Swordplay
bijoukaiba: Well, I did say that Chapter 3 would arrive much faster, didn't I? After an odd dream on the eve of May 23 (how curious... I went to Japan a year ago on that day!!), I had an inspiration for a few chapters later in the story. Heh-heh... SPOILER: My dream was about Ness. That's all I'm saying.
Some reviewers have wondered if I will put SSB: Brawl characters in such as Snake and Pit. Because this was published prior to the publicity of the five new characters (and not to mention the fact the dorms only have 25 rooms), I apologize to Pit, Snake, Meta-Knight, and Wario, but THEY WILL NOT BE IN THIS STORY. They might be mentioned every so often, though. I might change my mind later on, too. Maybe I'll put them in another story? Hmm, who knows...
Now, Disclaimer time! Our lucky friend is...
Mario: Okey-dokey, bijoukaiba doesn't-a own Nintendo, Super Smash Bros. Melee, or any of-a its characters!
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Chapter 3: The Mysterious Figure Reappears
The next morning, Zelda found herself strolling in the Hyrule Temple arena to simply enjoy herself.
Hmm... I wonder if Fox is here... maybe I'll get to fight Kirby on Monday. But what if I end up against Link, DK, or Bowser? Those might be challenging fights...
"Zelda!" Came a familiar voice.
"Link? Hey, good morning!" she cheerfully replied.
"Not quite," he responded huskily. Zelda then realized that it wasn't Link... it was his darker alter ego.
"Dark Link!" she whispered.
"Surprised?" he smirked. "I'm back!" He brandished his bow and before Zelda could act, he had fired the arrow deeply into her chest. The princess squeezed her eyes shut in pain. Her fists were clamped tightly onto the arrow, but she had lost the strength to pull it out.
"Go to the ocean," she heard Link, the real Link, comment. "Wash away the wounds and the anger! Before it's too late!"
She could hear the sea roaring in the background. When she opened her eyes, she found herself staring at the ceiling. Frigid beads of sweat had formed on her forehead.
It had all been a dream.
Was it some type of sign? Dark Link and the ocean... maybe Link had the same dream too!
Still clad in her lavender nightgown, she headed downstairs to check on her friend. Walking up to his doorway, she realized Ness was already there, clad in cute blue pajamas speckled with baseballs.
"Zelda!" He whispered. "You had the dream too?"
She nodded. "What's up with Link?"
Ness grinned. "Well, he snores pretty loudly. I don't think he's been dreaming."
"You sure?"
"Yeah."
A bit of silence followed.
"So, what did you see in your dream, Ness?" Zelda inquired.
"Well, I was at the beach and I saw Link dressed in pure black. He was really evil. He shot an arrow at me! Then I got scared and woke up." Ness explained.
Zelda nodded. "That sounds just like Dark Link. I think it's probably safe to say this was just a dream, although Dark Link and the beach seemed pretty prominent."
Ness pouted. "What? But I want you to help me find him!" He clenched his fists in vigor. "If we're the only ones who've had this dream, then maybe we're the only ones who can stop him!"
"No way, Ness! It's too dangerous for us. I'm going back to bed right now, in fact."
Ness wouldn't give up yet! He was too crafty for that.
"Okay," he sighed, giving in to Zelda's wishes. He turned towards the stairway. "Then I'll just have to go alone."
Zelda halted in midstep. "What?" She hissed. "You can't go alone!"
"Sure I can," Ness muttered nonchalantly. "And if I get killed... well, it'll be for the good of the smashers."
"Overdramatic little..." Zelda felt her temper rising. "Wait for me! I'll go too."
Before Ness's eyes, she had transformed herself into her alter ego, Sheik.
"Wow! How did you do that?!" He clamped a hand over his mouth, regretting that he had spoken so loudly. "Sorry." he mouthed.
He was in awe of the warrior's muscles, slender figure, use of weapons (needles in hand), and red eyes that could paralyze the enemy.
"Are you still Zelda?"
Sheik mused over this briefly. "In a sense. This is my alter ego, Sheik."
"So are you a boy or girl, really?" Ness questioned. Sheik sweatdropped. "I'm still a girl technically, despite my looks. Enough small talk, let's go find our target."
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The beach appeared haunted in the glimmering reflection of the pale full moon. Sounds of crickets and cicadas amidst the cool, green grass and towering trees that bordered the shoreline added to the effect.
Ness shivered as he walked along with the Sheikah warrior.
"Man, it's really c-creepy out here." he stuttered.
"And to think, you were so eager to go after this guy." Sheik responded. Ness had noticed that she was a lot more sarcastic than Zelda.
