Searching for the Mask of Majora
Clock Town
Dawn of the First Day 1
72 Hours Remain
Link swallowed thickly. "So...uh, how do you know my name?"
The man smiled, tilting his head to the side lightly. Link felt his breath catch in his throat. This man was the epitome of scary, but at the same time, Link felt an undeniable connection to the man, and felt himself relax physically. The Happy Mask Salesman linked his fingers together, the pack of masks on his back weighing him down considerably. "As Tatl said, I know a lot of different things. One of those include your name." His eyes closed and the smile only widened. Tael shivered next to the Deku boy. "I feel a powerful soul resides in this body; one that is and is not yours...do you remember anything of your past?"
Link lowered his gaze. "No...I sadly cannot."
The dark haired male stepped forward, pressing the notebook against the salesman's chest. "Skull Kid had him write in this notebook, claiming it was a journal. It records all of Link's adventures in Hyrule. I believe that that imp put a spell on this book and it zapped away Link's memory. Poor kid."
"I can hear you, Tael."
"Shut it runt, this is important. We don't know what we're going to do with you."
"The Giants may be able to help," Salesman said, that smile not fading.
Tatl made a screech like noise in the back of her throat. "Woah, dude, the last time anyone saw the Giants was centuries ago. Recently they vanished, I've heard."
"Thanks to the power of Majora's mask, young one." he coughed, opening his eyes and staring into Link's large, orange hollow ones. "Link, hero of time and in one lifetime of winds, will you do a traveling man a favor? I must leave this land in three days, however that imp we call Skull Kid stole a very precious mask of mine. If anything, I would only ask of you to get it back for me."
"Hero of time? Of winds? What are you talking about? I'm just a boy; this isn't even my real form!" he threw his arms up, groaning when they barely went over his head. "I don't remember who I am, and you want me to get something back for you in three days? I can't do that!"
"But you can," Salesman replied, smirking and clapping his hands lightly. "You have all the capabilities; you just have to learn." He pointed to the large wooden doors, chuckling darkly. "Tael, Tatl, join this child in his journey, if you can."
Tatl groaned out loud, shooting a glare at the young hero. Tael elbowed her in the side, growling. "Of course, anything for an old friend. Link, let's go. We have to show you around the town."
The dark haired man pushed the door opened and his sister pushed Link outside, and he shut his eyes away from the harsh sunlight. A dog yipped and he felt something chewing on his leg, and when he looked down he noticed a little white canine growling and biting at the wood of his new body. He yelped and hid behind Tael, who laughed gently. "Welcome to Clock Town," he said, spreading his hands out. "The bustling center of Termina."
"Termina?" Link asked, and Tatl tapped her foot impatiently. She was getting real tired of this tiny wooden brat. "That's the name of this land?" he continued, eyes following the postman who was running to the various postboxes in order to deliver the mail. Carpenters were all over the place, getting ready for, well, something.
"Everyone's getting ready for the Festival of Time," the male said, smiling happily at the postman as he ran by. "Right now though, everyone's having a debate on whether or not they should go on with the celebration."
"Why?"
Tael picked Link up and perched him on his left shoulder, pointing up into the sky. Link's eyes widened. "That's why."
The moon; never in the life he remembered had he seen the moon look so disturbingly eerie. There were obvious eyes staring down onto this small town and the grin it bore screamed death. And, for some strange and terrifying reason, it looked closer than it normally did. His mouth opened and closed repeatedly, and he noticed Tatl a little ways away beginning to walk into another section of the town. "Sis, where are you going?"
She turned to face her younger brother, smiling evilly. "I'm going to see the GF. Comin' with?"
Adjusting the hero so that he was relaxed against his shoulders, Tael began the trek up the ramp to follow the blonde, jogging in order to keep in the same pace. Staying quiet in fear of the older woman, Link began to wonder exactly who this 'GF' person was. Perhaps it was someone who could help him regain his memories. Yeah, that sounded good.
North Clock Town
When they emerged from the tunnel, Link's head immediately turned to stare at a slide, noticing a glowing blue thing in the tree nearby. He wasn't able to question anything as Tael took a sharp turn left, past a young boy playing with a balloon with a mask drawn on it that looked suspiciously like the one Skull Kid had been wearing. The kid met his eyes, but continued to blow projectiles at the balloon, trying to pop it. Over by the gate, there was a man literally floating in the air thanks to a bright red balloon. Really, what was it with the people here and balloons? The three went up another small ramp and into a dark cave.
The sound of running water reached the deku's ears, and he gasped as a beautiful light flooded the room and a large fountain materialized in front of them. Dancing above the water were small little orange fairy things. Both of the siblings took in a deep breath. "Oh my goddess," Tael murmured under his breath. He set down his cargo and Link walked up to the water's edge.
"Help me!" a voice called. "Please, Skull Kid placed a curse on me and split me into pieces! I need you to find the lone fairy flying above a place where you'd clean fabric! Please, allow me to take my real form once more!"
Deep back in the pits of his mind, Link felt like he knew this voice, but he couldn't place a wooden finger on it. It only compelled him to help this being even more. The Scrub ran back to the pair standing on the stone tiles, looking up at the woman. "Where can you clean clothes?"
