Maureen swept her hand across the hallway. "It's pretty basic, here," she said, with a gesture to the earthen walls. About four rooms were sectioned off to the right side of the corridor, their wide doorways covered with leaf-ridden vines. Link scurried over to the nearest one, whirled and did the thumbs-up before turning back around again and shifting the vines aside.
It was your basic fantasy-style room inside, complete with roaring fire, oaken furniture and massive blanketed four-poster bed. A brass nameplate behind the bed read 'Mosley' in a smooth, flowing script. Adjacent to the bed was a mahogany-coloured oak table; on top of it, Mosley had been carving a partially finished willow bow, now stocked inside a fur-lined animal-skin quiver.
Link turned back and followed as the group continued the tour of the rest of the castle. It turned out there was only a small kitchen in the basement, sporting a cauldron held up above the embers of a fire, where everyone helped Nalinda cook the meals every day. There were beds for the others and, as he discovered, their parents; Marty's was especially lavish. The hallways were long and planked with wood, as were the walls and ceilings.
The island was parted off into night different regions: Coconut Beach, Sandstorm Desert, Ferngrowth, Castle Court, Graymoor, Palmleaves, Ocean Blue and Clearwater River. "It's pretty versatile, Datillo Island," Maureen explained with a smile as Link and the other stood on a grassy bank, watching Clearwater as it wound its way through the woodland part of the island. "So many things grow on it."
Maureen looked startled as Link wordlessly peeled his elven cap off suddenly and jumped into the river in a splash of foamy white water. "What are you doing, Link?" she called down to him.
Link waved and swam off into the distance. Jessa grinned suddenly at Maureen, doffed a fake hat, and jumped in after Link.
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The setting sun cast its golden glow on the faces of seven children playing in Clearwater River, gilding them in a glorious eventide light. The sun's warm rays bounced off their faces and gave them all a radiant summer-going-on-fall glow, reflecting off the clear water of the river as it wound its way through the forested part of Datillo Island. The sun slowly set, but still they swam on in its fading light.
On and on the children played, not knowing of the adventures and terrors the morn would bring.
