Published on July 28th, 2013.
Replaced (ver.1) on December 7th, 2015.


Chapter 8/50
The Heartbreaking Wing Ceremony - Part 3
Skyloft Arc (8/9)


"There! Are you happy now?!" Eddy asked Ed after the three prayed (although Eddy prayed without any thoughts).

"Yes!" Ed answered, grinning. Since Ed did not know the location of the Waterfall Cave, Link and Eddy led the way to their destination. They hopped across the rocks when they reached the lake while Ed sang his hop song. After reaching the other side, they saw an old man staring at the bird statue with no eyes. He wore a big green shoulder cloth, beige shirt, and black pants. "That statue looks cool!"

"You think so?" the old man named Rusta asked. He was missing some teeth, and his breath smelled like pumpkins. "Look at this thing. Who knows how long this statue has been here? But...it has no eyes. Poor thing."

Eddy gulped upon hearing that. Yesterday morning, he stole the orange gemstone from the statue's right eye. "Hey, we better get going!" he said, wanting to get away from Rusta.

"You're right," Link agreed. The three went up the path and stood in front of the cave blocked by stakes. "Stand back. I'll cut this." He drew out his sword with his right hand. Since this morning, Link always remembered the bet about fighting with his right hand. He clenched his sword with both hands as he sliced the stakes. All of a sudden, there was a vision in Link's mind with the Loftwing crying for him. "I can sense my Loftwing nearby!"

"Who knows what lurks within this cave," Ed said in an ominous tone.

"Let's be careful."


Zelda and Double D continued their search in the air. With two people, they hoped it would increase the chance of finding Link's Loftwing. They tried to talk to some people, but they had no clue. For Double D, whenever they were in the air, he had some thoughts about being close to Zelda. Her scent felt intoxicating for him. The feeling and the aura always reminded someone close to him.

"Oh no... What do we do?" Zelda asked. "I... I dunno, Double D. The Wing Ceremony is about to start very soon. We're running out of time...and I think-"

"Don't say something like that! If you do, you might regret it. If there's even a small ray of hope, we can accomplish it together."

Zelda slowly smiled. "Double D... Thank you for your encouragement. We need to look harder!"

"Right!" As they started to descend, they noticed Link's group entering the Waterfall Cave. "Where are they going? Maybe we should search around the waterfall."

"We've never done it, but let's try."


The Waterfall Cave would be complete darkness if it were not for the sunlight from the holes around and the glossy walls. There were stalactites on the ceiling along the way.

"Shh! You heard something?" Link asked. They looked up and saw a few pair of large yellow eyes. These creatures screeched and flew around the three.

"Bats!" Ed and Eddy said, gasping.

"They're Keese!" They pulled out their weapons. All three of them were swinging their weapon recklessly. None of them were hitting the Kesses, and they ended up running down the path.

"Oh, screw this!" Eddy said, going to the right where the fences were and jumping across the gap. Link and Ed found themselves on a small pond with vegetation growing around. They turned around and saw the Keeses flying still. They all screeched before charging straight to them. The two screamed out and hit all the Keeses with a horizontal swing. With the Keeses dying on the ground, they disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Whew... That was close," Ed said.

"Where's Eddy?" Link asked.

"Over here!" Eddy said. The two continued on and saw Eddy with a Red Rupee atop a cliff. "Check it out! I found a small treasure chest containing a Rupee!"

"That's nice. Jump down from there."

"Yeah, yeah." Eddy dropped and landed in front of them. "Huh?" He felt the impact was a lot less painful than he thought. Not only that, his feet felt squishy and gooey.

Link gasped. "Eddy, jump out of there!"

"What?" Eddy looked down and saw a green gelatinous monster with eyes. He screamed like a little girl, jumping and being freed from the monster.

"What's that?!" Ed asked, gripping his hammer.

"That's a Green Chuchu!" Link answered. "If Eddy were to stay in its body, it would eventually digest him."

"Die, you evil food blob!" Ed leaped forward and slammed the Green Chuchu into pieces.

"Whew!" Eddy said, wiping a sweat on his forehead. "I almost became goo food." As they continued their mini adventure in the cave, they saw a steep ramp in front of them. All three of dashed up and managed to reach the top. They encountered a few Keeses and Green Chuchus. "You're gonna die with your friend, fiend!" Eddy slammed down the Chuchus in succession. Suddenly, a Keese was starting to bite his back, causing him to scream in pain.

"Eddy!" Ed ran up to his friend. Eddy shook off the Keese and was prepared to attack until Ed killed the Kesse. Link fought and defeated two Keeses, which was starting to get easier for him. "Eddy, are you okay?!" Ed widened his eyes at what he was seeing. Two small trails of blood slid down from the wound. Link noticed the wound and started to look around quickly. He found a plant with a pink heart.

"Eddy, stay still!" Link said, plucking the heart out of the plant. He pushed the heart into Eddy's wound, which it merged into the wound. The blood and the wound disappeared afterwards.

"Whoa, that felt...good," Eddy said, standing up.

"What just happened?" Ed asked.

"Remember the soup you two ate yesterday morning?" Link asked. "One of the ingredients was a pink heart. They are called Recovery Hearts, and they heal your life energy by a little bit. Like Stamina Fruits, they grow around in various places. You can mend them into the wound like I did or simply eat them. It's better to do what I did because it's faster in my opinion."

"So they're just like Stamina Fruits?"

"Not exactly. There's a difference between life energy and stamina energy. Basically, the injuries you take are linked to your life energy. Stamina is connected to how long you last during a straining activity such as running."

"These are gonna be quite handy," Eddy said.

