Disclaimer: Zelda and all of its characters belong to Nintendo.
Began: 11-21-03
Forward: First of all, I must apologize to the person I reviewed their story (you'll know who you are if you read this) I did not mean for my review to sound so insulting. I look at it and I feel like crap. I am so sorry. (Smiles weakly) I hope you can forgive me.
Also, the quality in this chapter…won't be so good. Or as you say: "creepy" (wonders) Everything I do seems to be creepy…I swear I've been called creepy about four times in the last three days. It's funny! I suppose I am creepy. Heh. I like calling myself that.
Forewarning: This chapter may revolve around Link mainly, and it will switch between past and present. Or I'm hoping, I want to make it confusing. Also, this is the first time I have written any type of romance, so, when that part comes, ladeda. I have never been in that sort of situation before so I'm only going by what I've seen or read. So sue me.
Respice Finem
Part Three
The storm came upon them instantaneously. There were hardly any warnings except for the red sky at dawn. The waves battered the ship, throwing every ounce of strength into ripping the mere twig to shreds.Link's body felt like it had been torn in two. The force of the first wave had thrown him half over the railing; the only thing saving him was Tetra grip on one of his legs. He let out a shout of pain, white dotting his vision. A tug on the captain's part and he was flung to the deck, sputtering. He couldn't move.
The young woman delivered a swift kick to his ribs. "Get up! We need all hands! We can't slow down for some swabbie! Get up!"
His arms wouldn't move.
Tetra swore loudly, grabbed him roughly, and pulled him upright. She faced him angrily, "Kid, walk it off! I need you to take the helm; I trust you can do that. Now do it!" she shoved away and darted off.
Link limped as fast as he could, biting his tongue. He saw the helm of the ship spinning crazily, and dimly wondered how he was going to grab hold of that and keep his grip. He looked over his shoulder and saw Tetra barking orders, and then hurried forward. For her he would try. No, he would do.
He approached the wheel, and examined it. It span wildly, faster than the eye could see. No self-respecting person would throw his or her arms in there. He shivered, hope of holding it were swiftly fading. And then his arms shot out of their own accord.
A tremendous tension, somehow he clasped hold of handles, but his wrists felt as if they had shattered. He screamed, but held his hands steady. A jolt from the ship sent him falling to one side, and his arms were quickly burning to inferno. Tears spilled out of his eyes, mingling with the rain.
The time that passed after that he could not remember, but it felt like hours. A day maybe, for the storm did not abate until late the next morning. But sometime during that block a man was thrown overboard and taken by the seas. It was not until after things had calmed down that they had been able to tell.
Mako, the genius, had drowned.
Tetra and Link strolled around the Isle of the Wolf quietly. They both wore garments distributed by the young Wynn, for the clothes they had arrived in were hardly adequate.
Much to her frustration, the only thing that had been available that would fit her was a white blouse and a gray skirt that fell to her knees with simple moccasin-like boots that were soft enough to be slippers. She constantly righted her skirt, growing self-conscious every time it showed even a little skin.
Link wore more or less the same thing, as before, the only difference was that he wore a thin long-sleeved shirt underneath the vest that covered his entire stomach. The vest was maroon and the shirt white. He wore light blue pants that drooped to just below his kneecaps.
The island was small, a little more that a mile in all directions from the center. Wynn's cottage was in the middle of a thick forest. The sky was gray, but not dark enough to signify later rain coming along.
The morning had started out simple enough, waking up and eating something called pancakes, of which neither had ever heard of but fell in love with instantly. And then Wynn suggesting they get used to the island, for they didn't know how long they would be staying there.
Tetra had kept the question that she had never heard of this island before to herself.
They came upon a beach, a little surprised. The forest ended abruptly.
Link felt nostalgic standing there, for it was very much like his home in Outset. The island had the homey feel to it; all that was lacking was more people. He stood rooted to the spot, choking homesickness in his throat before he could feel it. He had made the choice as a boy to leave his home, and he would not have any regrets.
