Chapter 16
No matter what
Tomorrow may bring
Goddesses grant me
The courage to sing
"Afternoon, Lulu." Tijo said politely as he swam through the conspicuous hole in the wall of his Script class.
Lulu whirled around to greet the Bottom-feeder. "Oh! Tijo! I didn't see you come in!" The velvet fins on her back followed the curve of motion as she turned. She smiled warmly. Lulu liked Tijo alright, but he was so proper and conspicuously polite in her presence, that she's not entirely at ease when around him. She would rather be treated as a friend, an equal. The two Zoras found their lillies and latched themselves using the seaweed growing rampant along the classroom floor. Lulu absently plucked a strand of seaweed to sample on, but spat out the growth when she found it to be bitter.
"Sargasso is not good to eat." Tijo mentioned.
Lulu raised her eyeridges in a bewildered expression. "Oh really? I couldn't tell..."
"Sargasso weed grows all around the oceans surrounding Hyrule. I take it that they don't grow in Termina." The Bottom-feeder snickered.
The bell for third block rang, sounding rippled and warped in the underwater room. Prof. Shar was already in the room, reading glasses on and looking mildly interested in the book he was reading. He glanced up once and seeing everyone was yet to be seated, hid his face behind the book again. Tijo drummed his fingers against his lily impatiently.
"Where's Mikau?" Lulu asked gently. "He's late."
"I was thinking the same thing. He was right behind me." Tijo chewed on his bottom lip nervously. "He's faster than me. He should have caught up by now."
Right then, Mikau flew through the hole like an otter, circled the room once, then dived in front of Lulu, disappearing under the mess of seaweed. He reappeared an instant later, already tethered behind his lily. His bubble bobbed up behind him like a balloon.
Lulu pushed the bubble out of the way. "Hi!" She said to the back of Mikau's head.
Mikau turned around with an expression of surprise that turned to genuine delight when he realized who was talking to him. "Hello." Said the Zorian Hero. He gave Lulu that dazzling smile of his. She drank in the smile and had to resist the urge to titter like an infatuated schoolgirl. Mikau sometimes has that effect on her, though Lulu hopes he hadn't noticed.
Sure, Mikau might be a little impetuous at times, but his kind demeanor and physique more than made up for that. And what physique! Indeed, this Zorian Hero was every bit as impressive as the legends said they were, and she has the priviledge of knowing one! The strange body paint on his face only enhanced his features, and she wanted to ask him what each tattoo pattern symbolizes. Mikau shifted slightly, and his rippling muscles drew Lulu's attention to the patterns on his arm. She longed to touch one. Instead, she let her eyes wander down the expanse of the Zorian Hero's body but quickly looked away. She had forgotten that she has irises in her main eyes and her gaze could easily be followed. Blushing furiously, Lulu prayed that Mikau didn't notice her roaming eyes. If word about this reached Evan, she would never hear the end of it! Lulu turned her attention to Prof. Shar who had just stood up for attendance.
To her unending relief, Mikau didn't notice Lulu's odd behavior at all. The Zorian Hero was more distraught over the conflict with his friend that occured mere minutes ago. He pondered over everything he and Japas said to each other, while Prof. Shar's and Lulu's words were only background noise. Mikau was snapped out of his thoughts when Tijo poked him on the arm.
"Hey Mikau, you don't have a textbook yet, do you?" Tijo asked. "Prof. Shar was just offering books for sale. Do you have enough rupees to pay for it?"
Mikau cursed in a language other than Xyrian which came out distorted with a myriad of bubbles. "Din's wrath, I forgot!"
Tijo grinned wickedly. "You can borrow from me. On the condition that you replace my stash of shelled pink urchins which mysteriously disappeared three days ago." Mikau gratefully accepted Tijo's money, but smiled with exaggerated innocence.
"Please pay attention, students." The script teacher demanded gently. "I would like to bring to your attention that tomorrow at this time, King Zora of Hyrule will be visiting Seafifth. He comes here with the intent of moralizing the newest faces around this university. In other words, students like you. I expect all of you to arrive here prior to the assembly to recieve the day's homework, then immediatly proceed to the auditorium. No loitering."
"King Zora!" Tijo breathed, eyes lighting up. Not like his eyes were radioactive or anything; just a sparkle that betrayed his excitement.
