, but with the medicine, it couldn’t have been much of a stretch.

                            “Holy shit. Sleep.” He mistakenly led her on with a snicker. She deeply inhaled to breathe out another horrible pun involving his name, but he held out a hand to stop her. “Nope. Leaving. Leaving forever. Bye.”

                            “Sebyestian!” She waved.

                            “Dammit,” he breathed. He left the room before anything else would go wrong, though he was smiling after turning away from her.

                            The smile instantly vanished.

                            Robin was having some of the extra soup at the dining table, sitting with some uninvited guests. Maru came by since she saw Jade earlier at the clinic, which was understandable, but there was no explanation for Sam, Abigail, Penny, and Alex, of all people, to be in Jade’s house. All of them were eating with contentment and quietly chatting to each other when Sebastian exit the room.

                            “What the... What the hell! Mom!” Sebastian suddenly screamed.

                            “They came here themselves! They just wanna see how Jade is doing! And this is a lot of soup anyway, so everyone dig in. Come get some, Sebby.”

                            “N... No! All you assholes get out!” He furiously pointed to the door. “Jade’s sleeping!”

                            “We heard her laugh a minute ago,” Alex non-chalantly pointed out. “Also, grandma made her cookies.” He proudly held up a wrapped plate of Evelyn’s freshly baked cookies. On top of the plate was a get-well-soon card from the Mullner family. “Unless you got a problem with that, Toothpick.”

                            “You know what, I don’t even have the energy to deal with you today.” He quickly let that go, since Jade probably would have wanted the cookies. He suddenly glared to his best friend, Sam. “You have no reason to be here!”

                            Sam rolled his eyes, grinning. “How could I stay at home when Papa J is ill? We all decided to come say hi after hearing the news from Robin. I was chilling with Pen and Abby so they came along too. Right, gals?”

                            Penny shyly nodded. “It would be rude to not visit...”

                            Abigail agreed with fierce confidence. “She’s our friend too, you know! Oh... Huh, where’s your hoodie?”

                            “Doesn’t matter! Leave whatever shit you got for her and get out!” the raven-hair snapped.

                            “Sebby! Language.” Robin gasped and threateningly pointed the spoon she held towards him.

                            Mother!” he yelled again, face red with rage.

                            Maru didn’t say anything and casually sipped a cup of tea that Robin made, watching the whole event unfold. She felt that nothing could be said to add to the moment’s perfection.

                            Everyone from the dining table focused their attention to Jade’s door as it creaked open. Sebastian turned around, anger quickly transforming into worry. Jade had waddled out of the room, tiredly rubbing her eyes with her sleeve. She was wearing the hoodie with pajamas underneath, though the shorts she wore didn’t poke out much. Fuzzy socks were on her feet to maximize comfort on her end. “What’s all this ruckus?” she asked in a lighthearted voice, still glowing from her earlier punfest.

                            “Found the hoodie!” Sam blurted out. Abigail and Sam exchanged a loud high-five.

                            “Shut up!” hissed Sebastian, then looked back to Jade and cautiously reached for her. “It’s nothing, you should go back to bed.”

                            Jade wanted to listen to her loving partner, but the commotion was too interesting to pass up. She saw everyone gathered around the table and stepped forward in surprise: “Aww, did all of you come here for me?”

                            The visitors expressed their varying degrees of affirmation and greeted her. Jade held her hands to her heart and wanted to tear up.

                            “All of you are so nice... Thank you! I need a picture of this moment,” she started, sleepily digging through a cabinet at the nearby entertainment center.

                            Sebastian watched her with a worried huff. “What are you looking for?”

                            “My camera... I can’t find it,” she pouted.

                            “Oh! I have one!” Robin beamed, quickly running outside. She returned immediately after, holding a digital camera that she grabbed from her truck outside. Everyone seemed excited about the gesture except for Sebastian- he was confused, irritated, and didn’t understand what Jade really saw in the moment. “All of you squeeze together!” the eldest of them all beamed, motioning them to close in at the dining table.

