We have come together, my readers, for a small update in Teach Me How to Cry, chapter seven, Irritable Invitations. Probably the smallest chapter to date, but that's okay, as I love this small interaction Zelda and Palutena will have together. This is the last scene before our big reveal of something next chapter which I'm sure none of you are seeing lol. Last chapter, Zelda made quite a large claim with Parents Night officially having Palutena Miranda coming to it, with Peach instigating this concern. She also has some plans for Mr. Link Scottsdale, one not good for our fellow. Enjoy Chapter 7, Irritable Invitations.
Zelda hissed, wincing as her mother's sewing needle stabbed her skin accidentally. She stood on a low stool in the middle of their living room, the scent of bitter tea swamping the whole house. Palutena was on her knees, sweating feverishly. A hurried glaze was spread over her eyes, as she whisked away at the skirt wrapped around her daughter's waist. Zelda bit her lip, ready to just jump into the action. However, she knew what her mother was like. The response would vary from every direction.
Palutena finished pining the hem of the skirt to Zelda's waist. "Done! Why, darling, you look absolutely gorgeous in that. Promise me you'll wear it tomorrow to school?"
"Of course I will, why wouldn't I?"
"Need I remind you of your teacher and what she told me? You going to school in my outfits and then ditching them later... well, I will not tolerate it. I spend much of my time devoting to it and I need it to go to good use."
"Yes mother," Zelda nodded, getting off the stool. Her body was filled with suppressed excitement. "You remember, don't you? About Peach Eona and her friends? That's just it! I told you about how I felt they might've just been my friend out of pity or some fake reason... but its true! They really are my friends. I was so proud of Peach and I looked up to her for she is an amazing role model... I imagined they actually liked me. My worry has been appeased for they do!" She threw her hands in the air, giddy and exhilarated beyond belief.
Palutena smiled. "Yes, sweetheart. She's always been your best friend. Haven't we already discussed this over tea? What's the need of bringing it back up if we've already disclosed the mat-"
The daughter of the two turned abruptly, facing her mother. "But... Mom, my assumptions were correct! Everything's different."
"Darling, I am positive that things are unlike what they used to be. You're different." the green-haired matriarch said slowly.
"I knew you would understand! I'm proud of you too, for the lovely costume. The gorgeous halcyon swirls combined with luscious smears of sunset orange... I wanted to die in the comfortable material you made out of it. Mother, I showed it to Peach. She called you clever! Many girls in our school would flat out collapse if she said that to them. I can't believe she thought that of you, since she is a Eona and all of them... well, that doesn't matter! They, the people at school, will all think that when they see your costumes. And, when they see you."
"Zel, please stand back up on the stool. I realize that one of the pins isn't sticking. We don't want the boys at school getting an eye view of you." Palutena murmured, not necessarily aloud but not to herself either.
Zelda complied. "Tomorrow night is a very important night for me. Everyone is going to school for meetings and such. They call it Parents Night. The kids go, and so do their parents. You get to meet everyone and have a wonderful time!"
"Sounds nice."
"Why, it's more than just nice, mother! It's delightful! Nothing-nothing happens there that you have to be worried about. Everybody dresses up all real studious like, as if they are attending mass or something. We go to the Assembly Hall, hearing a lecture from our principal that I've heard so many times I can recite in my sleep. Then we disperse, meeting the teachers and observing the school. I want you to go. You don't have to talk to anyone if you don't want to. I just want you to be there. That's all." She winced, trying not to frighten her mother.
Palutena was quiet, silently terrified, knowing something terrible was wrong. She paused from her hemming. "Parents Night?" she asked, frowning.
"At my school," Zelda clarified. "You've never seen my school, and you'll know what I'm talking about after this when I tell you things over tea later on. You like me talking about school, don't you?"
"I like it sometimes. But, hemming your outfit is more on my to-do-list than attend a silly school-"
"We can do the hem in a minute. First, let's decide what you'll wear," A bright sparkle shined in the eager teen's eyes. "That deep emerald dress you have! It is the prettiest one you have in the closet... wear that! People would be sick with longing watching you. Peach would be so jealous!"
"I wear that to church. That's reserved for God, darling." Palutena said firmly.
Zelda pushed on urgently. "Yes, and you like going to service, right? Everyone is nice to you there, saying good morning and the smiles. All the smiling, and the politeness that exudes from them. We say good morning, they say it back! Well, it'll be the exact same scenario, except we have to start with a good evening. Simple!"
"I'll say good evening..."
"Yes! Yes! Mother, you're getting it," the teen couldn't rest her happiness, crouching to the carpet from the stool. "I'll stay right by your side, the same way I do at church. You'll get to see how nice everyone is to me! It'll be the best night of the year, if you give it a chance. I'm telling you!"
"That's my problem, sweetie. You're different. Why are you different? Change is never good..." Palutena asked her, staring at Zelda Miranda straight in the eyes. It was a rare occasion for such seriousness to take place in the house.
"I'm not different! I've become happier than before, that's all. I thought I was changing, but that has long since stopped."
The response came back rather piteously. "I don't understand. I don't understand."
"You don't have to. You only have to stay beside me and do what I say. We'll have such a great time."
