Chapter 7: Weybour; A Town Drowning in Snowfall
Winter Crisis in Snowhead Arc
Disclaimer: I don't own The Legend of Zelda, this is just a Fanfiction.
Featured Music: "The Four Giants' Theme" - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask OST. Chapter Briefing.
"Oath to Order" - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask OST. Scene 1 (First Half).
"Marsh Land Clear" - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask OST. Scene 2 (Second Half).
"Snowpeak" - The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess OST. Scene 3 (First Half).
"Foulwater Falls" - Wario Land V: The Shake Dimension OST. Scene 3 (Second Half) and 4 (Both Halves).
"Mountain Village" - The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask OST. Scene 5.
In his most daring escapade yet the young Hero of Time has at last managed to free Woodfall and its holy temple of the infectious poison that Skull Kid and the evil mask he wears previously breathed into. Although the watching little guardian fairy that travels with him often had her doubts about him, she finally begins to see the reasoning for his infuriating overconfidence.
A fact reflected in the incredible deeds he has accomplished under his extremely young belt.
Against all probable odds, and with only the guiding counsel of Tatl the guardian fairy, Link manages to overpower the incredible size of the Masked Jungle Warrior, Odolwa. In spite of the gigantic proportion difference between them the young Hero of Time shockingly and dominantly overpowers the ancient tribal champion and, in doing so, breathes new life within the once-pristine waters of the Southern Swamp.
Despite the heroes' best efforts however they are unable to locate the missing monarch's daughter; the Deku princess. Although they follow the prisoner that the Deku royal family have taken and his instructions, they merely catch only glimpses of the path the pair traversed, they make their own; a yin and yang of destruction and cleansing, one that begins to fill the cynical little heart that Tatl keeps close to herself.
It is only after they clear the evil surrounding Woodfall and its Southern Swamp however do Link and Tatl finally begin to place bearings on the missing Deku princess...
But not before a meeting with the missing guardian deity.
Scene 1
Having stepped through the brightly-blue warp that appeared for the pair, Link and Tatl very soon found themselves within a closed off part of the temple.
Or perhaps this was a completely different dimension altogether?
Who knows, the frowning Link thought as he swerved his oceanic-eyed gaze along the dreamy and wavy air around him. He stood on what appeared to be a large platform, seemingly erected just for him to stand on. Oddly enough, as the frowning young Hero of Time narrowed his cerulean eyes forward, he began to make out what appeared to be some kind of a rather large figure in the dreamlike distance.
"W-What's that?"
Tatl's anxious call gave rise to the incredible godlike voice that followed hers. An odd kind of melody began to play from the giant's singing; a firm and deep bass that vibrated the very platform the narrow-eyed Link stood upon.
"Wait... listen...," Tatl murmured out, her own eyes narrowing behind her milk-shaded light. "It seems to be... saying something. Is it a... song...?"
Link needed no further prodding; he let his frown take him into the place he always went to when he brought out the holy Ocarina of Time.
The harmony that came from the powerful bass the giant offered complimented the backing track of Link's ocarina, joined only by Tatl's low-toned pings; a tutorial for him.
Even if it had been a full alternate future since he even needed one.
The tune that played between all three however was a strange and sad kind of song; one that found itself resonating within the deeply-frowning form of the young Hylian. There was an odd kind of strength within its morose quality however; one that did not go unnoticed by the heroes.
"C-A-L-L... U-S..."
Tatl's translation, so accurate and yet so slow, managed to make the frowning youth drop his instrument. He turned his frown up to eye her carefully before wandering his gaze back on the moaning giant far away from them.
"... That's... what it seems to be saying to us." The similarly-faced Tatl claimed in a positive nod of her light form, her words bolstered by the behemoth's assenting.
The contemplative young Hero of Time didn't even get to voice whatever concerns he may have had during the exchange for, as Tatl finished her own sentence, a bright white light engulfed them, leading the pair of heroes to their next destination.
DAWN OF THE FINAL DAY
-24 Hours Remain-
TMP...
The sound of Link's well-worn Kokiri boots touching safe ground managed to bring his drifting consciousness back and, as it did, the very first thing he managed to catch sight of was the bright form of his new guardian fairy.
"The four people that Tael talked about..."
