Author's Note: Hey guys! It's been a tough week for me personally, and it's about to get tough for Link, too. I edited the crap out of this and I still don't feel satisfied. What do you guys think? Anyways, thanks for taking the time out of your schedule to read this, please R&R, I really appreciate it. :3
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The descent down to the beaches of Outset was silent. Link was numb inside, still stunned that he had failed to protect Aryll from the giant bird. The pirates left him to the villagers while they continued to move things on to their ship.
Orca stood on the beach, spear clenched tightly in his fist. He looked like he wanted hurl his spear far off into the distance, to pierce the bird right through the heart. Belle-Sue helped to clean Link's face and hair of blood, since his Grandma had fainted after seeing the giant bird abduct her darling granddaughter.
Throughout this entire commotion of mixed voices filled with concern and questions of what action should be taken, Link was silent. He said nothing, lost in the tumult of feelings inside of him. He was shocked that the bird had taken his sister, sad that she was gone, and furious as well as ashamed of himself for letting it happen. Even though Sky said more than once to the mute boy that there had been nothing that he could've done, Link still felt that he was to blame for his sister's abduction. Part of him was convinced that this wasn't real, that it couldn't be real. He should just curl up in a corner somewhere and wait until everything made sense again. The other part was screaming at himself to do something about it instead of sitting here like a moron while his sister was being carried farther and farther away by some ridiculous-looking bird.
Finally, after he convinced himself that this was in fact reality, and that it wasn't going to change anytime soon, he decided that this was his fault, and he had to fix it. He got up and approached the pirates. The pirates called the girl Tetra often, and she seemed to be the one in charge. Normally, Link would have been excited to meet real-live pirates, but now he couldn't care less.
"Hey," he said to get Tetra's attention. The girl glanced his way with an annoyed expression.
"Oh, you. What do you want?"
Link wasn't usually aggressive, but something about her irked him. "You're going after that bird, right? Take me with you."
That made Tetra pay attention. Her eyebrows shot up and her dubious look only made Link even more determined to give chase to the bird.
"What?! You want to come with us on our ship?" A tough-looking pirate in a green shirt and red bandana stopped what he was doing and came over to Tetra, dismissing Link as a runt on sight.
Link nodded. A voice in the back of his mind told him this was a really bad idea, but he told that voice to shut up. Sky said nothing, but he was proud of Link. He had taken the initiative to combat the evil that existed in this world, disregarding his own safety, a sure sign of a hero.
"Do you understand what you're asking? We're pirates! You know…PIRATES! The terror of the seas!" Yes, this girl was really starting to annoy Link. The fury he was feeling against himself as well as at that horrendous bird leaked out of him a little.
"If you're such terrors then why did that bird catch you in the first place?!" he snapped.
Tetra blinked in surprise. He looked like he wanted to punch something. His green eyes were dark and his fists were clenched. No one seemed to notice, but the wind had died down. Link leaned in until his face was close with hers. The green pirate tensed, ready to grab the kid and fling him into the Sea.
"That….thing took my sister," Link growled darkly. It was the angriest he had ever been in a long time. He was going to get her back, and these pirates were going to take him with them whether they wanted to or not.
Tetra took a step back. This kid was crazy. "I know how you must feel with your sister having been kidnapped and all…," she said slowly, "But that doesn't really have anything to do with us, does it?"
"And how do you figure that…?" a new voice asked.
Link turned to see Quill, the Rito postman. Link was familiar with the winged man; oftentimes, when Quill delivered the mail, Link would be waiting beside the postbox to pester him about all the islands he visited on his travels. Quill tolerated him, and was in fact amused with the youth's curiosity. He did indeed have many stories to tell, being one of the few Rito powerful enough to endure extended flights across the Great Sea. He never stayed for long, though-there was always mail to be delivered.
But today was an exception.
He told the pirate, as calmly as he could, that it was indeed her fault that Link's sister had been kidnapped. If the bird had not come to the island, it would have never mistaken Aryll for Tetra, and she would have never been taken in the first place. A look of guilt from the pirate girl let him know that his words were having an effect on her.
With a serious expression that rarely left his face, Quill related to the pirates, after quelling several of their interruptions, of the rumors he had heard of mysterious kidnappings of young girls with long ears all over the Great Sea. The red bird listened to the man attentively. As a spirit guide, he believed it was his job to help remind Link about objectives or important pieces of information.
When Quill mentioned that the bird made its nest in the island known as the Forsaken Fortress, Tetra visibly paled.
"The Forsaken Fortress?! Isn't that the place where…" Her voice trailed off into silence, leaving Quill open to demand, "So, what are you going to do? Under the circumstances, I don't think it would be unreasonable for you to give Link a little help, now, would it?"
Tetra flushed and that trademark annoyed look returned to her face. After snapping at Link a little more, she finally relented that she would let Link on board if he found himself a shield to protect himself with. Link took the abuse, trying not to undermine the postman's hard work. He thanked the postman, who only wished for his safety in this endeavor, and walked off.
"I like him," Sky said as he followed after Link.
Link said nothing. Most of his anger had drained away, leaving him full of guilt. The fact that the only shield he knew of on the island was in his house, where his Grandma was, just made it worse.
On his way home, Orca called to him and beckoned him to come over. Numbly, Link obeyed. The old swordsman's face was obscured by the shadows cast by his wooden awning. Orca was silent for a bit before saying, "…I'm sorry, Link. I did not take you seriously when you told me of the bird. And now-" He abruptly lapsed into silence and had to clear his throat before he could go on. This was possibly the most emotional Link had ever seen him.
