A/N: Oops, forgot to upload on Saturday! Here's your belated update :)
Chapter 6: Kakariko City
Week Seven, Friday morning, 8:42am
Vaati's and Link's room
Various articles of clothing were spread messily on Link's unmade bed, some halfheartedly folded and tossed into an open suitcase. Link scratched her head and frowned as she surveyed the mess. "Should I bring extra underwear…?" she muttered. "Nah, I left some at home. Should be good!" With that, she tossed a few more shirts into the suitcase and zipped it up.
Vaati came in through the open door, hair still damp from his morning shower, and paused when he saw the mess in Link's side of the room. "Are you going somewhere?" he squinted slightly, like he always did when he was confused.
"Yup," his roommate answered cheerfully. She plopped onto her bed, making no move to clear it off first. "I'm spending the weekend at home back in Kakariko City. Wanna come?"
"If you leave the room like this, so help me, I am never going to help you with your homework again," Vaati scowled. He pointedly kept to his much cleaner side of the room as he walked to his desk and grabbed a comb and hair tie.
Link chuckled to herself. A lot of people called Vaati self-righteous and a jerk, and maybe he was a little bit, but it seemed to Link that he really just had a spiky shell to protect himself with. Honestly, it made her curious to know what it was that he was trying to hide. From what little she knew, he was like her, an orphan who never knew his parents, but lucky enough to have had a chance to get a good education. Vaati was prickly, but he wasn't a bad person. That's what Link thought.
"You didn't answer my question!" she called. Vaati glanced over and frowned. "I said, you wanna come?"
Her question was greeted by nearly a full minute of blank staring, then squinting, then frowning, and finally scowling, before Vaati actually said anything. "Why?" he asked slowly, clearly suspicious.
Because Impa told me I need to meet with her, and I can't leave you here over the weekend where I can't watch you and risk something happening, like Tiv brainwashing you to become a Yiga. That was the real reason, but of course she couldn't say so.
Link grinned as she told her roommate a different version. "Because I thought you might like to see a few things, instead of reading about them. Have you ever been to Kakariko City?" Vaati slowly shook his head. "Well, it's traditionally the home of the Sheikah—y'know, the ones who used to protect the kingdom?" The fact that they still protected the kingdom was accepted as a sort of urban legend nowadays. "They used to have some really cool technology," she continued, "some of it even better than the stuff we've got now, probably because they combined their tech with magic. There's a museum about the Sheikah full of relics. And—get this—my mom is the head curator, so she had access to the archives and stuff that's not out on display, not to mention we get in for free…"
She was pleased to see Vaati's interest growing. The scowl eased from his face and was replaced with a slight frown, but he was listening to her carefully. When she trailed off and looked at him expectantly, he turned his gaze away, frowning at his desk as he tied up the top half of his hair into a small ponytail like usual. "Still, why?" Vaati repeated his earlier question.
"Uh, why else would I ask? It's not weird to invite friends to hang out together, y'know." Link rolled her eyes. "So, you coming or not?"
She heard him mutter to himself, "Who said we were friends?" But he covered it with a heavy sigh and said in a louder voice, "Fine, whatever."
"Good! Because I already told my mom you're coming. Now get packed—the train leaves in half an hour, you know!"
"Din, you're kidding, right?!" Vaati shouted, looking like he was already regretting his decision. He would still stick to it, though; Link had noticed that Vaati always upheld any decision he made, even if it was one he instantly regretted. She wondered how often that trait of his got him into trouble.
Link winked at her roommate. "Yeah, I'm kidding," she said, but he barely had a moment to relax before she added, "It's leaving in an hour." She laughed merrily at the murderous glare he gave her for that one.
10:58am
On the train
"Stop trying to take a nap on me!" Vaati violently shoved Link away from him, giving her yet another rude awakening, probably the eighth time since the train had started moving.
This time, she actually tried to stay awake, fixing Vaati with a look of betrayal. "Geez, it's not a crime to take a nap, is it? The movement of the train just makes me sleepy…" She yawned but tried to cover it with her hand.
Vaati shook his head and once again moved in his seat, trying to put as much space as possible between them. "I really don't care if you fall asleep, but don't put your head on my shoulder."
"Okay, okay, Porcupine."
"What?" Poor Vaati was nearing his wits end, and he was obviously struggling to keep an inside voice.
"Porcupine, because you don't want anyone near you and you viciously stab anyone who gets close." Link chuckled and poked his shoulder, eliciting a deep scowl from her companion. "I'll stay awake, don't worry, so no more being mean, please?"
"Whatever," Vaati muttered, keeping his gaze fixed on the window and the scenery that flashed by.
