Disclaimer: Zelda and all of its' characters belong to Nintendo.
Began: 11-23-03
Ended: 11-30-03
Forward: (Gasps) Wow, I'm starting a week early! Partly to make up for the crappy chapter previous. Heh. I want to make the chapters longer! (Grumbles) I'll just make myself work, work, and work some more! No videogames! Hey wait…no school Thursday or Friday…Woo! Extra days!
Thanks to where it's due: Ultimate TH, your story is great. And I thank you for the reviews you're submitting! Here's a cookie, but here's a hint-keep guessing, same to Carrie-Dreamer, (hands cookie).
It's back to Tetra and staying there, hopefully. Also, I'm entering an original copy of this into a Writing Contest (I altered some things, like the characters). Just in case a judge comes across this, to let them know I didn't copy it. Better safe than sorry, correct? And, the title and any other weird words you'll find are Latin.
Respice Finem Part Four
Tetra couldn't take in what was around her. She didn't even feel like she was she. Like she had somehow crawled out of her body and was examining from a short distance away. The feeling was awkward, but it did not feel entirely unnatural either. On the contrary, it made her feels like she should submit and just not question it. It was quite demanding, yet at the same time pathetic and weak. She watched as she was suddenly becoming farther and farther away from herself.
Fear choked her, and it felt all wrong. Her arms threw forward and she wished that the someone who had saved her in her dream would save her again. Her feet were pasted to the ground, and she could not move them.
Further away… What was going on?
"Stop resisting," a voice, unable to tell the difference between male and female. Tetra blinked. The want to give in was like a burning lust, a want to give up…
Tetra stumbled in her steps, and fell to her knees.
Link walked to her, concerned. "Are you okay?"
"Fine," she snapped, her chest pounding. "Let's go."
She stood up slowly, swatting away Link's palms when he tried to help. She swallowed down an urge to shiver, for she was abruptly cold. Her hands numbed and she still walked on.
Wynn stood in front of a grove of trees that blocked the way. She waited patiently for the duo to catch up, and when they did, she faced them.
"Are you ready?"
They nodded.
She agreed, "Well, then…you are about to witness an ancient city, dating back before the Flood. A civilization that, in that time, was near a place called Kokiri Forest." She turned around and grazed one of the trunks with her fingers.
A precise visual of doodles, her hands swirled in intricate patterns and swirls. A faint glow came from the trails, disappearing after a short time. The patterns continued for a long time, and small lights of all shades of blue danced around the area.
Tetra watched, entranced. With each swirl, a leaf fell, and with the leaf tapping the ground, a blue light. A wonderful experience, a scent of books as old as time itself wafted into their nostrils. Voices, singing, all memories but so close she could just touch them…
She looked at Link, and saw him glancing around in as much awe as she. In doing this, he looked ten years younger, his mouth hung slack. It took all she could to hold back a laugh.
Something cracking. Tetra averted her attention to Wynn, and her eyes widened.
Several little people, the size of her hand, her running all up and down the tree trunks. Wings on their backs, they flew erratically. And the trees…were moving…!
A couple of the fairy's perched themselves on Tetra, Link, and Wynn's shoulders of head. It surprised the pirate at first, but soon she grew to enjoy to garbling of these little people in her ear. A language that seemed to flow into one word, and with the right sounds to make it sound round, if that is the right word.
A world of winter colors met their eyes. It looked as if to be underwater, and in a mirror, all at once. There were many floating trails of blue light in there.
Wynn motioned them forward, and they followed willingly. The moment they stepped into the land of blue, it seemed they had walked into one world, and left the land behind them.
The trees closed up behind them silently.
The world seemed to tower up and up, and it didn't take them long to realize that this entire villa was inside a gigantic tree. It was a tremendous stump, and hollow, so it allowed room to live in, and quite the sky view.
A quiet tune of singing, Tetra's ears could just barely pick it up. She wondered what, or, who was singing. She looked at the fairies on her shoulder and found them dancing. She smiled. They were the ones crooning.
Wynn brought them to the center where a clear lake resided. "Stop," she said to them.
Tetra listened to her. "What is this place?"
"This lake? Or the entire whole?"
"Both."
Wynn smiled, "This place is the Rutay region of the Kokiri Forest, but they lived far enough apart to be considered different villages. The Rutay came from a land separate from Hyrule," she examined their puzzled look, "-What? Did you think Hyrule was the only land in the world?"