She spoke as she slowly sailed upwards in her speech, a thoughtful tone to her words.
"Do you think that one of them may have been the spirit that was inside that mask?" Tatl followed up with as she swung her head 'round to frown down at him, a pensive tone flavouring her voice.
He shrugged back at her, unsure, as a fairly simple zig-zag-like frown drew across his expression. "Could be; goddess only knows," he answered her with before elaborating further. "All I know is... how to carve a path to 'em." He claimed, his eyes shutting as he shrugged once more, a grin slowly re-growing on his face as he did.
"O-Oh! Hey!"
He re-opened one of his eyes to find her hovering in his face, briefly surprising him.
"How the hell did you do that?!" She exclaimed, her tone similarly surprised. Link's knowing grin merely widened in response. "When that thing lunged at you like that... it should have killed you!"
"Noticed that, did ya?" He shot back, re-opening his right eye as he chuckled in a folded-armed grin. "All I did was parry his obvious assault; even you should have been able to see it comin'."
"W-Well... yes I suppose it was obvious but-"
It was only when she tripped over her own response that she widened her eyes and re-raised her head to narrow her eyes at him in an annoyed frown.
"What do you mean 'even you'?!" She exclaimed again, frustrated. "You realise I know more than-?!"
Her angry retort, so filled with pent-up rage and frustration, began to cool when she came face-to-face with the shut-eyed childlike grin on her young partner's face. She rolled her eyes and sighed, her soprano carrying her up as she turned to float and hover upwards.
"Um... listen...,"
Her words, spoken now with an odd tone of regret and respect, left a surprised frown resting on the Hero of Time's normally impudent expression. He blinked back up at her, curious.
"I... guess I was wrong... about you."
The listening Link could barely believe his small and pointed ears.
Was she... admitting she was wrong?
That's incredible, he thought.
"I guess miracles really can happen."
His response, spoken so quickly after her tepid choice of words, managed to exasperate the delicately-tempered little guardian fairy; a fact reflected in her sudden shift to brightly-lit red.
"Hey; shut up!" She exclaimed angrily, eliciting a chuckling giggle from the listening youth. "I was gonna apologise for that stuff with your horse, but d'yknow what?!"
He rose a curious straw-haired eyebrow upward, his grin ever prevalent on his young features.
"You can take your apology and-"
Her added response, so fiery and so heated, very quickly found itself halted; like a crashing wave against a mountaintop. When she double-took to her front and, effectively behind the pair of heroes, she widened her eyes at the sight waiting for them.
"W-What is it...?" Link hazarded to question, raising a curious eyebrow up at her again before swiftly tracing her gaze, only to find what she had been so interested in.
Sure enough, a separate chamber rested behind the two heroes, blocked off by heavy vines and foliage. Inside appeared to be sitting a little feminine form that the narrow-eyed Link quickly identified as the missing Deku king's daughter.
They had at last located the Deku princess.
The grinning-faced Link resisted every urge but, by the time he found himself swivelling his head back 'round to eye the little guardian fairy hovering behind him, his mouth had already opened.
"So... how 'bout that apology?"
–
2
STOMPSTOMP-STOMPSTOMP-STOMPSTOMP
"Pun-ish-ment!"
"Pun-ish-ment!"
As Link strode slowly through the throne room of the Deku monarch he kept his eyes glued to the extremely hot pot that lay in the centre, boiling away via the bonfire beneath it. Hanging directly above the baking-tempered cauldron was the poor little monkey himself, whom Link had gone out of his way to free. It was only when he screamed out, as if to call attention, that the surrounding Deku forms stopped their ritual-like dancing march to swing their leafy heads 'round and give visage to their return visitor.
"What the...?"
As the frowning form of the young Hero of Time stepped toward the hardwood podium resting before him, he rose his blonde-haired head and narrowed his eyes at the larger man.
"How did a Hylian get through my security?!" The Deku king called out angrily, swinging his head around his sheepish-faced soldiers and servants. His conflicting steward however, so careful and considerate, stepped forward to speak at his side.
"M-My lord if you'll please allow me to-"
"This is outrageous!" The enraged sultan exclaimed belligerently over the wincing butler, visibly shaking with the acrimonious bitterness he held toward the frowning youth below him. "You send a Deku agent in here to help free this criminal and then return to the scene of the crime so boldly?!"
