shit slowly starts to get real
"Link…" Ganondorf said, surprise and disappointment evident in his voice. "I never thought you'd have to come here, unless it was on your own free will."
Link sighed, looking down to his feet shamefully.
"Yeah, me neither."
"How is your mother?" He inquired.
"She's a bit better. But I hope I can find another job soon."
"Perhaps I could pull some strings and send a steady amount of rupees your way after you've finished your community service." He smiled at the younger male, patting him on the back.
Zelda studied them carefully, curious at their relationship with each other.
"Thank you Mr. Dragmire." He cracked a smile at the Gerudo, appreciative of the offer.
"And you, young lady… Stay out of trouble, okay? A face like that is far too pretty to be scrubbing jelly off the walls." He ruffled Zelda's hair, laughing at her frazzled expression.
"Okay…" She said embarrassedly while Link rolled his eyes.
"I'll be off. There are other students here that are volunteering with you guys. Look to them for help, okay?" Ganondorf walked away, heading out to go to his office.
"Be careful," another voice rang out, "He might try to sleaze into your pants later."
Link and Zelda turned around to see a girl with raven black hair and brown eyes walk over to them.
Link smirked immediately, leaving Zelda's side to talk to his friend.
"Ashei."
"Hey you." She smiled, poking his cheek. "Don't tell me you're here to spend more time with me."
"As if. I didn't even know you'd be here. Why are you here anyway?"
"Some idiot thought he could disrespect me and I wasn't afraid to give him the business."
Link chuckled, intriguing Zelda even more. This was the girl that they had been talking about, his 'friend' that Pipit and Shad teased him about. She had never seen this side of him before, she had never seen how amiable he could be.
Seeing it… sort of made her feel jealous.
Not jealousin a romantic sense, more of her wishing that they could get along better, the way he got along with Ashei. It would be nice, to see the side of him that Shad and Pipit insists is there. The good within him.
"So who are you?" Ashei asked, looking at Zelda.
"I'm Zelda."
Ashei's eyes widened.
"YOU'RE ZELDA!?" She asked, clearly shocked. She immediately smacked Link in the chest.
"Ow! What was that for?" Link asked, frowning.
"From the way you talked about her I was expecting an eight-legged monster!"
"You… talk about me?" Zelda arched an eyebrow, looking at him.
He blushed, crossing his arms, clearly mortified by the change in topic.
"Your name might have slipped a couple of times." He shrugged, his cheeks turning redder by the second, "Don't worry though. I've only said bad things."
Ashei laughed.
"You're so socially inept that it's actually a little sad." She frowned playfully at Link before turning to look at Zelda, "But don't worry, I'm not the type of person to draw conclusions about someone else based off of what I've heard. Come on, let's go into the room that the others are in. You guys can help us scrub that one first. It'll be more bearable, much more entertaining than having to work on a room by yourself." Ashei gave Zelda a smile, walking off for them to follow.
She walked briskly, leaving Link and Zelda to talk amongst themselves.
"Your girlfriend seems pretty nice." Zelda murmured, "Far too nice to be with someone like you."
"She's not my girlfriend." Link said.
"She seems like your type."
"What is my type then?" Link asked, looking at her from the side.
"Pretty, witty, sarcastic… I don't know. Someone you don't treat like complete trash. You should know it better than me." Zelda said.
He looked away.
"I've never had a girlfriend." He said.
"What? Why not?"
Link didn't respond, prompting her to look at him curiously.
"Link?" She asked.
"Why do you care?" He asked suddenly, glaring at her.
"I… I don't."
She looked at him, noticing a tinge of pain in his beautiful blue eyes.
"We shouldn't talk about this here." He muttered bitterly.
"Well where can we talk about this then –"
"We're here!" Ashei sang, smiling at them as she opened the door.
Three students were spread out in different corners, scrubbing away at the walls.
There was a girl with blue hair, the same one that nagged people in the library, and then two boys. One was short and on the chubby side with blue hair, the other one was blonde, lean and tall… As soon as Link saw them, he didn't even think about his actions, stomping over and grabbing them both, slamming them into the wall.
Lana screamed, fearful of the violent action.