"I take it you're a big fan of the King?" Mikau asked. Tijo nodded slightly in affirmation. King Flounden Vera of the Zoras of Zora's Domain, Hyrule, had a reputation known to all Zoras and many places elsewhere. First of all, Zora's Domain was the source of water for Hyrule, the greatest nation in the world. The city itself is an amazing array of waterfalls and twisting passageways leading to the many levels of the sprawling metropolis. Although most Zoras don't ever get the chance to personally meet the famed King, his gentle-handed leadership could be felt by all under his rule. Not that he was too forgiving or anything; he can be ruthless to people if it's for the people's benefit.
The Script teacher hadn't finished talking. "My expectations for you will be quite high in King Zora's presence. No talking, blowing bubbles, or needless shifting. Remember, you represent the school and wish to present a good impression on his Royal Highness."
Prof. Shar removed his glasses and picked up a snail shell with a hollow coral pen stuck in it. "With that over with, we can move on. For those of you who have already read chapter 4 in 'Standard in Script', this will mostly consist of a review." The professor stood up and started writing with the pen on a large sillica-plated board located behind his desk. "The majority of the world speaks one language: Hylian. Only in far reaches of the world, or regions too solidly ingrained with their own culture, do people speak other languages. Us Zoras, however, conveniently evolved the ability to communicate underwater in a language of high-pitched sounds: Xyrian. There is no written form of Xyrian, although we will be concentrating on both languages equally in this Script course."
The teacher constantly dipped the pen back in the shell, which contained a chemically enhanced squid ink. The ink could not be conveniently erased once it contacts sillica, but fades away naturally after 20 minutes. Sure, chalk and board would work best when erasure was necessary, but they can't be used underwater.
Part of Mikau wanted to listen to the professor, but most of him was still mulling over the Japas situation. He chewed it over like how a dog might chew a stale bone. Why was Japas acting the way he did? Mikau dwelled on that point for a minute or two before coming to a conclusion. Of course. Japas has changed during his lengthly absence in Holodrum. Six years of isolation from friends and family sort of does that to a person. It would be naive for Mikau to think his friendship with Japas would simply pick up from where it had derailed for so long. Furthermore, Japas was used to living alone by now and naturally wouldn't accept anyone telling him what to do. Mikau was certainly no exception to that rule.
As for the CryBax gang, all Mikau's heard of them were rumors and speculations. In fact, as long as Rotan and his group behave themselves and don't do anything to Japas, Mikau really doesn't have any right to complain. Heck, in the best of circumstances, they might turn out to be pretty decent! Somehow, Mikau didn't believe those last thoughts thoughts of his, but that was the most appealing conclusion.
Still, Mikau didn't like the idea of apologizing to Japas, or anyone else for the matter. Zorian Heros are a proud race, and it's almost painful for one of them to swallow that pride. But Mikau would do anything to get his friend back. He had to apologize to Japas next block. Then everything would be better again. Mikau stretched his arms out and put them behind his head, satisfied with his logic.
Prof. Shar looked in his direction. "Do you have a question, Mikau?"
"Huh? Uh, no. Just stretching." Mikau said quickly. He rolled his shoulders back in emphasis. Prof. Shar nodded somewhat, then focused his attention back on the sillica board. Suddenly, the bell sounded and the teacher turned to face the class again.
"Remember! Your best behaviour tomorrow! I expect nothing less!" The professor called out to students who were already clawing the seaweed stubbornly latched to their ankles.
Lulu didn't even bother to untie the seaweed. Like she did yesterday, she broke free of her restrainment with a single downward stroke of her large, powerful fins. Lulu quickly slipped out the hole to the room, entering a tunnel which led to either more classrooms, or outside, depending on where you go. She had to rely solely on her fins to propel herself forward since she doesn't have a tail, but she eagerly motored those fins to get to her next class.
"Hey Lulu! Wait up!" Mikau cried as he fumbled at the growth clinging to his feet. Lulu left without him! She must be really eager to see Evan for her to just run without a second thought. But there was no way she could run from Mikau. After all, there's nothing in the water that a Zorian Hero couldn't catch.
When Mikau finally caught up to his elusive quarry, he found that Lulu wasn't running at all. She gently flowed with the ocean currents, fins trailing along behind her as if they were part of the water themselves. She moved forward resolutely in a straight line leading directly to the Arts building. Lulu was so focused on her goal, that Mikau thought he could easily sneak up on her without being noticed. Smirking, the Zorian Hero glided behind her with barely a disturbance to the water.
"Guess who!" Mikau said with childish glee as he clapped his hands over the girl's eyes.
