This is a piece I wrote back in creative writing my senior year. It was supposed to follow the pattern of the beginning of a John Steinbeck piece. Being the Zelda fan I am, I naturally used Link as the main character. Hopefully it's short and sweet and not too bogged down of a read. It takes place right after Link has awakened from his seven years' slumber (with some minor tweaking to fit the mood). Enjoy.
Disclaimer: I don't own Link or the Zelda series. Shigeru Miyamoto is a genius of a man (execpt the wait for Twilight Princess is killing me). I wish I was as creative as him.
My World
The first thoughts of when I awoke from my slumber and stepped out into the land I left behind seven years ago always fills me with the greatest sense of hopelessness and loss. I cannot help recalling it after everything that happened. I don't know why I continue to drown in the sadness of that first day when the sky once again shines its spotless crystal-clear blue over everything. Perhaps it's the need to put it all to rest, which is why I sometimes remember more things about it the more times I recall everything.
There was a place where everything was once made of light and bathed in the goodness of people. Mountains stood tall in the northeast, towering like the stone giants they were. In the mornings they glowed red, and even the ring of cloud around the summit shone pink. Once proud and glowing with the sun of the day, they now remain perched over the world dull and gray, almost lifeless. The pale yellow orb of night hung in the sky at this moment though its rays did not penetrate the air of despair.
It was cold standing there in the darkness of the thick fog. Being from a forest I'd never experienced such a chill and had not even the pockets to shove my hands into. Instead, I relied on the gauntlets I wore and shivered, the thin tunic not protective from the elements. Grasslands, a never-ending field of green, were stretched out before me, glowing in the moonlight. The dullness was not unnoticed, but it paled in comparison to the dark peaks. I knew my destination. I knew where I was to go next. To the left of the dead castle I was standing in front of sat a village at the foothills. My strange guide directed me there, but the direction I turned was the opposite. In the distance stood another large and dark figure, though from where I was currently taking up space I could plainly see the dim lights in the window flickering every so often like the light from a candle. Immediately I was off toward this place.
Running quickly, I got there in no time, and though it was likely no one was awake at the hour, I came into the ranch anyway. Mostly the thought of standing in the open pasture was what drove me to my place, ignoring the unnerving calls from the grave-looking birds above. As I approached the open area, which somehow remained untouched by the evil, there was a voice as soft as the moonlight. Apparently not everyone was asleep as I presumed. When I saw who it was, I slowed my pace.
Dressed in a light pink skirt and white top, she was carefully grooming a beautiful steed that I also immediately recognized. Not impeded by the brushing of the reddish-brown fur and mane white as snow, she continued to sing the song I would never forget. Everything was so fluid, almost practiced like she'd done this same activity every night for all of her life. The moonlight from above lit up her features accenting the hair, which matched the animal's in tone, and I could truly see how she'd grown since we last met.
I was close now, no more than ten feet away though still unnoticed by the one I was watching. Finally I was found out by a simple snap of a twig. Rigid and now frightened, she dropped her hand with the brush in it and spun around, the fear highlighted like the rest of her by the glow and eyes wide, allowing me to see that not only the sky was a deep blue. I simply smiled, wondering if I would even be remembered.
"Hi," I said dumbly.
"Hi," she greeted back, not entirely over my presence. I didn't say anything after that because it had been so long, and I wasn't entirely sure if she would remember the little kid clad in green who woke up her bum of a fatherwhen he fell asleep delivering milk. The horse neighed, apparently not recognizing me either. The girl got panicky again and tried to calm her down. This was a harder task than one would imagine a girl who grew up around horses would have. This was when I first noticed the pendant around her neck as it caught the light of the moon in and reflected it almost directly in my eyes. Pulling on the reigns was apparently not working as she went so far as to even scold the mare, which was something I know she would never do under normal circumstances. It was almost a frantic plea, but I could not understand why. After the steed calmed down, her gaze was placed back on me as I simply stared still.
"Please don't tell Mr. Ingo," she practically begged of me. I still stood unmoving and silent. She continued, though. "He told me never to sing that song again, and he makes me work all day. This is the only break I can get. Please don't tell." Practically dumfounded by that, I replied with the compulsion to assure her Ingo would not hurt her or the horses for this.
"I won't." At my reassurance, she almost smiled at me, and I wondered whether or not the look in her eyes meant she knew who this young man before her was. Without a word more she went back to grooming the beast like I wasn't there, and I understood completely. Slowing backing away, I stared still. Before I even realized it, dawn began to creep over the hills. I hadn't known it was even close to that time, but I had no grasp of anything at the moment, either. The dark blue was fading into the lighter hue of daybreak, reminding me of her eyes before seven years took their toll. Silently I slunk away with the warming yellow light beginning to hit me and warm me up.
I suppose it was then that I truly knew where I had to go next. Saving the world was the number one thing on my "to-do" list at the moment but onlyright after I freed this small place. As I recall now, that day was what gave me courage to continue fighting this war when everything seemed lost and dead. The sadness still lingers inside both at the world and the way she was escaping in the moonlight. But at the same time it made me go on. Perhaps that is why I remember it even now. I need the courage again to keep me here with her. I need that small light in my darkness until I can be free once more like the world I saved.
That's it. The end. Please review. Thank you for taking the time to read this.