A/n: So uh, thirteen pages posted on Friday the 13th. Yeah, that's why we waited so long. It wasn't because we were suffering from severe writers block, horrible life stress, and a bad case of Argus-sigh. Yeah, it was because the numbers are cool. For all who are reading this: THANK YOU. We really understand how frustrating it is to have to wait so long and we admire your patience. We hope this chapter was worth the wait.
Chapter 39: Timing (Or Lack Thereof)
Sparks came from the grinding wheel as the Aura Arma, Aura's curved blades, were being sharpened. Amy sat with her own sword, waiting for her turn. She ran her hand along the braided metal running through the middle of the blade. Its iridescent glow warmed the small shack of a room.
The grinding wheel sat in the circular hay silo sitting in the back of the ranch, and Amy and Aura were currently its only occupants.
"Is it just me, or has Naomi gone utterly insane?" Aura asked while admiring her handiwork. Amy nodded emphatically.
"I don't know what happened. She was so sweet. I remember fearing that something or someone might break her or something. That's why I followed you guys… to protect her."
"You know, I felt the same way. I was worried she'd be taken advantage of. She seemed so naïve." Aura concurred, sitting across from Amy with her own sword.
A loud shriek pulled them both onto their feet and they ran to the open door, looking out onto the field. The large masses of soldiers were gathered around Naomi, watching as a particularly burly man lunged towards her. Aura and Amy started towards the apparent feud with panicked expressions. However, in one quick motion, Naomi flipped the man over her shoulders and onto the ground with startling ease. The man remained still, mostly from shock. The two girls stayed their positions.
"Well…" Amy clicked her tongue, her eyebrows raised. "Guess she can fend for herself." Several of the soldiers started cheering and taking rupees from some of the disappointed bystanders.
"Are they placing bets?"
"Yeah." Amy laughed.
"I think we should get in on that action." Aura said with a serious expression.
"Are you suggesting that we gamble… on our friend?" Amy was incredulous.
"Absolutely." Aura deadpanned.
"Eh, alright then." Amy shrugged. "I'm gonna have to gamble with deku nuts though, because I have no rupees whatsoever."
"Sounds good to me."
To Brother Rhone, King of Hyrule,
I, Darunia, sage of fire, pledge my loyalties to you, my Hylian brother. The strength of my army shall shake the ground of our enemies.
Until you send word, I shall remain on Death Mountain. Here we have given refuge to the strong Draconians, whose leader I know is with you. The alliance against Pravumerus now amounts to three nations.
Pledges,
Brother Darunia, King of Gorons
"Pravumerus…" King Rhone said to himself. He had heard that name before, but the meaning currently escaped him.
He sat alone in his room. Link had given him the message from the Goron leader before dinner, but the king had just gotten around to reading it, having been entangled with finding safe dwelling for the scared and misplaced Hylians.
A crackling from the lit fireplace warded off any deafening silence, giving comfort to the king while he sat in his chair thinking over the letter and Pravumerus. His thoughts were broken and a smirk crossed his lips.
"Impa." He said without moving. A dark figure had appeared at the window behind him. Rhone now turned to face his long time friend.
Impa, sage of shadow, stood as her usual self; clad in armor of the Sheikah with blinding white hair and piercing red eyes. Her broad and strong figure created an intimidating presence, but Rhone gladly approached her anyway. As he came to a stop near her, Impa cracked a smile. She held out a hand which the king gladly took and they embraced as brother and sister would.
"It is good to see you again." Rhone announced.
"If only it wasn't a sign of troubled times." Impa added and the king silently agreed. "I see you have received a message from Darunia—it means he has returned safely." The king nodded again.
"Yes, and he is giving refuge to the Draconians. I'm going to assume that you've already heard of them."
"In history, yes… The original sage of fire was of their kind." Impa informed him. The king nodded—he was growing tired and nodding had become his immediate response to everything.
"And the original sage of water came from the Nynians, the spirit sage from Ikana Kingdom, and both shadow and light originally came from Minirith." The king recited.