"You… You pieces of shit!" Link growled.
"L…Link…"
"I always knew you guys were scum, but to go after Karane like that? You should be fucking slaughtered."
"It… it wasn't our idea… It was Groose!" Strich said, tears peeking out of his eyes as he squirmed under Link's harsh touch.
"Link!" Ashei rushed over to him, putting a hand on his shoulder. She knew of how Link cared for Karane, he considered her to be a sister, having grown so fond of her being his best friend's first love. And she also knew better than to try and restrain him when he was mad, but she couldn't risk any of them getting into any more trouble.
He relaxed instantly at her touch, looking back at her suppliantly.
"It isn't worth it." She said.
"It is."
"No. You don't need to be in any more trouble. Wait till we're off campus, okay?"
Link sighed, letting go of Strich and Cawlin and shoving them to the side.
They scrambled off, grabbing their brushes.
"I'm… I'm sorry about that." Link said, running his hands through his hair. "I lost it. But is this really their punishment? They beat up someone innocent and this is the price they have to pay? The same one as me and Zelda?"
"I know. It's wrong." Ashei said, grabbing his hand and slowly coaxing him over to a corner of the room where there were more brushes and towels.
Zelda watched them, her head filled with even more questions than before. Ashei gestured her to come over there as well.
"These are the brushes we use to scrub the jelly off the walls. Don't underestimate it either, the stuff is really thick, so you'll also need to wear an apron – or come here in clothes you don't mind getting dirty. You can make the struggle a bit easier by spritzing some water on the walls, but we just ran out of water and these people are bums and don't want to get more."
"I'm all sticky!" Lana whined, "I don't want to go outside and get more water. I'll just scrub extra hard." She said.
Ashei crossed her arms.
"Is it really that hard to just get up and walk?"
"Why don't you get it then?" Lana challenged.
"Because I got it the last three times."
"Okay, so what about those two clowns?" Lana pointed at Cawlin and Strich.
"I'm not the most fit person…" Cawlin shrugged.
"I just don't want to –"
"One of you get us some water before I beat your ass." Link threatened menacingly. Cawlin flinched and Strich immediately stood up and scurried off frightfully to do as he wished.
Link nodded in satisfaction, grabbing a bucket and a brush and finding his own respective spot to scrub.
"What's his deal with them?" Zelda asked Ashei.
"They're the ones that beat Karane up so bad that she had to go to the hospital."
"Ah, I see."
"Since you live with them I'm sure you know all about how Karane was Pipit's first love."
"Yeah…" Zelda said, a bit unenthusiastic at that certain bit of the topic.
"Link cares a lot for Karane. He doesn't like anyone that even looks at his friends the wrong way, y'know?"
The dark haired beauty studied Zelda's face carefully, interpreting her perplexed expression to be one of skepticism.
"Link's rough around the edges. I won't deny that. But he isn't a bad guy, it's quite the opposite actually. He's charming, in his own way."
Zelda looked at her, noticing the way her eyes lit up when she talked about him. She kept hearing all these praises, but still lacked the evidence to back it up. The nicest he had ever been to her was bringing her own – and even then he was still an ass about the whole situation.
"Everyone keeps telling me that. I guess I won't believe it until I see it." Zelda concluded.
»°«
"You could get in HUGE trouble for this." Karane growled, eyes tearing up as she balled her fists angrily. Sitting across from her was Groose, the man she loathed with every fiber of her being.
"There are lots of things I could get in trouble for sweetie, but you need me. You know you do."
"No. You need me! Otherwise you wouldn't have to go through all this trouble to make my life a living hell."
"Ah, it's a classic symbiotic relationship then. We both need each other. So you'll do as I say… And I'll refrain from making your life 'a living hell.'"
"Yeah right! You disrespected me in the worst way possible, you broke me and Pipit up, you… you ruined me." The tears started falling out and she couldn't stop them, she was crying, emotions of embarrassment and terror rushing through her body.
"Listen, this isn't the time to be crying Karane." Groose said, leaning forward and wiping her tears away aggressively, before looking around the diner nervously. "Not while we're out here in public…"
"Get your hands off of me!" Karane swiped his large hand away, drawing a bit of attention from people. "Just tell me what the hell you want!"