"I agree." Along the way, they found a treasure chest containing a Red Rupee. They managed to reach the end of the cave, but it was guarded with Keeses and Green Chuchus. The monsters were more fierce than before. Link barely missed and ended up taking a bite from a Keese. Ed was ambushed by a Green Chuchu, thus a Keese bit on Ed's arm. Eddy helped Ed by killing the Green Chuchu. Link and Ed stood side-to-side as they watched the Keeses' movement. Link turned to Ed. "I think I figured out a pattern. When they're flying in one place, they're preparing to charge. They charge in a straight line, but that's their moment of weakness."

"All right!" Ed said as the Kesse did exactly what Link described. They killed off the Kesse with a vertical or a horizontal swing. A claw and a blob were around Ed's feet. "I'm gonna keep them as a memento of vanquishing these evil monsters!"

"Careful, Ed. Those extremely sharp Monster Claws look painful to even touch. And that Jelly Blob looks like a boring wad of junk for a memento." Ed carefully placed his so-called "treasures" into his jacket pocket. "Where's Eddy?"

"I'm here!" Eddy said, crawling out a hole from a wall. "Check it out! More Red Rupees!" He showed them two Red Rupees.

Link gaped at Eddy. "How do you find them so fast and effectively?"

"Uh..." Eddy thought about the time he slept with his bag of Rupees from Groose. He ended up sniffing and caressing his money until Groose woke him up. Eddy blushed in embarrassment. "I rather...not talk about it."

"He's like a money detector," Ed answered Link's question. "Money flows in his body, just like how I have buttered toast in my head."

Link stared at his goofy friend with a strange look. "I..." he began, "think I understand Eddy's ability to find Rupees...but not the toast part." After a few minutes in the cave, they finally reached the exit. A few heart plants were glowing at the side, which they used for their benefit.

"Hey, look! A Bird Statue! Let's pray at this statue!"

"No!" Eddy said, gritting. "We're not stopping here!"

"I agree with Eddy," Link said. "We wasted some time inside the cave."

"Aw..." Ed said, lowering his head. Before they continued along the pathway, they heard a familiar call.

"Link!" Zelda said. They turned to their left and saw the blue Loftwing coming toward them. Zelda and Double D got off the Loftwing.

"It's good to see you three safe," Double D said, smiling.

"We knew we'd find you three here. We saw you three heading inside the cave. How's your search going? Any sign of your Loftwing?"

"I can sense my Loftwing. He's very close," Link told her.

Zelda looked at the path ahead. "If I remember correctly, there's a place up ahead that Groose and his gang are always hanging around. Maybe we'll find something there."

Oh no! Eddy thought, gulping when no one was looking. I think I'm screwed here!

"Spirit maiden... It is time," the voice said to Zelda, putting her on alert mode.

Zelda ended up looking at the clouds with a worried look. "Huh...?" she asked. "Who... Who's that? Who's calling for me?" Double D knew what Zelda was feeling.

"Zelda?" Link asked.

Zelda regained her composure. "Oh, sorry, Link. I got distracted for a moment. Let's go!"

As they headed down the pathway, Eddy was getting even more nervous. Okay! Now I am really screwed here! he thought. Luckily, he was the last person in line. Unfortunately for him, the group found the Crimson Loftwing trapped in its cage. Link's Loftwing suddenly stared at Eddy's eyes with an angry look. There are actual screws that are less screwed than I am right now!

"There he is! No doubt about it! That's your Loftwing, Link!"

"Hang on, my friend!" Link said. "We'll free you in no time!" He and Ed dashed up to the cage. Link tried to undo the ropes, but they appeared to be too tight. Ed started to smack the wooden planks, but it were only dented by a little.

"This cage is tough!" Ed said.

Link analyzed the situation. "Wait a minute... What am I doing? We're doing it wrong here!" He remembered the vision from the Skeikah Stone before. He pulled out his sword and cut the ropes based on the angle. It was thanks to Eagus's training that he was doing this properly. After all four ropes were cut, all the wooden planks fell down to the ground.

"You did it!" Zelda said, cheering.

"Good thinking, Link!" Double D added. The Crimson Loftwing slowly walked out of the cave. It cawed and shook until it extended its wings out fully.

"It's so...beautiful!" Ed said, rubbing his tears with his arm.

Double D patted Ed's shoulder. "You're more emotional than you should be, Ed." To everyone's surprise, when the Crimson Loftwing saw Eddy, it cawed out loudly and charged forward.

"Hey! G-get back!" Eddy stammered. He pulled out his Wooden Racket, but he realized his arms were shaking. Unintentionally, his weapon slipped out of his hands as he fell back. The Loftwing was about to peck him until Link and Ed started to subdue the raging Loftwing.

"Whoa! What's the matter with you?!" Link asked his Loftwing. "Down, I say!" Upon hearing that, the Crimson Loftwing started to calm down.

"Don't hurt me, please!" Eddy begged with his eyes covered by his arms.

Double D rushed toward the cowardly kid. "Eddy, are you okay?!" he asked as he never saw Eddy unusually scared of birds. "I'm here, Eddy!" He pulled Eddy off the grass.

"Why is your Loftwing aggressive?" Zelda asked Link.

"I-I don't know!" Link answered. "I've never seen my Loftwing this angry. Eddy, do you had any idea?"

"How would I know?!" Eddy replied, gritting. "Maybe it's because I have a way to make birds mad!"

"But that shouldn't bother him!" Link recalled yesterday afternoon between Eddy and the two Loftwings.

"Eddy," Double D said, looking at Eddy's eyes, "I had a suspicious feeling. Did you get involved with Groose and his friends? Tell us the truth."

