Well I'm back!!!! I returned home the other day from the beach! I was sad to discover that Chica has decided to leave Zelda. I hope she has just as much luck in the other categories. This is the first chapter of A Beautiful Face.



Disclaimer: I don't own Zelda. Sniffle.



A Beautiful Face



The night in Kakariko sweltered, as if a skeleton of the day; its long white bones slowly growing into ebony shadows. The intense fervor of a summer's eve pervaded the humid village, encircling the town within its fiery arms. Silence rang throughout the cobblestone streets with the absence of singing crickets, save the continuing creak of the windmill as its wings dipped and soared, piercing the sultry atmosphere. Abstract grays saturated the canopy overhead as the clouds seemed to stifle the wet grass. All was quiet.

All was dead.

Scattering shadows followed one another mischievously, flaunting their dark colors upon the sides of buildings and walls. A procession of murky figures silently glided onto the small grassy balcony before the small door of the windmill. The clique stopped, meandering in front of the entrance. A spark shot up into the air, breaking the black porcelain of the night.

Then another. And another.

Before long, a gathering of flaming torches filled the air, crackling and popping into the silence. The mass of shadows began to form itself into coherent shapes, revealing the physiques of men. One tawny man hoisted his torch into the moist air, waving it to and fro with a wild madness. The flame threw its fiery passion onto the earthen wall of the windmill. His hoarse voice broke the midnight mien, shattering the crystalline tranquility.

"Old man Dampé!"

No answer.

"Why you yellowbelly...I say, open the door!" The man's voice lost the confidence that his heated anger had once provided.

Still no answer.

Suddenly the blades of the mill came to a creaking stop. A candle flickered into life as a silhouette moved slowly into the small window of the windmill. Sparks leapt from the candle, licking the wooden sill. A raspy voice called out to the mob below, mocking their presence.

"And what do I owe this pleasant surprise? Hmm.."

"You, you...Because of you and your damned windmill, our children are ill. Your wretched wizardry has cursed us all." Retorted the man.

"Because of your ignorance, the whole village has been blasphemed with idiocy. To believe a single man is responsible for a spreading epidemic of disease is not only ridiculous...it is an outrage!" Dampé's soft pleasant face contorted into a dismal scowl.

"Never..." The man searched the faces of his fellow men and nodded solemnly. "Your treachery will not go unpunished. Defiance shall get its just reward. Burn in hell, Dampé."

With that, the man hurled the raging torch onto the slanting roof of the building, as every shingle caught ablaze. In no time, the windmill was merely a burning mass of wood, as the arms of the mill turned in flaming fury. The men shouldered a large crate against the uneven door of the mill, disabling Dampé's escape. The fire licked at the sky, creating a smoky haze across the town of Kakariko.

Dampé's screams of pain became breaths of wind into the night.

Minutes passed like hours, and hours like days. A neighboring house became alive with candlelight, as an elderly woman feebly walked onto her veranda. Her eyes became wide with shock as she witnessed the downfall of the windmill. Sliding her small feet into slippers, she stealthily advanced the ladder hidden to the side of the mill. Through a haze of smoke, she

blindly searched the blazing flames of the fire for the unfortunate man, her skin becoming blackened with burns. Her hands achieving purchase, she flaccidly withdrew a cloaked man, and shoved him down the ladder in time to save him from a falling beam. Unfortunately, the beam struck her across her weak back, killing her instantly as her body became engulfed by

the fiery rage.

The mass of clothing moaned. Dampé lurched onto his charred back, wincing with an unforgettable pain. Regret seared his gray eyes as realization burned itself into his conscience. Why did his face hurt so much? As he ran his leathered fingers down his slender face, he could feel a difference in his once handsome visage. There were more grooves and catches in his features than he had remembered. An aching tenderness shot through his body as he unwillingly beheld the horror on his fingers.

Blood.

Throwing his head back in anguish, he released a shriek of remorse, like the moan of a wounded animal. His state of distress echoed through the earthen walls of Kakariko, embedding itself in the very milieu.

The mob of men below the windmill congregated in a apprehensive silence. They were waiting for closure to the fear instilled in every mind. The torches began to flicker and die as the gargantuan fire before them only began to rise.

Hate was fueling the fire.

Dampé clumsily arose from the dew-dappled grass that reflected the burning rage and stumbled unknowingly to the horde of men, as their torches grew darker, darker...

"Do you deem him dead?" One feeble man inquired.

"We shall see...we shall see..."

A sudden rustling in the grass before them sent the group into a deathly silence.

"You..." Growled a voice. "You shall regret the day you were born..."

Dampé amassed his enormous arms into the hazy air, creating a panic amongst the men.

"The ghost of Dampé!" The group scattered.

As the light of the blaze rested its sight upon his face, the mob leapt back, gasping in horror.

"His face..."

"Kill the monster!" The horde brought forth pitchforks and items of torture as Dampé's face became one of terror.

He wildly broke through the group, knocking down man after man, making his way down the grass slope. Dampé could hear the fast approaching men, perhaps bringing his death as well. Bombarding through the passageway to the Royal Family Graveyard, he stopped by a cauldron of newly fallen rainwater. As he gazed into his reflection, a look of wild rage and grief spread like a web across his features.

"My face! No!"

The reminder of quick pursuers sent him hobbling down the path to the graveyard. As he entered the sanctum, a calm silence momentarily filled his heart with peace.

But then it fled.

"There, the beast!" A man sent his pitchfork flying in Dampé's direction as he barely slid under the gate before the graves in time.

"You would not dare break sanctuary of the Royal Family Graveyard. The King would have your heads for it. The spirits of the past haunt this place, anything is possible!" Damp slowly crouched behind a large headstone.

"Coward! We shall return. You will never survive out here, never!" The mob reluctantly turned around and left the graveyard.

Dampé let a sigh escape his lips as he fell to the ground in tears. He rested his head in his hands, sobbing with regret.

"My face...my face..."

He was alone, moaning into the stillness, as the break of dawn released its arrays of colors into the hazy village, bringing forth reds and oranges against the reflection of the raging flames.



-Rosaceae



Well, it's not as good as I wanted it to be. Oh well, DAMN it's good to be home! I hope everyone had a great and safe 4th! Please review.