Zelda's Search
Ch 2 - Discoveries

The Dawn Of

The Second Day


- 48 Hours Remain -

I woke, once again, with a horrible fear sweeping over me. I scowled, remembering once again that I was small. Hopefully, I would get used to this whole size thing soon.

I stood up, brushing the grass and various leaves off of my dress. I had slept in North Clock Town, hoping that maybe Link would pass and wake me up and we could go home. I had accidentally played a wrong note when trying to send him back in time, and we both ended up in this strange world of Termina, only in separate places. I spent my time searching for him, and hoping that he was searching for me.

Rumor had it that the moon was going to fall in a matter of days. I hoped that I was going to be gone by the time it hit; I surely didn't want to die. But I didn't want Link to die, either. Maybe I should have just let him come and save the place..

I finally started moving, heading into town. The best way to find out what was going on was to talk to the leader, I figured. There had to be a Prince or King or something around here. Best to just ask someone. You would think I had better people skills that I felt right then.

I wandered into one of the shops of West Clock Town, trying to find someone I felt comfortable talking to. There was a creepy scarecrow standing next to the door; I shuttered and walked past it.

"Excuse me, sir," I said meekly, "but can you tell me where the leader of this town is? Like a king or something?"

"Yes, the Mayor's office is right up the stairs and then down the path, across the bridge-slash-walkway, it's not really a bridge 'cause there's no water underneath it, but there's water near it. And then, go into East Clock Town and look for a sign that says Mayor's Office or something like that. But it doesn't open until ten-ish."

"Um.. thanks," I replied, and started off in the direction that he told me. Up the stairs.. down the path.. I passed the Clock Tower, and went into the doorway to East Clock Town. Now, the sign…ah, there it was, right ahead. Luckily, I had slept late enough that it was opened.

"May I help you?" the woman at the desk asked, leaning close to me.

"I need to talk to the mayor," I said.

"The Mayor's office is to the left. Have a nice day!"

Ooookay. So the people here weren't quite what you'd call normal. It was better than being stuck with a bunch of re-deads.. I shuttered at the very thought.

I went into the Mayor's office, but there was a big argument going on, so I left that pretty quick. Oh, well; time to go search for Link anyway.

My safest bet would probably be to stay in the town, I thought. Link was more likely to find the town than to find the ranch or the swamp. At least, that's what I hoped. I realized that I had too much time to think here, with no one really to talk to. Except the Bombers, but would I really want to talk to them? Probably not. There I go, thinking again. I sighed, sitting down on a crate in South Clock Town.

A guard would probably know what was going on, I decided. Probably better than anyone else, besides the Mayor. Then I decided that I was stupid for even thinking that there would be a king of Clock Town. Maybe I just needed more sleep. Or maybe I needed to find Link. Either way, I couldn't just sit here.

"Excuse me," I said, walking up to a guard. "Do you know when that moon is going to hit the town?"

He glanced around suspiciously, then leaned close to me. "If I were you, little girl, I would run for cover as soon as you can. The moon is supposed to hit on the night before the carnival."

"When is that? I'm new to the area," I explained when he got this shocked look on his face.

"Two days from now. Which means the moon hits tomorrow night."

My eyes widened. Two days is all I had to find Link in this.. this enormous country of Termina? How was I supposed to pull that off?? I thanked the guard and went to think, while telling myself not to think and just act.

"If I was Link," I reasoned, "where would I want to go? Fishing. But where can I fish?" Thinking it over again, I realized that I would be trying to find Zelda if I was Link. So I was best off just waiting here.

But wait.. if I didn't know that I came after me, then what would I be doing? Probably at Lon Lon Ranch, but there was no ranch here. Oh, the one that Cremia ran. Where was it, though?

Asking around, I finally got someone to show me where it was. But when I got there, an enormous boulder was in the way. So Link couldn't possibly be there. Unless he had gone on the day that we'd arrived, because Cremia was out that day. That meant that he was quite possibly trapped there until the moon crashed into Termina.

I decided that the best thing to do was to go back to town and learn about the Carnival. I could probably talk to just about anyone for that, since it was supposed to be so huge. The best thing to do would probably be to listen to the conversation in the Mayor's office.

So, I traveled back across the land and to Clock Town, which I was beginning to grow rather accustomed to. I easily found my way to East Clock Town, but since it was so huge, it took me a while to find the Mayor's office. Taking a deep breath, I walked in to witness the argument.

"Most of the townsfolk have already taken shelter without waiting for the Mayor's orders," one of the guards said. "The only ones left are public servants and committee members...Mr. Mayor and Carnival Committee members, please order those who remain to evacuate!"

"Ahh...hmm...well..." the Mayor stammered.

"You cowards!" the carpenter laughed. "Do you actually believe the moon will fall? The confused townsfolk simply caused a panic by believing this ridiculous, groundless theory. The soldiers couldn't prevent the panic, but outside the town walls is where the danger is. You want answers? The answer is that the carnival should not be canceled! Isn't that right, Mr. Mayor?"

"Ahh...hmm...well..."

"Are you serous, Mutoh?!?" the soldier demanded. "It seems that giant chunk of rock above us hasn't caught your eye! At this time every year, we are overrun by tourists! So why is the town empty? Clearly, it's your job to ensure the carnival's operation, but that's if people are here for it! Don't drag the merchants and soldiers into this!"