"Mikau!" Lulu answered instantly without even slowing down.
Disappointed, Mikau removed his hands and positioned himself so that he was swimming alongside her. "How did you know?" He pouted somewhat.
The female smiled smugly. "I saw you."
"Huh?" Mikau was confused by her simple statement. "How? I wasn't in your line of sight..." Lulu laughed gaily but answered his question without speaking. She simply pointed to the secondary eyes at each side of her blunt head. Mikau's own eyes widened in understanding. "Ah, so you can actually see out of those eyes?"
"Yep." Lulu confirmed. "They don't see as well as my main eyes, but I can make out color, shapes and movement."
"They must be useful." Mikau wondered aloud.
Lulu laughed again, like the tinkle of raindrops on crystal. "Only useful when Zorian Heros are about to sneak up on me!"
Mikau joined her laughter and swam a circle around her, showing off his agility. When the two of them reached the entrance to the Arts building, Mikau made his way ahead of Lulu. Although there was no door at the entrance, he politely stood beside the opening while Lulu entered, as if holding the door for her. He bowed comically and Lulu curtsied in return.
"Ladies first." Mikau looked up from his bow. Lulu smiled in amusement and accepted the honor of entering first. The fins on her back swished like a regal cape. To complete the act of gallantry, Mikau offered his arm to Lulu, which she took in her own.
But when the two of them entered their classroom, Mikau realized the error of his actions. He quickly withdrew his arm away from Lulu, which she didn't mind at all. She was distraced by the presence of Evan. Luckily, the eel-Zora turned around slowly and didn't see the two of them linking arms. Evan jumped up, elated at the sight of Lulu.
"Hey! How's my favorite girl?" Evan held Lulu's hand and led her to the seat beside his own. Mikau breathed a sigh of relief. If Evan had caught Mikau with Lulu, who knows what might have happened?
Then Mikau caught sight of Japas and his cheerful mood evaporated. Behind the layer of fins over his eyes, Japas watched Mikau walk stiffly into the room. He stretched his lips out in a smile that has been practiced over the years and was indistinguishable from his genuine smile. But Mikau saw Japas exhale slighlty as he preformed the act, and knew the smile to be fake.
As Mikau sat down beside him, Japas let his face fall into an expressionless mask. He didn't even turn to face the Zorian Hero, but watched him from the corner of his eye. There was a moment of awkward silence between them before Mikau put his hands to his head and smoothed back his tail. He stared ahead, taking a deep breath.
"Japas, I'm really sorry about what happened today at lunch." Mikau started. Japas turned to look at his friend, mildly surprised. What happened to the sense of pride the Zorian Heros were famous for? Apologies certainly weren't in their nature. "I was being too judgemental. I've been sticking my nose into your business and it's really not my place to choose who you hang around. Sure, I don't approve of them, but that doesn't I mean I have any right to change your decisions." This speech was difficult for Mikau. He shrugged his shoulders helplessly. "Heck, it's been so many years since we were seperated, Japas! We can't expect our friendship to just pick itself up where it had fallen. Forgive me?"
Japas stared incredulously at Mikau for a few beats. Then he clasped his hands together to his chest and tilted his head to one side. "Aww, you DO care about me! That is sooooo *sweet*~!" Japas gushed, his voice dripping humor.
Grinning, Mikau pushed Japas away. The air of tension between the two friends evaporated as if it was never there. Mikau was delighted and relieved to have his friend back. "You fool fish!" He laughed. Japas also laughed and elbowed his friend playfully in the ribs. In retaliation, the Zorian Hero managed to get Japas in a headlock and mess up his hair. Japas tried to wrap his tail around Mikau's neck like he used to do when the two of them wrestled as children. However, his tail was much shorter than it used to be, so he could only manage to slap Mikau's face with the fluke.
The wrestling match between the two teens halted when Mrs. Yvett bounded into the room. The energetic Bottom-feeder held a burden of papers in her arms and took no notice of single sheets which escaped her grasp and trailed behind her. A Zora student picked up the stray sheets and handed them to the Singing teacher.
"Thank you, dearie." Mrs. Yvett accepted the papers and stacked them along with their fellows. "Sit down everyone, sit down! Sit in your proper sections! The day is short and we've got lots to do!" While everyone was getting settled down, Japas took the opportunity to close his eyes and instantly fell asleep. Mikau had to hold him upright by the tail lest he fall into the lap of his neighbor. As soon as everyone was seated, Mrs. Yvett hurridly read through the attendance and started the singing exercises. Once again, Mikau questioned the usefulness of warm-ups, thinking them nothing more than a waste of time.
