The Legend of Zelda: The Return
A Brief Interlude
I keep one eye on the road ahead of us, only half listening as Natalia regales both Links with tales of famous Gerudo. I've heard most of the stories before – Natalia never turns down an opportunity to talk about her people. It's been three years since we left the dessert . . . she misses it more than she lets on. A lot more. The fact that she'll never be able to go back there eats at her, I know it. And the fact that it eats at her, eats at me.
I wish I could do something for her.
But I can't . . . she wants to go home . . . and I can't take her there.
If it weren't for Nabooru I never would have been able to get her out of there . . . I'll never be able to repay Nabooru the debt I owe her . . . and if what Link tells us about how she's helped him is true, then my debt to her is more than I could pay if I lived a thousand years.
I have one eye on Link as well. The adult Link. Well . . . the almost adult Link.
It's funny . . . I never expected this to happen. Not for a minute. I never would have even guessed. And yet . . . the first time I looked at him . . . after the Triforce had transported us away from the field and into that cave . . . looked at his bleeding, unconscious form . . . still somehow clutching my son protectively . .. there was no doubt in my mind as to who this green clothed stranger was. I knew he was my son . . . there was no one else he could be . . . there was no mistaking him.
I'd know my son anywhere . . . anywhen . . . and so would Natalia, much as she tried to deny it. I think that was the biggest fight we've had in a while . . . over what to do with him. I think she was just bitter about the fact that she had been rescued by him . . . regardless of her relationship to him, that would have been a blow to her pride . . .
I really don't understand Gerudo logic sometimes. Nat took on no less than eight, full grown Moblins. She decimated seven of them. And yet, somehow, because one of them had managed to catch her in a moment of distraction caused by her son's frightened cry . . . that makes her a weak, reckless, irresponsible fighter.
She beat seven out of eight Moblins!
Honestly. The day I understand any Gerudo, least of all Natalia, is the day that Death Mountain freezes over.
I look surreptitiously back over at Link – the big Link – and wonder . . .
What does it mean? Why did he come back to the past? I mean . . . I understand that he tried to do his Quisros– too early, naturally. Impetuous kid . . . somehow I should have know he would. After the time he actually went into the Qusirol despite the number of times I've told him not too . . . – and the pedestal, naturally, sent him back in time. As it should for the Hero of Time. But what does it mean in the big picture? What purpose does destiny have in sending him back here? What does it want to show him?
What does it want to show me?
It hadn't taken long for Natalia and I to get him to break down and tell us his story. Between my carefully phrased questions and Natalia's impatient ones . . . fact of the matter is, he wanted to tell us what's happened to him. He didn't say as much . . . but I could tell. Just in the way he spoke. The expressions on his face . . . his tone of voice . . .. He's been through Hell and back twice over . . . and the thing that kills me is that nowhere in his story does he mention Natalia or I. We're not there. We weren't there for him when he needed us.
Thank the goddesses for Bruiser . . .
It's amazing really . . . ever since we were kids . . . I was the wild one. The impetuous, temperamental, hand -in-cookie-jar one . . . always dancing on the edge . . . and ever since we were little, Bruiser – good old steady, reliable, penny-pinching Bruiser – has been there to grab me by the scruff of my neck and haul me back just before I fell over. And now . . . even without being able to remember him . . . he's there to grab my son and pull him back as well . . .
I feel a pang in my heart as I study Link.
He's so much like me . . . he's too much like me . . . from what I've seen and what he's told us . . . foolhardy, strong-willed, impetuous . . . but Natalia's there in him too. The sarcastic edge in his voice, even when he's trying to be respectful, his abrasive sense of humor, his smile . . . there's no mistaking his smile. But there are parts of him that are unique as well . . . things he didn't get from Natalia or I . . . his openness for one thing. The way he wears his heart on his sleeve . . . he definitely didn't get that from Natalia or I. His disregard for tradition for another. I never would have dreamed of taking my Quisros too early . . . let alone taking it with someone else, regardless of the circumstances . . . I'm torn between disappointment in Hunter for breaking the rules, and extreme relief and thankfulness that he didn't leave Link to face it alone and unaware . . .. And Natalia's worse for tradition than I am! She had a fit when Link told her he directly disobeyed an order from Nabooru. Regardless of her mixed feelings towards her ex-sister, that still didn't give anyone the right to disobey her.