"I... I..." Eddy said as everyone stared at him. He looked at Crimson Loftwing's narrowed eyes, which he felt like he lost his breathing. "Okay, I confess! I helped with Groose!"

"What?!" Ed, Double D, and Zelda said.

"I-I'm so sorry!" Eddy fell down the ground, feeling even more shaken up. "I did it so that Groose gave all of his money to me! Just... I don't want to get ever near that bird ever again!"

"Why, Eddy?!" Ed asked.

"I can't believe you, Eddy!" Double D said, gritting.

"You should be ashamed yourself!" Zelda added. "Link would have lost if we haven't-"

"I forgive you, Eddy," Link said. Everyone, even his Loftwing, stared at him with disbelief. "Mystery solved. Groose and Eddy trapped my Loftwing, but we have him back now. And we haven't heard the bell again, so we still have time."

"What...?" Double D asked, gaping. "First Zelda...now Eddy? I... I don't understand, Link! How could you be...so forgiving?"

"Me? Well..." Link looked around. "I guess...I'm not the type of person to hate, basically. I don't like holding grudges against anyone, and I don't want to hear, 'What if this happened?' Both people with negative emotions can last for a while, or even a long time with no good ending. For a long time, it's true that Groose hates me even to this day...but I never hated him back. Zelda is my friend, so I can't find it in my heart to yell at her angrily. People would do that because of their past experiences. I don't think about the past that much because it's already over. When everything has calm down, I think about shaping my present and future right now because that truly matters. No more bad memories. I'll live on to the very end for my happy life, knowing that I will die peacefully. That's a creed I want to uphold."

"Link..." Zelda said, blinking her eyes. Never once in her life she listened to Link's belief.

Link scratched the back of his head, grinning sheepishly. "I... I guess I said too much."

Ed wailed out loud with tears coming out of his eyes like waterfalls. "That was amazing, Link!" he said, hugging Link. "I... I thought about Zelda, but you changed my mind! Thank you, Link!"

Forge onward, Double D thought with a smile. You're a better person than I am, Link.

"Wow... That's...cool," Eddy said, mouth slightly apart. In this moment of silence, they almost forgot about their current situation.

"We should hurry, everyone!" Zelda said. "We'll fly back to the ceremony."

"Right!" everyone agreed. Everyone started to get on either the Crimson Loftwing or Zelda's Loftwing.

"Spirit maiden..." the same voice said to Zelda.

"But before we go..." Zelda said, looking at the clouds below. "I have to say this right now. I heard this voice a few moments ago. Did you all hear it, too?"

"No," Link answered. The rest replied with the same answer.

"It's been happening a lot lately. It's the strangest feeling... Almost like someone is calling out to me. Have you ever wondered what's beneath the clouds? Some say that it's an empty, barren place, or even that there's nothing at all down below, but they're wrong. Based on Father's old text, Double D confirmed the land below. It's far more vast than Skyloft, but our Loftwings won't fly through the cloud barrier. But I can't help imagining the wild things that might be waiting below. I just have this feeling we will all see what's below."

"Zelda?"

Zelda shook her senses. "Oh, sorry, everyone. We don't have time to talk. Let's get going. Normally, we would jump off the edge, but we need the Eds to come with us."

"Yeah. Choose a Loftwing, you guys." As they prepared themselves, Ed chose to be with Link while Eddy and Double D chose Zelda.

"Hey, I wanted to be the one hugging," Eddy whispered in Double D's ear, which Double D sighed in response. When Eddy looked back at the Crimson Loftwing, his breathing stopped. It was still staring at him with that hatred look. No way! After all that...that bird is still mad at me?!

"Eddy, you squeezing my abdomen too tightly!" Double D said, grunting.

"Oh! My bad..."

"I'm scared, Link," Ed said as he hugged Link's abdomen.

"Just close your eyes for a couple of minutes," Link said. "I need to do some last-minute practice before we land. Try to distract yourself in your mind."

Ed closed his eyes. "Happy place... Happy place..."

"Hang on tight, everyone!" The two Loftwings flapped their wings before lifting off the ground. Everyone felt the wind brushing off the face and skin. They flew through a couple of clouds, which they ended up being a little bit wet.

"Oh, geez!" Eddy said, still squeezing Double D's waist. Double D wanted to say something to Eddy, but he could not find the opportunity. Ed kept repeating his words earlier while shutting his eyes tight. This time, it was better for Link than when they first met.

"Link!" Zelda said. "Let's run your bird through the basics just to make sure he's not hurt!"

"Okay!" Link replied

"Remember that you control your bird! You can tilt in any direction!" The Crimson Loftwing started to turn left and right while flying straight. "Great! When you want to speed up, try to gain some altitude, then drop into a fast dive! Those are the basics of getting your bird up to top speed!"

"Hang on tight, Ed!" Link's Loftwing ascended up to the sky. After reaching a certain point, the red guardian bird dove down at a faster speed. He caught up with Zelda's Loftwing.

"So how's he handling? Do you think he's flying all right?"

"Perfect!" Link grinned, patting his Loftwing's head. I could also make my Loftwing charge for a burst of speed, but not more than three times until he recharges his energy. I could also slow down, but I must regain the momentum or we would be flying awkwardly. Before he could try these moves, they heard the bell ringing.

"Father and the others are probably worried about your bird, so let's go give them the good news!" The two Loftwings soared around Skyloft. They saw everyone gathering around the ceremony as they landed.

"Ed, we're on solid ground."

Ed opened his eyes, leaped into the air, and kissed the ground. "Happy place!" he said.

"Quit it, Ed!" Eddy said, grabbing him up. "You're embarrassing yourself."

