:::steps out cautiously into the open, sniffs the air and looks around quickly. Sees no danger. Begins to eat some grass::::
:::shotgun is placed head....::::
"Whoa! Whoa! Whoa! Hey now! No need for that. Okay, I know it's been awhile since I've updated. In fact its been several months since the last chapter went up. But first let me try to explain myself. You see I'm a busy guy and get distracted extremely easy. And you know...its that time of the year when all the holidays are celebrated! So instead of writing, I've sorta of been shopping and pigging out on turkey, andon the side I've been engulfed in the enormous pile fantastic videogames that have comeoutwithin the pastfew months. Right now, I'm trying to find the power bomb in Metroid Prime 2 with not a lot of success....Now is doing allthat a crime?"
:::Shotgun is jammed farther into the back of skull::::
"Okaaaay...I see you need something better....Okay how about this--IT'S DECEMBER!
And you know what that means?"
:::You say, "Christmas":::
"Well, yes. But more importantly,it means that my birthday is coming. In 5 days actually. Which means thatIhadthe abilityto get my drivers permit a couple of months ago."
:::You ask to see it::::
"Well...ummm.......its a tragedy really. The only time that I can make it to the MVA is on saturdays. But on saturdays, they are only open from 8 to noon. 8 TO NOON!!! That's my sleep-in time godamit!"
:::: You say, "So the only reason that you didn't get your drivers permit is because you're lazy?"
"Lazy is such a harsh word. I like the term, "motivationly challenged."
::::You barely miss comanderlink's head before he runs off back into the wild. But fortunatly, he leaves the next update to his wierd story. You start to read while reloading your shotgun...
Chapter 5:
The howl of a wolf, the hoot of an owl, the screech of a raven; All were sounds of the night and all of them had comforted Link in the past. Whenever he had been walking through a dense forest, or camping out in the fields of Hyrule, these sounds had kept him company and lulled him to sleep. But now, nothing could put him at ease.
As much as he tried, Link just couldn't go to sleep. After he tossed and turned in his warm, soft bed, he began to pace around his room muttering under his breath. After some time, he found himself staring out through his window, gazing at the beautiful full moon.
Something was wrong, but Link couldn't put his finger on exactly what it was. Something was keeping him from sleeping.
Okay Link, he thought to himself, just think about it for a minute. List anything that could possibly keep you awake.
thought to himself,His thoughts immediately turned to a gigantic pile of books, stacked on a desk, which was given to him by the school. In them, were hundreds and hundreds of spells and facts; all of them necessary to teach Defense against the Dark Arts for every grade level in the school. Seven years worth of knowledge and Link had to learn everything in a matter of weeks.
He still didn't even understand why Dumbledore was allowing him to teach. He had only learned a few basic spells before coming to Headmaster for the job interview, believing that his skill with a sword would easily make up for his lack of knowledge about magic, but he soon found out that in this world, no one uses a sword to protect themselves from evil; they all use wands. He stumbled through the entire interview, and would often have to have Dumbledore correct him or show him something new. In the end, Link was feeling pretty stupid and Dumbledore seemed like he was having some difficulty keeping his smile on his face, but instead of turning Link down, the Headmaster gave Link the job on the spot and politely asked him to study up a little before the school term started.
Dumbledore asked him to study and study was what Link did; Day in and day out. Luckily, he was a very fast visual learner, and he had no problem with focusing on what needed to be done. He only had to see a picture of proper wand movements once, in order to memorize it. It was the pronunciation of the spells that was giving him a bit more difficulty. Yet even with the pronunciation, Link could still master a spell within minutes. Though trying to remember every single fact about every single dark creature in this world and remembering what the affects of each spell were, was taxing his brain beyond belief.
Damn it, if I knew how mind-numbing this job would be, then I never would have taken it thought Link, as he massaged his forehead with his right hand. His gloved left hand fell onto his wand (Which he had bought in Hogsmead), realizing what the object was, he picked the wand up and observed it more closely.
A wand … Is this the only way these people can channel their magic? Through this flimsy piece of wood? Though, I guess their magic is quite different from Hylian magic. Hylian magic relies on the physical strength of the body, while their magic relies more on their soul... Hylian magic can only be used in limited amounts, but their magic is infinite. Link twirled the wand around in his fingers, absentmindedly, Yet no matter how powerful magic can be, it's still no sword, thought Link as he reached over his shoulder and beneath his green wizard robes, making sure that his sword was still hanging on his back. Link felt comforted by the familiar hilt, and resumed his list of problems.
