Sheikah Knight: Aw, thank you! I'm glad that the old one wasn't completely bad! But yeah, this one is better (don't tell old Before).
notaname: I remember I got to piano lessons early once, and there were students practicing an ensemble piece. A piano one, of course. The person doing the melody was playing too fast, the person doing the other melody was playing almost as fast, but not quite, and then the person playing the quiet background piece (I don't quite know what to call that part) was playing it at the perfect tempo. I tickle my siblings. A lot. I used to pinch, but then I got punched in the face, sooo... yeah, I'm good. WAIT, WAIT, WAIT, I got it. Have you ever seen this one video (real specific there) called... I think Wii Theme, but it's a dance routine was what it was called. That dance. That dance can be the foreshadowing dance. I might actually write something Wings of Fire someday. Maybe.
Guest: To be fair, I wrote the Author's Note before changing the chapter title, so I DIDN'T do the secret review phrase off of the chapter! ...It was the other way around. ._.
SomeGuest: Yeah, I find that the chapters are getting shorter lately. I'm trying to maintain 7 pages each chapter (in the original font and spacing and such), but some are more like... six and a half. Oh well. Link's childhood... don't we all want to know? I mean, I don't. I already know, and it SUCKS. The grammar in the review is fine, actually! As far as I can tell, at least. Sav'aaq!
Have a wonderful week, y'all! Now... ROLL THE TAPE! Quick, before the cat - AAAAAAAAHHHH NOOoooOO!
Chapter 22: Apologies
"Chief Urbosa," a Gerudo said, approaching the throne upon which the Gerudo chief sat.
"Captain Barta," the chief greeted. "What brings you here at this hour? Are you not testing the night guard?"
"And aren't you supposed to be asleep?" the captain challenged.
"I was just about to head in," the chief admitted. "What is it?"
"A Hylian vai," the captain said. "She wishes to reside in the city until further notice."
"Oh?" the chief asked. "I do not see why there is a problem."
"She is accompanied by her son," the captain replied. "She pleads for his allowance."
"...His age?" the chief asked quietly.
The captain paused. "He looked about five or six. He is a voe, yes, but the law does not specify whether vehvi are allowed."
"Hmm…" Chief Urbosa paused. "They are just outside, are they not?"
The captain nodded.
"Bring them in."
The captain turned and left, returning moments later with a woman, her light brown hair braided messily, dark bags under her eyes. In her arms she carried a sleeping vehvi, a voe.
"Sav'aaq, Chief Urbosa," the woman said with a respectful dip of her head, pronouncing the Gerudo greeting with a perfect accent.
Chief Urbosa cocked an eyebrow, seemingly surprised by the woman's use of language. "Sav'aaq. And who might you be?"
"Lydia…" she paused hesitantly. "Lydia… Equitem."
Though her hesitation to speak her own name was suspicious, the chief did not challenge it. "Captain Barta has informed me of your wish to stay temporarily. What, may I ask, would this be?"
"I…" the woman, Lydia, paused. "My son and I… our home is no longer safe. We'll only need to stay until I can find somewhere more…"
"Accepting?" the chief offered.
Lydia nodded. "I doubt my son will be welcome for long… but Gerudo Town is one of the safest places in the kingdom," she explained. "As I said before, I only ask to stay until I can find a better place."
The chief barely hesitated. "Of course. I see no problem."
Relief came onto the woman's tired face. "Sarsqo, Chief Urbosa. I cannot thank you enough."
Eleven Years Later…
As the sun began to set, Zelda found a nice spot just off the road to set up a camp. Her knight (whose name she was now incapable of even thinking without feeling guilty) quickly scavenged some firewood, cleared the area of debris, and started a fire. All of this was done before sunlight was gone.
She knew that now was the best time to apologize. They were alone, so no one would overhear and spread rumors about a bad relationship between them. Though, now that she thought about it, she was sure they were already in existence, and had been for quite some time.
She glanced at her knight, who sat across from the fire, skewering some mushrooms that he had found nearby. It had to be now, before she chickened out yet again. She had tried to speak earlier… but had decided against it.
