the storm
Silver rupees upon silver rupees. All stacked on top of one another in a neat row. Ganondorf couldn't tell what the exact amount was from where he was sitting, but he knew it was probably more than enough to pay the full cost of attending Hyrule University for a year. He raised an eyebrow, not anticipating Groose would be so desperate to get the heat off his tail.
"50,000 rupees give or take." He said, "I have 2 more of these if it isn't enough."
"Your plan is to pay your way out?"
"If that's what it takes."
"Is it worth it?"
"It'll clear my name."
"Says who?" Ganondorf inquired.
Groose grit his teeth.
"You'd pay over a hundred thousand rupees just to clear your name?" Ganondorf asked skeptically.
"This isn't just for a petty jail sentence. HU needs the rupees, don't you? You can use these rupees for the dorms… Or whatever else you need. Or want." He said innocently.
"A bribery."
"I don't care what you call it."
"You hurt a student here on campus. You're lucky you're still able to go here."
"It wasn't that bad." He waved off his misdeed carelessly.
Ganondorf glared, angered by his nonchalance.
"You think it's that easy? That you can get away with anything you please?" He rose, towering in height over the younger man. Groose almost felt himself cower at Ganondorf's stature.
"A boy like you has certainly done worse than this. I'm sure you have many secrets." Ganondorf strode from around his desk to stand in front of Groose, who slowly took a few steps back.
"Everyone has secrets." Groose said, keeping his face straight. He hated this position; he wasn't usually one to be scared, but one to be feared.
"Some worse than others." Ganondorf replied, "And with this kind of wealth lying around, it would occur to me that you shouldn't have a damn thing to worry about. But the fact that you're offering me this amount of rupees tells me that you're afraid. Afraid of facing the consequences."
Groose held his breath as Ganondorf stopped, presumably to consider his deal.
It was no secret Ganondorf did not like Groose; no one did. Groose was a trust fund baby who never had to work particularly hard for ANYTHING in his life. People were like games to him, and there didn't appear to be any rhyme or reason to the torment he caused others. While Ganondorf was no saint himself, he had a vision, a purpose, and his own method of attaining his power and asserting dominance, none of which involved causing physical harm to people. Aside from that however, 150,000 rupees could go a long way and he knew in his heart of hearts it wouldn't be going towards the HU dorms. And of course, Groose wouldn't give a damn if it did or not. This would stay between them. With all things considered, there wasn't a justifiable reason as to why he shouldn't accept the offer…
"Keep your rupees." Ganondorf spat bitterly, "For once, you can figure things out on your own."
Groose's mouth fell open in disbelief.
"You're turning down 150k? Are you fucking serious?"
"Be grateful. You could use that money to buy a house, pay someone's tuition, take a beautiful vacation. You have plenty of options." He walked back to his seat, pulling up the bag of rupees – which was extremely heavy – and dropping it to the floor.
Groose's lips twitched into a snarl.
"Fine. I'll just go back to the original plan." He heaved the bag up with great effort, grunting as he zipped it up and made sure none of its 'contents' spilled out. "Someone will take the fall for this, but it ain't gonna be me."
Ganondorf watched him walk out, considering his words carefully. With what he was planning, he didn't want Groose causing even more chaos around campus in a feeble attempt to clear his name. Ganondorf had already been caught in a web of lies. What would one more do to him?
"Groose, wait." He called out after him.
Groose came back inside, his snakelike eyes hopeful that Ganondorf had changed his mind.
"What is your 'original plan'?" He inquired.
Groose's shoulders slumped when he realized Ganondorf wasn't accepting the offer.
"Why should I tell you?" He asked stubbornly.
"Because it might lead me to reconsider."
"I'm not saying shit till I guarantee you've got my back."
"Then so be it. This only harms you." Ganondorf shrugged.
Groose grit his teeth. The man was resilient, and in a position of considerable power.
"I'm going to come at Link and Zelda with all I've got. They're the ones keeping me from clearing my name." He said, balling his fists up in anger. "And anyone else who decides they want to get in my way, for that matter."
Ganondorf chuckled inwardly. He hated to admit it, but Groose had a few things in common with him, starting with his feud regarding Link and Zelda. tape He knew how flashy and theatrical Groose could be. Ganondorf preferred… more subtlety.
"Don't do anything to them." He commanded.
"What?"
"You heard me. Don't touch them."
"You don't understand –"
"Oh, I understand. I'll take the rupees. All 150,000 of them. Leave Link and Zelda alone. One point of contention that we both agree on, is that they've been trouble. The two have caught themselves in business they had no reason to be in, and their behavior on campus has been problematic. It's part of why they had to put in hours cleaning the dorms up in the first place. But that is a matter for HU faculty to take up, NOT a student."
"…Okay." Groose shrugged. "And then you'll drop these dumb allegations?"
"No." Ganondorf said.
"What!? What the fuck, man? No way am I gonna give you all these rupees if you won't do the ONE thing I'm asking for!"
"Let's get one thing straight, Groose. No amount of rupees will cover up for the fact that you are a despicable person. Rupees aren't enough. You need to leave."
"Leave?"
"Withdraw from this institution. Transfer to another school, one in a province far away from here."
"But… But then I would…"
"…Have to start over? Yeah, that's the point."
