He always went in and out of town in a rush.
Be it sunrise, be it midnight, you can pretty much expect him to return at any of those times. Sometimes just for the sake of buying a new shield, sometimes heavily wounded from his battle on the surface. His routine was always the same almost everyday; come back to skyloft, sleep, buy some potions and gears, and then back to the surface. Or sometimes the Pumpkin Landing, as I heard. Having him around Skyloft for at least two days were like a dream to me, and to everyone. It's funny, really. Back in the days, people would start searching for him when he had gone for two hours, and now, he hasn't been back for a week, and it's perfectly natural.
He was always the type to never give up. Especially when Zelda is involved. He once returned with a burnt green tunic, saying he got 'lava'd' down there. Once, his tunic was full of sands, and I swore I saw his cheek's skin red from being burned in the sun. But that was all he ever said. He never told me, his best friend (after Zelda, of course. Those two are practically soulmates that it had already became a cliché of the academy to tease about them.), what or who he was fighting down there, how was Zelda, had he found her yet, practically anything. Nor how his sword managed to change colour and shape like that, too. Was there a blacksmith on the surface?
His selfless-ness was enough to make people all over Skyloft loved him, but too much for him to get enough attention for himself. Yes, I appreciate how he got me and Karane together, and how he somehow managed to get Groose out for a little while (though, he hasn't come back yet, Odd.), but he needs to pay more attention to himself. Even I still wonder how he managed to remain unscathed the next day after falling from considerable distance, burnt by a burning mountain (which I actually had trouble believing), and had his tunics covered with cuts here an there the previous day. It's been weeks, months, even, since Zelda dissappeared. But he still hasn't come back with her, nor reported anything about her to him. The only one he reported to was Headmaster Gaepora, judging from how he always went to the Headmaster's room everytime he visited.
Though, I sometimes do wonder when and how he got the time to help people all over Skyloft, too. Monsters had became rarer and rarer until they never appear again a few weeks after he began his quest. My money had also been dissappearing a lot lately. Presumably taken by mom to pay for whoever else but our favorite Academy Sleepyhead for cleaning our house-something she should've done herself, considering our wallets' aren't getting any fuller by paying someone else to do our jobs. Fledge had also became literally a monster. He did, like, a thousand push-ups almost everyday, and that was just his warm-ups. And of course Link had something to do with it, as Fledge had said so himself. Also... Is it just me, or is the item keeper's daily regimen has been changed to daydreaming all day, muttering Link's name? ... I don't even want to imagine what happened. Honestly.
He always returned with a big grin on his face, that much I could tell. After all, it was me who saw him entered the Knight Academy before anyone else. He seemed to be bothered with nothing, like how oblivious and a sleepyhead he always was. But, despite how Cawlin always said that Link didn't care about Zelda and instead enjoyed himself down there, I really disagree.
One night, during one of my patrols around the academy, I checked the hallway once more, like usual. I could hear Cawlin's snore from behind Groose's door, and Fledge's push-ups counts from behind his door, but, strangely, I couldn't hear anything from Link's, so I decided to check.
I'll be, he really wasn't there. Nothing too unusual, really. Perhaps that sleepyhead had fallen asleep at Beedle's shop, or went outside to trade some items, or even to rob my red rupee via my mom again. But, strangely, I heard something from Zelda's room. It was a sob, a muffled sob, followed with some muttered words I couldn't really make out. Someone was there, even Kukiel could guess. I can ignore it for all I want, but it could very well be a thief, couldn't it? Strangely, though. The 'thief' inside that I saw after peeking a bit from the small opening on the door was someone familiar to me. Link, standing in the middle of the room, his azure eyes facing Zelda's painting on the wall while both his hands held the white sailcloth Zelda wore on the Wing Ceremony.
I stood in silence, watching as muffled sobs began to reach my ears. Link looked down, tears rolling down his cheek as he gripped the sailcloth until it wrinkled considerably. "Zelda..." He muttered out aloud, "I'm sorry I couldn't protect you... I'm sorry I couldn't be with you..." He looked up again, his sobs and tears gradually softened, leaving him with a pair of red eyes and wrinkled sailcloth. A smile made its way to his face as he gazed at the painting on the wall, who he was gazing at-Zelda or Headmaster Gaepora-, I shall never know. But almost everybody in Skyloft would make the same guess as me, I'm sure. "I'll wake you up soon... Just wait, Zelda."
