-Link-

"Link! Pssst, hey! Listen! Time to get up! Come on! School time! We must study and—"

I reach over and slam my hand down my phone, trying to shut off Agitha's annoying voice recording. A while back I was late for class and Agitha sought to rectify my behavior by setting my alarm tone to one of her very annoying, all too cheerful voices.

I sit up and feel the cold air hit my chest again. I swing my feet over and trudge my way to the window to fling the curtains open.

Remembering free days are over, I throw on my white button-up shirt and pull on the pants that belong with it, then tie my tie to complete my uniform. I run my fingers through my hair a few times to "brush" it out, figuring it should be enough to look okay. I brush my teeth, grab my bag and a leftover muffin from Agitha's from my cupboard, and head out the door.

Right on cue I greet Komali, as I do every morning, coming out from his room at the same time as me. We have synced our schedules to a T..

"Morning, my good man," he greets me in some sort of scholarly accent.

"Morning, lad," I say back.

"The Westerly Winds seem to be blowing up a dandy this morning, eh?"

"Indeed, they be. Better batten down in the morn."

"Nah, it's just gonna rain a lot this week, not like some sort of hurricane or something though," Komali answered, going back to his regular use of Hylian.

"Zelda will be happy," I tell him, slightly smiling at the mention of her name.

"Why do you say that?"

"She doesn't like storms. But she likes rain."

"That's a peculiar thing."

"Well, I mean, not really. A lot of people don't mind the rain so long as—"

"I was talking about her," Komali interjects.

My facial features twist. Why would he say something like that?

"What makes you say that?"

"Haven't you noticed? The girl's a genius," he says nonchalantly.

"Yeah, she's smart and all but I wouldn't say 'peculiar.'" Although, the more I thought about her ability to switch personas in the blink of eye the more I did find it slightly curious.

"She's more than just smart. She is socially challenged because her brain is so advanced."

"You've only been around her once," I point out .

"Exactly. That lets you know how insanely brilliant she is. It's oozing from her very pores! She has genius written all over her, and I could tell that the moment I saw her."

"What makes you such an expert?"

"Well, take into account that she only takes General Studies courses."

"So?"

"Think about Agitha, for example. She's a culinary prodigy. So, naturally, she takes cooking classes, studies food, etcetera. But she also has a lot of science courses,"

"Like chemistry," I interject, thinking back to her and Zelda talking rapidly about some of their favorite things in chemistry.

"Right. Blair Cavington takes kids like Agitha and helps intertwine the real world with hers. She takes culinary courses, but also General Studies courses to help her better adjust to the normal world one day. Lots of prodigy kids end up being recluses and only knowing how to do that one thing with which they are gifted. But here, they learn tons of other things, alongside developing their gift. Not to mention they are surrounded by people just like them, so they are less of an outcast."

"Exactly. So what does that have to do with Zelda?"

"She's an outcast amongst outcasts. And she doesn't even realize it. She isn't here studying some Goddess-gifted trade alongside learning other things about the mediocre world and how it functions. She is completely submersed in academics. She isn't a prodigy in just one field, she is a prodigy in math, science, and every other course of General Studies."

I try to think back to the past two days with Zelda. She and Agitha did talk a lot about chemistry but I was never all too good at that anyway so it wouldn't matter what they were talking about: I wouldn't have known any of it. I recalled a few times here and there where she had mentioned school was all she did growing up, but it never occurred to me that she was some sort of scholarly child prodigy.

"Look," Komali continued, "I can hold my own in the academic world... But not on her level. The default look on her face is one of intense studying. She studies everything, and she doesn't even notice it. Trust me. I've come into contact with a lot of freakishly intelligent people here, as have you. And Zelda is one of them, only about fifty times more."

I found the conversation slightly disheartening. Sure, I had only just made friends with this girl. But was I really that blind to her intelligence? Komali has spent less time around her than I have and he's picked up on it. And if that's the case…what does she think of me? For all I know, she thinks I am some dumb artist kid who is just lucky to be here.

I go back to what he said about her being socially challenged.

"I've been around her enough and I don't find her socially challenged," I stated.