"Do you want more rupees? I can add an extra bag. The total would come out to 200 –"
"No. Keep your wallet closed. Or to be precise, your PARENT'S wallets. Leave this school. And I'll withdraw your name from the pool of suspects."
"There was no 'pool.' It was just me." Groose mumbled, looking down at the bag of riches. "But… if that's what it takes to end this… I'll do it."
"Give me the rupees in parts. I'll take this bag now. Bring me the second bag along with a copy of your withdrawal request."
"How do I know you're going to hold up your end of the deal?"
"I'll stop this now. We'll do some investigative work, and you won't be a primary suspect anymore. Once I have the second set of rupees and your form, you won't be a suspect at all. The final step is to give me a list of schools you apply to for transfer and proof that you applied to them. If you need a letter of rec, it'll be from me."
"But it's springtime! Most colleges have wrapped up the application period!"
"Some are still open." He shrugged.
"All the top tier schools have closed their waiting periods."
"Your family has connections. Make it happen. Or choose a lesser known university. Once you've sent in your applications, give me the final bag. Then and only then, will we be done."
Groose nodded reluctantly.
"Just know Groose, that if I don't get paid in full, and you don't guarantee yourself another place to go to this coming fall… This deal is done, and there won't be any second chances."
"…Okay." Groose said, holding a hand out.
Ganondorf grimaced, but reached out slowly and shook his hand in agreement.
. . .
Ganondorf sent another text to Nabooru. They hadn't spoken to each other since they got back to Castle Town from the desert, and it had been bothering him more than he wanted to let on. She looked to him for protection; she relied on him. But he didn't think about the fact that to an extent, he relied on her too. It was an odd sensation, and aside from the mission they'd set out on…
He missed her.
He knew there was one thing she wanted more than anything else in the world. And that was him. He couldn't deny that he wanted her too, and that her reasons for being upset with him were valid. Despite them both being adults, he couldn't condone continuing to sleep with her while she was still a student, but maybe afterwards…
Ganondorf put his phone away. He was above begging someone else for their company, and there were more important things to worry about than his woeful love life.
He eyed the bag of rupees sitting in the corner of his office, and then the withdrawal request on his desk before him.
The only thing was, the withdrawal request wasn't from Groose.
»°«
Zelda came out of the shower in Link's bedroom, drying and dressing herself immediately afterwards. Surprisingly she hadn't gotten any texts or calls from Ashei about meeting up for their 'Ganondorf business.' The dark-haired girl had been unusually quiet about it, which she attributed to their upcoming break. With the end of the semester just around the corner, she and Shad had planned on spending some time together at the library to study and work on their assignments.
Zelda hummed to herself, grabbing all of her clothes and leaving Link's room. Once she got into the living room, she heard two voices snapping at each other from inside Shad and Pipit's room.
"Link! You can't keep something like this to yourself!" A voice, presumably Shad's, scolded.
"I'm not. I just told you about it, didn't I!?" Link replied, "I just didn't want to say anything right away until I was absolutely sure."
"So you waited RIGHT before spring break to tell us? This changes everything here. You know that, right?"
"Of course I do."
"Who else knows?"
"I told Ashei about it…"
"Ashei?" Shad asked, his voice came to a slightly higher pitch at the mention of her name.
"Yes dingus."
"Does Pipit know?"
"…Not yet…"
"You have to tell him."
"I know, Shad." Link replied bitterly.
"What about her?" Shad asked.
Zelda's heart leaped. They were talking about her! She waited for Link's response…
But he said nothing.
Link opened the door and went to the living room, Shad trailing closely behind. Zelda panicked, then turned away to hide the fact that she had been eavesdropping.
"Zelda?" Link asked curiously. "You're done already?"
Zelda nodded and studied his face carefully. Link knew how to mask his expressions well, particularly when their other roommates were around. If they were alone, maybe Zelda would be able to pry information out of him, but she knew he wouldn't budge on it around others. Then again, he was reluctant on telling her what was going on back in the highlands, when it was just them.
"How much of our conversation did you hear?"
Zelda glanced between him and Shad. Shad wasn't nearly as good as holding it together, she could tell from his face that he was already cracking. If she wanted to know what was up with Link, Shad would be her best bet on finding out.
For now, Zelda knew better than to let on that she heard anything.
"What conversation? I just got done." She said, doing her best to sound as clueless as possible.
Link quirked an eyebrow; he wasn't sure whether or not to buy into her act.
"It doesn't matter. Shad and I are going to the library today." Zelda said, "Do you wanna come with?"
Link glanced at Shad, and his expression dimmed.
"No. I can't. I have to pack."
"…Already? I haven't even packed up yet. Are you leaving early or something?"
"No. I'll be going next Thursday like everyone else. I just… have a lot to bring with me." His eyes were fixed on the ground.
"Oh…" Zelda nodded, she wanted to ask more but Shad jerked his head toward the door, indicating that it was time for them to leave. Zelda gave Link one last look, then they left and headed towards campus.
"Alright… it's time for us to study!" Shad exclaimed enthusiastically, "Give me an S! Give me a T! Give me a – "
"What was all that about?" Zelda cut him off impatiently.
"…What was what all about?" Shad asked.
"You and Link. It sounded like you were arguing."
"Wait. You heard that?"
"Yes, I did! What's going on?"
"…If you heard all of it, then what do I need to explain to you?"
"I didn't hear ALL of it." Zelda confessed, "Just that Link isn't telling me something and that it's going to change things around here. That doesn't sound reassuring."