"Uh…well…" Tetra stammered.
"No," Link spoke up, "Hylians had elf ears, like us. The other lands…their ears were round, and they were generally taller than them."
"Right! And you know Fado? The sage."
Link nodded, though Tetra didn't know what they were talking about.
"He was from here," she shrugged, "And then one day a Kokiri accidentally stumbled along into their village and he decided to live with the them instead. He was half Outlandian, half Hylian. He was much criticized in life." She took a breath, "Okay, this isn't a history lesson. But to answer your other question, this lake is called Resergam. Translated, it means 'I shall rise again'."
The strange word seemed strangely familiar. It was another one of those memories that always evaded being remembered. She suited herself to listening to the chanting of the fairies.
"One at a time now, which of you will see the Shaman first?" Wynn asked.
Tetra shrugged slowly, as to not disturb the people on her shoulders. Link was much the same.
The little girl sighed. "Fine, I'll choose. Link, I want you to go first."
Link nodded, and, looking nervously back to Tetra, stepped forward. "What do I do?"
"…Just step into the water. Walk to the middle," Wynn said.
He looked at her, "Just walk…?"
She agreed.
"Um…okay…" he said tensely. He took a step into the water, pushed down… Solid ground pushed up, and he stared, surprised. He took another step. He was walking on the water! He hurried to the middle and looked back. "Now wha-" he stopped himself and watched as the lake water began to circle him. It span, it came upward, enveloping him.
Tetra let her mouth drop as he disappeared. "Wha-what? Where'd he go?"
"Worried?" Wynn teased.
"He's my responsibility," Tetra sad swiftly.
"You make him sound like he's five. Have you ever considered that he doesn't have to be your responsibility? I mean; he's a year younger than you."
"So?" Tetra asked, folding her arms.
"He's fine," Wynn, answered, "The Shaman will send him back when he wishes to leave."
"And that will be…how long?"
"It depends on how much he's hiding," the girl muttered.
The young woman began to worry about what she and the Shaman would talk about. There were plenty of things she kept to herself, would they have to talk about every little thing? She sat down and leaned against a tree, closing her eyes.
Time really did pass quickly there, and when Tetra fell asleep it felt like she had been asleep for five minutes before someone was shaking her. She opened her eyes and stared dully at Wynn, Link standing close behind. It was night.
"Hey, it's your turn," Wynn said.
Tetra didn't want to anymore, but Link was pulling her up. He looked older, and there was something different in his eyes when he looked at her. He smiled, "Go on. You'll be fine. She doesn't bite."
"I didn't say she did," Tetra muttered darkly, standing in front of the pool. She swatted his hand away like a bug.
The body of water was indeed crystal clear; in fact, it gave a new meaning to it. It didn't look like there was any water there at all. She took a tentative tread forward. Everything seemed to be happening just as it had happened with Link, she hopped to the center and waited.
It happened gradually, but by the time she realized she was sinking instead of disappearing it was too late. The winter colors of the area suddenly transformed completely into a blaze of the hells below; the fairy people darted to Tetra, clawing, swiping. Her hands flew in front of her face and the bandage on her arm was tearing. Blood trickled down her body; she flung herself into the water-
-to find herself resurfacing.
She gulped in a breath, and dared to look at her arms. Battered and scratched, her vision swam beneath her eyes. Her arms had been shredded, and were bleeding profusely. Her broken wrist was lying naked to the world. And strangely, she did not hurt.
Tetra wondered if she was dead.
She shuddered, and began to walk in her surroundings. Behind her was a white land of nothing, in front and darkening haze. She squinted, and stopped completely when she saw someone walking towards her.
It was a middle-aged man, dressed formally in a gray tunic with golden embroidery. A fencing sword was clasped at his side. White pants were worn, a fancy imagery of blue sewing here and there, one of a dragon. Glossy black boots adorned his feet, buckled halfway up his shin. He was wearing an outfit that had been worn in the royalty hundreds of years ago. He bowed halfway, white-blue hair falling over his face.
"Good evening," he said clearly. His accent was old as well, sounding out every syllable of the word and tying the words together somehow to make it flow. It reminded her of the fairy speak.