"Mmm...hmm..."

Mutoh laughed loudly. "If the soldiers wish to run, then run, Viscen! We councilmen will stick to tradition! This carnival will be a success!" He laughed again. "I've never heard of a defense unit abandoning its town! Madame Aroma would surely say the same thing, wouldn't she, Mayor Dotour?"

The Mayor sighed. "...Let's not bring my wife into this."

After that, I left the room. So the soldiers were trying to get the carnival canceled. Well, we'll see about that. I need that carnival on so that I can find Link! Well, whatever. I needed a place to stay, since it had started raining. I went into the inn, hoping they had an available room, but there was no one at the desk. I went around back and into a small room.

"Oh, Tortus!" an old woman said. I glanced around the room, looking for whoever Tortus was. "Did you finish helping father? Then let mother read you a story. What will it be?" She held out two books for me to choose from.

"The Carnival of Time," I read, growing interested. This could help me out!

"The Carnival of Time, is it?" she said, pulling it back. "The carnival is almost here, so it's good for you to learn its meaning. It's a little long, so I'll read it with some enthusiasm. Ahem...

"'The Carnival of Time.' Each year, the season of harmony begins when the sun and moon are in alignment. Paying homage to the way that nature and time are tirelessly in the process of progressing...the Carnival of Time is when the peoples of the four worlds celebrate that harmony and request fruitfulness for the year."

I could see the pictures in my head: a bunch of different races of people, dancing together around the clock tower, fireworks lighting up the sky, people dancing, singing...and eerie laughter in the background, growing louder and louder and -

"Oh, are you awake?" the old woman laughed. "That story was a little hard for Tortus. Don't give up! Try again another time."

I couldn't believe that I had fallen asleep! Embarrassed, I left the inn, and thankfully it had stopped raining. I made a mental note to go back and hear the whole thing..

I slowly made my way to the field, trying to clear my thoughts and rationalize the whole situation. The Carnival of Time was coming in two days. The Carnival's Eve was tomorrow, and that was when the moon would strike. A horse's galloping was distracting my thought, with the rhythmic patterns that sounded a lot like...

"Epona!" I cried, watching as she and Link galloped past. "WAIT! HEY, LINK!!"

I took off after them, with Link seemingly not noticing my presence. I sort of understood; when he rode Epona, the whole world seemed to dwindle away. He truly loved riding that horse. But, was she ever fast!

I stopped and picked up a stone, heaving it at them. It hit Link in the head. I could tell, because he swayed a little bit, then promptly fell off the horse. She whinnied, and backed up to help her fallen friend.

"Link! Oh, I'm so sorry!" I cried, running forward. He coughed, and looked up at me.

"Who are you and why did you hit me with a stone?" he said breathlessly.

"Oh, no! I've caused long-term memory loss! I'm P-r-i-n-c-e-s-s Z-e-l-d-a. You are L-i-n-k. This is E-p-o-n-a."

"I'm not Link," he snapped. "My name is Brian! And my horse is Flame."

Pausing for a moment, I finally continued. "So you're not Link?"

"Nope."

"You must be Link's double then. Everyone in Hyrule seems to have a double here, and I've yet to find mine. It's going to be quite strange when I finally do."

Brian climbed back onto Flame. "So, you're a Princess, huh?" he asked.

"Yes, Princess of Hyrule."

"Cool. I've never known a Princess before. What are you talking about, Link's double?"

"Where I come from, all of the people look just like these people," I explained. "Cremia, the farmer, she looks just like Malon from Hyrule."

Brian raised an eyebrow. "How do you know that you're not doubles of us?"

I opened my mouth to respond, but then realized that I had no idea. "I suppose it is possible," I finally said. The thought scared me, though. "Have you heard anything about that Skull Kid?" I asked him, walking alongside his trotting horse.

"Yeah. He's pretty cool. That mask, though, ever since he got it he's turned into a real punk."

I sighed. "Do you know anything about the moon?" I asked, pointing up into the darkening sky.

"Isn't it supposed to hit?" he asked, as though he didn't care that his life was in danger.

"Yes. Tomorrow night." I considered a thought for a moment. "Would you like to help me try to stop it?"

He looked ahead, a thoughtful look on his face. "I guess so. It's not like I've got anything better to do, since the boulder at the Ranch." He got a mischievous grin on his face. "I really like hanging out with Romani."

I managed a small smile, although I didn't know who Romani was. "Well, come on. We'll go back to Clock Town and find a place to sleep. Maybe the Inn?"

"No. They know me there."

"So what?"

He glanced over at me, and a look in his eyes told me that he didn't want to talk about it. I brushed it off, figuring he had stolen something from them. I didn't want to hear it come from him, though.

"I have a place to sleep. You could come if you want."

I thought about this for a moment, and finally answered, "Sure. Better than sleeping in North Clock Town...It will be better than that, won't it?"

He laughed, pulling me up onto Flame with him. "Of course. A Princess deserves the best, after all. Now, let's go!" With that, we rode off toward a place unknown to me, as the sun set on the second day.

º*End Chapter Two*º

So how do you like it? Hope you do like it. Next part coming out very soon...I hope. So, as always, please review!!