Author's Note:
heeeey...soooooo I am a dirty rotten lier and this chapter was a biiiiiiiiiiiitch. It was going to be much longer but meeeeeh. Welp. Here ya go. Bask in the grammar errors and such.
Also...thanks for the push, lovely guest; I'll try and do better with updates. :) (Though let's face it I have no self-discipline T_T)
Link didn't remember much after Gaepora's hand went down. He just knew that his bird soared beneath his grip, and his headache had returned with a vengeful fury enough to kill a loftwing.
Clouds, islands, and riders blurred past him, making his head spin and his eyes burn. If not for the feel of his companion's presence beneath Link, anchoring him, he may have gotten sick.
While Scarlett's presence helped, her competitive nature pushed her to speeds that nearly ripped him right off her back. Link felt like he should be ecstatic about that, but his stomach had other ideas. ...Of all the days.
Link shook his head. He needed to focus now more than ever to find that carrier. Link squinted, but the sun blared in his face, and he could hardly open his eyes anyway with the wind. He had to trust that Scarlett was following after the right bird, which, considering their very linear path, Link had to wonder. After a while he noticed Scarlett slowing down...shit. Was she getting tired already?
"Come on girl," he whispered, giving her a light kick to pull up, "Just a little mor-" He gasped as she suddenly jerked to the right, and he clenched onto her feathers. "Scarlett!"
He could sense her annoyance as she let out an indignant squawk. Link felt her "tug" towards the direction in front of them, and saw the carrier several yards away, weaving to and fro.
"Oh..." he muttered, "Well a little warning next time would be nice."
She snorted, and in her own way, retorted, I did warn you. You weren't listening. She suddenly stiffened, and before Link could react, ducked down.
Link grit his teeth and clung to the loftwing-nearly thrown off-again. He had nearly snapped at her when he felt two birds zoom overhead. He recognized the violet pelt-and the dark hair trailing on top the green. It was Groose and that girl.
"Shit," he swore, "Come on, Scarlett!"
She ruffled her feathers (insulted by the lack of thanks; having saved them from getting plowed over), and ducked down again for more speed. Link clenched his teeth as she jerked down again-it wasn't her fault, just his head. Hylia...he was going to be sick.
Scarlett tensed as she sensed her partner's pain, and slowed down a bit-only for him to nudge her forward. She flicked her tail, uneasy, but complied.
We should stop, she tried.
Link shook his head and furrowed his eyebrows, determined. He knew the others were on their tails, not to mention Groose and that girl were quickly catching up to the carrier.
Not until we get that piece of cloth, he told her. Scarlett flicked her tail again, and Link could sense her disquiet. Please, Scarlett. I'll be fine. She gave a disbelieving squawk, but Link wouldn't hear of it. Not today. He grit his teeth and reaffirmed his position: back parallel with his bird, knees bent, hands gripping the reins-not too tight, not too loose, and eyes forward: just as he was taught. "Scarlett," he said with forced strength, "We are getting that goddessdamned piece of cloth if it kills me."
She snorted and gave a nasty retort along the lines of, It probably will, jackass (or at least as the loftwing equivalent of that, as he understood it), and swept up. He knew that was her way of testing him, so he shoved down the pain in his head and the sick in his stomach and forced himself to keep his eyes forward. He couldn't help but flinch slightly, however, and she squawked again...quite frankly pissed.
You're pushing me out, she hissed, but I can still feel it. This is not safe!
"It" meaning the pain. Link grit his teeth again. She was right...he couldn't let her all the way in or she would literally feel it...and that could be deadly when going speeds like this... But you needed to be perfectly in sink...
Goddessdammit! Why hadn't he taken his medicine? Oh yah, because a chuju had tried to eat Fledge.
Not that you would have remembered anyway, idiot.
Link's self-berate was cut short when he saw Stitch pass him below, and the boy grounded his teeth in frustration. If they let up anymore...he looked behind him and saw the other riders closing in.