"The sage of forest was once a Hylian, and the seventh of the sages…" Impa trailed off, allowing Rhone to finish.
"Is always the princess of destiny." He grinned fondly at fathering such a princess, though he often wished his daughter did not have to carry such responsibility. "All are now accounted for… and the other sages ought to be returning to their temples as well." Impa nodded her head, but worry struck her features.
"They should be, but I fear that they may cross danger on their journey here. Saria, I know, will need help finding safe passage, and I worry for Nabooro as well, though she is very strong. But I am here to worry after the sage of light."
"Rauru." The king grinned. "The only remaining sage from ancient times… is he too returning?" Impa nodded her head.
"He is, but he will need the help of the princess, and the hero."
"I shall summon them to the Temple of Time then… that is the ancient temple of light, is it not?"
"Yes, the chosen gateway to the sacred realm… Rauru will need the power of the triforce to regain a physical being—he has become a part of the realm." Impa explained.
"Tomorrow morning then… I shall send a message now. I suppose I could also ask Link to bring Saria safely to the castle, after he has helped Rauru." Rhone thought aloud. Impa nodded her head with a ghost of a smile. In fluid movements, she stepped back and disappeared in a flash of light.
Rhone blinked rapidly, still not used to her manner of exit. Then, with a sigh, he turned towards a corner of the room.
"You can come out now, Tatl." There was silence for a moment, and then the tiny white light of the fairy appeared in the corner.
"I… I thought I was completely incognito!"
"Fairy light is a difficult thing to hide." The king answered. "Well, since you heard me anyway, why don't you go and tell Link all he needs to know. I'm sure Impa has gone to see Zelda, and, if she hasn't, I'm sure Zelda will conveniently turn up where she needs to be anyway… she has a tendency to do that…" Rhone finished with a thoughtful musing before nodding Tatl onward.
The fairy acted as all fairies do and contentedly took her commission. She immediately zoomed down the hall, bumping into a vase and a standing suit of armor in her wild attempts to avoid passing strangers whilst calling a happy greeting to all.
Two floors down, underneath the south tower, was the small shack of a room housing Link and his two friends, Arian and Damien. The three of them had already settled down for the night in hammocked bunks stacked three high, diagonally across the room, as diagonally was the only way one could lie down in this small room.
Tatl quickly found Link on the very top of these and began flying in a zigzagged motion about him.
"Hey! Wake Up!" When none of the boys awoke Tatl made a keen observation. "Sheesh, can the future of Hyrule really depend on such lazy boys?"
Navi, who had been snoozing in Link's hat, flew to her aid.
"Yeah, tell me about it. No worries, we'll double team it."
Both fairies began flying in zigzagged motion about the three sleeping boys. The high and squeaky echoing of "Hey" and "Wakeup" quickly did the trick—a little too well in fact.
Link flipped out of the topmost bunk and fell to the floor with a great shout. Damien erupted from his sleep and drew out his glowing sword. Sol Repraisal lit the entire room. Arian continued to sleep on his bottom bunk.
Damien joined Link on the ground, keeping his sword out only for light as he had quickly surmised that they were in no real danger.
"What is it Tatl, Navi?" Link grumbled as he stood.
"Arian." Damien nudged the boy who mumbled "dekus… everywhere…" along with something incoherent. "Arian." Damien said louder and shook his hammock with a little more force. There was still nothing, so Damien rolled his eyes and untied one end of the hammock. Arian fell to the floor in an awkward fashion. The boy finally pulled out of his stupor.
"Wha-what's going on?" He asked with a yawn. He seemed unaware of the fact that he was on the ground.
"Tatl and Navi apparently have something to tell us." Damien informed him.
"Hey, Listen!" Tatl said again, everyone was now awake and paying attention. "The king wished for me to deliver a message. Link, you must meet with him tomorrow morning in the Temple of Time."
A silence ensued, broken by Arian.
"Now, why did you wake me up again?"
Damien also wondered why he had been woken.