Okay, what else is there? He started to pace the room again, Well, Zelda is still nowhere to be seen, but I've been able to sleep on other nights when she wasn't with me. So, why should this be keeping me awake now? Link looked to the moon, his heart suddenly filled with despair. He desperately wanted to hold her in his arms again, with her soft head resting lovingly against his chest as they embraced each other under the moonlight. In those few moments that he had with the Princess of Hyrule, Link wished that time would just stop; allowing them to be together for ever, but it wasn't meant to be.
He started to pace the room again, Link looked to the moon, his heart suddenly filled with despair. He desperately wanted to hold her in his arms again, with her soft head resting lovingly against his chest as they embraced each other under the moonlight. In those few moments that he had with the Princess of Hyrule, Link wished that time would just stop; allowing them to be together for ever, but it wasn't meant to be.Zelda was kidnapped once again and taken away to this mysterious world. Link was able to pursue the kidnapper for five days and five nights following the kidnapping, but neither he nor his horse, Epona could keep up the pace after that. So Link had to find a way to learn of any leads to the kidnapper's whereabouts. At first he was going to do it the old fashioned way, and blend in with the people that the kidnapper's most closely resembled (who in this case would be witches and wizards, not muggles), and question anyone suspicious that he saw. But a position teaching "Defense against the Dark Arts" seemed to be a more quicker and practical way to accomplish the task. Especially since the school that he was employed at, seemed to be the forefront of a resistance against a particularly dark and sinister group of wizards. His new job was a perfect way to learn of Zelda's whereabouts.
Link continued to pace around the room, still thinking about the strange reason that he could not fall asleep. It wasn't the food. He thought, the food was very delicious… Maybe it's my ears. Maybe the spell that I picked to change their shape had some side effects… No, that can't be it. The magic here only affects what you want to affect, or at least that is what I have gathered... Maybe I need my hat! Link picked up his hat and placed on his head again. Sure enough, he felt more secure, just like he had on his adventures as a kid, but that still wasn't the reason why he couldn't go to sleep.
Link stopped pacing and stared out the window again. He stood in awe of the moon for a bit, and then slowly began looking over the grounds. That's when it hit him.
Several minutes later, Link was out on the grounds by the lake. After gathering some wood, he quickly started a fire with his wand and settled down on a blanket underneath the cloudless sky.
I guess there are just some habits that are hard to break… He thought as he laid on the soft grass staring up at the moon, thinking of Zelda.
Don't worry Zelda, just hold on a little while longer. I will find you, no matter what, thought Link, as he closed his eyes and fell asleep. But just before he slipped out of consciousness, he heard the hoot of an owl and the screech of a raven, informing him that all was well… For now at least.
"Hmmm… We have care of Magical Creatures first today," said a half asleep Ron, who was slowly applying butter to his toast, while looking at his schedule.
"Oh, I do hope that Hagrid has some animals that won't try to bite our heads off," Hermione said, have sarcastically, but Harry could detect a small amount of fear in her voice.
"Who do we have it with, Ron?" Asked Harry.
"Oh, bloody hell… We're with the Slytherins again," replied Ron, who accidentally sent some butter flying as he realized the fact. A big chunk was sent directly toward Hermione.
"Ron!" Cried out an angry Hermione as some of the butter got stuck in her hair.
"Oops! Sorry Hermione." Ron stuck a large piece of his buttered toast into his mouth.
"Anyways…" Harry tried to continue with the previous subject, "at least Hagrid doesn't have to worry too much anymore. Malfoy doesn't have the power to get him sacked, while his father under arrest." he said.
"Yeah, you're right. But, it's still going to be a pain to deal with them," said Ron, stubbornly. They were now done with breakfast and were on their way to Hagrid's hut. The morning dew still clung to the green grass, causing their shoes to become completely soaked. This is something that Harry always hated because it made his feet feel uncomfortable for the entire day.
It wasn't long before the three friends were joined by other classmates, all of whom were in a sleeplike stupor. They had spent most of the night celebrating, by pigging out on chocolate frogs and other sweets.
When they finally arrived at Hagrid's hut, Hagrid was already waiting by the door. He was carrying a large sack of what looked liked small balls.
"Hey Hagrid!" called Harry happily, "Er… What do you got in the sack?" Other students crowded around in curiosity too.
"Oh, just you wait! This "ere is going to be a real "blast"!' said Hagrid enthusiastically. Several faces went white from fear and for good reason too. Usually what Hagrid considers fun, is what most people would consider terrifying.
"Right. Now, follow me and please be careful of Epona. She seems to be annoyed with being confined to her pen."
