Chapter 1

Mark shouldered his rucksack and took a deep breath. He stared at the dilapidated house in front of him and shook his head. He must be crazy! When he set out on that boat he expected adventure, excitement! A new life. What he didn't expect was to be stranded on an island that hadn't seen human life in ages. It was just him and some other small family struggling to make a life for themselves. Well… it was certainly an adventure if nothing else. It just wasn't the kind he was expecting.

What was he supposed to do anyways? Farming was something that Mark didn't know much of. His grandparents had a farm ages ago, but they retired before he was very old. And their farm was already established when Mark knew it. They had animals and their field was clean and organized. The crops were already planted in neat rows.

"A bit of a garbage heap, isn't it?" A voice asked. Mark swung around and his jaw dropped. In front of him was the most beautiful creature he had ever seen. Her skin was creamy and smooth, her features soft and perfect. Her hair was long and green, braided down her back. Her clothes were the kind that Mark had only ever seen in picture books. It was only the mischievous expression on her face that made her seem of this world.

"Who…." Mark began. The girl cut him off with a high pitched laugh.

"Are you surprised? I bet you've never seen anyone quite like me- but that's to be expected. I am the Harvest Goddess, and I've been waiting quite a while for someone to take over this old farm. Why this island hasn't been populated in years! The only company I've had in this time was the Witch Princess- and trust me, that's company I could do without." Mark stared at the Goddess with wide eyes as she chattered on. She seemed to have forgotten that anyone was listening to her. Finally, she seemed to remember why she was there, and broke off. Mark's head was swimming with tales of the goddess's greatness, and insults directed towards some witch. Mark didn't know if the woman the goddess referred to was really a witch, or if that was some sort of derogatory term for the woman.

"Anyways," she said with flourish. "You have the honor of being the new farmer here! I can only hope that you can clean up this mess of an island and help to repopulate it. I hope I can count on you!" Still struck dumb, Mark nodded his head. The goddess smiled in satisfaction.

"Well then, do you have any questions?" She chirped.

"N-no." Mark answered, finally finding his voice. The goddess beamed.

"Wonderful! It would be awful tedious having to explain everything to you. I'll leave Taro to pick up the loose ends- anyways, clean things up quickly. Once you find a way to reach the forest you can visit my pond and give me offerings!" Mark nodded, dazed.

"Right." He agreed.

"Oh- but I absolutely hate fish- I detest them really, along with any kind of garbage. But I love strawberries! So make sure to grow lots- ok?"

"Yes, alright." He answered. The Harvest Goddess gave a quick, business like nod and then giggled.

"Toodles Mark!" She chirped, and disappeared. Mark blink at the space where the girl was a moment ago. He sucked in his breath and furiously shook his head.

"What have I gotten myself into?" He asked himself.

Surprisingly, life on the island wasn't terrible. Life was hard, true, but there was something rewarding about it all. For the first time Mark felt that he was accomplishing something. After the first grueling spring in which everything was just getting cleaned up, things began to look up for him. He cleaned his field, built a chicken coop. By autumn there was an animal barn, and Mark was actually starting to bring in a profit. He wasn't always hungry anymore and it was sort of fun to take care of his crops.

Also, as time went on more people moved onto the island. Some of them he even began to become close to. Denny, a fisher was really nice. And there was Lanna, a cute pop star.

As time went on and the population grew they really became a community. And Mark was a valued member of it. When they started holding festivals and contests Mark's presence was always highly anticipated. Mark's unordinary beginning soon fell into place- into a daily routine that felt as if he had been living it his whole life. At times the monotonous lifestyle grew tiresome, but Mark enjoyed his life. Taro often mentioned how he could see Mark go really far in life. He talked about how after a few years it might be nice for Mark to settle down, get married. There would be him, his wife, maybe some children, and the farm. He painted a picture of children playing with the chickens while Mark watered the carrots. It sounded nice, he couldn't deny it. It seemed that almost every girl on the island took an interest in him anyways. Mark vowed to take his time, live life slowly. And so, his first year on the island passed. It was an accomplishment to be sure, living on that little island. Mark hoped that the island would continue to grow over time. There would be more people to meet, to care for. Mark just didn't know to what extent.

On the fifth of spring, year two, some new guests arrived, ones that would affect Mark's island life more than he ever would have thought. He woke up in the morning to a loud knocking. Yawning, Mark made his way to the door. Early morning visits weren't uncommon in the past year. No one seemed to think it rude to wake you up at six thirty to chat about a festival or make his acquaintance. Mark seemed to be a sought after commodity, more important even than Taro. Maybe that was because of all that he had contributed to the island. It might as well have been called Mark Island.

Mark opened the door to see a friendly man smiling at him.

"May I come in and introduce us?" The man asked.

"Of course!" Mark answered. Us? The visitor, a man dressed in robes made his way into the room and wasted no time in introductions. However, Mark didn't hear a word he said. All his senses were concentrated on her. The girl who timidly followed the man into the house.

A year ago Mark considered the most beautiful woman he had ever met to have been the Harvest Goddess. Compared to this girl, however, the Harvest Goddess may as well have been an old maid.

The girl in front of him was young, maybe eighteen or nineteen. She had thick brown hair that fell in curtains around her shoulders. Her eyes were large, innocent, and a deep blue. The girl's demeanor seemed to glow with kindness. In response to Mark's astonished stare she gave a small smile. Mark felt his whole face go scarlet, and he bit his lip. The girl drew her gaze away from Mark and turned it to the man she came with. For the first time since seeing her Mark heard a word the man said.

Alisa