"Is that all you had to say, Tatl?" He asked with a tone of frustration.
"That's all I was told to say." She answered coyly. Damien took in a deep breath through his nose.
"Is there anything that applies to Arian and me?" He asked a second question.
"Not that I know of." Tatl responded. Damien looked to Arian who shared his irritation.
"Whelp, let's go back to bed." Arian announced as he stood and retied his hammock. "How did this thing come undone?" He muttered to himself. Damien remained silent and Link began to climb a ladder back up to his very high bunk. His back was throbbing from his latest fall. Tatl and Navi followed after him.
"It was such a weird meeting… This woman named Impa showed up. She says that the sages are all returning—whatever that means. Also, you're going to need to help some chick named Saria."
"Saria!?" Link turned too abruptly and ended up on the floor again. Damien looked down at him sympathetically before looking at Tatl.
"Do you have anything else to say before Link breaks a leg?" Damien crossed his arms.
"Just that I think the king and the sages actually know more about this situation than we do… at least now after we've alerted them of it. I mean, sheesh, they knew all about the Draconians, the Nynians, Minrithians—I had never heard any of those terms until last week and now they're popping up all over the place!"
Arian, having just finished fixing his bunk, was also now interested.
"Okay Tatl, tell us everything that happened." He crossed his arms like Damien. Link stood, adjusted his tunic, and waited for Tatl's explanation.
With a strange stiffness uncharacteristic to her, Tatl recited word-for-word what had been exchanged between Rhone and Impa. All were rather impressed and mildly disturbed by her imitations of both parties.
"So, Lord Devoren is Pravumerus." Arian repeated for confirmation. "And the sages are coming to help us return him to his ancient bindings." Tatl jingled her affirmative reply.
A rapping at the door interrupted their contemplative silence. A momentary pause—none of them were expecting company, especially not at so late a time. Arian, being the closest to the door by a mere inch, reached out to open it, revealing red-haired and fair Malon wrapped tightly in a shawl and holding her whicker lamp.
"I'm sorry to bother you, but Zelda has gone missing. I'm sharing her bedchamber, and she left for a bit of air and never returned. I know she's the princess, and quite old enough to care for herself, but it's been several hours now and I'm worried." Malon expressed her worries with a modest blush over her cheeks. The three gentlemen pitied the anxious girl.
"I'm sure Zelda is fine, but we can look for her if you like." Arian offered, feeling as if an action should be taken to tend to her concern.
An unspoken consensus ended with the four of them searching for Zelda together. No arrangements, no plans, just a midnight stroll with two lanterns to find the princess.
"This is where she normally comes for air." Link said. He was the most knowledgeable of his sister, but Zelda was a very unpredictable person, and she was not currently standing in her normal spot. Fruitless pondering came to an end when Impa appeared near them.
"Zelda has already gone to the Temple of Time." Impa announced. Her empowering presence was familiar to Link, but it had a silencing effect on the other three. "It appears we have to act sooner than we thought." She informed him before taking a step down the path. The group automatically followed.
The imposing steeples of the ancient temple loomed before them. Impa stopped at the entrance, turning to urge the hero on, but only the hero. Link continued up the steps with Navi hovering above his head, but the other three remained, Tatl taking to Damien.
So they stood together at the bottom of the stairs, near some rather strange looking statues with eerily piercing eyes.
"Whelp… why did we follow Mr. Hero?" Damien asked the other two.
"What else were we gonna do?" Tatl replied. Silence ensued.
"I brought cheese." Malon drew out a cloth sack, revealing two hunks of cheddar.
"Cheese!" Arian replied with a bit of excitement as he reached for a piece. Damien passed Malon an odd stare.
"Do you just carry cheese around?" He asked.
"Of course."
"Do you carry anything else in there?"
"Sometimes I carry incubating cucco eggs." Came Malon's nonchalant answer. Damien cracked an incredulous smile, but Arian took no notice of the oddity. He was tired and occupied with eating cheese.