1:19pm
The Kakariko Museum of Sheikah Heritage, Archives
Shortly after arriving in Kakariko City, Link, Vaati, and Impa, who had met them at the station, had all headed to the museum where Link was sure Vaati would be occupied with looking at everything while she and her Sheikah guardian went over everything without him hearing anything.
Impa watched Vaati, who was roaming by himself through the archives, her side braid swinging as she and Link walked together. She said in a low voice for Link to hear, "Yes, I agree with your conclusion that the Yiga are targeting him. I attempted to gather further information on his background, but it was suspiciously scarce. There are signs that certain things in his past have been redacted or suppressed. We will require more time to research into this."
Link mulled over this information. She'd always suspected Vaati was hiding things about himself, but she thought it was just your typical childhood-trauma/self-protection type of thing. Now it seemed that there was much, much more to the story.
"For now," Impa concluded, "continue what you've been doing in gathering intel about him. It looks like you have Vaati's trust."
Link nodded. Truthfully, she hadn't been sure if Vaati would come with her to Kakariko City, considering how he was always saying how much Link's existence annoyed him. The fact that Vaati had come was proof that he trusted Link, even if only grudgingly.
The two of them grew quiet when Vaati came walking over. He barely spared Link a glance, instead fixing his gaze intently on Impa. "How much do you know about the Guardian artifacts?" he asked her. Link noticed how he had a notebook out, pencil at the ready. This museum, with its extensive collection, was a researcher's idea of heaven, and Vaati was clearly trying to cram as much information in as possible during their time there.
"I am not an expert on the Guardians, but I can tell you what I know about the artifacts here," Impa replied to Vaati.
"Anything and everything," Vaati nodded.
Link walked a few paces behind her roommate and the Sheikah woman, just listening and looking while Impa explained where each artifact had been discovered, the ancient tales of the Guardians and the historical evidence to support some of those tales, going over stories that Link had heard a thousand times from her many visits to the museum. Every word seemed to be important to Vaati; he dutifully filled a few pages of his notebook with the information as he heard it, occasionally adding sketches and circling sections. Impa, accustomed to this kind of thing, told him as much as she possibly could about the artifacts.
Eventually, after more wandering through the archives, Impa called out to the two students. "I have a meeting with the museum board in fifteen minutes. As long as you are with Link, you can stay in the archives. He can answer some of your questions, as well. You are free to go home whenever you want."
Link waved as the white-haired woman left. Then she turned to Vaati, to see him watching her, red eyes fixed on her face. "What?"
But he shook his head and returned to browsing the shelves. "Are there any Kokiri relics?" he queried. "Or fairy relics?"
"Maybe a few, but they don't fall under Sheikah heritage, so they don't stay here long." She let his strange look slide and led him to a different section of the archives, though she couldn't deny that she had a good idea what he was thinking about…
"Vaati, this is my mom." Upon arrival at the Kakariko City station, Impa had immediately met them as they were stepping off of the train. Link cheerfully introduced her roommate and her guardian to each other. "Impa, this is Vaati, my roommate!"
Impa bowed her head ever so slightly, just her braid swinging to indicate the movement. "It's good to finally meet you. You may call me Impa."
"Uh, likewise." Vaati was squinting in confusion at the two people in front of him: Link, with her blonde hair, blue eyes, light skin, and short height, and Impa, with her white hair, red eyes, tan skin, and tall stature. Link was smiling cheerfully while Impa looked severe in her business suit and Sheikah tattoo under her eye. "You didn't tell me you were adopted, too," he frowned, directing the accusing comment at Link.
She just chuckled and hoisted her bag onto her shoulder, unfazed about how quickly he'd noticed and how bluntly he'd pointed it out. "Just one of my many secrets!" she'd winked.
Link figured that Vaati was still processing the strange contrast between her and Impa, and perhaps shifting whatever image he'd had of Link's life and background, maybe even conceding that Link wasn't just a brainless kid. Or maybe something else entirely was going on inside his head; she could only guess. Maybe Vaati couldn't care less about Link's family and past and had never given her personal life a single thought. For some reason, that bothered her.
Saturday, 11:17am
Cotera Woods
Birds trilled and chirped in the treetops while a breeze rustled the leaves and the creek bubbled. Link stretched out her arms as though she were embracing the whole forest. "Ah, I've missed hiking here!" she exclaimed, taking in a deep breath. It was like the outdoors was feeding her raw energy, and she wanted to run down the trail as fast as she could. "This is probably my favorite place in the entire universe."
