Author's Note:
Groose is one of my favorites, not going to lie.
"Hey, er...Groose,"
The boy growled in irritation and tucked in his shirt. A blood-stained napkin up his nose, a bottle of hair gel in one hand, a sock in the other, and hopping around on one shoed foot, Groose seemed a little bit more than preoccupied at the moment. His room looked like a tornado had torn through with cloths strewn about and his closet gaping open. Colin and Stitch hovered by the door of their friend's room anxiously as the red-haired boy rushed to look presentable.
"Guys, can't it wait? I'm going to be late if I don't-"
"But G," Stitch interjected, "It's about...it's about..."
"-Zelda." Colin finished bravely.
Groose looked up from pulling on his other sock and narrowed his eyes. "What about her?"
The two other boys shared glances and swallowed.
"Well...maybe... I - I mean we-" Stitch stammered.
"-think that you should...maybe consider, like, anybody else."
No one said a word for a few moments, until Groose muttered, "Guys...don't start this shit today."
The two shared nervous glances once more, but were determined to say what they'd meant to.
"G, hear us out. That chick tried to kill us today. No joke."
"Now are you guys bullshitting me or-"
"No G, we're serious." Groose looked up at Stitch's calm, unwavering gaze. "The next time that shrimp gets pulverized; she's going for blood."
"Don't take it the wrong way, G," added Colin, recognizing the hurt in his friend's golden eyes.
"We just-"
"Are guys serious?" Groose snarled. "Zelda? She wouldn't hurt a goddess-damned fly!"
"Groose, she pulled a stick at us, and she said she was going to stick you the next time that pipsqueak took a dive! G, you've seen her with the sticks in class! Bulls-eye every time!"
Groose snapped on a formal, (hideous) orange bandana, and yanked the bloodied napkin out of his nose. "I'm already late," he said stiffly and strode out the door, brushing the two aside.
"G -" the short, black-haired boy called after their friend's retreating back.
Stitch placed a hand on Colin's shoulder and shook his head.
He could not believe them! Groose stalked down the hallway, fuming. The passage had now filled with people as students made their way to their next classes, and anyone who saw the look on that massive boy's face cleared the way. He made it to the entrance, ripped the doors open, and slammed them behind him. Warm, stuffy air hit him like a front of humidity, too heavy and hot for even a summer afternoon. A storm, probably. Groose grit his teeth and swore. Great. Now his suit was going to get wet. Great!
The young man grit his teeth and made a sprint down the stairs to south town, leaping down the last dozen steps and swinging over the bannister. Thunder sounded, booming and making the hairs on the back of his neck raise. He pushed harder, full speed. His footsteps pounded into the concrete until he slid to a stop at the plaza. He looked either way and up at the sky warily, then raced to the end and pushed off the platform.
He caught a few drips of rain as he dropped, icy air cutting at his skin, and he whistled, high and shrill for his loftwing. Nally came swift and true, catching her master with the kind of flawless timing that only came with years of practice. Groose gripped her deep indigo-colored feathers and squeezed his knees, calling for speed. Nally sensed his urgency and dipped down swiftly through the smoky clouds then back up until bird and master rose high above the barrier, and the orange sun shone on their backs. The evening sky opened like a vast, golden and pink-hued sea. Below the great heavens, thunder growled distantly with the sound of falling rain. They'd beaten the storm before it had really come down.
Groose felt a twinge of admiration for the girl. He could seriously get hurt or something in these flying conditions, now that he thought about it...but good old Nal brought him up to safety without any instruction. His heart swelled and he gave her thick, woolly neck a good, thankful rub. She let out a loud croak and he let a half-hearted smile grace his face.
"You're a good girl, you know that?" he murmured.
Nally let out another happy screech, and shifted her weight playfully. Groose tightened his grip and nearly fell off into the dark clouds below.
"Hey!" The dark-colored bird seemed to cackle and Groose gave it a light shove. "Dumb bird..."
Groose loved flying as much as anyone, but he also had practice. After a minute or so Groose squeezed his bird's scruff and prepared himself to dive right back into the heart of storm. He furrowed his brows in concentration. This would not be easy...
Nally understood and squawked nervously. She raised her long tail behind them in warning, something that Groose heeded well.
"You ready, Nal?" Groose called over the wind. His loftwing let out another call and flapped a little higher, coming up at a steadily increasing angle. Groose gripped tightly with his arms and thighs before the bird came flat against the sky. Everything seemed to slow down. The air froze in midair, and they almost seemed to hover there for a minute, above everything, even time itself, but then everything sped up again when the bird stalled.
