Author's Notes: After several weeks and many reviews, I've finally gotten down to writing Chapter 3 of "Don't Make A Mountain Out of A Molehill." I know, I know, it took me forever. I got that much when I checked out the latest reviews for my story. Everyone keeps telling me to get in the next chapters. Well, your wishes are granted. As well as having it all typed up and ready to go, it is also far less boring than the first two chapters. As stated previously, Chapters 1 and 2 were simply introductory chapters showing how Jack meets the townsfolk of Flower Bud Village for the first time.

Please keep the reviews coming. Not only do they let me know other's opinion of my story, but it also keeps me posted with how badly everyone wants the next chapter. If the demand is that great, I'll be more apt to post up my latest work.

I received one review stating that the person enjoyed my story, but they did not understand the title. My reply to that is thank you, and that there really isn't much of a reason. When I first titled the story, it came to me out of oblivion since Flower Bud Village is surrounded by mountains, and "Don't Make A Mountain Out of A Molehill" is an old saying that many elderly people use. I also pictured Jack as someone who makes things rather simple for people who otherwise complicate the toothpick, so to speak.

Once again, I'd like to thank everyone who left a review for their kind and encouraging words. I hope you check back often for the newest chapters. Okay, enough of my blabber. On to Chapter 3 of "Don't Make A Mountain Out of A Molehill."

Disclaimer: "Harvest Moon" is copyright to Natsume. I am just a dedicated fan who has nothing better to do than write fanfiction in my spare time. I also do not own any music groups or songs mentioned throughout my fic. They all belong to their respective artists, so please don't sue. It's difficult finding money in between the couch cushions... Oh, and Neosporin is copyright to, well, Neosporin I guess. ^^ I don't own it either.

"Don't Make A Mountain Out of A Molehill"
Moondrops and Bandages - Spring 6

As morning approached, Jack began his usual routine of being awakened by the neighboring chickens' crowing, falling out of bed entangled in sheets, and dragging himself sleepily to the pond to brush his teeth.

"I seriously need that bathroom extension."

Fortunately, at six in the morning, Jack was one of the few people up. Only farmers got up at this hour, and the only farmers who lived nearby were Ann and her father, who began their ranch work around 8:00. And with the dense bush that blocked off their two farms, Jack doubted they could see him anyway.

And thus, he beautified himself to his liking, and grabbed his usual weeding and watering tools out of the toolbox. After about an hour of diligent work (and tripping over Puddle who kept following him wherever he went), he decided that he'd had enough of weeding for the morning, and set out to forage about in the forest.

Leaving his ranch, he took the right path and headed towards the forest. Before proceeding, he noticed that he hadn't yet visited the Vineyard that everyone at the bar had talked about two nights before. Walking up the bushy walkway, he entered the cozy white-fenced home to find the waitress from two nights before storming his way yelling back at who Jack realized to be her father.

"What a horrible father! You should let me do what I want!"

"Karen!! Hmph! What an undutiful daughter!"

As Karen stormed pass Jack without so much as a glance, the father turned his back and went inside the quaint house. Besides a confused Jack, there was a dark-skinned boy wearing a purple bandana standing outside the front door of the Vineyard house, shaking his head.

Jack walked up and introduced himself.

"Hey, I'm Jack. Do you work here?"

"Oh hello. Welcome to the Flower Bud Village Vineyard. Yes, I do work here."

"Oh. Then you can tell me who that was that just rushed out of here."

"That was Karen, the Master's daughter. Karen wishes to move away to the city, and they always quarrel. If you'd like to meet the Master, please go inside. The Master and his wife are really nice people."

"Hey, thanks a lot!" Jack shook the young man's hand.

"Oh, you're welcome! Er, nice handshake." The boy waved his hand a bit to blow off the firmness of Jack's handshake. "My name is Kai, by the way."

"It's nice to meet you." Jack gave a quick bow, and then turned to walk in the house.

Kai straightened his bandana. "Hmm. Only the elderly still bow in this village..."

After a brief meeting with Karen's gruff father and slightly depressed mother (who's appearance reminded him very much of Karen), Jack wandered on to the forest to pick up a few things to sell for the day.

Jack walked through the pathway to the open field. To his right, he saw a small pond where he met Greg, the fisherman from a few days before, who gave him his fishing pole. To the left of him, he saw the bridge leading to the next area of field, as well as the river for fishing.

Jack also noticed something else; something small and fragile down in a clump of dirt by the river's edge. It looked like a small person; a person who looked hurt!

Jack rushed over to the spot, checking to see if the person was okay. A pair of dark, watery eyes stared up at him at the realization of his presence. His dusty black hair matted his head with the splashes of river water that hit the young boy's face. A few tears trickled down his cheek as his tiny hand held tight over his knee.