                            “Actually.. is it okay if I take the picture instead?” asked Jade. “I’m not fit for a photo and I want you to be included.”

                            “Aww, sure. I barely know how to work the thing anyway,” Robin snorted in reply and kindly offered the camera to Jade. She happily accepted and messed around with the device’s setting for a moment before requesting everyone to stand up together. The six who were originally at the table did what they were told and positioned themselves in front, all cooperating to stand together. Since Alex towered above pretty much all of them, he stood in the middle to provide balance, while everyone crowded around him. Sebastian decided to sit this one out, instead standing behind Jade with grumpily crossed arms.

                            She smiled. “Almost perfect,” she softly muttered. “I’m still missing a person.”

                            “Come here, Mama!” Sam beamed over to the raven-haired man.

                            Sebastian seemed confused. “You wanted a picture of them,” he said, sounding a little offended.

                            Jade nodded. “I do, but you are part of this moment. You’re the biggest part of the moment, if you ask me,” she explained with a smile. “You should go stand in front of Alex. I think that’ll make it perfect.”

                            Her boyfriend sighed, but he wasn’t one to argue, especially with her voice sounding so scratchy and pitiful. He still didn’t get it, though he did end up wandering over and standing in the requested place. Sebastian was incredibly short compared to Alex, so the whole picture remained balance and complete from their positions.

                            “Come on, Seb... smile for me.” Jade focused her gaze to him. “Don’t make me start saying lame gooey puns in front of everyone.”

                            “Hey, I didn’t agree to do any of this!” Sebastian replied back almost desperately.

                            Jade thought for a few seconds. “Remember the last time it rained, and we raced to find shelter but I just ended up falling flat on my ass? You walked me home with muddy butt prints.”

                            His recalling made him unintentionally smile. Everyone else’s face had lit up and glanced to Sebastian to see his reaction. Jade took the picture immediately, then grinned at the result. “There we go.”

                            The whole group, save for Sebastian, went over to see how the photo looked. All of them stood together and all of them seemed cheerful, even Sebastian with such a genuine smile on his face. Robin excitedly told Jade that she would get the picture printed for her, while everyone else seemed satisfied with the outcome. After that was done, they all sent their regards to Jade, though they all kept a significant distance. The young farmer didn’t mind, and instead ventured over to Sebastian to show him the results of the picture.

                            “You cheated,” Sebastian huffed.

                            She giggled. “It had to be done... Anyway,” she coughed. “Here, look. You’re right in the middle.”

                            He examined the picture and was actually surprised at how... happy... everyone looked. Even himself.

                            “We look kind of like a family, don’t we? Everyone I know and love in the same photo... I don’t want to ever forget it.” She tiredly smiled. “That’s enough excitement for now... I’ll go fulfill my b-friend’s wishes,” Jade said afterwards, gently taking Sebastian’s hand to place the camera on his palm. “I’m glad I have you to take care of me.” The young farmer kissed his shoulder, even though she would have loved to give him a legitimate kiss. The one true downfall to becoming ill. She parted without any sort of ridiculous pun this time, passing waves to everyone before going back to her room.

                            Sebastian fell absolutely speechless. After she went back to her room, he decided to look at the photo one more time. He facepalmed at the realization and sighed to himself. “Sebastian, you idiot,” he grunted under his breath.

                            Ignoring everyone else, the raven-hair put the camera on the nearest surface and then followed Jade to her room. She had already settled and curled up in a ball of blankets, and the room was dark and quiet. He wandered over to one of her windows, which had a cushioned reading chair placed nearby. He sat down and watched her for a moment, then peered out the window.

                            Noise from the main area of the house faded when the guests departed, leaving the remaining two to their own devices. It was a peaceful night.



                            another fluff chapter!