Nope . . . he definitely didn't get that disregard from us.
It's frustrating really. I know he's my son . . . and on some basic level I know him. But . . . on all the other levels . . . he's as much a stranger to me as I am to him. And I don't know why. I don't know how it worked out that way. And he's sure as Hell not telling us. He's remained stubbornly silent on the little bit he does seem to know about what happened to make us leave him at Kokiri Forest. The most he's told us is that we were running there to escape the war – which is true for the most part. There's also that little detail about Ganondorf wanting us all dead personally. Will he catch up with us? Is that why we leave Link behind? Will Natalia and I die? Will we be captured? Will we leave him there and run . . . distracting Ganondorf's attention away from him?
But Link dodges questions and changes subjects with a practiced ease. When Natalia confronted him on this little habit of his, he simply replied: "When you spend time around a group of people all determined to keep you in the dark on just about everything, you learn a thing or two about keeping secrets." I'm assuming he was referring to the Sages. They seem to figure prominently in the later parts of his story.
Link suddenly frowns dubiously at Natalia.
"You're kidding right?" He asks. "She took on three Sheikah and a Goron and won?" Natalia nods. "All by herself?" She nods again. Link frowns. "No she didn't," he says.
"She did so!" Natalia argues. "Just because you couldn't do it, doesn't mean she couldn't."
"Look, I've seen Sheikah fight," Link argues right back. "I could see maybe one Sheikah, but three? And a Goron? Impossible! Even is she did manage to beat the Sheikah, the Goron would have squished her into a pulp."
"What do you know about Gorons?" Natalia demands.
"I know that I get bruises from Darunia's friendly pats on the backs," Link replies. "I'd love to see what he'd do to someone who's not his sworn brother."
"You're the sworn brother of the leader of the Gorons?" I ask him in surprise. He looks over at me and nods.
"That's what he tells me," he says brightly. "Usually right before the aforementioned friendly beating." A wide grin splits my face.
"Well what do you know," I say. "So am I." He blinks at me in surprise and a slow smile pulls at his lips.
"Sworn brother or not, it doesn't change the fact that she took on three Sheikah and a Goron and won," Natalia says. Link readjusts his hat as we walk.
"She could not," he says.
"Could so," Natalia says.
"Could not!"
"Could so!" Little Link interjects from his position on my back. Natalia shoots a smug look at adult Link.
"See?" She said. "Are you going to argue with yourself too?" I shake my head. He looks like he might . . .
"I think we should set up camp soon," I say, interrupting him before he can. "The sun's almost down and we need to get set up before the Stalchilds come out."
"Oh darn," says Link with a grin. "And I was so looking forward to fighting them again too."
xxx
Chapter 15
I stare at the small mound that is Little Link's blankets and listen to the soft sound of his crying. He's trying to hold it in . . . he doesn't want to cry . . . I don't think he realizes how lucky he is . . . to be able to cry on a whim and not have anyone think any less of you for it?
Maybe if I stay really quiet he'll stop crying and go back to sleep . . .
. . .
. . .
. . .
Maybe I should just go pick him up or something . . .
I frown in consternation. I haven't dealt with kids since I was one. I don't know what to do with him . . .
Then again . . . he is me right? I mean . . . how hard can it be? I'll just tell him stuff that would make me feel better . . .
Hoping against hope that I'm correct in my assumption, I tiptoe over to him, gingerly stepping over Natalia as I go. Her and Brayden are sleeping like rocks. They probably haven't had a break since they left the Sheikah Caverns. My face darkens at that thought.
Since Detsu drove them out.
I drop into a crouch and poke little Link with a finger.
"Hey, kid," I say. "You all right?" He immediately sucks in his breath and tries to pretend he wasn't crying. I reach up and gently pull his blanket away from him – no mean feat considering how tightly he's clinging to it. He looks up at me with red-rimmed blue eyes and I once again find myself fascinated with them. If I didn't know better I'd say he's fascinated with mine as well.
They're so blue . . .
