"Thank you so much for helping, Link," Rusl said as he and Uli were preparing to go out for the evening. "Colin and his friends shouldn't be too much, should they?"
"Of course not!" Link replied. "They've never been a problem!"
"I hope not," said Uli, trying to walk around with a swollen pregnant stomach. "I want Colin and his friends in bed by nine, is that clear?"
"That's the routine," said Link.
"Good, so you understand," said Uli. "And if you have any problems, don't hesitate to call us, okay?"
"Gladly," said Link. "Have fun!" Rusl and Uli bade them good-bye and Link and Colin watched them leave.
"So now what are we gonna do, Link?" asked the very precocious Talo. "I wanna play some video games! Oh, actually, can you show us how to use a sword?"
"Um, I'm not sure if I should do that," Link said, rubbing the back of his head nervously. "I mean, I could, but I'd have to be really careful. I can't have a duel with anyone, if that's what you're asking."
"Come on Link!" Beth whined. "You know these babies are too immature to care!"
"Says the girl who squeals at boy bands," said Malo.
"Hey, don't insult the Kokiri Boys!" Beth shouted back.
"Are they really Kokiri?" asked Colin.
"I think so," said Beth. "Doesn't Link have a Kokiri for a roommate?"
"Yeah, and he's a pain," said Link. "Maybe I will teach you some sword play, but only outside where we have some room. Colin, do you have a toy sword or something?"
"Yes, I do," said the little tyke. "It's in my room."
"Thanks a lot," Link said as he ran upstairs into Colin's bedroom and came back down a couple minutes later with a Nerf (in our Earth-based vernacular) sword that looked like the Master Sword, an artifact that's been missing for a long time. "Okay everyone, it's a warm night tonight, so let's go outside and practice our swordsmanship!"
"YEAH!"
Once outside in the small backyard (there is a park pretty close by, though) Link warmed up while the kids sat eagerly to watch. He tapped the sword against the garage (Castleton garages are usually behind the house) to see how strong it was. He smiled and nodded. "Alright Colin, do you know any terms?" he asked.
"Um, yeah," said Colin. "You just swing the sword, right?"
"Actually, there's two types of swings," said Link. "Downward and sideways." He swung his sword downwards first and then sideways.
"Oh wow, that's amazing Link!" Beth swooned. "And how do you defend?"
"Block or parry," Link replied. "With foils, parrying is a little more difficult, but with a sword like this one, it can refer to either." He made a blocking move and threw off an invisible attacker.
"WOW!" said Talo. "What else can you do?"
"A simple thrust," said Link. He thrust the sword at an invisible attacker.
"Not bad," said Malo. "What about other moves?"
"Well, this is just your basic swordsmanship," said Link. "I'm not even sure swinging is the right term."
"Can you show us something more advanced?" asked Talo. "PLEASE?"
"Like what?"
"A spin move!"
"A spin move!?" Link didn't look very sure of himself in this situation, but the kids seemed pretty determined to see it. "Fine, I'll see what I can do," he said. He got into a stance and readied himself. Then he spun around in a way that was… oddly familiar.
"WOW that was so cool Link!" Talo cheered.
"Um, thanks," Link said with a smile. "How about we go inside and have some dinner and maybe watch Captain Hyrule?"
"AWRIGHT!" Talo shouted. He ran into the house screaming "FOR HYRUUULLLE!" Link chuckled at the youngster's enthusiasm, but Colin didn't seem so excited.
"Colin, what's wrong?" he asked.
"Um, it's nothing," Colin replied sheepishly.
"Come on now," Link said with a warm and brotherly smile. "You can tell me, what's wrong?"
"I wish I was as cool as you Link," said Colin.
Link laughed. "I wish I was cool, too," said Link. "Unfortunately, a lot of people don't seem to think so."
"They're wrong," said Colin. "When I grow up, I want to be just like you!"
"Why not be like your dad?" asked Link. "He's a good man. He gave me my sword and shield, after all. Come on, let's go get some dinner." Link took the young boy by the hand and led him inside where the kids were already starting to get ready for a movie instead of dinner.
