OMG it's been forever since I've written. First of all, I'm really sorry about that! I was going to submit this over two weeks ago, but the document manager was screwing up. Fortunately it works now, so enjoy chapter 2!
SailorN: Is this story the reason why Vaati likes girls?
Koholint: No, this isn't. Vaati just likes girls because... well, surely you know!
When Vaati awoke, reality took a while to sink in. He blinked sleepily, then opened his mouth wide and yawned. His sharp little teeth glistened in the moonlight. Then he opened his eyes and panicked. He thought he'd gone blind.
After he mastered himself, he realized that he was not blind. It was just nighttime. His eyes soon adjusted to the darkness, but he could only make out blurry shadows. He felt around with his hands and found that he was in some kind of solid-walled cage. It was about three steps wide in all directions. The walls were high and smooth. Vaati himself was lying in some soft material he'd never seen before. It was white and fluffy.
After his eyes adjusted, Vaati realized that he could see through the walls. He crept to the edge of his prison and placed his hands on the walls, then pressed his face against it to see better. What he saw make him shrink back with fright- the Hylians were out there!
Vaati buried himself in the white fluff he'd awoken on. Maybe if they didn't see him, they'd leave him be. But the Hylians didn't move. Curious, Vaati looked outside again. Looking down, he saw that the little girl was lying down in a bed. It was gigantic, of course, just like everything else. If he could've seen better, he would've found that his prison was on a high shelf.
For the time being, Vaati relaxed. The Hylians were all sleeping, so he didn't have to worry about them quite yet. Plus there was no way that he'd escape his cage. The walls were way too hard to break, especially for a small, young Minish. He settled back into his makeshift bed and fell asleep again.
His sleep was troubled, and he had a nightmare. In it, wild shapes poked and prodded him. They had horrible yellow eyes and long sharp teeth. They laughed evilly every time he whimpered in fear. Then one of them picked him up and he shrieked. At that moment, he woke up-
-just in time to see the little girl staring at him.
Vaati lay there, frozen. His pupils dilated until they were just small slits. His crimson eyes appeared huge. Meggie noticed that he was awake, then laughed and skipped away happily. She called out, "Mommy! Daddy! It's awake!"
The girl's parents were startled by her shouts. Her mother rushed over first, running to see what was the matter. Meggie smiled and said, "The little bug we found woke up!"
"It's not a bug, Meggie dear," her mother said, relived. Her instincts always told her that something was wrong when her daughter shouted, although so far, that had never been the case. "We agreed that we'd find out though, ok? Now come get some breakfast."
"YAY!" Meggie shouted.
Vaati buried himself and lay, panting, afraid all over again. He shivered, although it was not cold. The soft white substance that made up his bed did nothing to shake off the chills. He would soon learn that the material was called "cotton". Vaati buried himself in the cotton again and sobbed dry tears, quaking with fear.
Then suddenly he felt an earthquake. A humongous finger was tapping on his cage. It made such a loud noise that Vaati was forced to cover his long, sensitive ears with his hands. Then he heard a lifesaving voice.
"Meggie! Don't do that!"
"Yes mommy," the little girl answered obediently. Finally, the horrible, horrible tapping stopped. Vaati calmed down slightly. Then he saw another hand reach towards him. He hid his face and didn't see the hand grab his prison and lift it up.
Then his ears picked up the most curious noise. He couldn't quite place it, so he opened his eyes. He instantly noticed that the cage was on its side and a hand was unscrewing the lid that capped it. He'd been put in a jar.
Vaati readied himself. The minute that lid came off, he was outta there. Just it came off, he darted out the exit like quicksilver. Meggie and her mother screamed, but luckily for them (and unluckily for Vaati), the father was there. His hand darted out and snatched up Vaati before he could escape.
Vaati swore loudly in his own language. If Ezlo had been there, he would've smacked him over the head a couple times with his staff.
And speaking of Ezlo…
"Where is that boy?" He muttered angrily to himself. "I told him not to go wandering off like that!" He rubbed his temples darkly. He felt a headache coming on.
Ezlo had gotten wind of danger much earlier than the other Minish. He'd warned the village to be careful- Hylians were out there. Ezlo knew that the Hylians couldn't see them, but Hylian children could. It was too much to risk if a Hylian child captured a Minish. Then that Minish would be viewable by the parents, too.