Hylia give me strength.
"Sir Knight…?" Zelda asked hesitantly, internally face-palming at her formal tone. At least it isn't yelling at him.
The guilt crept back as he looked her way, his piercing blue eyes reflecting the light of the flames. He tilted his head questioningly, in a way Zelda almost considered cute.
"I… I would like to apologize," she squeaked out. After a few moments, it seemed no reply would come. She opened her mouth to continue, but to her surprise, she was interrupted.
"Whatever for, Your Highness?" he asked in that quiet voice she heard so rarely.
Zelda cast her eyes downward. "You ask as if I have done no wrong. Ever since you were named my knight, I have been nothing short of cruel to you. Instead of scolding you for doing nothing against me, I should have been more respectful towards you, and for that, I sincerely apologize."
For a while, no response came, and Zelda risked a glance upward. She had expected anger, or frustration, or, more likely, nothing to be on his face. But instead, a thoughtful expression met her eyes. However… it vanished the moment she made eye contact.
"If you are to apologize," her knight said quietly, "then I suppose I must apologize as well."
"What could you possibly apologize for?" Zelda asked, jerking her head upward in surprise. "You've done nothing short of a perfect job."
Her knight drew in a long, quiet breath, before releasing it. "My apologies for the bluntness, but you almost died, Your Highness. If I was a moment later..."
He didn't finish his sentence, nor did he need to. "But you did make it in time," Zelda pointed out. "Now is not the time to dwell on 'what ifs.' What matters is that I have never gotten so much as a scratch in your care."
She heard a slight chuckle, quiet and deep, that was quickly cut off. Was that him? She didn't know. It was too short to be sure, but the way his throat had seemed to vibrate made her think so.
"I suppose that makes us even, then, Your Highness," said the knight, blank as ever, meeting her eyes with his own.
It really didn't. She had been horrible, hadn't she? But here her knight was, brushing it off as if she really had done no wrong.
"At the very least," Zelda said quietly, "let me do something to make it up to you."
But the knight merely shook his head. "It's not necessary," he seemed to say.
Zelda sighed. "As you wish, Sir Link."
However, as she ate her mushroom skewer, she promised to make it up to him - whether he liked it or not.
"Uhh, Purah?"
"Yes, Liari?"
"...Why do you have a cat?"
Purah huffed and scratched at the black poof's little head. "For your information, it is a kitten."
Liari rolled her eyes. "Yes, but you didn't answer the question."
"I'm watching it for someone," Purah said plainly.
It had been two weeks since Zelda had run off, Link following not far behind. Liari had spent most of the time moping around - "Why did he leave without telling me? Why won't Impa listen to me? Why won't anyone listen to me? No one understands!"
Unfortunately, Purah had been forced to endure all of that. It seemed that the girl had not noticed the kitten wandering the lab until just now, having been far too busy grumbling and groaning. It seemed she had finally gotten over it, thank goodness.
"Watching it for who?" Liari asked curiously, tilting her head.
"Please don't tell anyone - the only other person that knows is Impa. If the captain catches wind of this..."
"Don't worry. I promise I won't tell. Now go!"
Sorry, Liari. Purah knew Liari was foolish with her words. She always let things slip, no matter how secretive she thought she was. "I promised I wouldn't tell anyone," Purah scoffed.
"Fine then," Liari huffed. She leaned down and pet the kitten herself. She smiled as she ruffled its fur. "What's its name?"
Purah shrugged. "The person I'm watching it for… I think they just call it 'Kitten.'" At that, the little kitten looked up at her and blinked its yellow eyes, purring. "It thinks that's the closest thing to its name."
"Boy or girl?" Liari asked, eyes on the kitten she was petting.
"Boy," Purah replied. "You know, I was thinking about conducting an experiment - I've noticed that petting it has caused my stress levels to decrease. Perhaps there is something more scientific to it."
"Hmm…" Liari hummed. She stood up straight, stretching her arms above her head. "Well, I heard a certain princess is returning today."