However, Colin was content to help Link out in the kitchen, making some grilled cuccoo and a few side dishes. Link was pretty good at it, and Colin watched as Link taught him the steps to making good grilled cuccoo. They could hear the other kids cheering in excitement as they watched another video, not Captain Hyrule.
Link watched Colin making the marinara for the cuccoo, impressed with the youngster's confidence here. He'd watched his friend's son grow up, unhappy with how the kids treated Colin like some (verbal) punching bag. It reminded him of himself. Even if he could handle a sword and shield, he couldn't quite shake the teasing that he endured.
That's why he took to Colin so quickly. It wasn't some residual past-life… thing, it was just him being a good—was that the doorbell? "I'll get it," said Link.
So Link walked up to the door, opened it and to his surprise—"Zelda? What are you doing here?"
"I could ask you the same thing," she said, "But I assume this is the babysitting job you told me about?"
"Of course," he replied. "But how come you're here?"
"I needed to pick something up from Rusl," she said. "If he's not here, then—"
"No, you can stay for a while if you want to!"
"Well then, I appreciate the invitation," she said. "I've never met Rusl's son before, so I guess this is a great opportunity."
"Then come in!" he said enthusiastically. She smiled and walked inside, following him into the kitchen where Colin had put the cuccoo breast into the marinade.
"Link," he said nervously, "Who is she?"
"Her name's Zelda," said Link. "She's a friend of your dad's."
"It's nice to meet you," Zelda said with a warm smile.
"Um, hi," Colin said nervously. "Why are you here?"
"I came to pick up a book, but since Rusl's not here, Link invited me in," she said. "So what are you making?"
"Grilled cuccoo," said Colin.
Zelda looked at Link (who was whistling nonchalantly) and said, "Didn't you already have that today?"
"It was Rusl's idea," said Link. Zelda sighed, shaking her head and mentioning something about how men can be so silly sometimes.
"As long as it tastes good," said Zelda.
"Let's go in the living room, the kids are going to watch a movie soon," Link said, leading her into the living room where the kids were.
The kids were getting impatient, watching a different show, not Captain Hyrule. And they ignored Zelda's presence, which Link only rolled his eyes at (they're kids after all). "Hey Link," said Malo. "Who's she?"
"Oh, her name's Zelda," said Link. "She knows Rusl, and she came to pick something up."
"FINALLY there's another girl here!" Beth huffed. Zelda chuckled, impressed with Beth's attitude.
"Ah, a girl?" Talo complained. "She probably doesn't even like Captain Hyrule."
"Actually," Zelda said, bending over and smiling at Talo. "I happen to be a big fan of Captain Hyrule myself." Talo practically exploded, but he kept calm and carried on.
"Link, where's the food?" asked Malo.
"Colin and I are making cuccoo," said Link. "Once the marinade is done, it won't take very long to cook.
"These things take time," said Zelda. "I know! We'll make some snacks, how does that sound?"
"I already like it," said Link. "What about you guys?"
"Make it good," said Malo. Link rolled his eyes and walked back in the kitchen. He helped Colin get the cuccoo breast on the stovetop grill while Zelda looked for some snacks that won't ruin the kids' appetites.
"Anymore dreams?" she asked, whispering in his ear.
"No," he replied, checking on the cuccoo breast.
"From what I've heard about you, you would have taken 5 naps by now," said Zelda.
"One, actually," he replied, "And how do you know so much about me? I don't know that much about you, either. Didn't we just meet this afternoon?"
"I asked a friend of mine," she said. "Apparently she knew you in high school."
"Carol," he muttered to himself.
"She lives in my apartment building," said Zelda, oblivious to his muttering. "Is the cuccoo breast done?"
"Almost," said Link. "I guess we'll have to get to know each other better."
"Before we—"
"Not in front of Colin!" Link interrupted. Zelda nodded in understanding. Colin shrugged and ran back into the living room. Link shrugged himself and went back to fixing the cuccoo breast.