                            I liked the idea of the farmer getting sick, especially with all the stuff they deal with, from dusty buildings to mines, fighting dangerous monsters and really just overworking themselves a ton. Jade probably got a little bit of everything!

                            still slowly chipping away at plot points, which will probably become clearer in a few chapters. for now, let's enjoy the fluff!
                             
                              Last edited: Sep 8, 2016
                              Rijolt, Gabaw, Risukage and 1 other person like this.
                            • Risukage

                              Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                              So when Jade is sick and delirious she makes up all kinds of cute name-puns for her sweetie. And what good friends, being there for moral support even though they might get The Plague, too. *Happy sniffles.* :)
                               
                              • Gabaw

                                Gabaw Spaceman Spiff

                                Such fluff, much stuff. Sick Jade is making me sick too w/ unrestrained seb-puns. It was a heartwarming scene at the end with everyone together even tho Seb was being Seb. It's good to know you have people who come to see how you're doing and offer support, food and help. It's a nice change of pace from city life!
                                 
                                • ApertureGaming011

                                  ApertureGaming011 Scruffy Nerf-Herder

                                  Congratulations in your 10,000th view! I love this fanfiction thanks to how it changed my personality for the better! Thank you so much for being a person who made this masterpiece that will stay in my heart for many years to come.
                                   
                                  • MagicallyClueless

                                    MagicallyClueless Master Astronaut

                                    no update today, sorry! i'll try to shoot for thursday but yeah nothing is ready yet. it's been a cray week
                                     
                                    • MagicallyClueless

                                      MagicallyClueless Master Astronaut


                                      Unfortunately, Jade still felt sick by the time Abigail’s birthday rolled around on Saturday. They briefly met in order for the farmer to give a sweet gift, though the object in mind was nothing all that expensive. Jade heard from one of the squad that she adored amethysts, which she luckily encountered in her last trip to the mines. Abigail was overjoyed to receive such a nice gem and couldn’t properly express her gratitude since the poor farmer was still contagious. Still, Jade wished she could have spent a full day with Abigail, but she could hear Robin and Sebastian’s voice in the back of her head, telling her to continue to rest.

                                      She was well enough to visit the town and do the less laborious tasks on her farmland, so everything was at least shifting back to normalcy. Robin completed the silo and Sebastian was off somewhere, which meant Jade returned to a house occupied by only her yodeling feline. Nothing else was asked of her, so her afternoon was spent lazying in her game room and playing games that would make her sleepy.

                                      Then came a message on her computer:


                                      SEBASTIAN: Are you awake?

                                      SEBASTIAN: You should be sleeping, but I’ll message just in case. Abby did see you in town today

                                      SEBASTIAN: Which, by the way, is pushing it. I hope you’re feeling better if you did that



                                      Jade snorted from seeing the messages. It was just like him to worry like that.


                                      JADE: i feel a little better!! my fever has gone down and i can smell.

                                      JADE: just a little bit. but still.

                                      JADE: i promise you i have not overworked myself so you can rest easy


                                      SEBASTIAN: That’s good. I’ll come by this evening and help you with anything you need

                                      SEBASTIAN: I also wanted to ask if you’re up for game night.


                                      JADE: OH MAN

                                      JADE: tonight IS game night, isn’t it?!

                                      JADE: man ofc it’s on abby’s bday and everything. i’d feel so bad playing it without her though.


                                      SEBASTIAN: She hates Solarion Chronicles so I wouldn’t get worked up about it

                                      SEBASTIAN: Or well, she likes the world, but hates playing

                                      SEBASTIAN: We all saw her today and hung out so don’t worry


                                      JADE: fineeee....

                                      SEBASTIAN: Wait, hold on

                                      SEBASTIAN: Sam wants to talk about it too. Let me add him


                                      JADE: okie

                                      -- SEBASTIAN added SAM to the chat. --

                                      SAM: papa j

                                      SAM: lets have it at your house


                                      JADE: the game?

