I'm so sorry! Argh, I've been so busy lately that I haven't had time to write at all. I had to sacrifice note-taking in Government class to write the remainder of this chapter, haha. But this week I shouldn't be as busy, and I'll try to update in a weeks time as I've done thus far. You can always looks at my profile, though. It'll have the release date for the next chapter on it.
Disclaimer: LoZ does not belong to me. The extra bits in this story, however, do.
Warnings: Violence. General Weird. Minor Yaoi.
A Wandering Soul Proceeds All Darkness
Chapter – III
Title – To Uphold the Three Day Curse
He knew, and was certain, that they were the ones. From their scent, from their demeanor, from the way their eyes darted about warily and the way their auras fluttered about, he knew they were the ones. These two warriors, this Deku and Keaton, they would retrieve his mask for him without pause, and it would be so easy to sway them to do so. He could taste it after all, the flavor of his own magic. The imp, it seemed, had either learned how to harness the power of the mask, or the mask itself had... well, he didn't want to think of it. If his other half rooted to another and began to grow in power after all...
A whisper caressed his ear, "We're being watched." And he chuckled to himself. They were smart and obviously used to battle. Yes, it was certain indeed their role in this fate, and, perhaps, the destiny of Clocktown itself.
Lingering in the shadows, waiting like a wraith, he watched as the two stumbled up the stairs and onto the sturdy wooden planks of the platform. A pair of garnet eyes not unlike his own lighted over his face, and his heart skipped a beat. Could he see him? It had been so long since another mortal - but no, they continued on, scanning every corner of the room. This one, the one in the Keaton skin, would be the troublesome one. But the other, whose sad, sapphire eyes were on nothing but the double doors, would be easier to sway, to convince.
He knew what had to be done, and exactly how to do it. A twitch of his own magic, and his body materialized in the shadows, whole and human. A shape these two could recognize and trust.
"You've finally arrived." He said, his voice lighthearted and kind. "I've been waiting. Welcome, friends, to Clocktown."
Hands clasped together, back ladled down with a heavy leather bag and an assortment of prizes, he thought he pulled the part of the friendly, welcoming host quite well. But the overall reaction he received was not quite what he had wanted...
"Where the hell did you come from?"
"Who the hell are you?"
An awkward pause, a daunting silence, and he found himself sighing, trying very hard to repress a sudden twinge of anger. He crossed his arms, pouted.
"My, what manners you boys have. But fine, I shall be the gentleman here. I came from Hyrule, and my name is of no importance. But, if you must have a title to attach to me, I am simply the Happy Mask Salesman." He waited patiently for the two to tell him their own names, but instead they just stared up at him with big, soulful eyes.
"Wait," The Keaton boy said, his ears twitching moodily. "The way you said you were from Hyrule makes it sound like we're, well, not in Hyrule. Which is impossible, because we couldn't have gotten that far so quickly."
"Yeah, the Deku Tree told us it would take us a week at most to leave this country behind."
"Well he's just a tree," The Happy Mask Salesman said gently, as if he were politely reprimanding children. "What would he know?"
The Keaton seemed to be holding back laughter, horror in his eyes as he observed the look on his partners eyes. So he'd said something wrong there, hadn't he?
"The Deku Tree is a wiser than you'll ever be! How dare you insult him that way!" Link felt the need to reach for the sword that should have been on his back, but was instead bundled in his tiny hands. His fury waned quickly at that.
"Of course, how silly of me." He amended, much to their surprise. "I apologize. Now, your names?"
He waited, and they, looking terribly confused, finally crumbled.
"Dark Link."
"Link. Pleasure to meet you."
"The pleasure is all mine." He said gently, storing the information away. He decided that now, while they were awkwardly standing with their eyes on the door, would be as good a time as any to tell them his tale.
"You two must be horribly confused, and I can understand that. Don't fret, though. Everything will begin to fall into place the moment you step out that door. But, before you do so, and I'm not going to twist your arms or anything," He stopped, clasped his hands together once again. "I'd like to ask you two for a favor. Nothing too difficult, seeing as how you're a strong couple of boys." Their surprised inhalations pleased him, and he knew he had their full attention then.
"You can tell we're, well, not what we appear to be?" The deku asked him timidly. Trying not to get his hopes up in case he'd just heard wrong, it seemed. He almost felt sorry for the poor thing.
"Yes, I can indeed. You're a pair of warriors, correct?" They nodded, and he tipped his head. "Then you should have no trouble with what I am to ask of you. You see, I was-"
"Hold up a second." He opened his eyes to glare at the interrupter, knowing it was going to be the troublesome fox boy. "Before you even start, what's in it for us? I'm not gonna go and fetch your lost puppy for a couple of coins."