"I'm being framed…"
"Framed for what?"
"The chu jelly in the dorms, that's what." He hissed, glaring at her angrily. "And I'm determined to figure out who the fuck really did it."
"You mean it really wasn't you? I wouldn't be surprised if it was." Karane muttered, dabbing at her eyes with a napkin.
"It wasn't." Groose enunciated, turning redder and redder by the moment.
"Well what if I don't believe you?"
"Doesn't matter if you believe me or not. You're going to help clear my name."
"Why me? Why not get your little puppets to do it? Just like they did this to me?" She pointed at a healing wound on her arm.
"They're a bit tied up with community service. It doesn't matter though." He threw a communicator at her. "I may not be able to use my phone but we'll still be keeping in touch. You're gonna help me get to the bottom of this shit."
"How?"
"You've been going to the administrative offices often. Find out where they keep the security cameras and get the footage that'll prove my innocence."
"So? What'll happen if I'm successful?"
"As long as you keep your mouth shut, that'll be the end of it between us."
"And if I'm unsuccessful?"
He narrowed his eyes at her, bringing his voice down to a menacing whisper.
"I'll make sure you never see Pipit again."
Her breath hitched in her throat, hands trembling slightly as she looked down at the communicator fearfully.
"Groose… i-if you just need someone to cover your tracks –"
"I knew you'd be particularly sensitive to that topic of conversation." He smirked, getting comfortable in his chair. "Just do as I say Karane, now get out of here before someone we know sees us together."
Karane sighed, standing up and storming out of Telma's diner angrily. She wasn't exactly sure of how Groose intended on separating her and Pipit permanently, but she knew that he was very capable of doing so, considering he did it before.
Scared, unsure of herself, and in need of companionship, she took her phone out and called the one person she wanted most.
Of course, he picked up on the first ring.
"Karane? Everything good?"
"Can… Can I come see you?"
"Of course." He said sympathetically.
Karane was at the door of Pipit's apartment in less than ten minutes after calling him.
He answered the door, ushering her in with a smile on his face.
Shad, who had been lounging around on the couch bolted up once he saw her, striding over to give her a big hug.
"Karane, it's been so long!"
"Yeah, I know." Karane said, sniffling a bit as she wrapped her arms around Shad, returning his kind embrace. She had missed her boys dearly. When she and Pipit had been in their relationship, she didn't only become close to him, she became close to his friends too. Shad was sage like, a combination of wise and intelligent, and he always guided her in the right direction. Link was her protector, making sure that she felt safe whenever she was in his presence. And of course there was Pipit, the guy that she had crushed on all her life, a crush that slowly developed into something so much deeper, much more precious.
She pulled away from her hug, smiling at Shad wistfully.
"I've missed my boys." She said, looking around the apartment. "It seems like you guys have grown up… Last time I hung out with you it was in the basement of your mom's house." She smiled at Pipit, poking his cheek.
"Did you two want to talk… alone?" Shad asked, noticing the way they were staring at each other. He asked it with a hopeful tone to his voice, secretly wishing that if Karane would show up more often, Pipit would stop flirting with Zelda. Although oblivious to them trying to date behind his back, Shad already had suspicions of Pipit trying to put the moves on her.
"I'm sorry Shad," Karane apologized, "But… kind of. I would like to see you again though. You and Link."
"It's no problem!" Shad waved his arms around dismissively, "Take all the time you need. Really."
He then winked at Pipit and went off to their room. Pipit grit his teeth, slightly frustrated at his friend's behavior.
"Um, Pipit?" Karane asked, noticing his peeved expression.
"Oh, right. What did you want to talk about? Is it Groose?" He asked, putting his hand on top of hers.
She cast her gaze downwards, looking toward the communicator he had given her. She closed her eyes, fearing that the tiniest mistake would jeopardize his safety.
"…No." She lied, shaking her head.
"Why do you sound so sad then?"
"I… I want us to fix things."
"Karane…"
"I know you won't take me back as your girlfriend. But I do want us to be friends again. You were my best friend, the most important person in my life. I want that, Pipit. I want it so badly. I want the closeness, the assurance, the security we used to have." She laced their fingers together, squeezing his hand affectionately.