Inside the temple was a different story. Link had entered to hear the strange echoes of the mysterious temple. Three spiritual stones turned about a pedestal before the door of time, now open to reveal the Master Sword. There stood Zelda, her hand to her chest.
"Link, I was waiting for you." Her soft voice floated to him as he stepped near.
"Uhh…" Link grunted, suddenly realizing that everyone else had remained outside. He was also baffled simply by the fact that Zelda somehow expected him to know she was waiting and to know exactly where she was waiting for him. As usual, Zelda took no notice of his awkwardness. She turned wistfully back to the pedestal of time.
"The sacred realm is no longer safe. An ancient evil has been awoken."
"Ugh, what else is new?" Link heard Navi mutter under her breath. He smothered a chuckle.
"We must bring the sage of light back. Will you help me?" She turned back to him, an expectant smile on her lips. Link nodded his head, contemplating the possible effects of a flat out refusal, but he knew Zelda would eventually manipulate him into saying yes, staring at him with clasped hands until he did so.
Zelda turned back to the pedestal, her flaxen hair swishing across her back. She closed her eyes, a bright light emanating from her hand—the power of the triforce. Link's sign of courage erupted from his right gauntlet as well.
"Link, draw out the Black Sword." Zelda commanded. His left hand reached behind his back for the hilt without hesitation while his right blazed with the triforce of courage.
The dark sheen of his sword seemed to absorb the light in the room. Link held it before him to get a better look, admiring the dark black of the blade and wondering at the shining surface that gave no reflection.
The triforce of courage and wisdom blazed brighter and the sword sifted out of Link's hands, becoming floating specks of black light. They traveled to the pedestal and encompassed the Master Sword. The triforce at the base came to life, and Link knew what to do.
He walked up the shallow steps. His left hand reached for the hilt of this ancient but familiar weapon. It had been seven years, but his hands remembered the touch of this sword, and it felt as though the blade remembered him. Zelda stood behind him and the blue beams of the sacred realm surrounded them both.
The princess held out her hands. Her brow creased in concentration and the sacred light bent to her will, leaving Link be as he pulled the sword from the stone. Zelda forced the light together, and Rauru stood before Link, living in human form for the first time in centuries.
"Oh my—what a rough trip!" The muttering old man cracked his neck. Zelda and Link were at a loss, and Rauru seemed content to stretch out his tired old limbs and mumble to himself.
"You think that's rough? Try being stuck in the sacred realm for seven freaking years!!" All three looked to the little blue fairy who shook with the force of her words, "Link may have been asleep, but I wasn't!!"
"Yes… you were quite a pain…" Rauru reminisced, his mustache moving with his thoughts. He turned to the princess and the hero. "Things are moving much faster than predicted, we only have a month's time. You must return to Lon Lon Ranch first thing tomorrow and inform the others." Link nodded.
Outside, Arian had fallen asleep after eating the cheese. He was curled up at the bottom of the stairs. Malon stroked a hair out of his face, earning a dubiously irritated glance from Damien.
"What are you doing?" He asked Malon with a raised brow.
"I was just admiring how peaceful he looks in the moonlight." Malon answered with blunt honesty. Damien's other brow rose.
"Uh, Arian is—."
"Link!" Malon jumped to her feet to greet the returning hero. Damien also greeted him and kicked Arian awake.
"Hm, what is it?" Arian stirred. One eye caught the green hero standing over him. "Oh, you're back." He said in a yawn. Link smiled and twisted a new, gleaming blade once in his hand. Damien and Link immediately noticed the difference.
"A new sword? But what about the Black Sword?" Damien remarked worriedly.
"It is the Black Sword." Link reassured him. "But it was absorbed by the Master Sword. It means we now have the power of the sages."
"And Rauru has returned." Navi told them.
"Who's Rauru?" Tatl asked. Her question was answered as the three of them saw Zelda and Impa escorting the old sage towards the castle. The three of them gave a nod towards the new old man as he disappeared around the corner.
"What is it with all the old men?" Tatl asked once the three were out of earshot.
