A/N: all right! At the request of Fenrir Riku and his encouragement, I have decided to begin revising this fic. Hooray and all that, right? Now, for an important note so no one jumps my ass: Zora Forever doesn't really have a plot. Think of it as a trashy romance novel. No real point to it except some mindless mush to enjoy. I may incorporate some smut into it this go around, seeing as how I'm now older and understand that sort of thing a bit more.
So! Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I realized I never did this in the first version of this fic. But, I don't own anything from Zelda. Nothing, I tell you!
On the second day of the allotted three days, a hot yellow sun shone over Great Bay as Link swam playfully and happily through the water, enjoying the way the light bounced through the water and off his gleaming scales. The bright cheerful sun and warm lapping waters almost made it possible to forget all the troubles the hero was facing. A bright side to his darker thoughts though, was that he had just saved the ocean and was one step closer to getting Majora's Mask and ending things. Too soon it seemed like for our hero, the sun sunk beneath the horizon and he was left in darkness with the moon and stars twinkling above him. Dripping, exhausted, and content, he made his way onto the darkened beach. Reaching up, he pried the mask off. It came off with more difficulty than usual, pulling uncomfortably at his skin.
"That's odd. What's this thing's problem?" he asked himself and the world in general as he looked warily at the mask. All he got in answer was a Leever popping up and an annoyed snort from Tatl who was still wet and unhappy from his earlier romp in the sea. With a light shake of his head, he destroyed the annoying pest, tucked the mask away, called Epona, and galloped away.
Getting back to Clocktown, he gave the gate guard a nod and started to wander aimlessly. Heaving a sigh, he starred up at the large moon wearily. "You're so much trouble," he murmured as he stared up at it. "You will not kill these people," he vowed. "I won't let you." The leering face reminded him of Gannondorf. With another sigh, this one puzzled sounding, he pulled out the Zora mask once more and looked it over, turning it back and forth in his hands, looking for anything that would clue him in about its behavior earlier that day; like it didn't want to let him go. Just as he was about to put it back on his face, Tatl jumped out from beneath his shield.
"Link, we don't have time to do anything else. We need to set time back again," Tatl murmured as she looked up at the moon. Link gave an annoyed snort and started to look once more at the mask he held.
"I can play the song of time with the guitar. I'm just curious why the mask is acting strange." Link had a frown etched onto his face, his subject from his earlier thoughts from earlier thoughts making him irritable.
"This isn't like you Link! Liven up and save the world! Then I can be rid of you, and get back to Tael!" she suddenly barked. Her selfish bark an effort to put the hero back on track and away from his dark ponderings.
With a sudden up grin, he shoved the mask back into his pack and looked at her. "You're right. We have things to do and people to save. Let's go Tatl!" he said with a grin. But the dark thoughts were still lying behind his eyes. So far back, none could see them. With a grin, he pulled out his ocarina and played the Song of Time. Beautiful notes shivered hauntingly on the night air, as sleeping people dreamt without care, as a lone boy fell through time once more in order to save them.
Blinking at the sudden bright light as he and his fairy appeared in the southern part of town once again Link swiftly pulled his instrument out once more and slowed time. With that, he raced off to Ikana and from there, to Stone Tower.
On the night of the third day, a weary and battered, yet successful, Link appeared in Ikana Canyon. "That was close Tatl. That was the hardest place I've been to yet! I almost didn't think we'd make it. I thought we'd run out of time." he said breathlessly to his panicked friend.
"Song of Soaring Link! Now! We need to get back to Clocktown by the twelfth hour in order to get to Skull Kid!" she hurriedly hissed.
Not even bothering to speak, he once more pulled out his ocarina and played a song of travels and flying ad speed. In the blink of an eye and a storm of feathers, they were gone.
They appeared in Clocktown and raced up to the tower door. Just as they reached it, a rumble and explosions from fireworks that none were there to witness, the door fell open, one step at a time. With a nod to the fairy, Link and she raced up the stairs to save the world once more from an encroaching darkness.
They were inside the moon and were playing 'hide-and-seek' with the second twisted child that resided inside the moon. "Why are you being so damn difficult?" he yelled at the mask after he had removed it once more. It had come off but not easily. It had burnt like fire while he had torn it from his face. "I don't have time for this," he hissed as he ran to the third and fourth children of the moon, fighting against time to save the town beneath him.
"Wake up! Wake up! You did it! You saved us all!" Tatl gushed as she bounced about happily with her brother.
"Hn?" Link groaned as he sat up. "What'd I do this time?" he asked as he got up and stretched.
"You saved Clocktown and everyone!" Tael said with a happy smile. "It was great! I was waiting there, hoping you and Tatl would be alright, and suddenly, 'BLAM!' the moon blows up and everything is happy again!" the black fairy bubbled.
All three turned at the sound of footsteps, Tael and Tatl hiding behind Link as a man approached them. "Yes, you certainly did managed to make a lot of people happy didn't you?" the mask salesman said as he came up. "I have gotten my mask back, the town is saved, you've made some new friends, saved an old one, and my travels are calling me once again." he said with a happy smile. He then turned and jogged off into the distance, yelling back as he started walking, "With every meeting there is a parting, and only those that meet can determine if it is to be forever or only a short while."