She suddenly grew self-conscious in her bruised state; she hid her arms behind her back. "Uh…hi…"
"Ah," he said, smiling, his eyes twinkling, "You do not feel comfortable seeing the Shaman like that? I do agree that it is…" he stopped, "Forgive me. Come along, I shall have someone clean you up."
The prospect of having someone else clean her was awkward, and the captain of the Tidal blushed, following him. A hallway appeared out of nowhere and they were striding on dark red, velvet carpet. She felt again like she had truly stepped into another world. The walls were made of rocks that had not been shaped in any way. She thought this odd, for making a building one would have wanted to use blocks to build with, sturdier, and easier to use. Tetra bumped into the man.
She muddled, spluttering, "S-s-sorry…"
"What of it? Wait in here and I'll send someone right along," he motioned to the door on her right. He was walking away when she stopped him.
"H-hey…I don't want to be a burden…I mean, thank you, but, I…"
He smiled, "You needn't worry, madam. It is not a burden. Please; make yourself comfortable."
Tetra felt there was no way out of it. She walked over to the bed and sat down, feeling rather uncomfortable in the huge room. The bed itself was big enough for her to have to really work at it to fall off. She kicked off her tattered boots and didn't even bother to fiddle at the remains of her skirt.
Her skirt!
Realization dawned as she suddenly realized she must have been half naked to the man, and her face burned. She snagged a pillow among many and tried to cover herself. Tetra could have laughed that it was an easy thing to do, for the pillow was easily as big as her, but she was too preoccupied to notice anything else.
The person promised in coming took long in appearing. Long enough (Tetra thought it was planned), for her to calm down and realize how soft the bed was. If this is what royalty had in the days of millennia ago, then royalty truly had the heavens. She would have liked to roll around and jump like she was five again, but mere modesty kept her rooted to the spot.
A woman that looked her age walked in titivated in a light green blouse and navy blue trousers. Her hair was trimmed to her shoulders, and the same white-blue color of the man. She bowed politely to Tetra. "Hello."
The pirate's grip on the pillow tightened, and she felt like her face was going to burst with how mortified she was. Her mouthed worked with a greeting, but nothing came. She didn't exactly want to be touched by another person.
The other woman introduced herself, "I am Namay, a servant of this house of Resergam," she was somehow easy to trust. Namay walked over and pulled back some curtains and a bath lay exposed.
Tetra let out a held breath. She was relieved, at least the bath wasn't big. A silly thought, perhaps, but all this hugeness of the objects around her was a little overwhelming, made her feel…sort of the opposite of claustrophobic. It was an odd feeling.
The bath was running, and Tetra was snapped back into nervousness. She didn't want to be washed by another! But it seemed there was going to be no way around it, despite her silent pleas. She squeezed the pillow until she was confident it would burst.
'Calm down,' she chided herself, 'She's the one that offered! Stop panicking! She'll probably forget me by tomorrow anyway…' she closed her eyes, and wondered heartily how royalty could handle being dressed by others, bathed by others, and fed by others. She wondered, didn't they ever feel lazy?
Namay was done filling the tub, and, brushing a hand through it briefly, she turned around, satisfied. "Come along, madam, this will only take a few minutes."
Tetra shook, tried to move, but didn't. She grew angry with herself.
Namay only nodded knowingly. "Are you so modest? Relax… There's nothing to be ashamed of," she assured her, but the other just stared at her disbelievingly.
Yet, somehow or another, Tetra managed to get in the tub only by sealing her conscience away. She moved like a puppet, however, and Namay kept her disappointment to herself.
There was something special about the way Namay's hands worked fluently on her back, cleaning cuts, and rubbing in circular motions certain pressure points that made her loosen up incredibly. Namay looked at the back of Tetra's neck and saw two jagged scars.
"Where did you get those?" she asked, carefully touching them. She snatched her hand back, eyes wide, as if she had been burned.
"…Don't remember," Tetra said simply, flatly. "They've been there for a long time though."
"Interesting," Namay said, looking at the hand she had touched it with. Already fading, she saw that she had indeed been burned; the scorch marks were rapidly disappearing on her fingertips. "Let me see your arms, we're almost done."
Tetra obeyed without question, but suddenly at the last second while she was turning around did she remember where she was. She fumbled and tried to cover herself.
Namay sighed, "Please, I am not out to shame you. I have seen naked women before, now please, give me your arm."
Tetra shut her eyes and extended her arm, wishing it was over already.