"I'm sorry, but I can't tell you."
"Are you serious right now? What is it? What did he want to tell me?"
"Zelda, it's… Well…" Shad scratched his head, struggling to find the right words to say. "It's personal. He made it clear to me that if – when – you find out, he wants you to find out from him."
Zelda narrowed her eyes.
"And what if he never does tell me?"
"Then you'll know what it was." He replied vaguely.
Zelda sighed, realizing it wasn't worth the energy. She had a theory on what it was, but she wanted to be sure of it before making any assumptions. She keyed in on the fact that Shad wasn't the only one who knew. Ashei knew too. Whatever it was, she'd get to the bottom of it somehow. They continued their journey to the library, and within the next few minutes they delved from the seriousness into a lighthearted, friendly conversation.
"You're kidding me, right?" Shad asked, ceasing his walk momentarily as he tried his hardest not to double over in laughter. Zelda had to do the same.
"No! He was DRUNK, came in, and slid down the stairs to the floor of the lecture room. The professor was so confused. He said he was in love with her!" Zelda giggled, covering her mouth as her face turned red.
They shared another laugh before continuing their walk.
"So what are your plans for spring break?" Shad asked.
"Pipit is staying with me and my family for a couple of days at Lake Hylia. I'm going to show him around all the hotspots! Then spend some time with my girls, of course."
"Wow…" Shad murmured, "I guess you guys are good then?"
"The argument is still a little fresh, but I refuse to let it ruin us."
"Sounds like fun."
"Are you going to stay with your family over break?" Zelda asked.
"I may do a day visit or two. They're close enough and I see them nearly every other weekend anyway. But having the apartment to myself? I can't miss out on that." He grinned.
"Let me guess… You're FINALLY going to color coordinate the towels?"
"It'll be an ambitious endeavor, but I can do it all by myself! It'll have a gradient effect and you will all be blown away!"
Zelda grinned, laughing once more. Things weren't perfect, but it was nice to smile and spend time with her friends while doing her best in school. It only made the desire to take Ganondorf down even stronger. She refused to let him take away this feeling of absolute peace.
Shad's phone buzzed, and he cursed when he saw the notification.
"Shit! That's today?" He muttered to himself.
"What is it?" Zelda inquired.
"I have to go Zelda. I'm really sorry. I forgot I agreed to meet up with some people. Will you be okay without me?"
Zelda sighed, clearly disappointed.
"That's fine. I'll just call Pipit I guess."
"Don't bother, he'll be busy too." Shad said.
"But Link's packing all his stuff. Who's gonna keep me company?" She did that pout that Shad found hard to resist. Unfortunately for Zelda, Shad wasn't falling for it this time. He came in close to give her a long goodbye hug.
"Sorry again Zelda." He shrugged. "I'll try to drop by later, okay?"
"Okay." Zelda nodded.
Just as Shad walked away, Zelda heard a spine-tingling scream coming from behind.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! ZELDAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"
Zelda jumped, turning to see a breathless Lana sprinting toward her.
"Lana? What's wrong?"
Lana stopped, bending over to place her hands on her knees as she struggled to catch her breath.
Zelda rushed over to help her stand properly.
"Deep breaths Lana." Zelda advised, putting a supportive hand on her back.
Her beautiful amethyst eyes were filled with tears.
"They got her! They got Ashei… Oh Ash, I'm so sorry – "
"What?" Zelda asked, horrified. "Do you mean she's…"
"She's the new suspect for the chu jelly in our dorms. Security escorted her off of campus. They're taking her downtown!"
"They didn't do that for Groose!" Zelda exclaimed.
Lana couldn't focus on Zelda properly. She was in her head, ruminating over what would come next. Zelda could see the fear and stress in her eyes and it was devastating.
"Oh goddesses, what are we going to do? Ashei is gonna get arrested! Then she's gonna go to jail, and THEN she'll have to go to court! But she's a broke college student! So she'll need a pro bono lawyer, but Hyrule University is going to have the best lawyer from a private firm, and there's no way we'll win. So we're going to need to get the bail rupees! But how are we going to get them?"
"Lana, calm down." Zelda placed her hands on the frantic girl's shoulders.
"We're going to have to sell our kidneys, Zelda!"
"Lana! Snap out of it!" Zelda snapped, "Come on, take some deep breaths."
Lana did as she was told, feeling her heart rate gradually slow down. She was still shaken but not to the point where she was in a state of pure panic. She focused on Zelda's eyes, feeling herself come back to rationality.
"We're going downtown. I'm calling Link. We'll figure this out." Zelda assured her.
»°«
Soon enough, Lana and Zelda were in Link's car as he sped to the police station. By the time they arrived, Ashei had been released after her questioning. After making sure she was okay, they all convened at a café downtown for some lunch.
"Before we delve into anything else, we're all in agreement that Mr. Dragmire and Nabooru are behind this, right?" Link asked all of them.
Zelda and Ashei nodded, but Lana hesitated. Link suppressed the urge to roll his eyes and clarified his statement.
"Can we agree that Mr. Dragmire is behind this, at the very least?"
Lana nodded slowly.
"…Fantastic." Link turned to Ashei, "So what happened?"
"It wasn't TOO bad. They brought me in for questioning. I was compliant and then they let me go."
"That's it?" Zelda asked skeptically.
