Let it be known that I completely and totally ripped off The Cheshire Wolf's description of Skull Kid. . . Therefore I think it's only fair that I should demand that you go read her Skull Kid story. . . If you haven't already, at least. And if said author is reading this right now. . . Hi! It got me to write this, so be proud, Cheshire! Yes, Link is one of the two characters used in the summary, but that is only because this story is very Link-heavy (when isn't a LoZ story Link-heavy, really?). It is, however, still a completely Skull Kid/OC story. Thought I should just clear that up.
DISCLAIMER:The only way I own Majora's Mask is because I bought a copy of the game, so yeah, I won't be expecting your lawyers, thanks much.
Daylight slowly rose over the many crags of Ikana Canyon, although the hulking mass of Stone Tower casted a shadow over the entirety of the area due west of it, which included the smaller, yet just as impressive, structure of Ikana Castle. Settled on a hill between the two massive landmarks and just beside a small river was a peculiar looking house. There were three euphonium-like funnels protruding from the roof and a waterwheel was set into the side facing the river. It rotated steadily, which turned the large chime inside and made the music that echoed throughout the canyon. The cheerful sound seemed to give the monotonous scenery some life and lift the gloom that hung over the area. Living in this strange music box house was Professor Patrick and his two daughters; Pamela and her older sister, Primrose.
Primrose looked around the canyon as she left the music box house, 'Farewell to Gibdos' blaring as loudly and cheerfully as always. She didn't really enjoy the repetitive tune, but it kept the Gibdos—mummified creatures with fearsome, screeching voices that would freeze a human on the spot long enough for the creatures to latch on and strangle the life from the unsuspecting victims—from digging themselves out of the ground. The un-dead creatures—and any other spirit or monster of the like, actually—scared her half to death, so she was glad for the protection the song gave. She had learned how to tune it out to a tolerable buzz quite easily.
She tried to spot her younger sister, which should have been easy considering the bland and, for the most part, flat scenery, but there was no sign of the seven-year-old. Primrose worried slightly; there was no chance that she would wander off with a stranger because she didn't trust people easily, but the crows in the canyon were quite aggressive, and pecked at anyone unfortunate enough to catch their attention.
Primrose took up the long deku stick propped against the wall of the house by the door and began making her way down the slope of the hill towards the long dead tree near the steep cliff that led to a river that wound off and into a natural tunnel carved into one of the rock walls. The large river was fed into by the smaller one that powered the music box house. The sound of the small waterfall was a calming sound and from beside it the music box house's tune couldn't be heard at all. The dead tree was a favourite place for both Primrose and Pamela.
A loud caw interrupted her thoughts and she batted the crow responsible aside with her deku stick as it swooped in to peck. It gave an indignant squawk and flew off again quickly. Primrose smiled; the crows were aggressive but they could usually be discouraged before they became too much of a nuisance.
Her eyes trailed to the large stone gate of Ikana Castle as the slope evened out. She had been fascinated by the castle ever since her family moved to Ikana for her father's research (dead things, ick). The gate would never open—that much was obvious by how solid it looked—but to the left of the gate was a small hole where the rock wall had caved in. The hole led to a sort of alternate passage into the castle. Her father guessed that another kingdom had used it to get in behind the castle's defences in a war long ago. However, it was barred off by a large block that seemed almost as if it had been cut from an enormous lapis lazuli. There was a sleeping sun carved into the face. There was no ceiling over the half of the passageway where the block was, but it was too high for Primrose to climb up on. She often passed the time by standing on tiptoe and trying to catch a glimpse of the castle itself. She had no luck of course. At the other end of the passage was a circular room with a switch in the middle. When the mechanism was triggered, a circle of light would shine down from above. Primrose couldn't figure out why such a place was there.
She realized with a start that she had stopped moving and was staring at the castle. She scurried over to the tree and looked for her sister again. The girl was still nowhere to be found. Primrose was beginning to get very worried. Where could her sister have gotten off to?