"I don't know, but they've all proved pretty useful so far, so I say the more old guys the better." Arian shrugged his shoulders and fingered the stone hanging around his neck. He glanced up at the moon with a wry smile.
"Sounds great Scooter, but right now I think Mr. Hero needs to tell us something." Damien interjected before looking to Link, who did indeed have something to say… for once.
"We only have a month." Link cut to the chase.
"A month?" Malon's voice turned shrill in panic. "Until the war starts?" She shuddered. Arian sat a hand on her shoulder.
"Don't worry, we'll take care of it." He said before turning back to Link. "I guess that means we need to be heading back now."
"First thing in the morning." Link disagreed.
"It is the morning." Arian pointed out. They all took note of the sun peaking over the horizon.
"Oh, well then yes, now."
"Hopefully Naomi's still asleep…" Arian sighed.
"Are you still mad about that coffee thing?" Damien arched a brow.
"No, but I'm thinking she still is." Arian crossed his arms. "You know her, she nitpicks everything to death."
"She is rather aggressive for a girl." Malon concurred. Damien crossed his arms as well and shared his incredulous stare with Link.
"We need to get going. Malon, why don't you go pack your things." Link nodded her on as Tatl came near Link's ear.
"This is bad, Link. I'm not a romantic, but I'd hate to see such a couple torn apart. You should say something." For once, Link agreed. Malon's prevalent blush as Arian smiled at her left him feeling queasy.
The friendly and normally rather likeable redhead was soon also out of sight and Link cleared his throat. He sheathed the new shining blade before speaking.
"Arian, I don't think Naomi will still be mad, and even if she is, I don't think avoiding her would be very helpful at this time." Link was surprised by his eloquent phrasing.
"I know…" Arian replied half-heartedly. He began rubbing the bridge of his nose as if it were in pain. "I just wish I had realized how… how uh…"
"Crazy she is?" Damien finished for him.
"Well… yeah. How crazy she is before we got involved."
"Woah, hold on." Link interjected. "Yes Naomi is crazy, but she is definitely your kind of crazy, because to be honest, you're crazy too! It just works!" He trailed off as his frustration and coherence wore off. Arian was dumbfounded, so Damien decided to translate.
"I think what Link is trying to say is that insanity is the spice of life, and together, you two make one spicy couple."
Now Link was dumbfounded.
"That wasn't what I was trying to say at all!"
Damien shrugged with a smirk, but Arian seemed to be won over. He started laughing.
"You know… You're right!" He heaved a sigh. "I don't know what I was thinking… Naomi can't be mad forever, and I normally find her insanity endearing."
"Don't we all." Damien agreed.
"And while we're being honest," Navi stole the spotlight. "I think all of you are crazy." There was a stony silence as everyone stared at Navi, including the yellow fairy. "What?... what?"
Naomi sighed again, and Amy noticed again. She and Aura were sitting at the kitchen table, and Naomi was pacing with a mild limp near the fire. The flickering light revealed several bruises and a black eye.
"You did it again." Amy groaned. "You've sighed like… twenty two thousand times!"
"Really? Twenty two thousand." Aura deadpanned. Naomi ignored them both. She sighed again. Aura gritted her teeth and flinched as Amy groaned irritably.
Naomi stopped her pacing momentarily and jerked her head towards the window.
"They're back!" She exclaimed and ran to the window of the ranch house.
Amy and Aura stared blankly. A few seconds later they heard the sound of approaching horses.
"Really? Seriously? She could hear that but couldn't hear our conversation?" Amy queried with mild irritation.
"They say that lovers can sense when the other is near." Aura said mysteriously. Amy glanced at her with a wry grin as Aura smiled dumbly.
"That was special." Amy noted before she and Aura joined Naomi at the window.
The three watched as Link approached with Epona. Damien rode his horse behind them and Arian rode with Malon at the back. They dismounted nearer the barn. Arian turned to offer a helping hand to Malon whose cheeks turned the color of her hair. She slid into his arms, much to his surprise, but he gently set her on the ground nevertheless.