Ashei sighed.
"I wish. I'm not allowed to go to campus for the rest of the week, so spring break is starting earlier for me I suppose. But I don't really know how this is going to pan out. How far is he willing to go?"
"As far as he needs to until we shut up." Link said.
"There isn't enough evidence to suggest that I did this, so I'm not too worried about anything else on that front. But… it could end up on my disciplinary record, which could get me kicked out of HU. This would be a serious offense, and my record isn't exactly clean."
"You just HAD to punch that guy in the face, didn't you?" Lana shook her head.
"Hey! He deserved it!" Ashei said defensively.
"This isn't TOO bad then." Zelda reasoned, "Like Ashei said, there's insufficient evidence. They can't charge her with a crime or even take her to court over this. And you can always appeal your disciplinary case. We'll be there to help you!"
"What are we going to do about Mr. Dragmire?" Lana asked nervously. "If all of this is him, he's going to pinpoint all our weaknesses somehow…"
Ashei smiled at her sadly.
"We'll be okay, Lana. We're in this together, remember?"
At this, Link cleared his throat, scooching his chair back and standing up suddenly, waving Ashei over to an isolated area of the café.
"Where are you guys going?" Lana asked as Ashei followed him.
"…We'll be back." He said. They then went to a quiet corner and began talking.
Lana turned to Zelda, who was picking at her salad disinterestedly.
"What do you think that was about?"
"I don't know." Zelda shrugged, "Link's been secretive with me lately." She kept giving Ashei and Link not-so-subtle glances. Whatever they were talking about seemed intense. It was… unsettling, to say the least.
"I find that surprising. You two are really close."
"Not that close, apparently." Zelda said, finally giving in and simply staring at Link and Ashei rather than trying to play things off like she didn't care. Because she did. A lot.
"Are you in the mood for a little espionage?" Lana asked playfully. "There's a potted plant not too far from where they're standing. We might be able to hear a little bit of what they're talking about!"
"I don't know. It seems like an invasion of privacy…"
"Oh, please. You know you want to."
Zelda fiddled with her fingers timidly. She knew it would be wrong, but if Link wasn't going to tell her what was up with him, she'd just have to go on and figure it out herself. Before she knew it, Lana was pulling her out of her seat anyways. They tiptoed their way behind the plant, positioning themselves amongst the leaves to stay hidden from Link and Ashei's line of sight. Carefully, Zelda leaned in as close as possible and strained to hear amongst the cacophony of sounds in the café.
"…Really sorry, Ashei." Zelda could hear Link say. "If I had known this would happen, I wouldn't have sent in the…"
"…Link, you couldn't have known. It's okay…"
" – Can you hear anything?" Lana whispered obnoxiously.
"Shh!" Zelda hissed, focusing solely on Link and Ashei's words. She couldn't make out everything they were saying but it sounded serious.
"…Care of her. For me." Link told Ashei.
"Of course I will." Ashei agreed to whatever Link was telling her, "But she can take care of herself too. You know that."
"Excuse me…" A third voice cut in from behind Lana and Zelda. The two girls jumped, clearly startled from the interruption. They turned around to see a less-than-thrilled waitress frowning at them disapprovingly.
After being lightly reprimanded, they walked back to their table begrudgingly. Eavesdropping was supposed to help her make sense of things, but now Zelda felt like she had more questions than answers. Was it really so heart shattering and devastatingly bad that he could tell everyone EXCEPT for her?
Link and Ashei returned to the table a few minutes later. They sat themselves down and the foursome talked a bit more about the implications of Ganondorf's actions, and what he might do next. Afterwards, they ate in silence. Zelda and Lana simply went with it, nibbling on their food until they were done for the most part.
"Should I order us some dessert?" Lana finally asked.
"You guys go ahead and get yourself something. I'm going to go finish up packing. You guys have your U-passes, right?" Link asked.
"Of course." Ashei nodded, "But if not, I have enough fare to get all of us back to HU at least."
"Good." Link smiled. He gave her and Lana quick one-armed hugs as he grabbed all of his things and got ready to leave.
"I could help you pack if you'd like." Zelda offered once he walked over to her.
"It's fine…" He said, leaning down to wrap her up in a two-armed hug that was noticeably longer and more intimate than the ones he gave to Ashei and Lana. "I'm almost done anyway. I'll see you tonight, princess." He whispered in a voice that would make any other girl practically melt at his feet.
She nodded, giving him a tiny smile as he slowly pulled away. They stared at each other for a moment before he turned to give all of them a friendly wave and leave the café.
Ashei and Lana gave each other a knowing look, noting the subtle hint of longing in Zelda's eyes. She turned around, slumping in her seat a little when she knew he was gone for good.
"You okay, Zelda?" Ashei asked.
"Yeah… I'm just fine…" She mumbled, playing with her fork.
"It's okay if you aren't. You can talk to us."
"I don't know if there's anything to talk about. And even if there was, you just got questioned by the police Ashei. Shouldn't we be focusing on that right now?"
Ashei smiled, "I appreciate the concern, but we've talked about it enough for today. Besides, we can focus on more than one thing at a time, right?"
Lana nodded, curious as to what was on Zelda's mind.
"Plus, thinking about being a new suspect is pretty stressful. Listening to whatever you have to say could be a good distraction –" Ashei said, but Zelda cut her off midsentence.
