Fiona watched from the heavens as the children hurried to the drawbridge,
bright smiles lighting up their faces, laughter echoing in their eyes, even
the fairy seemed less moody.
She turned from her looking glass, no longer able to bear seeing her daughter so happy, not while she knew how quickly the happiness would fade.
Unshed tears filled her eyes as she put a hand against her mouth to stifle the cry of grief that had escaped her.
They didn't have a clue what lay beyond the drawbridge, what evil had begun to awaken.
And they wouldn't until it was too late.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Malon noticed the clouds gathering in the sky as they neared the Castle, not the usual white fluff but dark and ominous shades of gray and black, seeming misplaced against a sky that had not long ago been blue. A light drizzle had begun to fall, enough to soak through her clothing and make her smile disappear.
They stood near the moat now, confusion gracing their faces as they realized the drawbridge was closed. Link glanced up at the sky, positive that there was still daylight to spare behind the veil of clouds.
Lightning lit up the children's faces for a moment and the distant rumble of thunder was heard, largely drowned out by the steady creaking noise of the drawbridge easing open.
A deafening thud announced that the drawbridge had completely lowered, but before either Link or Malon could consider walking across a horse's whinny sounded out, followed closely by the horse itself.
At just a glance Malon knew that the mount was deathly frightened. Froth issued forth from its mouth and the whites of its eyes were visible at a distance, white hide covered with the sheen of sweat. Another fearful noise escaped its throat as it reared, nearly spilling the two passengers that sat upon its back.
Malon recognized the princess Zelda instantly, the glint of blonde hair and the wide blue eyes coupled with her gown screamed royalty. Malon identified the second rider as Impa, knowing the Guardian of the Royal Family only because Granny had often spoken of her.
As the horse whizzed by, nearly trampling the two children in its haste, the Princess turned and threw something through the air.
Malon heard it hit the water of the moat, but didn't turn until the horse's white form had faded in the distance.
"They were sure in a hurry to get somewhere." Navi whispered, huddling on Link's shoulder in an attempt to avoid getting knocked to the ground by the rain.
"Or to get away from something." Malon said quietly, feeling the fine hairs on the back of her neck rise as the warning bells went off in her head.
She turned slowly, with a great reluctance, unsure as to what she would see and if she wanted to see it.
Smoldering yellow eyes met her own sky blue ones, freezing her lungs and making her heart hammer against the confines of her chest.
Before her was the man from her nightmares, perched upon a steed of midnight black, staring at her and then into the distance, searching.
"Did a white horse come out here?" he asked, voice ringing in her mind and filling her with dread, he was real, not some horrific prank her mind had decided to play on her. "Where did it go?"
All she could do was stare, eyes wide with fear, mouth dry as cotton.
His eyes narrowed, the horrible depths of hell fire growing darker with anger. "Did you hear me, girl? Where did it go?"
And suddenly Link was there, standing before her with his sword drawn and his shield at ready. The man with the burning eyes turned away from her to look at this new comer, a kind of recognition followed by dark amusement showing openly on his face.
"Brave," he growled, holding up his hand and throwing a ball of dark energy toward Link, "But stupid."
The darkness hit Link's shield with a burst of light, knocking him to the ground. He rolled to the side, prepared for another attack, although not quite steady enough to stand and meet it when it came.
The evil eyes were once again turned upon Malon, "We will meet again." He said with a wicked smirk before burying his heels into his horse's side.
The horse took off; leaving Malon behind to help Link up and to wonder what else could possibly go wrong.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Link searched the moat for a few minutes, trying to find whatever it was Zelda had thrown back to him.
Malon pondered quietly to herself while she waited for him, her eyes half closed in thought, sitting cross-legged upon the dewy ground.
The man from her nightmares, Ganondorf, Link had called him, had disturbed her in a way very few things could. The eyes that had for so long been seared into her memory were now held in place by an even more frightening face.
"I hope nothing else from my dreams decide to visit." She murmured, tracing a circle in the wet grass with an index finger, "I think I'd go mad."
Link surfaced suddenly, eyes fairly glowing with glee.
"Find something good?" Malon asked, cocking her head to one side questioningly.
"Better than good." Link replied triumphantly, crawling out of the water, "She left a message with it too."
Malon blinked in surprise, more curious now. "What is it?"
Link smiled, a kind of impish delight showing clearly in his blue eyes as he showed her his slightly waterlogged prize.
An ocarina.
The world tilted at a strange angle when Malon saw it, and she felt something click within her mind, something that seemed fuzzy and unreal.