All the while, Naomi and her two friends watched from the window. Amy and Aura's mouths were agape as they watched a flirty Malon kiss Arian's cheek to thank him. Surprise crossed his features, but he didn't think anything of it.
"You're welcome." He laughed.
Naomi remained expressionless and still.
"Naomi…" Aura said quietly, her wide eyes looking concerned. Amy was worried as well. Naomi did not respond to them, but their words spurred her into action. She walked over to the fire where a pot of coffee had been kept warm. She ladled some into a cup just as the four travelers entered the ranch house. The cold morning air momentarily chilled the room.
Malon's airy voice was the first thing to be heard.
"Oh wow, you guys have coffee on and everything. Thank you so much for taking care of the ranch while I was gone." Malon swooped in and gave a sincerely sweet greeting to both Amy and Aura. Naomi stayed her place by the fire.
Damien removed his gauntlets with an oddly stern rigidness and Link came to stand near Amy. He wore the same expression the other two girls did. Arian and Malon appeared the only ones with any perk, both due to their obliviousness.
"Boy have we got some big news." Arian started out, worriedly thinking on their shortened time frame. He had yet to see Naomi standing in the corner.
"Yes. Arian has learned to ride a horse!" Malon laughed as she sat at the table. Arian was mildly embarrassed and flustered by the unexpected change in topic.
"No that wasn't… well, yes… thanks to Malon I can now ride a horse, but… where's Naomi?" He turned his head to find she was already walking towards him. Her lips were curved into a smile, though her eyes lacked any sign of happiness.
"Naomi, I--" He started as he saw her, but quickly became distracted. "What happened to your eye?" She kept her odd smile and said nothing. Naomi handed him the cup, which he accepted with some confusion. He looked down to the black coffee while Naomi began heading towards the door. Damien saw her coming near and opened the door for her. He saw the stiffness in her posture and respectfully provided her escape.
"Thank you." Naomi's whisper was barely audible, and she left.
"Is she alright? She was limping!" Malon asked worriedly. Silence ensued and the group heard the barn doors open and close.
"Well! Um… Malon, I think we need to… if you could uh… how can I put this?" Amy started.
"Could you leave?" Aura finished.
"Oh! Sure, of course. I need to start my rounds." Malon quickly stood from the table and headed out the ranch door. Damien remained still as she exited. The clink of the door segued into another silence. All eyes were on Arian, who was still at a loss for words.
"Awkward…" Navi whispered conspicuously, which could unfortunately be heard by all in the dead of the silence.
"Ok, what is going on? Why is everyone staring at me? Why is Naomi being so…" Expressions and frustrated gesticulations finished that thought, "And how did she get hurt like that?" Arian finally broke. Amy clenched her fists.
"Really Arian?" She ignored the brunt of his questions. "Really? You didn't think letting Malon hang all over you, and I mean literally hang all over you, would make Naomi upset? Never mind the fact that she's been sighing all morning because she misses you and wanted to apologize, and woke me up at friggin' who knows what time, so she could make your stupid coffee, and you have no idea why she's upset? You're lucky she didn't punch you in the face, which is actually what she wanted to do yesterday!" Amy's tirade continued. Her gestures became more expressive as her anger increased.
"But, no! No, she didn't punch you in the face. No! Instead she bloodies her knuckles on crates, then starts a fight with like every soldier out there—except Dune… and she won every fight by the way, I made five rupees off of her! Which is why I don't gamble… But! She does all this because of stupid Argus-whatever." She paused for a moment to gather her thoughts. "Anyways! At least Naomi realized it was a stupid fight about coffee, the only reason she was fighting is because you didn't say thank you—like that's hard! THEN! When she's feeling apologetic, decrepit, and all together pitiful, she witnesses that little display of coquettishness, and in flounces Malon," Amy said while imitating Malon's flouncing. "Acting like you two just had a fling. We don't know what happened while you were gone, so what do you expect Naomi to think?"
