Sebastian knew the mines were dangerous, hell he grew up right beside them. Every kid likes to have an adventure and baby Seb was no different, so he could at least say with confidence he knew how to handle himself within the mines even if he looked like a string bean. Sure, he didn’t go in quite as often as he got older and that quickly turned into never, but that just meant he was a little bit rusty right?
Hopefully that’s how it worked, that’s how he was rationalizing it in his brain despite if it was factual or not.
He figured Andy was strong, if not stronger than him, going in the mines every few days with a sword and pickaxe. He assumed she was just mining and the sword was simply a safety measure, I mean why else would anyone go into mines?
It was perhaps after he saw Andy get carried out of the mines the first that anxiety bloomed in his gut whenever she went into the mines, it didn’t ease when she got carried out again.
Sebastian wanted to say something, he really did, but he couldn’t find the words to send the message clearly.
“I don’t feel good with you going into the mines because you pass out.” Seemed very harsh and obviously there was more that he was missing.
“I don’t want you to go into the mines alone.” Seemed very demanding, who was he to tell Andy that?
“I think you’re unsafe and putting your life at risk needlessly.” He didn’t know what was going on, it could all be accidental but even then it raised a few questions that perhaps he didn’t want to hear the answer of.
“I’m worried for you.” That seemed like the best one, but Sebastian’s brain was stuck in an anxiety spiral going down to the worst case scenario as he bounced his leg at his desk.
Maybe he should just visit her in the clinic at the morning, see if she’s alright. Future him could worry about phrasing, he rationalized as he tried to breathe deeply and push the anxiety out. If the worst case was likely to happen then the best case would also be likely to happen.
Morning happened perhaps too fast as Sebastian found himself sitting for a ‘family breakfast’ he was forced to be a part of. His legs were bouncing impatiently as he found himself anxious and without appetite. He could hear the others talking together happily but he couldn’t catch any words. Sebastian knew the clinic was opening soon yet here he was, sitting at the breakfast table, without even participating.
“Please excuse me.” Sebastian muttered, standing up to put his empty plate in the sink as if it got dirty by just sitting on the table for a few minutes.
“Where are you going?” Robin inquired, “you didn’t even eat anything.”
“I-” He had no idea how to explain anything to Robin, so instead he just shook his head heading to the door quickly- “I just need to go do something, I’ll be back later.”
“Sebastian-”
“I’ll wash the dishes when I get back!” He claimed before shutting the door and breaking into a sprint. He felt a little silly, acting this way for someone he’s only known for a couple of months, but Andy made him feel okay for once. He just wanted to make sure she was okay too. Was that so strange?
He was out of breath and a little woozy when he arrived at the doors of the clinic, mentally chastising himself for running off without eating anything like a dumbass. Pushing open the doors he was met with the smell of disinfectant and the noise of people talking in the other room. No one was at the desk so he felt a bit awkward just standing around but he stood around anyways, eventually that lead to pacing. He wasn’t going to sit just to bounce his leg and make a racket. He tugged at his lip with his teeth, the wave of anxiety washing over him while he waited.
Tears were starting to brim his eyes as the door to the actual clinic opened and Andy stood in the doorframe with Harvey holding the door open for her. She had a few bandages on her arms that were just peeking out from under her sleeves and a bruise on her cheek.
“Take care of yourself, rest for a bit. Okay? I recommend staying away from the mines or at least take someone with you.”
“Thank you, I’ll… try.” Andy smiled at Harvey before her eyes landed on Sebastian and she took in a sharp breath as she glanced over him.
“Sebastian!” Harvey smile quickly turned into a concerned look, “is everything alright?”
“Yeah!” He jumped at the sound of his own voice, freezing in place and just looking at the two. “I just- Andy are you alright? I saw you get taken out of the mines last night.”
She felt her cheeks heat up from embarrassment. “I’m okay, you don’t need to worry. Right Harvey?”
“Yes, Ms. Andy is right. Nothing a bit of rest won’t fix.” He tried to give Sebastian a comforting smile. “She’s very lucky to have a friend as caring as you are.”