"Yeah. I heard," Purah mumbled. She picked up the kitten, stood from her seat, and laid it back on the chair. "Now, about those guardian parts…"
"Dame Impa has informed me that writing a journal would be beneficial for my mental health. She said quite clearly that, if I did not journal, she would read my mind and force me to speak instead until every thought came clean.
"It is foolish, in my opinion. To leave one's thoughts lying around for anyone to come across… gossip mongers specifically… it's simply idiotic. However, it is of my understanding that records of the past are important. My current area of historical research (though I am not meant to have one), is lacking in first person documentation. Even if I do not allow anyone to read it until my death, I must inform the future generations in ways that I was not.
"Allow me to properly introduce myself, then. I am Sir Link Equitem of the Hyrulean Royal Guard. I was chosen by the sword that seals the darkness to defend my country from the Calamity, and I could not be more honored."
Link paused in his writing with a sigh.
"You are not being honest," Fi whispered in the depths of his mind.
"I know," Link mumbled, setting the quil down beside the journal. He stood up from his desk and stretched his arms above his head, his stiff joints popping.
He collapsed down onto his tough mattress with a slight groan. "I don't like this."
"The mattress, or your current circumstances?"
"Both," he mumbled. After returning to the castle, the princess had ordered him to take the week off to rest. "There's nothing to do."
"You are doing nothing when guarding the princess. Is this not the same?"
"When I'm on duty, there's more purpose," Link said, struggling to explain. "Then, I'm alert. I have to ensure the princess's safety. I'm doing something useful. But now I'm stuck in a dull room with nothing useful to do."
"Is that not what the journaling is for?"
"I still don't see the point," Link muttered, rolling onto his left side, carefully keeping his left arm out of harm's way. "It's just writing down thoughts that no one is ever going to care for."
"If you were to find a record of a previous wielder, would you care for it?"
"Of course I would," Link mumbled. "I would finally get some answers."
"Have you ever considered that they had as few answers as yourself?"
Link shot the sheathed sword leaning against his door a glare. "Well that's reassuring. Not even the legendary hero preceding me, the one who didn't suck at all - much the opposite, actually - didn't figure anything out?"
"Have patience," the sword said quietly. "All will become clear in the end."
That's what everyone always said. When were they going home? Later. When would people tell him why they left in the first place? Later. When would they explain why he was being trained? Later. When would the goddesses justify their choosing him? Later! His patience, though famously durable and imperishable, was running thin!
He closed his eyes, focusing on his breathing. Just calm yourself… relax. You're being dramatic again.
He shouldn't be moping about in this cell of a room. He should be out, training! He attempted to lift his head, but he found his body disobeying, remaining in place.
I'm such a failure. Why was I, of all people, chosen? I'm useless! The world would be better off without me...
Suddenly, he realized just how tired he was. His limbs were heavy as rock, and he was suddenly all too aware of the dark bags under his eyes. It wasn't long until he succumbed to slumber.
Run.
That was the only thought on his mind. The moment he had seen ashes where he knew a small hut was tucked into the hills, it was like relieving a distant memory. Images came back to him - images of ashes, cries of pain, maniacal laughter...
Not again, he pleaded, making his way up the path. Not again, not again…
He ran and ran, but he never seemed to get any closer. He heard laughter in his ears, the laughter of an insane man. He felt like he was drowning, drowning, drowning.
And then he gasped awake, ears ringing.
Hullo, there, everyone! This week is my last week of school! Wooh! And due to my lack of a social life, that means more writing time! Wooh! And, if I get ahead on my writing, that means I can do other hobbies more!
Wooh! Why the wooh? Wooh is wooh, ya know? Just... wooh? ("Wooh" is the secret review phrase now)
I struggled a bit with getting stuff into this chapter. I hadn't been planning to do anything past the Purah and Liari scene (which was kind of rough), but it didn't come out to enough pages soooo... you get a Link being depressed (sort of) scene! You also got that little scene at the end. Run, boi, run!
Well, as always, leave a review! I got a LOT of reviews last chapter, and I'm glad that so many people have enjoyed the story!
Wear your seat belt.
Sincerely (WOOH!),
Ari~