It was the year of 2002 when I came up with a little story called the Family of a Hero. It was the first fic I ever wrote, and actually the first thing I wrote in English. As some of you may remember, it was horrible. I'm still surprised people liked it that much. Then, a few months later, came the sequel, Kidnapping a Princess, which was five times longer, had several more subplots going on at the same time, and I had a cast of almost 25 characters going on in almost every episode, all of this in a time of "a single day" in the story. People liked that story one even more than Family, and yes, it was better written and all, but it was still horrible in my opinion. Then I started to write several one shots where I started to polish my stuff, and voila, I came with something that didn't make me cringe every time I read it.
And hey, I'm happy to say I thought up of Wolves –or Wolfos in Zeldaverse- and Link before Twilight Princess was even announced, and I know wasn't the first one, but hey, I at least can say I didn't copy Nintendo. Bunny Link will always haunt my nightmares….
This chapter was written almost a year ago, once I had decided I liked using points of view rather than the omnipresent narrative… or whatever you call it. That's why it may surprise you how different this one is from my other stuff like "First Impressions". This is the tale of Ari, after all, and she still needs to grow up a bit more, you can't compare her perspective to Samus'. At least not at the moment.
I had almost given up in this story after I showed it to a good friend of mine and he told me he didn't care about it. "Whatever, I don't care", things he kept telling me every time I mentioned something about my story, well, if he said anything at all instead of just silence of changing so suddenly the subject I never knew we were supposed to talk about other stuff. Never realized I depended so much of my friends' opinions. In the end –yes, almost an entire year later- I decided: I don't care if he thought this was shit, I still like it.
This isn't just a copy of the first Family of a Hero. This story has been completely revamped, but it will still keep its original heart, don't worry about it.
For the people reading Impressions, the races and their unique skills I'll use there are the same as the ones used here. Though, the time period is different.
Now, enjoy!
The Family of a Hero
Capitulo 1: Little Thief
By: Dan Heron
Out of the main street, rounding the corner into the alley, passing between crates and pushing through lines of drying dyed fabrics. Looking back she saw nothing. They weren't there… but they were close.
Much closer than before…
She closed her purple eyes, gasping out quickly, hurting, quietly. They could hear…
She needed to run.
She ran.
She twisted left, right, left again and saw another street. So many people there… maybe she could hide among them… Clutching tightly the bag in her hands against her chest, she made up her mind. No matter how much she despised them, they still could hide her…
How stupid she was? She knew better than trying something like this in the middle of the day -when she couldn't count with her loved shadows- and from a group on top of that! Always go for the lonely ones, never for a group!
Maybe she should just leave the bag there and save her the trouble… no, she could get some pretty rupees out of this thing. Maybe she should put her little trophy in the bag hanging on her shoulder, avoid looks and all… She froze. Wide eyes staring to the animal looking back at her from the mouth of the street… White fur, probably a nasty bite, and a huge size… well, most things were huge compared to such short girl like her.
She bit her tongue and decided to forget about the main street for now. Better stay away from those white fangs… she hadn't stayed alive for that long poking her luck. Keeping her eyes on the dog –or wolfo?- she moved deeper back into the alley, rounding a corner and bolting once she –now it was a she?- was out of her sight.
She whipped sweat out of her brow, brushing dirty blond hair out of her eyes, trying to keep it behind her long ears. She took a deep breath and started her race once again down the narrow alley. Yes, this was much better; there were shadows all around her, not like the people-filled street. She felt safe, but she wasn't, oh she knew that. She had made that mistake so many times before, and she had long learned the painful lesson. Some of the marks hadn't faded away yet.
She needed to run away, as far as she could, and get rid of the bag. Sell it if she could. Rupees and food, all she ever needed. And she would get so much out of this bag! They really wanted it back; surely it was really pricey! She could get some of that Lon-Lon milk and bread, maybe one of these huge smoked sausages…
She halted in her tracks as a loud screech came from above her. Her eyes widened in terror when she saw the underside of something flying above her, making a loud and flashy stop on the top of the buildings around her. She saw two lights, one on each end of the thing, lights coming from two crystals, and her heart crashed in the bottom of her chest.
A hoverbike… she had stolen from a person with a hoverbike… of all the people she could have picked… there was no way she could outrun them…
Somebody jumped down from the bike into the alley, somebody dressed in red from what she could see before she turned around and made a mad race in the opposite direction. Super tight red pants, her mind pointed out before the sounds of steps running behind her pushed every other thought out of her head.
Twisting sharply to her left she pushed between the wall and a metallic fence. She had been sure she wouldn't fit, but she made it through easily! It was as if she had pushed a little into the wall to pass or something… well, that didn't matter, and she needed to run!
However, she hadn't taken two steps before a loud crash made her twist her neck to look at that black haired girl tearing the fence off the buildings with her bare hands! The little blond was sure the brunette was going to throw it away as if it was paper, but she didn't stay there to make sure of it.
"Gotcha!" she almost ran into a pretty face but managed to stop in the last moment. Curious blue eyes peered into hers before she turned to her right and tried to get away from the other blond girl.
"Slow down, little girl," she froze in her place, looking her exit blocked by a red. He pushed up his glasses, stretching an arm to the wall…
"Nice, we finally got her," she heard from the strong girl. "It seems you were right, Shad, only a Hylian could hide that well… maybe a Sheika too, yes?" she nodded to the red.
She wanted to scream, but no sound came from her mouth. Maybe a tiny squeak but that was all. Maybe the beating of her heart was drowning every other sound…
"I say Hylian!" other girl chirped, clasping her hands in front of her.
"Hmmm, maybe. I saw some very peculiar things from her. Perhaps there is a bit of Sheika in her?" the red boy looked her over with interest.
Her heart started to pound even harder than before as she pressed her back against a wall… there was nowhere to run…
"Well, I know you are one little slimy chu-chu, yeah?" the older girl practically growled at the little girl and she wondered for a moment if she would have had a better chance with the wolfo…
"Ashei, you don't have to be so mean," the other blond giggled, causing her pigtails to bounce a little.