                                      SEBASTIAN: You probably should have the windows for fresh air

                                      JADE: i’m not THAT weak lol. i’m getting better!

                                      JADE: robin gave me this little face mask so i don’t cough all over people. it has a cute bunny pattern, she thought of me


                                      SAM: lmfao

                                      SAM: ok well it can get crowded in the basement anyway and i have a proposal


                                      SEBASTIAN: What?

                                      JADE: what is it fam

                                      SAM: dont get me wrong, i love watchin yall being nerdy genderswapped clones in love

                                      SAM: and since i told seb that he absolute is 100% biased, last game night was much more legit


                                      SEBASTIAN: Which I’m not

                                      SAM: ofc mama

                                      SAM: whatever u say

                                      SAM: the fact of the matter is

                                      SAM: i’m as third of a wheel as a third wheel can wheel. in third


                                      JADE: no you’re not!!

                                      JADE: we love you hanging out with us!!


                                      SAM: i know papa

                                      SAM: but i still would like to bring in a fourth person


                                      SEBASTIAN: Who in this town would even want to play Solarion Chronicles?

                                      SAM: :^)

                                      SEBASTIAN: ... NO

                                      SEBASTIAN: NOT her.


                                      JADE: who???

                                      SAM: someone who knows her shit better than seb

                                      SEBASTIAN: She is a fucking cheat.

                                      SAM: if u say so

                                      SAM: i want her to come along and itll be better in jades house anyway


                                      SEBASTIAN: Damn right, she is not going into my room

                                      JADE: who is this?? who do you hate so much?

                                      SAM: oh dw

                                      SAM: seb doesnt hate her just hates that shes better


                                      SEBASTIAN: She is NOT better.

                                      SAM: why dont you let me bring her along then and well see ;^)

                                      SEBASTIAN: You know what? Fuck it. Fine.

                                      JADE: i’m??????????

                                      SEBASTIAN: I legitimately hate you

                                      SAM: r00d

                                      SAM: isnt he cute when hes angry papa


                                      JADE: yes but i am also terribly confused.

                                      JADE: but sure, just bring the game and we can set up a nice area in the living room : D

                                      JADE: seb you should come early. i would love the help < 3

                                      JADE: also i washed your hoodie


                                      SAM: omg

                                      SAM: thats so............................ domestic. swoon


                                      SEBASTIAN: Stuff it, Sam

                                      SEBASTIAN: I’ll be over earlier then


                                      JADE: i’ve been careful to not mess with it much after washing because i don’t want to accidentally make you sick

                                      JADE: while we’re on the topic, if we have a fourth player, maybe i can just be the scenario narration?


                                      SAM: ooooh

                                      SEBASTIAN: You’re not going to play your character?

                                      JADE: well i don’t want to be messing with the dice and cards all too much, especially since i don’t have my own dice set yet ):

                                      JADE: it was my turn to write a scenario and i wrote it with just three players in mind anyway. what kind of player is mystery girl?


                                      SAM: shes the best damn white mage youll ever see

                                      JADE: ok. since i tended to cast the heal potions and etc. it won’t be too much of a difference.

                                      SEBASTIAN: ):

                                      JADE: it’ll be ok! you’ll love the scenario. i swear!

                                      SAM: youll need to kiss him better

                                      JADE: i would if i could atm!

                                      JADE: the alternative would be to have late night cuddles on sam’s corpse


                                      SEBASTIAN: That’ll do.


                                      SAM: double r00d

                                      SAM: ill just make u more sick with my revenge corpse stank


                                      JADE: lmao

                                      SEBASTIAN: Worth it.

                                      SEBASTIAN: I’m getting rid of you now


                                      SAM: take me away boys

                                      -- SEBASTIAN removed SAM from the chat. --

                                      JADE: are you okay? ):

                                      SEBASTIAN: I’ll be fine

                                      SEBASTIAN: I was just kinda looking forward to the three of us like usual.