"Everyone, look at this!" Mrs. Yvett cheerfully said when warm-ups were over. She handed each student a sheet of paper. "This is a song that we will be practicing for an upcoming concert. There will be a lot of singing in this course, hence the name, but don't get too relaxed! We will also be doing vocal conditioning and other boring stuff. But for now, let's concentrate on this..."
Upon recieving the paper, Mikau traced the notes with a finger on his left hand, while his right hand twitched as if playing the music on guitar. Finding that the song was not suited to playing on his preferred instrument, Mikau instead mouthed the lyrics, giving him a feel of what the song was written for. The piece was called 'Thick, Red and Hot' and was written by some bloke named Lamis Brolo. There was a sharp intake of breath when Mikau realized that the composer was probably a Goron, since Brolo was a Goron last name. He's had so few chances to analyze works of other species! Playing songs by Zoras could be a little tiring at times since they're almost always dedications to the ocean. From Mikau's extensive knowledge of all genres of music, he knows that Gorons love to use drums in their songs. The Zorain Hero made a mental note to show Tijo the piece later.
'Thick, Red and Hot' had a simple beat and leisurely rhythm, but the lyrics were difficult to pronounce. It's the kind of song that one could trip over his tongue trying to sing. Mikau's face twisted in disgust when he read the wording of the song. It was about some sort of boiling, drinkable liquid which turns into rock when cooled. Gorons sure have strange tastes. Not that Mikau could complain; some people view raw fish and grubs as inedible.
The Zorian Hero moistened his lips when he thought of grubs. A handful of starflies would really hit the spot right now. He worked his jaws slightly as he imagined the crunch of the insects' exoskeletons between his teeth and their creamy juices rolling around on his tongue... But he quickly swallowed the excess drool in his mouth when he remembered that starflies were available only in Termina. It will be quite a while before he gets his paws on those wonderful delicacies.
A short chain of piano notes shook Mikau out of his distant thoughts. "These are the first notes of this piece." Mrs. Yvett announced briskly. "Pretty nice, don't you think? Pay attention! You'll have to remember the melody if you're going to sing it!" The Bottom-feeder teacher repeated the notes on the piano.
The students listened to the music intently, but became a mumbling mess when they tried to follow along with their voices. It took a full fifteen minutes for the class to grasp the complex wording of the first stanza and force it out of their throats. Mikau could have hissed aloud in frustration. He knew that it takes most Zoras considerable effort to sing, but he had no idea that the populace was this bad! Mikau looked to his left, where the sopranos were, and saw Lulu literally squirming in restlessness. No doubt she was equally unimpressed with the slow rate the other students were learning at. Their gazes locked for a moment, in which Lulu grimaced. Mikau stretched his lips out into a thin line, indicating that he symphasized with Lulu.
On further examination, Mikau noticed that Japas and Evan were looking bored as well. In fact, the four of them were the only ones not struggling with the music. Mikau turned back to his paper with a smug grin on his face. Wasn't it an unlikely coincidence that his friends were the best musicians in the room.
Before long came the end of class, to which everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief. Stuffing the music sheets deep into their bags and bubbles, Mikau and friends hoped that they won't have to endure another torturous singing session again, or at least until tomorrow.
"Goddesses! That took longer than necessary."
"I hate to put down other people like this, but they sure take their sweet time in learning how to sing."
"At least they try; you have to give them some credit there. Hey, if I had as little talent as them, I would have given up by now."
"My tail itches."
Lulu, Evan, Japas and Mikau swam outside, relieved to be free once more. Four Zoras released into the infinity of the ocean.
End of Chapter 16
Is it just me, or is this fic seeming like it's dragging out too long? I sometimes have trouble writing because there is little to no action in it. But I like this chapter because it includes every main character. And yay! Japas and Mikau are friends again! As for future chapters, I'll try to stop writing every class in sequence, in detail. Instead, I'll focus on key events from now on rather than obsessing over every detail as I tend to do.
Everyone rejoice, because I've finally learned how to make websites! I've been working on chapter illustrations for a while, and now I can finally post my work. Go to http://www.geocities.com/eyesfive/OceanEternal.html to see them. Check back on it every once in a while, for I update without warning. I've posted this message in chapter 1 as well.
