Chapter Three: May the Best Win
It was a sticky hot summer morning when Mystique rolled out of her bed and onto the floor. Like a snail, she crawled over to the window and stuck her head out into the open air of Castle Town. She immediately regretted it. For, as she took in a breath of air, the putrid smell of sweat and rotted garbage filled her lungs. She coughed hysterically as she jerked herself away from the window.
Nivan snickered at her as he wobbled out of bed. He wiped his brow and removed his hair from its bun. Long locks of blonde hair drifted down to his shoulder blades as he scooped them up to put into a braid. Nivan hesitated in front of his shoulder piece.
"Aren't you going to put it on?" Mystique teased. She pouted towards her long sleeve dress and shawl.
"I think it'd be better to dress lighter today Misty." Nivan walked away from his shoulder piece and out of the room.
Mystique pulled out a thin cotton skirt and a tank top from the chest near her bed. She dressed quickly before she ran after Nivan downstairs.
In the kitchen, Mr. and Mrs. Luriken sat, beads of sweat across their faces. Lumina, as usual, rested in the bread basket. Both of them wore casual outfits as they poked at their breakfast porridge. Mystique scrunched her nose towards the porridge placed in front of her chair. Without saying anything, Mrs. Luriken pushed the porridge closer to her daughter and placed the spoon in it.
"It's too hot to cook anything," Mr. Luriken said from his spot at the table. He took a large spoonful of porridge into his mouth.
Mrs. Luriken pulled out a fan and waved it in front of her face. "It's too hot to do much today."
"That's why I'm closing up shop today," Mystique's father added.
"While you two were asleep, we decided that it'd be best to have a family vacation day. It so happens that Kakariko is having a festival today." Mrs. Luriken said casually. She watched as Mystique's eyes lit up. "But we can't go until you eat all of your porridge," Mrs. Luriken added in.
It didn't take long until Mystique had inhaled all of her porridge and was standing next to the door. She hopped up and down on her feet as she waited for the rest of her family to get ready. Slowly, one by one, everyone got up from the table and stood by the door. As Mystique ripped the door open, a wave of heat blasted them all in the face. Mr. Luriken looked over at his wife concerned.
"Do you think traveling to Kakariko on a day like this is a smart idea? Won't it be hotter that close to Death Mountain?" Mr. Luriken walked slowly in the streets of Castle Town next to his wife. They watched as Mystique darted ahead with Lumina on her head. Nivan struggled to keep up with her.
"I'm sure it will be fine, if anything it will be better than staying inside the house all day." Mystique's mother answered.
Clusters of people shuffled out of the eastern gate and onto Hyrule field. Mystique ran ahead of her family and weaved through the packs of people. Almost everyone who walked wore lightweight clothes, with hair pulled up and out of their faces. Several women waved bright colorful fans in front of their faces as they strode along the path.
At an intersection, several groups of people parted towards the south. Mr. Luriken watched the people as they slowly shuffled along.
"I bet Jetier is packed with people today." He noted.
"But we're going to Kakariko right father?" Mystique asked as she buzzed by.
"Yes, we're going to Kakariko," Mr. Luriken answered.
"We wanted to go somewhere where all of us could have fun." Mrs. Luriken added, she glanced over at Nivan who now had Lumina on top of his head. He smiled cautiously towards Mystique's mother.
"I bet the fair will be loads more fun than some water anyways," Mystique stopped in front of her parents and wiped her brow. Sweat flew everywhere.
The crowd thinned as they got closer to Kakariko. At the gate to the village, several guards slouched in their armor against the tall rocky cliffs that surrounded the path to the town. One guard sat down, his helmet off as he took a large swig from a flask before he passed the flask to the nearest guard. Mr. and Mrs. Luriken nodded and waved at the guards as they passed through the gate and into Kakariko.
Mystique looked at the festival in awe. Normally the center of the town hosted a small grassy field for cuccos as they wandered about. Instead, large colorful booths popped up from the ground with people who stretched out as they wildy flailed their arms over a game or two. A band played jaunty music from atop a platform further away from the tents. Crowds huddled around anything and everything that was bright and colorful within the village. Mystique looked up at her parents, a wide grin spread across her face.
Mrs. Luriken handed her daughter a small pouch, and gave another one to Nivan. "This is all of the rupees you'll be getting for today, so spend them wisely." She opened her fan again and waved it against her face.