She was so entrapped in her thoughts that she practically screamed when something dropped onto her head and burst open, soaking her from head to foot with cold water. She stared down at her clothes in bewildered silence and the thing that had burst slid from her head. It was one of the Skull Kid's water bombs. She frowned as a giggle broke the silence from the leafless tree branches above. It was followed by a series of muffled snickers and hushing noises, but it wasn't long before the full on cackle of the Skull Kid was echoing off the rock walls.
Primrose looked up at her sister and her best friend up in the tree with narrowed eyes. She wasn't really mad at her sister; Pamela couldn't make water bombs. The seven-year-old brunette was dressed in her usual pink dress and white stockings, and her red shoes shone slightly in the light that by now cleared Stone Tower enough to find its way into the canyon. Her face was scrunched up cutely with a smile and her freckled cheeks were flushed with laughter. Her dark brown eyes shone.
The Skull Kid himself was hunched over in his uncontrollable chortles. His wood-like skin didn't flush like a normal human's, but if it could it probably would have been completely red from lack of air. His chapped lips were covered in the waterproof white powder he always wore. More of it was used to draw a crescent moon around his left eye. His face was pulled into a feral grin so wide it looked painful, and his sharp incisors were easy to make out. Primrose scowled at his over-the-top show of amusement and picked up a smooth stone. She slung it at his head but he rolled backwards—although whether it was purposely or complete coincidence Primrose could never be sure—and off the branch. He twisted in midair to land gracefully on his feet with a grin. His hat, made from reeds found in the Southern Swamp, slid down to shade his face. His entire outfit was rather odd; His tunic was a bright red and lime green, and his pants were made out of reeds like his hat. His shoes were the same colour as his tunic and he wore lime green fingerless gloves on his hands. The belt that hung at his waist was made of stones carved into rough rings and strung together with leather strings. All in all, he was a strange sight to behold. He was also infuriatingly graceful, contrary to what his lanky body might lead one to believe.
"'Morning, Rose," He snickered, still recovering from his laughter, "Did you have a nice bath?" The glare remained on his friends face for a few moments as she attempted to think of a way to get back at the prankster before her expression changed to one of sly amusement. She began stalking toward him and he swallowed thickly, backing away. "N-now, Rose, you couldn't actually be mad about that... could you?"
The sly smile never left her face. "Oh no, I didn't mind at all," She said easily, amused that he didn't seem to notice that he was getting steadily closer to the cliff edge. "In fact, I actually quite enjoyed it, but..." The smile turned smug as she backed the Skull Kid off the edge. He fell to the river below with a startled yelp and his hat, which had caught the air and floated off, fluttered down after him. He came back up sputtering and stared up at her incredulously as she cackled much like he had.
"I think you're enjoying yours even more!" Primrose crowed.
Skull Kid scowled and grabbed his hat as he opened his mouth to retort but couldn't get a word in edgewise before he was hit in the back of the head with a rock. Primrose watched in awe as her friend swiftly drew a shooter from his belt and blew. The octorok, bobbing a good seven feet away at the least, shuddered as the stone from his shooter struck it and gave a squeak as it dove back under the surface.
'Amazing... I didn't even see him draw a stone!' She marvelled. She was pulled away from the sight of Skull Kid hauling himself out of the river by a call from behind her. Pamela was still sitting on the branch where the two older children had left her in their spat... of sorts.
Primrose smiled as she looked up at her sister stuck in the tree. "What's the matter, Pam? Can't get down?"
"No... I can't jump like Skull Kid can, and you fall out of this tree so many times you can't even feel it anymore!" Primrose's smile faltered slightly and she turned away, irked by Pamela's tone.
"Well then if you think I'm so clumsy, maybe you should wait for Skull Kid to get back up here so he can get you down."
"Ah! No, Rose, I trust you! Don't leave me up here..."
Primrose smiled again, "Never planned to, Pam."