"Do you guys think Link could have a crush on me?" Zelda blurted out.
Ashei nearly choked on the piece of fruit she'd been eating and Lana grimaced, looking away immediately.
Zelda bit her lip, instantly regretting the question as soon as she asked it. Given that he was her boyfriend's best friend, it would definitely be an overstepped boundary. But after going through it a couple of times in her head and considering that last night they had spent in the desert, Zelda wasn't sure of any other conclusion to jump to. Maybe she could be wrong – completely wrong – but maybe…
…Maybe she wasn't?
"Uh…" Ashei stammered.
"Whaaat?" Lana asked in mock shock. "No… Of course not…" She cut herself off by taking a rather long sip of her tea.
"I shouldn't have asked. He's just been acting weird lately. I don't know what it is."
"Which means he has feelings for you?" Ashei asked, trying to follow her train of thought.
"I don't know!" Zelda was sure her face was completely red now. "I don't know what to think."
"Do you want him to have feelings for you?" Lana suggested.
"No. Of course not." She repeated Lana's earlier words, and they sounded just as unconvincing as they did when she said it.
"Do you yourself have feelings for him?" Lana asked.
"No! I could never… I'm dating Pipit! And we're happy."
Lana gave her a skeptical look.
Zelda sighed, leaning forward and lacing her fingers together. Sure, they had a few arguments, but it didn't mean their relationship was doomed. It was all part of the process. It would make them stronger. Link was just a friend, and if he – in the rare and most likely impossible scenario that he DID have feelings – wanted to be something more… he'd have to get over it.
"Zelda, it's okay if you do. Nobody can really control how they feel. It's how you handle those feelings that matter." Ashei said, smiling supportively.
"I don't like him!"
"Really?" Lana asked, "I see the way you two look at each other, it's like we're not even here."
"I don't like him. Not like that."
"Are you attracted to him?"
"No!" Zelda denied the question.
"Okay, now this is ridiculous." Lana shook her head. "You'll never admit it."
"There's nothing to admit."
"There's a difference between being attracted to someone and liking someone, dummy!" Lana scolded her, "You're telling me you don't think, at the very least, that Link is good looking? What's next? Is the sky not blue? Is grass not green?"
Zelda crossed her arms stubbornly. She was well aware of how… visually appealing Link was, in fact, she used to find it quite intimidating when they first met. But Lana was right, she'd never admit it. And it wasn't like there was MORE to it. There couldn't be. That was an absolutely inane thought. Truly.
"I guess he's okay looking." Zelda shrugged. She felt her chest rumble, it was the same feeling she got as a kid when she found herself trying to lie to her parents. She knew it was a bit silly to deny, especially since she had asked Link herself why he was so hot during their drinking game right before she started dating Pipit. Not to mention Link had no qualms telling her on multiple occasions that he found her beautiful.
But that was different. She mentally explained to herself, there's a chance Link might like me. But there is NO chance that I feel the same way.
"I mean, the fact that you would even ask this right now means you've put some thought into the possibility that there COULD be something between you two." Lana pointed out.
"Come on Zelda. I know you have a boyfriend but now you're just lying. Link and I are better off as friends, but that doesn't mean I don't notice how hot he is. Those piercing blue eyes…" Ashei trailed off dreamily.
"That jawline." Lana chimed in.
"And his body…" Ashei swooned.
"I personally don't like men, and Link can kind of be an asshole sometimes, but I'm not blind. He's absolutely gorgeous, and if I were straight…" Lana wiggled her eyebrows, smiling suggestively.
"Not to mention he's a great kisser." Ashei added, remembering the kiss they shared awhile back.
"Okay, that's enough! Lalalalala," Zelda covered her ears. "Not listening! Not listening!"
Ashei and Lana shared a laugh at how embarrassed she got.
"Sorry Zelda! We're just teasing, but we can stop now."
"I thought I'd understand him better by now." Zelda said solemnly, shifting the mood of the table back to one of a serious nature. "But he's still hard to read. Still has too many walls up. We can never be too comfortable with each other at any given time. He has to do something to put some distance between us. It's like we take one step forward but two steps back."
Ashei felt for Zelda. She was surprised Link hadn't told her the news yet, though she understood why. The most the kendo warrior could do for her new friend was offer some words of wisdom.
"Progress isn't linear Zelda. At the beginning of the semester, you two HATED each other, and look at where you are now! You're so much closer than before. Don't overthink it. You'll just end up torturing yourself."
"Easy for you to say. He's a lot more comfortable with you than he is with me. You two have been friends a lot longer too." She said enviously.
"Exactly. It takes Link a long time to warm up to people, longer than most. But in the time you two have been friends, you've made a lot of progress. He'd never say it aloud, but he does care about you. A lot."
"I care about him too. Very, very much." Zelda murmured. "I just… I just hope he knows that."
»°«
Pipit and Shad met up with Karane, Nabooru, and Strich – ironically at a café not too far from where Zelda and her crew were. Pipit was nervous, keeping his hands in his pockets to hide the fact that they were trembling. He had been waiting years for this moment. To finally understand what actually happened years ago, to have some closure on the whole ordeal.
"Glad you guys could make it." Karane nodded, sipping a piping hot cup of coffee.
Nabooru greeted them graciously. Pipit wasn't sure what the cause of it was, but today she seemed much more modest than usual. She had a more conservative top on instead of her revealing traditional garb. Her naturally seductive aura was replaced with one of amity and a hint of innocence. She didn't look like she had any flirtatious intentions today.