"Whew... I glad everything is back to normal," Double D said. He saw Zelda talking to Link.

"Your Loftwing really is amazing!" Zelda said, smiling ear-to-ear. "Especially considering everything the poor guy has been through this morning. I'm going to tell Father what happened." She ran off in the bustling crowd.

"Well, well," Groose said, walking to the group, "if it isn't Link and the kids. Word around the plaza is you found that dumb bird of yours." His expression turned sour. "Well, that's just great. Because you and your dumb bird can't tell time, all the prerace warm-ups me and the guys did were for nothin'. Now I'm all stiff. We've been waiting forever for the race to start, and they delay it for you?! I don't get it! The big flake gets special treatment."

"Well, I guess some things had to break," Link said, which Eddy grinned at that statement.

Groose narrowed his eyes. "You're almost a man, and yet you still can't seem to go anywhere without Zelda! I bet you can't even decide what to have for lunch on your own, huh?"

"Is it really that hard, Link?" Ed asked.

"No, not really," Link answered, looking confused.

"And don't think we haven't noticed the smug looks!" Groose continued until he started to act. "'Ohh, Zelda and I are best friends. We go everywhere together.' Ugh!"

"So Link's now a ladies' man?" Eddy asked.

"I assume Link is the most popular one," Double D said.

"I don't think myself like that, guys," Link said, hoping for Groose to take it easy. However, Groose did the opposite of what Link hoped.

"You think you're pretty suave, don't you?!" Groose asked. "Well?! Don't you?!"

"I don't think like that, Groose."

Meanwhile, Cawlin sighed at this scene with Strich by his side. "Groose has been going on forever about how he's gonna be the one to be with Zelda," he whispered. "He's really got his pompadour in a ruffle about here." Strich snickered at the comment.

"I hate to break it to you," Groose continued talking to Link, "but today's the day I bust up this adorable little fantasy land you're living in. Zelda's playing the role of the goddess at today's ceremony, and I'm gonna be the one to claim that Sailcloth."

"Sailcloth?" Link said, widening his eyes a bit.

"When I heard she made it herself one day, there's no way I gonna let some scrawny clown snatch that prize from me." Groose turned around with a blush on his face. "Oh yes, Zelda's Sailcloth will be mine. Oh, man, I bet she was thinking about me when she was stitching it. Yup, I can see it now. First, I win the big face, and then Zelda and I finish the ceremony together on the statue. Just the two of us. It'll be our special moment alone. Nobody is stopping me and Zelda from having our moment. Oh, it's so real I can... I can see it." He chuckled to himself in a goofy way.

"How ironic that Groose is in his fantasy land," Double D murmured with a bored expression.

Eddy sighed. "Is there someone else to shut this guy up? He's getting out of character," he said.

Suddenly, Cawlin and Strich widened their eyes. "G-Groose!" Cawlin said. "Behind you!"

"What?!" Groose asked until he saw them pointing behind him. He turned around and gasped at seeing Zelda with her hands on her hips. "Gah!"

"Care to explain just what you meant by 'our special moment alone'?" Zelda asked with narrowed eyes.

"I...uh, nothing big, really. Just... Just..." His teeth began to show. "I was just telling my buddy here how glad I was when he found that red bird of his. Boy, am I looking forward to a fair race! Anyway, later, Zelda. Look for me during the race. I'll be the one pulling off all the dangerous moves." He started to stroll away by being cool as he was later followed by Cawlin and Strich. Link and the Eds walked up to Zelda.

"Does he really think he can fool me? A fair race? Yeah, the chances of that happening are just about less than zero. Either way, don't let those fools get you down, Link. Just get out there and fly the best you can. I believe in you."

"I dunno," Eddy said, crossing his arms. "It's three against one. He's probably nervous."

"Don't be nervous, Link."

"Link's probably thinking of being alone with you, Zelda," Ed said, grinning.

"Uh..." Link said, starting at him.

"Come on, Link!" Zelda said, stomping her feet. "Try to focus for once!"

"I am!"

"Link can do better than that!" Ed added. "Shout with confidence!"

Link slowly smiled as he pumped his fist. "Yeah!"

"That's the spirit, Ed!" Zelda said. The small bell in the plaza echoed, which was rung by Horwell.

"The Wing Ceremony will now begin!" Horwell said. "Participating students, please assemble!"

"Looks like it's race time. Good luck, Link!"

"You can win as long as you have your Crimson Loftwing!" Ed added.

"Believe in yourself, Link," Double D added.

"Make sure you beat Groose, Link," Eddy added, grinning. "I want to see him cry after this race." Link nervously laughed before joining up with Groose and his friends. Zelda departed away from the Eds to fulfill her role. The Eds were trying to find a good spot in the plaza, but there were more people around than they thought.

"Ooooh!" a familiar voice said. The Eds saw Beedle walking toward them.

"Terry!" Ed said, gasping with joy.

"It's so good to see you here! I came here to watch with you three."

"How's business, Beedle?" Double D asked.

"Very well, I must say. When the Wing Ceremony was delayed, my business was blooming!"

"I guess that's positive for you," Eddy said as they turned their attention to the Wing Ceremony.

"Look! Up in the sky!" Ed said, pointing at the sky. Three Loftwings were expelling smoke from their jar secured on their body. Each Loftwing had a different color of smoke. It was green, red, and blue in order. The Loftwings scattered their formation until they joined up together and flew across the plaza. The excitement increased tremendously by the wonderful display.

"Skywriting!" Double D said as he clapped. "What magnificent art!" Everyone turned their attention to the participants.