"Amy." Link placed a hand on her shoulder. Amy suddenly realized that everyone was now staring at her. An odd silence passed before Arian set his coffee cup on the table. He nodded to his friends and left the ranch house.
"Well…" Damien laughed after the door closed.
"I couldn't have said it better, Amy." Aura said with an arched brow.
"Oh, you could have." Damien argued. "Anyone could have."
"But it would've been far less entertaining." Link added with a grin. Amy started fanning herself.
"Woah, I got really worked up there."
Naomi heard the door open. She gasped in a breath and turned away. She used her apron to wipe away any evidence of tears, and then turned to face the newcomer with a forced smile. When she saw it was Arian, her face dropped. He closed the door behind him.
"Naomi." He called, as he had yet to see her. Her hands crossed her chest and clenched her arms. Her anger brewed at the sound of his voice. "Naomi, I know you're in here. We need to talk." He started walking into the shadows. Naomi shook her head and began quietly climbing into the loft.
Despite her attempt to be inconspicuous, Arian heard her. His head jerked and he caught sight of her skirt disappearing to the floor above the stables.
"Naomi." He sighed out and followed after her. "Come down, you don't need to run from me, and I don't want to climb this." He looked up with one hand on the wooden ladder. Naomi peeked over the edge. Arian smiled.
"Really, come on. I want to talk. We need to talk." He spoke quieter now that she could see him. Her expression did not change. It was blank. Her little white hands reached around the top rung.
"Yeah, come on down." Arian held open his arms. Naomi's gaze grew scornful and she forcefully pushed the ladder over. It fell into the other side of the wall and broke in two. Naomi grinned before disappearing. Arian sighed.
"Alright…" He muttered to himself. Gold overtook the green of his eyes and he turned to the beast. With a great leap, he hooked his claws into the side of the wall and pushed off again to bound onto the loft where Naomi appeared significantly disgruntled. Her lips were closed, eyes were narrowed, and the tension in her face caused her lower lip to quiver. She did not speak, but once more turned to walk away.
"Naomi." Arian chased her, his call sounded with more severity.
Naomi walked behind a tall stack of hay, and Arian quietly jumped around to the other side of it. He blocked her exit.
"I know what it looked like—Amy informed me of it—but that's not what happened and you know it." He confronted her. Naomi still couldn't speak, her energy focused on keeping her eyes clear of tears. She turned around again, hoping to escape the other way. She just didn't want to face him now. Arian, however, had other plans, involving a concerned game of cat and mouse that frustrated Naomi beyond belief. The tears came on the fifth trip back and forth between those particular stacks and she broke into a run.
"Naomi—Na…Naomi!" Arian's voice sounded as he too raced her to again block her exit.
The pathetically childish game ended when Naomi stumbled in her race. Arian was able to grab her arm and pull her towards him. She was teary eyed, winded, and livid. She unthinkingly balled her hand into a fist and thrashed at her captor. Arian was surprised, but dodged the attack and brought her closer.
"Naomi…" He whispered quietly while holding her tightly. She was shaking with exacerbated tension. Arian rested his head in the crook of her neck. "I'm sorry." Naomi's eyes were now streaming and red.
"I am too… for the coffee." She said and again tried to push him away. He painfully permitted it and she took two steps back. "I didn't want to do this in front of you—in front of anyone!" Naomi snapped as she again used her apron to wipe away her tears.
"They're just tears." Arian told her.
"They're a sign of weakness." Naomi corrected and took a deep breath to compose herself.
"Only if you consider having emotions a weakness." Arian closed the distance between them with a step. "I'm not for crying at everything, but there are certainly appropriate times for it… like now…" He reached out and wiped away an escaped tear. Naomi finally looked him in the eyes. She sniffled, her nose runny now, but a sincere smile had finally formed on her face.
"I would never mean to hurt you, and I could never leave you. I thought you knew that." He told her.
"I knew… I just forgot…" Naomi responded, tears continued to fall, though now from her relieved guilt. "I'm sorry." She shook her head mournfully. Arian laughed in a delicate way.