                                      SEBASTIAN: But I know it’s not fair for Sam to be the odd one out like that


                                      JADE: i think he’ll appreciate it and it’s always fun to have someone else join!

                                      JADE: if any trouble starts i’ll try to take care of it, but promise me something.


                                      SEBASTIAN: What is it?

                                      JADE: promise me you won’t try to start a fight or take the game too seriously

                                      JADE: i know how you get

                                      JADE: if you feel irritated, focus on me instead! i’m here for you always


                                      SEBASTIAN: ...

                                      JADE: and even if she is objectively better it doesn’t matter

                                      JADE: because you’re always the best to me!!

                                      JADE: ok? < 3


                                      SEBASTIAN: Okay

                                      JADE: thank you~~

                                      JADE: so i’ll see you soon?


                                      SEBASTIAN: Yeah, I’ll be over in a few hours with the game and etc.

                                      JADE: i can’t wait!

                                      JADE: i’ll leave you to it. get to me safe!


                                      SEBASTIAN: Of course

                                      SEBASTIAN: Bye < 3


                                      JADE: byeeeee < 3


                                      Sebastian was probably a bit grumpy, but Jade had confidence that he would cheer up. The boys seemed too caught up in their banter to really answer her only question: who was the mystery player if it wasn’t Abigail? Sam seemed to be friends with the person, so Jade still looked forward to seeing her, whoever she was.

                                      The thought of three people over at her house caused Jade to stop playing video games and make some of the rooms more presentable. She did have more people over previously, but she felt much worse and had the excuse to just lie in bed all day. Wearing the neat bunny-patterned mask gifted to her, she spent the next few hours cleaning the kitchen, sweeping the floors, organizing the books and movies she had left out, and dusting her prized artifacts on the tops of her shelves for good measure. Even if they were people she had been with for so long, even Petrified Bastard, her petrified slime artifact, needed to look its best.

                                      When the young farmer completed all the house work, she showered and dressed in comfortable clothes that would be perfect for playing Solarion Chronicles. As if he was on cue, Sebastian knocked and then opened the front door, calling with an “I’m here,” then just walking inside. Jade ventured back into the main area of her house and brushed her hair when he entered. She saw that he carried a long and rather sturdy box with fantastical art and the game’s name on the front.

                                      “Seb! Hey,” Jade beamed. He put the box down on the living room couch, which gave her the opportunity to walk over and eagerly hug him.

                                      “Hey, Jade. You look much better today,” he stated in a cheerier voice. Sebastian felt relieved to see Jade’s health improve. “Been getting enough rest?”

                                      “Yes, Mom,” she giggled, letting go of him. “Tonight will be interesting, won’t it?”

                                      It certainly would be. While chatting about the possibilities the night would bring, both Jade and Sebastian moved back the living room couch to make more room for the coffee table that had been placed in the middle of the area. Since the table was wide enough for a proper board game but short enough to sit comfortably, Jade threw cushions on the floor for the four of them and Sebastian set up the game itself. After all the precautions have been made, the young farmer ran to the laundry room located to the side of the living room in order to return her boyfriend’s beloved hoodie. He wore it immediately and already seemed to increase in spirit.

                                      And so, game night was about to begin. When guests had arrived at the door, Jade had been carefully organizing her notes for the game to come. Sebastian let them in, Sam walking in first, the mystery lady then walking through and revealing herself as... Penny?

                                      Out of everyone she could have guessed, Penny was one of the last people she considered. Abigail was out, Haley seemed to ridicule such activities, and she didn’t know anything about Leah... for the people in their age range, that left just Maru and Penny. Sebastian has only really shown such ferociousness towards Maru, so that was Jade’s best estimate. Apparently not. She watched Penny step into the home while carrying a long strapped purse. Only glancing, she give a shy wave to both Sebastian and Jade, sure to be half obscured by Sam’s figure.