It doesn't matter now, He thought, partially for himself, partially for Scarlett. I can make it through long enough to finish this race. Then I'll go find Ms. Nellie and get better...but for now I can't let anything get in the way. He urged her on with a light kick, Please, Scarlett. Just this once.
Scarlett flicked her tail and gave a short sigh. Fine...but it will hurt. The carrier is fast and clever, and the others will be tough. We will have to be more so of all, and we cannot hold back.
He nodded his head, solemn. Then let's do this.
With the loftwing equivalent of a "humph" and a get ready, she jerked up and dashed forward, the wind carrying their speed and hurtling them towards the carrier.
Link's stomach pulled a somersault, but he grit his teeth and pushed forward, focusing on one thing: the race. Luckily Scarlett had given them a good start, or they might not have even stood a chan-Look out!
Scarlett let out an angry screech as another flyer shot past them, forcing her to duck out of harm's way. Link grimaced at the sudden movement, but thanked the goddess he had seen it coming.
Cawlin, he growled, seeing the mouse-brown feathers dive ahead. He gave Scarlett an authoritative kick. Let's return the favor.
If you can handle it, Scarlett muttered back, but he could sense her pleasure upon receiving the command. He gripped the reins and braced himself as his loftwing gained altitude, and then with a swift jolt, dove down. Link had to admit, even with the world spinning as it was, there was something so satisfactory about the angry shout quickly lost to the wind behind him.
Link furrowed his brows a bit, frustrated when he sensed Scarlett trying to ignore her own uneasiness about him, but appreciated her silence. He promised he'd be fine; he hadn't fallen off yet, had he?
Link closed his eyes for a few seconds as the sky settled back to a point where he could tell which way was up and which way was down, before he said, Take us up. Scarlett gave a strong flap upwards and continued up until he gave a mental nod. That's good.
He knew he could not handle many more shoves or passes like that, so taking them up and away from the others seemed like the best option. Not only that, but they now had a clear view of the rest of the flyers and the carrier. Fortunately, no clouds blocked his view above the barrier.
Link felt a jolt of panic as he saw two flyers-and he could guess who-tailing the carrier. No one had taken a cloth yet...had they? He doubted it...Groose and the dark-haired girl seemed have been in the lead since the start. Surely he would have heard the horn...
No, Link, Scarlett told him. No one yet. She ruffled her feathers and dove a bit to gain speed. She seemed disgruntled and reluctant to say, It may be best to wait until those two tag the carrier.
Link pressed his lips together. He understood her concern (though partially amused as he sensed the loftwing's hurt pride), but...
Let's at least try to catch up, he told her. We can't take any chances.
Like the one we're taking right now? She replied dryly, diving down and rushing forward-coming closer to knocking him off than he'd care to admit-and proving her point. He narrowed his eyes and resisted the urge to growl at her.
Not helpful.
She snorted and dipped down again. You said "catch up"...and it seems the carrier is turning this way. Get ready.
Link looked down and sure enough, that clever bird had swept right past both Groose and the girl, heading their way far below (he could only imagine their faces).
His eyes widened. This...this could be their chance.
He gave her a light kick. Scarlett...!
I'm on it, She said, giving a sharp flap upwards. brace yourself!
He had just tightened his grip when she dipped down as sharp and true as an arrow, right for the turquoise feathers of the carrier.
Link's stomach jumped up to his chest, seething, and his head screamed at the movement, but he grounded his teeth and focused on nothing else but that single, turquoise pelt. They bolted towards it, getting closer and closer until they were inches away. Link could scarcely believe his luck to see those green pieces of cloth around the bird's ankles, all four of them, flapping in the wind right before him. The bird dashed to the right, but Scarlett kept right on its tale. He reached out a hand, stretching out his fingers and-
BAMM
Author's Note:
Kay so...can I you guys something? Do you feel like this is going really slow? Or is that just my writing process _ I've been thinking about skipping ahead a bit to where the game really begins ya know? but idk... Gaaah I have so many headcanons for later in the story (many about Impa and Zel's adventures) and I want iiiit. Make my decisions for meee XD So yah and another cliff hanger deal with it :p