Author's notes: Finally! I finally got this done! This is the first chapter of the somewhat shorter fanfic called "Grief", a sequel to my "Falling Stars" as you can see. You can get by with not having read Falling Stars for now until about the end, when a certain character will appear. This is going to be a Zelda series, one I've been working on for... I dunno, long before I got this account. There will be 4 books, possibly a one-shot in the middle to explain something in the 3rd book. There's more explanation in the end notes :) Read and review please! I will post as frequently as possible!

Grief

Sequel to "Falling Stars"

Chapter 1: The New Boy

Clock Town was all I'd ever known. It was what my world consisted of. I had long since memorized all the people and streets, the shops in all 4 divisions of the Town (North, South, East West), and the best ways to get to each section. But in all my years of living in Clock Town, a certain spring day I will never forget.

Clock Town was already strange, so much so that it was normal. But this day was even stranger, and was only the beginning of the weirdest phenomenon I've ever seen. I was playing outside when I heard a terrible scream that seemed to be everywhere, and I felt the earth beneath me shake and tremble like it was afraid too. As a little girl I was scared to death and ran inside as fast as my legs would carry me, immediately bumping into my mom who ducked to the ground at my level, hugging me fiercely. My father joined the group hug, and so did my older sister. The screaming went on for about a minute, but it felt as if time was creeping across the floor as slow as molasses. When the earth was calm and the air was free of the terrible sound, we all looked up and took a deep breath, thankful it was over.

My father went to ask the guards what happened, while my mom started making us lunch to try and forget. Not long after he left though, my dad came back and said,

"Come and see!"

What I saw made me scream bloody murder.

Looking to the west, the sky was a clear, beautiful normal blue. But looking east was what caused me to scream. It was the moon. Upon its surface was a horrible face, a face that gave me nightmares. As a child, scary things were foreign. I lived in a very happy, comfortable and safe family; I was never given reason to be afraid. So seeing the moon with its sunken eyes and grimace baring crooked teeth, confused me. How was I to understand fear when I had never felt it? All I knew was that I didn't like this foreign feeling. My brain tried to organize itself, but to no avail. Thoughts began to creep into my shock-filled mind. What if the moon doesn't like us and wants to hurt us? What if that scream we heard was the first scream of a victim? What would the moon do to us? These seem like childish questions now, but they petrified me then. My father became the interloper and shook me.

"Tahla, come! We Must go inside! The guards have commanded us all to stay in our homes as much as possible."

I nodded and followed him inside. He sat in his big chair, so I crawled into his lap, my 8-year-old body getting too big for it. Father hugged me close to his side protectively.

"What's going to happen, father? Why does the moon look so mean?" I implored.

"I… I don't know. But I'm sure that there's a reason. As long as you stay inside a lot, my little Tahla, you won't have to see it. Out of sight, out of mind, right?"

How I wished that was true.

o.o.o.o

I stayed inside. All the while, the moon kept getting bigger and it was harder to ignore it. I was getting really nervous. Why was the moon coming closer?

"I don't know. But I'm sure it's nothing." My mom said, cheerful and optimistic as always.

"Maybe the guards know. If they don't, then the old man in the observatory should." My dad responded, not really answering because he had no comforting answers to give. After a while, everyone started to completely deny that it was even there. But I wasn't fooled by their stupidity and happy smiles.

None the answers were enough to satisfy me.

I was getting desperate.

I finally got my answer one day when I was going home from the market and it was getting dark outside. I tried my best to ignore the horrible huge face, but I could feel its sunken eyes following me the whole way. Walking faster, I tried to evade the stare. Speed walking wasn't good enough, so I started running. Running, running from the glare of the moon, the dark evil moon, where from its place in the sky it does not shine. I wondered if I'd ever escape it. My vision blurred with anxious tears. Partially blinded, I failed to see the boy in front of me. Before I could stop myself, a collision ensued, the impact knocking us both to the ground. I shook my head in attempts to clear it.

"Watch where you're going, girl!" A harsh voice said. In front of me floated a fairy who sounded very angry at the moment. I didn't know why; I wasn't trying to make anybody mad. I crawled backward to get away, wiping the tears from my eyes hurriedly.

"Tatl, don't be mean. The girl didn't mean to, she was just scared of the moon." The boy said sympathetically, but looking at the fairy, Tatl, with the look of rebuke. He wore a green tunic and hat to match, blonde messy hair and leather boots. Carrying a sword and shield expertly, he certainly looked well-armed for a kid my age. His eyes were the most interesting of all: blue-green, the colours blended beautifully and looked like oceanic fire. The wave-like flames surrounded the pupil; I got lost in the movement of emotions and experience that seemed to be there. The expression on his face said a little differently though. It seemed to give off the message of, "I can do SO much more than you think I can, but I don't want to be amazing by myself. Come on, let's be cool together." I read faces a little differently than most.

"H-How did you know—" I stuttered.

"It's maaaaaaagic," he wiggled his fingers dramatically. "But seriously, I'd be afraid too if I had that indulgence. My name is Link." He jerked his thumb towards the fairy. "That's Tatl. I'm sorry that she's not very nice. You were a little distraught, that's the word. Knocking me down was nothing." The boy smiled and I couldn't help but smile back as I brushed myself off and stood up.

I like this guy.

End of chapter notes: So for those who care, the order of the series is this:

1. Falling Stars - OOT fanfic. finished.

2. Grief - MM fanfic. finished.

3. As Real As A Dream - Link's Awakening inspired, not exactly about said game tho. finished.

4. Connections - AU Zelda Earth... It's complicated. not finished.

No, I don't have these up yet. But like I said, if anybody cares, these are the books. I won't say anything more :)