Shad chuckled, glancing at the energetic girl, looking as if he had wanted to say something but Ashei beat him to it. "Yeah, I can be meaner than that, Agitha, just wait until you see what I do with this little thief."
The sound of knuckles cracking loudly finally did it. She felt as if her whole body was wrapped in something warm and safe and she closed her eyes for a moment; when she blinked her eyes open she was facing a wall…
"Hey, you saw that? Her eyes glowed red!" she heard pigtails giggling on the other side. "I think there is Sheika in her after all!"
"I'll be damned. The Veil pulled her away from danger out of instinct!" the red chuckled.
"Danger? She will be in danger once I get my hands around her little throat!" crazy girl shouted and then there was the sound of running steps.
… they are leaving…
"Ashei, the girl is on the other side of this wall." Aghita's dull voice said.
No… how?! She couldn't stop to think about it. The wall just divided the alley; there was nothing above her. She needed to escape!
And for once it seemed the Sisters finally did something for her. A crowded street was right in front of her! She wasn't going to waste it this time again, even if another huge dog appeared in front of her.
She almost laughed when no dog showed up in her path. Were the Sisters really looking for her now? They would really need to make it up for all the time they had abandoned her!
Clutching tighter the bag against her chest she jumped into the crowd, trying to look as little as she could. It always worked when she didn't want people noticing her. She pushed her path towards some trees she had seen above the sea of people. Maybe it was a park! If she wasn't safe in the alleys, she could use the shadows of a park with tons of trees! She knew Ordo park was nearby, and it was supposed to be packed full of trees! She was so close now to her new stop that she dared to look behind her; she saw a hoverbike lifting off the rooftops, joining the traffic of a bunch of other flying vehicles in the sky. She breathed out a sigh of relief and finally pushed past the crowd and into the comforting shadows of a very dense park. It was almost a forest!
She almost cackled as she made her way deeper into the darker parts of the park. She was going to make it after all!
She breathed in deeply, taking in all the aromas her sharp Hylian nose could catch. So many things under the smell of grass, trees and a bit of water –maybe dew. The forest –well, park- was a bit chilly.
She tilted her head a little to the side, letting one of her long Hylian ears search for any sound. She smiled, hearing nothing close to her, no person, no animal and certainly no hoverbike and crazy violent girl. She was safe… she was safe!
Oh, it felt so good to laugh! She had escaped and she had gotten a really expensive bag if she had to guess! Food would be so, so nice! She hadn't eaten in three long days and now…
She couldn't help it; she had always liked to dance when she had done something good. Well, maybe more of bouncing happily around, laughing like a little girl. She knew she wasn't a little girl, not anymore, but she liked to play she was… so she laughed, she bounced, she held her trophy high, she laughed even more, she was happy!
Her eyes went wide open, staring ahead but not seeing. That could have not been the sound of clapping…
"Gotta say I'm impressed. Nobody had been able to steal from me right under my nose," he chuckled, clapping some more. Her heart started to pound even harder than before; she hadn't noticed he was there! She was sure nobody was there!
He started to move to her left, walking closer… "You got some skills to get that close without me feeling you coming," he chuckled almost amusedly, almost as if he were talking about a game. She lowered the bag, hugging it tightly. "But, now I finally caught you, so, if you please, hand the bag back," he said, finally coming into view.
Tanned skin, blond and messy hair, long and pointy Hylian ears –very much like hers- and his eyes… eyes that looked at her with surprise a moment and then shock…
"Aah!" she screamed, raising the bag high, ready to hit him with it!
… but he didn't move. His eyes were no longer shocked, they were… sad?
She swung the bag around –it felt as if it had really hit him!- but he still didn't move… he just smiled a little.
She took a step back, not knowing what to do. He was still there, but he wasn't doing anything to get his bag back… it would be so easy to take it back, really; he was huge! Well, maybe not that big, but everybody was big compared to her… he was strong though, she could see that much. Well, strong for somebody his age. She guessed he was young, a bit older than she was maybe. Or a lot older… he is taller. Even with that comfy looking, green t-shirt over him, she could see a bit of muscle under a black undershirt.
"… hear me?" she hadn't noticed he had purple eyes before…
"Huh?" she blinked, tilting her head lightly to her left.
He leaned back, chuckling a little and she felt she wanted to chuckle too. It felt kind of nice… "Can you give me my bag back?" he asked with another lazy smile.
"Uh…"her lips made a little O as she looked down to the bag on her hands. Give it back? Well, he had come for it, and was asking nicely for it after all. She couldn't remember the last time somebody had done anything like that before. There had been nice people before, but she couldn't remember them…
"Yep?" and he stretched a hand for her. Was he really serious about it?
"Great! You finally caught her Link!" she jumped in start, somehow managing to get behind him as she recognized the voice of Crazy Violent Girl.
"Yay, we caught the criminal!" Pigtails chuckled, cutely tilting her head to the side.
"Oh, man, finally!" Red came at least, running behind the other two girls. "Next time I'll leave the chasing for your, Ashei."
She ducked behind the nice boy in green, trying to escape from the Trio's eyes. Now she was sure it was her end: if she ran, they'd just find her again until she could no longer run… she just couldn't escape from them, it was the end of the road…
"Yep, but I can deal with her. She was going to hand over my bag just now," the nice boy said with a smile –I know he's smiling even if I can't see his face- and she felt like laughing. This has to be a dream! Or maybe the Sisters wanted a good laugh!
There was a moment of silence, and she noticed the other three simply staring at her and to the nice boy. If it was possible she got a little smaller. The blond boy simply stood there, looking a bit lazy…
"Link, are you sure?" Shad asked, trying to tame his unruly hair.
She looked up, trying to get a look to his face… Link… sounds like a nice name…
"What do you mean by that?!" Ashei frowned at Shad before looking at Link. "We chased that little thief around the city and now you're letting her walk out like that?! Just because she is going to give your bag back?" she roared, pointing an accusatory finger in Link's direction.