"Guess I got a little carried away," said Zelda. "So, I take it this is your freshman year at U of Hyrule?"
"Yeah, is this yours?"
"Of course," she replied. "My dad wanted me to go to Nayru or Castleton U, but I had friends who were going here, so I decided to come. He wasn't happy about it."
"Why, because you'd be among the comfolk?" Link asked. 'Comfolk' is the first bit of Hyrulean slang here; it's basically 'common folk' shortened and used in a sarcastic manner by… common folk.
"Pretty much, yeah," she replied. "He said it'd be a distraction to them, but judging from how anonymous I've been, it was a good decision."
"It's only been a week," said Link.
"I know, but so far so good," said Zelda.
"Cuccoo's done," said Link. "And by the way, it was Rusl's idea."
"Oh," Zelda said. "Is there enough for me?"
"Malo probably won't eat as much," said Link. "I'll cut up the one for him so you can have some."
"Sounds good," said Zelda. They went back to making dinner. Link heard her humming and noted how harmonious she was. But she was humming a song he'd heard before. It was a song that was popular with folk artists, who said it had something to do with the Royal Family. He began to wonder how she knew that song. But he shrugged. A lot of people still admired the Royal Family. They were a symbol of a bygone era, before the rise of democracy and the Republic. That's probably why popular opinion is literally split 33-33-33.
"Alright kids, dinner's ready!" he said, getting some sides and taking the cuccoo into the living room where the kids were snacking.
"Alright!" Talo cheered. "Let's get the movie on!"
"Zelda, the Captain Hyrule disc is on top of the TV, can you put it in for me, please?" Link asked.
"Since you asked politely, of course," said Zelda. She turned the player on and put the disc in it while Link brought the disc menu on. The kids could barely contain themselves as Link pressed 'play' and the movie began.
As you can guess, Captain Hyrule is essentially Captain America IN HYRULE! *A-hem* Sorry. Anyway, the story is similar; some average Joe given an opportunity to become a super soldier, blah, blah, blah. Of course, there's a Hyrulean twist to this, since the guy uses the Hylian Shield as his main weapon. The Hylian Shield can be remade, but the one used by the Hero of Twilight is housed in the Hyrulean History Museum. Said museum was once Hyrule Castle.
Taking place in a time period very similar to the Second World War on Earth, the movie is about a young man who is transformed into a super soldier by Hyrulean scientists. While this seems incredibly nationalistic, remember that Captain America started the same way, but he's not considered jingoistic. In fact, even Labrynnians happen to like Captain Hyrule themselves.
Captain Hyrule ended up fighting an enemy named G.A.N.O.N. that was started by their enemies, the country of Bronkia, but eventually went rogue. Link watched as Captain Hyrule fought bravely against the GANON mooks. He was getting into the action, getting close to cheering. Looking to his side, he noticed Zelda was also engrossed in the movie. She wasn't kidding!
He blushed against his own will. He was drawn to this young woman. She was so nice, sarcastic (well, he didn't quite know for sure), and vivacious.
Link didn't feel sleepy at all while watching the movie. As the climax neared, he became even more engrossed in the action. Even the kids were engrossed, too (of course they would be). Link laughed silently but then an image of Captain Hyrule bashing a GANON robot caught his attention again.
The movie ended and it was bittersweet; just like his Earth counterpart, Captain Hyrule was frozen, only to wake up in modern Hyrule to defend the world from bad guys. Basically, it's typical comic book fare for geeks like Link. "That was fun, wasn't it?" asked Zelda.
"That was super-duper AWESOME!" said Talo.
"Calm down!" Beth grabbed his shoulder.
"Rusl should be getting back soon," said Link. "Beth, is your dad coming to pick you up?"
"We're sleeping over," said Beth.
"It is still summer vacation," said Link. Zelda nodded. Right on cue, a familiar man entered the house.
"Well, it seems we have a visitor!" said Rusl. "Hello, Zelda."