In spite of the entire room's hardened and fixated stares upon him Link remained unabashed and composed; he merely placed a single hand upon his right hip as he stared back silently at the Deku's ruler, his wordless frown flavouring his leaning stance appropriately.
"Rrrggh!" The ballistic king growled, his wooden complexion taking a deep-scarlet hue. "Guards! Seize this little hooliga-!"
SNAP
In a single wordless flash of his fingers the frowning Link managed to successfully interrupt the king in an, albeit, rather impudent and uncivil manner. The throne room, their attention enraptured, watched on as the little Tatl flew up from inside the youth's clothing; a bright light reflected off of the large bottle she carried, indicating its weight and the possible contents within.
"What's he doing?"
"What's in that thing?"
"Is that...?!"
The final hushed whisper of one of the throne room's many Deku soldiers made the impassively-faced Link upturn his expression into the confident grin he was known for. As the silent Tatl hovered toward the blinking Deku king, the bottle she carried began to tip forward; its wooden stopper having seemingly been taken off previously allowed it the leverage with which to drop its merchandise.
"You're about to thank me in a second."
The Deku king, his rage returning almost as immediately as the brazen words left the young Hylian's words, swung his head up to glare back at the smirking-faced Hero of Time.
It was only when, at last the bottle's contents were removed and a new figure stood directly before him, that he double-took to his front in a surprised frown.
"W-What in the...?"
Even as the words he murmured left his mouth he could barely believe them; the glaring form of his daughter stared back at him, not a single scratch on her.
"M-My princess...!" He gasped out, falling to his short little knees as he did; a sign of his incredulous surprise. "My darling daughter...!" The Deku king whispered out, tears stinging at the sides of his large and saddened amber-shaded eyes. "You're all right! I thought you lost from us my little daffodil!"
"Ffff..."
The indignant growl in her tone indicated a built-up reaction; the Deku princess quietly but efficiently seethed, the target of her ire her wide-eyed parent.
"Father...!"
In a surprising single bound the young Deku managed to leap up to tackle the much older plant-like person and, once atop, began to bounce comically off of him. Although the heavily-faced Tatl merely frowned in a deadpan expression of her own the watching Link couldn't help but erupt into very quiet snorts of hilarity, resting his superior left hand under his raised right elbow as he did.
BOING-BOING-BOING
The angry little aristocrat, halting her livid debouch temporarily, swung her narrow-eyed glare on the watching Deku soldiers standing at attention.
"And just what in Woodfall's honour are you living trees doing?!" She exclaimed down at the standing shaky soldiers. "Let that monkey go this instant!"
STOMPSTOMP-STOMPSTOMP-STOMPSTOMP
This time, as the smiling Link lost the laughing look upon his face, he listened a second time to the ever synergised footwork of the Deku military men.
"Oh Mr. Monkey... I am truly sorry," the Deku princess began once more as she bowed toward the newly released little simian; a sign of apology and respect. "Father tends to rely on rash action when he's worried about me."
The small chimpanzee, now merely nonchalant, opted to wave the matter off in a similar glib manner. "Water under the bridge, honestly Princess," the little ape frowned, shaking his white-furred head of the young girl's regrets. "Ah! You!"
Realising the monkey was directly addressing him, the lightly-grinning Link nodded his head upward as he towered over the pair in his Hylian form, a single hand placed to rest upon his right hip as he usually seemed to.
"I see you are of many forms indeed!"
"And you can talk more than your brothers, huh."
The mischievous-faced Hero of Time's quip managed to make the listening princess titter quietly and draw out a chuckle from the small chimpanzee ahead.
"In any case...," he chuckled lightly before soon regaining the grateful smile his face took on. "Thank you... for keeping your promise to me."
In a single affirming grunt of respect the little simian nodded forward; the normally flippant-mannered Link obliged him in a courteous light bow, his cerulean eyes briefly shut as he did.
"O-Oh... um... Mr. Link..."
The surprisingly modest-sounding voice of the Deku princess managed to take him off guard; the smiling Link very quickly found himself frowning in a curious-eyed blink as he 'rounded his wonder on her.