Horwell, standing beside Gaepora, cleared his throat. "Your attention, please!" he said. "At last we are ready to begin the Wing Ceremony. I was beginning to worry that we'd have to proceed without Link, but luckily that is no longer a concern. I'm glad you could all make it. Before we start, I'll explain the rules for today's competition." Horwell showed a small golden Loftwing.

"I want it!" Ed said, but he was restrained by Beedle, Eddy, and Double D. The others stared at them.

"Uh... Don't mind him," Eddy said, laughing in a nervous manner.

"I have attached a small statuette to this bird," Horwell continued, "who I will then release to the skies. On my signal, dash and jump off the ledge. Once you are in the air, mount your Loftwing. Whoever catches the bird and claims the statuette will be this year's champion. Those are the rules. Simple enough, I should think, but does anyone need to hear them again?"

"Again!" Ed said, waving his hand. "I got distracted by the golden bird!"

"Wha? Very well, but listen close this time!"

"No no no no!" Eddy said. "Ed's just being stupid! Go on!"

Horwell cleared his throat. "As you well know, today's champion will graduate to the next class, bringing him one step closer to knighthood. He will also receive a gift from the young woman chosen to play the role of the goddess in this year's ritual."

The Sailcloth, Link and Groose thought.

"Today is a special day for many reasons, but it is also the 25th anniversary of our fine institution."

"25th anniversary?" Double D murmured.

"To celebrate the occasion, today's champion shall also receive his gift high atop the Statue of the Goddess. I hear the young woman performing the role of the goddess this year has crafted the gift herself. And as you all well know, the role of the goddess this year will be performed by...the lovely Zelda!" She smiled and giggled upon being revealed. Groose started to chuckle to himself.

Oh great, Zelda thought, seeing Groose.

"Let's see your finest flying out there. Show me just how hard you've been practicing. Also, I want to see good, clean flying. Anyone caught interfering with other riders will answer to me!"

After Zelda was told about the incident, Gaepora narrowed his eyes to Groose. "That goes double for you, Groose!" he said, which Groose stepped back in shock. The golden Loftwing flew out of its spot. After a minute, the golden Loftwing flew far away from Skyloft.

"All right, gentlemen, line up! At my command, the competition will begin!" Cawlin, Link, Groose, and Strich did as what they were told. Each of them were ready to run at any second. The crowd went silent. All they could hear was the wind. Everyone else waited for this one moment.

"Hey, I think I see something," Groose whispered to Link, who was the only person to hear.

"What?" Link asked, trying to look at what Groose mentioned.

"Go!" Horwell said. Groose and his gang dashed up to the edge, leaving the clueless Link behind until he dashed as well.

"Argh, Link!" Zelda said, facepalming with two hands. Eventually, all four participants jumped off the edge and called their Loftwing.

"Well, that was a bad start for Link," Double D said, also did a facepalm.

"How could Link get distracted on that moment?!" Eddy asked, growling and seeing the four chasing after the golden Loftwing from afar. "And now he's in last place!"

"Don't worry, Eddy," Beedle said. "Last place doesn't always mean he will lose."

"Y-you're right."


Link could see the golden Loftwing very far away. They were in a area with floating big rocks around. Groose, Cawlin, and Strich were a bit far behind the target. Link started to notice they were starting to slow down, making the perfect opportunity to catch up. Link and his Loftwing ascended up and descended to speed up. He passed by Cawlin, Strich, and Groose, much to Groose's surprise. Link stretched out his right hand, trying to take the statuette from the golden Loftwing's claw.

"Hey!" Groose said, gritting. "Don't you know this is my day to get all the glory?!" He ordered his black Loftwing to forcibly charge at Link. Link's Loftwing was flapping his wings repeatedly.

"Yeah, you heard him!" Cawlin added, pulling out a big egg with black spots. "Let's see how you fly with egg on your face!" He and Strich began throwing eggs at Link, forcing Link to back away even more.


Most people in the crowd began to mingle around in the plaza. The Eds, Zelda, Beedle, and Gaepora wanted to see the race at a closer spot.

"They're so far from here," Zelda said, squinting her eyes.

"Shouldn't there be a limited space?" Double D asked Gaepora.

"The whole sky is their space," he answered. "We had races like this before." Double D began to notice what Eddy was doing.

"Step right up, ladies and gentleman!" Eddy said to the crowd, opening up his Rupee bag. "Place your bets on who is going to win! There are over one hundred Rupees in the pot! I need three lucky participants to bet on this amazing race! I'm placing my bet on Link!"

"Eddy, what are you doing?!" Double D asked. To his surprise, three other people placed their Rupees in Eddy's Rupee bag. "Gambling at a time like this?!"

"What? I believe Link is going to win. The other three don't deserve it."

"Besides, this looks fun," Beedle added since he was one to grab the three victims.

"Beedle, not you too!" Double D said, marching up to Eddy. "Now you listen here, young man! Gambling is-"

"Double D!" Ed said, dragging him away from Eddy. "I want to see the action closer! Ain't there any other way?"

Double D sighed in defeat, pulling out binoculars from his school bag. However, he was intrigued to see the race so far. He looked through to see Link's progress. "Oh, color me surprised! They're throwing eggs at Link!"

"What?!" Gaepora, Zelda, and Ed said.

"Lemme see! Lemme see!" Ed said, snatching the binoculars away. Double D faceplamed when he saw Ed looking at the bigger end instead of the smaller end. "Uh, it's not working, Double D. They're so far away!"

"Ed, you're looking at the wrong way," Double D said, correcting the binocular's position. Ed took a closer look again and saw what Double D described.

"No, Link! You can do it!"

"Gimme that!" Zelda said, snatching the binoculars and looking through them. "Those cheaters!"