It seemed like time was still slowed with how long it took to see the four guardians of Termina off. Their mournful echoing voices still reverberated around the hills and country side. Link sighed and looked south, towards Hyrule and thought fleetingly of his empty tree house in Kokiri Forest with a brief feeling of longing. Goddesses he had never felt so tired or old.
"Uhm, wanna do something after the festival week is over?" Skull Kid asked quietly after he had watched the last of the giant Guardians disappear into the hills and felt the last of their footsteps in the earth.
"Sure." Link said with a soft smile, his eyes weary but happy. "I'd be glad to. We'll meet at the hollow log in a week. If I can't make it, I'll send note somehow."
"Tatl can go with you. That way, she can come find me and let me know if something happens." Skull Kid offered quietly. Tatl burst into a flurry of activity at the mentioning of her name.
"You have to get that Zora mask on and get your rear-end off to the milk bar and play with The Indigo-Gos!" Tatl barked at him. "They still don't know their guitarist is dead! You're going to have to tell them the truth after the performance!" she said.
Link felt any senses of levity leave him harshly, leaving him once again feeling far to old for his fifteen year old body. How he cursed Zelda sometimes for rewinding time. "I'll give them today, go back to the grotto tonight with them, and I'll tell them then," he said with a reassuring smile to the white fairy. He turned and started to the gate, pulling his mask out as he went. In a haze of white, the fifteen-year-old boy disappeared and was replaced by a twenty-five year old man. "See you guys in a week!" he yelled as he dashed off to the milk bar, guitar in hand already.
The performance had been a hit. Everything had been great. Until now that is. They had gotten back to Zora Hall, and he was in 'his' part of the room 'he' and Tija shared, and he was trying to figure out how to tell everyone the truth. Maybe I should go to Evan and tell him first? he wondered to himself. With a final nod, he jumped down from the loft, said a word of goodbye to Tija, and hurried to Evan's room. "I need to talk with Evan. Move please," he said hurriedly to the Zora guarding the door.
"Right away Mikau sir!" he said as he swiftly moved away from the door. "You need to stop worrying so much, or else you'll take over Evan's job!" he said with a joking smile before the door slammed shut in his face. "What's his problem?" he asked himself, blinking in confusion at the closed door.
Link shut the door and walked up the stairs to the other Zora, suddenly extremely nervous. "Evan, sir, I need to talk with you," he mumbled with his eyes to the floor. Goddesses he didn't know how to even start!
"Mikau! No need to be so formal! We've known each other for years! Now then, what is it you need to talk with me about, hmm?" he asked with a friendly slap on the shoulder, the success at the festival still effecting his mood.
Nervousness and discomfort got the ebst of the hero and his words came out in a hurried mess, but still uncomfortably clear. "I'm not Mikau. He's dead and buried on the beach." Way to make sense, you idiot. He whispered poisonously to himself.
"Mikau, what are you talking about? Are you feeling ok?" Evan asked; alarm was rising up within him as he starred worriedly at his lead guitarist.
"I am not Mikau," he mumbled, a bit more sure in his words. "Follow me, and I'll show you," he said, stepping down the stairs and towards the door. Evan remained immobile on the dais however. "Are you coming or not?" he asked as he looked back at the other.
"Yeah," Evan said as he followed Mikau out of the room. Maybe if he humored the other Zora, Mikau would come to his sense.
"Mikau, Mikau, why did I send you out there?" Evan asked as he starred stunned at the grave that contained his comrade and friend of several years. Link had told him the entire story beginning at how he had found the Zora in the water, right down to after he had defeated Gyorg.
"I'm sorry," Link said softly as he looked out over the ocean, giving the other some time. "I should've told you after I saved Lulu's eggs and was through at the temple," he mumbled. "I just didn't know how to say anything. You all were so happy…" he trailed off with a heavy sigh.
"I'll explain everything to the others. Are you sure you don't want to come back with me? I'm sure they'd like to thank you." Evan offered, calling himself a fool for never having noticed just how different Link's Zora body was to his memories of Mikau.
Link shook his head, his face twisted in frown. "I should just go now. I'm sorry about all of this and foisting this off onto you, but I think it would be best if I wasn't present." he said as he brought his hands to his face to pull the mask off. His delicate looking fingers sought out the minuet crack to break the magic of the mask and to restore himself, but he couldn't find it. He then tugged sharply at his face, and gave a yelp as he tugged at his own flesh instead of the layer of the mask. "Why can't I get it off?" he asked himself, starting to panick when he tugged again and the only thing he did was inflict more damage to his face. "I can't get it off! Why can't I get it off?" he barked as he starred in horror at his altered hands. A mournful echoing melody floated through his mind at a whim. "Song of Healing, that has to work," he mumbled almost hysterically, his eyes wide.
"Link, what's wrong?" Evan asked, starring in alarm at the boy in disguise as he played a song over and over again. "Link, what's wrong?" he asked, really worried now as he watched Link's guitar hit the sand, a blank look etched on his face.
"Evan, I can't get the mask off. I'm stuck as a Zora until Goddesses only know when!" he whispered as he starred at the sand. He then did what anyone would do if in this situation. He keeled over in a dead faint.