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After breakfast, Nabooru took Elia to where the priestesses bathed. Elia was given a plain white dress and a priestess robe to wear.
"Is it all right?" Elia asked. "I mean, I am not a priestess."
"These are the only clothes they have," Nabooru explained, gesturing at her own garb. "Besides, the true priestesses have patterns on their robes. These are just plain."
Elia looked around at the other women who were dressing and, indeed, each one wore a robe embroidered with some symbol on the back, and some had simple patterns circling the arms or the hood.
"N—Miss Nabooru," Elia began. "Are you really one of the Sages?"
"There is no other Nabooru," said the Gerudo woman proudly. She smiled a bit, wickedly so. "Leader of the Gerudos and Sage of Spirit—that's me."
"Th-Then…do you know about…Link?"
"Link? Weren't you just talking to him?" Nabooru asked, leading her out of the pagoda.
Elia's heart fell as many stories as the pagoda was tall. "So Link…he was changed into a Goron?"
"What?" Nabooru turned around and saw the depressed expression on Elia's face. "Oh! You think—Hero—a Goron—hahaha!" She doubled over with heavy laughter.
Elia blushed heavily. "Um…so…that's not the real Link?"
"He is a 'Link', yes, but I doubt the one you're thinking of—oh, hahahaha!" Nabooru covered up her mouth but she could not contain her laughter. "No wonder you looked so strangely at him—ha!"
"Well then, who is that Link?" Elia asked, feeling completely and totally thoroughly humiliated.
"He is my son, of course."
The voice that had spoken was even louder, deeper, and more menacing than the Goron Link's. Elia spun to see a shorter, fatter, older-looking Goron man.
"Ah, Darunia. You might be amused to know that this girl thought your son was the Hero of Time," Nabooru said, her evil grin overtaking her sly, Gerudo face.
"You did? Really?" asked Darunia. He gave a big belly laugh. "Not unless something very, very strange happened! Heheheh! But I'm flattered, though, really."
Elia could only wear a puzzled expression.
Darunia waddled over and gave Elia a healthy—well, more than healthy, actually—pat on the back. She about fell crashing onto the cobblestones beneath her. Darunia finally slowed down his laughter. "Ah, kid, thanks for giving us two old Sages a healthy laugh. My son the Hero of Time—ha!" And he walked off in high spirits.
"Speaking of him, here comes that lumbering fool now," Nabooru said, motioning with her head at the approaching figure.
"Miss Elia, would you like to go on a tour now?" he asked, halting from his jog over to them.
"We've only been here a few weeks; what can you show her?" muttered Nabooru as she walked away.
"She didn't even say bye," observed Elia. She strained her neck to look up at the Goron. "Link, I have to apologize to you."
"What? Why?" He scratched his head.
Elia looked down at her feet. "When I first heard that you were Link from Hyrule, I was worried—er… I was…um…confused. I wondered if you were the…um…the other Link."
"The real one, you mean," the Goron said kind of quietly.
Elia snapped her head up. "That's not what I meant. I mean…you are real too, are you not?"
He shrugged and started walking slowly. "I don't really know. Everyone always refers to him as the 'real Link'. So I guess that means I'm the fake one." Link sighed. "I guess that's why Dad laughed when he saw me. He never smiles at me unless he's makin' fun."
"Oh, that is so awful!" exclaimed Elia. She came over to the Goron, who was busily hanging his head, and touched his arm gently. She would have patted his shoulder comfortingly, but it was too high. The Goron had to be at least three feet taller than she was.
He glanced down and smiled at her ever so weakly. Then he started walking again towards one of the waterfalls, Elia following closely. "I…I used to be proud of my name. When I was seven, I met the real Link. I always idolized him. But…I got older and Dad began to tell me how stupid I was, how unlike the 'real Link'… I used to cry and he would punish me so bad, and ever since then I've been the brunt of all Goron jokes. And now everyone who knows Dad makes fun of me too.
"I used to feel blessed to have the name of the Hero of Time, but now it's much more like a curse. And I used to love Link but now I kinda resent him." The Goron paused in front of the water.
Elia looked into the pool and gazed at her clear reflection in the water. She met Link's gaze in the water. "I really never thought of what it would be like to have a hero's name before. Now, though, I see how horrible it must be."
"It'd be real nice if Dad didn't compare my life to Link's. Not everyone can be a famous, world-savin' hero." He knelt down so he was closer to the water and leaned over it. "When I see my reflection, I only see a failure." He made a huge rock fist and smashed the mirror, sending icy splashes all about. "I just…I just wish my name wasn't Link!"