"Be silent when I speak." He said simply, his expression dark. He expected them both to recoil, but the Keaton only glowered at him. "My favor does not involve a 'puppy', but I have indeed lost something. As you can see, I am a traveler much like you two. I travel from place to place in search of masks, which I then sell to other to spread the happiness. It's a lovely way to live, and I've never had trouble earning my coin. But, unfortunately, all good things must soon come to an end."
"I can see where this is going." The fox mumbled. The scrub stomped on his paw with a harsh, 'Ssh!'
He smiled approvingly.
"On my way to this town I ran into a bit of trouble. I was attacked, you see, by an imp wearing a paper hat."
The warriors before him shared a wide-eyed look.
"An imp?"
"Yes." He said simply, his irritation building. "I was attacked. Now usually, I would cut my losses and move on, because there's no use crying over spilled milk. But you see, this was no ordinary mask. No, this was my most treasured mask, and one I went to great lengths to retrieve."
A fork of white hot anger was twisting in his stomach, and his swallowed heavily to cool it. He had to maintain an air of calmness here, or the two would never agree to help him.
"This mask is one I cannot simply cut ties with. I've become quite... attached to it, you see. But, alas, I am but a mere entrepreneur, not an assassin. I cannot confront him on my own. And that's where you two come in."
"Actually, we-"
"Before you say anything," He interrupted smugly. "I have a very enticing reward for the two of you. Bring me back my mask, and I shall return you to your normal forms."
"You can do that?" The two warriors were nearly foaming at the mouth, approaching him like rabid men.
"Of course, of course." He said quickly, shooing them away with his hands. "All you have to do is bring me back my mask. Simple, no?"
"Yeah, but... You see..." The scrub looked to the Keaton for help, but the fox only shrugged.
"We ran into the imp too. His names Skullkid, by the way. He transformed us and we were unable to stop him."
At the disapproving look on the Happy Mask Saleman's face, the scrub quickly shook his head in earnest.
"But we were taken by surprise, you see. We should be able to overpower him no sweat the next time we see him!"
"And we'll bring your mask back without a scratch." The fox added.
He regarded them with a careful look, testing their truthfulness, and then grinned. "Alright then! It's a deal."
The two warriors were nearly scrambling for the door before he even finished, and he felt a stab of panic for a moment. "Wait!" He called out, his eyes crazy. They turned to look at him, their bodies already pressed up against the door.
"What?" The Keaton snapped.
"I'm afraid I'll have to leave in three days time. I'm needed elsewhere, you see, and I can not dally. So, if you'd be so kind as to hurry and bring me my mask before three days have passed, I would wholeheartedly appreciate it. I'll stay right here so you can find me once you've claimed it."
The scrub nodded, pushed against the door with a sudden determination. "We'll be back before you know it." He said, and then the room exploded in light, and before his eyes could adjust, they were gone. The door swung on it's rusted hinges once, twice, three times, and then halted with a deafening screech.
The Happy Mask Salesman smiled to himself, clasped his hands together in a sweaty grip.
"I'll be waiting."
"That guy was stark raving mad."
"He was a bit creepy, wasn't he?"
"A bit?" Dark said incredulously, his tails lashing. "He was insane! I could go a lifetime without seeing that creeper again."
"But he promised to turn us back." Link reminded him. He wasn't too fond of the man himself, but one of them had to be rational here.
"I know, I know. But... there's something about him. Something weird. I don't trust him."
"We'll be careful then. Very careful."
With his voice set in a stone-like tone of finality, the conversation died, ended, and slowly, the finally, the two warriors noticed the world before them.
Standing, awestruck, jaws slack, a silence grew between them. Of all the things to find after dank tunnels and dripping waterways, this, this town, was the last thing they'd expected.
Link's first though, whereas Dark remained silent, was, 'Busy. So very busy.'
Overhead the sky was unfolding, the sun inching towards it's rightful place, and it illuminated the people of -What'd the Salesman called it?- Clocktown. And everywhere he looked, in every single direction, was something or someone in motion.
To their immediate view, a large platform was being constructed, all around it men in carpenters attire with hammer in their sweating palms and blueprints tucked into their trousers stood gazing at at its wooden supports. Atop it was a man who seemed to be shouting angry orders, his hands gesturing at people in parts in a way that said, 'Move or be moved.'
Link tried to count, failed, then gave up. Too many people, all at once, were impossible to keep track of. Especially since they were all running hither and tither all at once. He lets his eyes wander instead, following a staircase up, up, up, and found himself looking into the charcoal eyes of a mask not unlike Darks new face. A Keaton mask, one from the Bizarre Link had dallied past man a time.
He raised a dainty hand to point it out to Dark, calling his name to get his attention.