"Mr. Denwi, our family's butler, would like to speak with you," the frowning princess began, joining her lightly-shaded leaved hands together at her front-waist. "I believe it's regarding, um..."
The listening Link, his concern ever growing, could only rise up a straw-haired eyebrow in response to her odd choice of words.
"Your odd ability in transformations..."
She means the Deku Mask, he thought silently, his smile slowly returning to him. His smile, however, very soon found itself victim to his ever-confident smirk; a constant characteristic of the young hero.
"You bet."
–
3
FWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO...
"Hrnnngh..."
Darmani grit his teeth and bore them out in the harsh frigidity of the climate he braved; as he marched, so slowly and so laboriously, the large Goron's endurance at last began to hit its breaking point.
His climb up Mount Snowhead, as foolhardy as it had seemed to the people waiting for him in Weybour, was one he simply had to undertake.
And yet this was the result of it all.
All that hard grafting through Snowhead Road, pushing past the biting and freezing elements and fighting through the never-failing constant blizzard that threatened to bury the town in its merciless flurry of white death.
"Is this... to be my end...? Can this truly be the end...?"
His vision began to grow hazy and, as it did, his knees wobbled to match the rapid rate of lethargy his body suffered due to the arduous ascent he undertook and the massive toll it took.
"Darmi! You have-ta stop the cold or daddy won't come home!"
The sound of Taba's anguished cries over-deafened even the powerful and frigid winds of Snowhead; even as they cut through the grunting and wincing Darmani, nothing else could pierce his heart but the cries of the Elder's young son. It was only when he came within walking distance of the foot of Mount Snowhead that his physical energy and his Aegir at last gave out; a fact reflected in the man's last submissive drop to his knees.
"I'm sorry Taba... Roru...," Darmani gasped out, tears of finality stinging at the sides of his eyes. His vision remained as shaky and as unstable as it had been mere moments before as he re-rose it to cast his despair-filled gaze forward. The hardened sound of nature's cruelty slowly approached him; the final gale that would be his end. "I failed..."
FWOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO...
DAWN OF THE FIRST DAY
-72 Hours Remain-
"Sure was nice of you to give Amaryllis and Mr. Denwi a little look-see of that Deku Mask of yours."
The frowning Link swung his curiously-raised eyebrow up at the floating Tatl to his right as he marched on down the snow-coated incline, his destination focused on the next somewhat steep hill beyond the growling Dodongo before them.
"Yeah...?" He batted back in his unsure frown, merely sweeping by the roaring dinosaur in a comical manner befitting the eventual grin that graced his face.
SLICE-GRRRROWL...
In a single super-fast swipe of his small-sword, the small warrior somehow put down the gigantic beast in an incredible display of skill, again defying the sheer size of the creature.
"Well I guess they liked what they saw; who can blame 'em," the former Hero of Time shot back in a casual shrug as he marched on forward up the hill, placing his weapons atop his back as he did. "I mean it is me after all."
BOOM
In what would normally be a shocking event for any normal person involved the injured Dodongo, finally in its last breath, dropped to the snowy ground before erupting into a small but powerful explosion.
As the pair of adventurers ascended the final leg they turned their heads forward only to find their path blocked. The frowning Link, his curiosity piqued, leant his form to the side as he folded his small arms over at it. The right side of his curtained-blonde hair fell over his scrunched up right eye as he examined the dirty great obstacle in their path; an otherwise beautiful pair of icy glaciers that successfully blocked the pair's path well enough.
"Huh...," the frowning youth muttered, tapping the top of his right-soled boot forward continually as he narrowed a single eye over at the cause of their seeming woes. "I guess I'd be worried... if..."
SNAP-FRRRR...
"I didn't have this...," he grinned out suddenly, casting his eyes down to the flame of Quintessence that formed upon the tip of his thumb as a result of his snap. However, as he slowly drew his gaze away from the enrapturing flame of his natural Aegir affinity, his stare earned by the green-flashing Tatl's eye-catching levitation. "But I'll do it your way for a change." He at last conceded, his charming smirk returning to him as he reached back into his inventory, revealing the Hero's Bow and a nocked arrow.