                                      “Hi, Penny,” Jade said with an air of cheer. “Sam was telling me he’d invite someone, but I didn’t realize who it would be. Glad to know it’s you!”

                                      Sam blinked in surprise. “I didn’t? Whoops.”

                                      “Ah, it’s all fine and dandy,” Jade beamed. Her voice was slightly muffled from the mask, but everyone could agree that she sounded as normal as ever. “Welcome, you two. I’m excited to actually start this, and it’s always fun to have a fourth person!” Jade focused on Penny again, who shyly nodded. Jade’s three guests all joined her at the temporary game table. Sebastian was quick to settle, while the other two looked around curiously.

                                      “I never had much of a chance to look at your home before... it is very nice... thank you for allowing me here,” Penny quietly started, her expression faint but gentle. Before Jade could answer, she grew somewhat worried. “Oh, um... how are you feeling?”

                                      Penny acted very sweet. Jade felt like she could relate to her stammering and shyness, considering that’s how she acted towards others when first meeting them. She didn’t realize how far she had come. “I’m feeling alright. Took my meds, cough is mostly gone, I can taste stuff now... Still a little sick, so I’m just trying to keep my hands off everything.” Jade smiled under her mask. “I’m just going to be handling the scenario today. I worked on it myself, so I hope you like it!”

                                      The timid teacher nodded. “I’m sure I will... I haven’t played Solarion Chronicles in ages, since my tutoring job takes up most of my time. I might be a bit rusty,” she sadly admitted. Sebastian had been awfully quiet, so Jade reached to hold his hand as they all conversed. The two lovers sat closer to each other, while Sam and Penny relaxed on the opposite end of the table. Sam had placed his dice set and nifty character figurine on the table and happily listened in to the conversation.

                                      “You never struck me as someone who enjoyed Solarion Chronicles. How long have you been playing?” Jade curiously inquired.

                                      “Oh, my... Years. Nowadays, I just read the books... I’ve read them all,” she replied, voice elevating slightly in excitement. “I look forward to the adventure we will be going on!”

                                      “Yeah!” Sam beamed. “Pen’s being modest. She’s a natural. All three of us would play before... Well.” The blond glanced to his dear cinnamon roll haired friend, unsure if he should continue. She simply smiled in response and gave him a reassuring pat.

                                      “It’s okay... Um, my mom used to be a bus driver, but the bus is old and my mom doesn’t drive it much... especially since we don’t get too many tourists and hardly any townspeople use it,” Penny muttered, then adjusting her red bangs. “So... the bus hardly runs and my mom doesn’t get paid when it’s unused. I get paid enough to keep the trailer running... it’s just a lot of hard work. The children are a joy to be with, at least.”

                                      “That makes sense. Thank you for sharing,” Jade gently replied. “Sounds really busy! Maybe I should use the bus sometime to help you guys, heheh.”

                                      Penny made a sad smile in response. “That would be nice. I’m happy I could participate this time, in any case.”

                                      “Yes! We’re all happy to have you. Hey, though. School reminds me... where did all of you go to school? There doesn’t seem to be any education system here... sucks for the next generation,” the curious Jade pondered.

                                      Sam stretched his arms and then folded his hands behind his head, thinking. “Well, I used to live in the city too, so I went to school at the last place I lived,” he answered.

                                      “Ah... There is a high school right outside of Zuzu City... I know a lot of us in Pelican Town went there,” added Penny. “I remember the lot of us riding the bus there.”

                                      “Ooh, well I’m glad you had somewhere to go. I guess it’s cheaper for Vincent and Jas to be here, huh?” Jade thought for a moment, and then nodded to herself. “What about you, Seb?” She looked over to her boyfriend, who wasn’t paying much attention to the conversation and was reaching for something under the table. She tugged the hand she held, bringing him back into focus.

                                      “Huh? Sorry.” Sebastian let go of her hand and reached both of them under the table, pulling out the resident black and fluffy beast. “Onyx was distracting me.”