Whoever he was, his face was familiar somehow, and Jack frantically searched his memory to try and remember where he had seen the boy before. Retracing the places he had visited, his accidental bust in on the school's lessons for the day popped back into his mind, reminding Jack that the young boy before him was one of the students seated in the church a few days before.

Smiling and placing a comforting hand on the boy's shoulder, Jack attempted to mend the situation.

"Hey there. What's a tough guy like you doing on the ground? Did you hurt yourself?"

The boy sniffed a few times, stopping only to brush his eyes with the back of his free hand. He stared at the ground for a moment, but looked up at the warm, hazelnut eyes that stared back at him. A few more tears trickled down his face before he finally answered.

"I was playing in the field, when I saw a froggy down by the river. I ran over to catch him, but I slipped and fell down into this hole."

The boy wiped his face again, his free hand still clasping his knee. Jack smiled down at the young boy.

"You hurt your knee, didn't you? I know a brave kid like yourself probably doesn't need my help, but I bet if you let me take a look at your scratch, I can make it feel a little better."

The boy's eyes flashed with determination. "You're right, I don't need any help!" He looked downwards into the soil. "...But, there's no use in me feelin' bad. You can help if you want...but only because you want to so bad!"

Jack smiled a wide smile. He picked the boy up and carried him to the small pond. It would be easier to work in a larger area, plus the trees surrounding the pond would provide shade that, Jack hoped, would help keep his patient calm.

Setting the boy down carefully, he removed the young boy's hand from his knee and saw that the scratch wasn't too bad, and that with proper care, would heal up in no time. From there, he took his cap off and searched around the bottom of it. He revealed a small cloth and bandaid, and placed them on the ground in front of the boy.

"What's that?" the young boy asked.

Jack laughed. "It's my 'First-Aid Cap.' I have a few basic things in here, just in case I'm foolish and end up giving myself a small cut away from home, or out in the fields. That way, I can take care of myself until I get to a medical facility, or at least home where my First-Aid Kit is."

The boy looked up at Jack with surprise. "You mean, even you hurt yourself sometimes?"

"Are you kidding? Farmers hurt themselves more than anyone else. We're always banging or nicking ourselves with our tools when we're not paying attention. Trust me, it's easy to do, which is why you shouldn't run around by the river. You can slip and fall."

The boy lowered his eyes. "I'm sorry for being trouble."

Jack laughed softly and dipped the soft cloth into the pond. Rinsing out the excessive water, he placed the cool rag onto the boy's knee, gently wiping away some of the blood. The boy cringed slightly at the stinging feeling, but closed one eye and bit his lip. After a few more rounds of cleaning the wound best he could, Jack wiped away the water and damp with a second cloth, then pulled out a tube of medicine reading "Neosporin."

Noticing the bottle, the boy tightened up, curious to the strange substance Jack was holding.

"What's that?"

Jack looked down at the bottle. "Oh, this? It's my anti-cut and scrape medicine. You put a small dab on the spot that hurts, and in a few days, the scratch or cut is all gone. It helps heal the wound faster. I use it practically everyday."

"You made it yourself?"

Jack laughed. "I'm no pharmacist! You can buy it anywhere. I bet your mom puts this stuff on you all the time and you don't even know it."

Something about what Jack said left the boy with a saddened expression on his face. Noticing this, Jack wondered what he had done to upset the boy.

"Hey, what's wrong?"

The boy shook his head and sniffed. "I don't have a mom."

"Oh." Jack practically smacked himself. How could he be so stupid as to mention something so personal!?! "I'm sorry." He thought quickly. "Whoever you live with loves you very much, I'm sure." He added, "I bet your mom is very proud of you for handling this scratch so well. I bet she's smiling right now."

The boy straightened up, light shining in his eyes. "You think so?!"

Jack nodded. "I know so."

After applying the medicine and attaching the bandaid to the cut, Jack patted it lightly, once, and then smiled. "There, no trouble at all."

Standing up, the boy grinned, flexing his knee back and forth. "It feels better already! Thank you Jack! Oh, by the way, my name is Stu!" A flash of remembrance hit the boy. "Hey, you're the guy who interrupted class on Wednesday in school!"

Jack placed a hand on his neck and laughed. "Oh, so you remember that? Haha... Sorry about that. I never attended school at a church in my town."

"Really? That's weird." The boy scratched his head. "Hey Jack?"

"Yes?"

"What's a pharmacist?"

"Huh?"

"You said you weren't a pharmacist. What is that?"

"Oh, well, a pharmacist is a person who deals with medicine. They prescribe specific medicines to specific people with specific illnesses."

"What does 'prescribe' mean?"

"Uh, well, how about we talk about this another day. I think you need to get home. I'll walk you, that is, if you want me too."

Just then an elderly man walked through. Jack recognized him as the Potion Shop Dealer that he'd met previously. Stu ran to the man, calling him 'Grandpa.'

