Chapter 19: Broken Seals

"Stop hogging it!"

"But it's my toy!" Vaati pulled away. The other kid was persistent, though.

"Mrs. Marie says to share!" He grabbed the wolf toy by the tail, tugging at it fiercely.

"No, I'm playing with it! Let - GO!"

The exclamation was followed by a frightened scream and a sudden lack of resistance on the stuffed wolf. Vaati lowered his hands, staring in confusion at the other kid who had somehow collapsed several feet away. All the other toys around his feet were several feet away now, too. He breathed in, and the air that filled his chest seemed... powerful.

The other kid gave Vaati one look and ran away, crying.


"Don't touch it!"

Vaati heard someone shout those words. The next moment, he nearly fell backward as something hit him, knocking all the air out of his chest—no, not out, in. He recognized it: that same rush of energy that filled him whenever he used magic. This time was more powerful than he had ever felt before. He pressed his back against the wall in order to stay standing as wind howled through the cavern and the staircase.

There were startled shouts and exclamations from within the Sanctuary. Vaati heard something crash, and some light left the cave, likely one of the lights having toppled and smashed on the ground.

"Put the sword back!" someone bellowed over the wind.

Vaati slowly pushed himself away from the wall. The wind rushed around him, lifting his hair, but it didn't threaten to push him off his feet. Was this... his wind? All the uneasiness that had been dragging him down that day was gone, replaced by the power swelling in his chest and swirling around him. He felt light, as though floating, and at the same time strong, like the weight of a stormy gale.

One deliberate step at a time, Vaati walked down the steps and into the Sanctuary. The two Sheikah guards were crouched low to the ground, fighting to keep on their feet. Vaati ignored them, however, climbing over the crumbled stones of the Sanctuary entrance, his eyes locked on the familiar figure at the back of the cave. He stopped several feet away.

"Looks like my hunch was right!" Link grinned, holding up the rusted Four Sword in his left hand, the other hand braced against the stone wall. "There, your magic is finally unlocked!"

When all he got in reply was the howling of the wind, the blonde's smile faltered. "Er, Vaati...? You okay?"

"Do I look okay?!" Vaati snapped. All at once, the wind stopped rushing randomly around the cavern and shot in one focused blast at Link's left hand. The Four Sword went clattering to the ground. Vaati marched over to Link and grabbed him by the front of the shirt, slamming him up against the wall. He had a feeling his eyes were glowing red, but he didn't care. "I didn't ask you to do this!"

Link's smile dropped completely, and he offered no resistance. "But there wasn't any other way—"

His blue eyes suddenly widened, snapping back to somewhere behind Vaati. Before Vaati could react, Link grabbed his arms and swung him around to be pressed against the wall, reversing their positions. Standing in the Sanctuary entrance were the two Sheikah agents, pointing weapons his way. Vaati's breath caught for one moment.

"Alrighty, time to calm down and stop the crazy winds," Link said lightly, though his expression was serious. "Ignore those two. Just concentrate. Calm down, take some deep breaths..."

Vaati took a deep breath. Link was right, he needed to get a grip. As he was right now, he hated to admit, he looked dangerous. Just take slow, deep breaths. Gradually, the howling of the wind in the cavern died down, as did the powerful feeling in his chest.

He scowled when Link let go of his shoulders and patted him on the head. "Good job! You're a natural!" his roommate grinned, as though this were the most normal thing in the world.

"Link, you know what this means, right...?" he muttered, his anger not completely gone.

His roommate nodded but didn't stop smiling. "Yep—your magic is completely free now! And I think we all kinda knew already who you were if that's what you're asking. But anyways—" Link held out his hand to Vaati "—congratulations on getting your magic!"

Vaati could only stare, dumbfounded, at the hand offered to him and the smiling face of the person offering it. Didn't he get it?! With this, there was no doubt anymore that Vaati really was the Wind Mage—historical destructor of Hyrule, an evil presence that had to be sealed away. And yet here was Link, smiling at the selfsame Mage.