Elia clapped her hands together. "Hey, what if it wasn't Link?"
He looked up at her. "What do you mean?"
The young woman crouched down and looked into his eyes with her own big brown ones. "If you were not called Link, then you could just be yourself, right? And the only image you would have to live up to would be your own?"
"But…but I've been Link for twenty-one years…"
"So it is about time for a change, right?" Elia said, smiling in an almost sly way.
He nodded slowly. "So I change my name. But to what?"
"Whatever you want."
The man paused thoughtfully for a long time. He looked at her helplessly. "I can't think of anythin'. Please, Miss Elia, you choose something."
Elia blushed. "I can't make such an important decision—"
"Please. I want you to."
Elia thought long and hard. "I can't think of any," she said quietly. "But this is an important decision. Can I have a while to think about it?"
He nodded eagerly. "Oh, Miss Elia, I'm so excited!"
Elia was then crushed in a good old-fashioned 'Goron Hug'.
That evening, Elia was invited to eat with Nylan, Xua, and some others in the main hall. It was on the top floor of the pagoda, where a gentle breeze rustled the translucent curtains that walled them in. Right before the food was served, two male servants walked in and opened the curtains facing west.
"To see the sun set from above the clouds is most spectacular," Xua observed. "The last time I came here I was just a little boy, far too young to dine up here."
"Ah, and now you are a cherished guest," said an older woman who, as Elia had been informed, was the head priestess of the Temple. "Sir Xua, though…I seem to recall when you came prior to this." She gazed intently at the young man through sharp eyes set in a withered face. "Those eyes that seem to glow… I really must request a private council with you immediately after eating."
Xua bowed his head respectfully. "Of course."
Elia really wondered what was going on. Xua had lost his cool confidence all together, it seemed; ever since his outburst on the boat he was a different man. Elia turned her attention to the food that was being served. A plate piled high with red vegetables and grilled meat was her meal, and she ate it eagerly.
Elia gazed at the red. Red…red… Fiery… Fiery—that was it! She stood up. "Aden, Aden!" she cried.
All of the people at the table turned and stared. Elia looked around to see the faces of Nylan, Xua, Darunia, Nabooru, the head priestess, the priests—everyone staring at her. Even the servants, standing off to the side, did.
Elia didn't care.
"Sir Darunia, where is Ad—I mean, your son?"
"That fool? Eating with the priests I guess," Darunia said.
Elia nodded. She ran for the door. The girl stopped, remembering, and gave a hasty curtsey. "Um, excuse me!"
The flights of stairs down the pagoda were only an obstacle of a few moments; Elia flew down them like she wasn't stepping at all. She burst outside into the cold night.
She froze.
Everything was lit up by the beautiful silvery moonlight. The waterfalls sparkled, reflecting the images of the huge statues in their diamond-like water. And the statues themselves, bathed in moonlight, appeared more like ghosts than beings carved of stone.
She slowly was released from her numbness when she realized how cold her leg was. She glanced down to see that it was wet; somehow icy water from the nearby pool had been splashed to her skirt. Elia shivered and started, a bit more slowly and humbled than before for the doorway of the smallest building.
Elia burst in on the main dining hall, interrupting the hum of everyone's conversations. She felt her pale face turn from white to red. Her big brown eyes were projected downward as the young woman shuffled, embarrassed, across the floor.
At last she met up with her target. The Goron had been watching her since she entered the room. He looked up at her nervously, even though as he sat on a stool he was about equal with her.
"I thought of the perfect name," breathed Elia to him quietly, getting a bit more excited once again.
"Oh, Miss Elia, you did?" he asked, leaning so hard toward her that his scooter fell over. He fell, crashing into the floor.
"Oh no!" Elia cried, bending down to help him.
He bounced back up, looking around embarrassedly. "I'm fine," he said. "There are lotsa advantages to bein' made of rock," the man explained, scratching his back and blushing down at her.
She nodded slowly. "Well, I was thinking…" Her eyes happened to wander to some others in the room, some young priestesses. They were watching. Elia looked around a bit more. Everyone else was watching.
Elia took the Goron's hand and dragged him to the nearest exit. She bowed on her way out as she had done before, then slid the door shut.
"Miss Elia?"
"I can't say anything with everyone watching like that," Elia said to her shoes.