                                      “You win this one.” Jade chuckled and pet her mischievous cat, though he seemed to be more occupied by batting at the strings of Sebastian’s hoodie. Sebastian adjusted his seating, causing the feline to dart out of the raven-hair’s hold and into some other part of the house. “Ah, he’s actin’ crazy tonight. Anyways, sorry about that,” Jade said with a grin.

                                      “It’s okay,” Penny warmly remarked. “I didn’t know you had a kitty... he’s very cute.”

                                      Sebastian placed his elbows on the table and watched them all. “What was the question?”

                                      “Where you went to school,” Jade repeated.

                                      “Oh. Yeah, outside Zuzu City. I think all of us had to go there, though I was on my way out when a lot of others came in. I think Abby was going in as a freshman when I graduated.”

                                      Oollldd,” groaned Sam. Such a remark caused an extra pillow from the couch to be thrown at him.

                                      “And that asshole would have been a sophomore, probably,” Sebastian said with a deadpan tone.

                                      Jade laughed. “It’s nice we have so many people in the same age bracket. You think there’d be less similarity in a town like this.”

                                      Penny nodded. “Even so... not that I really want this place to be a city, but... it would be nice to have more children to teach. Maybe build an actual school here... one of those really cute small ones you only read about in books.”

                                      One of Sam’s eyebrows twitched as he attempted to suppress a joke he wanted to make. “I know some people who will provide some new babies,” he snorted. He failed miserably, and another pillow was sent flying at his head. Jade was the culprit this time.

                                      “It’ll be you since I’ll be knocking you back two decades,” the fiery farmer huffed. Such a remark ushered a cackle from Sam; it was the exact reaction he wanted. Their conversations and banter eventually slowed down as they grew more accustomed to the home. Once the four of them settled, Jade hid behind a standing folder and stared down to her scenario notes. “Okay, are we all ready to play?” She glanced around to read the room. The three others gave some form of confirmation, allowing Jade to continue. Their game of Solarion Chronicles would then rightfully begin.

                                      Many components about that particular game night had stacked against Jade, though she handled it with confidence and charm. She wasn’t in her best health, there were more people in her house than she grew accustomed to, and she was the one to write the scenario even though she hadn’t done too much writing herself. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves, even Sebastian, who had worried her earlier in the day. Her story wasn’t too bad, either. The three with characters were able to respond rather well and included many spontaneous moves and surprises.

                                      Penny really was being modest, though. For some reason, she knew the exact words to mutter, the right numbers to roll with the dice. Every single time, the numbers were in her favor. It was as if she had excellent luck, to the point that Sebastian had her use his dice for the next move, since he was convinced hers were faulty or weighted.

                                      But, no. The numbers were still in her favor, every move was perfect, and Penny herself changed in demeanor as she played. The shy, soft spoken cinnamon roll became an extremely focused, calculated, brutal adversary. Though she had a more healing role in the game, Jade wondered how fast the game would have gone if she dealt more powerful attacks. The young farmer’s story could have been very short!

                                      Still, the game lasted hours into the night. Realizing the time, Penny asked to end the game early with a shy promise to continue the next week. Jade, feeling much drowsier from the night and medication, agreed and thanked her for arriving to play. Just like that, Penny changed back to her soft and gentle ways. She bid farewell and more wishes for improved health as she left, Sam following after. Sebastian stayed late as he normally did, not wanting to walk an incredible distance just to undergo another night. With permission from Jade, he made himself comfortable on the couch and decided to stay another night. His frequent visits made her ponder cleaning out the box-filled bedroom across from her game room, or to at least get him a proper bed, but he seemed content just being in her home. She felt relaxed, too.

                                      Before they parted for the night, Jade couldn’t help but ask him, “That was really fun, but it was truly surreal watching Penny... What did you think?”

                                      “Not surprised at all,” Sebastian answered, stretching his arms with a yawn. “But... Yeah. It was fun. She was impressive.”