"Yeah, because you go along with it without finding anything weird. You go along with my inability to say things lightly, you go along with Agitha's non-stop brain, and you go along with Zelda's constant living in another realm. It's one of your best qualities. And besides, I'm pretty sure the girl could be in a duck suit and you wouldn't find it 'weird.' You were taken with her the moment she walked into the cafe. It wouldn't matter what she did, she would have your attention."

"Wait, what's that supposed to mean?"

"You think she's hot."

"Oh, like you don't think so too!" I nearly shout.

Komali tosses his head back laughing.

"I'm teasing," he continue, but I take note that he doesn't deny it. "I mean that she is just striking, and very intriguing. It makes sense that she would capture your attention."

"You're certainly right about that, she is something else," I conclude. We walk in silence for most of the walk to class. That's one thing I like about Komali. Even in silence, he and I are completely content. But we can pick up conversation in a split second if we want. People like that, people that understand your mood and adapt to it, or people that are so mentally alike that they are content in any situation, are hard to come by.

"Does Zelda even know where to go?" Komali asks.

"Agitha said she would go to her room this morning and show her the way to some of her classes before school started," I inform him, thanking the Goddess for blessing the world with Agitha. She could make anyone less nervous.

"Bless her heart," Komali says quietly.

"I know, I bet she's kind of nervous. Blair Cavington can be intimidating."

"Well, I was originally talking about Agitha's but you're right about Zelda too."

Soon Komali and I arrive at our classrooms. Mine is 2034 and his is 2033, so we are right next door to each other during our first hour.

As I type furiously on my laptop, attempting to take notes about metering pattern as best as I can in my (first) photography class (I have two), I find my mind drifting to Zelda. I can't help but wonder what she's doing, how she is holding up, what class she is in, and what she is learning about. If she is really this insane genius like Komali mentioned, she must be in some insanely hard classes, learning insane things I don't have a clue about.

But my main concern for her is how she is handling the social aspect. While I didn't notice it to be as severe as Komali described, I did notice Zelda's hesitance to talk about herself. And the first day at a new school is a nightmare for someone who doesn't like to be asked questions. I pray under my breath as I type, begging the Goddess to help her. I can't stand the thought of Zelda being in some mental turmoil, trying to hide behind those bangs, wanting to pull her hood up over her head. Of course, she doesn't have a hood to hide under today. It's back to business as usual at the academy, so all the students will be in their usual uniforms.

I bend the screen on my laptop backwards and go to using it as a notepad. I start drawing the anatomy of a lens on the screen with my stylus, labeling certain parts my professor wrote on the board. I try to focus my brain back to photography for the next hour. It partially works, but I can't get rid of the nagging voice in the back of my mind that continuously whispers Zelda's name.

"—Link?…Link?" I look up to see Karane staring at me intently from her seat in front of mine. My eyes dart to the side really quick in confusion before coming back to hers. I then realize she was talking to me.

"Hm?"

"I was telling Pipit about the new girl. You know her right?"

"Boy, word spreads quickly around here," I tease. I look over to my right to see Pipit, who's sitting next to Karane in the row in front of me. I guess it was true that they have a newfound love for each other.

"Well, hardly anyone transfers this time of year, it's nearly impossible to get in," Karane answers.

"That's true," I say before attempting to go back to my work.

"She must be really good at something to get in so late in the year. The academy usually isn't even accepting students at this time," Pipit chimes in. He knows everything there is to know about academy life. He's been here ever since I can remember. He's something like a veteran to the rest of us.

"Science," I answer, not bothering to look up at either one of them.

"That's it?" I hear the shock in Karane's voice. I look up to see her eyebrows nearly to the ceiling, and Pipit nearly locked on my every word.

"Academics. That's what she does. It's her thing. Just like photography is yours," I say.

"Still, that's pretty impressive to get in just on an academic scholarship. Blair Cavington is for the "highly diverse and talented.' That's what they do, develop gifted kids and teach them other subjects. It's unheard of to come on just an academic grant."

"I guess she's highly talented enough to compensate for not doing some sort of sport or going into the Arts."

"I guess so," Karane says, nodding her head as she and Pipit exchange looks of disbelief.

"So, how did you guys meet? What is she like? Where is she from?"

"We met in the grove the other day. She's nice," I answer. I try to be cautious and not share anything Zelda wouldn't want me to. So I play it safe and just answer simple things.

"I heard she couldn't say where she was from because she was actually the daughter of a political figure and she had to keep her family safe by keeping it a secret," Pipit chimes in.