Footsteps echoed on the stone floor, and the two turned to look at the group gathering in the Sanctuary entrance. There were several Sheikah agents and priests, Impa pushing her way through as they looked. Vaati's stomach pinched at the absolute fury etched into the tall woman's face. Beside him, he heard Link mutter, "Snap."

"What is going on?" Impa asked in a low voice, each word an icicle.

Vaati opened his mouth to reply, but Link beat him to it. "I removed the Four Sword."

"You—?! You had no permission to do so, Link!"

"I know. I knew you wouldn't grant it, either. But it was the only sure way to get Vaati's magic." How could Link stay so calm?

Impa's red eyes turned to Vaati, and he tensed. "Why are you here with Link?"

"I saw him sneaking down here, and I followed him..."

"Where is the Four Sword?"

"Uh, somewhere over there." Link pointed to the other side of the cavern. One of the Sheikah agents scanned the area with their flashlight, quickly finding it by its gleaming hiltstone. He hesitated to pick it up, however. "It should be safe to touch now," Link called out.

Father Gaepora came rushing to Impa's side, face red from running. "What has happened?!"

Impa shook her head, braid whipping from side to side. "Let's discuss this somewhere else. Link, Vaati, come with us. My agents will secure the area." Her tone left no room for discussion, and the two students obediently followed after her.


"I see. So, by undoing the seal completely, you were able to unlock Enlil's magic and also confirm that he really is the Wind Mage."

"Yeah," Link answered seriously.

They were holding a meeting in Impa's guest room, with Zelda present as well. She had already checked over Vaati and confirmed that his magic power was flowing freely now. The way she had breathed in sharply at first made Vaati uneasy; was his magic really that scary to her?

"That was an incredibly reckless thing to do," Impa said severely. "You were warned about the dangers of removing the Four Sword. Not only was it dangerous for yourself, but you also endangered those around you, including Enlil. What if his body had not been able to handle the sudden amount of energy? What if it had gone completely out of control and caused the Sanctuary to collapse?"

"I did think of those things... I knew the danger. It's not like I had no plan for if things went wrong. I am your student, after all." Link's eyes did not waver as he spoke; Vaati had to admire him for not flinching under Impa's icy glare.

"Plan or not, you went against orders. I will let you off with a warning this time since you are not one to do this normally. Next time, however, I will be forced to consider suspending you from the agency. Is that understood?"

Link bowed his head. "Understood."

Impa turned her sharp gaze to Vaati next. "As for you, we expect you to keep your magic under control and a secret at all costs."

"Yes, I understand," Vaati muttered. Like he wanted to go around showing off his magic now.

"Otherwise, proceed as you all have until I have further orders. The three of you are dismissed. Father Gaepora, I would like to speak more with you."

The three students filed out of Impa's room and shuffled down the hall in solemn silence. They were only a few doors down, though, when Link let out an exaggerated sigh and collapsed against the wall.

"Geez, I thought for sure I was dead meat," he gasped. "I've seen agents kicked out for less... Guess maybe she does have a soft spot for me!"

Vaati narrowed his eyes and shook his head. "How can you always be so carefree?" he growled under his breath.

"But everything turned out alright, didn't it?"

"How is it alright?!" Vaati whipped around to face Link. Wind whistled through the cracks in the wooden floor. "In case you haven't gotten it through your thick head already, I. Am. The Wind Mage."

"Vaati—" Zelda timidly tried to interject, but Link's reply cut her off.

The blonde jabbed a finger at Vaati's chest. "And in case you haven't gotten it through your thick head already, I. Don't. Care."

"Well, I do! I didn't want to be this. And you know what everyone is going to do now? They're going to be waiting for me to do anything that could be seen as even slightly evil so they can put me back in that prison!"