"It's all right. But Miss Elia, tell me."
Elia nodded. "I…I… I don't know if you'll like it, but… I mean, since you're a Goron and all, and Gorons live in volcanoes, which are, you know, fiery…"
"Please, Miss Elia."
"Aden."
"Aden, hmm?"
Elia gulped and looked up. Did he like it?
The tall man looked thoughtful for many moments. Then he opened his mouth into a wide grin and laughed. "Aden, Aden—I love it!" The Goron reached down and took her hands and danced back and forth with her.
Elia laughed and tried to keep up with his happy swaggering. "I—am—glad," she got in between jumps, "that—you—do—like—whoa! She tumbled to the ground, but got back up, nearly crying from all the laughter.
They danced again for a long time before heading towards the stairs that led to the world below. Elia sat down on a ledge and let her legs dangle over the edge playfully. Aden sat down next to her.
"This is so wonderful," Elia murmured. She peered down a little. "My feet are actually touching the clouds!"
"And mine are through the clouds," remarked Aden with a wink.
Elia pulled her plain priestess robe a bit tighter around her shoulders as a breeze blew over them. The cold, however, was a minor discomfort. The moon was even a little higher now, and it's pure beams of light lit up beautiful landscapes before them, both real and illusionary.
"Aden, how long have you been staying here?"
"Not very long. We left from Hyrule about…" He thought a bit. "A month ago. So we've been here two and a half weeks, I guess."
"I wish I could stay as long. But I heard Xua and Nylan talking about leaving tomorrow morning." Elia sighed. "I would love to stay longer. If I did not have other plans, I think I might very much love to stay here forever—become a priestess."
"You would make a charmin' priestess," Aden said softly. However, this was quickly followed by a sigh. "I would like to be a priest. The beauty of the place alone is enough reason, but I also want to learn more about the Gods. In Hyrule, people aren't very religious."
Elia shrugged, leaning back on her hands. "People all worship in their own way. But I agree, the land of six Gods seems more intriguing than three Goddesses—however wondrous the Goddesses are." She looked up at the sky. "I hope I shall be forgiven."
"Ach, I don't see why people are worried about what the Gods here. Were we just given the ability to think for ourselves and meant to ignore it? I don't think we'd learn much by just repeatin' old texts and whatnot. If you want to worship somethin', then why do it just because someone else told you to?"
Elia smiled. "Aden, I think your new name has given you a lot of insight already!"
He scratched his head. "Nah; I was just ramblin', Miss Elia."
"And enough with this 'Miss'—I think Elia is a find name by its lonesome."
"It's a very pretty name," he agreed. "But I can't, I just can't… Miss Elia, you're the only person I can remember ever be kind to me. I can't talk to you like we're equals."
"But of course we're equals!"
"We're…we're not. You're smart, pretty, and sophisticated—I'm stupid, ugly and barbaric. I can't… I just can't..."
Elia sighed. "I think those are completely untrue, Aden. You are a perfectly wonderful person! Perhaps we are different, but no two people are alike, you know—that's what makes the world so wonderful." She put her hand on his and looked up at him thoughtfully. "You are given what you are given, and you cannot change that. Everyone, though, is in the same situation. You do not have to be resentful about this—you can be pleased with what you have and work with it."
He was quiet for a long time, but eventually he looked like he agreed with her. "Miss Elia, I will think about what you have said. But I would just prefer to call you so, for you are a lady."
"All right, then," Elia finally agreed.
The Goron swung his legs a little bit, kind of like a child. "Anyways, what I was saying was that I would like to be a priest. But I can't. Even though my father hates me, I'm his only heir. I'll have to be 'Big Brother'."
"Is that what you want?"
"Of course not! Everythin' would fall apart, then!" He gasped. "No, no… I can't say this; it's disrespectful. I… I should be happy that I was born into such a important role."
"But it is not what you want," observed the young woman. "If you want to be a priest, then stay here and be a priest. But if you want to be locked into doing something you don't want, then, by all means—let life run you over."
Aden nervously adjusted the deep gray priest's robe he wore. "I wish it was as simple as that," he said quietly. "If it were, I would just be a priest then!"
"Well, why is it not that simple?" she asked.
"Miss Elia, it's awful complicated. Sometimes I think I would really like to be a leader of my people, if only I could do it. But things would be just awful if I was to become Big Brother. Everyone from the Elders to the little kids make fun of me and don't think anythin' of me. There would be a mutiny!"