She stepped up so she was standing under the branch and Pamela took a deep breath before sliding off the branch and falling into her sister's waiting arms. They spun a few moments and Primrose set her back on her feet. She looked over and smiled as she noticed that Skull Kid was back. He grinned back and pulled her into a hug when she was close enough.
"Good morning, Skull." She finally said, giggling slightly. He laughed along with her, as did Pamela.
"You two are soaked!" Pamela said. "It's kind of funny." Primrose blinked and looked at Skull Kid, who raised a nonexistent eyebrow. They both grinned mischievously and before Pamela could begin to run away they had her scooped up between them, Primrose holding up her arms and Skull Kid her legs. They hauled the squirming and giggling Pamela over to the pond made by the pooling water from the source cave and dumped her in. She popped back up and smiled at the two friends, who sat down on the bank in the now warming sunlight and watched her splash around for a few minutes.
Primrose let her eyes trail over to the Skull Kid leaning back on the palms of his hands. He was still letting off an occasional giggle, fully content with the events of the morning. His hat was still dripping water at the brim. His colourful eyes, a mixture of orange and yellow and green, glowed slightly with his mood. She had always liked his eyes.
Pamela walked out of the water shivering slightly. "Now I'm all wet, too. I'm going to change, Rose." Primrose nodded and her sister took off, jogging up the slope to the house and darting through the door quickly. Primrose shook her head slightly with a smile. Skull Kid stood from beside her and helped her up. Primrose looked at him questioningly.
"Let's walk," He said simply.
The two walked in companionable silence, not really paying attention to where they were going. Primrose was lost in thought yet again, this time about Skull Kid. According to her father's research there were actually many Skull Kids, but they never really got along with each-other so they were usually found alone. A Skull Kid was a child of any ethnicity that got trapped in the Lost Woods—the massive forest that served as the border between Termina and the neighbouring kingdom of Hyrule—and was transformed by its power. Skull Kids had no recollection of their life before they became as they were, but neither did they seem to care that someone might be worried or lonely without them. Primrose didn't thing she could bear ever losing her father or sister, or the memories she had of them.
She looked over at her friend again. He was strange even for a Skull Kid. They usually didn't like anyone, so the fact that he even conversed with her was odd. Then there was the silver earring that hung from his left ear. Skull Kid himself couldn't remember where he got it, so Primrose supposed he got it before he was transformed, but it made her wonder; having an earring when you were male meant that you were on your way to adulthood, so how much older than her was he? She was twelve, so was he one year older or possibly five? Maybe, or maybe he was even older than that.
Aside from the earring, there was the powder on his surprisingly human face. Most Skull Kids—according to her father, at least—had beaks like birds, and he had never heard of a Skull Kid wearing anything on their face.
'I suppose Skull just isn't like the others. But that makes him special, so it's not a bad thing.' She thought. Skull Kid snapped his fingers in front of her face and she realized that her bad habit of stopping when she was thinking deeply had kicked in again. He looked slightly amused, but also worried.
"Rose, you okay? That's the second time that's happened this morning!" He said. Primrose blinked a few times to get her wits about her again and smiled reassuringly at him.
"Don't worry Skull, I'm fine! I'm just thinking." She said. He pursed his lips and stared her in the eye for a few moments before nodding.
"Alright... fine. But just be careful, Rose. I don't want you getting hurt because you start staring off into space." His mood changed in an instant and he was all grins again. "And besides, if you end up stopping everything else when you think, then you're thinking too much." Primrose rolled her eyes and pushed his face away from hers with one hand.
"Oh be quiet, Skull. I have to think more because I'm thinking for both of us." She shot over her shoulder playfully. He gave an indignant snort.
"Hey, I do too think!" He prodded at her arm with a bony finger, "But just because it takes me less time to figure out what I'm doing doesn't mean you have to be jealous of my brilliance." Primrose laughed. They were up on the rock shelf behind the house by then, and something in the small alcove between the wall of the house and the ledge caught her attention. It was a bundle of some sort, most likely cloth.
