Disclaimer: I do not own anything associated with the Zelda: Ocarina of Time game except for my OC's
Warning: Mild spoilers for the game, but nothing too major...(at least I don't think so)
The Daughter of Wisdom and Courage
Chapter 4: Forgotten Truths
Two weeks passed, and Maia only grew to love her new book more. She spent every moment that she could in the library, reading it. It brought her such joy to know the story of the King and Queen: their childhoods, how they met, how the King managed to save Hyrule and so many more stories. The reason it was taking so long for her to read it was that she was trying to read other books at the same time (to fool her parents and Angmar, who often checked up on her), and because every so often the book would describe some legend or myth regarding the events happening in the book, or would just describe any random myth every so often – making the story far longer.
It also often had the notes of the songs that Link played on his Ocarina. Maia could play the ocarina, and had even received a small one for her birthday a few years before. However, she knew better than to attempt to play these songs in case they really did teleport her away, or in case someone heard her. So she would spend ages trying to memorise the song sheet in case one day she got a chance to play them.
The day after Maia finished reading about the Shadow Temple, it became clear why it was best to keep the book hidden at Angmar's house. Some of the King's guards came through the village, conducting their usual raids. Maia had learned long ago to stay away from her house when the soldiers came, as she was wary of their leers and the way they looked at her frightened her. She would usually make her way to Callum's house. He had moved out of his grandmother's house some time ago, and now lived in the small cottage near the forge. The guards rarely raided the smaller cottages, particularly Callum's, making it a rather safe place to hide.
As she was making her way there, she spotted some guards standing near the old well, and quickly ducked behind the wall. If they spotted her out of her house (all villagers were expected to remain indoors during these random raids), there'd be hell to pay. So she sat quietly, listening to their conversation, and hoping that this lot were as bright as the rest of the King's officers.
Fortunately, the young teenager was right. The guards never even noticed her presence, nor did they seem to care if anyone overheard them. Feeling curious now, Maia stuck her head around the corner slightly so she could see them.
The first guard kicked a pebble out of his way with an annoyed sigh. "You think the King would've figured out that the old King and Queen are dead by now," he said in disgust. "I'm sick of doing these stupid raids. We're not even allowed to steal anything or take the women anymore!"
The second guard growled. "Shut up you idiot! You shouldn't question his orders; it's not a good way to stay healthy, if you take my meaning."
The first guard scowled. "So? He could at least have us doing something useful. As if the Harkinians would be stupid enough to be hiding in plain sight anyway! They must be long gone by now. The King is just paranoid."
"Not true. That's how the stupid Princess avoided our King the first time: hiding in plain sight. And the King isn't stupid, he knows they are alive. Otherwise, the remaining two parts of the Triforce would return to him. The old King and Queen held the last two pieces, so they must still be alive."
The first guard raised his eyebrows in surprise. "The Triforce is involved in this? I didn't know that!"
The second guard rolled his eyes. "That's because the King and his officers wouldn't tell idiots like you. They don't want the word to spread to the people; might give them a bit of hope. And we wouldn't want that, would we?"
Both guards laughed cruelly at that, and Maia was suddenly overcome by the need to hurt them somehow. Just as she was about to draw her slingshot, she felt strong arms wrap around her from behind, and a large hand covered her mouth to muffle her shriek of surprise.
Her attacker then dragged her to the nearest house, which belonged to a farmer and his wife. They had been visiting a friend when the raid started, so their house was empty. The second the young man let her go, Maia turned on him in a fury. "Just who do you think you are?" she hissed menacingly as the silhouette of the young man moved over to turn on the lamps.
As the house was flooded with light, she recognised the dark hair and good looks of Callum, who was looking slightly amused. "Just someone who saw fit to remove you before you made a scene."
The blacksmith's daughter blushed and sat down on the cushions. "Callum! Don't scare me like that!"
He just chuckled, still looking very amused. She glared at him, and he held up his hands in mock-surrender, "Alright! You win. I'm sorry."
She smiled in triumph, and Callum's heart skipped a beat. "So, uh, what should we do now?" he said, sounding slightly flustered.
Maia didn't notice his tone, and turned her gaze to the closed curtains. "I don't know. I just wish those stupid guards would leave us alone. They cause nothing but trouble."
Callum only nodded, and Maia turned around to face him. An idea suddenly struck her, and she tilted her head slightly to one side. "Callum, what do you know about the Triforce?"
Callum looked surprised at the question. "Not much more than any Hylian I guess. I just know that it was supposedly created by the goddesses when they left this world. Why do you ask?"
She frowned lightly. "I've never been told that story. What would happen if anyone found it?"