Link shook his head roughly. "I won't let that happen, Vaati. I pulled that sword out because I believe in you. You have the magic of some evil old sorcerer—I don't care about that. What's important is that you want to use that magic in any way but how he used it. You've never purposefully used your power against anyone. Accidentally, sure, but that happens to everyone. You could turn into a giant bat right now and I wouldn't think any differently." Link jabbed Vaati's chest again emphatically. "What matters is that you want to be a better person than the Wind Mage was. I believe in that. And if anything with your magic goes wrong, they can blame me." The hard glint in his blue eyes softened somewhat, and he smiled weakly. "Of course, you probably think I'm just making all of this up. It's up to you whether to believe me or not. Good night." Link turned and trotted down to his room, quickly escaping.

Vaati was left feeling frustrated and tired, the wind still whistling under his feet in response to his emotions. "I don't understand him at all!" he snapped.

He was reminded that Zelda was still there when she squeaked slightly. Her eyes were round and nervous, but she spoke when he looked over at her. "Maybe you don't need to understand him, just... believe in him, too. I—I'm going back to bed as well." The blonde ducked her head and slipped past Vaati.

With nowhere else to go, Vaati, too, returned to his guest room. He dropped onto his back on his bed. Not too long ago, his whole body had been alive with energy, but now he felt completely drained. He didn't even worry about having nightmares this time; within moments of closing his eyes, Vaati was deep in sleep, far away from any dreams or worries.


Week 14, Tuesday, 3:00pm

Saria Park

There were just enough leaves left on the ground for the wind to pick up and play with. Most of them had already fallen from their homes in the trees and been collected from the ground, taken away somewhere to be burned, probably. Vaati watched the lone leaves dancing and skipping in the wind from his seat on the bench. They died down, however, after a while.

Experimentally, Vaati lifted a hand out towards the leaves, sweeping it gently to the side. A small gust of wind picked up the leaves, matching the movement of his hand. He moved it the other way, and the wind changed direction, carrying the leaves the other way. To an onlooker, it might look just like a fickle wind, but Vaati could feel the wind, the way it followed his moments, the texture of the leaves riding it.

Even though Impa had told him to keep his magic a secret, Vaati had come to the park every day since returning to the Academy, experimenting with the wind. As long as no one suspected the strangely energetic wind, he saw no harm in it. After all, he finally had the magic he'd sought for so long.

Ha. Yeah, he'd gotten what he wished for, alright, and a whole lot more. Now he had his magic, but he wasn't even allowed to use it, nor did he really want to use it, to an extent. It was a cursed power, a mark of his true identity as the Wind Mage. He lowered his hand and the leaves dropped to the ground.

Vaati felt lost. Now that he had his magic, he no longer needed to spend all his time researching how to recover it, but he also couldn't use his free time to practice his magic beyond blowing around leaves. There had been no orders or news from Impa concerning Ghirahim or the Yiga, either.

Of course, he had schoolwork and end-of-semester projects to work on, but his motivation for doing such things had died. He couldn't help thinking that it was pointless now. Who would grant the Wind Mage a degree or a job? Did he even deserve things like that?

On top of that, he hadn't spoken to Link hardly at all since that night. It was normal for Vaati, of course, but when Link only ever said "Morning", "Hey", and "See ya", he couldn't help but feel that his roommate was avoiding him. It was different than that week after Link got out of the hospital; that time, Link had wavered between acting normal around Vaati and running from him, always very aware and on edge around him. Now, it was like Link barely acknowledged Vaati's presence.

It frustrated Vaati. If Link was going to spout off things like believing in him, why was he avoiding him like an unwanted nuisance now?! And the fact that it frustrated him made him even more frustrated—he shouldn't care how Link acted around him. They were just co-workers. Perhaps that's why Link was acting that way, he told himself. He was trying to be professional.

But I don't like the professional Link.

Vaati stood up abruptly, a gust of wind shaking the grass at his feet. What kind of thought was that?! It didn't matter if he liked it or not; it was what it was, and it was better this way.

He couldn't chase away the thought, though, that it'd be nice to go back to how things were before: just normal students, normal roommates, normal friends.