Namay seemed to have heard this and worked quickly, it was over before she knew it, and she wrapped a towel tightly around herself.
"Here," Namay stated, leaving a bundle of clothing on the bed, "I am sure you do not want me dressing you as well, so, here. If you need help I'll be right outside."
Tetra sent a nimble word of thanks and picked up the first layer of clothes, finding that both of her arms were wrapped from the bottom of her fingers to below her elbow in pure white cloth.
______________
Tetra came out of the room clothed in a baby blue tunic and loose gray trousers. She wore black leather boots that went up halfway her calf. She rather liked her outfit.
She saw Namay leaning against a wall, and she thanked her and apologized for her misconduct of before.
"It does not matter," she answered, "There are many like you who are nervous about things like being uncovered. Are you ready to be off?"
The question caught Tetra off guard, and she remembered (she seemed to forget a lot of things in this place) why she was here in the first place. She nodded.
"Well then, follow me," Namay said, and they walked the way Tetra had come from.
Like before, except the opposite, the hallway vanished and they were walking on something seemingly not there. Tetra hurried to keep up with Namay.
And then another hallway appeared, but this time the walls were clean cut, and a lighter bluish gray than the other. Ahead lies a single wooden door. They approached it.
Namay put her hand on the door and looked to Tetra, "I can go no further," seeing the pirate's questioning look, she replied, "My place is here. I have other things to do…" she bowed once again to Tetra, "It was lovely knowing you, madam. I hope we may meet again."
Tetra replied, "I hope so too," and didn't watch as she walked away. She stared at the door. Gathering courage, she pushed with her left hand and it swung open…
She stepped in, and at first the light was blinding; she had to cover her eyes. Light soon faded, and she was able to look around.
Her shock was undeniable on her face. All around, a field of purple grass! She looked behind her and there was no door. The sky was still blue, but it looked awkward in comparison to the purple. A rushing. There was a waterfall to her right and the field she was in seemed to expand. Stretched as far as the eye could see were forests of maroon leaves and periwinkle flowers.
Tetra stood as rigid a rock. How was she supposed to find the Shaman in this place? It was huge!
Her feet moved of her own accord, and her left hand was forward, being tugged, like a mother will to a child through a crowd. She didn't bother to question the phenomena, and instead just let it take her, be it ill omen or good fortune. Her surroundings flew past her faster than she was walking and she found that a little awkward, but found this was another thing she need not question.
They were going through a forest. They? She wondered why she thought 'they'. She was alone, no? No, she wasn't, there was someone or something there. Tetra stopped and wondered where she was.
In a grove of trees she stood, purple. Purple everywhere.
"Ah…hello, hello!"
Tetra snapped around, pressing her back into a tree. A man not looking to be much older than her stepped to her. Blue-white hair, and a young, round face like one who had never grown up over the age of eight, he wore long light blue robes. He was smiling clumsily, strumming a harp and singing in a clear voice a language that the fairy folk had sung. The pirate drew back, appalled. Surely this wasn't the Shaman…was it?
He danced around, singing with enchantment a beat that was irresistible. She soon found her right foot tapping right along. Tetra was disappointed, and wished to tell him to shut up, for she had never liked those who were immediately likeable. She glared.
He finished almost as abruptly as she opened her mouth to indeed tell him to stuff a cork in it. He slipped the harp into the branches of a tree above him, and smiled with his teeth. She flustered, hating her for thinking he was handsome.
He made a small inclination to bow and walked to her, stopping just on the boundary of her personal space.
Tetra didn't say anything, daring him to speak first.
He complied, brushing a hand through his locks of hair. "Let's skip names. Call me what you will. Scruffy, call me Scruffy!" he smiled cheerfully, "You don't think I am much of a Shaman, do you? Tut, tut, girl, as little Wynn says, appearances can be deceiving." He wagged a forefinger in front of his face.
Tetra wanted to kick him. "Go away," she snapped.
He drew back, mocking offence. "But you, my dear Tetra, are the one who came to see me. Of the two of us, I should be the one to tell you to 'go away'. You want answers, right? I have answers to the questions you wish to ask. All that is required is you to tell me, love, and then you can tell me to 'go away'. But, I think I'll enjoy our conversation," he grinned flirtatiously, leaning back into a chair that the trees formed for him with their branches. "Please, sit."
"No, Scruffy, I'd prefer to stand," she spat viciously.
