The Legend of Zelda: Her Story
Chapter 2: Palta and Tella
By: The Kirby Kid
Disclaimer:
The Legend of Zelda™ is property of Nintendo of America/Japan
Author's Notes:
I cut this chapter short cause I was getting tired.
I have a proposition for some readers. You all know my character Moto. Well I'd like to get some Moto short stories. You know, he's not going to be on Zelda's shoulder forever you know. At sometime or another, he'll have to face his other Keaton kind. Not many other Keaton like him cause he's domesticated and he's a half-breed.
So, if any of you have some cute little Moto stories (for example, think Hamtaro), send them here and I'll add inside my chapter as an interlude. I'd only like a few of them, if you can spare some. Of course I'll give you absolute and full credit.
This is just a little request. Above all, thanks for reading, and reviewing! You don't know how much I appreciate your reviews.
Remember, if you need information on the history of these characters from my past fics, just check out the Chapter called 'History'
************
For better or for worse, I was simply looked at as my mother.
I was a genius when it came to magic and strategy.
My mother was more charismatic, and she had more beauty, Though that was supposed to be in the eye of the beholder.
I was this and that, my mother was the other. Whatever it came down to, I was always compared with her. I didn't think it was fair.
Just because I shared her name, her legacy and even some of her face, it shouldn't have been happy with being just another 'her'.
I needed something to distinguish myself from her, from the name.
I needed it.
I guess, that's why when Gram came, I kept it a secret. When Gram came, the first thing I started thinking of was how I could use it to make me unique.
And then the twins visited, and I started thinking again.
Things were moving so fast…
************
Zelda had spent many hours in the Library for the few days after Gram had come to her. She was determined to find out just what it was. Was it a weapon, or was it some sort of symbol or sign? Perhaps it was just an extended magical flare, the result of a tweaked-out Triforce. Whatever it was, it was hers. Zelda thought that before she could enjoy it, she should find out what it meant.
Those many hours turned out to be hours wasted. Not in any of the hundreds of tomes could Zelda find a reference to a shining blade made purely of Wisdom. Zelda slumped her head to the library desk and sighed. Nothing. Nowhere. Moto was licking her ear, but she was too tired to notice.
Underneath the desk, Zelda stretched out the fingers of her right hand. Blue light flared into a wide curved crystal blade. Zelda couldn't see it, but she could feel it's light weight, it's cold touch, it's sharpness. The princess squeezed her eyes closed and thought grimly to herself.
Gram. What was it? Where did it come from?
What did it want?
"Zelda?"
Her eyes shot open and she dispersed the blade from her hand in an instant. Calmly, as if nothing had happened, she looked up and saw Rocco standing next to her, giant halberd in hand. Zelda sighed. She knew that as her shadow, Rocco would be everywhere excepting her bedchambers. Still, he usually stayed out of sight. Not once during these many hours of researching had he interrupted her.
Zelda noticed Moto chewing playfully on her ear, and she picked the little Keaton off. "Rocco…is there anything wrong?" She asked as she placed the creature on her shoulder.
"I was just going to ask you the same question." He replied softly. The man was the looker. Sharp, striking eyes. Short hair cut neatly, with two bangs falling over his eyes. Tall, fit, silver armor fitting him like a glove. Zelda could see why Talon was so enamored with him. Well, good for her. As long as she was happy.
She must have been tired. Her mind was wandering.
"I've been at this for the past few days, and you haven't said anything so far." Zelda said, stifling a yawn. "Why care now?"
Rocco shuffled his feet with uncertainty. "I'm sorry, I'm just concerned. You've never studied something like this before. You look exhausted." He made that look that someone made to get someone to look up at him. You know, the look; arching the eyebrows and leaning ones head towards the person ever so slightly? Zelda had no choice but to respond to the look and to gaze into his eyes. "Maybe I can help you?" Rocco suggested.