"Alright."
Zelda faced her mother, her face exultant. "I didn't know I could be happy."
"Foolishness," Palutena dismissed the statement with a casual wave of her hand. She started hemming the skirt again, even though the conditions was less than suitable. She was breathing into the carpet, her daughter crouched low on the floor. "You have, forever in my mind, been happy."
"No. No, that's a lie. I have never been happy. Excited perhaps. Happy? No. Never. However, now I feel light and energetic and boisterous. Through the day at school, I'm running and laughing and being someone I thought would never come true. At night I'm dreaming, of golden woods with apples the size of ceiling fans being blown away by rainbow winds. There's a waterfall that I think of when walking to school, roaring and crashing down a brilliant blue. I find it strange, now when thinking... I'm not afraid if it goes away. It couldn't go away, my fear... just months ago. Now it can't even leave, no matter how hard I try."
"I've been lied to this whole time..."
"No, you haven't. You weren't present, that's the issue, mother" Zelda spoke sternly. "All you have to do is say good evening. If anyone asks you a question... then I'll answer for you. Shyness exists in many people. We call it anxiety when it grows to a crippling level."
"Sh-shy?"
Zelda closed her eyes, nodding. Deciding it was never going to happen again, she hugged Palutena. The embrace caught the mother off guard, almost teetering them over to the floor. She kissed her, Zelda Miranda finally executed the action of a close daughter to a close mother. "Oh mother, I love you so much!"
Palutena sat up like a rocket, half throwing, half pushing her daughter off. "You- you've never said that to me before." She started to sob, clutching Zelda's legs, rocking back and forth.
Zelda scoffed. "Don't... mom, please-"
"I don't like the way you're acting. You are scaring me Zel, scaring me!"
"Don't be frightened. I don't want you to be frightened, because we don't have to be... oh, can't you understand?"
"I don't understand anything anymore."
"Then try! Why can't you try for me then, if no one else," Zelda shouted in a moment of despair, fury and long awaited emotions pouring out. "You never even attempt it! You give up all the time and lean on me. It's all you do, leaning on a shoulder to cry on. It makes me tired!" She huffed, storming to the window, staring out of it.
"You're angry now... aren't you?" Palutena asked from her tattered ball.
"No, I'm not," Zelda's voice was empty. "I'm not anything.
Palutena struggled up to her feet. "You are. Zel, admit it. You are angry. Tell me what I need to do, and I'll do it. Just don't be angry." she offered. She outstretched her hands, almost beseechingly.
Zelda swung on her. "I want you to go to the school tomorrow night and not be frightened. I want you to never be frightened!"
It was rather ironic, the outburst, as Palutena leaped out of her own skin, terrified. "Yes, dear. I'll never be frightened."
"You'll come to Parents Night?"
"Yes-"
"Promise?"
"Yes!"
"And you won't go anywhere to hide when things get rough?"
"No."
"Promise." Zelda was unflappable.
"I promise." Palutena nodded solemnly, one lone tear streaming down her cheeks.
The living room of the Miranda residence was quiet and silent, save for the screaming of the tea kettle and the bitter scent of said drink. The two stood, staring at each other. In a breaking of the tension, the two hugged, whispering soft assurances and apologies to each other as the darkness of the room drained into a lighter glow. Times were a changing.
Parents Night was coming.
There we are my fellow readers! That was Chapter 7, Irritable Invitations. Even though this chapter is terribly short, it's buttering us up for our next chapter, which I figure is probably called Parents Night, because I'm unimaginative and can't think of a new title. But, despite this chapter being small, much happened in the course of these two speaking. Zelda grew a firm hold of her emotions, agreeing to be stern and happy. Palutena is slowly coming out of a sheltered fantasy. Like the story said, times were a changing.
Metroid-Killer- Yeah, Peach is irredeemable in this story. Luigi is my favorite Mario character however. Now... I want a story focusing on him, haha. And yep, that was the irony of the flowers. Pink is normally her favorite color, but here she is ridiculing it and hating it. Thanks for the review!
ExodiusLK- I still want to get that birthday drabble out for you, but that may be this weekend because I'm pathetically slow and have a terrible tendency to write absolute crap for the small stuff. Lol, begging Peach to be nice is gonna get you nowhere, sweetheart. Wow, that's gonna be a first for me! No typos? Sweet. And yes, gruffed is a word. I've seen it books, similar to a grumble.
Luca the Wolf- I never know when you review because for some reason I do not get a notification. Peach is quite the backwards character, isn't she? Thanks for the compliment! There'll be more on the way.
Alright, next chapter is a doozy and I'm certain it'll be the longest one in the story. I'm aiming for a 8k-12k chapter, but I am no so sure my fingers will type that fast and insanely. Please review! Let me know what your thoughts are on this small chapter? Was it a better pace to the long ones I've been writing? Also, is Zelda and Palutena's shift a good... plot point? Let me know, I'll be delighted to respond. Hopefully I'll have Chapter 8 out by Monday, but I don't know. This story is almost finished, just four chapters to go. Thanks for reading guys! Love you all! Have a wonderful day! Bye!
~ Paradigm