"Sorry! It just feels like something's gonna jump out at us any second now..." He murmured.
"I highly doubt that," the Sheikah replied.
A dark silhouette by the shore caught their attention.
Ness leapt behind Sheik. "Look, Sheik! There's a body over there!"
Sheik drew needles into her hand. "I can see it just fine, thank you."
Slinking through the grass on all fours, staying low to the ground, Sheik approached the body slowly. Ness remained glued to his spot, ready to launch a PSI assault if necessary. Sheik dove towards the shadow, then withdrew her needles. The boy watched in confusion as Sheik reverted back to Zelda.
"Ness, Ness come here! This isn't Dark Link at all! No, I think he's just been pulled into this mess like the rest of us!" Ness ran over and confirmed it. Zelda placed a lock of his teal hair between her fingers. "I have no idea where he's from either, or who he is."
Ness pointed at a sheath on his belt. "Zelda, I think we've found our swordsman!"
"But why is he out here?" Zelda pondered. "Do you think someone tried to get rid of him?"
Ness also appeared confused. "I have no clue. Maybe it has something to do with what Pikachu told me at dinner..."
Zelda held onto his shoulders. "Tell me Ness, this could be vital!"
"He told me that this guy stopped fighting in the middle of their battle. He let Pikachu win! So... maybe he's not our enemy after all! I think he was really meant to be a fighter like us!"
Zelda mused this over. If he had stopped fighting in the match, he really hadn't meant to attack Pikachu, had he? So maybe he had a different target. Or maybe he was innocent.
Innocent until proven guilty... she recalled.
"So... whaddya say?" Ness asked.
She reverted back into Sheik- muscle wise, Sheik was stronger then Zelda- and attempted to lift the warrior into her arms. Surprisingly it took little effort... despite being soaking wet, he was fairly light.
"He owes a pretty good explanation of everything that happened, and we're going to get it. We're taking him to the dorms."
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Ness called for Nurse Joy and they got the fighter warm, dry clothes (a simple white robe and black boxers) and a bed in the hospital wing of the third floor.
"Is he gonna be okay?" The psychic boy asked.
"Well, he's sleeping like a baby and his vital signs seem to be in check. Just give him a good night's rest and he should be active by tomorrow. Who is he?"
Ness scratched his head. "Um... we're not sure. We rescued him on the beach. Zelda and I were both drea- oof!" Zelda elbowed him in the stomach. "Errrr... I was sleepwalking on the beach, so Zelda came to get me, and we found him there."
Joy raised an eye brow at them curiously, then nodded. "Whatever you say... I won't question you further tonight." The nurse stepped out of the hospital wing and headed back to her room in a separate building. Once she had left, Zelda clung onto Ness's hands.
"Listen, Ness, if anyone finds out about what really happened, the sworsman, you, and I are going to get in serious trouble. You can't even tell one person, understand?"
Ness nodded.
Zelda smiled sweetly and ruffled his dark hair.
"It was pretty neat to go on an adventure with someone foreign to Hyrule. I'll see you tomorrow, Ness. Sleep well."
"You too, princess!"
As she left the hospital wing, Ness glanced back at the swordsman. The thought of possibly having fifteen smashers was too thrilling for him. Like a piece of overly spicy food, you just wanted to spit it out. Okay, that sounded gross, but you get the picture.
Ness felt a mischievous smile crawl onto his face.
"She said not to tell ONE person, didn't she?"
((Oohhh... bad, bad Ness, lol!))
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Sunlight penetrated through the blinds and made the newcomer's blue hair glisten like crystalline drops of water at the beach on a beautiful day, the personification of a peaceful morning. He smiled briefly in his sleep, snuggling deeper into his pillow. On the opposite side of the room, Link, Peach, Pikachu, Nana, Popo, and a very angry Zelda were still talking about what had happened the previous evening.
Ness... you are dead when I see you again! Coward... he even 'pretended' to sleep in this morning!!!
"Pi! Pika! Pika pikachu pi!" (Yeah! That's him! I fought against that same guy yesterday!) Pikachu chirped, pointing over at the bed.
Peach put her hands on her hips, and interrupted Zelda's surprisingly (audible gasp from author) evil plotting to get back at Ness for spilling the secret to her friends.
"Zelda! Do you realize the danger you were in last night?!" she scolded.
Zelda took a deep breath and calmly replied, "Yes..."
"And you put Ness in danger too!!" she added.
"It's not my fault! It was Ness's idea!!" Zelda shot back.
Nana and Popo tugged at Peach's dress. "Hey, Peach..." the commented.