"Skull, what's that?" She pointed to it and he followed her finger. Curious, he jumped down into the alcove and examined the heap. He poked and prodded it and even kicked it once or twice, but there was no response. Primrose shuddered as she finally realized what it was. Skull Kid voiced her thoughts aloud.
"It's a dead guy." He said, standing upright. "A Garo, if the clothes are anything to go by. Looks like he didn't blow himself up in time."
"How can you be so nonchalant? You're talking about a corpse." Primrose said, her nose wrinkling in disgust. Skull Kid just shrugged, preoccupied with examining the hooded poncho the corpse was wearing. Primrose shuddered as he pulled it off, exposing the gaping eye sockets and toothy grin of the skeleton's powder white skull. Skull Kid himself was paying the corpse no more attention. He held the poncho in one hand and his eyes were flicking from it to Primrose and back again in a calculating way.
"I think this might fit you, Rose." He said suddenly. Primrose jumped slightly.
"Are you serious? That thing was just on a dead guy!" Her voice was higher pitched than normal.
"Of course I'm serious! And don't worry; we'll wash it first." He rolled his eyes at her reluctance and tossed the poncho to her. She caught it, albeit hesitantly, and he climbed back up onto the shelf. She gave it back to him quickly and he rolled his eyes again. "Alright, Rose, we'll go clean it right now. But, either way it'll be good for you to have it; it's really warm." He headed off to the source cave to wash the poncho and Primrose looked back down into the alcove at the skeleton. It burst into blue flames so quickly that Primrose jumped. She didn't even wait for the skeleton to burn away completely, she just ran off after the Skull Kid.
Over the next few days, the Skull Kid visited Primrose and Pamela less and less. He had been gone for almost a week, and Primrose was beginning to get considerably worried for her friend. She would sit on the ramp outside her house and just stare at the dead tree in the distance. It was the afternoon of the sixth day of not seeing him that he finally reappeared. The Skull Kid, in all his energetic glory, hauled himself over the edge of the cliff and ran up excitedly.
"Rose," He called, "I'm sorry I've been gone so long! It's just that I've made some new friends! They call themselves the Bombers and they're really fun!" He halted in both his talking and his running as he noticed the gloomy expression on Primrose's face and his ecstatic grin slipped from his face silently. He felt a sense of guilt wash over him as he recognized the feeling she was experiencing from his many times feeling the exact same thing. He had left her there with no idea where he was, or why he was gone. She was lonely.
Primrose was lonely, but she was also hurt; Skull Kid had made new friends. Weren`t she and her sister enough? Primrose knew such thoughts were selfish of her, but he was her only friend, so she decided she had earned the right to be somewhat selfish when it came to him. However, she was also happy that he had made some new friends, and she was grateful that he had at least come to tell her about them.
"Well, thank you for coming back..." She said quietly. His smile was slightly subdued this time and he sat beside her and pulled her into a sideways hug.
"I really am sorry, Rose. I was just so excited that I forgot... I'm really sorry..." Primrose just shook her head. They sat like that for a few moments, he with his arm around her shoulders and feeling guilty for leaving for so long, and she just glad that he was back. A cry of surprise broke the silence and Pamela threw herself at Skull Kid, who, though bewildered, hugged her back.
"You're back! Rose and I were so worried!" The seven-year-old wailed, burying her little face in Skull Kid's tunic. He felt the dampness of her tears staining the cloth and stayed silent, not knowing what he could say to the saddened child. After a few minutes, she seemed to have stopped crying. She sniffled a bit, and looked up at Skull Kid. "You'll come and play with us now, right?"
He grinned. "Of course!" He and Pamela ran off and Primrose watched with a smile as Skull Kid dunked her in the pond much like they had the last time he had really visited. She propped her elbow on her knee and rested her head in her palm as she watched the two contentedly from her seat on the ramp. She hoped everything would go back to normal after this. If she only knew how wrong she was...