Tatl raised an eyebrow and locked eyes with her brother. "The laundry pool out in South Clock Town would work, wouldn't it? That's the only place I can think of."
The dark haired teen stared down at the young hero in green who clenched his tiny little fists. He smiled softly and took Link into his arms, whispering something into his ear. The white clad girl gave them a funny look when Link nodded, and called out as they started off out of the cave, back into the daylight. Tael took the tunnel back into the place they came.
South Clock Town
Link gasped as Tael, instead of going down the ramp like a normal human being, jumped down into one of the little pools at the side of the Clock Tower. Remembering what he knew about wood and water and element and all that scientific mumbo-jumbo, he knew that water and wood didn't mix. The water would seep into the wood and render the plant useless and heavy, so it would just die. Feeling some droplets hit him only worried him further. Link didn't know how much longer he was going to stay in this form.
The three walked up the stairs to the corner of the wall, and down yet another slope. Briefly, Link saw an orange light flying over the pool of water down at the base, and also noticed a lone frog jumping and croaking by a tree. The dark haired man set the Deku down and allowed him to roam around, passing by a man sitting on a bench playing a catchy tune on his...instrument. Link stared at the water and then up at the small fairy floating helplessly above, wondering just how in the world he was about to get this thing. He doubted that Tael—Tatl he wouldn't even ask—would jump into the water to get her, but then he thought about how light his body really was.
He walked to the edge of the wall, stared hard at his target, and charged as fast as his stubby little legs could take him. Tael noticed him running and cried out to stop him, and even Tatl got worried and tried to run after him. Link planted his toes lightly on the surface of the water, jumping onto the water and making his way to the fairy. He knew that he wouldn't have the energy to jump more than he thought he could, so he made his way to the other side of the pool, the fairy floating around his head. She sang happily into his ear.
"You're crazy!" Tael yelled, wading into the shallow end of the pool as Link made his way back over the bridge to the pair of siblings. Tatl smacked him over his capped head, and her brother picked him up and threw him over his right shoulder. "I can't take my eyes off of you for one second."
Link smiled happily and laughed with his high pitched voice. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Tatl smile softly. "We have to go return this to the GF," she said, her scowl returning and she began making her way back to the main part of South Clock Town.
North Clock Town
Walking back into the fountain, Link ran up, the orange fairy flying in front of him and rejoining her sisters. They combined into one giant fairy with vines covering her body. Behind the hero, Tatl covered her brother's eyes. "Thank you hero," she said, extending her hands. "Skull Kid had cursed me and broke me into pieces; of which one escaped and I was unable to return to my previous form. However..." her gaze drifted to look at Link more closely, and he stepped forward. "I'm afraid you have suffered a greater curse." Unleashing her magic, she concentrated it around Link, blessing him. "Please, use this magic to help you on your quest. This world is in terrible danger, and only a true hero can defeat the evil that is housed in the mask of an imp."
Link knew this voice. He didn't know where he knew this voice, but he had heard it before. He couldn't place his tongue on it, but something in his memory cracked and let loose this voice, in a whole other fountain, in a whole other world.
She beckoned the twins over with a gentle smile. "Tael and Tatl; my fellow faeries which have somehow sustained human forms. Please guide young Link in his quest. As you explore the world, you will meet my sisters, however, they have also been suffering from Skull Kid's curse. When you see them, you will know. Until the next time we meet, do not hesitate to use this fountain to ease your pain and suffering." And with that, the fairy disappeared.
Link looked over at the two behind him, feeling his newfound energy flowing through his veins. "Tael? ...Tatl?" he asked; they were pale. Much too pale for comfort. "Are you guys okay?"
Tatl was the first to recover from her shock. She smiled at the young Deku, something that caused Link to step back in shock. Tatl never smiled at him willingly. "I'm fine," she reassured, but deep in her hazel eyes, there was fear and worry, coated by sadness. Link didn't know why he suddenly knew how to read eyes. He knew especially what evil eyes looked like. Again, it was just something in his head that appeared after the great fairy left. He didn't know where or who he'd seen with eyes like that, but it spun in his head the more he looked into the girl's eyes. "Where do you wanna go now?"
"I—I don't know..." he replied, not breaking eye contact. Tael came up behind him, reaching over to lightly tap the blonde on the shoulder. "Is there anything important that we need to do?"
The dark haired male thought about it for a moment, placing a hand on his chin. "I think we should check in with the mayor," he said slowly. "I haven't heard what he thinks about the moon and the carnival yet. Who knows; maybe they'll cancel the carnival in the end." He began walking to the tunnel across the way from the fountain entrance. "Let's go talk with him."
In the distance, a wolf howled and that was when Link noticed how dark it had suddenly gotten. Did they really waste that much time with the great fairy? He looked over at Tatl. "Time runs faster here than in Hyrule. It's six in the evening now, kid. We have to hurry before they close town hall."
They started running, and a quick thought flashed through Link's mind.
What did they great fairy mean when she called Tael and Tatl her 'fellow faeries'?
Yay! Chapters will go by place and time of day, to make it easier for me to keep track of everything.
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ArAndAr?