"What?" I ask, my face contorted in confusion. How would he know?

"I heard her parents died in a plane crash and she spent her life training elephants in a foreign country," some (extremely random?!) kid next to Pipit says.

"Know anything about her?" Karane presses. "You're the one who's actually talked to her!"

"Nope," I say, hoping they will get the hint. I'm kind of mad that these random people think they know her. "But I'm pretty sure neither of those are true."

The pair stopped asking me questions, thankfully, but they could still be heard whispering in front of me, each throwing out preconceived theories or ideas they had about her.

I can't help but smile as they talk. It's funny, really. Everyone else wants to know about the new girl just as much as I do. I've known her for three days, and spent the majority of that time with her, and still know nothing of her past or even her present or her future. But I can say I know her. And at the moment, I know her better than anyone else at this school.

The clock tower chimes out and all the students' heads shoot up, waiting for the professor to dismiss us. He waves his hand without even looking up from his desk, and we all take off.

I spot Komali standing in the hallway, waiting for me. We exchange our usual greetings and proceed to our next class.

The morning is seemingly passing more slowly than usual. Every time I exit a room, my eyes dart around briefly, in search for Zelda. The fact that I haven't seen her around all day confirms what Komali said: she really is on a full ride for academics. She hasn't been in any of the Arts buildings all day, to my knowledge. I'm a full Art student, so I only travel to the other side of campus occasionally. The main course I have (or rather, enjoy) in the General Studies area is my Language Arts writing class (so why is the word "Art" in it?).

Komali and I usually part ways after first hour, as the rest of his courses are in General Studies, so I head to the Language building by myself. I wonder if I'll see Zelda there the entire time I spend walking. I wish I could stop the day and find her. I just want to know if she is happy here or not.

I walk in my Language class and take my usual seat. I pull out my laptop, flip it into "doodle mode" and begin sketching a pair of eyes.

"Good morning," Professor Anju, a very pretty, middle aged woman, says to the class as people shuffle in. A few respond with their usual cheerful "good mornings." I go back to my sketching.

"I have some exciting news for you all today, we have a new student joining us!"

My eyes shoot up at the speed of light.

There she is, in all her shy, uncomfortable glory.

The class stirs in angst to see the new girl. I make note of a few girls that shoot each other uneasy glances, worried the new, beautiful girl will steal all the attention. And they were right to worry so, because as I glance to the boys in the room, the majority of them are doing all they can to wipe the drool off their mouths.

"Class, this is Miss Nohansen. She is an exchange student here on a full scholarly grant." The class erupts in whispers. Kids lean over to their neighbor and put their hands up to their mouths, discussing the rarity before them.

"So please," Professor Anju interrupts them, "make her feel welcome!"

The class hushes, but only slightly. A few of the students mutter "hello."

I slightly lean over from my seat in the back to get a better look at her, and it's the first time I've seen a school uniform actually look stunning on someone.

She has her hair down straight, as it was yesterday. It hangs free down to the small of her back. She has the stark white, button-up shirt sleeves pulled up to her forearm, and the ascot tied in a perfect knot. I try to peel my eyes away from her insanely long legs that cause her skirt to be a bit shorter than the other girls. I can tell she tried to compensate for the length by pulling her socks up as high as they could go, although one slightly falls due to her extremely thin nature. In the back of my mind, I wonder if her thinness has anything to do with her unhappiness. I've seen her eat, but only a little.

I catch myself still barely smiling as I look at her. She stands with her hands folded behind her back, and I swear I can almost see her knees shaking. But my smile quickly leaves when I hear the professor speak forbidden words to Zelda.

"Miss Nohansen, would you like to tell us a bit about yourself?"

I feel myself go numb, and I'm not even the one being asked. Zelda keeps her cool, although I can tell she is extremely nervous. She comes up with an answer though, and her words come out in a smooth sentence.

"I'm Zelda. I'm a transfer student from across the world. I'm very pleased to meet all of you," says with ease and nearly no emotion. Her answer seems robotic. Instead of dousing the fire with her indifference, Zelda has only sparked every mind in the room with her mysterious aura.

"Where are you from?!" one student blurts out. I see the gears in Zelda's brain start to turn as she tried to think of a response. I have to help her.