"Yup!" This time she really laughed! Link… Link was standing up for her?!
"You are a wimp," Violent girl grumbled and crossed her arms. Wow, she hadn't noticed the black haired girl had arm guards… and on her legs too. Was she a guard or something?
"Come on, Ashei, if Link wants to end it here, then so be it," Pigtails tried to hug Ashei, but the taller girl kept her away. Well, tried.
"Back off, Agitha," Ashei growled, but that didn't stop the Hylian from hugging her. Ashei simply groaned.
"That's cute…" the little thief chuckled, and Link chuckled too.
"Hey, who do you think you…?" Ashei started to shout but was cut off by the Red.
"Now, now, Ashei, we are done here," he said with a gentle smile before avoiding a quick punch in his direction.
"Thanks, Shad," Link waved to the other guy in the meeting and Ashei growled tiredly.
"So, this is it, yeah?" Ashei asked, giving them the dirty eye.
"Awww, come on, Ashei, look at her, you think I would have problems handling a little girl like her? Not to mention I can't stay mad at somebody like her, can I?" Link said, pulling her to his side. She eep'd and squeezed herself under Link's right arm. What was she supposed to do now? She didn't know, so she decided to just stand there… and enjoy how warm it felt being held like that… she felt really safe…
"Besides, I'm sure she feels sorry, aren't you? Eh, sorry, my bad," Link bowed his head with a boyish grin on his face. "The name is Link, moka goeare," he presented his left hand, and for a moment, it was way over her head. She looked to his hand, to his grinning face, to his hand…
What?!
"Uh, ah, I, I… hi?" the little blond chuckled nervously, shaking her left hand with his. She heard Pigta- eh, Agitha giggling somewhere. Was she laughing at her?
"Hi to you too," Link smiled warmly, and she smiled a little too. "Ya know, it's only polite to give your name after somebody else introduces himself, lil thief," he said and his smile twisted a little… she thought of a dog, or wolfo…
She snapped out of her thoughts with a little start. "Oh! I'm Ari!" the little blond Hylian coughed to the side a little, looking down. "My name is Ariaka…" the little thief sighed. It had been such a long time since somebody had asked her name.
She felt warmth running to her cheeks, and she felt Link's arm squeezing her tighter just as she did. It felt so nice…
"Well, I'm sure Ari is sorry, right Ari?" Link grinned wolfoishly, patting the mess of hair over her head. She couldn't help it, she chuckled… but it immediately died in her throat.
"I… I…" little Ari whispered, looking down to the grass. She didn't know if she was sorry or not… She knew her chest hurt with every breath she took and her stomach felt as if it were cold and heavy …
She looked up to his purple eyes –maybe the answer was there-, and she started to blink, feeling something around her eyes. He gave her again that smile that made her want to smile, but now it also made her want to run away. She wanted to run away, but she knew he wouldn't let her; something told her he'd run after her if she did.
She closed her eyes, not knowing what to do.
Why now? People had been nice to her in the past and she had just taken it in stride; she appreciated them, of course, but she had never stuck with them. She… she never cared that much for the little help, for the comfort and their warmth... Why was Link different from them?
A hand rubbed her back. "Ari?" he softly asked, and she wanted to run, but not. He sounded so gentle…
Her arms darted around his waist, hugging him tightly, burying her face into his chest. How could she say she was sorry? She didn't know how to do it... So she just nodded, maybe he would understand…
"…feeling better?" Link's quiet voice ringed in her ears and she sharply looked up.
"Uh?" she blinked, her lips forming a little o. He gave her one of these smiles of his and ruffled her hair once again.
"Feeling better now?" he asked again and Ari blinked.
"I-I do…" okay, now she was confused.
"Good!" he replied, patting her head and leaning back. Ari blinked once again and then noticed her surroundings… "Think you can stand up again?" he asked in what Ari almost thought was a mix of a dog's whimper and grunt.
She felt her cheeks reddening and almost jumped away, ungracefully flopping down her butt on the grass and getting off Link's lap. She couldn't believe she had tackled him to the ground, and much less could believe he had done nothing to push her off him. He had just sat there, letting her hug him, hugging her back! She looked at his damp shirt and noticed her dry tears staining the fabric… just how long had it passed…?
She looked around them and saw nothing around but Link and herself and some trees. "Where…"
"They left," Link nonchalantly replied, moving to lean back against a near tree.
"But why?" Ari blinked, clutching tightly the bag against her chest. She couldn't believe they'd just leave like that.
"I told them to," Link said with a little smile.
"And they just did that?" she blinked again.
He looked at her, flashing a grin, showing slightly elongated fangs… Ari blinked, running her tongue over her own "a bit longer than normal" fangs… "Well, I told them that since you had stolen my bag, it was my business only," he said with a chuckle-bark sound and Ari eep'd.
The little blond dropped the bag to the ground and backed away from it as fast as she could. She looked at the bag, almost as if she were expecting it to snap at her or something. She even poked it, just to be sure. Ari looked up to Link –once the bag had showed no signs of suddenly sprouting fangs and taking a bit of her-, to see him grinning like a dog that just ate his prey. He stretched out an arm in her direction, open palm facing skyward, and chuckled. "Well, you are going to give me the bag back, right?"
Ari remained still, sitting over her heels, completely silent… for a moment. She no longer wondered if this was really happening; her lips stretched in a wide, happy line and she even giggled a little. The little thief crawled over the bag, picked it up with a sure hand, and crawled over to Link. "Here's your bag," she said in a meek voice and put the thing on his waiting hand. The deed done, she sat back on her heels, looking expectantly what Link would do next.
That was the moment her nose chose to sneeze. Wow, it was a good one! Her eyes watered with what little tears were left and she furiously rubbed her nose clean of icky stuffs. Just then a wind decided to brush her back and she shivered, rubbing her arms for some warmth. And if that wasn't enough, she noticed the day had gotten really dark; red and yellow colors were coming through the leaves.