Callum walked over and sat down next to her, recognising the sparkle in her eyes as eagerness to learn a new myth. He then decided that it wouldn't hurt to tell her the bit more that he knew. "Well, it was said that whoever found it would have their dreams come true. However, Angmar told me another story once; a story that was apparently passed down through the Sheikah people."
Maia's eyes widened in delight. "A Sheikah legend? What was it?"
Callum found himself smiling at her obvious excitement. "You know how the three goddesses had their own virtues? Power for Din, Courage for Farore, and Wisdom for Nayru? Well anyway, it was said that if anyone entered the Sacred Realm, which was where the Triforce is hidden, without having a balance of all 3 virtues, then the Triforce would split into three parts. The one that matched the person who had entered the realm would stay with them, whereas the other two parts would go to those destined to be worthy of them."
He then frowned in thought as he remembered Angmar's tale. "Apparently, when the King and Queen were children, Ganondorf entered the Sacred Realm to obtain the Triforce. The Triforce then split into its 3 parts, and Power was the one that remained with Ganondorf. Angmar didn't say anything about who owned the other two parts, so I assume their holders are in hiding, else Ganondorf would have the whole Triforce and be parading his powers around everywhere."
Maia's eyes showed that she was thinking fast. 'So, those guards must mean that King Link and Queen Zelda held the remaining two pieces of the Triforce! And that must mean that they are still alive!'
Callum caught the excited look in her eyes, and frowned lightly again. "Maia, what's wrong?"
She started. "Pardon? Sorry, I just went off in my own little world then. Anyway, I should be getting home. The raids should be nearly over now, and my parents will be worried if I don't return soon. I'll see you later!" With that, the young woman fled the house.
Callum blinked rapidly at her sudden departure, and then shrugged and returned to his own house, being careful to avoid the few guards still hanging around.
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Meanwhile, Crytsal was not going home. Instead, she raced to Angmar's house. Her parents knew they could find her there, and she just had to finish the book.
Sitting down in her favourite chair, she went to flick through the book to the end, but it seemed that the page she had read yesterday had been the second last one. She frowned, as she'd been sure the book was originally far longer. Sighing in disappoint that she might never know the end of the story, she started reading again.
She was so engrossed in the book, reading the story of the Spirit Temple (the last of the 6 that Link visited); she didn't even notice that there were suddenly extra pages in the back of the book. A sudden noise made her look up, a rather startled expression on her face. She looked behind her, and therefore missed the flicker of light that floated to the ground near the fireplace. Shaking her head slightly, the young woman then turned her attention back to the book. It then hit her that she'd been turning pages during the reading of the story, and that the book hadn't finished where she had thought it was going to.
She went to keep flicking, but once again, the page she had just read was the last page. Her eyes widened as she realised that some magic must be protecting the ending; making sure that she didn't read ahead. She felt afraid, but decided to keep reading anyway. It didn't feel dangerous...
About an hour later, Maia was still sitting near the fire when she heard a knock on the door. Suddenly afraid, she snapped the book shut, jumped up, shoved it in the bookcase, and grabbed one of her 'spare' books off the floor. Just as she was moving away from the bookshelf, the door opened to reveal her parents.
Charlotte's expression when she saw Maia could only be described as sheer relief. "Oh thank the goddesses, you're here!"
Maia glanced at her father, whose face was dead-white. She then noticed that his hand was clenched so tightly to the hilt of his sword that his fingers were white as well. "Maia, why didn't you return home after the raid, after the last of the guards left?" he said, still sounding frightened.
Maia stared at her father. In all her years, she had never seen him this afraid. Charlotte reached out and lightly touched her husband on the shoulder before turning back to her daughter. "Darling, your father and I were worried sick! Why didn't you come home? We thought the soldiers had kidnapped you or killed you or something! We went to find Callum, and he told us that you had told him you were going straight home!"
Maia flushed in embarrassment. "Mother, I'm sorry. I just remembered that I really wanted to finish this book today, so I came back here. I didn't realise it was so late."
Maia noticed that her parents were badly shaken and felt really bad for scaring them. "I really am sorry," she said softly, looking at the ground.
Her mother's expression softened and she moved forward to hug her daughter. "It doesn't matter dear, you're safe now. Come, let's go home." Maia nodded, and moved off to her house.
Charlotte and Mark lingered for a few moments. "Goddesses, I doubt I've been so afraid in my life," Charlotte said softly, the colour draining from her face as she once again began visualising all the things that could've happened.