"Maybe I just need to remind you more often." A reminder in a kiss that dried her tears. The lovers held onto each other a little longer, holding an embrace until all was calm and their present state returned to memory.
"The war is going to start soon, isn't it?" Naomi asked, her head resting on his shoulder.
"Yes…" Arian replied from her shoulder.
"I'm scared."
"Me too." He gripped her tighter.
Link, Amy, Aura, and Damien sat in silence at the ranch table. They all had a cup of coffee sitting before them, though Arian's still sat on the table untouched.
"They've been gone for a while." Amy stood up and looked out the window again before returning to her seat.
"That's good, it means they're talking, right?" Damien speculated. Aura raised a brow.
"I don't know… maybe we should go make sure Arian's still alive."
"I'm fairly sure we would have heard him screaming by now if that were the case." Link nodded thoughtfully. They heard the loud scrape of the barn door opening. All became alert, waiting for their friends to enter.
"Wait, we shouldn't be sitting awkwardly like this. Quick, someone think of a topic!" Aura suggested. Amy was the first to respond.
"Well uh, I've always been curious about wood." She said in earnest.
"…What?" Aura was thoroughly surprised.
"You know… different types of wood… Like this table is a much darker wood than what grew on my island. It also has a lot more knots… what causes these little knots anyways?" The door behind them clicked open, and everyone readily forgot the wood conversation.
Naomi and Arian walked in to complete silence and expectant smiles.
"Is the fight really over?" Damien bellowed hopefully. Arian put an arm around Naomi in reply and the group all laughed with congratulatory relief.
"Yes, I have promised to give her more reminders and Naomi has promised to warn me of the Argus… Argus…"
"Argus-sigh." Naomi replied. Amy and Aura both snickered while Damien and Link became bewildered.
"What's the Argus-sigh?" Asked the ever curious Damien.
"It's the bleeding rage in pirate culture that plagues us about every five weeks. Around this time, the pirates should be gathering in large numbers to battle against each other until the rage subsides, or until one is rendered unconscious. I had completely forgotten it was coming up."
"You don't say." Damien responded in an uncharacteristically awkward manner.
"She did." Dune waltzed in behind them. "And it's just as disturbing now as it was before." He noted as he headed straight for the pot of coffee and poured himself a cup.
"Hey Dune," Arian laughed. "Still looking for that pickle jar?" Dune took a moment to recollect a distant memory.
"YES!" Dune pointed towards Arian during his exclamation. The two boys began laughing profusely while the rest of the room remained quiet.
"Gentlemen, gentlemen." Damien cut in. He put an arm around Arian's neck. "I hate to be a downer—there's a war going on… you know, the one with the possible destruction of Hyrule, not the Great Coffee War that has luckily just come to a close. Thank the goddesses, because with you two peacemakers at war… if Link and Amy had decided to hate each other again, we would've been in Big trouble."
"Naomi and I are peacemakers?" Arian asked with an arched brow.
"Who said we don't hate each other?" Link asked casually. Amy smiled contentedly before snatching Link's cup of coffee to pour the remnants into her own cup. She casually returned the empty cup to a very bewildered hero. Amy sipped slowly.
"So the war!" Aura returned them to topic. "What about the war?"
"We have one month." Link answered.
"Before what?" Aura asked.
"Before something bad happens, but with Devoren, you never know what that's going to be…" Damien responded.
"So we'll prepare for everything." Naomi squared her shoulders. Her confidence was contagious.
"Okay!" Damien followed. "Dune, gather the troops."
"But I just grabbed my coffee!"
"Gather the troops, Dune." Naomi reiterated.
"Okay fine!" He handed his cup to Arian and stormed out.
"Hey… Hey, Arian… can I—." Link started reaching for Dune's cup, but Arian started downing it before he could say any more.
Link sighed heavily, looking at his empty cup and glaring at Amy.
"I hate you too." Amy smiled indulgently.
A/n: Still out there? Like coffee? Then R&R is for you!