Chapter 25

With the blood of my mother smeared over the jewelry in my hand I looked up towards Lanayru with sincerity and thankfulness. He seemed to understand that my time with him was coming to an end and that it was up to me from now on. I still must admit that I did not fully understand the gravity of what I was about to do. The concept of a separate timeline existing was foreign to me. However, the hero in me told me to trudge on and stick with my decision. I bowed slightly to Lanayru and went to the crystal that kept him alive and tapped it for him to change back into the large skeleton I knew him as ten months ago.

I concentrated much of my power and felt it drift away from me as my surroundings faded to a different scene. I was standing behind a bright redheaded woman as she sat in a chair facing a bed. I quietly stood there and observed for a second. I was in my old bedroom and Catto was looking after me as I lied motionless in my bed. I must have still been in my coma state at this point. I didn't want to risk her turning around so I took another quiet deep breath and changed the scene once more.

I was now inside her and Ghirahim's bedroom, but neither of them was to be seen. I heard some footsteps approaching and I quickly ran to hide inside of their closet and overhear the conversation. I knew the longer I stayed in these past moments the more risks I was creating, however, every part of me wanted to absorb these emotions and moments with them.

"She isn't more than a pest who needs to be taught some humility, Catto. You know that I still want what is best for her." Ghirahim criticized as I heard them enter the bedroom.

"She's a kid, don't expect her to have the eons of life experience you have. She needs to learn things on her own." She retorted. "I don't want the time that we have with her to be filled with hatred and arguing, she's been raised well."

"Well, perhaps she can learn to embrace us rather than shaping us to the people she wants us to be. Maybe then she can have some independence and dignity-" Ghirahim sassed. I peeked out the crack of the closet door and looked at the situation. Catto stood up and got close to Ghirahim, however I could only see a portion of their bodies. I heard a loud smack and I saw Ghirahim take a step back.

"You're the last person to be talking like that." She hissed at him. Ghirahim grabbed her wrist firmly and took some deep breaths to restrain himself. He looked as if he wanted to slap her back.

"And you have been gone far too long to feel as though you can discipline me." He jeered. I accidentally let out a gasp from the closet due to the situation. His face shot over towards the door where I was. I quickly used the necklace again to leave the situation before I was caught.

The next scene brought me to the desert to the hut she had been living in for my entire childhood. She was out tending to Lanayru and I was standing behind her. A larger jump in tine was necessary to keep looking for the moment I was looking for. I understood that I was looking for something that didn't have a particular date or time, and I didn't want to overshoot it. But it was draining to keep these short bursts going. I quickly summoned a large rush of power to be pulled away, however, I wasn't sure on where I was when I got there. I was standing in a strange area that appeared to be Faron woods, I was standing at the top of a large spiral pit. Dead bokoblin bodies were littering the ground and a loud of dark aura surrounded the place. I turned around and recognized the door to the temple at the sealed grounds. Where was Catto?

I skimmed the area and amid the settled chaos was a figure stood patiently by herself in front of a pillar in the center of the grounds. I quietly teleported to a safe distance away and hid in some dark shadows. I focused on Catto who had her hands clasped together and was shaking. She was praying. She was also noticeably pregnant. I became confused about how I could have fast-forwarded to a moment I didn't know about. I realized I wasn't looking at Catto's pregnancy with Donovan, I was looking at her pregnancy with me. The dark aura was sickening, it felt as though something awful had just been awakened, however, a few moments later it seemed to have vanished and things calmed themselves. A bright light shined from the pillar and a young boy clad in green took a step outlook exhausted and traumatized. Catto's face perked up, he wasn't who she was looking for, but she was still glad to see him.

"Are you okay? What happened in there?" She asked desperately. She wiped some silent tears off her cheeks.

"I-I did it." He panted and walked past her. "I need to find Zelda." He didn't seem to want to talk about anything more with her. The younger Link was almost unrecognizable compared to himself today, but his legendary sword quickly gave away everything. I never thought I would live to see it out of its slumber, but here I was. "I wouldn't waste your time, Catto." He hollered towards her as he continues to walk away, back up to the temple.