The ocarina, the fairy, the mischievous light that had lit his eyes all made sense in a way that hadn't occurred to her before.
Link was the young man from her dreams, the one who had smiled at her, whispered her secrets, and told her that he loved her.
The one that had died in her arms.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Malon?"
She opened her eyes to realize the world had stopped spinning and that Link was holding her, face portraying his alarm.
"I'm okay." She whispered, not sure who she was trying to assure more, Link or herself.
"What happened?" he questioned softly, letting her go grudgingly, "You almost passed out."
She sighed, feeling his question weigh down on her heavily. "You'll think I'm strange." She protested weakly.
Link smiled at her, "I already know you're strange, now tell me, what happened?"
She opened her mouth, ready to tell a lie if it would appease him, but he held up his hand and said, "I want you to tell me the truth, all of the truth."
"No part truths," Navi called from her hiding place within Link's hat, "We want to know everything."
"Everything?" she squeaked, horrified at the thought. How could she tell them that she had dreamed of Link dying?
Link nodded, suddenly serious, "Everything."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Malon took her time, quietly at first, not daring to look at him.
She told him first of her dreams, of the older Link holding the ocarina he had fished out of the moat just moments before. She told him of the sword he had held, of the power it had carried within its deadly iron blade. Finally she told him the final dream, the one of his death, of her own.
Unwillingly, she spoke of the Voices that whispered to her whenever the situation was desperate. The multi toned voice that had saved her from the Stalchildren, and Link from the Bigocto.
She spoke of Death, the Hooded Knight, who worked by no set of rules, and who had brought her mother back to talk with her one last time.
Carefully, one by one, she retold the events and problems of the last few months, trying not to leave anything out. Her voice was at a croak near the end, and when she looked up at the still partially clouded sky she saw that the story had gone on for several hours. The sun was beginning to settle itself down, ready for the moon to take its place in the sky.
When Malon had finally gone silent she expected to hear contemptuous laughter at her tale, some scornful remark or a pitying cry of how insane she was, but instead was surprised with a tension filled hush.
"That's everything." She said, looking up to see the shock on both her companions' faces. They hadn't doubted a word of what she had said, she realized, but they were having problems digesting it.
"What do you think?" Link asked the fairy, gaze still locked on Malon who was trying to hide her face behind her hair.
"You said these Voices called you a little Ayin?" Navi quested, peering into Malon's eyes as if seeking something.
The young girl considered it for a moment then nodded, "I was confused as to what they meant, do you know what an Ayin is, Navi?"
The fairy nodded sagely, appearing somewhat shaken, "They were the first race the Goddesses created, before even the fairies or the trees, but I thought they had all died out."
"They were created first?" Link asked, taking his piercing gaze away from Malon, "Is that all being an Ayin means?"
"Don't be impudent," Navi snapped, flying back and forth nervously, "The First, the Ayins, were bestowed the Power."
"Power?" Malon questioned, "But everybody has the Power over the Elements, it's just few know how to use it."
The fairy shook her head, "The Power over the Elements is different from the Power the Ayin race had."
"How?" both children questioned simultaneously, growing annoyed at Navi's nervous reluctance to speak.
Navi jumped slightly, and then sighed, "They had the Power of Prescience." At the blank looks she received she growled, "The ability to see something before it really happens, see things before they exist.
"The Ayins were the First so they were given the gift of Prescience, not only that but they were also directly connected to the Goddesses who created the World, able to speak to them through intense ritual, and, sometimes, the more Gifted were able to speak to Them with just a thought.
Navi looked down at her from Link's shoulder where she had decided to sit in the middle of the telling, "But the Ayins soon grew weary of the Power they were given, all the happiness they saw in the future was drowned out by the sorrow, for they were given the ability to see not only others futures but their own." The fairy frowned, "It is hard to witness your own death, and it drove many Ayins to the brink of insanity.
"The Goddesses, seeing the pain of their children, declared that they would take the Power away from any who wished it gone.
"Everyone but a few brave souls begged the Goddesses to take away their prescient powers and the Goddesses fulfilled their promise, taking away their gift.
"With the prescience gone the Ayins decided to call themselves Hylians, and learned the secrets of Elemental Power, which was less painful for them. The Ayin people who had kept their Power were numbered only in the hundreds and after several thousand years everyone thought they had died out, disappeared beneath the ground they had seen in the Beginning."
The fairy fell silent, studying the young girl with a careful eye.
"So the Ayin race became the Hylians that now populate Hyrule." Link said softly, shaking his head in disbelief.
