Karane's words had really gotten to me. They had me thinking, oddly, of Zelda's cruel ways, and wondering if she truly cared. I considered her common cold attitude for me, and her favoring of Link, which had always been hard to believe and hard to swallow. I was overcome with the person she was everywhere except for when talking to me. She was warm and bright. She was fun. Whenever she addressed me though, she was business or angry and cold. After a while, I determined that it was preposterous to believe that Zelda simply didn't care, and tried to think of other things.
The day passed slowly. I lazed around with boredom. I decided to visit the Bazaar for no reasons other than to quell boredom. I didn't even try to convince myself that it was for the sake of helping Zelda. I thought about what I should do in regards to that situation very often but I knew that that would require swallowing my otherworldly fears and visiting the statue once again. And while I truly believed that Gaepora was doing something to help Zelda, that was something I just couldn't do.
Having put a lot of thought into it, I had decided that Gaepora had someone who was on the case of the missing beauty. He seemed extraordinarily convinced that she wasn't dead, which lead me to believe that he knew even more than I thought. And that my gut feeling was right, that her radiance had not yet been taken from this world. And I know Gaepora. He cares for each individual citizen of Skyloft as though they were each his own children. I know that if his very own daughter had actually gone missing and there were clues everywhere to support that she was still alive, he'd be putting what he believes is his best foot forward towards finding her. And that foot is likely another instructor or the man who runs the sparring hall. Someone like that is out there in the who-knows-how-vast sky, detailing clues and interrogating the suspicious to bring her home.
As much as I'd like to try and convince him that I was the man for the job, I assumed that there would be no convincing him that someone as young and inexperienced as me could possibly play such a big role in something so important. As I found more chests opened and the more out-there stock of the item shop in the bazaar being put to use, I happily determined that something was, indeed, getting done. Changes were happening for a reason and it was comforting to believe that it was because we were growing closer and closer to having Zelda back home.
I could only assume that whoever had been appointed to the job could use my help. I should be a knight, anyway, and my skills in the air could certainly be helpful to someone who knows how to use them to help the task at hand. I could do nothing for Zelda on my own, but if I could figure out who was eliciting all of these changes, I could use their knowledge to find her.
When I walked in to the Bazaar, I refused to make eye-contact with the item-check girl, in case she was glaring at me again. I waltzed over to a counter I had never bothered paying attention to because I was curious as to what it was for. It had a man with a strange helmet behind it, and some old hunk of metal on the counter.
"Hello, there! What can I do for you?" he bellowed.
"I was just wondering the same thing."
"Alright! This is the upgrade counter, where I take your items and upgrade them. Usually for knights, as they get swords and helmets and other such items."
"...oh. How pointless," I grumbled. "What's the point of a shop that can only help a small portion of our already miniscule population? I mean, do you really make enough money that it's worth it?"
He seemed to determine this for a moment before responding, "Well, admittedly, I used to ask that myself. But, recently, our newest knight has brought in some things that are interesting and unseen, and perhaps discovering ways to advance these already amazing things are worth the trouble."
"Look, I wasn't looking for a speech, mister. I just don't think it's worth it."
I could tell he was insulted, and an awkward silence followed that statement, so I walked away. I hardly had time to consider what the man had said before a high-pitched voice suddenly rang out, "You! Mister! You there, with your masculine pompadour!"
I looked to my left to see a short man in a small hut, glaring at me with some of the strangest eyes I have ever seen. "Me?" I walked to him.
"Yes, you! Looking at you, I see... gold. And in that gold, trees. Trees, trees of use to you. Many, many trees." He seemed fascinated with his odd ramblings.
"I don't think you're seeing very well. There aren't that many trees in existence, weirdo."
"Oh, but there are," he whispered.
"Look, freak. I don't know what you slipped on to bump your head today, but it couldn't have hurt that bad, since it definitely wasn't a long fall down. So gather your bearings, and join the rest of us in sanity."
He simply laughed and made a motion for me to move along, which I accepted with more than grandeur.
I was almost out the door, but, once again, I was stopped, and began to regret my decision to venture into that place. "Oooh, hello. Wont you look at my goods?" asked an oddly smiley man who gestured to, once again, an array of things that hardly anyone would ever need. Explosives, shields of many materials, and a sack of pellets caught my eye. I couldn't see these things being used terribly often in our small land. But they had certainly been selling as of late, which is one reason why I had determined that someone was out there using them to find Zelda.
"No," I simply responded, and walked out the door.
In the bright light of midday, I tried to determine what I should do next. I decided not to fly, simply because I didn't know where to go.
Soon enough, I found myself on the top of the light tower, staring out at the sky, empty of anything but clouds and a large green light bursting from them. I began pondering the light's existence. Where had it come from? Why was it there? There was a red one, too. There had to be a reason for them to be there, yet no one seemed to care. As if they knew it was not to be dealt with. They all trusted Gaepora's word.
Well, I didn't. I didn't understand why we couldn't all use this light in... whatever way it was intended to be used to help find Zelda. Why only Gaepora and whoever else he had permitted to join the search could know why the strangest things were appearing.
I considered flying down to check it out when I noticed a familiar bright red bird soaring overhead, and it's passenger leaped, using Zelda's sailcloth to reach Skyloft safely.
It was evening, almost night when our newest knight descended to the plaza and began trekking with purpose towards the academy. I figured the shrimp was up to no good, and in a quick decision, decided to follow him.
No one was around as I quickly went down the ladder and slowly crept forward. The evening turned to night as I walked behind him, momentarily hiding behind trees and walls as I did. He marched up the stairs towards the academy. I waited a few seconds before silently doing the same.