"Not now, sweeties." she said, gently trying to brush them off before turning back to Zelda. "Pikachu already experienced the danger firsthand-"
"Peach!" The Ice Climbers whined.
"Both of you, please- and you HAD to bring our biggest threat back to our suites!"
"He might just be a fighter like the rest of us and got confused! Innocent until proven guilty!" Zelda argued. Link nodded in agreement.
"That doesn't make up for the fact that-"
"PEACH!!!!!" The Ice Climbers exclaimed.
"WHAT??!?!?!?!?!?!?!?" Peach screamed.
The sound of moaning across the room caught everyone's attention, and they ran over to the bed of the swordsman. It was the first time the others had gotten a chance to actually see him.
"Okay," she said grinning at Zelda in agreement, "innocent until proven guilty."
He stirred and gave a soft whimper in his sleep one last time, before his eyes fluttered open softly like butterfly wings, giving them a glimpse of his eyes. They were a beautiful shade of cerulean. He stretched instinctively, before trying to sit up. Link sat on the edge of the bed to assist him, putting a hand behind his shoulder blade and his other hand opposite to it on his chest to help pull him up to a sitting position.
The new arrival faced the elf, eyes squinting from sunlight, but when his vision refocused, the first sight he saw was the infamous Hero of Time.
Confused, he looked around at all the foreign faces that surrounded him.
"Well, it seems he doesn't have any idea as to who we are, so he can't be here to kill us. If he were here to be an assassin, he would probably have a good idea as to who we are."
The swordsman gave Pikachu a look of confusion too.
"Hmm... you really have no idea where you are, do you?" Link asked.
The teal-haired swordsman looked back at the elf with more confusion.
"Ne? Boku wa doko desu ka?"
The princesses felt their hearts leap at the sound of his voice. It sounded like the gentle flow of a river, soft waves that delicately kissed the sandy beach, a quiet breeze that whispered the foretelling of the seasons, and chimes that played amongst the winds.
Peach clasped her hands together in joy. "Ooh! A foreigner! How exotic!" she squealed.
Zelda nodded with a grin on her face. "I'll say. He's definitely not speaking English or Hylian."
"Pikachu pika pika pi chu pi." (And I'll be damned if he's a Poke'mon.)
The young man looked even more lost than before.
"Gomen, demo... boku wa wakarimasen..."
Link smacked a hand against his forehead.
"Okay this is going nowhere," he muttered. Cue the lightbulb above the forehead. "Hey wait... that medicine cabinet... doesn't it have some kind of Translation Water? Nana, Popo, one of you see if you can find it!"
Nana raised her hand. "I got it, Link!" she ran over to the medicine cabinet and began moving around contents, careful not to break any jars, vials, or bottles.
Link.
The name froze the warrior. For some reason, it sounded familiar. He felt like long forgotten memories were trying to be revived.
"Rinku..." he pronounced slowly.
The Hero of Time placed a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "It's okay. We're going to try to help you understand us."
Nana returned, carrying a bottle of what looked like ordinary water, save for the fact that it seemed to sparkle. "Here it is!" she cheered, leaping onto the foreigner's bed.
"Mizu desu ka?" he asked.
She smiled at him. "I hope you're thirsty!"
He didn't understand a word she said, but couldn't help smiling at her. "Kawaii!" he cooed.
She shoved the mouth of the bottle into his mouth and his eyes grew wide.
"Drink up!" she laughed. Everyone appeared horrified.
The liquid flooded into his mouth and down his throat against his will. Some splashed onto the bed and onto his clothes as he flailed, coughed and choked until the bottle was finally empty.
"Okay, whoa, Nana, I think he's had enough!!" Link shouted. Nana pulled it from his mouth as he continued coughing. Link clapped him on the back until his breathing returned to normal.
"Thanks," he said, looking at Link gratefully before glaring angrily at the girl. "HEY! What's the big idea?! Were you trying to kill me or-"
He clapped a hand over his mouth in surprise. Everyone in the room appeared excited.
"What's wrong with me?" he whispered in shock. "I'm speaking a foreign language fluently, and I've never heard it before."
Link smirked as several others began chatting about how excited they were that he could talk.
"Wow this translation stuff works fast! Tell me, what's my name?"
He gave the Hero of Time an odd look.
"I think my attempted murderer called you Link."
"Yes!" Link cried, shaking the confused teenager by the shoulders. "I've gone from being Rinku to Link!!"
"Then you can understand everything I say?" he gasped.
"Everything," The elf confirmed with a nod.
Upon hearing this, he lifted Nana onto his lap and apologized.