Just how long had it been…?
She looked up to Link, wondering if he was cold too and saw green in front of her face.
"It's getting cold," he said and Ari took the shirt without a word. She looked into his eyes, looking for some kind of trick in there, finding nothing but those deep purple pools. She didn't want to cry. She didn't want to cry! Sucking a breath, she quickly –and quite clumsily- put the big green shirt on. It felt so warm!
The little blond looked at Link, feeling a smile tugging at the corners of her lips. Link was smiling all right! He nodded, patting the space at his left and Ari nodded. Sitting at his left she pulled her knees against her chest, feeling a bit embarrassed her tattered blue skirt kept exposing more of her skinny legs. An idea came to her mind and she quickly pulled the shirt over her folded knees. Ah, that felt great!
She took a better look to the shirt, and the first thing she thought of was the forest. The color reminded her of lush leaves, dark and full of life. On the front was a black wolfo, stretching over the bottom and looking to the right. And finally there were drawings on the sleeves and bottom, they were like letters, but they looked old if a letter can look old, she reasoned.
She giggled a little noticing the sleeves were way too long for her tiny arms, reaching almost all the way down to her wrists. Was Link too tall or she was just too short? Then again, the sleeves were a bit longer than usual.
"Fits well?" Link asked with a chuckle and Ari chuckled too.
"Fits perfect!" she replied, feeling really warm inside her chest. Link simply nodded with a smile and Ari once again felt like smiling with him. She closed her eyes, rubbing her body as best as she could inside the comfy shirt, breathing in its smell. It was so nice, almost like a forest's aroma or something like that. She opened her eyes and looked at Link, now lacking the same shirt she was now wearing.
Dark and worn down jeans, brown or maybe green; black shirt, long sleeves up to the mid of his palms. He would have looked so nice with the green shirt on, well he did, she had seen him wearing the shirt before; she looked down –running the back of her hands inside the shirt- and smiled. There was a black wolfo drawn on the front, very cool looking. She smiled as he blew hair away from his eyes, thrice, maybe four times; his straw colored hair just wouldn't obey him. She giggled, stroking a lock of her own straw colored hair. Despite the cold she noticed his lightly tanned skin looked perfectly fine; maybe the chilly winds didn't bother him that much if all.
A little smile spread over her face, a silly one filled with a wonder she didn't know she had. His eyes, seeing them so deep, almost black but not quite, they were a pretty purple, almost like night, but with a light in them almost like a sun's one; she quite liked that. And gentle, and very determined, and sharp, and kind, and definitely a tiny bit scary underneath it all… almost like a dog's, but not any dog. Maybe like a stray dog that has found a place to live in the city and liked to hang around people –and maybe a restaurant- and take care of them, even if they weren't his owners or something like that. She had seen many dogs like that, even wolfos that had gone to live in cities.
Yes, wolfos! Like wolfos'! Link's eyes reminded her of a wolfos, not quite like a wild one's, but more like those that had gone to live in cities to live in peace but aren't tamed, with no owner that could put a leash on him. A Wolfo that is almost wild but not wild.
Or something like that.
Finally, there was something that, oddly enough, seemed to fit him. There were these scars on his face. This close she could see them scars, but maybe if she had been a bit further away, they would have looked like tattoos or drawings or something. Maybe a wild wolfo after all, one that had exchanged bites and claws' swipes with another wolfo or another animal and now he had the marks to prove he had won…
"Link," she tilted her head, looking at the nice boy in curiosity; she smiled lightly –his name had a really nice ring, "The bag is expensive or special?" she wanted to know. She wanted to know more about this nice boy, but didn't know where to start; the bag seemed a good choice. There was nothing in it as far as she knew, so the bag must have to be something unique or something worth chasing her through the entire city –at least it felt like it to her- and then hunting her down through the park: it has to be unique!
"Well," Link said, putting the bag over his lap, "It's a fairy bag. Kokiri made," he told her, twisting a strap over to show her a green and red tag. Red spirals over leaf green.
Ari's lips formed a little o. "So… it's special?"
Link smiled and put his hand in the bag. Ari blinked, seeing at Link looking for something in there, but she was sure he would find nothing. She had dug into the bag as soon as she had landed a hand on it and nothing. "Ah-ha!"
"What?" she blinked.
"Have you ever tried Chocowolfos?" he smiled, pulling out a large, wrapped something.
"Buh…" she blinked again. He handed her the something and she sniffed it out of habit. Her mouth immediately started to water. It was chocolate! She tore the wrapping apart, revealing a large bar thingy of chocolate! Dark brown chocolate! She took a bite, and another and another! It was so sweet! And it was filled with something that was a bit spicy, bitter, and very sweet, and it was creamy, but not creamy, more like caramel but not caramel-y; she didn't know what it was, but it was yummy! She almost whimpered, devouring the last bit of chocolate. She sighed, licking clean her fingers, looking for the smallest trace of chocolate; once she was done with her hands, she started to lick the wrapping. It was so good!
And to show how good it was she burped. Loudly. Lengthily. Sheepishly in the end.
"Oops?" she blushed, pulling into the shirt very much like a turtle. Nice second impression.
"It's okay," he casually shrugged, biting down on his own chocowolfos bar. Chewing more calmly than Ari –she embarrassedly noticed-, he dug his hand again into the bag and pulled two bars this time, tossing them over to Ari who caught them in mid air.
It wasn't until she was munching through the first bite of the second bar that she realized what had happened. "Whe' di'ya take these from?" she said, enjoying now the sweet taste in her mouth. The second treat had been great the third one was just nummy!
Her grunted lazily, chewing a bit more. "You can put and put things in a fairy bag and it will never be full," he swallowed, licking his lips, "Well, it can be filled, but you'd need lots of things, or something huge." And to prove his point, he started to stretch the opening; first it was just its normal size, then twice its size, then thrice, and then he used his feet to keep stretching and stretching it!