"Hey guys." She waved at them kindly, eyes lightly puffed and bare of her typical makeup.
"Hi Nabooru." Shad said politely, "and hi Karane."
Neither of them greeted Strich, deciding to ignore his presence altogether.
Pipit even had his reservations about addressing Nabooru properly. He wasn't a big fan of the temptress, not only because of her reputation but because he knew she primarily acted in self-interest.
"So, we should get down to business." He urged, wanting to have as little contact with Nabooru and Strich as possible.
"So soon?" Nabooru asked, "Why not have something to eat first? Or you could drink something, they have really good tea here. My treat."
Pipit scoffed at her.
"I'll pass. I wanna know about Groose." Pipit said, cutting straight to the point. He softened when he looked at Karane. "When you're ready, of course."
"I know you're anxious about this Pipit, it's fine." Karane brushed it off. "I thought you guys would want to get settled first. Like Nabooru said, she has the tab. So go ahead and order something."
Pipit sighed, glancing at the menu while observing Karane and Nabooru. They were a lot more civil towards each other than he expected them to be. They even whispered to and smiled at each other occasionally; Pipit was pleasantly surprised.
When, why and how did Nabooru become so decent? The difference was like night and day.
After Shad and Pipit placed in their orders for drinks and snacks, Karane prepared herself to recount some seriously unpleasant memories.
"I… I couldn't truly tell you guys when it truly started." She said, her voice nothing more than a painful whisper. They all gave her a supportive look, and leaned in closer to listen. All except for Strich, who already knew everything due to being Groose's lackey.
"He liked me. As in he had actual, genuine feelings for me. I don't know when it started, all I know is when it ended. But I didn't feel the same way at all, and I was dating you at the time…" Karane gestured to Pipit. "I didn't think much of his feelings, because he was an asshole and a bully. With him, everything was about power. Having a hold over somebody else. I kept to myself for as long as I could, until I couldn't avoid it anymore. It happened the summer before our last year in high school."
Shad munched on some crispy cucco skins, immediately immersed in the story.
"It was a huge party, being thrown by some dumb cheerleader, I don't remember which. You were out of town that week Pipit, and… and I went. I didn't know what to expect. I thought it could even be fun. But it turned out to be a disaster." She explained, feeling guilty about her choice.
Pipit grabbed her hand from across the table.
"Karane, did he hurt you?" He asked worriedly.
"No, actually." She said, her next words surprising everyone, except for Strich. "…He saved me."
"What!?" Pipit and Shad exclaimed.
"What a plot twist." Shad said in between bits of food.
"I need some clarification. What do you mean he 'saved' you?" Pipit asked.
"There were all sorts of people at the party that night. Some with innocent intentions, like having fun. Some with… not so innocent intentions. I was being harassed by a group of guys. They kept catcalling and trying to take me up to a room with them. I declined their advances, and tried to lose them but they kept following me. I was scared. Groose showed up at the right time, told them to back off. They wouldn't listen to me, but they listened to him." Karane explained.
"So… he helped you. Where did it go south?" Shad asked.
"This is Groose we're talking about. He never helps people. And if he does – for whatever reason – it always comes with a price." Pipit said knowingly.
"Exactly." Karane nodded grimly. "He kept me safe that night. Dubbed himself as my 'knight in shining armor.' But none of it was sincere. He only wanted those boys away from me so that he could have me for himself. I turned him down respectfully, and thanked him for helping me. But he was still upset…"
"What about that picture?" Pipit asked, uneasy about what the answer may be. He never would have believed Karane would cheat on him if Groose didn't have a picture that suggested so, and it didn't help that she seemed so emotional and defensive about what had happened at the time.
"Cawlin took it…" Strich piped up timidly, his voice much softer than Karane's. Everyone leaned in to listen to him. "We were in one of the bedrooms at the house. Groose was watching her and making sure she was okay. She went to lay down and fell asleep. He got in bed and posed for a photo… When Karane woke up, that's when he told her how he felt, hoping she'd give him a chance. She said no, and he got upset. He asked again and she blew him off, embarrassed him in front of everyone at the party. He never forgave her for it…" Strich sighed wistfully.
To Pipit's surprise, Karane grabbed his hand and squeezed it, smiling at him sadly.
"Weeks after that, he sent you the photo. Told you I cheated… But Pipit I swear to you, I didn't. I could never even imagine doing something like that, ever."
Pipit felt each breath he took get heavier. It was a lot to take in, and he felt like he finally had closure on what happened after several years. But things still weren't adding up for him.
"I'm glad you told me, Karane. But every time I tried to ask you about this before, you always insisted I wouldn't treat you the same. This isn't as bad as I thought it would be. I would have understood."
Karane closed her eyes, swallowing hard which was indicative to the rest of them that not everything had been said.
"That's not all." She confirmed Pipit's thoughts, causing him to get slightly worried. What else could there be? And would it really change how he felt about her – how he's ALWAYS felt?
"What else is there?" Pipit asked.
"I became his lackey. Like Strich…" She said shamefully, "I always knew Groose's family was ridiculously rich. That he had lots of power and all sorts of connections. Anyone who wronged him was ruined beyond repair. He wrecked our relationship, but it wasn't enough for him. He threatened to come after you too. I couldn't let that happen, so I surrendered. He knew I wouldn't date him, so he had me do his bidding. Anyone he felt like pushing around or hurting, he had me get my hands dirty. Whether that meant stealing things, spying on people, or spreading lies…" She stopped, fighting back a sob.