Ignoring his own cheeks turning pink at Harvey’s comment, Sebastian ran forward and hugged Andy tightly. He tried to blink back his tears to the best of his ability as his anxiety slowly stared to ease away from the reassurance. “I was so worried…”
Andy seemed a bit taken aback at the emotional display, but tentatively hugged him back. “I’m okay, I promise.”
The hug lasted a little long before Harvey cleared his throat. “I appreciate the display but the clinic’s going to opening soon…”
“Right.” Sebastian quickly pulled away from the hug, embarrassed. “Sorry. I- yeah. Sorry.”
“It’s alright.” Harvey reassured, “stay safe you two and Andy?”
“Yeah?” She responded quietly, already walking towards the front of the clinic.
“No mining for a few days, okay?”
“Okay.” She nodded, “I’ll rest.”
“Thank you.” Harvey smiled before he disappeared back into the clinic.
Sebastian was frozen for a few seconds more before Andy leaving the clinic kicked him back into motion and he went out after her.
“Andy!” He called, nearly tripping over the town walkways.
She turned around and halted, waiting for him to catch up. “Yeah?”
“Listen-” He huffed, trying to regain his breath. “I’m worried.”
There was a pause of silence as they both stared at each other.
“Wait- let me restart.”
Andy chuckled lightly at that, nodding. “Take your time, Sebastian.”
He nodded, taking a deep breath. “I’m worried about what goes on in the mine. I know there are monsters and dangers, I know you can handle them but you keep getting taken out by others and I’m worried.”
Andy nodded slowly, “sorry.”
“No,” Sebastian shook his head, “it’s not your fault, mines aren’t always predictable. I used to go there as a kid, I might be a bit rusty and I know you’re supposed to be resting but I was wondering if perhaps you’d like me to… I dunno… help you with swords? Help mine? Come when it’s getting late? I just- I want to help. I want you to be safe.”
She was at a loss of words, wheels turning in her head as she processed his words. After a few moments she nodded, “thank you… for the offer. It means a lot. I can handle myself though, I’ve just been getting a bit unlucky.”
Sebastian nodded, “right.”
“Yeah.” Andy nodded back, “I’ll try to be more careful for you, I didn’t think anyone would notice when I get dragged out if it’s so late.”
Sebastian couldn’t help but let out a wry chuckle, “I’m a night owl, it’s kinda what I do.”
She hummed softly, “thank you for coming to see me this early. The two are probably going to get worried if I stay here too long though.”
He nodded, “yeah, I should probably go back home too… Could I walk you to the farm? Just for my own peace of mind?”
“Of course.” Andy offered him her hand, “as long as you tell me what you were doing in the mines as a kid?”
Sebastian felt his face get bright red at that, holding her hand gently. “R- Right. Well, I wasn’t a smart child I should probably start there…”
The Lack of Ability to Think Things Through is a Pain
“Sebastian, this is final! We’re doing what’s best for you. We took you in as our ward, raised you like our own, and you spit it back at us?” King Demetrius raised his voice. “This is a chance to bring peace, an end to a long war that has hurt both of our kingdoms and you decline the offer?”
Sebastian kept his eyes on the floor, not daring to look up at Demetrius’ stern glare or Robin’s disappointed expression. He knew the guards outside would be able to hear. He could imagine Sam’s face when he got back to his room and had to explain the situation without breaking into tears. He could imagine having to explain to Abigail that he’d never be able to accompany her out anymore. The thought of leaving everything behind and go live somewhere else just to solve a war that could be settled in many other ways left him feeling sick. Sicker than usual at this hour.
“Demetrius…” Robin hummed, “it’s late. Perhaps we should continue this over breakfast?”
“Right.” He sighed lightly, “Sebastian, we only want what’s best for you. You’re constantly locked in your chambers here, perhaps a change of scenery is for the best. Sleep on it, we can discuss the proposal more in the morning.”
Sebastian nodded where he stood, using most of his energy and willpower not to let his voice waver. “Alright. Goodnight.”
“Goodnight.” Robin gave a weak smile as Demetrius simply nodded. With that being the end of the conversation, Sebastian turned and left in the halls.