"It's definitely not mine," came a grumble from behind her. Link turned just her head to look over her shoulder at Vaati, who was looking incredibly uncomfortable and annoyed. His violet bangs were pinned away from his face for once, but strands of hair still stuck to his sweaty cheek. He was panting slightly.
Somehow Link had persuaded her roommate to peel himself away from studying everything at the museum all day long and join her on a hike through the Cotera Woods. Another bit of baiting with promises of 'areas historically known for magic,' and a lot of pestering. It wasn't a total lie. Somewhere within the woods, there had once been a Fairy Fountain, though Link had never been able to find anything resembling one.
She waved a hand at Vaati, encouraging him to keep going. "There's a stream not too far ahead. We can take a break there," Link told him.
"Define 'not too far ahead,'" Vaati scowled. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, then frowned at the moisture left on his arm and wiped that on his pants.
"Less than five minutes, if we continue at the pace we've been going." With that, Link started marching forward, swinging her arms as she went.
The moment they got to the stream, Vaati sat down on its bank in the shade from the trees, letting his backpack slide off his shoulders and to the ground with a thump. Link dropped down next to him. "You don't spend much time outdoors, do you?" she asked, elbowing him playfully.
"I don't need to go outside to pursue magic," was the blunt reply.
Link hummed, leaning forward to take off her shoes and socks. "Maybe." She dipped her toes in the cold stream water. A few quiet moments passed between the two. Then Link asked, "Hey, I don't think you ever answered about whether you've seen magic before."
"I have seen some."
She waited for him to say more, but when he didn't, she turned her face to give him a deep frown. "Come on, give me more detail than that! When, where, who—things like that, the full story!" Link leaned in close to Vaati. "Tell me, pleeeeease. I'll stay two inches away until you do."
"For the love of Hylia—" Vaati tried to pull his head back, but Link followed his movement, keeping their faces exactly two inches apart. "I thought you said you'd quit doing this stuff! Din, why do you want to know so badly?"
"I told you already—I'm a spy sent to watch you, so I have to learn as much as possible about you."
"You're a sorry excuse for one, then," he replied sarcastically, his scowl deepening. "Seriously, Link, quit prying and get out of my face!" Vaati grabbed her by the shoulders and shoved her away, holding her at arm's length. His red eyes were narrowed, but Link thought she could see something other than annoyance in their depths. He seemed… uncertain.
Slowly, Link queried, "Was the magic something bad?"
Vaati's glare faltered, and Link pressed on. "What, did it have something to do with you? You got hurt by magic? Or maybe, you used magic and hurt someone? Come on, Vaati, you gotta give me the story!" She felt his grip on her shoulders loosen and she took advantage of it, pushing herself forward so she was inches away from his face again.
"I said, stop prying and get away!" Vaati snapped.
A sudden blast of wind knocked Link away from him, sending her flat on her back on the ground. The trees shook noisily as air whipped their branches wildly around. Link grunted, more in surprise than pain, and lifted her head to stare at Vaati. His hair looked like it was floating, the way the wind lifted it. His red eyes glowed slightly. Or was she imagining it?
Gradually, the wind died down to normal. Vaati's eyes went wide and he scrambled to his feet. "Goddesses… why…?" he murmured, staring at Link sprawled on the ground and then looking at his hands. She was surprised to hear how shaken his voice sounded.
Link pushed herself up and stood, brushing off her clothes. "Huh, so that's what happens if I push too many buttons," she said lightly.
Her words had the intended effect. The shock quickly left Vaati's expression, replaced with anger. "Do you ever take anything seriously?!" he shouted at Link. "Why are you joking about something like this?!"
"What, do you want me to be scared of you instead? What's the point of that?" Link replied. She wasn't smiling, and she locked her eyes with Vaati's. "I'm guessing this same kind of thing has happened before, and that's what you didn't want to tell me about, right? Wind magic, just like the Vaati from the legends…" She paused, seeing the emotion swirl in his eyes at that statement. Link continued, firmly, "So what? I already heard you say you don't want to be like that guy. This was just an accident. And it answers a lot of my questions, so you should be happy! Less pestering from me." A small smile eased her serious expression. "I have to say though… You did look pretty badass, with your hair all floating and your eyes glowing."
All Vaati did was stare at her, dumbstruck, the anger fading from his eyes. He looked lost and confused now. "I don't understand you," he finally said.
"You probably never will," Link replied honesty with a full smile now. She patted him on the shoulder. "Come one, let's head back. Oh. I won't tell anyone, you know, about what just happened." Or I would, except I have to report this to Impa.
Vaati still gave her that lost look, but he nodded slightly. "Thank you…"
The sincerity in those two simple words brought a tingle of guilt in Link's stomach. She shoved the feeling down and started back down the trail.