Mystique nudged Nivan, her smile only getting bigger. "Hey Nivan, do you think they have that archery game like last time?"
"Oh, you mean the game that I creamed you in?" Nivan laughed, "do you want a rematch?"
"Duh, of course!" Mystique's voice grew louder from excitement, "except this time I'm going to win!" Mystique began to run into the crowd, as she merged into the first wave of people she turned around, "and if I find the booth first I get a fifty point bonus!"
"Wait!" Nivan yelled. "Misty, that's not fair!" He scrambled after Mystique, Lumina still on his head as he entered the crowd. Nivan glanced at every booth as he stumbled through the crowd, sweat dripped down his face and legs.
As he ran, he noticed a bombchu booth, a dunk tank booth, the entrance to a maze, and a tent filled with glass jars. It was at this booth that Nivan stopped and peered inside. Inside, there was a jar near the entrance that glowed brightly. Curious, Nivan picked up the jar and placed it close to his face. He squinted as he watched the orb inside the jar bounce around with no rhyme or reason.
"Hey, kid," Lumina said from on top of Nivan's head. She pulled at some of his hair, "Misty is going to win her bet if you don't catch up to her soon."
"She's probably already found it," Nivan mumbled into the jar, "she's too fast for me to have a fair chance."
From the back of the room a figure coughed into its arm. Nivan looked away from the jar and towards the source of the cough. As the person stepped into the light it pulled its purple cloak tighter around its head.
"That's a poe soul you're holding," the cloaked thing said.
"Ah, so you're a poe hunter," Lumina floated off of Nivan's head and further into the tent.
"I prefer monster hunter," the figure chuckled as it hobbled towards the center of the tent. It pulled a glass jar off of a shelf and held it into the light. A giant yellow eyeball rolled around inside it. "This is a fermented Keese eyeball."
"Gross," Lumina gagged.
"I also have a gold infused hinox eye, several bokoblin horns, moblin tongue, and several gohma larvae if you'd prefer." The figure grabbed a stick and shuffled over to Lumina. It pulled back its hood to reveal what should have been a face. "Though I don't have any fairies for sale, they're hard to come by." It looked over at Nivan, "how much to buy this fairy off of you."
"Hey!" Lumina shouted. "I'm not for sale you freak!"
"I was asking the boy, not you fairy." The figure tried to smile.
"She's not for sale," Nivan answered.
"That's a shame," the figure walked back towards the dark corner of the tent. "I would've paid a great price for her."
Lumina watched as the figure emerged into the darkness. As it stopped and stared back, a red glow shone from under its hood. Without another word Lumina darted out from the tent. Nivan peered at the poe soul one more time before he put it down and left.
The sunlight glared across his face as Nivan entered back into the crowded field of Kakariko. He placed his hand above his eyes as he walked through the crowd towards where he hoped the archery tent would be. As he got pushed and pulled through the crowd, he realized that he had lost Lumina. Nivan glanced back only to see nothing but more Hylians drenched in sweat. He wiggled his way out from the current of the crowd, and stood to the side near another tent while he scanned the crowds. Eventually, he saw a green orb flutter in between some Hylians. Nivan pushed himself back into the crowd.
Lumina rested on a table next to Mystique, who pouted as she flung an arrow in-between two targets. Nivan stumbled out of the crowd and in front of the two girls, his eyes briefly grew wide as he stared at Lumina on the archery booth table.
"Hey," Nivan glanced over at Mystique. "I thought this was going to be a competition."
"Yeah, well you took so long getting here that I thought I'd get in a practice round slowpoke!" Mystique stuck out her tongue as she shot another arrow. The man behind the booth ducked as the arrow flew over his head.
"That was yer last shot," the archery man said. "If ya wanna play again it'll be another twenty-rupees."
Mystique rummaged through the pouch and handed over one red rupee to the archery man. She smiled at Nivan as she received a quiver of twenty arrows. "Remember to add fifty-points to my score!" Mystique laughed as she turned her attention to the booth.
The archery man, big and burly, stepped over towards a large crank at the side of his tent. He sighed as he cranked the lever with both hands. Small cuccos with targets painted on their backs danced across the back of the tent. Mystique pulled the string back on the bow and shot an arrow several inches above one of the cuccos. She shot again and hit the tent floor where there were no targets. Soon, the cuccos danced away from the tent without a scratch on them.
