All right! Next chapter! (does happy dance)
Link: While Courage of Awesome does her… dance? I'm gonna say the disclaimer. Courage of Awesome does not own myself or any other Zelda references.
My head was killing me, and I had a familiar aching in my arms and legs. Sitting up, I pulled up my pant legs and shirt sleeves. A look of confusion washed over me. The wounds on my arms and legs were… wrapped? The doctor must have come and vaccinated me and wrapped my wounds while I was sleeping. Creepy, I figured.
I stood up and stretched my limbs, listening to my joints pop. I sighed, feeling refreshed from the night before. " All right," I told myself. "Time to get cleaning. First things first, I have to get the cobwebs and dust taken care of." I walked towards the kitchen to locate the cleaning supplies. I tied an apron around my waist and put my hair into a bandana. I made my way back into the foyer with the cleaning supplies and almost dropped them. Where was all the dust? Where was all the cobwebs and spider webs? What sorcery is this?!
I looked around the room and swiped my finger across an end table. Absolutely no dust rubbed off. "Maybe it was the ghosts," I mused to myself. I started to chuckle when a ghostly wind blew by, making me shiver. "What was that?" I asked aloud. It felt like something had breathed on the back of my neck. Was it the ghost? I breathed in deeply. "Get a grip, Raven," I ordered myself. "There's no such thing as ghosts. Anju was just trying to freak you out."
Sitting down, I rubbed the bridge of my nose, confused and frustrated. My thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. I got up to open it and saw an elderly man with large glasses and a bulbous nose staring at me. "May I help you?" I asked.
"Yes, I'm the physician. I've come to give you a rabies shot and bandage your wounds," he said bluntly.
I was confused. "What are you talking about? Didn't you do that last night while I was asleep?"
"Of course not, you stupid girl! If you're not really hurt, I'm leaving!" he sneered, turning on his heel and leaving.
Standing at the door, baffled, I couldn't help but wonder who treated me. It made me worried. Just who was in my house? I turned back inside and sighed. "I can't dwell on anything now. I need to clean," I decided, grabbing the mop and bucket of soapy water. Plunging the mob into the bucket, I started to mop the foyer. I mopped throughout the manor, making my way to second and third floors, only stopping to change the water every now again.
While mopping on the third floor, I came across an old wooden door. It had one of those old timey locks on it that usually had a big iron key to go with it. From what I could tell, this door should lead to the tower, or at least I hoped so. It appeared that way from outside. Wondering what was up there, I grabbed the handle and pulled. Locked. "Just my luck," I grumbled. "How much should I bet that the key was one of the items that was stolen."
I headed back down to the foyer, hoping to get some more cleaning done. Deciding to beat the cushions on all the furniture in the manor, I started with the cushions on the loveseat. Although most of the furniture was covered by sheets, I didn't doubt that some dust and mice found their way to dirty it. I grabbed the cushions and started to drag it out the door.
As I opened it, I found a woman at the doorstep, her hand poised to knock. She had dark red hair in a ponytail designed for dreadlocks. She was really tan and had a… full figure. She wore a simple dress with an apron around the hips. Small circles of color were tattooed under her eyes. She had a basket that smelled wonderful in her arms.
"Oh, sorry," I apologized, setting the cushions down for a second. "Is there something I can help you with?"
"Oh, no! Of course not!" the woman exclaimed, her voice warm and rich. "I've come to help you and welcome you into town. I was told someone had moved into the Twilight Manor, and I thought I'd come see for myself, but I never expected you to be so young! I'm Telma."
I grabbed the woman's outstretched hand and shook it firmly. "I'm Raven. It's nice to meet you, and thanks for the welcome," I said, happily.
"It's no trouble. I thought you might join me for lunch," Telma suggested, holding up the basket. "I brought turkey sandwiches and some lemonade."
"You know, that would be great. I don't have anywhere to eat, though. I haven't gotten the kitchen cleaned yet," I informed Telma.
She smiled. "That's quite alright. We can have a picnic!" She walked to a spot in the yard and laid out a blanket she pulled out of her basket. She handed me a sandwich and pulled out a thermos with lemonade in it.
As we ate, I learned a lot about Telma. She ran a bar in town called the Sleeping Goron. Apparently, Telma and her husband Renado knew a few of the gentle rock creatures from the volcanic mountains and decided to use them as their muse.
I sighed, full and content. "So Telma. Do you know when school starts up again? I gotta finish my senior year."
Telma thought for a moment. "Next week, if I remember correctly," she said.
"Okay, then I still have time. I was hoping to finish cleaning up the manor before then. That reminds me. Do you know any good electricians and plumbers? Well water and candles are great and all, but I'm gonna need some form of modern technology. I plan to live here for probably the rest of my life," I said.