He could go back to his chambers. He could. Try to ignore Sam’s questions and concerns, huddle in bed and not come out until breakfast or more likely lunch. It irked him though, as he walked through the halls, the idea of having to deal with all of it in the morning. The rain pelting against the windows made the decision even more difficult. If he went out he’d end up getting soaked especially considering he was dressed down slightly due to the time he was summoned at. A button up, pants, and undone hair. He’d get a chill at best and sick at the worst.
Despite the rational part of his brain telling him not to, he found himself going towards the gates. Sebastian knew he had nothing flashy to show, so when he walked past the guards without trouble he couldn’t consider himself surprised. Call it being much more gifted at night than in broad daylight, not that anyone could notice considering how much black he typically wore anyways. Sebastian could feel himself slowly get coated in the warmth of the darkness, walking along the path he walked only a few days ago into the forest. He liked being in the darkness, though one of the main drawbacks is he couldn’t exactly feel the best physical situations during it.
It was when the shadows dropped from him, bleeding back into the shadow under him, that he felt a chill rack through him. He looked down at himself, finding his shirt soaked enough to be practically transparent and his pants clinging uncomfortably to his skin. He knocked on the door hesitantly while stifling a yawn, ignoring how warm his face felt in comparison to how cold and shaken his hands were.
The door creaked open, already letting out some of the warmth and light from inside the building. There was soft chatter in the back, as if whoever stepped away to answer the door abandoned an engaging conversation.
“Hey, look, I know it’s late but uh- is-” Sebastian wasn’t expecting the wave of exhaustion to pass over him as quick as it did, he also wasn’t expecting warm hands to grab his cold ones and pull him inside.
“What are you doing out so late?” Andy frowned, eyebrow furrowing in concern, “are you alright? Are you sick? Hurt?”
“No- well-” Sebastian let out a small chuckle as the door clicked behind him. “I just wanted to see you.”
“You’re soaked!” Andy exclaimed as she tugged Sebastian further into the house, “come in, gosh, who let you outside? You’re going to get ill.”
“I- I admire the concern, but really I-” Sebastian was promptly forced to sit on the ground in front of the fire- “oh, okay.”
“I’ll get you some soup, you stay here and warm up. I’ll get Dave to get you some dry clothes to change into.”
“Hey!” There was a faint protest from the kitchen. Sebastian assumed it was Dave.
He chuckled slightly, not finding much energy to keep up a losing fight. “Alright. I’ll… be here.”
The fire was warm and Sebastian was grateful for it. He found himself starting to doze as the recent events still ate away at his energy. The talking in the other room slowly became white noise as his eyes shut. He didn’t even feel his body hit the floor.
"Hey." There was a nudge against his back. It wasn't hard, but it was enough to bring him from the murky darkness of sleep. "Hey, get up. Don't you whine at me."
"Dave! Be nice." Andy scolded as Sebastian opened his eyes. He found himself laying on the floor, a blanket he didn't remember pulled over him.
"He interrupted dinner then passed out on the floor, I think I can be a little rude in waking him up." Dave defended, poking Andy's nose as he nudged Sebastian with his foot again.
"I- I'm up." He voiced, noting that it sounded a bit raspy which was different than the typical groggy tone.
"Good," Dave huffed, dropping clothes onto the blanket. "These'll probably fit you, no promises, but it'll be better to sleep in than your wet ones."
"Right, uh, thanks." Sebastian nodded, sitting up as he tried to ignore how dizzy the motion made him.
"Andy…" Dave weakly punched her shoulder, seemingly startling her back into reality.
"Right, uh, let me show you where the bedroom is. You can change there." She spoke fast, fidgeting with her hands.
"Thanks…" Sebastian stood up, grabbing onto Dave to stabilize himself as Fizz poked her head into the room.
"Everything okay?" She asked softly and Dave nodded, walking over to her.
"Yeah, let's leave these two alone." And taking Fizz by the upper arm, Dave ushered her out of the room to leave Andy and Sebastian alone.
"O-Okay?" Fizz mumbled with a confused look as she disappeared from the doorway.