He turned and walked into the forest.
The weeks that followed the storm were silent. Everybody on the ship, although some had not known Mako so well, was in a mourning period. And everybody dealt with the pain of losing a friend silently. Link could feel dim pain, but it wasn't enough to make him feel truly sad. In those weeks, he did more work than anyone combined.
He walked about. His wrists had nearly been broken in handling the helm, but instead were heavily bruised. They were bound in cloth.
His destination was nowhere in particular; all the preliminary jobs had been taken care of thrice over. Perhaps he wanted to see Tetra, for she had kept to herself and no one had seen her. It was the dead of night, and the only source of light was the full moon's pale auras.
Link stepped to the bow of the ship. The part of the Tidal that had taken the most damage; much of the railing was missing, as was the anchor on the starboard. No one was there.
He spent an hour searching, sometimes forgetting that he was searching. He found Tetra at last in the crow's nest, staring dully forward.
At first he was surprised, for being the watchman was not her job. But shock quickly wore off as he lightly approached her.
"Hello," she said quietly, gripping the handrail. Her voice was shaky. It had taken a lot to force it out.
"…Hi," Link replied, standing next to her. Fourteen years old, and Tetra a year older, it made him slightly lose his equanimity. He made a small attempt to smile, "Haven't seen you in awhile…are you okay?"
It was long in coming for her to answer, but he waited. Forcing her to speak was asking for doom. He gazed at the moon.
"…Everybody…except you, on this ship…I've known since I was a little girl. Scratch that, my whole life," Tetra mumbled. She squeezed her eyes shut, a pressure slowly crawling up her gullet. "Ever since…my mom died, I've always…tried to make sure I could live up to her…keep them all safe…" she took a breath.
"Losing Mako…is so hard…"
Link sat down upon a stump, slouching. He had not thought about home in Outset for a long time, and now that he had seen the beach, memories of a past life were flooding onto him. Thoughts of his grandmother and Aryll hurt the most. He felt he had betrayed them in abandoning them to the island. He gritted his teeth.
Aryll would be…thirteen now…
He wondered what she looked like, and thought to himself: 'Once I can get my own ship, I'll visit them.'
Tetra came into the thicket. "Hey," she said, "What's going on? You just walked off."
"Nothing," he replied quickly, "Seeing the beach just brought some memories back."
"Oh," Tetra said simply as she leaned against a tree across from him, once again fixing her skirt. "You just now feel guilty about leaving them?"
"I'm not guilty," Link snapped, "I just wondered what Aryll would look like. She'd be thirteen by now, you know."
"Really? That old, eh? Well then, I wonder what the kiddo looks like now, too," Tetra grinned, folding her arms.
Link sat in quiet.
"Hey, listen. So you've missed out on the four years of the girl's life. That was your choice, you can't go back and change it," she thought for a moment, "The best you can do is look towards the future…" she stopped, "Whoa, I sound like a preacher."
Link chuckled, and then stood up.
"Thank you," he said to her, "Shall we go?"
Link was looking at Tetra now. Her eyes were shut tight, and her mouth was stretched in a pained grimace. He tried to understand how she was feeling, and the best he could relate is when Aryll had been taken by Gannondorf's Thunderbird. He gathered his courage, and reached out, his left hand taking her right softly. His heartbeat pounded in his chest, feeling her hand in his. He bit his tongue, glancing at her.
Her hand squeezed back gently.
He flustered, seeing her look at him. But he kept eye contact, to look over her shoulder would be offensive right now. Her dark green eyes pierced into his. So full of pain…he wanted to make it go away, he didn't want her to suffer anymore. Unshed tears lay blocked behind her eyelid, and he wished to wipe them away. His other hand was near her face when he stopped, suddenly realizing whom this was. His hand hovered in front of her face.
"Don't stop," she said quietly, desperately.