"Why now?" He asked curiously, "Are you sure it doesn't have to do with Groose?"
"I just want us to be friends before it's too late… before I lose you forever…"
He was left with even more questions than answers, but seeing her so emotional made him realize it wasn't the right time to prod.
She needed him, more than ever.
"You would never lose me." He said reassuringly, pulling her into a hug. He held onto her tightly, fearful that she might actually disappear forever. He was unsure of what she meant by 'losing him forever,' but if she lost him that would mean he would lose her too. And even if he did force the distance between them after they broke up, he wanted her back in his life just as much as she wanted him, even if they were only friends.
It was like they were in their own world, only the two of them together, as though no one else existed. He almost forgot that it wasn't, until the door opened and their other two roommates entered the apartment.
He pulled away quickly, turning to see Zelda and Link standing in the doorway, inquisitive looks plastered on both of their faces. He would have questioned why they were gone and why they came back home together, if he hadn't been caught red-handed himself.
Link turned to look at Zelda, studying her expression. She looked confused, unsure of how to feel at the sight. Her eyes widened in realization once it hit her. This was the face of the girl that had been unconscious on campus. The face of Pipit's first love.
"You must be Zelda." Karane said, a bit of worry in her voice as her eyes glazed over her. She was pretty. Very pretty. Ironically, Zelda was staring at Karane with the same envy, slowly walking over to her.
"And you must be Karane." She said smiling, leaning down to put a hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay? I heard about what Groose did to you…"
Karane sighed, nodding slowly.
"I'm fine." She said in what had to be the 'fakest' voice ever.
"It's okay if you aren't." Zelda persisted, "I know Groose and how creepy he can be. If it weren't for his wealth he'd be expelled, or better yet, imprisoned for the things he's done."
"I could only wish for that sort of outcome." Karane said, looking back at Pipit, whose eyes were fixed on the gorgeous blonde before them.
"You two look like you were in the middle of something." Link said, grabbing Zelda by the arm and yanking her over to his room. He turned to give Karane a warm smile before he shut the door.
"She seems nice." Karane commented after a moment of silence.
"Yeah." Pipit said, leaving it at that. He wasn't about to go off on another tangent about how perfect she was. He could tell Karane was distraught at the moment.
"She would be good for you. I just hope she doesn't screw up like I did…" Karane said, smiling at Pipit, even though she knew that what happened between them wasn't her fault, nor his.
"Don't say that Karane. You don't need to put yourself down like that. You were a great girlfriend. I don't regret any of the time we spent together as a couple."
"Are you two official yet?"
"No, but we're getting there. The main issue right now is Shad. He… He feels something for her too."
"Are you sure that's a good idea?" Karane asked worriedly. "Going after a girl that your friend likes?"
Pipit shrugged.
"She's special to me."
Unbeknownst to them, Shad had been eavesdropping on their entire conversation from inside of their room. His fists clenched when he heard of Pipit's plan to 'woo' Zelda.
»°«
Nabooru strutted down the halls, being extra careful to not get any goop on herself. Her hair was down once again, covering her back which had been fully exposed, as she was wearing her traditional Gerudo garb. She peeked into each room, finding all sorts of students in each room. She was looking for one in particular however, intent on finding a certain blond boy…
Finally, she found the person she was looking for after a few minutes of searching.
"Knock, knock." She purred, sauntering into a room filled with goop. She looked around, seeing a very pretty girl with blue hair and piercing purple eyes. There was also another girl with a more rugged look and muscular figure. She had dark hair. Then, in the corner, was her person of interest along with his chubby friend.
"Nabooru?" The girl with blue hair asked.
She smirked, loving the fact that she was well-known around campus.
"Hi love." She said, eyeing the younger girl up and down ravenously. "What's your name?"
"I'm Lana!" She said, giving Nabooru a compassionate smile.
Nabooru stepped forward, reaching out and pressing her hands against Lana's cheek.
"Aren't you gorgeous? Why would an angel like you get stuck in this musty dorm?"
Lana giggled, blushing a bit at the compliment.