Pipit and Shad stared at her openmouthed.
"That's why I thought you'd never look at me the same way. Because I helped him hurt other people. And I kept it to myself. All the things I was complicit in… Out of selfishness."
"…" Pipit was silent, thinking back to high school, specifically senior year.
"D's stage debacle at the talent show?"
Karane nodded.
"Peatrice's house getting infested by mice?"
Karane nodded again.
"…Fi's parents getting divorced?" He asked.
"Yes…"
"Goddesses." Pipit thought back to all sorts of people he knew from high school, and the embarrassments they had faced.
"I'm… horrible." Karane lamented. "I watched him bully and threaten people. I helped him do it, all because I didn't wanna be next on his list. Losing you was hard enough. But I let it happen, from juvenile pranks to breaking the actual law…"
"He gave you no choice." Pipit said. "It doesn't change my view of you at all."
"It should." Karane insisted.
"Too bad then." Pipit shrugged. "We've both spent too long being hurt over his lies. You know what he's done. You can expose him."
"I can't. Unless I expose myself too." Karane rubbed her head.
"Then what do we do?" Shad asked.
"That's partly why Nabooru is here." Karane gestured over to the young woman who had been uncharacteristically quiet.
Pipit and Shad almost forgot that she'd been there; it seemed she had a lot on her mind.
"Groose is powerful, but he relies on his parents' wealth to keep him out of trouble. Mr. Dragmire has a lot more reach than Groose ever could!" Strich pointed out, hope gleaming in his eyes. "And since Nabooru and Ganondorf are… close… he'll be willing to put Groose down – for GOOD."
Everyone then looked over at Nabooru hopefully. Nabooru fidgeted under their stares. Most of the time she liked being the center of attention, but this was not one of those times.
"Actually… Ganondorf and I aren't really speaking to each other right now." She confessed.
"What?" Karane turned to her, surprised. "Why not?"
"It's complicated." Nabooru said, not wanting to get into the specifics.
"You're kidding me right?" Pipit asked, irate at the unexpected news. "All these years of you two making googly eyes at each other. All the rumors floating around. Now you're telling me, when my girlfriend –" he paused, catching himself. Shad turned to him with an eyebrow raised. "—My EX-girlfriend – needs him… You guys have stopped talking?"
Nabooru bowed her head down apologetically, which only served to make Pipit even angrier. This wasn't like her at all.
"What the hell could have happened?"
"Lana…" She mumbled, thinking back to the beautiful girl with blue hair.
"Lana?" Shad asked, thinking back to the times he came to visit Zelda at the dorms. He remembered seeing Nabooru flirt with her, but didn't think much of it. Apparently the feelings ran deeper than what had been presented.
"What? She won't sleep with you and now you're in your feelings?" Pipit prodded.
"That's not what happened." Nabooru glared.
"No, I think I get what happened. Your shitty love life is more important. You'd rather let a criminal roam free than help my friend."
Nabooru grimaced.
If only they knew…
"Pipit, I know you don't like her, but don't you think that's a bit harsh?" Shad asked disapprovingly.
"Wait a sec, this could be a good thing." Strich reasoned, "Lana works at the library, right?"
"The HU library has lots of legal documents on record for the graduate programs… But with her we could access the database and find a way to get Groose arrested while letting you off with little to no punishment." Shad said.
Karane nodded, but they could all tell she wasn't really happy with that response.
"I don't know if I should be let off that easily… I'm still guilty in my own right."
"We can worry about that later." Pipit said, "But if Lana can help us, then maybe this isn't completely hopeless." They all looked to Nabooru expectantly, knowing she had become very close to the bubbly library assistant.
"Um…" Nabooru chewed on her bottom lip awkwardly, hating to have to disappoint the group of younger students not once, but twice. "I'm not really on speaking terms with her either."
Pipit's head conked against the table and Shad shook his head.
"No offense Nabooru, but what purpose do you serve exactly if you can't get us what we need?" Shad asked.
"Even though Ganondorf and I aren't speaking, we're still recognized as close affiliates. Ideally we'd have him advocate for us, but I know enough people through him to make something happen on my own. Namely, some lawyers who may be able to defend Karane, in the event we need to take this to court."
"Court?" Karane looked like she was about to faint.
"Woah, woah, woah. Before we even get to THAT point, we should hit the books first. Karane, I don't think it's a good idea to talk to any authorities before we know what ALL of your rights are." Shad explained.
"Okay then." Pipit crossed his arms, giving Nabooru a dirty look. "Guess that means you need to make amends with Lana first, so that we can get what we need."
Nabooru closed her eyes.
"Damn it."
»°«
Spring break finally arrived. After packing and loading all of her things, Zelda sat patiently inside of Pipit's car, waiting for him to return from the apartment, where he was having a rather long conversation with their other two roommates. Pipit had instructed her to wait inside while he had what was apparently a 'serious talk' with Link and Shad. She felt like a child, not an unfamiliar feeling since she was the youngest of all of them, but it didn't make sense for them to have such a 'conversation' without her. Did she not deserve to know what was being discussed? The only conclusion she could jump to was that they couldn't tell her what was being discussed because it was about her.