Next, wooden octorocks popped up from the ground. These targets were bigger, with glowing eyes and a target painted on their floppy-shaped heads. Out of the five octorocks that appeared, Mystique managed to hit two before they disappeared.
Finally, wooden keese flew across the top of the tent on a string. Mystique aimed her remaining arrows and rapidly-fired them in the tent. The archery man ducked as several arrows whizzed past his head again. By chance, one of the arrows ricocheted into one of the keese. As the keese disappeared, a loud bell rang inside the tent.
"Time's up." The booth owner shouted. "You got seventy-points miss."
Mystique pumped her fist into the air, "sweet that's my best score yet." She handed the bow over to Nivan. "Remember, you have to beat 120 points to win."
Nivan pulled a red rupee out of his pouch and slammed it down on the table. Hesitantly, the archery man took the rupee and handed over a quiver of twenty-arrows. Before the archery man cranked the lever, he placed a helmet on his head. Mystique laughed behind Nivan as the music played and the game started.
The cuccos danced and bobbed across the screen like before. Nivan took a deep breath and pulled back the string on the bow. One by one the cuccos spun and crashed off of their pedestals and onto the ground. The archery man sighed as he watched not a single arrow go near him. When the octorocks appeared they barely stood a chance as Nivan flung five arrows into the tent. With ten arrows left, he looked up at the keese at the top of the tent. Delicately he pulled back the string and sent an arrow right between two keese. He cursed under his breath as he took two more shots and missed. At the last second, Nivan hastily flung an arrow which barely skimmed and knocked the keese off of its hanger. Four wooden keese squeaked as they flew up and the bell chimed.
"You got 200 points kid." The archery man took off his helmet and rummaged through a drawer. He pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to Nivan. "At 200 points, you get this neat coupon to use at any booth at the fair this week for either a free game or a free item."
Nivan placed the coupon inside his pouch, "thank you sir," he smiled at the archery man. The man nodded as Nivan, Mystique, and Lumina left the booth. "Hey Misty, I think I won again this year."
"You got lucky," Mystique gently pushed Nivan.
"I think there was more than luck to that kid," Lumina chided.
Mystique glared up at the fairy, "I just had a bad day with my aim is all."
Lumina laughed as she slowly drifted onto Nivan's head. "Is that what you called that? I've seen cuccos with better aim."
Cuccos can't hold bows Lumina!" Mystique shouted.
"That's the point kid," Lumina replied, still laughing.
"I'm done with this conversation, we should find some food." Mystique walked ahead of Lumina and Nivan in the crowd.
Near the windmill many picnic tables sprawled out against the grass surrounded by more booths. As Mystique ran up the stairs to the tables, she stopped and glanced around at all of the new booths. Nivan and Lumina had just caught up to her as she darted towards one of the booths. She slammed down several rupees on the counter where a Hylian roasted some vegetables. Happily, she danced away from the booth with a plate of food and sat down at a table.
Nivan sat down next to Mystique with his own plate of vegetables and meat. He slowly took a bite and savored his food while Mystique crammed several bits of vegetables into her mouth. Overby the windmill, several Gorons walked onto a stage holding large brass instruments. The largest Goron, who was double the size of the others, sat behind them on a drum set. The music they played filled the square with enticing groovy beats.
A slender girl in a ladybug dress casually sat down at the table with a cup of ice cream. She slowly ate her frozen treat while she bobbed her head to the tunes of the Goron band. "It's so nice that the Crimson-Beat is playing today."
Mystique glanced away from the music and at the girl now at their table. "Where did you get the ice cream?" She asked.
"There's a stall near the graveyard," the girl took a spoonful and put it in her mouth.
Mystique shot up from the table and disappeared into the crowd. Nivan ate in silence.
The girl stuck out her hand across the table towards Nivan. "Hey, my name is Agitha the 8th, and I just turned thirteen," She said.
"Uh," Nivan swallowed his food. "Why did you introduce yourself like that?"
"Because," Agitha smirked, "my ma always told me that when introducing yourself to a cute boy, you gotta let them know what to expect."
Nivan coughed as he choked on his food. He slammed his fist into his chest several times while Agitha twirled her ponytails. Finally, he took a deep breath, his face flushed red. Above his head, Lumina floated and chuckled.