I can't believe I'm doing this. I've been dying to know where she is from or any hint to her past. But if she doesn't want to share it, I don't want her to.

I feel my lungs inhale and I quickly interject by saying, "Somewhere where they only sell oranges and peaches."

The entire class shifts focus to me in the back, but I'm only looking at Zelda. Her eyes light up a thousand times over, and I know she is thanking me with a hint of a smile. As much as I would have liked to hear her say where she was from, her reaction of gratitude was even better. She doesn't usually smile like that all too much.

The room goes quiet as people start to realize we know each other. Eyes are darting back and forth from her to me. But Zelda only continues to stare into mine.

Lucky for me, there is an open next to me, so I'll be able to be near her. Professor Anju finally steps in, gesturing to Zelda's new seat.

"Well, thank you, Zelda. We are pleased to have you. Seeing as you appear to know Link, any questions you have can be directed to him or myself."

"Thank you," Zelda nods, slightly bowing before making her way to her seat. As she walks, every pair of eyes in the room follows her. And I can't really blame them, her every move is captivating. She has captured the interest of every student in the room and she's only said a handful of words.

They continue watching her as she and I exchange glances, clearly trying to figure her out. Good luck with that.

Zelda makes her way to the empty desk a few feet away from mine. She sits down and turns her head a little to make eye contact with me, her lips in a small smile, but her eyes so clearly screaming in panic. She mouths something to me that I barely catch.

"Thank you."

I wink at her in reply. From this moment on, I will never let her be scared like that again.

"Alright class, let's take a look at our assignments from last week," Professor Anju starts.

The whole class time I spend watching Zelda out of my periphery, occasionally making eye contact with her to question if she was following along okay. Class continues to progress, Zelda relaxing more and more as each minute passes.

At the end of class every day, Professor Anju sets ten minutes aside for students to review and get caught up on notes, or peer review classmates' writings. Usually, many students just end up chatting if they are done, which means I end up sketching. But I don't do that today. Instead, I turn to Zelda, finally getting to ask her the question I've wanted to all day.

"So, how has your day gone so far," I ask as she turns to put her laptop in her bag.

"Mmm," she murmurs, her eyes looking up at me like a puppy's again.

"A little rough?" I try to phrase it lightly.

"Not too bad," she says, straightening up. "I just have to find my niche, that's all."

"Niche in what area?" The minute I ask, a girl sitting in front of Zelda turns around, nearly hitting her with her pony tail.

"So Zelda, tell me about yourself!"

"This," Zelda says to me. I can't help but smile.

"What about me in particular," she replies.

The girl, Fado, I think is her name, looks at Zelda for a second, wary of what kind of girl Zelda is. Again, no one really knows.

"Tell me where you're from! You come from across the world?"

I start to move in to save her, but Zelda immediately starts in.

"I just say across the world because I never actually had a 'hometown.' I was born on a ship. My parents were pirates, although they called themselves sea merchants. I spent most of my life sailing around an open sea. Anytime we made port, my parents would pick up educational things for me: books, charts, certain things like that, and I would explore the land. They wanted me to have an opportunity to make something of myself so I came here. I suppose all those years of exploration and constant learning made me want to learn more or something. But, whatever the reason, I got really good at learning and remembering things. When we made port on an island called Dragon Roost, a teacher who met me contacted Blair Cavington."

By the time she concludes her backstory, everyone in the class has surrounded her, hanging on her every word. My mind races back through what Pipit and Karane said this morning, and I think about the two completely different stories. Any story at all surprises me because Zelda is so keen on not sharing any part of her past.

Oh my goddess.

That's what she's doing. She doesn't want anyone to know where she is from or anything about her, so she's making stuff up. She gave them what they wanted: some amazingly insane backstory to accompany her amazingly insane brain.

I feel my confusion dissipate, like clouds parting. An all out grin spreads across my face as I look at her, faking her way through conversation. Other people haven't started these rumors about her, she's caused them herself. She really is a genius.

"Wait," someone says from behind Fado, "I heard you trained elephants!" Uh oh. I wonder how she will work her way out of this.

"I did," Zelda answers nonchalantly, with no hesitation. "We would stay on land for a while in order to restock everything, and give the crew a break. During one of our stays, I helped train elephants," she concludes in a sweet, quiet (so I know she's nervous), voice.