No matter what
Tomorrow may bring
Goddesses grant me
The courage to sing
"Afternoon, Lulu." Tijo said politely as he swam through the conspicuous hole in the wall of his Script class.
Lulu whirled around to greet the Bottom-feeder. "Oh! Tijo! I didn't see you come in!" The velvet fins on her back followed the curve of motion as she turned. She smiled warmly. Lulu liked Tijo alright, but he was so proper and conspicuously polite in her presence, that she's not entirely at ease when around him. She would rather be treated as a friend, an equal. The two Zoras found their lillies and latched themselves using the seaweed growing rampant along the classroom floor. Lulu absently plucked a strand of seaweed to sample on, but spat out the growth when she found it to be bitter.
"Sargasso is not good to eat." Tijo mentioned.
Lulu raised her eyeridges in a bewildered expression. "Oh really? I couldn't tell..."
"Sargasso weed grows all around the oceans surrounding Hyrule. I take it that they don't grow in Termina." The Bottom-feeder snickered.
The bell for third block rang, sounding rippled and warped in the underwater room. Prof. Shar was already in the room, reading glasses on and looking mildly interested in the book he was reading. He glanced up once and seeing everyone was yet to be seated, hid his face behind the book again. Tijo drummed his fingers against his lily impatiently.
"Where's Mikau?" Lulu asked gently. "He's late."
"I was thinking the same thing. He was right behind me." Tijo chewed on his bottom lip nervously. "He's faster than me. He should have caught up by now."
Right then, Mikau flew through the hole like an otter, circled the room once, then dived in front of Lulu, disappearing under the mess of seaweed. He reappeared an instant later, already tethered behind his lily. His bubble bobbed up behind him like a balloon.
Lulu pushed the bubble out of the way. "Hi!" She said to the back of Mikau's head.
Mikau turned around with an expression of surprise that turned to genuine delight when he realized who was talking to him. "Hello." Said the Zorian Hero. He gave Lulu that dazzling smile of his. She drank in the smile and had to resist the urge to titter like an infatuated schoolgirl. Mikau sometimes has that effect on her, though Lulu hopes he hadn't noticed.
Sure, Mikau might be a little impetuous at times, but his kind demeanor and physique more than made up for that. And what physique! Indeed, this Zorian Hero was every bit as impressive as the legends said they were, and she has the priviledge of knowing one! The strange body paint on his face only enhanced his features, and she wanted to ask him what each tattoo pattern symbolizes. Mikau shifted slightly, and his rippling muscles drew Lulu's attention to the patterns on his arm. She longed to touch one. Instead, she let her eyes wander down the expanse of the Zorian Hero's body but quickly looked away. She had forgotten that she has irises in her main eyes and her gaze could easily be followed. Blushing furiously, Lulu prayed that Mikau didn't notice her roaming eyes. If word about this reached Evan, she would never hear the end of it! Lulu turned her attention to Prof. Shar who had just stood up for attendance.
To her unending relief, Mikau didn't notice Lulu's odd behavior at all. The Zorian Hero was more distraught over the conflict with his friend that occured mere minutes ago. He pondered over everything he and Japas said to each other, while Prof. Shar's and Lulu's words were only background noise. Mikau was snapped out of his thoughts when Tijo poked him on the arm.
"Hey Mikau, you don't have a textbook yet, do you?" Tijo asked. "Prof. Shar was just offering books for sale. Do you have enough rupees to pay for it?"
Mikau cursed in a language other than Xyrian which came out distorted with a myriad of bubbles. "Din's wrath, I forgot!"
Tijo grinned wickedly. "You can borrow from me. On the condition that you replace my stash of shelled pink urchins which mysteriously disappeared three days ago." Mikau gratefully accepted Tijo's money, but smiled with exaggerated innocence.
"Please pay attention, students." The script teacher demanded gently. "I would like to bring to your attention that tomorrow at this time, King Zora of Hyrule will be visiting Seafifth. He comes here with the intent of moralizing the newest faces around this university. In other words, students like you. I expect all of you to arrive here prior to the assembly to recieve the day's homework, then immediatly proceed to the auditorium. No loitering."
"King Zora!" Tijo breathed, eyes lighting up. Not like his eyes were radioactive or anything; just a sparkle that betrayed his excitement.