"Epona? Who's Epona?!" Malfoy said, anxiously. He had just only arrived seconds before. The words "blast," "annoyed," and "pen" were not adding up to a pleasant class for him and most of the other students. The Slytherins began to erupt into angry whispers and the Gryffindors were trying their best to remain quiet so they could follow Hagrid's instructions exactly as he told him; avoiding any injuries that might be caused if they did not.
The students followed Hagrid and came into view of a small wooden pen containing a rather agitated horse; the same horse that had raced with the school carriages the day before. Peoples' faces immediately lit up in delight.
"Is that Epona, Hagrid?" An excited girl said amongst the crowd of students.
"Yep! That's Epona. But keep your distance. She isn't very happy with being pen up. Now come over here and I'll show you what were going to be dealing with today."
When everybody did see the creatures that Hagrid was so enthusiastic about, any smiles caused by Epona quickly disappeared.
The creatures resembled dragons in a way, Except that they had no neck and their bodies were held very close to the ground. What was really strange though was that they only had two legs instead of four and unlike dragons, they had no wings. Their faces were snake like and they all had a solid green coat of scales covering ever inch of their body. And a rather dangerous looking tail and a row of sharp white teeth were not comforting at all.
"Magnificent, aren't they? They were found by a group of wizards hunting for you-know-who's supporters in a mountain range. There was a gigantic one that was about twice my size and they had to kill it before it killed them. They breath fire too, see?" And sure enough, one of the larger creatures took a deep breath and blew a steady stream of fire at a smaller one. The smaller one turned around quickly, hitting its attacker with its tail. The attacker slowly backed away, with a large cut down its face.
"What are they, Hagrid?" Hermione asked, a little worried that this story may have been a cover up for another interbreeding experiment.
"They're Dodongos."
"Dodongos?" Harry suddenly remembered the article that Luna was reading on the train and wondered if these creatures could be what Luna's dad was looking for.
"Er... Hagrid? What exactly do these things eat?" Asked Ron.
"Well, Ron, that's the truly fascinating part." Hagrid then dropped his sack to the ground and pulled out a small, black orb that had a small piece of string attached to it. Harry and most of the muggle-born students immediately recognized the object.
"Is that a bomb?" asked Hermione, completely surprised of Hagrid's new found food.
"Er… yes. At least that's what I think it's called…"
"What the hell's a bomb?" Asked Malfoy, who had been whispering angrily during the entire class.
"Ere let me show ya." He said.
"Wait, Hagrid!" Cried out Harry, but it was too late. Hagrid had taken a small magical sparker to the fuse and lit it. Then with a tremendously powerful throw, he launched the bomb up into the air where it exploded with a large BOOM. The class stared in awe of the fiery burst and some even cheered. Epona began to neigh furiously.
"Now a bomb is something that Muggles came up with to - well to put it simply - kill each other. Or sometimes to get rid of obstacles that would be hard to overcome, such as castle wall… Or at least that's what I've been told," continued Hagrid, pulling out several more bombs from his bag and distributing them among the class. "So bear that in mind when you are feeding the Dodongos."
"We're feeding these things BOMBS!" Pansy Parkinson half yelled, half asked.
"Well, yes. You see, their stomachs are extremely resilient and fireproof. Any bombs that are ignited with their breath can be usually be put out once inside the stomach and then are digested by the stomach fluids. And even if the bombs do explode, the lining inside the stomach can withstand a blast or two. And don't worry; I removed the fuses so none of these things should be going off without warning.'
From there, Hagrid continued to go over safety precautions. Telling them how to grab a Dodongos by the base of the tail if it tried to attack you and how to properly approach the fearsome beasts. Then he let everyone get in groups of three and assigned each group a Dodongos to feed. But, instead of feeding their Dodongos Harry, Ron, and Hermione talked to Hagrid.
"Hagrid, how do you know so much about these things if they were only discovered a couple of weeks ago?" Asked Hermione, naturally a little suspicious.
"Well I have to thank Professor Green for that. He seemed to know quite a bit about them. He showed me everything that I needed to do. He even gave me this bag of bombs. Real nice of him, that was…"
"Professor Green told you everything?' asked Hermione, raising her eyebrows.
"Yes he did, Hermione. You see, it was an exchange for me feeding his horse. Although I kept on insisting that he didn't need to. He just didn't feel right about me doing work for him for free, even though I told him I get paid by the school."
"Epona is Professor Green's horse?" asked Ron, still remembering the embarrassment that Epona had caused him. He now felt some slight bitterness toward his newest teacher.
"Yep. He just rode in on her one day looking for a job. Strange isn't it? You don't see many people riding horses nowadays. Most people just apparate or even use brooms. Real odd, it was."