"I guess girls don't call you cute often huh," Agitha laughed.
"No, not really," Nivan's face turned even more red. He slowly sank his head into his hands.
When Mystique returned to the table with two cups of ice cream, Nivan's face was completely hidden by the table while Agitha kicked her legs to the beat of the music. Mystique placed a cup of ice cream next to Nivan.
"That was nice of you to get him some ice cream," Agitha said. "The name is Agitha by the way."
Mystique stared at Agitha for a moment, a spoonful of ice cream in her mouth. "Doesn't your mother run the bug store in Castle Town."
"Yea, ma runs the bug emporium. Our family has run it for generations. What about you? You from Castle Town?"
"My father runs Luriken's shoes." Mystique answered cheerfully.
"Oh, I've heard of that store," Agitha bobbed her head, "what about your boyfriend."
Mystique stopped mid-spoonful and tilted her head at Agitha. "My… what?"
"The cute boy you got ice cream for? I clearly embarrassed him when I called him cute, but then I realized that he was with you."
Nivan screamed into the table.
Mystique's face broke out into a smile before it dissolved into uncontrollable laughter. She slammed her hand onto the table. "Nivan's my brother," she sputtered out. "And, and I'm only ten, why would I have a boyfriend?"
Agitha, spoon in her mouth, glanced between Nivan and Mystique. "You two don't look anything alike. I guess bug genetics can be weird, so Hylians can be too but…"
"We aren't related," Mystique smiled.
"What?" Agitha frowned. "But you just said he's your brother?"
"Because he is!" Mystique answered. "My mom found him and had him come live with us a few years ago."
"...Like a pet?" Agitha asked.
"He's a person, so no." Mystique nudged Nivan. "Your ice cream is melting."
Nivan lifted his head up just enough to take in a spoonful of ice cream. He glared over at Agitha.
Agitha pouted, "don't give me looks like that all I did was say that you're cute."
On the bandstand, the trumpet Goron blared a long loud note that squealed into the air. Several Hylians in the audience clapped their hands as the band continued to play. A few Gorons entered the picnic table area and danced. Nivan continued to glare.
"Tough crowd," Agitha made a face. "Well, cute boy if you ever want to go on a date in Castle Town you know where to find me."
"No offense," Nivan started, "but I'm twelve and practicing to be a knight."
"Practicing to be a knight?" Agitha asked, "Have you competed yet?"
"Competed in what?" Nivan raised an eyebrow at Agitha.
"In the Kakariko swordsmen contest, duh." Agitha rolled her eyes, "for someone cute you aren't that bright."
"For someone in a ladybug dress you sure aren't nice," Nivan replied. He walked away from the table, ice cream in hand. Quickly, Mystique grabbed her ice cream and ran after him, Lumina floating slowly behind. Agitha sat alone at the table and shrugged before she took another bite of ice cream.
Nivan shifted through the crowds of Kakariko, his spoon in his mouth. He stopped in front of a little sign which hung crooked from a tree. On it, it read 'young swordsmen contest held by gates to Death Mountain.' Nivan nodded at the sign as he changed direction towards the giant mountain which loomed over the city. When he was within eyesight of the gate, Nivan stopped.
Dozens of young boys stood around a platform, all of them cheered and pumped their fists in the air as two boys stood on the platform. Nivan moved himself closer towards the group, his eyes grew wide as he saw two Hylians clashing against each other in the arena. Both wore helmets slightly too large, and shoulder plates which dragged them down. One of the boys, slightly taller, stumbled and fell backwards. The other boy swung with his sword and hit the other's chest plate. A loud clang rang out through the air as the taller boy tumbled onto the floor.
From the background, a Hylian knight, broad-shouldered in well adjusted armor walked up onto the platform. He raised the hand of the boy still standing and the crowd cheered. Nivan watched confused, his hand pressed against where his shoulder plate usually rested. The Hylian knight lifted his visor to reveal a tanned face with stubble half-hazardously scattered across his jaw line.
"Does anyone else dare come up to spare and prove if you could be a knight of Hyrule?" The knight's voice cracked halfway through his speech. Nivan pushed through the crowd and raised his hand. The knight looked down at Nivan and smirked. "I see we have another challenger. Do you have a sword or armor with you today?"