A small silence came over the room before Andy motioned for Sebastian to follow her. He picked up the clothes and did as told, glancing around the house as they walked up the stairs. The room they entered was moderately sized, though much smaller and more modest than his in the castle. That was to be expected though. The bed was made and there were a few decorations littering the surfaces of a dresser, a desk, and a few small tables. There were quite a few books as well on these surfaces, along with half-finished sewing projects and a variety of sharp objects.
"Those are Dave's." Andy commented softly as she noticed his eyes longer on the small knives, "I took them away. You can change here."
Sebastian nodded hesitantly, putting the dry clothes on the side of the bed as he started to unbutton his shirt with shaky hands.
"I don't really know where he keeps getting them. I always think I have the last of them then he miraculously finds more, and no one in the town is a blacksmith so I doubt they'd just go ahead and give up their knives for him just to have and spin around- oh I'm rambling aren't I- uh- oh!" It was at this moment that Andy realized Sebastian was in the process of stripping, she could feel her face light up red. "I- I'll leave you be."
"Uh?" Sebastian turned around just in time for the door to slam closed. "Okay…?"
Now left to his own devices, he changed into the dry shirt and pants he was given. It was no button up, but it did the trick. Keeping what Andy said in mind, he steered clear of the sharp objects that she took off of Dave and opened the door.
"Uh-" glancing around he realized he was alone on the upper floor. Well, there goes any conversation to be had, really. At least, Sebastian assumed that as he stepped out of the room.
“Hey!” Fizz smiled, popping out from the stairway. “Andy’s downstairs, if you were wondering. What were you doing out in the rain?”
“Uh-” Sebastian frowned slightly, thinking about a way to phrase it. “I got sidetracked, really.”
Fizz nodded in understanding, seemingly pulling a bowl of soup out of nowhere and offering it. “There’s extra, Andy made it so you should probably have some. It’ll warm you up on the inside!”
He nodded slowly, not really having a chance to oppose before the bowl was essentially dropped into his hands, and then almost dropped onto the floor. The bowl was really hot and his cold hands nearly gave out under the new weight.
“You alright?” Fizz questioned, tilting her head slightly.
“I think I just… need to sit down.” Sebastian nodded, walking to the stairs.
“Alright… Say goodnight to Andy for me!” She smiled at him before disappearing into another room.
Sebastian sighed quietly to himself, readjusting his hold on the warm bowl of soup before he headed down the stairs.
Andy had gotten used to being a ghost. It was hard at first and she found herself crying over everything she could no longer do since becoming non-corporeal. Being a human in a town with a majority population of monsters was hard but okay, being a human ghost on the other hand in a town with a majority population of monsters was even harder. It was a struggle to leave the farmland, to farm, and to do anything but float around and go through walls. She’s grown used to feeling helpless in the situation and grown to accept it, especially after Shane passed as well. Thankfully he wasn’t haunting the farmhouse alongside, but his own house he moved back into. That happened a while ago, and now the human population had dwindled down to none- most humans nowadays stayed within the cities. It came as a surprise to her at least, when a witch and a human showed up on the overgrown farmland she’d come to accept as the remains of her home.
“So you’re looking for a ghost?” The green haired boy asked, crossing his arms. “Like any in particular or just one specific one?”
“Well one that has significant energy to them, y’know? I just get a vibe from here so I think we’re close.” The purple haired witch grinned, “this is exciting, right?”
“A bit.” He chuckled, shaking his head. “Like those lame youtube series, the ones with the really bad effects.”
Perhaps the boy was a medium, Andy mused to herself. That would explain why a human would be ghost hunting, though the witch said she was the one that felt the energy so it seemed that wasn’t the case at all.
“Yeah, but this is real!” She grinned, stepping over sticks and rocks as the boy stumbled along behind her.
“Of course it’s real, we don’t have a video camera.” He rolled his eyes, glancing around the property as Andy darted behind a tree.
She recalled Shane not being able to see her once she died, so it wasn’t like she needed to in order to go undetected by the human. She found herself doing it anyways, it was second nature by now to try to avoid people poking around the property until they start disturbing shit.