Mark reached out and touched his wife's shoulder, gently pulling her thoughts away from those horrific scenarios. "There there my love, she's safe now. Let's stop thinking about what could have happened." As Mark said this, he removed his other hand from its almost painful grip on his sword. It was now obvious that the paleness of his features had not been entirely due to fear, but partly rage. If any of those guards had hurt his daughter in any way...Ganondorf or not, he'd rip them apart.
Angmar, who had quietly left her room when she heard the knock on her door, watched the young couple as they left the house. "I wonder how Maia got in here without my noticing. She's even more adept than my foster daughter was at hiding from me," she said softly to herself, a sad smile crossing her features as she thought of the beloved foster daughter she'd lost. "This war has ruined too many lives, and for no real purpose."
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Over the next week, Maia found it increasingly difficult to leave the house. Her mother suddenly had heaps of work for her to do, and Maia knew better than to try and sneak off. Her eagerness to read the end of her book only increased as the week went on, especially as she was only able to read a little bit every now and then. Her parents kept dropping by to find her every chance she used to get away, so she had to keep swapping books without really getting anywhere. And Angmar would always be watching her, presumably to ensure that nothing happened to her.
Finally, after about two weeks of this time-juggling, Charlotte and Mark had to go to the palace to deliver their monthly allotment of weapons and artwork. They would be gone for a day or two, and arranged for Angmar to watch over Maia for them. Maia had smiled innocently and had suggested that she stay at Angmar's house to make it more convenient for the older woman, especially if her parents got back late (which they tended to do when the King locked his gates, making all visitors wait outside until he wanted to see them). Her parents finally agreed, and as they left very early in the morning, Maia arranged to go to Angmar's house once she woke up.
It was raining that day, and Maia hung her cloak on the rack to dry after squeezing the water out of it. She then shook her head slightly, and a few drops of water fell out of her golden locks. Angmar, who was sitting by the fire, smiled at her. "Good morning dear."
Maia smiled at Angmar as she walked over to the bookshelves. "Hello Angmar. The rain is awful today, so it isn't a good morning at all."
Angmar chuckled. "There is that. But that makes today a perfect day for sitting by the fireside and reading. Also, you need to get warm after being out in that dreadful weather. Callum!"
At her last words, Callum poked his head out of kitchen, a curious expression on his face. "Yes Angmar?" he said before then noticing Maia. "Oh, good morning Maia! Wait just a moment, and then I'll bring out some hot chocolate for you. I presume you've had breakfast?"
Maia smiled. "Yes, and that would be lovely," she said as she sat down on the cushions, leaving Angmar in the only armchair. Callum grinned at her, and then ducked back into the kitchen.
Maia watched the doorway for a few moments, and then turned back to Angmar, her hands moving to tie her golden hair into a loose ponytail with the band around her wrist. "Why is Callum here? Where's Lilia?"
Angmar smiled. "Lilia was staying with friends in Castle Town for a few days, and I guess she decided to stay longer when the storm hit. Callum said he would stay with me while she was away, as she left a few days ago."
Maia shrugged. "Fair enough. Oh, thank you Callum," she said as he returned and handed her a hot chocolate, not noticing him blush as their hands touched. Angmar raised an eyebrow slightly at that, and resolved to talk to Callum later.
Maia then turned her attention to the book in front of her on the ground. "So Angmar, what do you have planned for today?"
Angmar sighed. "Well dear, if this rain lets up a bit, Callum was going to help me over to my friend's house to look at her garden. She grows herbs and things, and has asked me which ones I'd like to take. And if the rain doesn't stop, I'll probably just have a nap after lunch. My bones don't agree with me when it rains, but some more sleep should fix them," she said with a smile.
Maia smiled also. "Well, I hope that they stop aching soon. Anyway, this rain looks like it will continue for some time. Callum, I challenge to you a game of chess!" she said, grinning at her friend.
Callum groaned. "No fair! You always win at that!"
And so the arguing and gaming began.
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Angel: I was originally going to put more in this chapter, but then I realised how much extra I wanted to add, and thus decided to just make it a separate chapter. Don't worry, Maia will finish that book soon...I should put up a warning for spoilers, shouldn't I?
Link: (dryly) Yes.
Angel: Ah well, it should only be the next chapter, when Maia reads the end of the book, as I might actually talk about the end of the game and stuff. Though there is the whole thing with the Triforce too...oh well, maybe it could be mild spoilers...(sighs)
Oh yeah, and an anonymous reviewer asked me how Maia is a brunette when Link and Zelda are both blonde. Well, she is actually supposed to be blonde too, but I may have accidentally written at one point that she is a brunette (as my OC in my Kotor story is brunette, and I sometimes get confused with my OCs). But yes, she is definitely a blonde :DPlease review!