"...No," Nivan confessed. The knight reached down and plucked Nivan from the audience and onto the stage. Nivan stumbled as he caught his footing.
"Don't worry, we brought extra armor for you to wear and fight with," the knight proceeded to take the ill-fitted armor off the victorious boy, and dumped it onto Nivan. "Now, does anyone in the crowd dare challenge this spunky young lad with the braided hair?"
Nivan looked into the crowd as dozens of young Hylians sized him up and down. He felt his head start to sweat under the helmet as time passed slowly on.
"I'll challenge him," a voice said from the crowd. Like a sea, the boys parted to reveal a boy with floppy dark hair. He stepped onto the stage with ease, and pulled a sword out from behind his back. With his elbow, he pushed away locks of his hair and revealed his freckled face.
The knight handed Nivan a sword, heavier than he was used to, and gave the challenger the other set of armor. In the audience, the boys murmured to each other as Nivan and the challenger walked towards their starting places. Nivan glanced towards the audience and saw Mystique, her eyes wide, staring up at him.
"Okay, challengers," the Hylian knight attempted to shout, "as per the rules, please take a bow and let me get off stage before you begin… okay?" The knight bounced off of the stage as Nivan bowed towards his challenger.
He felt the armor as it weighed him down closer to the ground. As Nivan lifted himself back up, he watched as his challenger had already started to approach him. Nivan clumsily dodged as the challenger's sword, quick and sleek, swung past him. He cursed under his breath while he lifted his sword towards the next attack from the challenger.
In the audience Mystique watched, her hand over her mouth. Around her Hylian boys chattered, cussed, and shrieked as the battle took place. One of the boys nudged Mystique, and held out a pouch.
"Hey," the boy said. "We've been placing bets for each of these fights, do you want in?"
Mystique looked up at the stage as Nivan stumbled and attempted to parry his challenger's moves. The helmet, too big for his head, shook every time Nivan dodged. Mystique clutched her pouch of rupees, "who do you think is going to win?" she asked.
"Well," the boy began. "I don't know about the blonde kid, but the guy he's facing is no joke. His name is Owin, and he's already been approved to one day train to be a knight once he turns fifteen."
"The blonde boy I bet is pretty good too," Mystique answered. She pulled out several rupees. "I want to bet some rupees on him."
The boy sucked in air as Mystique handed over the rupees. "Sorry to burst your bubble, and I should've mentioned this sooner, but Owin hasn't lost a single fight ever."
"That just means he's going to lose soon," Mystique answered. She dropped another rupee into the boy's hand.
Owin quickly slashed towards Nivan, his movement speedy and calculated. Nivan felt the steel of the sword scrap across his clunky metal chest piece. He slid back and glared at Owin as he bounced back, confident and ready to take another strike at Nivan.
"I wish I had brought my sword," Nivan mumbled as he watched Owin come at Nivan from his right. He just barely lifted the soldier's sword and blocked the attack aimed at his shoulder.
"You're pretty good at blocking in that clunky thing," Owin smirked as he pulled himself away from his attack. "But if you want to be a good swordsman you're going to eventually have to go on the offensive."
"That would be easier to do if this fight was fair," Nivan answered, he kept the sword raised as Owin circled around the stage.
"You have to be prepared to fight unfair fights… but I think this one is pretty fair." Owin smiled.
"I guess you're right," Nivan frowned.
"Come on, I'll let you get in a swing at me for free," Owin opened his arms as wide as the armor would let him.
"Do you think I'd fall for that?" Nivan's frown thickened on his face. Nevertheless he took several steps forward and closer to Owin.
He analyzed where to strike the best blow, but on the final step, and as Nivan expected, Owin closed his arms and raced towards him with his sword. This time Owin came in from the left as his sword elegantly sliced the air. Nivan took the pommel of his sword and thrusted it sideways in the opening Owin had left during his attack. Two loud thuds echoed into the air around the arena as Nivan fell to the ground, the helmet around him buzzed.
The Hylian knight stepped back on stage and over to Owin, hunched over, but still standing. He lifted Owin's hand into the air, "I declare Owin of Kakariko the winner of this duel."
The crowd around the stage cheered, loud and excited. Nivan, his head fuzzy, looked up at Owin from the stage. He could have sworn that the Owin had winked at him before the boy had walked offstage. Nivan did not have much time to think about it, as Mystique's round face, her red eyes wide, took up everything that he could see. He blinked a few times.