I didn't notice it, but I guess I smiled when I saw him said that. Not saying anything, I continued my patrol, leaving Link to 'have a talk' with his Zelda. Heh, it seems like it was only yesterday since he fell asleep in class and had me and Zelda frantically throwing crumpled piece of papers at him to wake him up before Mr. Owlan could notice. (Which we both failed at, actually)
I was darn sure he could take care of himself a few weeks after he began his quest, so after a while, I stopped worrying about him too much. Well... Darn it if I ever even thought that.
It was only a few days since I heard him muttering in Zelda's room. I was on my patrol once again, and, since a remlit showed up and kept following me, I went outside the academy to put that kitty far away, and then it just happened. Link had returned, I could tell from the sound of wings beating behind me. But wait, Link's loftwing can't fly at night, couldn't it? Curious, I snapped my head back, and dropped the little Remlit almost right away, staring wide-eye in shock at the scene before me; Link was there, of course. But he was in a very bad shape. Bleeding cuts all over his tunic, his shoulder clearly looked it wasn't in its normal place, and his loftwing was hurt very bad, from bringing its master here at night and bumped to some rocks in the way, I presumed. Blood seeped from the corner of his mouth and his honey-blonde bangs, and his arm too, I noted.
Like what anybody would do when seeing the scene, I ran over to him in an instant, yelling his name to make sure he was okay. Link didn't answer. He only groaned as I picked his head up from the ground, frantically asking what happened. His pulse and breathing was still there, much to my relief. I couldn't really make out what he was saying, but I think he muttered something about 'Moblins' or something? Where had he been going to? No matter, what he needed was to get those wounds tended to.
I brought him back to the academy, and let his loftwing rests beside the academy building. He cried out in pain when I accidentaly touched his dislocated shoulder as I laid him on his bed, but went silence afterwards. I had woken Karane up the second I was sure Link was on the bed, and we both took his tunic, chainmail, and hat, leaving him in his undershirt and pants. Karane was acting as frantic as I am, it seems. What's with her yelling 'What happened?', 'Is he alive?', 'How long has he been like this', and something along the same line. Which I only answered with one answer I had in mind; I don't know.
After a few frantic minutes (which was so unlike of either of us to do that.), we finally recomposed ourselves, wiping the blood away from Link's face with a warm towel I had took without permission from the kitchen. Well, I can always apologize later, anyway. Finally, after a few moments, we stood in silence, sighing in relief as Link's soft sleeping snore echoed through the room. We were both relieved-very. Neither I nor Karane ever expected to see Link like this. Not when he always shows up unharmed almost every day. Karane only went to sleep after making sure Link's wounds were already bandaged, and she swore to force Link to stay in Skyloft tomorrow.
Personally, I'd love to give him a handful of scoldings, but I guess I have to wait for this sleepyhead to wake up, my patrol's already done for the night, anyway. He kept muttering 'Zelda' in his sleep... Just what really happened?
He's so stubborn, isn't he? He was already that injured, but he still insisted on leaving the next day when he woke up at night. I swear, if it wasn't for me yelling at him 'you won't be able to save Zelda if you die', I doubt he would obey Karane's order to stay that day. But really, perhaps it was just a miracle, but after two days, all of his wounds were already healed. His tunic had already been sewn back, so was his hat, no scar was left on his head, and his dislocated shoulder had already recovered completely. Honestly, this guy is not humane. That day, he was going out of the academy again, that same smile on his face again, that same phrase he always waved a hand at me with. "I'm going, Pipit!"
And, like what I always do, I waved back, replying his smile. "Good luck, Link."
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A/N: sooo yeah, this was just something I wrote to get out of author's block, and just a simple reminder; I wrote this not for the sake of shipping, but friendship. Anyways! Thank you ever so much for reading and any kind of reviews you'd left for me is a gift from the heavens! Thanks again and have a good day!