"There's nothing we can do about it," Gaepora said, sighing.


Link grunted when an egg almost hit him. He realized he needed to catch up quick. He did the same move as before once he saw them slowing down due to not gaining altitude. He successfully dodged two eggs being thrown from his right. One egg was about to hit him, but it splattered against the floating rock just in time. Link was once again ahead of everyone else. This time, he forced his Loftwing to charge so that he could retrieve the statuette easier. However, Groose also forced his Loftwing to charge and tackle Link. The sudden impact forced Link off of his Loftwing, but he knew his Loftwing would rescue him.

Oh great, Link thought, regaining his control with his Loftwing. More eggs were flying toward him. This is tougher than I thought with those three cheating. I'm getting so far behind.


Zelda sighed in relief. "That was too close," she said. "But he's so far behind!"

"I want to see!" Ed said, taking and looking through the binoculars. "Don't give up, Link!"

"Gimme that! I want to see this the most!" Zelda snatched back the binoculars. "Link, don't you dare lose!"

"Hey, I wasn't done with that!" Ed and Zelda continued to steal the binoculars.

Double D and Gaepora glanced each other before Double D walked closer to the two. "Is this really necessary to fight over my binoculars?" he asked.

"Can't they look at it with one eye?" Gaepora asked out loud. Ed and Zelda stared at him for a moment, realizing they could do it.


Link realized he was so far behind. Even though the eggs cannot reach him, his usual strategy would not work because Groose was getting closer to the target by force. There's got to be something I can do! Link thought, looking around. He widened his eyes when he saw his hope. There was big rock with a hole. It held a magical vortex in. Wait... Those rocks are special! I remembered they're used when the knights need them in a hurry. It grants my Loftwing immense speed for a few seconds...but it could hurt my Loftwing. He looked up ahead and saw another rock with a vortex from afar. If I use both of them, I'll catch up! He looked down at his Loftwing, who looked ready for the challenge. "Brace yourself, my friend! This is going to be a fast ride!" They headed inside the first vortex, which the Loftwing suddenly zoomed out with three times the original speed. Link felt his face moving by the incredible force of the wind. He was gripping on his Loftwing very tightly, hoping he would not fall off. They went into the second vortex, which was enough for them to catch up.

Groose was getting extremely close to the statuette. It's all mine! he thought with a giant smile. Zelda will be mine! All hope drained from his face when a red blur blocked his vision. He saw the bird statuette was not on the golden Loftwing. He turned around and saw Link heading back to Skyloft with the statuette. Groose yelled at the top of his lungs. "Noooo!"

"Yes!" Link held the bird statuette in his right hand and grinned. "I won! Wait till Zelda sees this!"

His Loftwing cawed out in response, indicating it was also happy.


"Link won! Link won!" Zelda and Ed said, jumping up and down. They tossed the binoculars back to Double D.

"Amazing!" Double D said, grinning. "That was exhilarating!"

"I'm so proud of him," Gaepora said, smiling so much. "Even if he were to lose, Groose and his friends would have been disqualified for cheating."

"All because of my binoculars, right?" Double D saw the headmaster nodding.

"Yes!" Eddy said, taking his bag full of Rupees. "Tough luck, guys!" The other three muttered angrily, regretting about the bet before leaving.

"Sorry, but a bet is a bet!" Beedle said to them. The whole crowd began to cheer when they saw Link with the statuette.

"I'm... I'm so happy!" Zelda said, grabbing the Goddess's Harp from the grass. To the group's surprise, she jumped off the edge without whistling. "Liiiink!"

"Z-Zelda?!" Link said in panic as he forced his Loftwing to charge, but he was able to grab Zelda. Link looked at her without seeing her eyes. "Zelda, are you okay?!" He saw Zelda with a great smile.

"Don't worry! I'm fine!" Zelda giggled. "Great flying, Link! Congratulations! Now we'd better get on with the ceremony!" The Crimson Loftwing was followed by Zelda's Loftwing. They headed to the top of the Statue of the Goddess.

"Now they will perform the second half of the ceremony," Gaepora told the Eds and Beedle.

"I can see them with my binocular," Double D said, using his item. At the same time, Link and Zelda dismounted the Crimson Loftwing, making the bird fly away around the statue with Zelda's Loftwing. Zelda walked forward for a bit before turning around.

"Link, hand me that Bird Statuette you grabbed in the race," Zelda said with her right hand out. "I must offer it to the goddess."

"Of course," Link replied, giving it to her. Zelda inserted the statuette into the small hole of the Hylia statue. With a twist so that the statuette was facing them, Zelda pulled out the Goddess's Harp, played the Ballad of the Goddess, and started to sing.

"'Oh youth... Guided by the servant of the goddess... Unite earth and sky... Bring light to the land.'" She stopped playing and faced Link. She held out her left hand.

I guess I should hold her hand and bow down. Link did it, anyways. He closed his eyes for Zelda to continue the next step.

"'Great goddess, guiding light and protector of our people, grant us your blessing and mercy as I act in your stead during this ceremony. Valiant youth who grasped victory at the celebration of the bird folk... In accordance with the old way...I now bestow the blessings of the goddess upon you.'" For a moment, Link though it was Hylia that was praying for him.

"Wh-what's Zelda doing?!" Double D asked, blushing a bit.

"What?" Eddy asked.

"It...looks like she's removing something on her body."

"What?! Lemme see!" Eddy stole Double D's binoculars away. "This ceremony got 10 times better! Link's so lucky!"

"No, Eddy! Someone like you can't handle it!"

"I want to see, Eddy!" Ed said, trying to take the binoculars from Eddy.

