The pre-chapter note: Will you, kind reader (If thou of any existence anymore), please accept my deepest apologies for not updating this fanfic any sooner? My summer vacation is nearly over now, and I've finally found the time/inspiration to add another chapter to this insane mockery of a love story. Also, I sort of promised a friend I'd update. The greatest difficulty in composing this chapter was my adaptation of an April-May idea into a genuinely August idea, so I actually ended up creating the main portion of it over the past three hours, changing my entire storyline along the way. Please excuse the entire craziness of this, but may you also enjoy it.
Chapter Four: Discovering Solace
The days following his discovery, Link spent them pondering about the past. He returned to his old home in Kokiri Forest and spent much of his time alone. He didn't dare to venture to the outside during this time. The Kokiri tried their best to cheer their old friend up. Even Mido, Link's childhood rival, sent his deepest sympathies to the Hylian hero. Link accepted their condolences with kindness, but he did not know how to respond. He searched for comfort under the billowing branches of the Great Deku Tree, but found his hurt on the same level as before. He asked the tree philosophical questions such as, "Why do bad things happen to good people?" and "Why should death separate heaven and earth?" The Tree did not utter a syllable in response, except for the wind brushing through the tree's branches, which was not the most acceptable answer to him. The leaves shook lightly, like a wind chime song gone wrong. He would ask again, even in a sweeter tone, but the Tree would repeat its brutal sentence. A few times Link was almost tempted to tear the leaves away from their rightful branches, just to make his own despair even with the Tree. However, he always retained his anger and left to find other animate forms of solace.
A month slipped away. Hyrule Castle was no longer his home anymore. The court began to honor him as a guest again, but he always refused their invitations. He almost wanted to join them for supper, but he always allowed his feelings to interfere. He was still aching, trying to grieve, and yearning to breathe. He was still learning how to cope with death of a loved one, especially of one he cared for more than any soul in Hyrule. Every time he thought of Zelda, his trachea would narrow up and run dry like the sandstorms of a desert. Time was moving faster than he could protest, and gradually he found her image fading from the canvas of his heart. Each color that painted her portrait told a story, but he found each color lightening by a tint. She never announced a formal departure, but that was the way time worked. He found the courage to laugh again, and even guffawed heartily a few times at the Kokiri's best jokes.
Another month and a few more moons and suns crossed the Hylian sky. He eventually ventured outside of Kokiri Forest to the places he used to know so well. Of course, the entire land of Hyrule still reminded him of the one he loved. Everything remained the same since she last walked on Earth, although the evil forces were now infesting the region. Each day a new wave of wickedness swarmed the vicinity, but Link did little to stop them, as he did not encounter them too often. Oblivion had overpowered him into an unconscious state of blindness; even corrective lenses could not bring his lost sight back. She was simply a part of him. When she left, the mysterious half departed from him too. He knew what it was like to survive with a figuratively torn heart, one with the most relevant veins and arteries missing. The others just didn't know.
The other Hylians were uncertain of the appropriate remarks to say to Link, so they barely spoke to him at all. They only spoke when it was required for business or out of politeness, but otherwise not many words were conversed between Link and the other Hylians.
"Good day to you, sir. Lovely day, madam," Link tipped his hat to the young pair of lovers that had recently relocated to Kakariko Village one day. They were still spinning in their usual circles, never releasing from a passionate embrace.
Not a word passed from their lips, at least not to Link. They were so wrapped up in their own storybook romance that they ceased to recognize another breathing soul. Of course, they rarely ever spoke to anyone else anyway.
With time's ticking hand, Link eventually found himself letting go. It was simply the right thing to do. What would our hero be like if he held onto every single memory beyond creation? He would never be able to enjoy life if he absorbed himself in his troubles for every waking hour and every hour spent in slumber. So he spent his time for what it was worth. Not a moment did he remain idle.
It was a new lust for life. Gradually, Link found his busy moments to be a reawakening of life, the daybreak of a new day. Although nothing is imagined to compare to the sun's radiating golden gleam cast for miles overhead, his astounding rejuvenation just might have been the exception. Even while absorbed in simple activities such as riding his horse or practicing his archery skills, he experienced a new sensation he never knew of before. Possibly, it was an appreciation for what he had and what he could lose unexpectedly.
"Good afternoon, kind shopkeeper," Link greeted the Kakariko Village shopkeeper brightly one mundane morning following his gradual enlightenment.
"A good day to you too, sir," the shopkeeper replied in his usual jovial tone he kept hidden in response to Zelda's departure. "How have the days and months passed for you?"
"Oh, they have passed obliviously," Link was almost slow to realize how many months had passed already.
"Time certainly flies," the shopkeeper sighed with a touch of relief in his tone.
"Yes."
Silence.
"Time has certainly taken its toll," the shopkeeper seemed quite absorbed in the issue of time. "Have you ever considered searching for.."
The shopkeeper paused for a great deal of time, as if debating what to ask Link.
"Why, yes?" Link pushed the shopkeeper to ask his question. "Come on, out with it now."
"Excuse me, that was not the appropriate question to ask," the shopkeeper immediately retracted his question from further discussion.
Link left the lonely shop after a few minutes of conversation. He climbed onto his saddled horse and directed her to Lake Hylia. It almost seemed ironic that the first place he found solace for his grief was now what he considered the happiest place in Hyrule. He found the large surrounding fields to be perfect for riding and the trees perfect for shooting targets. Sometimes, he would venture in the quiet waters of the lake, usually exploring the bottom of the lake with the aid of his iron boots. While meandering through the deepest portions of the lake, he often found treasure. Today, he was definitely in the mood for a little deep underwater exploring.
He left Epona near a close tree trunk and walked over to the water's edge. Diving swiftly, he landed with a splash a few feet from the edge, and he tread water until he reached an even deeper portion of the water. He peered down to the bottom, and although an amazing depth away, he was still able to notice the undeniable sparkle of a red rupee burrowed underneath a few cakes of dirt. Lake Hylia had a widespread reputation for its water's clarity and its lovely view of shimmering cerulean blue on a day of sweet sunlight.
As soon as the red crystalline glitter caught his eye, he immediately returned to the land and grabbed his iron boots, and he grew quite anxious as he was strapping them on as he almost placed one on the wrong foot. He splashed into the water again, this time plummeting deeper as a result of the iron boots pulling him to the floor with great force. When he finally felt his feet touch the floor, he practically limped to the site of the twinkling ruby object. He kneeled down to brush away the few clumps of dirt in between him and his acquisition of another rupee. When the rupee was rescued from its watery grave, Link fumbled the receptor of poinsettia-tinted light between his fingers before finally raising it high above his head in overwhelming triumph. Before depositing it in his rupee satchel, he playfully peered through the translucent mirror of the gem to view the deep cast sun beam nearest him, which gave him an eyeful of crimson shine. He unhitched his iron boots and floated upward, breaking the surface with a massive splash.
"Well, aren't you a sight for sore eyes?" a familiar female voice with an innocent accent remarked when he poked his head above water. "Link, it's been quite a long time."
Link blinked his eyes rapidly to rid themselves of excess moisture, and when his vision finally focused he matched the voice of his spectator to her proper form.
The after chapter note: Sorry for the cliffhanger. Are you psyched to find out what will happen next? I will try to post the next chapter soon, but if anything I'll have to do it before school starts in a week and a half. Again, I apologize for my extreme lateness. And now, it's 3:28 AM on August the 14th, and I need sleep. Namaste.