–
4
The far-off sound of a blizzard in the further north quadrant left the watching Link and Tatl alone, to say the least; when they at last entered the radius for the mountain village of Weybour their spirits had taken a hit at the sheer desolation that met with them. Although the overall outset of the area was beautiful indeed, especially with the visually pleasing blankets of snow littered throughout, it appeared to simply just be too much; even as the frowning Link's cerulean-eyed gaze carried him quickly over the expanse laid out before him he took in whatever sights remained in the winter-struck land.
A large hardwood cedar-built house stood at the youth's immediate right; an obvious and eye-catching landmark at that. Although it was filled to the brim with snow overflow, effectively blocking off the staircase that once stood neatly before it, it still seemed habitable. The hot smoke that coughed up out of its large stone chimney at the top made the narrow-eyed Link set his gaze on it; his first destination.
Resting directly ahead appeared to be a similarly-built hardwood bridge that, due to the water's pond beneath it freezing solid, seemed to be completely useless; the arctic weather had also effectively numbed over the second pond that rested to the bridge's right and the watching Link's further left. He double-took when he caught a shaking and standing form on the sole platform atop the frozen pond of liquid water.
It was a Goron.
"Damn...," Link murmured out, genuinely surprised. As his eyes caught the sight of a noticeable green colour hanging off of his shaky mountainous head he soon identified it as a mask. "Wonder what he's up there for?"
"Who's up where?"
The similarly-toned Tatl swung her head 'round before soon wincing as she traced her partner's gaze.
"That's a shame...," she cringed. "I wonder how he got up there to begin with."
"Guess it's just one more problem off the list then, huh." He shot over his shoulder as he marched forward, briefly eyeing her as he did, his Kokiri boots driving him toward the hardwood abode resting before him. Tatl, surprising a second time, could only widen her eyes before she floated down to join him in an attempt to press the issue.
"W-What do you mean 'one more problem'?"
"We ain't gonna just leave him up there, are we?" He batted back in a disarming, charming laugh flavoured to the full with his usual grin. "I don't think even Skull Kid would have did that."
"That's a funny comparison...!" Tatl hissed back almost immediately, her tone angry and snakelike. "I didn't sign up on this stupid quest of yours to help solve world hunger...!" She seethed in an admittedly quietened tone of voice, however dangerous her ire was becoming. "I'm only interested in knocking some sense into that little sociopath in Clock Town and saving my little brother!" She justified angrily. "That Goron got himself up there!" She whispered. "His problem; not ours!"
The listening Link, grinning as he always did, shrugged back as he made the final ascent up the snowy hill to the domicile resting above them. "Ya gotta learn to chill Tatl," he insisted, unflustered as a quiet and well-behaved cat. "You could burst a blood vessel like that."
As he finished his chuckling well-meaning sentence and the large oak door he opened clicked noisily, the firmly-frowning form of the floating fairy soon found her frown twitching before she opted to follow behind him wordlessly.
When the two heroes stepped through the large house they were soon pleasantly surprised when they were met with a pair of mountain smithies; men that lived in the small town of Weybour as blacksmiths and, seemingly, were very good at what they do, having introduced themselves as Zubora and Gabora. Unfortunately for them however, due to the extreme climates that the town was suffering – their tools such as their hearth freezing over – their hands are essentially tied and are unable to work.
Thanks to his affinity for fire-style Aegir however the ever-confident Link manages to solve their head-scratching dilemma by melting the ice imposed over their tools in a simple snap of his fingers.
Extremely grateful for his free assistance the pair of smithies agree to take the young Hylian's Kokiri Sword and re-forge it to increase its effectiveness. Although it had been previously by Biggoron in Hyrule's Death Mountain the excited Hero of Time could barely refuse such a tempting request and, when he took his beloved weapon back from the two, he was rewarded with the Razor Sword.
The blade now looked a complete improvement upon itself; somehow the pair of blacksmiths had successfully added more steel to the blade, as if to increase its overall sharpness and effectiveness. Its design now boasted a double-bladed style that reminded the nostalgic youth of the holy Master Sword, two long and large blades that poked up from the beautifully-updated hilt. The two blades, jutting upward, were joined by three extensions and additions of stainless steel that essentially kept them together. The longer, seemingly more intimidating part of the sword however, appeared to curve as it lengthened out toward its end; a seeming comfortable call to the eastern-type of sword.
All-in-all it was a definite upgrade.