He didn't take offence, just shrugged unceremoniously and kept his oblique smile, golden cat eyes glinting in an invisible light. He got comfortable in his seat.
"So," he said, "Ask me."
Her lock on questions seemed to break, despite her growing hate of him. Thousands zoomed through her mind, and she couldn't choose which one, in desperation to know them all.
He seemed to notice her issue, and stared at her, mesmerized, like he had never seen something like this occur. He leaned his chin into his hand.
"Tell me your name," she demanded.
"I already have," he said.
"That's a dogs' name."
"So it is."
"Tell me."
"Give me good reason, and I shall," my, he was enjoying himself.
"I don't feel comfortable calling you Scruffy."
He grinned, as if he had accomplished something. "My name is long, too long, it would waste time. Just call me Lusues."
The name was odd, but she sped onto the next question. "Where is this Isle of the Wolf?"
"In Outlandian country," he said simply, "You should have figured that out, it's simple to put two and two together."
She ignored him, pressing herself firmly into the tree. The next question, it seemed to be the one question that would answer thousands, and she couldn't get her tongue to cooperate.
"Where…is…my…crew?"
He looked contemplative at last, and his eyes dimmed. He sighed, rubbing his temples, "That I cannot tell you."
Tetra flew into a rage. "Just why the hell not?" she shouted, running to him and snatching the scruff of his neck, "I'm sick of being kept in the shadows! So sick I want to throw up! This…Dark…whatever it is, I want to know! And I meet someone who says he has all the answers when he doesn't! Does all my life have to be coated over with lies? Hm? Tell me!" She raved, and swore! She let go of his collar and fumed around the area, a temper held back for years upon years lost its tether and let loose.
Admiration sparkled in his golden eyes, "I have the answers," he stated, "You just aren't ready to hear them. Now, sit," Lusues, said this firmly, and Tetra was pulled down by a branch and tied into a chair. She yelped when the pressure hit her wrist, color draining from her face. She squirmed uneasily in her seat, twisting and turning, until fatigue forced her to stop. Lusues stood in satisfaction and he walked toward her, towering over her. She averted her gaze quickly.
"My turn to ask the questions," he said, and something gentle, something calm in his voice settled her down.
____________________
Tetra was allowed a quick nap in the room she had used previous to meeting Lusues before she could leave Resergam. She hadn't wanted to, but he was provocative and convincing, she was suddenly thinking this little nap would do her good.
The bed was comfortable, and she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. A trillion billion thoughts were exploding like the bombs they had stolen from that bomb shop years ago, and she could no longer keep her attention focused than a five year keep their attention on a book. It was soothing to have dreamless sleep, and when she awoke she was happy Lusues had convinced her, for the thoughts had quieted down. She made her way back to the village where Wynn and Link were much the way she had gotten here, through a lake in the expanse of white.
She found herself rolling onto the dry beach and slowly stood up, sense of feeling suddenly hurling back and she felt that she would vomit. Her arms felt on fire, and she suppressed a groan of growing pain. Tetra knelt back down, wishing she were back in that bed once again, resting.
"Tetra! Oh God, you're okay!"
The rushing of feet, strong arms wrapped around her and hefted her up. She didn't complain, only seeing the practical side of it. She didn't have to support her own weight. She looked up and saw Link beaming happily at her. The same older gaze she had seen when she'd departed. She stared at them, wondering.
Wynn walked up to them. "Hello."
"How long?" Tetra asked, surprised that she could barely hear herself. It was night, still? Had she been gone so short a time?
"Two days," Link said, his embrace loosening, but his hands gripping her arms like he wanted to keep her there, to not lose her again. Tetra could hear his heart, and she blanched.
"Two?" she asked, disbelieving. And her stomach seemed to answer, it growled, and she blushed, hiding her face in Link's shoulder before she knew what she was doing. And ever when she did, she didn't move. Too late now, she supposed.
Wynn chuckled, "Yes, two. Now let's head back to the small cabin here and grab a bite to eat before we head back to mine. Come along."
They walked, but Link still kept one arm around her securely. Tetra would have told him off, but decided that she would let it pass. The meeting with the Shaman had not only given her answers and a few more questions, but surprisingly, a few manners as well. Silly, maybe, and she were slightly uncomfortable and touchy with his arm around her, but he would let go…hopefully. She wondered this, because, it was a protective encircle. Would he let her go? She questioned what she would do if he didn't by the time they were at the place Wynn was mentioning.