"Here we goooOOO!" Groose yelled as they dropped right out of the sky like a stone. Nally screeched and turned into a full nose dive. Groose hugged his bird as tightly as he could, but he still felt himself slipping as they straight plummeted down, down, down. He shut his eyes tight just before they hit the clouds.
"Ooosh!" Damn that was cold! Groose slitted his eyes open against the icicles and high winds (inwardly cursing his luck about getting some of his best clothes wet), and made out a blurry, orange glow far below.
He directed Nally that direction and adjusted his grip. Suddenly his bird let out a howling screech. Groose felt his hackles raise.
A blinding flash screened his vision and the air felt much, much too hot. Like fire. Groose screamed and threw himself and Nally away from the light. A second later a terrible, earth-shaking BOOM sounded the air. Groose made a move to cover his ears, but fortunately he couldn't seem to budge an inch. If he had let go then...
Rain flooded back down on the two in rows, but Nally, undaunted, only had a mind to land.
Groose felt her dip once more and tightened his already white-knuckled grip. The orange glow became larger and brighter - a little too quickly.
The earth met them hard and true.
A few squawks and screams shared by man and bird, and the two crashed into the island head-on. Groose flew off Nally's back and smacked into a small pool of water with a huge splash. Nally, a little better equipped than a Skyloftian boy, used her talons to dig into the ground like a plow and spread out her great wings to break.
Groose swore and gasped for air before he felt a large beak tighten on his collar and pull him up from the giant puddle. Water ran down his eyes and he scrubbed them in vain as rain pelted down on them in sheets. He squinted those golden orbs open and pinpointed a group of lanterns clanking loudly against the shed's roof. Grabbing a fistful of indigo feathers, Groose led Nal over to the shelter. He made his way more by memory then anything else, feeling his way along the walls, before the rain abruptly lifted. They were in the stalls.
Groose shivered in violent tremors as he helped his enormous loftwing into the last stall on the far right. Every other one was taken, to his annoyance. It would be a busy night. Nal ruffled her feathers and before Groose could blink, the bird shook all the water off herself and right onto him.
"Nal!" the boy shouted, shielding himself from the icy wave. His bird tilted her head in a cocky sort of gesture before another soaking tremor racked her body. Groose spat out yet another mouthful and gave his loftwing a playful shove. "As if I wasn't drenched enough!"
He sighed, grabbed a handful of nuts from the storage shelf, tossed them to the bird, and gave her a good pat. "Well, I was late anyways, wasn't I?" The bird gave a happy croak and pecked up the food. "I hope you're glad we actually made it, with your crazy flying." Nal continued pecking away and Groose shook his head. She really was something though, a prized bird. They'd win for sure tomorrow. As the happy owner watched his bird practically inhale her food, a foreboding thought lurked it's way up.
"You...you didn't sprain anything back there did you?" asked Groose, concern creeping into his voice. It had been a rough landing... He rushed over and inspected his bird carefully before nodding. "You're in the clear. Stay here until the storm quits, all right?" One final squawk and Groose said his goodbye's.
He hurried, hunched over in the storm to the building, and burst through the entrance.
The familiar wave of sound of a murmuring crowd swept over his ears, and he squinted against the cavern's bright light. That new chandelier bossman liked so much glinted like the sun, compared to the pitch black hell outside. Groose folded his arms and shivered at the warmth. He was freezing, soaking wet! The roaring fireplaces of the cavern only made that more obvious. Coming in he stepped right over the mat (far beyond simple pleasantries), and made his way over to the bar.
"Welcome back to the Lumpy Pumpkin, Groose. I hope it's not your shift today, boy!" The barman teased over a herd of customers. Mr. Balin was large character, as large as his own hulking mass. His brown, flyaway hair was even messier than usual and dark stains littered his yellowed, bulging apron.
Groose smirked. "Sorry bossman, gonna have to leave all this to you and the rookies."
The middle-aged man grunted. "Well, as long as you don't bother 'em they'll be fine." He narrowed his dark eyes. "Got that?"
Groose grinned. "A'course, a'course, sir."
The older man grunted once more before he became immersed back into his work and taking orders. Groose shoved his way through the crowd, eyes searching every face he passed.
"Well wouldya' look who thought ta turn up!"
Groose turned around, grinning in defeat. A small, middle-aged woman with sharp, golden eyes grinned at him with that special smile of hers and a thick brow raised. Half the time a grin like that meant she was ready to bite someone's head off, the other half it mean she was just in a mood...for better or worse.
"Sorry Jay, but if you haven't noticed there's a storm outside."
She snorted. "Yah, I can see that by the state of yah. Whatcha do? Bring the whole fucking rains in with yah?" She rolled her eyes. "Well, lucky for yah, I got us a seat by the fire."