Zelda laughed, regretting it immediately. Zelda didn't mean to, she was just tired, but she assumed she must have sounded like a real…jerk…just then. "Sorry, Rocco." She sighed. "It's just…this is something I have to figure out on my own, you know?" Slowly, Zelda pushed herself off of the desk and onto her feet. "I think you're right though. I am tired, and I could use some rest."
Rocco smiled. "Sounds like a plan. I do my best thinking in bed."
Zelda smiled wryly. "Oh I'm sure you do. But for Talon's sake, spare me the details."
"Princess!!"
"Sorry! Sorry!" Zelda laughed, surrendering her hands into the air. "It's the mental exhaustion talking. Sorry." She saw the look on Rocco's face and stuck her tongue out with a grin. Teasing the boy was one of her favorite pastimes.
Moto yawned in her ears, and his three tails flopped idly on her shoulder. It was late, and she would get some more ideas in the morning. She bade Rocco goodnight and retired to her chambers.
************
The never-ending void enveloped her. Several different people, of all races and types, walked out from between several tall pillars that dotted the void, and disappeared into the same pillars.
"Where are you?" she cried.
No one glanced at her. No one paid any sort of attention. They just kept on vanishing and manifesting from between the winged pillars. Some were ordained like the richest of kings, some wore their nightclothes, some in rags, and those in between.
"I know you're out there."
"Why won't you answer me?" she called.
Some people disappeared mid-step, returning to the waking world. Others appeared in the void, just entering their nightly journey. Throughout it all, he was nowhere to be seen.
She stayed for a few more hours, calling out into the void. At last the call came from her body, and she found herself being pulled back.
The light flooded the void.
"Why won't you answer me?"
************
Zelda's eyes fluttered open, and she rolled up from her bed slowly, almost crushing a groggy Moto in the process. Another night in the Dream Realm. Another night wasted. He never answered her, he never called back.
For the longest while, Zelda was worried that he might have been killed. She didn't know how, but it wasn't true. She knew it. He was still alive. Somewhere.
He just didn't want to talk to her.
As Zelda rose and got ready for the day, she continued to think on this. She couldn't tell for the life of her why he didn't want to answer her calls. When Er Chike held her prisoner in the Dark World, talking to him through the Dream Realm was the only thing that kept her going. Zelda thought they had become so close.
And now, he just ignored her.
Well to hell with him.
An hour later she stormed out of courtyard and into Castle Town, more depressed than usual. She had hoped she could get a hold of Talon, but the postmaster told her the girl was busy on another delivery. Sighing, Zelda turned to go back into the Courtyard, when she noticed a disturbance near the Bazaar.
A throng of onlookers was crowded around a shopkeeper, who was yelling and screaming at an unknown party.
Zelda stepped closer to the commotion, and Rocco materialized closely behind her. "Shall I take care of this?" he asked her.
"Why? You don't have to worry about that. It's not your job." She said without looking back. She suddenly got a view of the others involved in the squabble. "I'll handle this." With that, she walked up, pushed herself through the crowd and between the combatants. There was the shopkeeper, and two young Gerudo women.
The women were identical to each other in clothing and in looks. They were both exotically beautiful; their eyes were large and slanted, and their reddish-brown color shone. Their hair was braided, and was bunched up in ponytails that fell just to the top of their necks. One of the girls had her hands crossed, and the other had a hand on her hip. They both looked at the shopkeeper impassively.
"Bloody thieves! I don't even know why the knights allow you in town!!"
"So then, why not you go ahead and kick us out, old man?"
"Damn Gerudo bitc- give me back my sash, before I-"
"What's going on around here?" Zelda interjected.
The girls turned to her, and the slightest smile crossed their lips. The man just ignored her and continued to yell.
"Hey!" Zelda barked. "I said, what's happening!?"
The shopkeeper turned angrily to her, and then jumped in place. "P-princess!" he stammered. With the presence of Rocco, the crowd had quickly dispersed. "Wh-Well these two stole one of my best sashes."
"We did not steal it, and it was not that nice of a sash."