"Come on," I say, reaching down and helping him to his feet. I take his hand and guide him back towards where I was sitting before. "You can help me keep watch." I drop back into a sitting position and little Link immediately settles himself into my lap as though he owns it.
And in a way, I suppose he does . . .
Sweet merciful Din, this is odd . . .
I pull my hat off and use it to wipe the tears off his face.
"Are you gonna be all right?" I ask. He nods once, staring curiously at my hat. "You like it?" I ask, setting it on his head. It immediately slides down over his face. His mouth splits into a wide grin and he giggles, shoving it up on his head so he can see me from under it. "You'll have your own soon," I tell him. "One that fits you."
"Really?" He asks hopefully. I nod solemnly at him.
"Really," I say. "And clothes like mine too." He looks at my tunic and makes a face. I laugh. "You get used to them. They kinda grow on you . . . though they're more than a little difficult to find in adult size, believe you me." He pulls at my tunic dubiously. "So why were you crying, anyway?" I ask.
"I wasn't crying," he says with a frown. I raise an eyebrow at him.
"Then what were you doing?" I ask. "You getting sick? You got a cold?" He meets my gaze and I frown at him. "You're not very good at lying yet. You'd best stick to the truth for now. You'll learn how to lie later . . . when you meet Mido." I make a face. "You'll tell him lots of lies. But he'll turn out to be all right in the end."
"Mido?" He asks me. I smile and shake my head.
"You'll understand someday," I say. "You'll meet Mido, and the Know-It-All Brothers, and the Twins . . . and Saria." I look at him seriously. "Remember that name. Saria. She'll be your best friend. Your only friend for a while." I look up at the sky for a while, trying to think of all the advice I wish I'd had when I was him. "You'll be lonely a lot at first . . . and you'll be picked on a lot too . . . at least at first. Try not to worry about the fairy thing too much . . . that all sorts itself out in the end. When you get to meet Navi. She's kind of irritating, but she's not so bad once you get used to her," I add in a confidential whisper. "And you'll wonder for a long time about who you really are . . . and where you come from. I don't know if you'll ever figure it out . . . I haven't gotten that far in our life yet . . . but . . . I'm sure . . . someday . . ." My voice trails off as I realize that my warnings and advice is falling on deaf ears. He's asleep again, buried under my hat and leaning against my chest. I shake my head and smile, wrapping one arm around him to give him a more comfortable position. When I look up again Brayden's green eyes are focused on me.
"You've had it rough, haven't you?" He asks. I shrug uncomfortably, avoiding his gaze.
"Easier than some, harder than most," I answer. "But I survived it, so I can't really complain . . ."
"And the worst part of it?" He asks. I continue to study the grass beneath me for a moment, without answering, painfully aware of his expectant gaze.
"The loneliness," I answer finally. "The not knowing . . . lying in my bed at night and wondering who I really am. Knowing I'm not what I had prayed I was." I look up at the stars. "Somehow . . . I always knew . . . that I was different than the other Kokiri. Somehow . . . I knew I wasn't one of them. Maybe it wouldn't have been so bad if I'd have known what I was . . . but I didn't." There's a shuffling sound and he's suddenly taking a seat beside me.
"You are Link," he says. "Son of Brayden and Natalia."
"I didn't know that," I whisper. "All I knew I was, was Link: the boy without a fairy. Or Link: the kid with the funny clothes. Or Link: the boy from the Archery shop. And lately it's Link: Hero of Time. That's all anybody seems to know . . . but . . . that's not all there is to me, is there? I'm more than that, aren't I?"
"Well," he says, studying his gloves, "that depends. Have you made yourself out to be anything more?"
"Made myself out to be?" I ask. He nods.
"Maybe . . . you've been so busy wondering who you are . . . that you haven't spent any time deciding who you are. Maybe, all this time you've been asking the wrong people who you are. Maybe you should ask yourself. You might be surprised with the answers you find." I blink at him and then turn my gaze back up to the stars. We sit in silence for a moment, each lost in our own thoughts.
"Link," he says after a moment. "I know you don't want to tell me . . . but . . . I need to know . . ." He looks at me and I try to pretend I can't hear him.
Like that'll work . . .
I'm sitting right beside him.