Unfortunately however, for all its high points, its one glaring disadvantage was its overall endurance; while the Kokiri Sword was long-lasting and near shatter-proof the delicately-tempered craftsmanship of the Razor Sword was quite the opposite. Although it boasted an incredible enhancement to the small-sword he once sported, Zubora informed him that it would eventually crumble within one hundred or so strikes at full-swing.
"Guess there's always some kinda price huh," the grinning Link gave voice to his silent-tipped thoughts as he swung at the air with the newly-forged Razor Sword, as if to practice with his new weapon. "Gotta keep things in balance after all!"
"I think you wasted your time," Tatl merely threw over her shoulder in a deadpan type of frown as she floated forward. The grinning-faced Link soon lost his expression in favour to a simple frown of his own, contemplative and silent. "I mean what's gonna happen when we have to go back in time again?" She put forward as they strode on past one of the littered platforms and the timber bridges they passed through. "It's just going to revert back to your Kokiri thingie isn't it?"
"Kokiri Sword," he corrected in a shut-eyed chuckle, lowering his blonde-haired head as he stalked past a rising white-furred form.
AWOOOO
Even as the colourless form fast approached, seemingly a White Wolfos, the grinning-expressed Hero of Time paid it no mind; indeed, he merely continued his march forward, almost as if the wolf-like creature hadn't just noisily howled within their general vicinity.
"And, yeah, you'd be right."
FWIP-SMACK
The Wolfos widened its blood-red eyes as its advance was stopped and even thwarted completely by the youth's uncaring and unwatched backhand; an action that sent it skidding back a few fair steps from the two's position.
"Whatever," Tatl shot back, rolling her eyes in her own business-like frown as she followed her partner, also uncaring for the seeming looming threat behind them. "You know what I mean," she clarified, an annoyed frown in her soprano. "I mean what's the point when-?"
AWOOOO-FWIP
His oceanic-eyed gaze still shut lightly, Link merely stepped to his side as he marched forward, effectively evading the White Wolfos' back-assault attempt. He rose up his ever superior left hand, Razor Sword still gripped in its fingers. However, rather surprisingly, he used instead his lower two fingers to keep grip of the weapon's hilt, thereby allowing him to click his remaining thumb and forefinger together.
SNAP-FRRR...
At first the Wolfos didn't know quite what to do; indeed, even as it stood in its former assault attempt, clueless, the spark of fire that Link previously ignited dropped from his fingers. As it at last made contact with the wolf-like creature's beautiful snow-coated fur, its eyes at last widened in full realisation of what was coming.
FRRRRRRRRRR
AWOOOOOOOO
As the seemingly intimidating form of their foe began to howl its last, its form became caked in the bright-blue fire that they had been known so well for.
"You realise I paid absolutely nothin' for this tasty little angel?" Link at last responded, seemingly continuing his earlier debate with the little guardian fairy, highlighting the gorgeously-constructed Razor Sword by raising it into the air. "I ain't losin' anything in this deal." He claimed, flashing his grin across at the groaning guardian fairy next to him.
–
5
"Yo... this place just gets worse and worse..."
"Mm..."
Tatl's light agreement did little to bolster their spirits; as they at last stepped into the heart of Weybour Village they got a good look in on how desolate and seemingly abandoned the place was.
Maybe it's just because of how damn cold it is outside, the frowning Link thought positively.
"Everyone'll probably be hiding indoors."
"Hoot-hoot! We meet again fairy child!"
"Oh jeez!"
Finally taken by surprise, and by one he had not suspected, the wide-eyed Link flinched in a crunch of his facial expression; a comical reaction to suit the grinning giggle that Tatl adopted.
The large owl that the two heroes remembered from the Southern Swamp sat perched on the near-frozen gate that sat a few yards away from them.
"Just as I had hoped, it appears you truly have the inner strength to change the dire fate of this land," the large bird-like form spoke, a proud smile upon its complexion. "However...," he began again boomingly, his smile soon morphing into the concerned deep frown he was known so well for. "The road before you is even more challenging than the last; these Gorons will need every hope imaginable if they hope to-"
"Ah-ah!"