I've never seen her even attempt to talk about her past. Probably because she's not really talking as her.

Which raises the question: Who is the real Zelda?

Normally I hear about (or interact with) the extremely smart kids who are so smart, they have no social skills whatsoever. They constantly stare at things around them and they often come across as dumb because they are so smart. They seem detached from all reality and all the things around them. But Zelda is different. She is so in tune, so closely studying, and so attached that she's detatched. She's some sort of weird paradox.

I suppose this is the whole reason she is at Blair Cavington, and the whole reason Blair Cavington exists. She came here to learn, but she struck gold. Because not only can she use her brain to its full potential, she fits in here too. Every other student here is here for the reason that they are good at something and the academy helps them succeed in that field.

Only Zelda is more than "good at something." She's a genius. I can't help but smile to myself a little. She is in a place for the weirdos. She's around people who are mostly like her. Yet, she still stands out. She's an outcast among the outcasts. Out of all the gifted and talented people here, she is the one that has captured everyone's attention.

So what am I? A painter. A writer. A photographer. A "gifted" student, as Blair Cavington calls us all. But that's just it. That's what we all are. I wonder, if you're gifted, and you're among other gifted people, does it really make you gifted anymore? Or are you now just one of the regular kids around here?

Zelda is gifted. Yet, she stands out in the sea of other gifted people. She's considered a genius by a ton of geniuses! I'm just considered a normal genius around all the other geniuses. So why even call me a genius?

Suddenly everything seems extremely confusing and I wonder why I'm even sitting here.

Thank goddess the bell tower chimes and everyone starts to pack up, which snaps me out of my stupor. I feel someone standing over me and look up to see Zelda studying me. She's already packed and ready to go.

"You ready?" I question, sliding my laptop into my bag.

"If you are," she answers. I stand up and gesture for her to go ahead in front of me. She turns to me to ask a question, all eyes in the class still on her as we converse.

"Where are you going next?"

I look at my watch phone to check the time. 11:30. I usually head to lunch around this time but I remembered I was going to run by my room and grab my painting to turn into my art teacher, Rosa. Usually the teachers here prefer us to call them by their last names', but not Rosa. She doesn't even qualify for a teacher really. Or maybe she actually does, more than the others. All she does is help us with art. She doesn't care about grades (why would she have to? Every kid in class is here because they were some sort of art master at the age of, like, 10), and the only thing she enforces is us getting our work turned in on schedule. Which is why I need to go to my room and get my painting.

"Well, I have to run by my room and grab my painting to turn in, then I'll probably run to Agitha's and see what she's made for lunch. Wanna come?"

"Yes," she answers, seemingly unaware of everyone staring at her as we make our way out.

"Hey, Link," a tall ridiculously hair-styled boy, Groose, calls out from behind me. He usually never talks to me unless it's to say something derogatory. Because of this, I keep walking. Zelda slightly turns around thinking I'm going to stop, but I put my hand on her shoulders and spin her forward again.

"Just keep going," I say in her ear. She obeys, and walks out the door.

Unfortunately, Groose made his way to me at this point, and he throws his arm around my neck.

"Heyyyy, buddy!" He is so annoying and loud. And his giant arm is going to crush my trachea in a nano-second.

"What," I deadpan.

"Who's the cutie? You didn't take the time to introduce me to your friend!"

I want to hit him in the face. But more importantly, I want to tell Zelda to run for her life. To my satisfaction, I don't have to, because she already walked out the door.

"Okay," I say to Groose, not bothering to try to remember what he said. All I remember is him thinking Zelda is cute and me wanting to throw up.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Groose says, but I'm too busy wanting to get back to Zelda as quickly as possible. I don't intend getting separated from her on her first day when she expected me to walk with her. But she knows the way to my dorm. Maybe she will wait for me outside.

"—hog her all to yourself? I don't think so," Groose was saying. I stare up at him, not bothering to even care what he is saying at this point.

"Huh?"

"Are you stupid or something?" He looks at me like I'm the biggest idiot around.

"Yes." That seemed to be the quickest way to end the conversation.

"Link?" I spin around to see Zelda sweetly standing at the door. "You coming?"

"He's been catching up with me," Groose interjects.

"Okay," Zelda answers in her stone cold tone. She must have radar lock on people of his type, because I've never seen her snub someone so much. I start to smile.