Most of all, he'd warned his apprentice, Vaati. The boy was just a little too curious and troublesome for his own good. More than once he'd been outside after curfew. He'd been severely punished, but he continued to disobey. Even after he'd broken a leg and almost drowned after doing exactly what he'd been told not to!
Ezlo had raised Vaati ever since his mother died. Vaati's father had disappeared a long time ago, and was thought to be dead. When his mother died, Vaati had been just three years old. He'd been put into the village orphanage until Ezlo returned from a very long trip. When he'd adopted Vaati, the boy had been nearly eight. Once he'd been old enough (ten years old), Ezlo took him on as his apprentice. He'd been planning to ever since Vaati was born. He had also trained Vaati's sorceress mother and had been on good terms with the family. Ezlo was the last living person who'd known Vaati when his mother was alive.
Despite the danger of the lurking Hylians, Ezlo took Vaati on a field study of plants. "A sorcerer," he'd been lecturing, "Must know at least a little bit about plants. They can heal, kill, or be used in various other things." Then he'd looked around and Vaati was gone.
I should've known better than take him here, Ezlo thought, mentally berating himself, I should've known that he'd wander away. Yetevery time Vaati got caught, his excuse was that he "had better things to do."
Ezlo didn't know what exactly he meant by that. Vaati always took his studies seriously and even passed them with flying colors. At first Ezlo thought that it was something he himself was doing wrong. He thought that maybe he was treating Vaati harshly, but after a careful study of himself, he realized he wasn't. Actually, he treated Vaati rather well.
After Vaati disappeared, Ezlo immediately set to tracking him. Ezlo excelled in a number of fields and tracking was one of them. Vaati was very good at covering up his trail, but somehow his master always found him. This time would be no different, or so it had seemed.
Then Ezlo heard Vaati's cries for help. Vaati never asked for help. He was a reclusive little thing who was very self-sufficient. Even when he'd broken his leg, he hadn't asked for any help. Ezlo knew now that something was very wrong. Then he heard Vaati shriek. Ezlo ran in the direction of the sound, but he was too late.
Ezlo felt the footsteps of the Hylians before he saw them. Their steps shook the earth and made him loose his balance. His heart felt like lead- he feared for his apprentice. He still hadn't taught Vaati any self-defense magic. He mentally slapped himself for not doing so.
His heart almost stopped when he heard Vaati scream again. He knew it was Vaati- no one else had that little… twinge in their voice. Ezlo didn't know how to describe it. It was just one of Vaati's 'isms'.
Ezlo ran on until he saw his young apprentice's trail. It was clearly marked by footsteps and… blood? Ezlo nearly stopped breathing. If something happened to Vaati, he'd never forgive himself. He turned his head sharply towards the Hylians. He could see them clearly now.
Then he heard a different shriek. It was the Hylian girl's. Despite the situation, Ezlo grinned. He bet that Hylian had gotten a taste of Vaati's teeth. At least he knew that Vaati was still alive, at least for the moment. He glanced at a nearby thornbush- Vaati's blood stained the ends of some of the thorns. He sighed, relieved.
So that's where the blood came from. Ezlo thought. It eased his mind a bit, but he didn't let up his guard. He'd have to be wary around these Hylians until they left. Plus he needed to rescue Vaati.
He racked his brains, trying desperately to think of a plan. His magic alone wasn't powerful enough to affect the Hylians. He usually used potions to amplify his magic before attempting such a large spell. Then he noticed that the Hylians were moving away. Ezlo followed them. He had to know where Vaati was going, even though he could do nothing for him now.
Ezlo hated abandoning Vaati like that, but he had no choice. His best bet was to track the Hylains, note their location, and formulate a plan. Then he could find a way into the house so he could lead Vaati out.
Fortunately, the Hylian family lived nearby, so Ezlo managed to keep up. They lived in a small house just outside of town. It was fairly close to the Minish Woods, and the family often visited it. Ezlo, still hidden, watched the Hylians enter the house. When they were inside, he slunk out of the bushes and began to poke around the house.
He checked the front door first. There was a tiny crack at the bottom that was unfortunately too small for even a Picori. Ezlo swore under his breath and started to check the brickwork. After a couple hours, in which he'd walked completely around the house, he still hadn't found a way in.