"If Malon is indeed an Ayin it would explain her dreams and the Voices within her mind." Navi said. "The dreams are due to your prescience and the Voices are actually Din, Farore, and Nayru themselves."
"You're wrong!" Malon snarled, jumping up, "I can't be Ayin! My mother and my father are both Hylian!"
"No."
The party turned to see Death standing not far away, his quiet contradiction ringing in everyone's ears. He was leaning on his scythe, as if he had been there for quite some time, but when they turned to him he stood up straighter, looking down on Malon.
"Your father was Hylian but your mother was Ayin."
"You're lying!" Malon cried, feeling the anger subside. "It's not true!"
Death sighed within his hood, "What would I gain by lying to you Malon?"
"If I'm Ayin then everything I dreamed of will come true! And Link will--!" she trailed off, not able to go on.
"Link will die." Navi finished for her, turning to the young hero with a look of motherly worry.
The kokiri was silent, seemingly deep in thought, while Malon hid behind the fall of her hair.
"We should get going." He said finally, turning toward the drawbridge, "We have to get the Spiritual Stones into the Temple of Time."
No one said a thing so he assumed everyone agreed and began walking across the bridge.
Malon stayed for a moment, glancing up at the heavens before walking submissively into the Market.
Navi turned to Death, "Was Malon's dream prescient? Will Link die?"
Death might have smiled beneath his hood, "That would be my department, wouldn't it?"
Navi glowered down at him, having the advantage of wings, "Not funny."
He shrugged, "They can't all be gems."
"Will he die or not?!" the fairy hissed, patience fraying from pressure.
"Only the Goddesses know." Death said apathetically, disappearing as suddenly as he had come.
Navi stared at the spot for a moment before flitting across the drawbridge after her companions, unaware that a pair of burning eyes watched from far off, thinking dark thoughts.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Author's Notes: Rather short but I just wanted to explain some things before the story progressed too far. The next chapter isn't looking all that long either right now. *runs from angry readers* but chapter 13 will be extremely long, I promise! Just give me time!
The Ayin race was actually born from a word I found in an old book. The word 'Ayin' really means 'foresight' and boom the idea struck me with a hurtful force. Funny how things pop into your head like that, huh?
Just another twist in this winding road of a story, I hoped you liked it, even though it was a tiny chapter it held quite a bit of information.
Thanks for reading this story, I have 52 reviews! *dances*
Until next time,
-- Alanna
She turned from her looking glass, no longer able to bear seeing her daughter so happy, not while she knew how quickly the happiness would fade.
Unshed tears filled her eyes as she put a hand against her mouth to stifle the cry of grief that had escaped her.
They didn't have a clue what lay beyond the drawbridge, what evil had begun to awaken.
And they wouldn't until it was too late.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Malon noticed the clouds gathering in the sky as they neared the Castle, not the usual white fluff but dark and ominous shades of gray and black, seeming misplaced against a sky that had not long ago been blue. A light drizzle had begun to fall, enough to soak through her clothing and make her smile disappear.
They stood near the moat now, confusion gracing their faces as they realized the drawbridge was closed. Link glanced up at the sky, positive that there was still daylight to spare behind the veil of clouds.
Lightning lit up the children's faces for a moment and the distant rumble of thunder was heard, largely drowned out by the steady creaking noise of the drawbridge easing open.
A deafening thud announced that the drawbridge had completely lowered, but before either Link or Malon could consider walking across a horse's whinny sounded out, followed closely by the horse itself.
At just a glance Malon knew that the mount was deathly frightened. Froth issued forth from its mouth and the whites of its eyes were visible at a distance, white hide covered with the sheen of sweat. Another fearful noise escaped its throat as it reared, nearly spilling the two passengers that sat upon its back.
Malon recognized the princess Zelda instantly, the glint of blonde hair and the wide blue eyes coupled with her gown screamed royalty. Malon identified the second rider as Impa, knowing the Guardian of the Royal Family only because Granny had often spoken of her.
As the horse whizzed by, nearly trampling the two children in its haste, the Princess turned and threw something through the air.
Malon heard it hit the water of the moat, but didn't turn until the horse's white form had faded in the distance.
"They were sure in a hurry to get somewhere." Navi whispered, huddling on Link's shoulder in an attempt to avoid getting knocked to the ground by the rain.
"Or to get away from something." Malon said quietly, feeling the fine hairs on the back of her neck rise as the warning bells went off in her head.
She turned slowly, with a great reluctance, unsure as to what she would see and if she wanted to see it.
Smoldering yellow eyes met her own sky blue ones, freezing her lungs and making her heart hammer against the confines of her chest.