She dared a peek to his face. A swift one, no more than a second, but a second was all she needed. It was clear that he wouldn't unless she told him to.
The small cabin was blue, like everything else there, and still he hadn't let her go. They stopped in front of the door as Wynn strolled in, and Tetra looked at Link. "Hey…I won't be going anywhere, I promise," and hoped he would take the hint.
He did, but reluctantly. They walked into the single room cabin. Wynn was making some toast over a small fire she had going in the hearth, and the smell made Tetra's stomach growl again. The sound made her blush again, and she walked over to the table and sat down, wishing that her appetite would shush. Link sat in the chair closest to her and asked, "Let me see your arms."
She gave him her left, and he peeled the wrapping back gently, far enough to see the claw marks the attack had given. Her eyed grew wide with what he did, and she sucked in her breath when he started to stroke one of the scabs gingerly with the fingers of his other hand. She held in a shudder, the inferno in her arm cooling where his hand grazed, replaced with a different fire, persistent and spreading fast. A different blaze, one that she preferred to feel but at the same time didn't want to feel…Tetra drew back her arm and placed it in her lap, her face red with fear, shame, and embarrassment. She fixed the bandage and felt the disappointment in his eyes, and apologized, not wanting him to feel like she didn't like him. But her words were hard to make, and once said, made her feel even lower.
"I'm sorry…" Link said desperately, grasping what he had done and perhaps how it had affected her.
Wynn strode over and handed them both a piece of toast. "I put some special stuff on it, it may not look like much, but it'll give back a lot of your energy and fill your appetite. I'll be right outside if you need me," and she left.
The silence was uncomfortable, Link brooding in guilt and Tetra trying to find words to shun the guilt. She couldn't taste the nibbled food in her mouth, and was a little startled to find that eating a piece of bread could be so difficult. Tetra stared unwillingly at Link, and said without provocation, "So how was your meeting? With Lusues, I mean."
He closed his eyes and replied, "Different. She was different…and didn't tell me too much."
"She?" Tetra asked. "I'm positive Lusues is a he."
"Yes, she," Link answered curiously, locking her eyes with his, "That's odd, isn't it?"
"Yeah," Tetra replied stiffly, taking a large bite and gulping it down.
It got quiet again, and they both finished their bread at the same time. Walking outside, they saw Wynn by Resergam, mumbling quietly, darkly.
"We're done," Link said, and Tetra realized the masculinity of it. Deep, she marveled at how she hadn't noticed before. It seemed a whole door of things opened and she saw things she hadn't seen previous to this. He was taller than her by a few inches, and his face like a young man, not the boy she had met four years ago. She turned her gaze away, the same flames that she didn't want to feel rising dully in her face and low in her stomach. She closed her eyes and forced she to kill the emotions, smother.
They began walking again, and Tetra didn't take in her surroundings once more. Fairy people floated by, and quickly Link's arm was around her, squeezing just enough to feel safe. He glowered at them, looking like he would kill the next one who came within five feet of her.
The village of Rutay was soon behind them and they were back in the forest of the Wolf. The night was colder now; Link clutched her a little harder, but not so much to make her uncomfortable. The trek seemed long to Tetra, whom was still beating down the touchiness in her with his arm slung across her back. She looked down to the ground, not wanting the one holding her to know the feelings that she had accumulated growing, growing, and growing some more. Surely the trembling of her heart had reached his ears, and she expected that he wouldn't, and grew even more confused when she wanted him to know the uncertainty of her thoughts. Maybe she could put an arm around him as well…? But no, she wouldn't, the feelings that had more or less ruled her life for the past seven years dominating the will of the new ones springing up.
She struggled and struggled, and when she finally, at last thought she could pull it off, the cabin was in front of them. Tetra thought she could scream.
____________________________
The next day was the day the started it all. This was the day that their quest, Link and Tetra's, began.
Wynn woke them up by pouring bone cold water over their faces. They ate a tense breakfast, Link glancing at Tetra every now and then. And then after a washing (Wynn nearly had to tackle Link to the ground to keep him from following Tetra, for he wanted to be sure that the fairies weren't going to attack her again), the little girl led them to the beach where the duo had been found. Everything was as it had been, but now there was a ship, and both Link and Tetra had cried out in surprise.