"I'm coming," I say to her.

To my surprise (and delight), Zelda comes over and gingerly grabs my arm with both of hers, hugging it to her chest.

"If we don't hurry, we won't have time to get lunch before next hour." She pulls me away from Groose, who is clutching me so hard I can feel my face turning red.

"Hey hey, hold up, sweetheart. I don't think you and I have had the pleasure," Groose says to her. I cringe at the way he calls her "sweetheart." He sounds so demeaning.

"I'm Groose, Blair Cavington's best athlete on campus," he says smugly.

"Certainly the most humble," Zelda replies with no hesitation.

"Hmph, humility never got anyone anywhere. Especially in this den of freaks," Groose answers back.

Zelda stares up at Groose blankly, showing absolutely no emotion. It's almost creepy how quickly she can shut down.

"What?" Groose sneers at her. For someone wanting to win her over, he sure isn't doing a very good job.

Zelda ignores his remark and turns to me, still holding my arm.

"I'm hungry," she says in a level tone, not even glancing Groose's way.

"Well, gotta run, Groose. I promised Zelda I'd have lunch with her and we have to run an errand first. Bye," I say, rotating myself as to not pull away from Zelda's grasp. I hurried before he had time to say anything.

We walk out the door to the classroom finally and make our way to my dorm, not too far from the Language Arts building.

"I don't like him," Zelda states in an adorable voice that drips with irritation. I can't help but grin.

"Me neither," I say, looking at her with endearment. She just scored major points with me. Then again, who did like Groose?

Zelda unravels her arms from mine and continues to walk beside me. We talk about her first day, but all the while, a thought forms in the back of my mind. I think about how she is very gentle and sweet to me, as well as other people. She has never really been rude in any second that I can ever recall. But, the minute she saw Groose, she shut down. Not only that, but she grabbed my arm. She usually never showsaffection like that. It was like she was marking her territory. Or…letting me mark mine. She saw Groose strong-arm me, literally. Maybe she overheard him talking to me. Either way, it was like she already knew the type of person he was. So, to make it clear she wasn't interested in getting to know him, and to boost me up, she clung to me.

She's really playing the game well.

All the while, Zelda continues to chatter on about her first day and the people she's met and a few minor embarrassing moments. I love listening to her talk. I can tell she is becoming more comfortable around me. And that lights a fire of happiness inside me that I haven't felt in a long time. I also notice how many people stare at her as she walks by. People are either intrigued by her newness or dumbfounded by her beauty. Or both. Something she says does cause me to interject though.

"You say you made some new friends?" I ask.

She lights up. "Yes! Their names are Malon and Saria!"

"Tell me about them."

"Malon is studying to be a veterinarian. She is really good with animals and stuff. She grew up on a ranch, so she knows a lot about them! She is really pretty. I like her hair. And she is really nice. Usually people who are nice to animals are just nice in general. I really like her."

"I'd love to meet her sometime," and thank her for befriending Zelda. "She sounds nice. Tell me about Saria."

""Saria is really nice too. They are both friends. They were in one of my science classes with me. Saria is smart. Like, scary smart."

This stops me. How smart does one have to be to be classified as "scary smart" in Zelda's book?

"What do you mean 'scary smart?'" I question.

"Well, she never stops moving, for one thing. She has endless energy. It's like her brain never shuts off. She is brilliant. She's a prodigy at solving things."

"Solving things?"

"Yeah. When she was little, she could solve puzzles, mazes, riddles, things like that, really fast. Now she has become so good at it that she can just look at a chemistry or math equation and figure it up in her head instantly. She skips the stuff in the middle and can immediately come up with the answer. But she can't even really explain how she did it. The most fascinating thing of all was that when she was twelve, the Hyrule Military Defense took her in to help them."

I am completely floored by this one.

"Took her in to help them do what?"

"She would help them with military strategies: where to attack, how to track down wanted people, all that stuff. She viewed things like puzzles. She couldn't really say a whole lot, obviously, but she said it was really fun and that she was just happy to help. But she has a body guard back home in her hometown because the work was so dangerous."

I am really nothing. There are kids out there doing stuff like this, and all I can do is wield a paintbrush and direct a camera.

"That is crazy…it really doesn't surprise me that you two became friends so easily," I say to Zelda as we near my room.