"Oh, I am not sure. Have you not already changed, Aden?" She smiled. "And if you can do this much changing in less than an hour, perhaps you can become a fabulous 'Big Brother' in years to come."
"You make everythin' seem so easy," Aden told her. "Hmm." He looked over the clouds to some mountains far ahead. "I heard from the people here that in order to become a priest or priestess, you train for a long time and then take this trial, like makin' it to the top of one of those mountains." He gestured with a big rocky hand. "I wish that I had done somethin' great like that.
"Dad's done a lot of stuff. He fought as a brave warrior in the battles against Ganondorf—the earliest when he was just like sixteen. And he helped the Gorons through a time of starvation a bit before I was born… He fought against Ganondorf again and the evil dragon Volvagia when all the Gorons were imprisoned. That's actually when I first met Link."
"Link," sighed Elia quietly, resting her face on her hands. Where was he now? I'm coming, Elia thought, I'm coming.
"So you know Link?"
Elia, had she not been so somber, would have laughed out loud, but instead she cracked a weak smile. "You could say that."
Aden made a face. "Well, how was I supposed to know? Anyway, how do you know him?"
Elia blushed.
"So…it's like that, huh?"
She blushed again. "I…have not seen him for a long time. But I am searching for him."
Aden frowned slightly and looked over the clouds. "So that's why you're here."
She nodded, puzzled over his change in attitude. "What did you think I was doing here?"
He shrugged. "I thought you were just payin' a visit to the Temple or somethin'." Aden sighed. "That's just how stupid I am," he muttered under his breath.
"You are not stupid. How could you have known? It is not as if anyone has mentioned it." Elia bent over to try and look in his face. He looked away. Still confused, the young woman returned her attention to the beautiful, wispy landscapes straight ahead. "Anyway, I am very glad Nylan had us stop here. The view is simply too beautiful!"
"Uh-huh."
"And I'm also glad that I found you here."
This got him to look up. "What do you mean?"
"Because you are a new friend!" She smiled brightly. "Back home I lived alone… I had only one friend, and even her I fought with before leaving. I was sure that everything that lay ahead would be quite lonely, but I was wrong. I have found plenty of new friends here." She fingered the silver choker around her neck. "Nylan, Wonara, Mvon, the twins… Hmm, I don't know what to say about Xua." She crossed her arms.
"Xua…is that the younger one?"
"Yes. Why?"
Aden thought for a moment. "I heard some of the older priests talkin' with the head priestess about him. One said something about how he was 'imperative'. I wasn't sure what they meant exactly. But the head priestess said she would meet with him tonight."
Elia's eyes widened a bit. "Tonight at dinner, she said she wanted a 'private council' or some such thing." Could there be any connection between this and Xua's hesitation to come? She shook her head. Even if there were, perhaps nothing bad would come of it.
The Goron lowered his voice substantially and whispered, "Miss Elia, if you're that curious, I know where she holds her private councils."
Elia immediately dismissed the idea. "Spy on them?" She shook her head fervently. "For one thing, it is morally wrong. And, for another, practically impossible. The feeling I get from Xua is that he always knows what is going on; he could tell if I was spying. I imagine the head priestess is also that way."
Aden nodded. "It was a stupid idea. Forgive me, Miss Elia."
"Stupid? No. I actually would like to hear what they are saying, but I do not want to be known a spy." She winked. "I know Xua will never tell me anything."
"So…you and Xua do not get along?"
Elia stared straight ahead and said firmly, "He hurt my dear friend's heart. I cannot forgive such a man."
"He doesn't strike me as the kind of guy that is unaware of others' feelin's and stuff. Besides, people have reasons for the stuff they do, even if it seems real insensitive at the time."
"I do not care whatever reasons he has. He used Mvon. As a girl, I understand how awful that would be for her. When you are in love, it is unbearable to think that your feelings are being abused for some man's personal gain." She crossed her arms and gritted her teeth.
"Well, maybe you're right. I sure don't know."
"'Don't know'?" she repeated. "How can you not? It is wrong to hurt someone, plain and simple."
"Miss Elia, I beg your pardon, but people hurt other people's feelin's all the time without even noticin'."
Elia couldn't think of anything to say to that.
"Besides, what good is just resentin' somebody for forever and ever without knowin' their intentions? It just adds a lot of unnecessary hate and everythin' to the world, if you ask me."
"You are very insightful, Aden," Elia murmured.
He scratched his head. "Aw, really? I don't think so."
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