"Oh, how wonderful! I hope you do decide to stay. As for your utilities, I have a friend of mine that would be more than happy to do it. He loves seeing knew people move into our fair little town. I'm sure he would give you a good deal. His name is Auru. I'll give him a call when I can," Telma promised. "Now, let's get to work!"
"Huh?" I asked, puzzled.
"What? Did you think after seeing you working so hard, I wouldn't have wanted to help? Come on, let's get started!" she said, moving towards the house.
I gave off a light chuckle before following her in. We ended up polishing all the frames to the furniture whether it was the chairs, tables, staircase, or the beds (which were huge, even in the old servants quarters). We had also got all the dust, dirt, and rodent presents out of all the mattresses and cushions in the manor. We also ended up cleaning the bathrooms which somehow had, to my delight drainable sinks and tubs made up of a fancy stone that I had no idea of the name of.
"Phew," I breathed. "I'm done for the day."
"Same here," Telma sighed in exhaustion.
"I feel kinda bad about letting you clean my house," I told her.
Telma shook her head, a smile on her face. "It was no trouble. I enjoy helping people. That does remind me," she said, taking my hand. She placed a small pouch in my hand.
I opened it, and my mouth dropped. Inside was about a thousand rupees. "Telma, I can't except this. You've done so much already," I said, my eyes watering up.
"Nonsense," she dismissed. "Nothing is too much for my friends, and my friends deserve the best. Consider it a donation to help with the house note." Telma started for the door. Turning towards me, she smiled and said, "You should swing by the bar sometime. I'll have a nice meal waiting for you. And don't be afraid to come ask me if you should need anything. Well, bye!" She left without another word.
I couldn't help but smile. Telma and I had gotten a lot of work done. The only things I had left to do were to clean the kitchen, trim the courtyard's foliage, do a few last things to the bedrooms and around the house, fix up a few things that were broke (namely the old stable outside the manor), and maybe see if I could get the tower door open. Okay, so maybe I had more work to do than I thought.
Deciding to relax a little, I grabbed my sketchbook and pencils and went to the courtyard. It was definitely overgrown, but it was still beautiful. There was a large fountain in the center, cobblestone circling around it, that was probably magnificent in its heyday. There were large crape myrtles, apple trees, grape trees, and other flowering trees. There were overgrown rose, hydrangea, lily bushes. A large pond lay nestled at the far end of the courtyard, lily pads floating on the surface and a stone bridge stretching across. A patio with ivy wrapped around the columns of the canopy, old stone benches, and a table rested on the other side of the pond, probably used for brunches and tea. It was beautifully wild. Just on the other side of the wall was more of the forest known as the Lost Woods, overgrown and never tamed.
It was the perfect time to do some sketching of the courtyard. While twilight was, ironically, settling in over the Twilight Manor, it gave the courtyard an otherworldly glow. I sat down on the grass and began sketching. I was determined to capture the courtyard's essence in my drawing.
It was getting dark by the time I finished. I would have to add color to it later. Maybe I would start selling my art to make some money. After all, my career as an author would have to kick off first before I made any money. I sighed and set my sketchbook down. Looking up for a moment, I almost had to do a double take. I could have sworn I saw someone lingering by the back gate. Getting up, I slowly approached the gate. No one was there.
"My mind was playing tricks on me," I said, trying to convince myself. Just as I was about to turn away, I saw something by the timberline to the forest. Feeling compelled, I started running towards the figure. I stopped when I realized what it was. It was a wolf. It had a coat as black as the night and piercing blue eyes. The strange thing was that the wolf appeared transparent, almost as if it was an apparition. It headed into the forest.
I followed it into the forest blindly. It feels like its leading me somewhere, I thought as I followed it. If I was in my right state of mind, there was no way I would have gone in, but I wasn't so I did. I weaved in between the trees as I followed the wolf. Running through a break in the trees, I found myself at the bottom of a large hill, the wolf staring down at me from atop it. I walked up the slope and the wolf stepped aside, allowing me to reach the top.
Looking up, I saw the full moon pouring moonlight through the tree branches. Something on the ground at the top of the hill caught my eye. It was an old rusty key. Picking it up, I wondered what it could go to when the tower door flashed through my mind. The whole time, the wolf was staring at me expectantly. Was it leading me to this key? And what was the key doing out here?
The wolf turned to leave, back in the direction of the manor, and I followed it. It led me out of the forest and back to the courtyard where it suddenly vanished. I spent a little time looking for it when my curiosity got the best of me. What was in the tower?
With newfound wonder, I bolted for the door. I wanted… no… had to know what was in that tower. I was going to find out.
Okay, this chapter is done. The plot thickens. Let me know what you guys think in a review.
Link: Speaking of which, please, rate and review!