Link's sudden and rude interruption caused the nameless owl to blink curiously at him, unsure. The little Hero of Time, his cerulean eyes shut as he rose up his left forefinger into the air, as if to present a finding to him in response. His eyes at last re-opened when his mouth did, a confident look strewn across his expression.
"'This place is infected, wah, wah, please help', right?" He effectively translated the owl's oncoming speech, an impudent and extremely rude tone to his voice.
"Hey...!"
Tatl's anxious hiss did little to hit the youth's spirits; he merely ignored her in his endeavour, grinning on as he spoke.
"This ain't my first joust slick," he quipped in his open-mouthed smirk, informing the bewildered form of the owl with an overconfident shrug of his small arms and shoulders. "If you knew me from where I came from... you'd know I'm kind of a big deal."
His words, so profoundly cavalier and even downright arrogant, left the wide-eyed nameless owl speechless; even the listening Tatl stared back at him in a zig-zagged frown, her eyes twitching behind her milk-shaded light.
"W-Well...," the tall owl coughed out in an awkward frown, raising his wing as if to block his throat. "At least you're confident."
Seemingly unable to read their body language and even the atmosphere in the air, the oblivious Link chose to exchange his limp-eyed grin with the hovering and deadpan frown he received from his floating partner.
"Termina could really do with some confidence, especially now...," the nocturnal animal spoke in a new and sombre frown. "Now, more than ever, these Gorons need your help," he explained. "Without any outside assistance... these people will eventually and surely be swallowed by the very elements they once thrived under," he spoke on, his eyes soon narrowing as he came to the end of his dialogue. "It will become a land where no living can even survive..."
"Damn," Link responded in a casual frown and folding of his arms. "That's rough." He said callously, as rude as ever. The listening Tatl groaned in response to her partner's lack of manners.
"You see... in this place...," the Kaepora lookalike began again, his eyes narrowing a second time. "You must not be daunted by appearances."
The young Hero of Time found his straw-haired eyebrow rising up in curiosity. "What do ya mean?"
"I mean..."
In the owl's retort he nodded very briefly forward, seemingly indicating toward something at his right side; he swung his blonde-haired head 'round as if to search before turning it back, seemingly having seen nothing.
It was only then that he double-took however, eyes widened.
"How long has he been there?!" The youth exclaimed abruptly, shrinking back from the similarly sudden appearance of a form to the group's side; on his right appeared to hover a ghostly figure of a buff and brawny Goron, grey in shade and colour and all.
Strangely, as Link stared back at the muscled form before him, he almost felt as if he were staring back at Darunia somehow.
Is this Darunia's Terminian doppelgänger, the wide-eyed Link wondered silently to himself.
Oddly, it definitely appeared to have the contours of a ghost.
"Ah... good," the owl chuckled good-naturedly, a smile drawing across his oak-brown complexion. "I had hoped you had the Eye of Truth," he claimed, chortling further as he did. "That there... is Darmani the third."
"Eye of... Truth...," Link parroted in a brow-furrowed frown, swinging his curious-eyed stare 'round to watch the bird next to him before soon swivelling it back to eye the floating ghost-like figure hovering ahead. "I remember that..."
True to his words, it was a term he had heard only once before; he vaguely remembered a Gerudian warrior from his excursion in the Haunted Wasteland gifting him with knowledge surrounding it.
"The only ones who have passed through the Haunted Wasteland are Nabooru and those with the 'Eye of Truth'."
Shalia was it?
And then there was the message out on the desert's plaque that waited for him, Zelda and Navi.
'Only one with the Eye of Truth shall be guided to the holy Spirit Temple. Take faith in the dead.'
I guess I really do have this 'Eye of Truth' thing, the former Kokiri thought to himself in a sheepish-faced frown, staring back at the similarly-surprised form of the newly-introduced Darmani.
"With that, I shall leave you three," the owl spoke up in a morale-raised smile, his large and powerful wings flapping as he did. "Good luck!" He called over his shoulder as he took to the freezing air, flying off. As he took away the frowning Link, finding himself unusually quiet due to the awkward situation he found himself in, swung his unsure frown back on the staring Goron ghost.
At last however he opened his mouth to speak to the form; his own clumsy kind of greeting.
"You ain't gonna haunt us are ya?"
Behind her modestly-held light Tatl slapped her hand across her forehead in a comical display of embarrassment.