                                      “For sure,” Jade mused in agreement. “And you were being a great team player! I’m really proud of you.”

                                      The gesture made him flush and avert his eyes. He was often too modest, as well. “... Thanks,” he muttered. Sebastian went quiet, though not for the usual reason... a realization came to him out of nowhere. Many circumstances would trigger him into feeling consistent irritation, mild to severe anger, jealousy, intolerance; the same should have happened with Penny’s performance during the game, but...

                                      He felt calm. Sebastian was moodier earlier in the day, but even seeing Penny, he was fine. Not even the consideration of being angry or resentful came to mind during the game. His head was full of his own strategies, processing the playthrough itself, occasional random thoughts of how Jade was feeling, or where Onyx was. The home, or at least Jade, had such an effect on him... or has he just lost the motivation to stay angry? Maybe he was getting old.

                                      Eventually, Sebastian peered back to his girlfriend and examined her expression before wondering aloud: “How long are you going to wear that mask?”

                                      “Maybe I’ll take it off tomorrow,” the young farmer answered with a shrug.

                                      “Why not now?”

                                      “Because I don’t want to make you sick!” she stressed.

                                      Sebastian smiled. “What if I said I didn’t care?”

                                      “Then I’d call you a dummy.”

                                      “I don’t care,” he started.

                                      “You’re a dummy!” Jade snapped back.

                                      He softly laughed and reached out for her. “Come here,” he suggested with a murmur. Jade leaned over to him and he gently pulled her closer. Pulling down her face mask, he gave a warm and inviting kiss. Jade didn’t have enough sense to reject the gesture or to pull away, considering she hadn’t felt such contact in days. The kiss concluded and they both faced each other with flustered yet excited gazes.

                                      “You just want the pumpkin soup,” Jade muttered a joke, though she was so quiet that she couldn’t really make it sound silly or accusing enough.

                                      “You caught me.” He grinned and adjusted himself on the couch some more, still keeping his eyes on her. “Goodnight,” he calmly and happily concluded.

                                      Jade fixed the mask back over her face, though she was still grinning like a giddy child. In the most distinguished voice she could possibly muster, Jade uttered back a gentle “goodnight, Seb.”

                                      She didn’t know what got into him, but she was excited. Hopefully her sickness would be completely gone the next day.



                                      This chapter came a teeeensy bit late for quite a few reasons! Aside from just being unable to write for a little bit (I've been doing this since May, I'm allowed to get burnt out every once in a while hehe) I couldn't figure out how to handle the Solarion Chronicles bit. While I would have liked to talk about them playing the game, overall it's not too important to the point of the chapter and it's more about everyone getting along with each other and etc. Still, deciding what to do there did have me reach a sort of standstill until I figured out what to do.

                                      Still chipping away at development. Next chapter should be bigger and lean towards more plot stuffs, but it will still be fun and cute. I think we're reaching a trend with these chapters, hehe! But I hope you enjoy as always!
                                       
                                        Last edited: Sep 15, 2016
                                      • Gabaw

                                        Gabaw Spaceman Spiff

                                        Penny is not only the best waifu 4 laifu, she is also the best damn Solarion Chronicles player to ever exist. WOOOOOOO!! ahem... anyway "revenge corpse stank" omfg :rofl: and I'm glad Seb behaved himself tho i can def understand why it would be frustrating. See I'm not blinded by my affections at all! (if he so much as frowned at Penny tho Jade would have to kiss his mostly sunny ass goodbye ripbastian) Looking forward to the next chap as always! puts away shotgun
                                         
                                          MagicallyClueless likes this.
                                        • Risukage

                                          Risukage Giant Laser Beams

                                          It's always the quiet ones. Who would have ever expected the sweet cinnamon roll to be able to totally wreck someone? And I imagine that she's delighted to get the hell out of that stuffy trailer for a while and interact with people her age group.
                                           

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