"I actually volunteered…"
"Did you?" Nabooru put her hands on her hips. "I could only wish to be that benevolent."
"Is there anything you need? Are you doing another jelly segment for HUTV?"
"Yes, but that isn't why I'm here. I'm here to talk to Strich."
Strich stiffened at the sound of his name, turning to see Nabooru staring at him.
"Hi Nabooru… Y-You look really pretty today." He stammered nervously.
She gestured him over with her finger.
Strich looked at her skeptically, standing up and walking over to her slowly.
"…Is there something I can help you with?" He asked.
She linked her arm around his and guided him outside of the dorms and to one of the tables outside of a café. Once they were seated she took a good look at him. There wasn't much that she found appealing. He was tall, lean, and fidgety. His hair was choppy and one would think that he would be more aggressive since he works for Groose, but in reality he was fearful, unconfident, and stressed. His shorter, stubbier friend was definitely the tougher cookie, but she knew she could get to the bottom of things with Strich.
"Baby," she cooed, "Are you okay?"
"Wh-What?"
"You look like you're about to burst into flames."
"I… I just don't know what you want with me." He confessed, rubbing his arm.
"What do you mean?"
"I know you and Ganondorf have something going on. Don't you?"
Nabooru tensed up at the mention of his name, but quickly gained her composure to put on a clueless front.
"Such as…?" She asked, trying to sound genuinely curious.
"An alliance or something." Strich shrugged innocently.
"Oh…" She sighed in relief, "I guess you could say that. He does put a lot of trust into me to help make sure that nothing shady is going on around campus. But I can only be so diligent…" She mused, leaning over to put her hand on his thigh.
Strich jumped at the contact, his already jittery leg becoming even more unstable.
"Uh… Okay…"
"I know you aren't happy with what you do. Groose has you hanging by a thread, doesn't he?"
"I don't know about that." Strich said, looking down. "Groose is one of my best friends."
"By choice? Or by force?" Nabooru prodded.
"Why are you asking me this? Are you trying to get me killed!?" Strich looked up at her fearfully.
Nabooru sighed.
"You know he's the prime suspect for the chu jelly case."
"Then that was all him! I didn't do anything with that."
"Strich." Nabooru took her hand off of his leg and stared at him with a stern expression. She was no longer laughs and giggles, now she was completely serious. "I see good in you. I really do. And Groose isn't good at all. We both know this. Don't play dumb with me. You know that he's bad."
"It doesn't matter. I hurt Karane, and now I can't back out!"
"Why can't you?" Nabooru asked.
"Because…" His voice trailed off and his eyes widened in horror at the prospect of what could happen to him if he slipped up.
"Strich?" Nabooru was worried now, getting up from her seat to sit next to Strich instead of across from him. She put her arm around him and pulled him toward her, stroking his back while he tried to gather himself to speak properly.
"I can't Nabooru!" He babbled frantically, "I can't!"
"Can't what?"
"I can't betray him! I can't tell you his secret!"
"Then help me expose him." She said, holding onto him as if he were a baby. "Help me prove that he's the one who damaged our dorms."
"But he didn't." Strich said, looking up at her, breathing a bit more slowly, evidently soothed by her gentle manner.
"It doesn't matter." She said, narrowing her eyes at the thought of the burly male and all the secrets that had yet to be exposed. "He's done worse…"
Strich looked up at her.
"If I do… Will you protect me?" He asked hopefully.
"Of course darling." She nodded. "Just help me, and I'll help you…"
From a distance a taller figure watched the two students talking. It was Ganondorf standing there with his arms crossed, looking intensely. Nabooru continued to hold onto Strich, looking up to see Ganondorf watching her, nodding in approval. She bit her lip nervously, knowing everything could come crashing down if they made one wrong move.
A/N: Unfortunately for you guys this isn't the story where Zelda and Link are best friends and fall in love within the first five chapters and get a kiss within those chapters. I know that may be frustrating, but it's the truth. We're eight chapters in guys. There's still so much more in store. But I promise you, things will start to pick up in a more favorable direction. You'll just have to wait. Things aren't going to be fixed with a snap of the finger.