Groose grinned. "Sweet. I'm freezing!"
Jandalee raised her arm, and took his hand. Groose held back a grin as he wondered at how tiny and fragile her dark fingers were compared to his. In another moment she had led them across the furnishings to a nice little bundle around the fire. Two pillows varying in size and color laid warm and inviting by the roaring fireplace. Groose eagerly took a seat in the larger green one, and Jandalee took a seat in the smaller red and gold-laced one.
"Well, gotta say your hair looks a lot better down like that, G," she said, folding her legs together and reaching for a tray. Groose made a sour face and she chuckled. "Well, it's true, yah know." She poured out a fair portion of bubbling, green ale for herself and one for him. She winked. "Got the good stuff. This is quality beer, here. Yah mi' wanna be careful though...strong stuff."
Groose took the mug and a healthy gulp of it down along with her. His eyes immediately watered as the bitter taste foamed down his throat. Jandalee laughed and drained hers in one gulp. "Told yah!" He raised his chin and drained his own stubbornly.
"Ha!" Groose claimed triumphantly, setting the mug down and trying his best to keep his eyes from leaking. Hylia, that stuff was strong. Jandalee smirked and poured them both a fresh swig. Before he could take another sip she put a hand on his arm.
"Don' kill yourself, now. Let's jus' take it easy so we can actually talk to each other."
Groose smiled and nodded. "Fair enough. How's it going?"
She took a loud gulp. "Same ol', same ol'," she said somewhat distractedly. Groose frowned.
"Sammel, sammel, huh?" he mimicked.
She pursed her lips at him and replied, "Yah. Same ol', same ol'. Nothin you need to worry yourself over."
The boy raised an eyebrow. "What did you do this time, Jay?"
"Nuddin." Another drink.
"Where did you get the money to pay for this?"
She glanced over at him and gave him the do-you-need-to-ask look.
"Well how do yah think, G? I think it's pretty fucking clear how I make my living." His eyes glanced unconsciously down to her open cleavage and quickly back to her heavily painted face. "Speakin' of which," she purred in a husky voice leaning over to him, "You're old enough now, aren't cha'?" Groose pushed her back gently into her seat.
"I'm not sleeping with you, Jay," he said softly. "You can just ask me for money, you know."
She snorted. "Why'd yah get all dolled up then?" she asked, ignoring the second statement and taking another loud gulp.
"Because you're special to me, Jay."
She laughed. "Ya' right. I'm just an illiterate whore."
Groose furrowed his brows in anger and snarled, "Who said that?"
She played with one long, red coil. "Nobody, Goosey."
Groose looked less than pleased with that answer, but Jandalee just gave him a light pat on the shoulder.
"Don' go off an' kill anybody now. I ain't worth it."
Groose straightened. "Yah you are, Jay. Don't say that crap."
She sighed and drained the last of her mug. The fire crackled and stirred. Jay turned her bright, red head to watch it's playful spires.
Groose frowned and relaxed, if not reluctantly. "Jay," he said after a while. She continued to stare at the fire, but Groose sensed that she was listening. "Do you have a place to stay tonight?"
For the first time in years Groose thought she was going to cry, and he hadn't the slightest clue as to how to deal with it. The last time he'd seen her do that was...
But she kept a straight face, and the moment of weakness passed.
"Don't you worry about that, G," she commanded, forcing all the emotion out of her voice.
Groose took her tiny, fragile hand and squeezed. "I don't think you'd want to go back to the Academy-"
She wrenched her grip away and snarled. "I don' know how you can stand it, but I ain't goin' to that fuckin', cloud-ass school of filthy-"
"BUT," Groose interjected in a raised voice, "I might have another option. ...If you can stand being a little wet."
Jandalee raised her brow and a slow, dirty smirk made it's way to her face.
"No, not that kind of wet, Jay," Groose said, half-exhausted, half-amused. She giggled, took another drink, and looked up at him expectantly. "Well...it's no mansion suite or anything, but...if you're interested..."
"Out wit' it, G," Jay said with a placid smirk.
"It's a cave. Under the waterfall."
Jandalee opened her mouth, shut it, then opened it again. "I'll take it. Yah gonna teach me how to build ta' fire?"
Groose was surprised at her forethought. "Yah, of course."
She looked up at the ceiling. They could hear no rain. "I think the storm's gone. Yah got your bird?"
Groose nodded. "We'll have to be careful to not get caught though. It's dark out by now."
"Pah, when I was your age we didn't have them dumb rules. I just took my bird out whenever I damned well pleased!"