"I wish I could do more to help. If I could move," he growled with such vehemence, glaring at the old wound in his leg that prevented him from ever being able to engage in serious combat ever again, "I would go rescue Aryll, instead of you." He sighed heavily. "As it stands, I can only offer you this."
Orca held out a faded brown button-up and opened it. It was a small pouch, so Link gasped when he reached in and pulled out an entire fishing spear. And then another. And then another! Orca set the spears against the wall of his house and gave the pouch to Link, who held it reverently.
"I found that while Sturgeon and I were travelling," he said quietly. "You can fill it with many things, and it will only become full after much stuffing. I hope it helps you on your journeys."
Sky inspected the pouch with amusement. Yes, he most certainly recognized it.
Link thanked him repeatedly until Orca held up a hand to silence him. Suddenly, he looked much older and sadder and more tired than ever. "The elders wished only for the youths to know courage like the hero of legend," he said, quoting the legend of the hero. Sky perked up at this, staring intently at Orca, but he said no more on the subject. His last words were "Keep the sword. You'll need it. I only wish I had more time to train you.", which were accompanied by a fond ruffling of Link's hair before the boy set off for his house again, clutching the pouch and wondering why his eyes stung.
He grasped the doorknob and hesitated for a second before opening it.
Inside his house, Grandma was holding the shield in her hands, almost cradling it. She looked up with sorrowful eyes when Link approached her, guilt gnawing at his soul.
"Link…is this what you're looking for?" She held up their family shield, which had hung on the wall for as long as Link could remember. He recalled rainy days when Aryll used to drag him out of bed and make him play 'Hero versus ancient Evil' with her for hours, all under the gaze of that shield.
Link nodded, too scared to use his voice. Grandma looked at the shield for a little while longer before holding it out to her grandson. "…Take it."
As Link strapped it to his back, Grandma began cleaning some of the remaining blood from his hair. As she worked with trembling fingers, she began to talk. "I guess it is true. Aryll really has been kidnapped…when I first heard it from Orca, I thought it was just a dream…"
Link was silent. A lump had formed in his throat and his eyes stung. Then he heard his Grandma begin to sob, and she threw her arms around him. "What kind of monster would take such a sweet, young child?" she said between sobs. Tears dampened Link's shoulders. A few wet Grandma's shirt, as well. Link wrapped his arms around his beloved Grandma, letting some tears escape his eyes.
"I'm going to get her back, Grandma," Link finally forced out. "I promise."
Grandma backed away and pulled out a handkerchief to wipe her eyes. Link reluctantly turned to go, but Grandma motioned for him to wait.
"I can't send my grandson out to save my granddaughter without helping him," she said with a shaky voice. "Be a good…," here her voice failed for a second, "Be a good grandson and help your Grandma lift this door."
She shuffled towards her chair next to the fireplace and removed the rug that lay there. To Link's mild surprise a trapdoor lay underneath. Obediently, Link dug his fingernails under the edge of the trapdoor and heaved. The door was thick and had not been opened in a long time, so Link had to use every bit of muscle he had ever gained from lifting rocks and pigs to raise the door and hold it there while his Grandma walked down into the dark pit that was their musty cellar.
Who knew they had a cellar?
As he waited for his Grandma to ascend from the darkness, Link turned his thoughts to Aryll. What did the bird do once it had captured little girls? Did it eat them? Feed them to its chicks? He remembered sneaking up to a seagull's nest with Aryll once and recalled how the seagull had actually chewed up its food and regurgitated it for…ugh, he couldn't bear to think of Aryll in that situation! Guilt stabbed at him again and again, standing alone in his house, propping up a door for his sobbing Grandma. He glanced at the pictures on the wall. There was the time Aryll had been picking flowers, and there was Aryll playing with the seagulls.
It suddenly hit Link that he might not see these pictures for a very long time. He would not see any of this for a very long time.
Link tried to swallow, but failed.
Finally, Grandma returned, holding something in her hand. "Link…I can't do much for you, and that really hurts me…," she said weakly. Her eyes were red and puffy. She took a shuddering breath and continued. "But I can at least make sure you'll always have the money to eat well." She held out the object in her hand, and Link nearly fell to the floor in shock. An orange rupee! An entire. Orange. Rupee!
THAT WAS WORTH ONE HUNDRED GREEN ONES.
It was Grandma's life savings. Now, it was Link's. Holding the gleaming orange rupee, Link understood the brevity of the situation and Grandma's fear of never seeing either of her grandchildren ever again.
Suddenly, it felt like the rupee weighed more than the entire island.
Outside of the house, Sky waited for Link. He knew when to give the poor boy a private moment. He had turned so that his back was to the window, and was now absentmindedly looking across the island.
Is he really ready to fight that monster? Sky thought. The reaction he had had to Bokoblins was bad enough, and he had been more lucky than skillful in that fight—though Sky would never say that out loud. He sighed, feeling the wind beginning to pick up again, ruffling his feathers.
Something caught his eye up on the cliff. Something was…forming. It was small, impossible to see from the beach…without sharp bird eyes, that is. Sky could see a grayish-brown shape being created out of thin air, now resembling some sort of…
The thing turned its head to look right at Sky, then proceeded to cross the bridge, headed for what Sky immediately knew to be Link.
"Strange," Sky noted.
