It didn't take long for the pirates to get drunk. Link watched in quiet awe as Tetra's crew guzzled down ungodly amounts of ale, some even taking to dancing in the corner of the room. To her credit, the captain merely sat quietly, sipping a glass of water with a hint of lemon, and did her best to ignore the behavior of her underlings. "So, where were you off to today, Link?'
"Oh, just doing some errands. Got us some blue potion—four bottles worth for free, if you can believe it—and I went to get my sword sharpened."
"Is that all you did?" asked Tetra, surprised.
"Yep."
"But it's nine o'clock at night. Did it take you that long to do two things?"
"Well," said Link, rubbing the back of his cap, "I also visited some friends."
"Oh, really?" responded Tetra, suddenly interested, "Like who?"
"Like, you remember that rich girl you saved from the Forsaken Fortress along with my sis'?"
Tetra thought for a second. "I think…"
"Well, her names was Mila and she's not rich anymore. In fact, the last time I was here I caught her trying to steal some money from a shopkeeper's stall."
Tetra laughed. "Ha, sounds like someone I'd like!"
"Yeah, well, she's changed her ways since then—"
"Ohhh," lamented Tetra, swirling her drink, "that's too bad. She could've joined with me."
"Somehow I don't think you two would've gotten along. Anyway, I saw her on my way to the smithy and apparently she's working for the same guy she tried to rob two months ago."
"Well, that's ironic."
"Sure is," said Link before taking a swig of milk, "she sure has matured since then…"
Tetra put down her glass and began chewing on a piece of ice loudly. "Oh, yeah? How so?"
Now it was Link's turn to think. "Well, when I first met her, she was really loud and, uh, harsh. Kind of a snob, too…"
Tetra swallowed the slush in her mouth. "And now?"
"Well, she's more quiet now—polite. You know, more like a lady or something, I don't know…"
"Hmph," said Tetra, lifting the glass to her lips, "you're right—we wouldn't have gotten along."
An hour passed and the pirates were noticeably winding down. Both Mako and Zuko were asleep at the counter, strategically placed rags bordering their snoring mouths to keep them from dribbling over the bar. In the corner, Senza slowly played his harmonica while Gonzo and Nudge clumsily danced their jig.
The two children sat at their own personal table, talking. Tetra was just finishing telling Link about the sailor fiasco earlier and the boy was red from laughter. The hour had gone in much the same way for the two: one would tell a story while the other laughed and interrupted with a story of his or her own. The only exception had been when Link told Tetra of his trip to the schoolhouse.
"You mean you gave the deed back?!" she had screamed. It had taken both Nudge and Gonzo to rip her hands from his tunic, and for a good ten minutes afterwards, the young pirate sat silently fuming, save for the occasional, "We could've had an island" remark.
But other than that, both Tetra and Link simply enjoyed the company of the other as their grown-up friends danced drunkenly.
"I don't get what they see in this stuff…," yawned Tetra as she reached for Gonzo's mug of ale which he had forgotten at their table more than an hour ago, "it smells awful."
Link looked in Gonzo's direction cautiously. "I don't know. I guess you grow to like it as you get bigger… Are you sure you should be touching that?"
Tetra studied the glass in her hand. "Why not? I'm their captain! I have a right to wonder about what they're throwing down their throats. The way these idiots drink it, you'd think the stuff was candy."
"Maybe it tastes different than it smells?"
The young girl looked at Link wide-eyed. A mischievous expression spread across her lips. "Want to find out?"
Link craned his neck forward, shocked. He could feel his heart beating against his chest. "Are you serious?"
Tetra sniffed the drink again. "It doesn't look like Gonzo's drunken from this yet, it's still full. Come on, Link. You're not scared are you?"
Link twiddled his toes rapidly. "No…"
"Good." Tetra smiled briefly before looking over her shoulder in the direction of the bartender. The woman was busy trying to wake Mako and Zuko from their comas and the waitress was no where in sight. She turned back to Link. "Very good."
Before Link could object, Tetra had taken off his hat and placed the near full glass of alcohol atop his head. "W-w-what are you doing?" he stammered. Tetra just shushed him as she put the cap over the mug.
"Okay," she said conspiratorially, "now we just walk out of this bar very—and I do mean very—casually. You understand?"
Link sat rigid as a board. "Got ya'."
"Good." Tetra got out of her chair and addressed her crew. "Okay, fellas, you can stay here if you want, but I'm afraid it's past my bed time, so me and Link are gonna head back to the ship. Don't party too long, though, 'cuz come morning I'm shipping out with or without you, understand?"
"…Aye-aye…"
Link slowly lifted himself from the chair and felt the liquid swoosh above his head. Tetra and him were just about to leave when the bar door swung open and in came the waitress, bucket of crushed ice in her hands. She looked down at the two kids and smiled. "Why, hello."
"Hi." said Tetra cheerfully.
Link managed a crooked smile as he felt a drop of cold ale slide through his hair and down his skull. It emerged from his cap like a stream of sweat. The waitress watched the liquid as it crawled down the boy's cheek and trickled off his chin.
"Are you okay, honey? Looks like you're a little hot…" The woman lifted her hand to touch Link's brow.
Tetra looked on in horror. Thinking fast, she said, "Hey! What do you think you're doing?"
The waitress looked genuinely surprised. "Well, I—"
"You just keep your hands off him. He's with ME!"
Link, still smiling, looked to his friend through the corner of his eyes as Tetra carefully slipped her hand into his. At that moment, he couldn't decide which unnerved him more: the beer atop his head, or the girl in his palm.
The waitress blinked several times before smiling even wider than before. "Oh, I see… How cute! Well, I meant no offense by it. You two lovebirds go on right ahead, I won't keep you."
Link and Tetra walked hand in hand down the steps leading to the street until they heard the sound of the door shutting firmly behind them. Tetra yanked her hand away, saying, "Give me that" as she did so. For his part, Link quickly grabbed the mug of ale from his head and shook his hair dry. Tetra protested as some of it splattered on her, and Link laughed as he hopped down the remaining steps and sprinted towards the ship.
"Hey, wait up!" yelled Tetra as she tried to catch up.
Link said nothing as he ran. He just laughed, spilling ale left and right as he did so.