"Like you ever followed the rules...Ouch!"
Jandalee brought back her fist and crossed her arms. "I don' need your sass, an' it's not like yah folla' them rules yourself!"
Groose grinned and rubbed his arm. (Damn that woman could punch though...guess that she'd have to know how to hit, considering...)
"Well, they're dumb, right?"
She raised an eyebrow and after a moment tilted her chin up. "Ya. They are."
He laughed and after getting to his feet, helped her up as well.
They fought their way through the crowd and back to the entrance (With a couple of unwanted leers at Jay from two freaking cowards that backed off the minute he caught their eye). Groose opened the door for her and stepped out. The chilled, heavy air felt like a moist blanket, and though the rain had stopped, he still heard the liquid leftover roaring in the gutters above his head. A drop of water from the roof landed right in his eye, and from Jay's swearing it seemed she had a similar problem.
"Fuckin' drain pipes..." she grumbled, wiping the filthy water from her eye as Groose did the same. He smirked, finding this a bit more funny than his "aunt". Their feet dragged a bit in the muddy ground as the two made their way over to the stables. By the time they'd made it back to his loftwing, Jay clutched her sides, shivering and swearing. Groose looked down at her and grinned. The young man had nearly opened the gate when he remembered what he'd meant to do.
"Hey...Jay?" The woman looked up. He turned away to fidget with the gate lock. "So, um...do you think that maybe..."
"W-Well, Spit it out t-then..." she stammered.
"I...you remember the...that I'm in the Wing Ceremony tomorrow, right?" He gave her no chance to reply as he added nervously, "I-I understand if you don't want to come or anything, but I just-"
"I-It's a big day for yah, init it? Groose turned around to look at a very (freezing) neutral-faced Jay. "Well 'c-course I'm c-commin'... Wouldn't be right if I d-didn't-"
The large young man cut her off with a huge bear hug. "Thanks Aunty-Jay."
The woman froze, a bit stunned, but quickly coming over her surprise she gave the kid a light pat on the back.
"Ain't nothin'. ...And shit you're warm!" She burrowed deeper into his embrace. In a muffled voice she accused, "How come yah so warm, huh?"
He laughed, feeling her small, shivering frame and said, "Guess it's because I'm so big."
"Jus' like your mama was..." she mumbled softly.
Groose blinked. He'd never heard Jay talk about her before... He decided not to press, however. He just wanted to enjoy the moment.
After a while Groose let her go, and watched in amusement as the woman backed away from his warmth with blatant reluctance. Smirking, the boy began to take off his coat.
"Here," he said, tossing it to her.
Jandalee stared at the fabric, then scowled and looked up at him. "What am I 'spose to do with this?"
He rolled his eyes. "Wear it."
She pursed her lips and eyed his now bare arms covered with goosebumps. "What about you?"
He went in the stall and rubbed Nally's beak. "I'll be fine."
"Oh no, You ain't getting sick cause I'm a bit chilled!"
Groose guided his loftwing out and stopped in front of the very displeased older woman. "I'm a big guy. I'll be fine, Jay." He smirked and turned his head toward her trembling form. "Besides, you need it more than I do."
She muttered curses under her breath and something about "the stubbornness of youth" before she sighed and put on the enormous, Groose-sized coat. By the time she managed to roll up the long, spilling sleeves Groose was fighting to keep his laughter from slipping out. The coat looked more like it would try to eat her than warm her up.
"Shut up...fuckin' idiot..." she muttered. Groose's lower lip trembled dangerously, but he kept his face and helped her up.
"Good thing Nally's not picky, huh?" he asked.
Jay snorted and adjusted her sitting position. "All birds love me."
"Yah, right. Not if they were anything like that pipsqueak's..."
"Huh?" He jolted and looked up to find those sharp, golden eyes locked onto his. He turned away.
"Nothing. Let's go."
She narrowed her eyes, but said nothing as he grabbed a fistful of feathers and hoisted himself up behind her.
"Ya' lettin' me guide?" She asked over her shoulder, giving Nal an authoritative, albeit gentle kick. The loftwing started down the path and out the shelter.
"Yah...I don't have any practice night-flying."
In reality he just couldn't see straight from intoxication, at least not enough to trust himself with his bird. ...He'd never admit that to her though.
"Hmph. 'Spose that's good of yah." Said Jay, taking the deep violet bird to the edge. With another light kick the giant bird took off into the cloudy night.
Author's Note:
Guess what tomorrow is (if I'm not loaded with homework)?
The start of the game that's what. Wahoo!
(Almost finished just be a bit more patient)
thank you for reading you guys, it means a lot. ;_;