Chapter 5
He looked at her again, but now it was getting dark and therefore hard to see. His eyes somehow met hers, she smiled, and he finally, reluctantly, began to tell the story which he intended for no one to ever hear of again.
"It begins about a year ago... everyone has heard of my wonderful adventures in Hyrule, saving Princess Zelda..." he shook his head violently at the name, but pressed on as he looked at Nina's intrigued face. "Well... things weren't so peachy after I saved her. Her father was a little short of wonderful, and she was... well, I don't want to remember."
She nodded at him, hoping there was more.
"I went and lived with her in Hyrule Castle for awhile, but, as always, disaster was to strike again. It always does in Hyrule, and I can't be there to save it for all of my life... it's just too much weight on me... I'm only 18, I can't handle this sort of responsibility anymore."
She nodded, noting his age in her mind, and comparing it to her mere 16 years.
"And in those days, you didn't leave the girl you loved, but in my case... after 8 months of that, I wanted out. In the dead of night, I decided I was going to leave... so one warm June night, I packed what I have with me, and I ran out of that castle as fast as I could ever go."
She smiled weakly, trying to think of how he could have done such a thing, but despite his bad points, she withheld her judgement and saw him still as a very wonderful guy.
"And... ever since then, everynight I will dream of her. I will dream of her crying, missing me, and I wonder why I ever left. But now... now that doesn't matter. I'm so lost I couldn't find my way back if I tried, and I really don't want to go back. I miss her, but I don't miss the castle, her father, or anything else about Hyrule and I don't intend to go back.... not anymore."
At last it seemed he'd come to an end for his story... and he'd made a decision he didn't like. Somehow Nina had known it was about Zelda... she'd always known that Zelda made people cry, for one reason or another. She'd never liked her, but usually she kept her judgement and tried to see the good in people. Her father had always taught her to see the best in people... but she'd lost her father and her mother long ago. They'd been taken by Ganondorf... back when they lived near Hyrule, as well. She had somehow escaped to the forest and had been clothed as a fairy by someone who had found her and tried to raise her. She had always seemed mature since her parents had gone, however, and the child was kind but very odd. The woman let her stay in the forest when she left, searching for a town somewhere to the south.
That was years ago... yet all the memories came flying back into Nina's mind and she looked at Link. Link smiled vaguely, having told his heavy secret and now the secret set in on Nina's already heavy heart. She did not intend to tell him her story. It was just as hard, if not harder, for her to tell hers... so she looked at Link with an admiration she didn't have before, and he saw it.
A few more tears sprung to his eyes and streamed down his face again, and she looked at the reflection of the moonlight off his face and saw the tears... and immediately made a decision. She crept closer to him as he looked at her, confused as to what she would do, and wondering if she was thinking what he had earlier.
She crept to his side, and put her arms around him and held him for a moment; he cried some more on her shoulder as she played with his hair.
He looked at her again, but now it was getting dark and therefore hard to see. His eyes somehow met hers, she smiled, and he finally, reluctantly, began to tell the story which he intended for no one to ever hear of again.
"It begins about a year ago... everyone has heard of my wonderful adventures in Hyrule, saving Princess Zelda..." he shook his head violently at the name, but pressed on as he looked at Nina's intrigued face. "Well... things weren't so peachy after I saved her. Her father was a little short of wonderful, and she was... well, I don't want to remember."
She nodded at him, hoping there was more.
"I went and lived with her in Hyrule Castle for awhile, but, as always, disaster was to strike again. It always does in Hyrule, and I can't be there to save it for all of my life... it's just too much weight on me... I'm only 18, I can't handle this sort of responsibility anymore."
She nodded, noting his age in her mind, and comparing it to her mere 16 years.
"And in those days, you didn't leave the girl you loved, but in my case... after 8 months of that, I wanted out. In the dead of night, I decided I was going to leave... so one warm June night, I packed what I have with me, and I ran out of that castle as fast as I could ever go."
She smiled weakly, trying to think of how he could have done such a thing, but despite his bad points, she withheld her judgement and saw him still as a very wonderful guy.
"And... ever since then, everynight I will dream of her. I will dream of her crying, missing me, and I wonder why I ever left. But now... now that doesn't matter. I'm so lost I couldn't find my way back if I tried, and I really don't want to go back. I miss her, but I don't miss the castle, her father, or anything else about Hyrule and I don't intend to go back.... not anymore."
At last it seemed he'd come to an end for his story... and he'd made a decision he didn't like. Somehow Nina had known it was about Zelda... she'd always known that Zelda made people cry, for one reason or another. She'd never liked her, but usually she kept her judgement and tried to see the good in people. Her father had always taught her to see the best in people... but she'd lost her father and her mother long ago. They'd been taken by Ganondorf... back when they lived near Hyrule, as well. She had somehow escaped to the forest and had been clothed as a fairy by someone who had found her and tried to raise her. She had always seemed mature since her parents had gone, however, and the child was kind but very odd. The woman let her stay in the forest when she left, searching for a town somewhere to the south.
That was years ago... yet all the memories came flying back into Nina's mind and she looked at Link. Link smiled vaguely, having told his heavy secret and now the secret set in on Nina's already heavy heart. She did not intend to tell him her story. It was just as hard, if not harder, for her to tell hers... so she looked at Link with an admiration she didn't have before, and he saw it.
A few more tears sprung to his eyes and streamed down his face again, and she looked at the reflection of the moonlight off his face and saw the tears... and immediately made a decision. She crept closer to him as he looked at her, confused as to what she would do, and wondering if she was thinking what he had earlier.
She crept to his side, and put her arms around him and held him for a moment; he cried some more on her shoulder as she played with his hair.