She continued to sit and wait. Waiting for what? What was she waiting for? I wanted to know. I didn't care of Donovan could wake up and cry at any moment and give away my hiding place, I was determined to find out. I decided to use the necklace and some small bits of power to hop forward a couple of hours. Catto still stood there waiting. I went forward again and she was still waiting, however, a familiar pompadour approached her and placed a hand on her should.

"Listen, lady." A humorous voice spoke in a serious tone. The trumpets I heard in my head from before played a slower, sadder theme song. "I don't think there is much hope for him, we are all heading back to our time, we don't wanna leave you here alone. You have to look out for yourself. " She stayed silent and stood there looking at the pillar. "Anyway, we will keep the gate open for a while, but we will eventually have to close it. Try not to stay too long." He took a shawl off his shoulders and wrapped it around her.

I was officially rooting for her. She was determined to stay, she knew she had to stay. However, I am much less patient and wise that she was, so I hopped forwards again. I knew I was backtracking but I remained interested. A low sound of rejection and pain followed by a much dimmer light erupted from the pillar. A large black sword clinked as it fell to the ground in front of her. Her face brightened and she ran over to it. The sword itself was as tall as she was, it looked heavier than what she should be carrying at the point she was in pregnancy.

She lifted it and took the shawl from Groose and wrapped it gently around the sword and spoke some quiet gentle words I could not hear. She began to make her way back up the spiral hill and towards the temple. I realized the blood I had was going dry and I needed another drop. I reached towards the vial and pour some more onto my hand. I gripped the necklace again and began to go back further again.

This jump between times felt a lot more draining. I was running out of the energy to produce the magic I needed for time traveling. Now, I was back in Skyloft, I was extremely confused and not expecting to be back here ever again. I was standing in the bazaar. I was amidst the crowds and blended into the masses better than any hiding spot. I skimmed to make sure I could find Catto around me but she wasn't in the groups of people.

"Hello! Welcome to the item check! Is there anything you would like to store?" A perky voice chirped in the distance. I shot my head across the tends and saw Catto standing behind the counter in a cute uniform.

"Well, ma'am. I would love to pack up your smile and keep it here for a rainy day!" A flirty young man laughed at her and she giggled back.

"Sir, we can only store physical items." She responded grinning wide. "However, I would be glad to share with you my smile anytime you come to visit."

"Haha, you're a gem! I hope you're enjoying the new job." He responded and patted her head and turned to walk away. "I'll see you around, Catto. I hope you stop by the place tonight for the celebration!" She nodded eagerly and he disappeared into crowds. I was taken aback by her flirty relationship with him, however, as soon as she was gone, her smile broke for a second and she rubbed her head where he patted it.

"Hey- girl?" Someone tapped my shoulder behind me. Out of pure fear I turned around and bolted out of the bazaar at the closest entrance. As I was running I managed to jump time again. I hoped my presence there wasn't too destructive, I was happy to be back on the surface. I was also back in my house as normal.

I was in the hallway, footsteps echoed as they marched heavily through the hall. I quickly bolted into the bathroom, this time Donovan was getting cranky. I tried hushing him and it worked for the most part, however, he would let out some soft whines that I was hoping wasn't too audible. Luckily, I think the situation I was in helped muffle them out.

"Ghirahim! Don't you walk away from me as nothing happened! At least say something, you ass!" Catto screamed. I heard the footsteps rush down the hall. Ghirahim's bedroom was across from the bathroom and I could hear her banging on the bedroom door. "Get out here!"

"Catto, you are quite literally too incompetent to have this conversation!"

"You can't read my journals, call me out for MY secrets and pretend I am the one at fault here!" She was livid. "You can't treat me like a dumb kid anymore! I'm seventeen! Let me have some fucking freedom!" She kept pounding on his bedroom door.