"Grandpa! Grandpa!"

The old man stood there, hands behind his back. "Stu, I've been looking for you. It's been a while since you left the house." He saw the bandage on the boy's knee. "What happened Stu? Did you hurt yourself?"

Stu nodded. "Uh-huh. But Jack cleaned it up and put a bandaid on it. He was just about to take me home."

The old man looked up at Jack, then walked over to him. Standing in front of the extremely taller individual, he held an aging hand up to Jack.

"Thank you for taking care of my grandson. He means very much to me."

Jack took the old man's hand and shook it, carefully, and nodded his head. "I can see why. He's a good kid. I hope he gets better very soon."

Nodding, the old man turned around to face his grandson. "Come Stu, let's go home now."

"Okay Grandpa."

With that, the two began walking back towards the direction of the town. Stu turned around once again to say his parting words to Jack, a big smile on his face.

"Thanks again Jack! I'll see you tomorrow!" He waved enthusiastically back at Jack.

Jack waved back, and watched them until they were off in the distant, unable to be seen any longer. Stretching, he took off for the bridge and crossed it, speaking with the Carpenters for a moment, as well as picking a few items for selling. His eyes casually wandered around for anything extra lying around for sale, but instead of forage, his eyes fell upon a girl kneeling by the river. Jack recognized the girl as Karen, the young girl who had stormed off from the Vineyard earlier that morning. She looked angry, so Jack felt it best to leave her alone.

However, as he was about to turn away, he saw a Moondrop Flower embedded in the soft soil nearby. Since the Moondrop Flowers flourished everywhere in the mountains, he felt it okay to pick just one. Carefully pulling the flower from it's home, he walked over to Karen, flower behind his back. He stepped silently up beside her, staring out at the river, wondering how long it would be before she noticed he was standing there.

Surprisingly enough, she snapped her head towards him almost instantly, revealing irritated, green eyes. They narrowed when Jack did not go away.

He could tell she didn't want him there, but he figured he might as well say something since he was standing there. He grinned, eyes still focused on the river.

"You obviously don't care for me, but I was hoping you'd feel different about this flower."

Jack brought the flower out from behind his back, lowering it down to her eye level. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw her own eyes open slightly at the gesture, but narrow once again, quickly.

"What's this for?" Her tone was snappy.

"No reason. I just wanted you to feel better."

She took the flower from his hand gently, but the tone of her voice went from snappy to mildly sarcastic. "Thanks. I feel happy."

Somehow, sarcasm didn't cover her entire tone, just most of it. Jack wondered if he had cheered her up any. She sure was irritated with him though, so he figured it'd be best if he leave. The girl spoke up before he had the chance.

"So, who are you? You're obviously not from around here. Oh well, I guess it doesn't matter. You'll be gone soon anyway..."

With that, Karen stood up and walked away, flower still clutched in her hand.

Jack stretched a hand her way, wondering if she was angry at him for giving her a flower. "Karen!"

She tilted her head forward slightly, placing one hand in the pocket of her short blue jeans, flipping back a strand of her dirty blonde hair. Then, she spit out the words...

"Don't talk to me so much!"

---

The doors of the Vineyard home opened quietly. Karen, the daughter of the household, walked through them, still irritated, but for the most part cooled off from her morning experiences. She saw her mother setting the dinner table for their evening meal. Her father was slumped on the couch, reading the village newspaper, grunting about something displeasing to him in the editorials. Kai was helping Karen's mother, speaking softly with her. As Karen walked by, the mother noticed something strange with her daughter.

"Why Karen? A change of heart about the Earth's natural beauty?"

Karen eyed her mother for a moment, then looked down at the flower still clutched in her hand. She didn't know why she had kept it. Maybe it was because the guy had done it to be helpful, rather than use it as some pick-up excuse.

"I was just...walking in the fields..."

She heard her father grunt again, and walked on past the kitchen table to the kitchen drawer, grabbing a vase and leaving the house once again. Kai stared at the door that was left open, wondering where Karen was heading off to so late at night...

"Karen!" Her mother rushed to the door and yelled after her daughter. "Supper will be ready soon!"

---

Jack finished his last bit of farmwork for the day. He brushed his horse and patted his dog for the final time, then began bringing his day to an end, making sure to chat a moment with Zack, the buyer who came by his house everyday at 5:00 to pick up the day's produce.

Cleaning up, he tossed his tools in the toolbox, and readied himself for bed. It was early still, when he had finally settled down, only 6:35, but he was tired from his busy day. Besides, Karen's final words were bugging him. He wondered if she was still irritated with him...

---

Karen dipped the glass vase into the Goddess Pond. The smooth liquid filled the container, enchanting the very bottle itself. Wiping away excess water on the edges of the vase, she placed the Moondrop Flower inside, admiring her work.

"Now this flower will never wilt..."

--End of Chapter 3