Before her was the man from her nightmares, perched upon a steed of midnight black, staring at her and then into the distance, searching.
"Did a white horse come out here?" he asked, voice ringing in her mind and filling her with dread, he was real, not some horrific prank her mind had decided to play on her. "Where did it go?"
All she could do was stare, eyes wide with fear, mouth dry as cotton.
His eyes narrowed, the horrible depths of hell fire growing darker with anger. "Did you hear me, girl? Where did it go?"
And suddenly Link was there, standing before her with his sword drawn and his shield at ready. The man with the burning eyes turned away from her to look at this new comer, a kind of recognition followed by dark amusement showing openly on his face.
"Brave," he growled, holding up his hand and throwing a ball of dark energy toward Link, "But stupid."
The darkness hit Link's shield with a burst of light, knocking him to the ground. He rolled to the side, prepared for another attack, although not quite steady enough to stand and meet it when it came.
The evil eyes were once again turned upon Malon, "We will meet again." He said with a wicked smirk before burying his heels into his horse's side.
The horse took off; leaving Malon behind to help Link up and to wonder what else could possibly go wrong.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Link searched the moat for a few minutes, trying to find whatever it was Zelda had thrown back to him.
Malon pondered quietly to herself while she waited for him, her eyes half closed in thought, sitting cross-legged upon the dewy ground.
The man from her nightmares, Ganondorf, Link had called him, had disturbed her in a way very few things could. The eyes that had for so long been seared into her memory were now held in place by an even more frightening face.
"I hope nothing else from my dreams decide to visit." She murmured, tracing a circle in the wet grass with an index finger, "I think I'd go mad."
Link surfaced suddenly, eyes fairly glowing with glee.
"Find something good?" Malon asked, cocking her head to one side questioningly.
"Better than good." Link replied triumphantly, crawling out of the water, "She left a message with it too."
Malon blinked in surprise, more curious now. "What is it?"
Link smiled, a kind of impish delight showing clearly in his blue eyes as he showed her his slightly waterlogged prize.
An ocarina.
The world tilted at a strange angle when Malon saw it, and she felt something click within her mind, something that seemed fuzzy and unreal.
The ocarina, the fairy, the mischievous light that had lit his eyes all made sense in a way that hadn't occurred to her before.
Link was the young man from her dreams, the one who had smiled at her, whispered her secrets, and told her that he loved her.
The one that had died in her arms.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Malon?"
She opened her eyes to realize the world had stopped spinning and that Link was holding her, face portraying his alarm.
"I'm okay." She whispered, not sure who she was trying to assure more, Link or herself.
"What happened?" he questioned softly, letting her go grudgingly, "You almost passed out."
She sighed, feeling his question weigh down on her heavily. "You'll think I'm strange." She protested weakly.
Link smiled at her, "I already know you're strange, now tell me, what happened?"
She opened her mouth, ready to tell a lie if it would appease him, but he held up his hand and said, "I want you to tell me the truth, all of the truth."
"No part truths," Navi called from her hiding place within Link's hat, "We want to know everything."
"Everything?" she squeaked, horrified at the thought. How could she tell them that she had dreamed of Link dying?
Link nodded, suddenly serious, "Everything."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Malon took her time, quietly at first, not daring to look at him.
She told him first of her dreams, of the older Link holding the ocarina he had fished out of the moat just moments before. She told him of the sword he had held, of the power it had carried within its deadly iron blade. Finally she told him the final dream, the one of his death, of her own.
Unwillingly, she spoke of the Voices that whispered to her whenever the situation was desperate. The multi toned voice that had saved her from the Stalchildren, and Link from the Bigocto.
She spoke of Death, the Hooded Knight, who worked by no set of rules, and who had brought her mother back to talk with her one last time.
Carefully, one by one, she retold the events and problems of the last few months, trying not to leave anything out. Her voice was at a croak near the end, and when she looked up at the still partially clouded sky she saw that the story had gone on for several hours. The sun was beginning to settle itself down, ready for the moon to take its place in the sky.
When Malon had finally gone silent she expected to hear contemptuous laughter at her tale, some scornful remark or a pitying cry of how insane she was, but instead was surprised with a tension filled hush.
"That's everything." She said, looking up to see the shock on both her companions' faces. They hadn't doubted a word of what she had said, she realized, but they were having problems digesting it.
"What do you think?" Link asked the fairy, gaze still locked on Malon who was trying to hide her face behind her hair.
"You said these Voices called you a little Ayin?" Navi quested, peering into Malon's eyes as if seeking something.