"That's enough Palta." Zelda said tiredly. "All right, did you two take his sash? Really now." She turned to the girl with her arms crossed. "Tella?"
Tella turned to her with mischievous eyes. "No."
"I'm serious."
Palta turned to Zelda and held her ground. "Zelly, we are telling you, we did not steal any clothing from that man."
Zelda stared at the twins for a moment, and then glanced over to the shopkeeper. "They didn't take it. You either lost it, or someone else took it."
The shopkeeper was aghast. "But Princess-" he protested.
"Notify the authorities and they'll investigate."
The shopkeeper continued to stare at her. Zelda widened her eyes and gave the man a look, and the shopkeeper formed his mouth into a thin line. Finally, he turned and walked back to his display, glancing back at the three periodically and muttering something about 'hoodlums'.
Zelda whirled on the twins, trying not very hard to conceal a smile. Palta caught the look, sighed, and reached inside her black tank top and pulled out a small bag of cheap gems. "Hey!" she shouted at the shopkeeper.
As he turned, Palta tossed the bag towards him. He caught it, and Tella stared with her mouth agape.
"What are you doing?" she breathed to her twin.
"P-princess! I want to file charges."
Now it was Zelda's turn to sigh. "What for? She gave them back didn't she?"
"But-"
"Enough! No harm was done. Just go back to your business. Please."
The shopkeeper ground his teeth for a moment, before turning back and heading to his booth.
"I cannot believe you gave that man those beads." Tella scowled.
Palta wasn't listening. She was too busy staring up at Rocco, who looked down at her disapprovingly. Zelda caught her looking and a grin spread on her face. "First, Palta, he's taken, so forget about it."
"You presume too much, Zelly" Palta said with a smirk.
"Yeah right. And second, Tella, your sister was returning those beads. What have I told you two about stealing here?"
Palta rubbed the back of her head and glanced over to her sister, who shrugged. "What is it you said? 'Keep it down to…something, something.' They both spoke with lilting accents.
"That 'something something' was supposed be 'down to nothing!'" Zelda shouted. The smile on her face betrayed her true emotion. "It's good to see you guys." She moved in and took in their hands.
The twins beamed at her. Palta glanced over at the shopkeeper, who was still glaring at them. "Are you sure that is wise. That miser might think your judgment was biased."
"Because you are our friend." Tella finished.
Zelda shrugged. "He'd be right. Hey, I get to do that. I am the Princess. Who's he gonna complain to? That's right: me. He's got nothing." Zelda then threw her arms over each of their shoulders and grinned at them. "Now, who's up for some lunch?"
***
Beautiful and deadly, those were the words used to describe them. Well, at least to everyone else. To the other Gerudo they were a bit homely and deadly, since their noses were smaller than the average Gerudo. This was an unfavorable trait to the tribe, but to the rest of the world it enhanced their exotic charm.
However, the Gerudo tribe favored their deadliness over anything else. The twins were the strongest warriors alive in the Gerudo tribe. To be more specific, Tella was the strongest, and Palta was right behind her. While the younger twin Palta could never beat her big sister, no one else in the tribe could defeat her.
Truth be told: there weren't many people that Zelda knew in Hyrule that could stand up to the girls in hand to hand combat. Invincible, Lord Mikau, Liute, Rocco and of course, him.
The more Zelda thought about the girls, and these other people who could fight, the more she wondered about Gram.
Was this something she could do? Was it even possible?
"Mother Andala set us out of the Fortress for a while." Palta hummed under the rich aroma of a cup of steaming tea.
Tella smiled sleepily. "She thinks we are becoming too violent. She wants us to concentrate on other things."
Zelda blinked out of her thoughts and turned to the girl sitting across from her on the smooth round table. "What other things?" she asked, before thinking better of it. She knew the Gerudo, and she knew what the answer would be…
"Making babies." The twins told her.
Zelda groaned.
"Well, we are seventeen after-all." Tella shrugged. "But I'm not having any children until I find a suitable father. Still, that will not stop me from having a good time."