"What? What is it?" The Keaton had been occupied with a man bumbling about in a skimpy red and white outfit, and by the time Link got him to direct his attention in the right direction, the boy with the mask was gone.
"What?" Dark asked him, peering at the staircase as he cocked his head. "I don't see anything."
"It's gone." Link said, and if he'd been in his human body, his eyebrows would have been drawn down in a look of confusion, utterly perplexed. But for now, as Dark went back to chuckling at the man in red and white, Link was left to take small steps out into the breaking sunlight. He prodded around the stalls and the people, then stopped to stare up into the sky. Something had caught his eyes, something strange...
A few meters behind him, Dark was also staring up into the sky, his eyes narrowed. As one, they shared the same thought.
'What's with that weird moon?'
Before Link could ponder further though, a young lady stumbled into him, apologized quickly, then blinked and turned back to stare at him with very wide eyes.
"A Deku Scrub? Say, your kind doesn't appear in these parts very often. Are you lost?" She crouched to his level, her eyes kind and her ginger hair pulled back from her eyes. Link found her very pretty, but made no inclination to thinking so. Dark had a tendency to become very jealous if he thought his 'Hero' was in jeopardy of leaving him.
"I'm not lost, exactly. Just, ah, getting away for a few days, you know?" He was suddenly reminded of the fact that he and Dark had absolutely no alibi, and to the people here, it very well made them look quite suspicious. But the woman seemed to take this excuse without hesitation, and she nodded in earnest.
"I can understand that. Everyone likes to get away for awhile..." Suddenly, her eyes seemed overcome with a deeper sadness than Link had seen in a long time, and he couldn't keep himself from asking if she was okay.
"I'm fine. Just a bit stressed, is all." Humming to herself, she stood and wiped her hands on the front of her skirt, then smiled at him. "I own the inn here in town, and if you ever need a place to rest for the night, I'd be glad to rent you a room for free. What with the festival coming up, I've been quite busy, and most of the rooms are full, but I think we can find a place to house you."
"Thank you." Link said, taken back by such kindness from a complete stranger. "My name is Link, by the way."
"Anju." The woman, Anju, replied.
A swear from behind them erupted in a chorus of howls of laughter from the carpenters, and Anju rolled her eyes.
"I'd better be getting back then. All this noise is giving me a headache... Anyway, I'll see you later Link!" With a quaint wave and a small smile, Anju was gone, her lithe form disappearing into a nearby crowd of people.
"Nice lady." Dark said as he loped to sit at his side, his tails dragging the Masters Swords duplicate behind them. "A little too nice."
"She's just being courteous." Link assured him, his feet already pulling him further along. Dark made a noise deep in his throat, a canine-like scoff perhaps, but he followed close behind.
They headed up the stairs and into a large square that was bordered by stalls and shops. People paid them little heed at first, their attention directed elsewhere, but then the sun reached its peak and people could no longer stop themselves from staring, even if they'd wanted to.
Dark's fur, illuminated by the sun, shone like gold.
"Is that a Keaton?" One man said as the two warriors walked by. He was answered by an unsure murmur in the crowd, and after that, Dark stuck to the shadows, his pelt dimmed by the darkness.
"I hate this town already." He grumbled, much to Links amusement. The Deku knew that Dark had issues with people staring, with others judging him, but he knew that these people weren't looking at him with disgust or anything negative at all. They were staring in awe, in amazement, in wonder. They were fascinated with this strange creature, one he himself knew very, very little about.
If Dark himself were to describe the situation, he would have stated it in one simple, easy word.
Interesting.
At the top of yet another staircase they rested in the eaves of a large building, which, now that Link looked at it, was an inn. The inn, he assumed, owned by Anju. He mentally noted it's location, storing it away for later. At least, even in this strange new world, they could have something familiar to return to.
A breeze filtered past them, ruffling Dark's fur and tickling Links nose, and with the sudden chill Link had no choice but to curl closer to the Keaton. Link sighed, his limbs weary, and he realized then that this was the beginning of it all. This was where it started; the new tale of their lives.
"We'll find him." Dark mumbled, his eyes wary as he watched the people ambling by. While Link found himself relaxed, the Keaton sat stock still, his muscles tensed. When the Deku boy gave him a curious look, Dark tried to shrug it off, his muzzle curling up into a fox-like smile. And while his fur seemed to settle, the warrior still seemed off. The foxes eyes settled on the sky, cold and calculating.
Yes, it was obvious that something was very, very wrong.
Hopefully there aren't too many mistakes, but I'll try to go back and fix whatever I can. If you see anything, let me know, though.
Also, I'm sorry it's shorter than usual.
Reviews Are Love!~