"What do you mean?"

"Malon and Saria both just seem like your type of people. Caring and kind, yet on a different realm of intelligence. Just like you."

Zelda looks up at me, slightly confused.

"Different realm of intelligence?"

"Yeah, you know. Like 'scary smart.' I think you're scary smart too."

"You do?" She stares up at me with that piercing look again. I stop dead in my tracks to examine her gaze.

I gaze back into her eyes, searching for any sign of sarcasm, but there is none. She really doesn't know. Has she really been oblivious to the whispers and gasps about her being a full academic student? Does she really not notice how much smarter she is than everyone else? How can someone that smart be so naive and blind to his or her own intelligence?

But I don't say that. I don't try to explain how different she is compared to everyone here, the different kids. So instead, I just answer, "Yes."

The corner of her mouth turns into a small smile.

"Thank you." And just like that, she dismisses the subject, uninterested anymore. Because she doesn't really believe it.

We enter my room and grab the painting before sprinting out the door. It's already almost 12:00, and class resumes at 12:30.

Zelda accompanies me to turn in my painting. She becomes speechless as we enter the art room. I guess she hasn't seen anything like that before. It must really intrigue her, because the entire way to Agitha's, all she does is ask questions about art and what things do and how we know how to paint and colors and canvases and all sorts of things.

I hold the door open and Zelda nearly skips to the barstool, greeting Agitha with an excitement that makes me smile for her. I'm so happy she is happy here. She has completely transformed from the person she was when I first saw her here. I turn around momentarily to observe the door I first saw her in. Her braided hair swung down to her torso, her hood was pulled up over her head to hide her face, and her arms hugged her stomach, trying to hide the rest of her. Now, she sits with her legs swinging, chatting way with Agitha about school and science and the people she has met. I grin as I watch her. Slowly, I have become to see more and more of her unfold.

"—Link?" Agitha questions. I snap out of my stupor.

"Sorry. Yeah?"

"Does that sound okay for lunch or do you want a back up PB&J?"

I totally didn't hear what she said, but I just answer that "it" sounds fine.

I take a seat next to Zelda. As we sit and eat, talking about whatever subject spins off from another, I think about how lucky I am.

We help Agitha clean up a bit, as she is busy serving other students, and then we take off for our next class.

I'm happy to have her to talk with me now. Komali has the lunch after mine, so he and Agitha usually have lunch together, since that is the slower time of the day for her, which leaves me on my own. But today, and for the rest of the days to come, I have Zelda to accompany me.

Soon, we come a stop. I usually go right from this street, toward the Art building. Zelda goes right, toward whatever class she has in the General Studies region next.

She seemingly becomes nervous all of the sudden, like a child when her blanket is about to be taken from her.

"Try to meet up with me after school, okay?" she asks.

"I will, I'll see you right afterwards. I'll meet you at Agitha's," I say, smiling down at her gingerly.

"Okay," she says, half smiling.

"See you later!" I'm always terrible at goodbyes, so I turn to walk away quickly to be the least awkward as possible. I keep walking, hearing Zelda's steps behind me as she goes her own way.

"Link!" She calls back. I spin around to see staring at me from down the other side walk.

"Promise you won't forget?" she asks, gripping her bag.

I smile at her and give her an assuring nod. "I promise."

She smiles back, seeming to be comforted by my promise, and she turns on her heel to leave.

I watch her as she goes, wondering what spurred on that outburst. I can't help but continue to wonder about her. Sure, I've learned a lot about her. But, then again, have I really? She seems so independent, yet, she makes me promise to remember her. She is so sweet and gentle, but then she can snap back at someone like Groose. She is so smart, but she doesn't even realize it. She's so deep, yet she can shut off emotion in a half a second. She can talk and talk with me one minute, and the next, completely shut down and get her point across with only one or two words. So, again, the question is raised: who is she, really?

Maybe that is who she is. Maybe she is all of those things. She's just a little paradox.

A/N: I finally got this up! Sorry for the delay. Expect a new chapter out soon. I just love writing this story. Side note: I am going back and editing the last chapters for some grammatical mistake, spelling errors, etc. I don't plan on changing dialogue or any scenes, but on the off chance I do I will notify you all. Thank you so much for the continued support, let me know what you think!