"I don't care what happens to me," he says softly. "But I have to know . . . will Natalia make it out of this all right?" I swallow thickly and drop my head. I want to tell him yes. I want to tell him she'll be fine. That they'll both be fine. That everything will turn out all right in the end and they'll be okay . . .
I want to tell him that . . .
I want to tell myself that . . .
But . . . I can't . . .
I close my eyes and shake my head slowly.
"She'll die," I whisper. "In the Forest. She'll get hurt . . . and the Great Deku Tree won't be able to save her . . ." He's still looking at me. He wants to know . . . what happens to him. He wants to know why he couldn't protect her . . . he wants to know why he wasn't with her when she died . . . why he wasn't there for me . . . "I'm sorry," I whisper. "I don't know . . . I don't remember anything about you . . . or even her. All I know is what I've been told . . . I wish . . . I wish it was happier."
"Can you tell me who to blame?" He asks in an angry whisper. But he's not angry at me . . . he's angry at circumstances. I nod at his question. This much I do know.
"Ganondorf," I whisper, my own voice low and angry. "Even sealed away in the Void he's still screwing up my life. Everything that comes into contact with me gets hurt . . . you two included . . . because of him." I look at him suddenly, screwing up my courage to ask the question I'd been avoiding. "It's because of me he's after you, isn't it?" I ask. "It's not his style to waste his time chasing a rogue Gerudo and her Sheikah guardian across the country. You two can't hurt him, anyway. The most you could do is join his enemies, and then you're just two other soldiers. Ganondorf's not afraid of soldiers."
"And what is he afraid of?" Brayden asks.
"Me," I answer. "Of what I could do to him . . . of what I've done to him . . . that's why he's after you, isn't it?" I look down at the little boy in my arms. "Because of what he knows this kid will become. That's why you're running to Kokiri Forest. Because it's the only safe haven left in the world right now. As long as the Great Deku Tree's alive . . ." My voice trails off and Brayden runs a hand through his hair.
"I suppose I owe you an answer to that . . . since you answered my question," he says slowly. "Yes, Link. Ganondorf's after you. I don't know if he knows you're the Hero of Time or not, but he knows you've got the Triforce of Courage, and he knows you're the son of a Gerudo. You are the rightful King of the people he leads, and you've got something he wants very, very badly. He tried to kill you once already, through Detsu . . . Detsu tricked you into going into the Quisrol. Once the Quisros begins, the room is sealed off an there's no way to stop it. Detsu was waiting for you in the room with the Pedestal. He was going to kill you then, when no one could stop him. But he hadn't counted on me getting to you before the room sealed itself." He pulls absently on his gloves. "We left the Sheikah Caverns that night and we've been running ever since. Detsu's chased us all this way. He's determined to get his hands on you." He gestures at the little boy in my lap. "On him. If you hadn't shown up yesterday . . . he would have had us at last. And he would have . . ." He closes his eyes and looks away from little Link. He takes a deep breath. "Even with everything you've told me Link . . . about Natalia's fate . . . about my own . . . even with all of that . . . I am so beyond happy it's not even funny." I stare at him in surprise.
"How . . . how can you be happy?" I ask, confused. "Somebody's going to catch you . . . I mean . . . you're going to die! Detsu will erase everyone's memories! No one will even remember you existed! Why . . . how can . . ." He smiles sadly at me.
"Because I know you'll survive, Link," he answers. "My greatest fear . . . my worst nightmare . . . was that you wouldn't live to see your fourth birthday. Or your fifth, or your tenth, or your eighteenth . . . that fear has been hanging over me since we ran from the Sheikah Caverns. But now . . . I know. I know that you'll live. I know you'll be miserable, and happy, and angry, and afraid, and sad, and alive. And as much as I want to be there to see that . . . as much as I want to be miserable, and happy, and angry, and afraid and sad with you . . . I'm happy just knowing that you'll get to be those things. With or without me. Someday, when you've got kids of your own, you'll understand what I mean . . ." All I can do is stare at him. He smiles at me and settles himself into a more comfortable position.
