AUTHOR'S NOTE: Kafei and Anju. Just the mention of these two names sends a twinge of sadness through Zelda fans worldwide. If you failed to complete this side quest, or if a step was missed in the quest's transactions you'll know that the ending to this tale is not a good one and is incredibly sad. If you completed the quest, the result is quite the opposite. Nonetheless, this heart wrenching tale of desperation, love and most importantly, faith is the main reason I fell in love with this game.

eggplants and Beets

I awakened to the sound of crying.

Adrenaline pumped through me as my conscience switched from gentle slumber to harsh alertness in a matter of seconds. I lurched forward in my small bed, my hand reflexively grasping at my chest to try and slow my accelerating heart. Slowly and deliberately I inhaled oxygen, filling my lungs with the crisp night air. I held it in for a few moments before exhaling and falling back into my bed exhaustedly, my hands resting gently on my stomach. The same muffled sobs echoed eerily in the still air of the family courtyard, the sound bouncing off of the surrounding walls and seeping into the cracks of my windowpane.

Crawling to the head of my bed, I jerked open the wooden window that led to my backyard, craning my neck to try and put a face to the voice that so kindly jolted me awake. But my crimson eyes, slowly adjusting to the darkness, found nothing but neatly manicured lawn. The miniature field was only broken by a small structure planted directly in the center. The single tree that our backyard held was an old, knotted cherry tree that despite it's small stature, held a myriad of uses for us. Early spring brought us beautiful blossoms that showered out lawn with pink and white velvet, later transforming themselves into succulent, fleshy fruits. The summer, ample amounts of shade and protection from the steaming Terminian heat. But then came the present month, fall, when the once beautiful plant would seem to wither and die, it's crumpled form no longer hidden by flowers or cherries. This tree had been known as the ralopib tree to my friends in ClockTown because it changes so drastically from summer to winter. A common prank was to sneak into the my fathers private courtyard and rip a finger (small branch) from the phantom tree and show them off and trade them. Whoever had the most finger-like branch would become the current champ. I, of course, had been disqualified from joining in on this for obvious reasons. Upon studying this tree, I realized even shrouded by darkness, it's pale branches did resembled the limbs of a long dead corpse. I shuddered at the thought.

As I was turning to shrug off the disturbing noise as 'just a dream', something caught my eye. A small, reddish animal lay curled up by the roots of the tree, caught in it's imaginary grasp. It whimpered and cried in the still night, sending icy shivers up my spine.

"That's the animal that woke me up." I whispered shallowly as to not disturbed my parent's in the next room. They would definitely not be happy with me going outside so late at night, especially with that thief who runs around stealing things still on the loose . . . what was his name? Sakon? I swallowed hard and opened the window further, allowing just enough room for a ten year olds body to fit through. I positioned my hands on either side of the pane and counted to three in my head, launching myself into the night sky on the last digit. Sure, I could have just shimmied down the side of the house, but would that have been fun? I landed with an barely audible thud as my backside collided with the dirt.

"Ow . . ." I whined quietly, regretting my reckless decision immediately. I got up rubbing my sore butt and making my way towards the crippled tree that loomed in front of me. The exotic animal I had spotted minutes earlier hadn't moved, to my relief. Maybe I could even catch it and keep it as my companion? I always was jealous of my Bomber leader and his pet dog, truffles. So I crept closer, making sure to keep in the shadows that my large house created on the ground. As I came closer and closer, I noticed that the animal had no face nor ears and even lacked a tail. My eyebrows rose as a confused look crossed my face. If it wasn't stuck on the roots and branches, why was it still here? And then I assumed the creature must be no longer with us. The poor thing must have died just seconds earlier as it tried to escape the scraggly tree. I frowned and reached out tentatively, my fingertips barely brushing the smooth, auburn fur.

Then the unimaginable happened. The creature snapped it's head up, I screamed and fell back on my butt (again!) and the lights flipped on in my house. My pulse quickened for the second time in one night as I came face to face with glowing blue eyes. But I quickly realized these eyes were no beasts and instead belonged to the freckled faced redhead that was the granddaughter of the owner of the Stock-Pot-Inn. I let out a shaky breath and I noticed this was the very same girl that The Bombers loved to tease. But something was different, I had never seen her look so . . . so ethereal. I immediately noticed her stunning red hair, which acted as such a shocking contrast to her milky skin. I rather badly compared her long face to that of the moons round one, agreeing with myself that it wasn't the shape I was comparing, but the coloring. Even the intricate craters of the moon acted as her lightly dusted freckles. And how wondrously lunar her skin was . . . smooth and blemish free, unlike the other girls that fanned around me with their red, blotchy faces. But then she spoke.