Ezlo went back to the front door. His only choice now was to widen the crack at the bottom. He didn't dare use magic- the destructive spells he knew always caused a bright flash of light that would surely attract the Hylian's attention. And so, Ezlo grabbed a small, flat stone and slammed it into the door. Some tiny splinters were dislodged and fell. Ezlo rammed the pebble in again. He kept this up for a good while, but by nightfall it still wasn't enough.
Ezlo knew that he couldn't stay out here all night, so he took one last look at the house and headed back to the woods.
Hang in there, Vaati, he thought to himself, I'll get you out soon. Just don't end up like those butterflies…(1)
Ezlo spent the rest of the night awake in his mushroom home. He knew that it was useless to worry, but he couldn't help it. His poor apprentice was stuck in some Hylian's home, and Farore knows what could happen to him. Sometime after midnight, Ezlo fell asleep. He was getting too old to stay up all hours like some teenager…
After Vaati had been securely captured, Meggie's father kept a careful eye on him, which Vaati resented.
It's not like I can escape, Vaati thought sourly, this bastard is practically squeezing my lungs out. It wasn't exactly true, but he was being held prisoner by a fist that kept him tightly pinned. Only his lavender-haired head poked out, and whenever someone looked at him, he'd snarl. He'd tried to bite, but had earned himself a pop in the nose instead. He forced himself to stay quiet and ignore his "prison guards".
After the family had eaten breakfast (eggs on toast with bacon), the father dropped Vaati back into the jar. Before the lid was screwed on, he tried to scramble up the glass sides, but it was useless- he kept sliding down. Someone, the mother, presumably, dropped in a small scrap of bacon and some egg. It almost hit him in the head, but he dodged quickly enough so that it didn't. The food smelled great, but he didn't touch it. He used his world-famous snub on it instead.
The Hylians left a few minutes later, and the jar was left on the kitchen table. The floor beneath it was tile, and Vaati saw his chance to escape. He moved the cotton to the far side of his cage, so that when the jar fell, he, at least, would land on something soft. Vaati walked to the other side of the cage, took a deep breath, than sank defeatedly into a sitting position. He was too scared to throw himself off the edge. Even with the cotton to cushion his fall, he was still scared. He didn't want to kill himself before he could escape.
Hmph, he snorted, but that might someday be my only way out of here…
Oh, who cares? Another little voice said, It's not like anyone would miss you. Besides, if you survive the fall, then you can get the hell outta here.
Vaati had always thought like this, and so it made him seem a little more depressed than he really was. It wasn't hard to admit, either. Who would miss him? Ezlo might, but he'd probably be happy to get at least one pain out of his life. Vaati bit his lower lip in a pout. He knew he wasn't thinking rationally, and yet this glass prison was the only thing keeping him from freedom. He couldn't just sit there and rot.
Vaati stood up and readied himself for real this time. He knew that his choice was irreversible, and he had to go through with it.
And if you die, it's not the most painful way to go, the voice said.
Vaati sighed, and then clenched his hands into fists. His long nails pierced into his skin, but he'd gotten used to that feeling long ago. He prepared himself like a track star- his head was lowered and he was preparing to put all he had into one sprint. He stayed like that for one, two, then three seconds. It was so quiet that if a pin dropped, he could hear it. Then in a rush of violet, he ran straight for the other wall.
Vaati hit it with all his might. He'd aimed correctly and hit the cotton, but he wasn't sure that it would ensure his safety when he fell. But now it was too late for him to do anything. The jar tipped over the edge and fell.
Then it hit the tile and shattered into a million pieces.
(1) For those who didn't understand, I'm talking about how people mount butterflies with pins. Ezlo know what happens to them, oh yes he does! XD
I did it! I actually wrote a second chapter! Now this seems to have a plot, eh? I probably won't write anything else for a long time, so I'm really sorry about that. I hope to continue this fic, as well as a couple of others. Some I just can't keep writing, but I'll leave them as is. Please go to my profile and see the latest details.
If you're confused about something (I know some parts of this chapter are) just ask me. I'll be happy to clear that up for you.
Until next time, folks! I hope you enjoyed it. Also, please review! It encourages me to keep writing.
Koholint