"I take it you're a big fan of the King?" Mikau asked. Tijo nodded slightly in affirmation. King Flounden Vera of the Zoras of Zora's Domain, Hyrule, had a reputation known to all Zoras and many places elsewhere. First of all, Zora's Domain was the source of water for Hyrule, the greatest nation in the world. The city itself is an amazing array of waterfalls and twisting passageways leading to the many levels of the sprawling metropolis. Although most Zoras don't ever get the chance to personally meet the famed King, his gentle-handed leadership could be felt by all under his rule. Not that he was too forgiving or anything; he can be ruthless to people if it's for the people's benefit.
The Script teacher hadn't finished talking. "My expectations for you will be quite high in King Zora's presence. No talking, blowing bubbles, or needless shifting. Remember, you represent the school and wish to present a good impression on his Royal Highness."
Prof. Shar removed his glasses and picked up a snail shell with a hollow coral pen stuck in it. "With that over with, we can move on. For those of you who have already read chapter 4 in 'Standard in Script', this will mostly consist of a review." The professor stood up and started writing with the pen on a large sillica-plated board located behind his desk. "The majority of the world speaks one language: Hylian. Only in far reaches of the world, or regions too solidly ingrained with their own culture, do people speak other languages. Us Zoras, however, conveniently evolved the ability to communicate underwater in a language of high-pitched sounds: Xyrian. There is no written form of Xyrian, although we will be concentrating on both languages equally in this Script course."
The teacher constantly dipped the pen back in the shell, which contained a chemically enhanced squid ink. The ink could not be conveniently erased once it contacts sillica, but fades away naturally after 20 minutes. Sure, chalk and board would work best when erasure was necessary, but they can't be used underwater.
Part of Mikau wanted to listen to the professor, but most of him was still mulling over the Japas situation. He chewed it over like how a dog might chew a stale bone. Why was Japas acting the way he did? Mikau dwelled on that point for a minute or two before coming to a conclusion. Of course. Japas has changed during his lengthly absence in Holodrum. Six years of isolation from friends and family sort of does that to a person. It would be naive for Mikau to think his friendship with Japas would simply pick up from where it had derailed for so long. Furthermore, Japas was used to living alone by now and naturally wouldn't accept anyone telling him what to do. Mikau was certainly no exception to that rule.
As for the CryBax gang, all Mikau's heard of them were rumors and speculations. In fact, as long as Rotan and his group behave themselves and don't do anything to Japas, Mikau really doesn't have any right to complain. Heck, in the best of circumstances, they might turn out to be pretty decent! Somehow, Mikau didn't believe those last thoughts thoughts of his, but that was the most appealing conclusion.
Still, Mikau didn't like the idea of apologizing to Japas, or anyone else for the matter. Zorian Heros are a proud race, and it's almost painful for one of them to swallow that pride. But Mikau would do anything to get his friend back. He had to apologize to Japas next block. Then everything would be better again. Mikau stretched his arms out and put them behind his head, satisfied with his logic.
Prof. Shar looked in his direction. "Do you have a question, Mikau?"
"Huh? Uh, no. Just stretching." Mikau said quickly. He rolled his shoulders back in emphasis. Prof. Shar nodded somewhat, then focused his attention back on the sillica board. Suddenly, the bell sounded and the teacher turned to face the class again.
"Remember! Your best behaviour tomorrow! I expect nothing less!" The professor called out to students who were already clawing the seaweed stubbornly latched to their ankles.
Lulu didn't even bother to untie the seaweed. Like she did yesterday, she broke free of her restrainment with a single downward stroke of her large, powerful fins. Lulu quickly slipped out the hole to the room, entering a tunnel which led to either more classrooms, or outside, depending on where you go. She had to rely solely on her fins to propel herself forward since she doesn't have a tail, but she eagerly motored those fins to get to her next class.
"Hey Lulu! Wait up!" Mikau cried as he fumbled at the growth clinging to his feet. Lulu left without him! She must be really eager to see Evan for her to just run without a second thought. But there was no way she could run from Mikau. After all, there's nothing in the water that a Zorian Hero couldn't catch.
When Mikau finally caught up to his elusive quarry, he found that Lulu wasn't running at all. She gently flowed with the ocean currents, fins trailing along behind her as if they were part of the water themselves. She moved forward resolutely in a straight line leading directly to the Arts building. Lulu was so focused on her goal, that Mikau thought he could easily sneak up on her without being noticed. Smirking, the Zorian Hero glided behind her with barely a disturbance to the water.
"Guess who!" Mikau said with childish glee as he clapped his hands over the girl's eyes.