"No way! It's mine!" Eddy said.

"It's mine!"

"It's mine!"

"Forget it! It's yours, Eddy!"

"That's what I said, Ed! Stop pulling it!"

"My binoculars cannot suffer any more torture!" Double D said.

"Perhaps you're overthinking this," Gaepora said to grab their attention, which allowed Double D to take the binocular from them. Meanwhile, Link had a feeling he should look up at Zelda, which she offered her shoulder cloth, or Sailcloth, to him.

"The blessings of the goddess drift down from the heavens aloft a sail,'" Zelda continued, smiling, "'which I now pass on to you.'"

Link accepted the Sailcloth as he held it in the air like it was special. The Eds, from far away, took turns for a couple of seconds, and they all questioned Link's silly behavior. Wow... Link thought, bringing it closer to him. It smells nice.

"Link!" Zelda called him out of his senses, but chuckled regardless. "Quit goofing. This is supposed to be a sacred ritual, remember?" Link nervously laughed. "You know...they say that the goddess gave the Sailcloth to her chosen hero long ago. Of course, the one you're holding isn't the same one. I've been working hard to finish making this Sailcloth in time to give it to today's champion. I'm really glad I got to give it to you, Link. Make sure you take good care of it, okay?"

Link nodded. "I will."

"Thanks for making it up here to do this with me today like you promised, Link." Link nodded again. "Now..." She walked up to him close. Link noticed she was hesitating. "We really should finish up this ritual. You...do know what happens at the end, right?"

Link put his hand on his chin. "Nope."

"Really?" Zelda put her finger on her chin. "Huh... I thought you would've figured it out by now."

"Wait... I think I remember a bit. I...sort of know."

Zelda giggled. "I'm glad you're so well informed on the subject." Suddenly, she noticed Link had a bug eyed expression.

Link gulped. "Uh-oh..."

Zelda leaned forward and put her hands on her hips. "Never mind what I said earlier! Just what are you thinking?! Don't be silly. This is your big moment, Link." All of the sudden, Zelda was awkwardly, but very close, to Link.

"Zelda?" At the same time, the Eds were very excited at seeing this scene with the binocular.

Zelda smirked before responding and forcing Link to turn. "You have to jump off the statue!" Her tone sounded playful.

Link looked down to see the red circle. "I thought so."

"See that big, round design on the courtyard below? To finish the ceremony, you need to drop down right into the center of it! Leap off the edge here and open up your Sailcloth right before you hit the ground! Just how brave are you? If you were really fearless, you'd wait until the last second to use your Sailcloth. So, ready to jump?"

Meanwhile, the Eds were curious at this scene. "What are they doing, Sockhead?" Eddy asked as Double D was using the binoculars. "Are they gonna kiss?"

"It doesn't appear so," Double D replied.

"Kisses are gross!" Ed said, shivering.

"I see they're doing the final part of the ceremony," Gaepora said. "This is the second most interesting one."

"What do they do?"

Suddenly, Double D screamed out. "Zelda pushed Link off!" he said.

"What?!" Ed and Eddy said, seeing him fall.

"I'm coming, Link!" Ed said before he was stopped by Gaepora.

"Don't panic," Gaepora said. "It's part of the ceremony. He'll be fine."

"What?!" Eddy asked. "What kind of ceremony makes you push someone off from a great height?!"

Meanwhile, Link was getting closer to the red circle faster than he thought. He recalled what Zelda said about being fearless, which he smirked. This is nothing! he thought. Just as when he was about to touch the ground, he unfolded his Sailcloth just at the last second. He was unharmed in the end, and he saw Zelda coming down with her blue Loftwing.

"That was perfect! You're amazing, Link!" Zelda said, running up to him. She clasped her hands in joy, even though she was deathly afraid of Link getting killed.

Link pouted at her, but he beamed with a smile, nevertheless. "It's over, Zelda." His Crimson Loftwing landed behind him.

Zelda put her hands down, but they were gripped loosely. The day felt perfect for the both of them. "You know, Link, seeing as how you won today..." She stated to fidget her hands. "And with the weather being so nice..." Link stared at her in confusion. "You think maybe you'd like to, you know, go fly around the clouds together?"


"I hope Link's alive," Double D said.

"You worried too much," Gaepora said.

"Hey, they're flying," Beedle said, pointing. They saw the red and blue Loftwings flying away from the statue.

"What are they doing gliding in the clouds?" Eddy asked.

"It looks like they want to spend their time alone," Gaepora said, chuckling.


Link was a bit further than Zelda, but they were enjoying their casual fly under the warm sunlight. Zelda ended up staring at Link and his Loftwing.

"Hey, Link!" Zelda said, which he turned his head. "Today was amazing! Watching you win the race and performing the ritual together... I'll always remember this! It really was wonderful!"

Link smiled back. "Indeed, it was," he said, but dropped his smile when he saw Zelda with a strange expression. Her eyes told him that she was worried.

"You know...Link..." Zelda started to fly closer to him. "There's something I've been meaning to talk to you about." But then, a blast of strong wind pushed both of their face. "What is that?!" Out of nowhere, a black tornado appeared directly in front of them.

"We have to get back!" Link tried to hang on against the tornado's power. The Loftwings were desperately trying to fly away from the tornado's suction, but Zelda's Loftwing was starting to get closer by the power. A sudden blast of wind knocked Zelda off of her Loftwing, causing her to scream.

"Link!" The black tornado consumed her. Her Loftwing managed to break free, but he knew it was too dangerous to venture any further.

"Zelda!" Like Zelda, Link was flung away from the blast of wind. It caused Link to black out, but he saw the two Loftwing flying toward him. Meanwhile, everyone outside of Skyloft were surprised to see the black tornado.

