The morning sun was high over Skyloft, bathing the cloud-bound island in warmth.
A small green and white creature had awoken, ruffling her fur as she stretched and yawned. Blinking her emerald green eyes, she padded through the grass, her paws not making a sound.
Her nose twitched as she tested the air; it was crisp and clean. With an energetic bound, she leapt forward, her body melting away into thin air as she made her way down towards the river.
There, she spotted a young man, clad in beige and green. He had been sitting alone, by the water's edge, staring aimlessly into his crystalline reflection. He sighed softly, resting his chin on his knees.
He was startled, upon catching a glimpse of the creature beside him in the water. But when he turned to look beside him, she was nowhere to be seen.
Subsiding, he let loose into an affectionate chuckle.
"You surprised me, Verios."
With a ghostly giggle, the cat-like creature revealed herself next to him, nuzzling his arm playfully. The boy, known as Link, smiled gently as he ran his hand down her back.
"Did you forget about today?" she asked, blinking and gazing up at him with those entrancing eyes; they seemed to sparkle like the surface of the river.
Link shook his head, disturbing his golden hair. He pressed his hands into the earth, hoisting himself up on his feet.
He jumped suddenly, discovering a petite blonde girl suddenly standing before him; he found himself captivated again by those emerald orbs.
"A promise is a promise!" he nodded at her, a grin forming on his face.
Verios giggled again; the pale skin of her mortal form lit up pink on her cheeks. This caused Link to blush too – she was quite beautiful.
Brimming with newfound energy, the boy beamed as he took the girl's hand. She was dainty and soft to the touch, which only made him smile more.
"Come on!"
….
Link had lived the entirety of his life in Skyloft. His dream had always been to become one of the revered Knights of the sky, guarding the innocent; but where he excelled in swordplay at the academy, he lacked attention towards the rest of his work. Thus he was deemed "lazy", and more often "spacey", by his peers and tutors.
His only real friend had been Zelda, the daughter of the headmaster. They were childhood companions, doing a lot together since Link lost his parents; but it was his association with Zelda that made a lot of his classmates jealous - on top of the fact, that he was looked down upon for failing his classes.
Lately, Link couldn't help feeling pretty empty and alone. The company of his crimson Loftwing had solely been keeping him steady…
Until recently: everything had changed.
He had met Verios – one of three spirit maidens said to have been created by the Goddess Hylia herself, or so the legend went.
Verios hadn't looked much like a maiden when she had first appeared, though. In fact, her true form resembled a white feline, with sumptuous fur and two thick tails each tipped with green. Her ears were large, and tiny emerald claws could be seen beneath her feet; then, there were those eyes of hers…
Shy at first, the spirit had been reluctant to show herself to Link. But upon sensing the goodness in his heart, and his kind soul, she had decided to divulge herself to him.
Link had been delighted to have found such a peculiar creature; truly unlike any other he had ever seen in Skyloft. She had mysterious powers, which made her even more curious; for one, she could communicate with Link through telepathy. She could also become invisible at will, while in her animal-like form.
Only Zelda had, so far, been shared in on the spirit's secrets.
"V-Verios?!" Link had been frantic, waking up one morning in his dorm room and finding that his new friend was nowhere to be found.
The window seemed to have been forced wide open.
Dashing faster than his legs could carry him, Link had sped out into the village. The morning sun glared upon him, as he searched about for Verios.
In his desperation, he ascended the steps towards the statue of Hylia, two strides at a time, hoping to spot her from the highest point on the island. As he climbed, the melodious and gentle sound of a harp began to grace his ears. Panting, his slowed as he reached the top; his blue eyes widened.
Standing at the foot of Hylia's statue was the beautiful Zelda, strumming softly on the gold instrument in her hands. She was smiling, as a white bundle of fur below her was gazing up in wonder, head swaying to the sound of the music. Link put a hand to his chest, breathing a sigh of relief, before trotting over.
"She seems to like music…" Zelda mused, her eyes serene; she lifted her gaze to Link, "You know her already?"
Link's face heated up, as he rubbed the back of his head, "U-Uh, yeah… she sort of followed me home yesterday."
"She's beautiful…" the headmaster's daughter reached out to touch the creature's head; but it coiled back slightly.
"She's… a little shy." Link grimaced, walking over and kneeling down beside her. He reached out to stroke her head, and while she seemed hesitant at first, she did allow him to pet her.