"Mikau!" Lulu answered instantly without even slowing down.
Disappointed, Mikau removed his hands and positioned himself so that he was swimming alongside her. "How did you know?" He pouted somewhat.
The female smiled smugly. "I saw you."
"Huh?" Mikau was confused by her simple statement. "How? I wasn't in your line of sight..." Lulu laughed gaily but answered his question without speaking. She simply pointed to the secondary eyes at each side of her blunt head. Mikau's own eyes widened in understanding. "Ah, so you can actually see out of those eyes?"
"Yep." Lulu confirmed. "They don't see as well as my main eyes, but I can make out color, shapes and movement."
"They must be useful." Mikau wondered aloud.
Lulu laughed again, like the tinkle of raindrops on crystal. "Only useful when Zorian Heros are about to sneak up on me!"
Mikau joined her laughter and swam a circle around her, showing off his agility. When the two of them reached the entrance to the Arts building, Mikau made his way ahead of Lulu. Although there was no door at the entrance, he politely stood beside the opening while Lulu entered, as if holding the door for her. He bowed comically and Lulu curtsied in return.
"Ladies first." Mikau looked up from his bow. Lulu smiled in amusement and accepted the honor of entering first. The fins on her back swished like a regal cape. To complete the act of gallantry, Mikau offered his arm to Lulu, which she took in her own.
But when the two of them entered their classroom, Mikau realized the error of his actions. He quickly withdrew his arm away from Lulu, which she didn't mind at all. She was distraced by the presence of Evan. Luckily, the eel-Zora turned around slowly and didn't see the two of them linking arms. Evan jumped up, elated at the sight of Lulu.
"Hey! How's my favorite girl?" Evan held Lulu's hand and led her to the seat beside his own. Mikau breathed a sigh of relief. If Evan had caught Mikau with Lulu, who knows what might have happened?
Then Mikau caught sight of Japas and his cheerful mood evaporated. Behind the layer of fins over his eyes, Japas watched Mikau walk stiffly into the room. He stretched his lips out in a smile that has been practiced over the years and was indistinguishable from his genuine smile. But Mikau saw Japas exhale slighlty as he preformed the act, and knew the smile to be fake.
As Mikau sat down beside him, Japas let his face fall into an expressionless mask. He didn't even turn to face the Zorian Hero, but watched him from the corner of his eye. There was a moment of awkward silence between them before Mikau put his hands to his head and smoothed back his tail. He stared ahead, taking a deep breath.
"Japas, I'm really sorry about what happened today at lunch." Mikau started. Japas turned to look at his friend, mildly surprised. What happened to the sense of pride the Zorian Heros were famous for? Apologies certainly weren't in their nature. "I was being too judgemental. I've been sticking my nose into your business and it's really not my place to choose who you hang around. Sure, I don't approve of them, but that doesn't I mean I have any right to change your decisions." This speech was difficult for Mikau. He shrugged his shoulders helplessly. "Heck, it's been so many years since we were seperated, Japas! We can't expect our friendship to just pick itself up where it had fallen. Forgive me?"
Japas stared incredulously at Mikau for a few beats. Then he clasped his hands together to his chest and tilted his head to one side. "Aww, you DO care about me! That is sooooo *sweet*~!" Japas gushed, his voice dripping humor.
Grinning, Mikau pushed Japas away. The air of tension between the two friends evaporated as if it was never there. Mikau was delighted and relieved to have his friend back. "You fool fish!" He laughed. Japas also laughed and elbowed his friend playfully in the ribs. In retaliation, the Zorian Hero managed to get Japas in a headlock and mess up his hair. Japas tried to wrap his tail around Mikau's neck like he used to do when the two of them wrestled as children. However, his tail was much shorter than it used to be, so he could only manage to slap Mikau's face with the fluke.
The wrestling match between the two teens halted when Mrs. Yvett bounded into the room. The energetic Bottom-feeder held a burden of papers in her arms and took no notice of single sheets which escaped her grasp and trailed behind her. A Zora student picked up the stray sheets and handed them to the Singing teacher.
"Thank you, dearie." Mrs. Yvett accepted the papers and stacked them along with their fellows. "Sit down everyone, sit down! Sit in your proper sections! The day is short and we've got lots to do!" While everyone was getting settled down, Japas took the opportunity to close his eyes and instantly fell asleep. Mikau had to hold him upright by the tail lest he fall into the lap of his neighbor. As soon as everyone was seated, Mrs. Yvett hurridly read through the attendance and started the singing exercises. Once again, Mikau questioned the usefulness of warm-ups, thinking them nothing more than a waste of time.