The young girl considered it for a moment then nodded, "I was confused as to what they meant, do you know what an Ayin is, Navi?"
The fairy nodded sagely, appearing somewhat shaken, "They were the first race the Goddesses created, before even the fairies or the trees, but I thought they had all died out."
"They were created first?" Link asked, taking his piercing gaze away from Malon, "Is that all being an Ayin means?"
"Don't be impudent," Navi snapped, flying back and forth nervously, "The First, the Ayins, were bestowed the Power."
"Power?" Malon questioned, "But everybody has the Power over the Elements, it's just few know how to use it."
The fairy shook her head, "The Power over the Elements is different from the Power the Ayin race had."
"How?" both children questioned simultaneously, growing annoyed at Navi's nervous reluctance to speak.
Navi jumped slightly, and then sighed, "They had the Power of Prescience." At the blank looks she received she growled, "The ability to see something before it really happens, see things before they exist.
"The Ayins were the First so they were given the gift of Prescience, not only that but they were also directly connected to the Goddesses who created the World, able to speak to them through intense ritual, and, sometimes, the more Gifted were able to speak to Them with just a thought.
Navi looked down at her from Link's shoulder where she had decided to sit in the middle of the telling, "But the Ayins soon grew weary of the Power they were given, all the happiness they saw in the future was drowned out by the sorrow, for they were given the ability to see not only others futures but their own." The fairy frowned, "It is hard to witness your own death, and it drove many Ayins to the brink of insanity.
"The Goddesses, seeing the pain of their children, declared that they would take the Power away from any who wished it gone.
"Everyone but a few brave souls begged the Goddesses to take away their prescient powers and the Goddesses fulfilled their promise, taking away their gift.
"With the prescience gone the Ayins decided to call themselves Hylians, and learned the secrets of Elemental Power, which was less painful for them. The Ayin people who had kept their Power were numbered only in the hundreds and after several thousand years everyone thought they had died out, disappeared beneath the ground they had seen in the Beginning."
The fairy fell silent, studying the young girl with a careful eye.
"So the Ayin race became the Hylians that now populate Hyrule." Link said softly, shaking his head in disbelief.
"If Malon is indeed an Ayin it would explain her dreams and the Voices within her mind." Navi said. "The dreams are due to your prescience and the Voices are actually Din, Farore, and Nayru themselves."
"You're wrong!" Malon snarled, jumping up, "I can't be Ayin! My mother and my father are both Hylian!"
"No."
The party turned to see Death standing not far away, his quiet contradiction ringing in everyone's ears. He was leaning on his scythe, as if he had been there for quite some time, but when they turned to him he stood up straighter, looking down on Malon.
"Your father was Hylian but your mother was Ayin."
"You're lying!" Malon cried, feeling the anger subside. "It's not true!"
Death sighed within his hood, "What would I gain by lying to you Malon?"
"If I'm Ayin then everything I dreamed of will come true! And Link will--!" she trailed off, not able to go on.
"Link will die." Navi finished for her, turning to the young hero with a look of motherly worry.
The kokiri was silent, seemingly deep in thought, while Malon hid behind the fall of her hair.
"We should get going." He said finally, turning toward the drawbridge, "We have to get the Spiritual Stones into the Temple of Time."
No one said a thing so he assumed everyone agreed and began walking across the bridge.
Malon stayed for a moment, glancing up at the heavens before walking submissively into the Market.
Navi turned to Death, "Was Malon's dream prescient? Will Link die?"
Death might have smiled beneath his hood, "That would be my department, wouldn't it?"
Navi glowered down at him, having the advantage of wings, "Not funny."
He shrugged, "They can't all be gems."
"Will he die or not?!" the fairy hissed, patience fraying from pressure.
"Only the Goddesses know." Death said apathetically, disappearing as suddenly as he had come.
Navi stared at the spot for a moment before flitting across the drawbridge after her companions, unaware that a pair of burning eyes watched from far off, thinking dark thoughts.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Author's Notes: Rather short but I just wanted to explain some things before the story progressed too far. The next chapter isn't looking all that long either right now. *runs from angry readers* but chapter 13 will be extremely long, I promise! Just give me time!
The Ayin race was actually born from a word I found in an old book. The word 'Ayin' really means 'foresight' and boom the idea struck me with a hurtful force. Funny how things pop into your head like that, huh?
Just another twist in this winding road of a story, I hoped you liked it, even though it was a tiny chapter it held quite a bit of information.
Thanks for reading this story, I have 52 reviews! *dances*
Until next time,
-- Alanna