"I'll let you have your freedom after you show that you're mature enough to use it properly. Until then you're bound to the house until I deem you're ready."

"You're grounding me?! And you won't even show your face to do it?!"

"You will hit me, Catto, and you know that." He warned her.

"Yeah, I wanna punch your cowardly look on your face right off-" I used the necklace and dodged the situation before it escalated further. I was still in the bathroom, however, I couldn't hear noises outside. I listened closer. Catto's voice was hushed and sounded a lot younger. I peaked my head out and looked down the hall. She had a bandaged Kikwi that she was carrying out the front door. She was checking her surroundings. A few moments later, Ghirahim teleported in front of the door. He peaked around the closet and ice room that were are the end of the hall and patiently waited by the door. She walked through the door again and became startled by Ghirahim.

"You helped him escape?" He questioned. She shrugged quietly. Her face was a lot younger and she seemed about an inch or so shorter. "Catto, I would appreciate it if you stayed away from my work."

"Your work seems stupid." She rolled her eyes. "You don't need to be hurting innocent little guys like that. Why was he so crucial to your work?"

"Catto, it's none of your business, but if you're going to talk as if you must know, I will humor you." He rubbed his face in frustration. "I do not particularly need him for any work. He is just being an annoying pest and I wanted to make a statement to him and his little friends so they stay out of my way and know their place."

"Are you saying that a little thing like that is capable of distracting you so much that you need to go out of your way to torture it?" She argued. He had his head perk up slightly, but he didn't have the words to respond. "I mean honestly, what is it capable of that makes it so annoying?"

"You are peculiar." He dismissed and teleported away. I opened up the vial and took some more blood into my hand again. I knew I was getting close to what I was looking for.

I made another trip back and I was outside in front of the house. Catto was sitting on the steps of the porch and had a long stick that she poked into the ground. The ground was muddy and was very saturated, it seemed completely drowned. I was standing behind some trees outside of the yard. Ghirahim walked slowly up to the house from the distance and looked exhausted. He held out a small bottle of blue paint to Catto.

"Here." He spoke slowly to her. She nodded and took them from him.

"Thank you." She grinned sadly. "Will it flood again" Her language skills pretty broken, but still fluent. She must not have been speaking it for very long.

"I hope not." He groaned as he walked up to her on the stairs. He held out a comforting hand and she accepted it. She stood up and right before they turned to go inside the house she pointed to the sky.

"What's that called again?" She spoke while pointing at a vibrant rainbow.

"Catto, you know how to say rainbow in Hylian." He scolded but she shook her head.

"No- No! It's an adjective that describes how it looks, how flowers feel, how-" She was trying to express a new word she couldn't translate.

"Beautiful." He interrupted her. "It's beautiful." She nodded and grinned at him. He didn't smile back, but he gazed at her with captivation and a want to understand her.

I new one more jump was going to take me out of this world. I decided to take it in shorter increments, something that I could map out easily. With another deep breath, I was taken aback more. Donovan wasn't going to stay asleep much longer either. My magic was at its limits but I was not going to give up now.

I stood outside a large abandoned building in the middle of the streets of an abandoned town. I watched a young girl open the door to the building and close it behind her. I couldn't understand any writings or signs. But I hopped backward a day, and I sat in an empty chair in some sort of moving capsule. I got scared and looked around. It was insanely loud and shakey. Donovan woke up and began crying loudly. I tried shushing him but no one sitting around me noticed or cared. I only got a couple of annoying glares. A few seats ahead of me sat a familiar redheaded girl who had her head drooped over asleep. We were moving extremely fast on a road covered in lines. There was so much open field and grasslands that stretched for miles. There was also some strange music playing quietly over the whole machine. There was singing in a different language. I truly was in a completely separate world. After Donovan refused to quiet down, I used a few more drops of blood to get myself out of there. My hand was stained red, and so was the necklace.