I peeked around the corner of the top of the stairs to see the twerp climb some boxes and hop across the arch to the second floor. Once again, waiting just a bit, I did the same. I could only hear the wind as I followed him up the large set of stairs to the Statue of the Goddess, where I hid behind a pillar as he momentarily paused. He walked through the open doorway and marched up the stairs, where he paused again. Taking a risk, I walked to the doorway, standing in the middle, waiting for a movement of any sort. He stood for a while.
It was almost awkward as we both stood, him not aware of me, me not aware of his intent, before he fell to his knees, lowering his head with a sad grunt.
I stared in shock. He'd pretty much broken down. I felt as though some snarky quip was needed, but could only watch as his dignity perished. It hadn't been as long as the awkward pause before when he clambered to his feet, straightened up, and marched right into the statue.
I followed without hesitation.
Immediately upon entering the dim-lit stone structure, I wanted to leave. It was way too eerie in here for the simplicity of person. Despite this, I stayed witnessed Link walk up to the glowing structure with platelets of green and red. Then, from seemingly nowhere, he pulled the missing piece of the tablets. I watched in awe as he set the amber-jeweled tablet into the pillar. There was a large tinkling sound that jolted me, as it had arisen from the near silent area.
Suddenly, from the hilt of Link's odd sword, a ghost appeared, speaking a language I didn't quite understand. It sounded odd, like someone was speaking backwards, and there was no way it was discernible.
...except, I knew what she was saying.
Don't get me wrong, I didn't know that language, but I somehow knew what the ghost was trying to communicate.
This frightened me more than if I didn't understand.
She spoke of an "opening in the cloud barrier" and a "new area on the surface". There was no further explanation to the madness that occurred before Link turned, causing me to quickly and, admittedly, noisily run back up to open air. As soon as I could taste the night, I ran to the left of the statue, glancing towards the knight as he walked away from the statue.
He wasted no time in continuing onward. I could sense that he had a job to do and he was getting right to it. I wanted to follow him terribly bad, but my legs would not move. The fear from the mystical tablet and the garbled ghost had really gotten to me and my legs felt like jelly. I felt cold, and I could feel myself shaking despite the warmth of the evening air.
I regretted everything. I felt as though I had seen too much, and seen things of this world that very few were meant to see. But Link had handled it as though it were the usual, seeing ghosts and handling bejeweled ancient artifacts. When by body calmed and finally allowed me to move, I staked angrily back to the academy for the night. I suddenly began thinking of my mother. I could tell her what had just happened. I could explain this feeling of everything around me seeming to shift down. She'd know what to do.
Ignoring those thoughts, I entered the brightly lit academy with little to no care for anything around me, at the moment, as my thoughts were dancing and bouncing around in my head. I felt the need to sit on my bead and work through everything, step by step. But, of course, Mr. Owl Face decided that it would be a perfect time to interrogate me.
"Groose," he called from behind me as I began to descend the stairs. "What have you been up to?"
"Nothing, really, chief. I'd appreciate it if you'd quit it with the whole 'thinking everything I do is suspicious' thing."
He glared at me, and I could see that he was trying to find words. "Groose, I'm just... looking out for you. I don't want you to get into anything you don't belong in."
Exasperated, I stared back. "Are you kidding me? You always tell your students that this is a place for love and care! That everything's alright! That everyone will always be a part of a family; united, together. Why, suddenly, are there so many damn secrets? Seems pretty exclusive to me!"
"You've been pushing people away since... since you were eight. There's nothing I can do about that."
"Don't bring that up again." Why must it always be a sudden argument with this guy? "Quit trying to hide it. Something's going on with you and... and Zelda, and that twerp and the whole rotten lot of you! What might that be?"
He sighed. "None of your business, Groose. You should be with your classmates and your friends. You don't have to do everything alone, you know. They can help you with how you're feeling."
"Well, I refuse to let this go further without explanation. Whether that comes from you or investigation, I guess you decide here." I stared at him.
He stared back.
"Okay. I'm going to find out what's with you, that Statue, Link, those weird lights in the sky, and-"
"Groose," he cut me off, which I was grateful for, as there was an audible lump in my throat. "Drop it."
"...and, I need to know that Zelda's okay, Gaepora. I miss her."
We stared at each other for a while. It was a long fest of unbroken glaring. After a while, I huffed and ran back down the stairs, feeling like an idiot. I'd like to have one conversation with him without it flying into turmoil. Yeah right. I'd go beneath the clouds before that would happen.
As I ran down, I came across Stritch, who stood in my path. "Move, bug-brain," I grumbled in irritation.
"Bugs are actually quite smart. But how would I know? I can't get near them."
"What are you talking about, Stritch? You love bugs. They love you. No problem. Now move."
"Actually, bugs tend to stay away from people for certain, understandable, reasons. You see, if anyone has recently consumed a bug, they can sense it, and they escape in fear."
"Oh. Great lesson. I'm going to go sleep, now."
"Do you know anyone who's consumed bugs recently, Groose?"
"Well, probably. I mean, they're used for potions, so-"
Ohhhh...
He glared at me with an immeasurable amount of unhappiness.
"Oh, uh. You lost your... I mean, they... Look, Stritch, I didn't mean to. I was just helping out my sick buddy, you know?"
He still glared.
I groaned. "I'm sorry, okay?" I quickly moved around him, backing up towards my door. "It was an accident. Why does no one appreciate effort anymore, huh?" With that, I marched into my room, closing my door behind me. I flopped onto my bed, ignoring the unforgiving faint image of Zelda in my mirror.