"I can fit in there…" the petite girl gaped, pointing at the now reality defying size of the bag.
"Tons of other things too," the Hylian boy chuckled, releasing the bag, letting it go back to its normal size. "Once they are in, you can take them out," he smiled.
"Like these chocolates?" she asked, gulping down the last bit of her chocowolfos.
"Or these pants," he said, pulling out now black sweats, tossing them to Ari.
"For me too?" she blinked. She only waited for that rough grin of his to kick out her legs from under the shirt and put the black fabric over them. It was too big for her again. "It's perfect!" she laughed, rubbing her legs together. It was so soft and comfy and warm! She even rolled the end of the pants under her feet, wanting to keep all the warmth she could with her.
The little blond heard Link chuckling and she looked up to his face, one of his fingers scratching the side of his scarred cheek. "I only have pants and shorts with me. Sorry about that."
"Nuh! This is great! These clothes are so cool!" she chuckled, hugging her arms and just relaxing there. She felt she could really fall sleep there…
"Great, then I think you only need something to eat," he casually said, almost as if he were talking about the first star on the purple sky.
She opened an eye –when did she closed them?- in his direction and sighed. "Wha?"
"Dinner? Food? What would you like to eat?" he smiled as he stood up.
Ari just sat there, looking with her big purple eyes at him. "Wha?"
Link crouched down, eyes level with hers and grunted very much like a dog. "Food for your tummy," he said, poking her in said body part. She couldn't help giggling, batting his hand away. "Want some chow?" Link said with another of his doggish grins, starting to raise fingers as he said: "Chocowolfos can't really compete against a nice soup, or stew, heck, even a pizza-"
"Pizza!" she blurted out as soon as the word left Link's lips. Once her brain realized she had spoken –well, yelled- a bit too loud she blushed, smiling apologetically. "I would really, really, really like a slice of pizza," she chuckled.
"Just a slice?" Link arched up a golden eyebrow, giving her a toothy grin. "Ari, it's my treat, you should abuse of your good ol' Link!" he barked a laugh as he stood up.
"But…"
"Come on Ari. A whole pizza, for you!"
"Well..." she couldn't pass an offer like that one… he had already given her some chocolate…
Leaves fell silently around them, a cool, purple blanket settled about them. There was a point of utter harmony in the little haven…
"Meat!" she exclaimed with an overly excited grin on her drawn face.
"That narrows it down," Link chuckled, shouldering his bag not before taking out a box with the drawing of a brown and golden wolfos. "I'll see what I can find. You wait for me here," he said, and she caught the box.
Her tired eyes stared at the box for a moment and then to Link's back. He was already walking away… "Link!"
"Yes?" Link asked over his shoulder.
Ari glanced to his purple eyes and she opened her mouth a little. What makes you think I'll wait for you, huh? A part of her angrily growled. Why are you so nice? A part of her sadly whispered.
"N-nothing…" she whispered, looking down to the box in her hands.
"Okay. Be right back," he called over his shoulder, pocketing his hands in his jeans.
And like that, he was gone.
He was gone…
She stood up and made her way out of the park.
… Well, she took a few steps.
She stopped and walked in another direction. Better leave in a different direction, she wouldn't like to bump onto Link; only a few more steps and she would be out of the park. She stopped, watching the shadows grow lighter, and light coming from the streets invading her pretty shadows; families and friends, cars and other vehicles, sights and sounds. She turned around and walked again. Too much people, she would prefer something calmer. She turned left on a tree and kept turning around the tree; two rounds and she stopped. Hadn't Link gone in this direction? She turned to her right and kept on walking before stopping once again and walking in another direction.
This time she was really going to leave! Nothing was going to stand in her way!
"Rhowl?" her eyes almost bulged out of their sockets. Okay, big, big, big and scary white dog maaaay stand in her way if it wants… she just stood there watching the little thief for a moment and the little Hylian watched the huge, white furred –and probably with tons and loads of sharp and pointy fangs- thing back. She hurried back before the dog could know what had happened.
Once she was at a safe distance from the dog she flopped down on the grass, resting her back against a tree. Her heart was racing and she tried to calm it down with a deep sigh. That was close. What's with Hyrule and its need for big animals? That's why she never visited!
Well… she did visit. And often… in this country she had always got the most money and food from strangers… every year there was somebody who would give her a blanket or clothes or something to spend winter….
Or a box with chocolates… she raised said box to her eyes, taking a long and hard look to it. Had she ever been given a box of chocolates before? Of really yummy chocolates? Maybe they would have given her one if she had stayed more than a second with them…
She took a chocolate from the box and proceeded to rip the wrapping away. Link was no different from the rest. He had been nice, yeah, but that was all. People could be nice or could be mean; she knew that all too well. She took a bite, twisting the pasty, sweet mess around her mouth. Now that she thought about it, there was nothing special about Link; there were tons of persons just as nice as him, more than him even!
She pouted, gulping down more chocolate. "Really, Link is a nice boy, but, nothing out of the ordinary," she quietly grumbled, rubbing her right arm.
Her hand stopped. She looked down to her arms and a little smile crept to her lips. There should be bruises, cuts and scars from others times down there; things her tattered, old blouse could no longer cover. But now she could only see a warm and comfy green shirt, with a big black wolfo drawn on the front and… it was gone?
She sat upright, looking to her left and to her right. Where did the drawing go? She pulled the shirt around, trying to get a look from her back and then sighed. She wasn't quite sure why she sighed. Maybe it was because she found her wolfo; it was sleeping on the back… her lips twitched and she started to chuckle quietly, slapping her forehead.
Of course, it was one of these cool shirts with magi-intelligent ink. Once she calmed down, she wondered if she should poke the wolfo awake. She wasn't quite sure what would an artificial wolfo do if he were poked in his sleep though, so she went for the safest choice of doing nothing at all.