"Yeah, it is strange," said Hermione. "But Hagrid, how did Professor Green know so much about these things if they were only discovered several weeks ago. And on top of that, where do Dodongos get their food anyway. Bombs just don't grow off of trees. They're very had to make, Hagrid.'
"I don't know Hermione. Maybe you should ask him yourself. Ask him where he got such a magnificent horse while you're at it. I wouldn't mind taking care of a few of those. Although, it would be a bit better if they were just a wee bit bigger…"
"Alright, I think I will." Hermione replied. Harry could almost see her brain working a mile a minute.
The group then went over and tried to feed their Dodongos, which didn't seem very hungry at all. In fact, it was sleeping in the middle of a stone cage that was erected around the beasts.
"Why are you so interested about how Green knows so much about Dodongos, Hermione?" Harry asked.
"Well, don't you think it's a bit strange for him to know so much about a species that was just discovered? And how do you think he found out that Dodongos eat bombs?"
"Maybe he just got bored one day and decided to have a little fun." Ron replied while prodding their sleeping Dodongos with a stick.
"Oh please Ron. He's a grown man, not a careless teenage boy like you… Cut that out!" She snapped, taking the stick away from Ron. 'It's highly unlikely that he would act so unprofessionally."
"Well didn't Mad-eye say that Dumbledore was unimpressed with him?" Ron said, trying to find another stick.
"That's beside the point Ron."
"You probably just want to talk to him because he's handsome." Ron said, exactly the way he acted in their second year, when Lockhart was teaching.
"I do not!' Hermione said indignantly, her cheeks began to grow slightly red.
"Oh come on, Hermione! I saw the way the way that you looked at him last night. You were just like every other girl in the school. Your eyes all wide and googly."
"They certainly did not." She protested.
"That or his horse... You girls always have some crazy fascination about horses." At this point, Hermione slapped Ron across the back of his head. But instead of backing down, like Harry knew he should, Ron kept up the attack.
Harry had stopped listening a while ago. His attention was now drawn to a strange owl that was perched on top of Hagrid's hut. The owl seemed to of been staring right back, when it wasn't constantly turning its head around on its neck in a very unnatural way. The owl was unusually large too; it was nearly as big a middle sized human.
"Harry Potter?"
Harry blinked. Did the owl just say something, or was the constant burning of his scar getting to his head again.
"Are you Harry Potter?" The owl said.
Harry was sure of it. The owl did say something. Its mouth moved that time. But how could Harry understand it. He knew he could talk to snakes but he never heard of any gift that allowed someone to talk to owls. Maybe somebody else heard it, he wondered.
BOOM
At that exact moment, one of bombs blew up. A large hole was made in the stone fence surrounding the Dodongos, who were now fighting with each other to get out of the enclosed space. The class was sent into a panic and Hagrid was hurling rocks trying to mend the fence before the beasts could escape.
"You are Harry Potter, are you not?" The owl was now perched right beside him. And among the confusion of the explosion, no one noticed the large bird.
"Er, yes. That's me," He said, amazed.
"Then you can be trusted with my message. Tell the man clothed in green to meet me on the new moon of next month by the lake on the north end."
"What?" Why would the owl trust him with such a message, he wondered.
But the owl had already departed leaving only a stray feather or two. The commotion was dying down as the stone fence was quickly repaired.
The man clothed in green? There was only one man who always wore green in Hogwarts and that was Professor Green. This has really been a weird lesson, thought Harry.
::::Pleased upon reading an update. You put away your shotgun, saying to the scared author that it is alright to some out::::
Okay, now its time for some shot-outs. But first lets give a big applause to Emilydacat who gave her reviewing and proffreading skillz to me for this chapter, and hopefully will continue for chapters to come.
............................oh crap....................
Okaaay, I have just now looked at all my reviews and I've realized there are too many people for me to reply too. Sorry folks. But there are a few questions that I like to answer.
Where can I find the Zelda manga?--The site that once posted a translated version of the Zelda manga had been taken down. It's quite a shame too, it's a really good manga. I was able to dowload everything that they had posted up before they took it down but as for the rest of you, I'm afraid your out of luck.
When is Link gonna be seen teaching?--Next chapter. I've already started it, although that could just mean it's gonna take another month or two. I'll try to be better with my updating intervals.
Why are you such a lazy bum?--Why is theocean wet?
I do appreciate all of your input and I love recieving notice that my story has been reviewed so please keep on doing so. As for now, I'm going to finally take that driver's test. I actually tried to get it last week but my father couldn't get my birth certificate, which really sux. Wish my a happy birthday as well. I'm going to be 16 baby!
:::::Starts to the birthday dance as you take aim with your shotgun....::::