"What're you gawking at, eggplant head?" She yelled at me, tears still staining her cheeks. eggplant head . . . how very creative, I thought snidely to myself, absentmindedly touching my purple hair. I pretended to be brimming with anger, for her sake.

"Just your ugly pimples, you beet head!" I shot back. If only she knew how much I was lying through my teeth to her. I just made fun of two of the things that I thought made her truly beautiful, her skin and her hair. What next, I tell her that her eyes are dull and stupid?

"There not pimples, you dolt! They're called freckles, ever heard of 'em?"

Just then, the small door to the courtyard creaked opened and two adults could be heard giggling. Not again . . . I thought, groaning inwardly. My fathers short silhouette could be seen making it's way through the courtyard and around the back, followed by a much thinner and taller woman than my mother was. I was wasn't amazed that they failed to notice us. My father was extremely unperceptive and the woman he frolicked with talked like a special needs kid. As my father and his receptionist made there way to the back door, I hung my head in shame. No one was supposed to know about this, not even myself. But I had known for a while now that father would sneak of with that slut from time to time. The loathing I had for that woman could not be put into words. I clenched my fists, biting my lip. What timing.

Beet head just stared at me, a sad expression on her face. She lifted her tiny hand slowly and suspended it in the air momentarily before finally placing it on my own open palm. I pulled away rapidly and looked at her, truly angry this time. My hands clenched and unclenched. But my anger for her didn't even compare to the anger I held for my Father and his illegal mistress.

"I don't need your pity!" I seethed, my face reddening with fury and embarrassment. "I don't need everyone feeling bad for me! I'm sick of people jealous one day and sympathetic the next!" I got up abruptly and started off towards my window but something stopped me, catching my arm. I looked back at the pale limb that held me in place.

"I don't pity you." She said softly as she urged me to sit down with a pat to the ground on front of her. I shifted uncomfortably on my toes before crouching down to sit parallel to her. My face tinted pink as silence was heavy between us.

"Don't you want to know why I'm here?" She asked in a much more submissive tone than before, brushing off the incident that just happened like it was nothing.

"Yes, tell me why you woke me up with your loud bawling and why your sitting in my backyard." I argued sarcastically. My attention still rested on my father and that women, sneaking off into the wee hours of the night to smash their faces together in the garden shed, making my tough guy facade a hard thing to keep up with. I lowered my head and fought back tears. She continued on slowly as if nothing had happened.

"Well, it all started when your little friends started harassing me as I was washing everyones clothes at the Laundry Pool. They started taking my . . .my . . ." She paused and laughed sharply, barely able to control herself. She was of those people that talked really fast in awkward situations. I could tell. "They were taking my grandmothers underwear and hanging them from the bell post by the post box! Of course I had to pretend I was appalled, which was hard because I found it hilarious and could barely stop from smiling. But I fooled them into thinking I was mad and they ended up dragging me over here! They threw me into your courtyard and told me to find the scariest branch and give it to them or they'll steal all our clothes. Then as I was climbing I fell and I hurt my foot and I started crying and then I sat for an hour and cried s'more than you came but I'm fine now!" She finished with a deep inhale of breath. I whistled, wishing I had been there for the laundry thing.

"You sounded like a wounded animal!" I said, laughing all the while. My father and his rendezvous with that whore had already come and gone out of my thoughts. My laughing ceased immediately as I membered that I don't even know beet head's name,"Hey, what's your name?"

"Anju." She paused, sticking out her palm. "Your's?"

"Kafei." I replied, grasping her palm and shaking it. Wow, I can't even remember why I made fun of this girl. She's really not that bad! As she smiled at me, I noticed her two bicuspids missing on top jaw. The very same teeth I was missing. I made a mental note to ask her when she lost them.

"You're the Royal Brat of this town, eh?" The smiled dropped from my lips, my brows knitting together in anger. Oh yeah, now I remember.

NOTE:

-This single chapter took me a whole 6-7 (11:00 PM to 5:00 AM) hours to write! Gah, I'm so slow!
-The word ralopib is bipolar backwards, meaning the tree has such polar opposite appearances. It also goes along with the whole Termina being backwards from Hyrule and whatnot.
-Remember how Anju makes the moons mask? get it? Lunar skin?
-Also tell me if something doesn't make sense so I can fix it. I never knew how hard it was to make a story make sense, lol
-You'd make my day of you reviewed it! :)