"Now," he says, "enough of this depressing stuff. Tell me good stuff. Tell me about your friends. Do you have a best friend? A girlfriend?" His smile is infectious and before I know it I've launched into a recounting of my adventures with Sheik and Malon over the years. He sits and listens the whole time, throwing in the odd comment and exclamation and bout of laughter. He seems to especially like the stories of Bruiser and I . . . particularly the pranks I've pulled. The deku nut in shoe story sends him into a fit of laughter – might have something to do with the fact that I can't tell it myself without laughing so hard I cry.
Little Link, after being woken up for about the fiftieth time grumbles something to himself and sleepily moves over to crawl into his mother's blankets. Brayden and I grin at him as he goes then turn those grins on each other.
"Hey," he says, pushing himself to his feet. "I've got something for you." I follow him over to his pack and drop into a crouch beside him as he starts digging through it. After a moment of searching he pulls out a small leather pouch and opens it up, carefully spilling its contents out into his hand. The moonlight glints off of the ornament there. It's the symbol of the Sheikah – similar to the one Sheik gave me, only slightly larger and more intricately wrought, and with a single blood-red ruby in the middle of it. He lifts it up
"When a Sheikah boy completes his Quisros and becomes a man, his father is supposed to be waiting for him outside the Quisrolto tell the world that his son is no longer a child, but is now a man, ready to take his place among Sheikah society. Then he gives him this," he places the symbol in my hand, "and says Toln ara mas karo, maes nest ara mas relsin. Mel ara firae us tol." I hold the symbol up in front of my eyes, then look at him.
"What does that mean?" I ask. He smiles.
"You are my son, but no longer my child," he translates. "I am proud of you." He shrugs suddenly, uncomfortable. "I know it's a bit early," he says, "since you won't have completed it until you actually go back to your own time and leave the Quisrol. But . . . since I won't be there to say it then . . ." He shrugs again and grins at me. "You're doing it all backward anyway. One more thing in the wrong order won't matter." I stare at him, frozen in place by the sudden rush of emotions that surge through me.
He's proud of me . . .
"Do you really mean that?" I whisper, clutching the symbol in a white-knuckled grip. "Do you . . . do you . . ." He places his hand over my fist.
"Link," he says softly, "I mean it with all my heart. I'm sorry you weren't able to hear it until now, but it changes nothing. I'm proud of you."
"I think," says an amused voice to our side, "it is customary among the Sheikah, at moment's like these, to . . . what's the word . . . hug?" I look over at Natalia who's grinning widely at us. "Brayden likes to hug," she tells me. "Makes me do it all the time. I don't think I should be the only one to suffer that." Laughing, Brayden opens his arms and I move to do as Natalia suggests, but a fiery pain suddenly erupts in my back, causing me to cry out and fall forward.
"Link!" Brayden gasps.
I know this feeling . . .
Arrow . . . there's an arrow in my back . . .
"They've found us!" Brayden gasps. Natalia drops to her knees beside me as Brayden runs to gather little Link up in his arms.
"Just rip it out," I hiss between my clenched teeth. "I've been hurt worse . . ." Natalia wraps her hand around the arrow and pulls. To her credit she's being as gentle as she can, but given the circumstances . . .
Stars explode in front of my eyes and I gasp and fall to the ground, as everything vanishes from my mind except the pain. But then Natalia's urging me up and the world comes rushing back in around me. I shove the Sheikah symbol into my pouch and get to my feet with Natalia's help. A quick glance over my shoulder confirms the worst. A large group of Moblins is racing down the hill behind us, waving weapons and firing arrows at us. Brayden's right.
They've found us.
Sitting still on the top of the hill is Detsu – perched on top of his horse and glaring down at us with hatred in his eyes. Bastard must have rode hard without a break since yesterday to have caught up to us.
"Son of a bitch," I hiss as Natalia and I run after Brayden and little Link.
"Brayden!" Natalia shouts as the Moblins close the gap between us. "We can't run! We have to fight!"
"We can't fight either!" He shouts, clutching little Link tightly. "He'll never make it! There's too many of them!"
"Not to interrupt or anything," I say, trying to ignore the burning in my back, "but we're not going to have much of a choice soon."
An arrow slices through Natalia's shoulder. Brayden's eyes narrow and little Link cries out in fright.
I hate it when I'm right . . .