Her lips twisted in a little pout, softly rubbing the fabric between her calloused fingers. It felt really nice, but…. Worming her arms into the shirt, she simply pulled from her old blouse. So worn down it was it came off with the first tug. Arms coming out once again, she tossed the old rags aside. Ari sighed to herself, looking the turns and rips and shreds... When did I get that blouse? Two, three years ago…?
Her eyes clouded briefly and in the dark she could see all the brightest the smallest signs of tears…
And then she laughed. In fact, she tried to bark a laugh! A bark of a laugh seemed to be funnier, better. And then she chuckled, whipping tears away, because trying to bark a laugh was just incredibly silly.
A smile pulled back her lips, showing her slightly elongated fangs as she dug her hands into the sweats. She hadn't bothered to strip off of her skirt before when she was putting the pants on partly because she didn't want to get any colder –partly due to the fact she had no underwear. But now it was nothing more than a nuisance, just like the tattered blouse. This time the old ribbons her skirt was, were easily pulled out and tossed next to the remains of its partner. She didn't need them now that she had a new set of clothes.
Now I only need to grow a little to fill them, she thought with a smile. No… I need to grow a lot, she thought with a grimace.
Biting the last of the chocolate, she sighed, feeling really… h-happy… she blinked at the realization, wondering when that word had become so, well, unusual. She was pretty sure she had been happy before… how come I can't remember when? She wondered, absently making a little ball with the wrapping and tossing it away.
Her eyes followed the course of the ball until it bounced to a stop against more little balls of chocolates' wrapper. It took her only a moment to put two and two together and then she slapped her forehead.
"I came back here?!" she laughed, wondering if the Sisters were laughing too. After all these twists and turns she foxed herself into returning to the place Link told her to wait for him.
Smirking to herself, she took another chocowolfo and tore the paper away. "If he doesn't come back before I finish with these, then I'm gonna leave," she whispered quietly to herself, putting almost half snack into her mouth and chomping loudly.
Only six more, she happily thought with a smile on her face, peering into the box.
--
Only one more, she nervously thought with a mix of a frown and sulk on her face, peering into the box.
She put her finger into the box, making it twirl around its corner, tossing the chocolate away. A hand moved closer to the chocolate, but closed before touching it. She stretched her arms up, yawning largely and then scratching her back and cheek. Nobody said she had to eat everything all right away, right?
Yes, she needed a break, so she took a break.
She looked around, watching every shadow getting lighter and clearer than they would if there was a light around. She had heard people saying Sheikas could see through Shadows clearer than Light itself, or something like that. She could do that, seeing into Shadows as if there were no shadows at all or something like that, so that meant she was Sheika? Probably not, or maybe yes? She had long ears like every Sheika and Hylian has, but she had purple eyes, not the Sheika red. Then again, the trio of weirdoes from before said her eyes had flashed red, and she knew Sheika's eyes flashed red sometimes when they were in dark places, and they had said maybe there was some Sheika in her…
She blinked once and then twice. Her mind surely knew how to wander around.
Bottom line, she could see into shadows easier than she could see into light. Period!
And she had good hearing too like any Hylian, which was why she knew Link wasn't coming. The park was loud and bright, but most of it fell faint by the place she was now; a little murmur and the occasional light making it through the trees, and nothing more. People didn't come in her direction either, and she relaxed somewhat; maybe that white, huge, wolfos-wannabe dog was still there, scaring people away. She didn't particularly care.
… She didn't care… yes, she didn't care… Hey, she didn't care!
She was going to leave before, no? With a triumphal grin on her face she grabbed the last chocowolfo, removed the covering and tossed it over her pile of trash. Giving an almost apologetic smile to the bar, she sunk her fangs into it.
She didn't know what the heck was inside the chocolate, be spicy or sweet or the perfect mix, but she didn't care. It was good. Her tongue once again tried to coat her entire mouth with the pasty mess, savoring every little trace of sweetness and bitterness with every little part of her mouth. After she had had some five, maybe six bars, she learned the joys of slow and deliberate bites. If only she could enjoy this everyday.
"Dari kuso," a now all too familiar voice groaned and her heart flipped once in her chest. Her ears tingled in the highly clear direction the sound had come. "Sorry, Ari," Link groaned, pushing past a bush and making his way in her direction. "Seems everybody wanted a pizza tonight," he said, flopping down next to her and presenting a long, longer than his arm long, flat box on her lap. "There, a pizza of meat! With meat! It has a bit of everything; they got creative," he gave her a fanged grin and pressing the center of the box, made the lid retract, letting a strong and warm aroma escape.
And steal your food! "Hey!" Ari cried -for a moment completely forgetting who was in front of her-, trying to snatch the slice of the cheese-covered food back. Link wouldn't have any of that, dangling the slice in front of her before blowing the heat off and taking a huge bite of it. Ari blinked, feeling her initial impulse wearing down, and she felt bad; she quickly pushed away the idea of jumping and punching Link for stealing her food.
"Too slow," he grinned through a mouthful of pizza, reaching into the box and pulling a little bottle, pouring its contents over the slice. "Should try it," he raised his slice, "Wouldn't want me eating it all, would ya?"
Ari eep'd and immediately dove for her slice and would have stuffed it into her mouth –fearing more food stealing- but fortunately she noticed how hot it really was. Licking her fingers she managed to retrieve her slice, blow some heat off, and take a tentative bite. Warm, but not burning hot, much flavor, tons more than she had expected, and cheese dangling from her lips, promptly slurped into her mouth for immediate chewing.
"Good eh?" Link asked, kicking back and pulling out two drinks from his bag. "Should try the sauce," he said, taping the little bottle that he had left inside the pizza box, "Brought the spicy one. If it's too much, this is for you," he added, throwing her one of the drinks in her direction –and she niftily catching it, if she had to say it.
And with a huge, challenging grin plastered onto her face, she replied: "I like spicy!"
-o-
"Dude, that was good," Link's said, drinking the last of his soda.
"Ungh…" Ari replied, smiling lazily as she scooped closer to Link.