His hand brushed underneath her eyes, feeling cold skin below his palm. Tetra kept looking at him sadly, but feeling his hand upon her face made her stiffen at first, but she settled down. She hadn't let someone touch her since her mother… A foreign feeling came to her in the pit of her stomach, and it felt…pleasant.
Link let his hand linger on her face before pulling away, tears wiped bereft from her. He awkwardly let his thumb on his other hand caress hers. What would he do next? He didn't know. He thought maybe he should go…to let her have her space…
Before he knew what was happening Tetra had pulled her hand away and was hugging him, her head buried into his shoulder. He stood rigid for a moment, never expecting this. He was extremely surprised when he felt Tetra shuddering, and a realization came over him.
Tetra was crying.
Wynn found them in the thicket, and, bounding in cheerfully. "Hi there!"
Link looked behind him, seeing the little girl's joyous face brought him something to question, but he kept his mouth shut.
"I know you guys are probably dying to see the Shaman; don't think the questions you've kept to yourself go unnoticed! She will answer as much as she can, but first…" she let her arms go around in circles, "…Are you two hungry? I could whip up some lunch."
"No," they both said simultaneously, and got embarrassed.
Wynn smiled, "Well then, let me warn you that you probably won't get your next meal until tomorrow, or maybe the day after that."
"What are you talking about?" Tetra asked, touching her wrapped arm gently.
Wynn just kept her façade. "Well, as long as I can remember, meetings with the Shaman seem to fly much faster than one would expect. Time literally flies when you speak with her. But…if you don't want lunch…" she started walking.
Link watched her walk off, and contemplated whether they should eat or not. He decided against it, his stomach could learn a few intrinsic worth on this island. He glanced at Tetra and saw her in heavy thought.
"Hey," he whispered, "Let's just go. Food can wait."
She looked at him, her eyes not completely focused. She agreed, but it didn't look like she was really the one making the decision. She followed Wynn.
Link watched her in wonder, and perhaps worry. He wished to ask what was the matter, but didn't have the chance.
The next day Link didn't really know what was going on. The night before he had seen Tetra at her weakest, but her most beautiful. That wasn't to say he reveled in her despair, but her outward shields had dropped, and he had seen her. He was at a loss of words, but the fact that a mere five minutes in the embrace, Tetra had put up her dukes again, pushing him away.
"Don't ever do that again!" she had said. Her voice was shaky; there wasn't enough force in the words for her to truly mean it. Fright dazzled her olive eyes.
He stared after her as she had climbed down the ladder. She could've gone faster, but at the pace she was going she was stumbling every three seconds. Link could have caught up.
But why? To be shoved away again? True, he had not seen her that day, and he could seek if he wanted to. But to chase her, ask her why it was so hard to let others see the real her, try to comfort her; he felt confused. Sure, comforting a friend would be nothing but a bump in the path if he had defeated Gannon! But he would be doing this solo, and with the final battle with the King of Evil he had had much help.
He did want to see her, however. But the boyish attraction he had harbored of late for her was nothing compared to the uncertainties of his thoughts. A constant war raging in his mind. He decided to let the captain deal with this on her own, and while he was at it, destroy the attraction he had at the roots. It would never work out, anyway.
Sixteen years old, and still puzzled at the settings around him, Link took step by step forward, to the light of day beyond.
Author's Notes: This really didn't turn out the way I wanted it to. I could've worked on this for three more hours, but I don't want an already bad piece of work to get worse. I had to end it.
Sadly, I only have a rough idea of what's to come in this story. And those who are looking for HEAVY romance look elsewhere. I'm thirteen, and I don't even want to try writing a make-out scene. The little part in here was struggling enough! I go for more of the plot kind of things, and though relationships are appealing, in order for it to sound convincing I want to have been in that situation first. And no, I am not going to throw myself at the next guy that comes through the door just to be in that scenario. So blah.