"A black tornado above the clouds?!" Double D said, sensing the tornado's pull.

"Is that normal, Double D?!" Eddy asked

"I'm afraid not, Eddy!"

"Link! Zelda!" Ed said at the top of his lungs. People around were panicking, running into shelters.

Double D widened his eyes when he stared at the black tornado. "Oh no!" he said.

"What?!" Eddy asked.

"It's heading toward us! To Skyloft!"

"What?!" everyone around him said.

"Retreat, everyone!" Beedle said.

"We must get away!" Gaepora added as the tornado was dangerously getting closer to Skyloft. But before they could, something even more terrible was about to come. Double D was standing on the wooden edge, thus being the closest to the tornado. As he tried to turn around, a loud crush snapped the air. In Double D's eyes, he saw his dear friends in great shock, and he realized he was falling. As if it were in slow motion, Ed and Eddy tried to grab Double D's hands. It looked like they were going to make it, but they missed by a few inches. Double D wailed out, being sucked into the black tornado.

"Double D" his friends said before Gaepora and Beedle pulled them in.

"We have to move! Now!" Beedle said as Ed and Eddy continued to shout out their friend's name.


Link knew he was falling in this endless darkness. He tried to scream, but he could not.

"Link...?" a robotic female's voice said. He opened his eyes and saw someone within the blue light. Her figure was in a T-shaped form. From the bottom, she wore no shoes, but she wore green leggings. She was wearing a squeezing purple shirt with a skirt that was above her thigh. There were two strange things in her appearance. First, she had no arms, but they were basically capes with trims. Her right cape was purple while the other side was light blue. Her upper capes had a triple fold. A blue diamond jewel surrounded by golden edge was embedded in the middle of her chest. Second, her light blue face had no emotion. Her glossy short hair looked solid, and there were no pupils in her yes. A small light blue diamond was embedded on her forehead. "I am waiting for you. The time has come for you to awaken."

"Awaken?" Link asked in his mind.

"You are vital to a mission of great importance, Link, but you won't be alone."

In a flash, Zelda appeared in front of him, holding out her hand. At first, he thought he was falling first, but it was the opposite. Link tried to grab her, but it was no use. Zelda screamed out in fear as Link saw her eaten by the same black scaled monster.


"Zelda!" Link said while getting up and panting.

"You're awake!" Ed said as Link noticed he was in his room. Ed, Eddy, and Gaepora were there to see him.

"How... How long was I out?"

"It's past midnight," Eddy answered. "It'll be morning pretty soon." Link looked at Gaepora.

"When your Loftwing carried you back," Gaepora said, "you were limp and unconscious. We feared the worst. Fortunately, you don't appear to have any serious injuries. For that much, we can be grateful." Link's eyes changed into sadness and regrets. "But, Link... What's happened to my daughter?"

"Well..." Link said. "A black tornado sucked her in."

Gaepora started to sound like a sad owl. "That black tornado... That was no ordinary storm. It even took Double D."

"What?!" Link tried to get off his bed.

"You must not push yourself! You're still recovering." Link stopped from Gaepora's words. Link looked down at his knees. "Tell me, when you saw Zelda today, did anything about her seem...off?"

"Well...she did talked about the Surface, and I've been having dreams about a great mission."

Gaepora widened his eyes. "I see. How interesting." He placed his hand of Link's right shoulder. "I'm sorry. I was lost in thought there for a moment. It's all very strange, but I doubt there's much of a connection between these things. Either way, daybreak has yet to arrive. It would be very difficult to spot one girl and boy in the dark of night. It would also be very dangerous. Rest now, you three. I have a feeling they are alive." He slowly headed and exited the door.

"This sucks... What a twist," Eddy murmured.

"We've got to do something," Ed's said as his voice cracked. Link looked at the two and saw their outer eyes looking red. He knew they cried before.

"But what?" Link asked.

"Link..." a robotic female's voice said.

"Did you hear that?!"

"I heard it," Ed answered.

"So did I. What was that?" Eddy asked. Link was surprised they heard that voice unlike in Zelda's case. They heard the voice again, which was coming from the halls.

"We need to go," Link said. "This must be very important." Ed and Eddy agreed as the three gathered their weapon. When they exited out of the room, they saw someone floating at the stairs to their right. It was the same person in Link's dream. "Who are you?" The figure did not respond. When they walked closer to her, she started to float away. "Wait!"

"Should we really follow her?" Eddy held out his Wooden Racket. Link did not respond as they followed her up the stairs. They ran through the second floor and saw the girl phasing through the door with a blue light.

"Is she a ghost?" Ed asked. They exited out of the building, seeing it was indeed nighttime. The three saw her from afar, but she floated up to the entrance of the Statue of the Goddess. They stopped in front of the Bird Statue.

"This has been a long and...heartbreaking day," Link said. "Maybe we should seriously pray before going. Let's pray for the safety of Zelda and Double D."

"Mhm." Ed nodded. Eddy did not say anything, but he looked serious about praying. They hoped the girl was the answer in this period of time where everyone was not in good spirits.


Hyrule Historia's references:

1. Fi's final design (P.12)

Link [6 Hearts]
Main Equipment [Practice Sword]
Sub-Equipment [Sailcloth]
Inventory

Ed [6 Hearts]
Main Equipment [Wooden Hammer]
Sub-Equipment
Inventory

Double D [3 Hearts]
Main Equipment
Sub-Equipment
Inventory [Binoculars]

Eddy [4 Hearts]
Main Equipment [Wooden Racket]
Sub-Equipment
Inventory [Orange gemstone (Right eye)]