"I'm sorry for yelling at you,"
"And I'm sorry for choking you." Nana apologized. "Um, accidentally, I mean. Heehee... I'm Nana!"
She held out her pink-mitten clad hand to shake. He smiled and took her hand.
"I'm Marth, the Prince of Altea."
Nana beamed in pride. "Wow! I'm actually shaking hands with a real prince!" Everyone in the room laughed.
Marth blinked at her awkwardly, then nodded. "Yeah..."
She climbed off his lap and let him stretch out again.
"Mmmmph... how long was I asleep?"
Zelda glanced at the clock. "Hmm... about nine hours. I'm Zelda, by the way."
"I'm Popo."
"I'm Peach!!"
"Pikachu!"
Joy walked into the room at that moment. "Oh, you're awake!" she commented, gazing at the prince. "How do you feel? Can you stand?"
Placing Nana into Link's lap, he stood up, bent his knees and stretched more. Although he was wearing shorts, stretching made them rise up his thigh, giving everyone a "good show" of his slender, well-built, legs that were- simply put, downright sexy.
Link's face was as red as a beet as he shielded Nana's eyes. Pikachu covered Popo's eyes, and Peach and Zelda giggled like school girls. Joy looked away awkwardly, her face also pale red. She focused her vision at a spot of paint on the wall. "Yeah, I think you're better, there's a change of clothes in the closet for you, come out when you're done, we'll give you your privacy now, okay, bye!" she stammered rapidly, dragging everyone out of the room.
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Out in the hallway, everyone was chatting wildly about Prince Marth. By everyone, that obviously meant only Peach and Zelda.
"Wow, did you see his eyes?" Zelda asked.
"And his hair?" Peach chirped.
"And legs?"
"And what a voice!"
"Plus, he's a prince!!"
Peach was fanning herself off as she chatted with Zelda. "Damn, girl, I think I'm in LOVE!!"
Zelda perked up at the love thing and began laughing again, but not for her little crush on Prince Marth.
"You should have seen your face, Link!! You were the color of a strawberry!!"
Link ignored her, although his face was still faintly red.
"Pika... pika, chu, pika... pi, chu?" (Hey Link... you aren't, um, you know... gay, right?)
Link gave Pikachu a hard kick, sending him flying into Joy's arms with a scream.
"NO!!!!! FOR YOUR INFORMATION, I AM NOT GAY!!!!!" he yelled, blushing furiously. Marth stepped out of the room dressed in a pale blue tunic, pale blue pants, a white belt with a golden buckle and a silver sheath for his sword, and a white cape cleft with a red pin. For his final touch, he had put a small, thin tiara into his hair.
"Umm... did I miss something?" the prince asked softly, glancing around the room at a Pikachu with a huge bruise on his forehead, a furious elf the color of a cherry, and two princesses who had resumed swooning and giggling over him. Joy, who had been surprisingly calm throughout all this, said, "Here, I'll get you a room. If you're gonna stay at the Battle Royale Suites, you'll need a room!"
She led Marth downstairs two floors to the first floor, still cradling poor little Pikachu in her arms.
"Chuu... Pika..." (Ohh... my head...)
Joy got Pikachu a bandage, then handed Marth the box of numbers. She explained the lottery system to Marth as he stuck his hand in and pulled out a slip of paper.
"Number 12. You're heading back to the third floor. Your room is right next to Link's, and in addition to him, you're on the same floor as Captain Falcon."
She handed him his key without saying anything else.
Marth thanked her, gently patted Pikachu's head, then left for his room. He fingered the key in his hand as he walked up the steps.
With a room next to Link, I don't feel so lost around here.
As he stepped onto the third floor, he encountered a man dressed in a green body suit and wearing a brown helmet.
"I don't think I've ever seen you around... are you new here?" he asked.
"Um... yes... I'll be boarding on the third floor too."
"Ah, you'll be joining Link and I, then!"
Marth appeared intrigued. "You're Captain Falcon then, I presume?"
"Yes... and you are?"
Marth smiled and shook hands with him. "Prince Marth, from the kingdom of Aritia."
The bounty hunter smiled and nodded briefly before continuing downstairs. "Sorry I can't talk much! I'm kinda late for breakfast!" he called over his shoulder.
"It's okay!" Marth replied.
He unlocked his room and stepped inside calmly.
"WHERE THE HELL AM I????" he cried.
Yes, our hero Marth was going to fit in just fine. He was on his way to becoming a smasher!
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bijoukaiba: Okay, that's been taken care of! Now, to get started on Chapter 4!