"How much of that did you see?" Nivan asked as he lifted himself up.
"All of it!" Mystique smiled at him.
"And, she bet the rest of her rupees on that fight," Lumina said as she floated somewhere nearby.
Nivan shot up, "you did what?!"
"Yeah, I uh, kinda have no more rupees left for games." Mystique looked away from him.
"Why would you bet all your rupees?" Nivan got off the stage and shook the helmet off his head. He plopped the armor onto the ground as quickly as he could escape it.
"Because I thought you'd win," Mystique tilted her head. "Plus that would have been even more rupees for games!"
Nivan glanced up at the sky and stared at the sun as it rested on one of the mountains. "Actually, we should find your parents to head home soon Misty."
Mystique pouted, but followed Nivan as they walked through the thinning carnival crowd. When they found Mr. and Mrs. Luriken, they sat at a bench eating ice cream. They both smiled as Mystique and Nivan approached them.
"Good, we were just about to go looking for you two," Mrs. Luriken said.
"Do anything fun today?" Mr. Luriken asked, he frowned as he noticed the bruises forming on Nivan.
"Yeah I got to go look at a bunch of cool tents and go through a maze and play the archery game with Nivan." Mystique cheerfully bounced around.
"Wait, when did you go into a maze?" Nivan asked, confused.
"You took a really long time catching up to me in our race," Mystique teased. She poked Nivan on the nose and laughed.
"What about you Nivan," Mrs. Luriken raised an eyebrow at him.
"I did pretty much the same as Misty." Nivan rummaged in his pocket and pulled out the coupon, "actually I still have this coupon I won, can I go spend it?"
"Of course," Mrs. Luriken said.
Everyone watched as Nivan ran into the crowd, he clutched his left shoulder as he did. When Nivan was only but a blur, both Mr. and Mrs. Luriken turned towards Mystique with varied expressions of worry.
"What did he do?" Mrs. Luriken said sternly.
"That's from the swordsman competition he participated in," Mystique said without missing a beat. She watched as both her parent's faces relaxed. "What did you think he'd do?"
"I think they both thought you got into trouble and he had to save your butt, kid," Lumina chimed in.
Mystique made a face towards Lumina, "come on I'm not that reckless," she said. "Besides, there's nothing here to get in trouble with." Mystique looked towards her parents who both silently ate their ice creams. "Mother, father, what did you do today?"
"Your mother insisted we take the mine carts up to Goron Village," Mr. Luriken answered. "It was… very hot."
"I saw some Gorons today too!" Mystique exclaimed as she got closer to her parents' faces. "They were playing in a band over by the food stalls, it was super cool."
"That's wonderful," Mr Luriken smiled at his daughter. "I be-"
"Wait!" Mystique interrupted, her head suddenly turned back to stare at Death Mountain. From inside Kakariko, it towered high into the sky, its peak hidden by plumes of smoky clouds. The nearby cliffs which surrounded the village paled in comparison to the height of the mountain. "Was there a giant creature up there when you went?"
Mrs. Luriken furrowed her eyebrows, "what kind of creature Mystique?"
"I dunno," Mystique spread her arms out as wide as she could, "but it was really big and circled the mountain like a wiggly bird."
"Ah, that must be what Dario was talking about," Mrs. Luriken muttered under her breath.
Mystique got closer to her mother, "what did you say mother?"
Mrs. Luriken shook her head, "it was nothing, don't worry about it dear. Death Mountain has plenty of giant wiggly flying worms."
"Can we see one up close some time?" Mystique asked.
Mrs. Luriken raised her eyebrows, wisps of her blonde hair scattered across her forehead. "Maybe when you're older," she said.
Mystique frowned and crossed her arms. She looked away from her parents and towards the people as they shuffled between stalls. A few stalls away, Nivan walked towards the bench, he held a jar in his hand. He waved as he got closer, and as he reached the bench, he handed his pouch of leftover rupees to Mrs. Luriken. Curious, Mystique pushed her face towards the jar and stared at the glowing yellow orb inside it.
"What'd you buy?" Mystique asked as she poked the jar.
Nivan sheepishly smiled as he looked away from the Lurikens. "A poe's soul."