Which, of course, brought back her concerns of Link having… certain feelings towards her.
He couldn't. He doesn't. It's impossible. Impossible. Impossi –
She nearly jumped out of her skin when she heard a knock against her car window.
"GAH!" She cried, instinctively pressing the lock on her door. When she turned she was met with Link's face. He had a goofy but adorable grin on his face and she felt her heart warm at the sight of it.
Stop that… She thought, trying to control the fuzzy feeling inside.
He stepped back so she could open her door properly.
"What the hell, Link?" She asked disapprovingly. "You scared me."
"Yeah, but the look on your face was priceless." He snorted.
"Oh, shut up!" She got out, extending her hand to give him a (harmless) smack in the arm. Right before she could, he caught her hand and took it in his, a charming smile crossing his handsome features.
"Sort of cute, actually." He added softly.
There it was. That feeling again. It was the sort of feeling only Pipit was supposed to elicit from her.
"Don't say that." She scolded, pulling her hand back. His face dimmed at the action, but he didn't question it.
"I was joking… But okay. I just wanted to say goodbye."
"Oh? Is… is that all?" She asked politely.
He hesitated.
"Um…" He was clearly at war with himself, struggling to give her a direct answer.
"You know what," Zelda said, tired of trying to guess and pry information out of him, "Forget it." She opened her arms, inviting him in for a quick hug.
Link sighed, closing his mouth apologetically. He leaned into Zelda, wrapping his arms around her tightly.
…And Zelda felt herself taking notice of things she shouldn't have. How large his arms were, how nice he smelled, the way he held her, his hair tickling the tip of her forehead…
When he pulled back, he reached out and parted her hair for her, making sure every strand was tucked neatly in place. His eyes lingered on her face for the longest time, but it didn't make her feel awkward or uncomfortable. She felt even more drawn to him than before.
"…What are you doing?" She asked, finding herself staring back at him, admiring all of the features Lana and Ashei had gushed over just a few days ago.
"Trying to remember what your face looks like." He answered, a hint of woe in his blue eyes.
"We're only going to be gone for a week, silly." She reminded him.
"Right." He blinked, coming out of the trance he had seemed to be in just a few moments prior. "Right." He repeated, stepping back from her respectfully.
Zelda heard the apartment door from upstairs open, and turned to see Shad eagerly pushing Pipit out of the house. He came downstairs with his suitcase and popped open the trunk to put it in the car.
"I'll let you guys get going." Link said, drawing her focus back to him. His hands were in his pockets and he backed away slowly, looking at her yearningly before he turned to his car.
"Bye!" She called out to him, then got back into Pipit's car. She watched Link, a similar desire in her gaze, as he fired up his car, which was filled to the brim with all of his belongings.
Pipit cleared his throat, starting the engine and giving Zelda a brisk glance. Even though he was coming over to stay with her family for the first half of spring break, things were still a bit tense between them after their first argument. They 'made up' and went back to acting lovey dovey towards each other as usual… But there were still a few awkward moments here and there.
"Are you ready to go home?" He asked, smiling at her.
"Yes." She nodded, mustering up her most convincing smile.
A/N: Okay, this chapter ended up being a lot longer than I expected. But hello my loves! Next chapter is spring break. Thank you again for the supportive messages.
To answer some questions a few of you have asked:
To the random "Guest" who asked why the picture for the story is now Ice Climbers: …It isn't. LOL. My actual FF icon was Zelda and Link for the longest time, and I never set an actual story cover for 'The Roommates.' So when I changed my icon, it ended up changing the cover to Ice Climbers too! I love my babies! I've been enjoying Ultimate (oh yeah life update: I got a Switch and Smash a few months ago), and IC's were my OG Brawl mains. Those desync combos are simply disrespectful.
To Bchange: I'm actually glad you asked me this question, because it is something else I've been debating. The answer as of now? No, there will not be any lemons in this story between Link and Zelda, or any other characters in the story. For one simple reason: I want the story to have as much reach as possible and (I feel like) an M rating hinders that. Of course, there are some very successful stories that have M ratings, but to be candid I don't think 'The Roommates' is/would be one of them. (I know I shouldn't put THAT much value on reviews but I enjoy gaining as many new readers as possible!) I just don't want to change the rating of the story right now to 'M,' so I'm keeping sexual content to a minimum (though the story has and WILL get risqué at certain points, and there has/will be implied sex between characters. But you guys know this already! *Nabooru has entered the chat*).
But to add onto this, I AM considering some oneshots based off of 'The Roommates,' because those would be their own individual stories. I don't mind making those 'M' rated… If you know what I mean… For the main story though, no lemons.
Finally: I know I've been absent for around 2 months now. But do not fret, I NEVER stopped working on this story and I even have the next few chapters written out already to ensure timely updates! I know these chapters are getting longer and longer, but there is a LOT of drama and romance to come. Like, major shit is going down. So if you're looking forward to some tea, please stick around and I'll make it worth your while. I don't want to rush things story-wise but I also don't want to drag it out. Chapter 24 in particular is a BEAST (and was originally merged with chapter 23 until I realized that it was simply… too lengthy. I'm still working on this one!).
I can't say too much. But let me know what works in terms of uploading for the next few chapters. How many days should they be spaced apart? 2 days? 3 days? 4? It's up to you guys really.