Zelda looked upon the two and smiled, albeit a little excluded, "It's nice that you've found a new friend, Link."
….
As mischievous as the spirit was, she was sweet; it appeared she kept her animal form exclusive only to the eyes of those she trusted. And she had become very fond of Link.
Of course Link had been pleasantly surprised, to find that Verios also possessed the power to become human. The delicate young woman before his eyes was merely a fabrication, but nonetheless it got his heart pounding.
He'd learnt that Verios wandered Skyloft as she pleased, however would always be around when he needed. It felt like having his own personal guardian angel. Even his Loftwing had gotten along well with her, being able to communicate with her as an animal.
Spirit or not; Link was certain that he'd found a friend.
The moments he had spent with her until now on the isle were treasured indeed; and now that Verios had developed an interest in humans, and a desire to be among them, he would be spending more time with her in her mortal form: the mysterious beauty, who had seemingly appeared out of the sky.
….
"Morning, Link!"
Link grinned broadly, waving cheerily at the woman they were passing by.
The elderly lady screwed up her eyes, as Link disappeared quickly, pulling a golden-haired girl in tow. At first, she had thought it was Zelda with him, but on second glance… she seemed more like a porcelain doll than human.
Her complexion was white as ivory, and the twinkle of green in her eyes complimented the colour of the dress she wore. Also, she could have sworn the girl was running bare foot.
Giggling ecstatically, Verios scampered along, holding Link's hand tightly. The excitement of exploring a human village was dawning on her – she had never been confident enough to show herself around people, but things were different now with Link by her side.
"There's so much I want to show you!" Link cried, racing ahead and perhaps even more eager than Verios herself.
All eyes were on them, as they made their way hurriedly through the settlement of houses and shops, with the breeze lapping at their faces.
The village folk were surprised, to see such a smile on Link's face; and all were interested to know exactly who that strange girl was.
One individual, in fact, was taking a huge amount of interest.
This young man, too, had at first mistaken the girl for Zelda. Fuming for a good few seconds, he was relieved to recognise that it wasn't the damsel he'd thought it was; yet he was still perplexed.
"Who would be hanging around with a worm like him? And… a girl, no less!"
Slicking back the snazzy red pompadour that was his hair, the young man known as Groose suddenly took off after the duo; intent on satisfying his curiosity, and with any luck ruining Link's fun in the process.
….
"Okay, now you wait here."
Verios' eyes shone with momentary distress, before Link poked her on the nose.
He grinned again, "Just sit tight, I'll be back in a sec! Don't go anywhere, okay?"
Blinking in her ignorance, Verios tilted her head as she watched Link scramble off quickly out of sight.
He seemed happy. It brought a smile to her face.
Casting her eyes around idly for a while, she finally settled on a nearby tree; taking short steps she frisked over to it, smiling and taking indulgence in its cool shade. Throwing out the material of her dress behind her, she made herself comfortable, sitting back against the tree trunk.
Sighing lightly, she gazed with reverence into the gorgeous blue canvass overhead. Shreds of sunlight through gaps in the branches danced against her hair and face, making her feel more at ease. She sighed again, closing her eyes.
Her thoughts drifted, and she began to wonder about her sisters.
Were they both safe in the lands below Skyloft?
Being the youngest of the three kindred spirits, she missed Nysios and Aesios a great deal; it was daunting to be apart from them.
At such times, in which she longed to see them again, Verios would sing to herself. It helped to uplift her mood.
While in her spot under the tree, she began quietly humming to herself at first. It was a song she'd always known, and that had always comforted her.
"Winds play with the grassy land
Leaves slowly dancing with them...
I sing with the child of fate... as the sun rises on east."
Her voice was a haunting melody, with the allure of a siren: pure, and naturally bewitching. Although she sang quietly, the tune was carried strong across the little prairie, delighting the ears of any who would hear it.
"Rain gently falls over us
Any sad thought is washed away...
Night comes in the plains, quiet... humming with words of dreams."
In her tranquil state, Verios hadn't yet noticed the stranger with the red pompadour, who had taken the opportunity to approach during Link's absence. She paused, her emerald eyes flickering open, when she felt Groose's much larger shadow dip over her.
She was startled to say the least.
….
A/N: Thanks for reading! I am currently holding a contest on DeviantArt to create an end to this short story! Please check out my account, if you're interested – my username: DetectivePrincess