"Everyone, look at this!" Mrs. Yvett cheerfully said when warm-ups were over. She handed each student a sheet of paper. "This is a song that we will be practicing for an upcoming concert. There will be a lot of singing in this course, hence the name, but don't get too relaxed! We will also be doing vocal conditioning and other boring stuff. But for now, let's concentrate on this..."
Upon recieving the paper, Mikau traced the notes with a finger on his left hand, while his right hand twitched as if playing the music on guitar. Finding that the song was not suited to playing on his preferred instrument, Mikau instead mouthed the lyrics, giving him a feel of what the song was written for. The piece was called 'Thick, Red and Hot' and was written by some bloke named Lamis Brolo. There was a sharp intake of breath when Mikau realized that the composer was probably a Goron, since Brolo was a Goron last name. He's had so few chances to analyze works of other species! Playing songs by Zoras could be a little tiring at times since they're almost always dedications to the ocean. From Mikau's extensive knowledge of all genres of music, he knows that Gorons love to use drums in their songs. The Zorain Hero made a mental note to show Tijo the piece later.
'Thick, Red and Hot' had a simple beat and leisurely rhythm, but the lyrics were difficult to pronounce. It's the kind of song that one could trip over his tongue trying to sing. Mikau's face twisted in disgust when he read the wording of the song. It was about some sort of boiling, drinkable liquid which turns into rock when cooled. Gorons sure have strange tastes. Not that Mikau could complain; some people view raw fish and grubs as inedible.
The Zorian Hero moistened his lips when he thought of grubs. A handful of starflies would really hit the spot right now. He worked his jaws slightly as he imagined the crunch of the insects' exoskeletons between his teeth and their creamy juices rolling around on his tongue... But he quickly swallowed the excess drool in his mouth when he remembered that starflies were available only in Termina. It will be quite a while before he gets his paws on those wonderful delicacies.
A short chain of piano notes shook Mikau out of his distant thoughts. "These are the first notes of this piece." Mrs. Yvett announced briskly. "Pretty nice, don't you think? Pay attention! You'll have to remember the melody if you're going to sing it!" The Bottom-feeder teacher repeated the notes on the piano.
The students listened to the music intently, but became a mumbling mess when they tried to follow along with their voices. It took a full fifteen minutes for the class to grasp the complex wording of the first stanza and force it out of their throats. Mikau could have hissed aloud in frustration. He knew that it takes most Zoras considerable effort to sing, but he had no idea that the populace was this bad! Mikau looked to his left, where the sopranos were, and saw Lulu literally squirming in restlessness. No doubt she was equally unimpressed with the slow rate the other students were learning at. Their gazes locked for a moment, in which Lulu grimaced. Mikau stretched his lips out into a thin line, indicating that he symphasized with Lulu.
On further examination, Mikau noticed that Japas and Evan were looking bored as well. In fact, the four of them were the only ones not struggling with the music. Mikau turned back to his paper with a smug grin on his face. Wasn't it an unlikely coincidence that his friends were the best musicians in the room.
Before long came the end of class, to which everyone breathed a collective sigh of relief. Stuffing the music sheets deep into their bags and bubbles, Mikau and friends hoped that they won't have to endure another torturous singing session again, or at least until tomorrow.
"Goddesses! That took longer than necessary."
"I hate to put down other people like this, but they sure take their sweet time in learning how to sing."
"At least they try; you have to give them some credit there. Hey, if I had as little talent as them, I would have given up by now."
"My tail itches."
Lulu, Evan, Japas and Mikau swam outside, relieved to be free once more. Four Zoras released into the infinity of the ocean.
End of Chapter 16
Is it just me, or is this fic seeming like it's dragging out too long? I sometimes have trouble writing because there is little to no action in it. But I like this chapter because it includes every main character. And yay! Japas and Mikau are friends again! As for future chapters, I'll try to stop writing every class in sequence, in detail. Instead, I'll focus on key events from now on rather than obsessing over every detail as I tend to do.
Everyone rejoice, because I've finally learned how to make websites! I've been working on chapter illustrations for a while, and now I can finally post my work. Go to http://www.geocities.com/eyesfive/OceanEternal.html to see them. Check back on it every once in a while, for I update without warning. I've posted this message in chapter 1 as well.