"You have too many 'good times', big sister." Palta whispered.
"You know, you should try it sometime. There are plenty of good-looking boys and girls for you to choose from. I can give you plenty of referrals." Tella said slyly. "You are too discriminate."
"And you are not discriminate enough!" Palta growled, unable to look into her sister's eyes. A half-hour was all that separated them at birth, but it was enough to put the air of superiority into her sister's aura. It annoyed Palta infinitely.
"And you are such a prude you put these Hylians to shame." Tella blinked, embarrassed, towards Zelda. "No offense."
"None taken." Zelda said coldly. Though she agreed with Palta on this one. Tella did have a reputation even amongst Gerudo of being a bit…'indiscriminate'. Men and women could attest to that.
Tella's actions in the bedroom…or bathroom…or field, forest, cave, dune and rooftop mattered little to Zelda. She was still a dear friend, and being the strongest warrior in the Gerudo tribe gave Zelda another thing to look up too.
Still…
"You will never find a suitable father pussyfooting around, sister. You have to be assertive. Knock, and you will receive." While Palta groaned with frustration, Tella suddenly straightened up. "For instance, on our way here I saw a fiercely pretty girl walking away from a ranch…"
Zelda narrowed her eyes. "A Hylian with long red hair?"
"Yes! How did-"
"She's taken." The princess said, thumbing in Rocco's direction.
"Oh." Tella's muscles relaxed, and she slumped back into her chair. "That explains it."
"Explains what?"
"You don't want to know." Palta groaned.
Shrugging her shoulders, Tella chewed her full lips unconcernedly. "Well, at least I tried. If you asserted yourself, you would not be complaining right now."
"I am not complaining!"
Tella then turned her gaze on Zelda, and for some reason, the princess found herself blushing. "What about you Zelly? You are not taken are you?" She took Zelda's hand, and then Palta's. "I think you two would make a cute couple."
Zelda and Palta withdrew their hands from Tella forcefully. "No thanks!" the said simultaneously.
Once again, Tella slumped back into her chair. "I was only joking. Prudes." She mumbled. Apparently though, Tella was unable to let the subject die. Her eyes locked on a young man sitting by a fountain. "What about him, you two? He's a man…so he passes your first test."
Palta gave her a deadly gaze, and then looked over to the one Tella was talking about. He was a young man around their age. His skin was chocolate brown, like theirs. He wore a white sleeveless shirt, and grey baggy pants. He was a thin boy, but his muscles were extremely well defined.
By his looks, he was definitely part Gerudo, but his most striking feature was his hair. It was short, and it fell over his brow like a mop, sharp bangs falling all around his head, just past his eyebrows. His hair was stark white, and the ends of his locks were black…like they were singed.
Zelda suddenly recognized him. He was the man she bumped into a few days before. The rude one.
Quite the coincidence.
Palta gulped quietly, and looked away from him and to her hands. This was the first time Zelda saw her like this.
"Palta. If you weren't so brown I'd swear you were blushing." The princess teased.
"Shut up."
Tella wore a devilish smile. "Well, go and greet him. What are you waiting for, a proposal?" she chided.
Palta said nothing and continued to look at her hands.
"Aw, Palty's shy." Zelda cooed.
"I am warning you…"
Tella slammed her hands on the table and shot up to her feet. "Fine. If you will not do anything, I will."
At this, Palta looked up to her sister, mortified. "No! You can't!"
"Tella! Geez you really have no shame!" hissed Zelda.
The older twin crossed her and shook her head with a smirk. "Relax. I am not interested, believe it or not. I will just break the ice. Watch this." Before her twin or Zelda could stop her, she dashed over to the boy boldly and sat next to him by the fountain. He didn't look up.
"Hello" she sang. Tella and Palta may have been identical, but their voices weren't. Palta's was high, on the girlie side, while Tella was smooth and sultry. Most thought it as another advantage of her seniority.