"Not sure if these guys knew what they were doing," he groaned, "But it was good."
And to show how much she agreed with that, she burped loudly. "Very good," she grinned, wiping beads of sweat from her brow. Who knew eating twelve slices of pizza could be so demanding? Oh well, it was a challenge she would gladly endure once again.
"Are you done, or is there still some room for more?" at the question, she looked up, and an unknown expression washed over her face. One of such disbelief it felt weird.
It was then that she said the words. Words so alien, so unfamiliar, so contrary to her that it took her a few seconds to realize she had said:
"Nope, I'm full."
Once the true meaning of her words had sunk in she blinked, yawned, and leaned against Link. Much better him than a tree.
Her eyes felt heavy, trying to close, but she kept them open, staring at the half eaten bar of chocolate lying on the grassy floor. She won or she lost that bet? Hee, she wasn't really sure, she was just happy to see Link was a very nice person…. And maybe crazy… well, maybe not crazy, but definitely weird. Very weird.
"What's so funny?" she heard Link asking, and felt his elbow nudging her back. Ah, that felt good. Rub, rub, rubbing that itch away.
"Nothing," Ari sleepily replied, chuckling some more.
He nudged her again and her back arched onto the touch. "Really? You can tell me anything you want." And even if she couldn't see it, she knew there was a lazy smile on his face.
"Link?" her eyes slowly blinked.
"Yes?" he turned a little and she almost fell on his lap.
"Why…"
"Why what?" he peered down to her face. Calm and nonchalant and a bit scary purple eyes finding hers, asking once again.
"Why did you-?"
"Why not?" he simply shrugged, barking a laugh.
Why not? She moved away from Link, sitting on her heels. She leaned her face a bit closer to him, wanting to see where the catch was hidden. There was always a catch.
There was always something! Did he think she was stupid?!
"But you- you just gave me your shirt!" she sputtered, clenching said shirt.
"Well, it was the closest thing I had to keep you warm," he nonchalantly replied, sounding as if it were the most obvious thing in the world, and for a moment, she felt it was. But a moment only last for so long, and something was stirring in her chest once again. She wasn't a stupid girl. She couldn't be a stupid girl if she had managed to survive for this long on her own! She wasn't a stupid girl!
And he was smirking as if he had been listening to her inner rant …
"But why?" she clenched her tiny fists, biting her cheek. "Why do you think I needed your help? Why did you help me? Why are you even nice to me, I stole your bag! You think I don't know how to take care of myself? Why did you do it?" She raised her voice, glaring into his eyes, knowing she was right. She knew she was right. Nobody was nice like that just because…
There is always a catch, there is-
"Really?" Link cocked his head to the left, grinning lopsidedly down at Ari. For a moment her brain didn't register what he had said, but then she simply blinked. It was almost as if he had been listening to what she was thinking. "Freaky, huh?" he chuckled and this time Ari was sure he had been listening!
"How did you…" she slowly said, unsure if he'd keep listening to her thoughts or not. Maybe there was really something weird with Link…
"Well, it's not that hard for people who knows how to," he simply replied, and she was sure he wasn't really answering her question. And that made her frown. "You look so cute when you pout like that."
And the blood was rushing once again to her cheeks. "I'm not pouting!"
"Aww, adorable."
"I'm not pouting!" she shouted, flinging her tiny fists around. She was that mad!
"Okay, want me to take a picto?"
Now, Ari would have replied if she hadn't seen Link's hand making its way into his bag. Who would have thought he was actually serious? Instead she clamped shut her lips and glared at Link, wishing he wouldn't think anything cute out of it.
Maybe he thought something cute of her glare but he didn't say anything about it. Instead he did something really weird. He put a hand over her head and ruffled her hair, smiling lazily. Then, she sighed, feeling a… a wave of calm washing down her body. It literally felt as if the calm were being poured over her. Like a cool something, wrapping around her body, and a bit warm, but not too much, just as it wasn't too cold.
Then, she realized how silly she had been. Why did she need to care how Link could know what she was thinking, or why he was helping her out, giving her clothes and food…
He was helping her, not because he pitied her… he just wanted to help her…
"There must be somebody out there who is worried if you are okay or not. I'm just making sure they don't have to worry about that."
Ari opened her eyes –not remembering when she had closed them- and saw at Link picking some bits of cheese out from inside the pizza box. She was sure she had heard him right… maybe…
"There's nobody…" she breathed out quietly, sitting back.
"Uh?" she heard Link sitting back next to her. She didn't have to see his face to know he was raising a brow in question.
"There's nobody worrying about me. I'm alone," she simply replied, leaning against Link. The time where she would have cared about the words coming from her mouth was long gone. She had actually forgotten when she had stopped caring about that. "Never had anybody. It's been always me and the streets and then the roads," her emotionless voice said. She scratched her elbow, not thinking anything out of her past. Why should she? It had never done her any good, and it never changed anything from what was to come.
"Really?" Link asked and it took Ari a few seconds before nodding her reply. She had been sure he would sound pitiful… instead he sounded, Link-like.
"Yeah. I mean, that's okay, I think," she simply shrugged.
"I see," Link said, sounding kind of distant. Ari wondered why was that, but she didn't particularly care. She just knew Link was warm, much warmer than a blanket or this new outfit she was wearing. "Okay, then it's settled."
"What?"
"I'll be that person then," Link simply said, putting an arm around her frame.
"Buh?" Ari blinked. Maybe she was drowsy… or maybe Link just didn't make sense. "What ya mean?"
"I mean, I'll be the person who worries if you're okay or not," he said, turning his head around to get a better look to her. "How does that sound?"
How…? "Wha-?"
"Or you already have somebody else in mind?" she moved a little away from his warmth and blinked a few times before she remembered she was supposed to reply.
"N-no, I don't… but… huh?"
"You can be sure I'll do a fine job, Ari," Link proudly said, smiling lazily. Ari could only laugh.
Once she noticed he was still serious the laughter died immediately. "You… you mean you want to worry about me?"