“Yeah, well it’s better to live in the moment, y’know? Plus, we don’t wanna go accidentally trapping any ghost if it’d just piss them off further.”
“Yeah, yeah.” He agreed with a nod, “how are you so good at walking through this? I thought you grew up exclusively in the city.”
“I have my secrets.” She winked back, approaching the run-down greenhouse. “Think there’s any ghosts here?”
“You’re the one that can feel them!” He sighed, stumbling over the uneven ground faster as if that would help anything. “Let’s have a look-see.”
Andy stayed behind as the two entered the greenhouse. Their talking got muffled slightly by the walls. She took this time to collect herself and piece together everything. They seemed nice enough, really. They said it themselves that they didn’t want to accidentally inconvenience a ghost.
Lost in her thoughts, Andy neglected to notice the passage of time as the two walked out of the greenhouse with her in plain sight.
“Hi miss ghost!” The girl startled Andy from the thoughts. “Do you live here?”
“Uh-”
“I mean I think that parts obvious.” The boy mumbled, “ghosts don’t tend to wander too much Fizz…”
She nodded slowly, “right, right. My mistake. How do you know so much about ghosts?”
“I get bored sometimes.” He sighed. “Uh, miss ghost, do you have a name you go by?”
“...Andy.” Andy replied hesitantly, giving the two a curious look, “and you?”
Writing about things was never hard for Dave. They thrived in the field of psychology, and writing papers analyzing old and new data through different lenses. Of course they didn't expect the drive that kept them going through university to last forever, and that's what brought them here. On a strange run-down farm sitting by a grave with their laptop open. It was a weird setting to write in but it helped them focus so they weren't going to question the ethics behind assuming a ghost of someone you didn't even know believed in you. They really weren't thinking hard about it. Not at all.
The run-down farm had thick overgrown weeds and bushes, lots of trees and large stones that nearly caused them to destroy their laptop by tripping a couple of times too. The frogs were one of the few upsides though, they made cool noises and kept most of the bugs at bay so they didn't have to deal with swarms on their laptop whilst writing.
There was some crunching, the sounds of sticks breaking and gravel shifting under weight. Dave assumed that perhaps it was a squirrel or a bunch of frogs. They assumed wrong of course when a voice broke the ambience they grew used to.
"What are you doing?"
Dave jolted where they sat, glancing up at the lady where the voice came from.
"N- Nothing. Poetry?" They lied. Nailed it.
"...Poetry?" She raised an eyebrow as they nodded.
"Poetry."
"You're writing poetry at my grandfather's grave?"
"...Yes." They nodded before pausing. "Wait, this is your grandpa's grave?"
"Yes."
"..."
"This is also my farm."
"Oh- am I trespassing?"
"...Yeah basically." She shrugged with a sigh.
There was a long pause of silence as they both just stared at each other, Dave started to slowly close their laptop as if that would help the situation at all.
"Do you have a house... or somewhere to stay?"
"I mean I have a place in the city?" Dave hummed, sliding his laptop into his backpack, "it's a pain to get to and from but I think the train comes by s-"
The lady cut them off, "can you commit mass deforestation?"
"...That sounds illegal." Dave gave a small smile.
"My land, my rules." She sighed, "my name's Andy Terrell, it's nice to meet you."
"Dave, well, David Shay. They/them and he/him please." They smiled, offering a hand.
"I need to cut down a lot of trees but no one in town would be a good hire, but I already have my hands full keeping the farm and place in working condition. If you do it you can stay here and write your..." Andy glanced at their bag, "poetry without worrying about train times."
They nodded, "this sounds very shady."
Andy frowned slightly at that but Dave quickly shook their head.
"I- That's not bad, I promise. I'll do it, I just need to put my bag somewhere."
Andy smiled at that, nodding. "Of course, you can put it in my house for now. Say, if you help me on the farm I'm sure we could end up getting your own bunk."
They nodded and couldn't help but smile as well, "of course."