I thought I was scared before, but I wasn't prepared for this new scenery. Buildings stretched higher than I've ever seen. Hundreds of people flooded the streets and small-wheeled boxes rolled around and created large honks. Everyone around me looked like- me, minus my freak white hair and extreme height. But their ears were something so common among them. Their outfits were peculiar and their hair had strange big styles. I felt like an outsider, but once again, no one seemed to notice or care. I looked over the crowds and saw some bright red hair sticking out in front of a building. I approached and watched her from a distance. She looked as if she was distracted. She took a deep breath and walked up to a man who was passing her by. She began to shiver and cry in fear, but the man seemed uninterested. She pulled on his sleeves desperately, yet he got shocked and pulled away while yelling at her. Her face dropped and the man disappeared into the crowds. Catto's face slowly lifted in amusement and she slipped something into her jacket pocket.

I pushed my way towards the crowd and stood in front of her. She looked at me in confusion. Compared to everyone else, I looked like I was dressed in rags and I was holding a naked baby wrapped in a towel. I stared into her eyes and she looked into mine with confusion. She started speaking her tongue at me; I was frozen in fear. I lunged forward at her. I held her back with one hand and used my other to grab her jacket while I grabbed the wallet she just dropped into the pocket. Once I had it I looked down in shock.

Donovan was gone. I don't even know when, but he was somehow gone. I was just holding him. I couldn't have dropped him, his little cries and breathing were constantly in my ear. I spun around and tried to see if he was anywhere in the many people pushing around, he wasn't anywhere. Tears blinded me because I knew inside myself where he went, but I didn't want to think that was how this was going to work. While I wasn't paying attention I felt a small hand jerk the wallet from mine and took off running. I quickly reacted and started chasing after her. I pushed through the sea of people and kept my eye on the little red hair.

"Hey wait!" I screamed, but I knew she couldn't understand me. "Please!" She was getting further away. I saw her cut into an ally and disappear behind a fence somehow. I groaned and snapped my fingers. I appeared behind her back as she looked to see if she lost me. When she turned around I pulled the wallet from her hand again and held it high. She wasn't able to reach from her height. When she realized she lost she tried to take off again.

"No! Wait!" I screamed at her. I realized I knew something in her language I could say. "Catherine Martin!" She slowed down and yelled something at me, yet it didn't stop her from climbing the fence. "Catto!" I took some steps toward her. She stopped climbing the fence and looked back at me.

"Catto?" She repeated to make sure she heard me right. She walked up to me and started talking nonsense. My eyes had tears pouring from them but my sobs were silent.

I reached into the wallet and pulled out the only thing that looked like a ticket. I tore it up and threw it on the damp ground and stepped on it. I then reached out and handed her the wallet.

"This is yours," I said but she took it with caution. The remaining bit of my power felt as though it was being juiced from my body. I knew what I had done. I had the same fate that was for my brother. I coughed and fell to my knees. She looked scared and ran up to me to hold me up from falling in the ground.

"You're a good kid," I said to her. I held my hand out and took hers. I slowly brought it to my cheek and she held it there. My hand was still covered in blood and it smeared over her palm. I truly realized that this wasn't an end for me. This wasn't my death, this was my existence leaving. "I hope that I was a kid you can be proud of." I gasped. "I know that if you stay here, a lot of people will have been saved. You would have been saved. Ghirahim would have been saved. Ghirahim can save others. You can grow up, get married, and grow old with your kids. No crazy witches ruining your dreams." My head was pounding and I clenched the ground with my hands. She held my head up and kept saying things to me. She was scared. I held her hand to my close. That's all I needed to feel right now. "You're going to be the best mom." I smiled. I slowly began to see nothing but light. Things were fading from my view. The hand on my cheek felt like a ghost of days that never came.

With a flash of light, I realized my moments were ending. The story of a human girl getting a second chance never was, the story of the demon girl in Skyloft never happened, and the woman a quirky demon lord fell in love with drifted away with the rest of time.

And with that. The story is over because it never began.