The King of the Red Lions, once the only ship among the many seas to speak the words of men, was lying before them.
Link ran to it, his hands running all over it, the peeling red paint coated with algae. Voices from the past filled his head, and he could have cried from them. He hugged the inanimate head. Tetra watched from a distance.
"Where in the world did you find this?" Tetra asked of Wynn.
"It sailed in a couple years ago," she said simply, "I didn't need it, but it seems I've found those who do. I bestow this treasure of the sea to you two."
'That's right,' Tetra mused, 'This boat was lost along with Mako that night…' she closed her eyes from the bad memory.
"I repaired the sails last night, it'll be ready to set sail as soon as you two are ready," Wynn said. "Once Link finishes revisiting the past, I'll give you instructions on what to do."
Tetra bit her lip nervously. Would they really have to sail? The boat may have been able to hold the two of them four years ago, but now? It would either be a tight fit or they'd have to somehow take turns with one of them with their legs out while the other was completely in. Or perhaps it was bigger than se remembered. She rubbed her head.
A little while later both Tetra and Link were sitting in the sand with Wynn pacing in front of them, rolling off instructions. The only ones of importance, to them, were the ones to sail straight east, land and find a city called Dylry, and there, act as two travelers who need food and shelter for a short amount of time. And don't give out their names.
________________________
Wynn had prepared two picnic baskets for them, stuffed with food. The trip, she said, would take no longer than two to three days. And even if the journey was short, it still horrified Tetra. Three days out there on the sea, alone? Three days cramped in a small boat?
She sighed, today just seemed to bring about more questions to the infinite amount she had already.
The warnings of night were rapidly approaching, but Wynn hadn't offered yet for them to stay the night and begin the sailing at dawn. But, neither of them expected her to anyway. There was something completely nice about her…but a strange feeling that all was not as it seemed. The preparations took an hour, but saying good-bye to the tiny island took three.
Wynn folded her arms and leaned against the cabin, "You have to leave sometime or another, you know."
Link glared, and hung his head in defeat. Tetra dolefully kicked at the ground, still wearing the outfit from Resergam. She rested her hand on top of the hilt of the dagger Wynn had given her, biting her lip.
The trio walked to the beach sullenly, and quietly. Crickets played their music as a steady wind blew, miraculously, in a way that it would make it a simple ride. They would have had to row otherwise, and Tetra grinned for this turn of fate.
Link set the picnic baskets in the boats in such a way that it wouldn't take up leg space, and tied them down. He moved out of the way for Tetra to get in first.
She did, and surprisingly, the boat was bigger than what she remembered. There were enough room for three grown men in here! She fell back and hit her head when Link pushed. He stopped abruptly, apologized. But she didn't care. She just stared back at shore and waved slightly to Wynn as Link hopped in, to the front. He hoisted the sail up and she fell backward again when they sailed away.
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Ah, to be on the waves with the wind lightly touching your face! Pure bliss, both of them had forgotten it on the Isle of the Wolf, and now that they felt it again, neither of them could speak. The mist of the sea splattered against Tetra's cheeks. Windswept and in a world truly her own where no one could touch her, joy welled up where sorrow had been. She wished that she could just fling herself in the ocean and swim, but if she did, at the speed the boat was going, she would be left behind.
It was night, and the moon showed through purple clouds. It was all she could stare at. She stayed awake for longer than she thought to, or wanted to. When the morning sun cracked over the horizon, the young woman fell asleep.
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You did it. Now you were in deep. The muck enclosed over your head and you felt the air wriggle itself out of you. Perfect, now what were you going to do? Die of suffocation? You struggle, struggle, and feel yourself weakening, strength dripping out of your arms. You sink, the pressure increasing, you think your head would burst!
Surfacing, you gag and choke, stumbling, and falling over. You grow sick of all the darkness, and want to shout, "Where am I!"
You're trembling; you want to stand up, to go on. Who was that woman? The person with emerald hair, you look up.
There she is! The same puzzled look as before, staring forward. You crawl toward her, and look the same direction. You're not surprised, although something inside you is screaming, "No! This isn't right!"
It's you.
Author's Notes: Yay…a longer chapter. Would've been twice as long…but I got Final Fantasy X-2 and devoted much of my time to that. (Grins) I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Until next time…
"When playing Risk…don't take advice from your dad."
-A word from the wise from Pennywise