Fizzy pulled her jacket tighter around her, chewing mindlessly on the inside of her cheek. The gravestones were interesting, that was obvious, but they didn’t have the energy she felt. She opened the Jojo cola she had brought with a click and a fizz. Fizz. It was how she got her nickname, after all. She kicked lightly at the dirt, humming. Why had she even come, anyway? Just following a whim? Her whims never led anywhere, and this graveyard in absolute nowhere was just as much of a dead end. She shuffled out, her hands in her pockets, and started to walk back to the bus.
That is...if she could find the bus again.
“Oh shit,” she mumbled to herself as she looked around. Which way should she go? She should’ve left some kind of path, like Hansel and Gretel. Nevermind how that story ended. She started walking in a random direction, along a paved path. Even if it was late, she’d find it eventually if she followed the road, right?
She hummed a song to herself as she wandered around. There was a lake, and a pretty cool looking house. She had never even been to a small country town before. There was a lake, and a barn with sleeping cows in a pen. Huh, everyone was sleeping, weren’t they? She was feeling pretty tired as well. “OoO!” she said aloud, walking over to a lake she saw. Who knows what she expected, but it was a lake. She moved on pretty quickly.
She went between two trees and saw another lake. It was then she realized that she definitely went the wrong way. She sighed, about to turn back, when she got another feeling. Another magic vibe. She wandered upwards, the magic vibe getting stronger. She saw two houses, a farm, and a...stone thing. Maybe that was the source? She walked towards it before her head spun. She really was exhausted. Well, she would just lie down for a minute, just a quick nap.
She’d be up in a second.
Fizzy was jolted awake with the soft feeling of a foot in her side. “AAAAAAAAAAA-” she let out a scream as she pushed herself up.
“AAAAAAAAAAAA,” a woman mimicked as she scrambled back.
“Oh god I’m sorry-” Fizzy apologized, standing up and brushing herself up.
“Are you okay? Do you need to go to the doctor?” the woman asked, concerned.
“N-no, I just,” Fizzy laughed uncomfortably. “It got late, and I didn’t mean to fall asleep.”
"I'm pretty sure passing out on a stranger's property isn't something you can just shrug off,” she sighed. “Doctor Harvey isn't a bad guy and he isn't very far, if you'd like to at least stop by?"
“Oh, I don’t think I need that,” Fizzy explained. “I was just looking for the bus stop and I got lost.” Why did her own true story sound suspicious to her?
“And passed out?”
“Whew, well, ‘passed out’ has a strong connotation, doesn’t it,” she laughed nervously. “I’ll, uh, yeah, I’ll go see Doctor Harvey maybe.” The woman nodded.
“Do you want me to show you where he is?” she offered. Fizzy nodded.
“If you don’t mind, that’d be great.”
“So, what are you doing in Stardew?” she asked as she started walking, motioning for Fizzy to follow.
“Oh, just vibes. I haven’t had time to explore everywhere, but I gotta get back home.”
“Where’s home?”
“The city.”
“Can you farm?”
“Uh...I’m sorry?”
“Do you know how to farm? Or...commit deforestation? Or fish?”
“Oh, I’ve never really done it…any of those, actually,” she shrugged. “It doesn’t really sound like it’s for me.”
“That’s a shame,” she sighed. “I’m trying to find people to hire. I’d love to get the farm running more, with animals and bee farming and such.”
“Hold up, did you say bee farming?” Fizzy asked, tilting her head curiously. The woman nodded. “I…” she thought. It’s not like she had a steady job now, her psych degree wasn’t really helping her too much. Thanks college. “That sounds really cool, actually. I’d have to learn, but…”
“Would you be willing to help with the crops? We don’t have bees to farm yet, after all.”
“Oh, yeah, of course. But I don’t live around here, so I’d have to like...y’know...wait until I could find a place.”
“You could stay on my property, we’ll get you your own house,” she offered.
“Huh...okay!” Fizzy agreed as they approached the doctor. The woman smiled.
“My name is Andy Terrell.”
“Oh, I’m Kay Rokke, but you can call me Fizzy. Or Fiz. Or whatever.”
“Nice to meet you, Fizzy,” Andy smiled. “If you want to swing by when you’re done here…”