"Well, not worrying, I mean, if I make sure you're okay, I won't need to worry about it, right?" Link simply replied, resting back against the tree. "I'm just being proactive," and there was that lazy, rough smile of his.
Ari just sat there, looking at Link as if she hadn't really taken a good look at him before. Then she laughed even louder than before. And very nervously this time. "You mean, you mean you're gonna make sure I'm okay?" she inquired once her nervous laugh calmed down.
"Yep."
"But, why? Because somebody would worry if I'm okay or not? I told you, nobody would give a damn about me!" she replied, and she didn't know why she was sounding so nervous.
"Well, for starters, I'm that person, for the last thirty seconds. Second, I'm doing this because I want you to be that person for me," Link said before closing his eyes.
Now Ari was sure it was a joke from the Sisters. This was… this wasn't normal! "How can you decide something like that?! I mean, don't you already have somebody?" Why was this scaring her so much?
"Well, yeah, I do," Link said, opening his eyes as if he had just realized that. "But that doesn't mean I can't do with one more," he said, flashing another toothy grin. "And you need one."
"But… I just… I don't know…"
"What's there to know?"
"I… well, I-I don't know you at all, and you don't know me either!" she said, and this time she scooped away a little.
"Well, yeah, that's true too," he scratched his chin, almost as if he had just realized that too.
"See? This just wouldn't work. We don't know if this would work or what. It's just, well, I dunno, just like, I dunno…" Ari whispered, suddenly realizing she was feeling disappointed. She was feeling a lot of things she hadn't felt in a long time, and she didn't like how it kind of hurt her inside.
"Uh-huh, there seems to be a problem," Link nodded, looking down.
"Yeah…" Ari quietly said, looking down to her hands.
Both remained in silence as the sounds and lights of the city managed to crawl into the park. Ari could see some lights crossing between them, maybe a cabby taking a family back home, or maybe not. Laughs and chatter came muffled to their ears, but it was there.
"Well, what will you want for breakfast? Hey, you okay?!"
Once Link had finally helped stand up from her little trip to the ground, she was able to find her voice. "What was that?"
"Breakfast. What you feeling like?"
"… I'm not really sure what you're talking about," she slowly said, brushing away some blades of grass from her lips.
"Well, what you like? Cereal, eggs, bacon, pancakes, tacos?"
"I…"
"Or how about a surprise?"
"I… I don't understand," Ari slowly said, looking into Link's eyes. "What are you-."
"Well, you are right, we don't know each other, so I think we need to do just that. Starting from breakfast sounds like a good first step. And you're gonna need food tomorrow too, right? Free food, and you only need to put up with this lazy Wolfo," Link grinned from ear to ear. She thought he looked like a puppy ready to play.
"You're serious, aren't ya?" Ari shook her head. What was she thinking, of course Link was serious! She could feel it inside, like there was no room for doubt.
"Yep."
"You're crazy," Ari said with a little smile on her face.
"A Gerudo would wholly agree with you on that one. I think I'm pretty sane myself," Link simply shrugged. "So, any request? For breakfast, I mean."
"I think surprise sounds good," she shrugged too.
"Okay, be afraid then. Very, very afraid," he said with a smirk as he stood up. "Have a place to stay?"
Ari looked around as she stood up next to Link. "Well, this seems as good as any other place," she said, stretching up her arms as a yawn left her lips.
"Then you'll need this," the blond boy said as he pulled something from his backpack. "What?"
When Ari's giggles finally stopped she gave him a wide smile. "Why do you have blankets and a pillow in your bag?"
"What? You never know when they can come handy, right?" he tossed her now sleep instruments.
"Tomorrow?" Ari asked, wrapping herself with the furriest blanket.
"Tomorrow," Link nodded and then turned around, waving his arm as he disappeared from sight.
Ari watched until the last leaves stopped moving. Looking down, she barely recognized herself; wearing new clothes, warm in a cold night, and full of food.
She shook her head and laid down, making sure a blanket covered the grassy floor and punching the pillow a few times. She sighed contently, feeling how she kept getting warmer. She didn't recall exactly when was the last time she had slept this comfortably.
She did recall that one time this church had taken her in, but had forced her to say parts of their holy book for every meal she ate, for every time she went to sleep, every time she wanted to use the shower, every single time she wanted to use the bathroom.
She had never been happier to leave a place that ranked that badly.
Now, it was a complete different story. There was somebody who wasn't asking her for anything, just doing what he wanted, and it just happened that helping her was what he wanted.
"He's so weird," she mumbled, rolling to her side.
She took a deep breath, smelling something very peculiar in the pillow. It was like leaves, fresh leaves, a little bit of water maybe, and a touch of fresh and moist soil. First she thought of a forest. Then she knew it was Link.
"I hope you come back soon…"
-o-
Damn these birds, Ari groggily thought as the morning song rang through the park. She snuggled closer into her pillow, breathing in of that familiar essence. She didn't want to get up, but she knew she had to.
So, cursing the Sisters for the umpteenth time, she slowly opened her eyes to the glare of the new day.
"Burgers," a boy's happy voice rang in the air and Ariaka couldn't help smiling.
There was genuine happiness in her voice as she said: "That sounds good for breakfast."
To be continued
Well, maybe not in the immediate time, but some day. Sorry about the long, long, long length of this chapter. By the end of Kidnapping a Princess my chapters usually were this long… actually longer, thirty or thirty five pages in word. Last chapter was a huge monster of over 40 pages.
As you may have noticed, I have been trying to stay away from that bad habit of mine… not much luck, though.
Some of you may remember I used some words to add to their usual speech, but I decided to make that a Gerudo thing, so you won't be seeing it as often as before.
This is a modern Zeldaverse, not OUR modern world. So, you won't be seeing me writing about how they go to the theater to see your favorite movie, using jokes that only make sense to our world –like say, good job, Einstein- or something like that.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it, so tell me if you did, tell me if you didn't, just tell me something. See you next time.