When the boy continued to ignore her, his gaze resting in the waters of the fountain, Tella leaned forward and brushed up next to him, her breasts rubbing against his arm. That got his attention. He turned slowly to look at her with a cool gaze.
"My sister really likes you, but she is shy. What about you?" She turned her gaze upwards with a look that would melt rocks. "Do you like what you see?"
The boy just looked into those eyes. He seemed unfazed.
"We are twins. If you like me, you will like her, you see-" she was suddenly cut off when the boy abruptly got up and began to walk away. What the!? That was a first. Tella quickly got up and caught his arm. "Excuse me-"
"Leave me alone." The young man growled.
Tella swung around to meet him face to face. "My sister is much more discrete than I am, if that's your problem. You cannot say you do not like what you see-"
"Do shut up." he said with a cold glare. He yanked his arm away from her grip and walked away into the west of Castle Town.
Tella turned to the table where Palta and Zelda were laughing uncontrollably. Fuming, she stalked back to the table and sulked back into her seat.
"He's gay." Tella huffed nonchalantly.
Zelda's fits of laughter became nearly hysterical. Palta had to cover her giggles with her hands, so as to not completely disrespect her sister.
"Well," Tella said, tossing some sunflower seeds into her mouth. "He is."
"Tella" Zelda said between gulps of air. "I don't think so. You just got burned."
Palta took in some deep breaths, steadied herself, then turned to her sister. "He seemed preoccupied. Do not worry about it."
Tella mumbled to herself. She didn't seem any worse for where. Tella was hardly disturbed by anything. Unlike Palta, Tella rolled with the punches.
***
The more Zelda looked at them, the more she liked what she saw. Strong women, with the ability to stand up for themselves and the confidence that exudes from that ability (Well, except for Palta's shyness). Zelda was powerful magically, but it was something that her mother and Impa had, along with a few others. Physical skill…that would be something unique.
Up to the moment Palta and Tella bid farewell to her and started off towards the city gates, Zelda thought about Gram. This could be a gift, a sign to make a change.
Late afternoon, as she strolled back through the Courtyard towards the Castle, Zelda called for Rocco to walk beside her. "Hey Rocco, how is your bid for the First Rank going?"
Rocco frowned. "We'll find out in a week. Since I work in the day, my only chance will be during the fast-track sessions at night."
"Fast-track sessions?"
Rocco smiled. "An unofficial term. Basically those who want to can choose to go to a super-intensive training program for the Knighthood. You can even ascend straight to First Rank if you do especially well. It's very hard though. First Rank instructors. Even Invincible instructs sometimes, and they are harsh."
Zelda's mind was churning. "Oh…I'm sure you'll do fine. You're a knight already, you just want to get into the First Rank."
Rocco's grimaced gloomily. Zelda could tell that for some reason, he didn't share her sentiment. Still, the talk had give Zelda her idea. She knew what she was going to do with Gram.
Obviously it wasn't a big mystery. She was going to join the Knighthood.
There was a problem though. There was no way in heaven or hell that her mother, Impa, Invincible or anyone else would let her even carry a sword, let alone fight with men.
But there had to be a way. She'd just have to find it.
***
And she did find it.
Late at night, in the castle Library, she found it. Moto was perched over her shoulder, and if Zelda didn't know better, she swore he was reading along with her. In fact, if the little Keaton/Bombchu hybrid had not let out a loud "Ku!" at the time it did, Zelda would have missed it completely.
She took Moto up in her hands and snuggled and kissed it affectionately. "Good boy, Moto" she cooed. "You found it! Now I'm going to be a knight!"
"Ku!!!"
Zelda snuggled it even closer to her cheek. She was going to be a knight. Thanks to Moto, she had found the spell she needed to pass through mother and the others without concern.
It was called a Glamour. It was used by an ancient Princess Zelda of the past to transform herself physically into a completely different person. The Glamour was a very complex and tricky spell to learn.
And Zelda had a week to learn it.
That's all for Chapter 2. Please review. Later. (o'.')o