"Hello, Rusl," said Zelda. "I came to pick something up."
"Oh, right, your book," said Rusl. "Link, do you know her?"
"I just met her this afternoon," he chuckled. Rusl smiled while Zelda went off to find her book. When she came back, he only rubbed Link's spiky hair. "Rusl!" he said. Rusl only smiled and walked off.
Uli paid Link well while Rusl herded the kids upstairs. She thanked Zelda for helping Link and bade them goodbye. The two left a while later. "I've known Rusl since I was a kid," said Link. "He's like a big brother to me."
"That's nice," said Zelda. "So where do you live?"
"Nayru Hall," said Link. "Triforce Residences."
"Oh, I know where that is," said Zelda. "Do you mind—"
"No, I don't!" he said with a blush. Zelda chuckled at him, causing him to blush even more.
"You're such a dork," she said, "But that's okay. I like dorks." He blushed again, looking away in embarrassment. She patted him on the shoulder to make him relax a little more. "Do you have a roommate?"
"Yeah, his name's Mido," said Link. "And he's Kokiri.
"Kokiri!?" she said laughing. "I thought they never aged!"
"They do get older!" he said.
"Well that is true," she said. "So… are we going to get to know each other?"
"Um, what do you like to do?" he asked.
"I like long walks on the beach." Link sighed in annoyance while Zelda laughed. "I'm just kidding!" she said. "I already said I like Captain Hyrule, but I don't read comic books that much. I probably only read them every now and then."
"You mean on the L?"
"Of course," she replied. "I think I want to find a career in public service. Or, maybe I could become a teacher. Either way, I want to help people."
"That's nice," he said. "I'm not sure what my major is going to be."
"That's a shame," she said. "Although in fairness, I don't know either."
"I guess we're both on the same page," said Link. The two talked all the way back to Nayru Hall. A bond had been formed between the two, allowing him to be candid with her. "I wish I was great, or a hero, like Captain Hyrule."
"I think you could be great," she said. "Greatness isn't saving people from evil, it's rising to the occasion. I already told you what I think of destiny. Greatness could be your destiny. It could be becoming a great teacher, or a great writer. You don't have to be a superhero to be great. All it takes is commitment and I see someone who has the commitment to be great."
"Thanks, Zelda," he said with a smile. When Zelda said goodbye, Link felt good. He was going to have to spend more time with her.
He was still smiling when he reached his floor—and came face to face with Groose. "What're you smilin' about?" asked the pompous pompadour'd strongman.
"Nothing," Link replied, trying to get past him. It was then he noticed Fledge.
"Link, where were you?" he asked. "I was waiting for you in the quad for an hour!"
Link realized he'd forgotten about Fledge. "Oh, Fledge, I'm sorry!" he said. "I just forgot. But I did meet this girl—"
"A girl?" Groose scoffed. "Why would a girl be interested in you?"
"She has her reasons!" said Link. "Her name's Zelda."
"Is she nice?" asked Fledge.
"Very," said Link. He walked past while he had an opportunity and closed the door to his room. Fledge shrugged, apparently accepting his friend's new… friend.
:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:
What is this? Where'd these monsters come from? What's going on? Oh no, another dream! Somebody get me out of here! What are these things? I've never seen or heard of them before. They have to be imaginary—are they attacking people!? What are they doing!? They're unarmed, why should they be—oh, they're monsters, of course! They look like lizards, or something, I don't know—
What? Where'd the green guy come from—holy Farore! That guy's beating all of them! Where'd he get that sword—another one? He's wearing green just like the other guy… Are they related? And now a third one? Where are these guys coming from? Okay, four more? So there's seven now. How many more are there?
They beat all the monsters? That's amazing—are they looking at me? What's this? They're… beckoning me? Why? What are they—where'd this green tunic come from? And this cap? Am I…
Link awoke with a start. He looked around, and then sat up. Mido was still asleep. Link sighed quietly and fell back on the bed. What was that? He thought. It was so strange and yet so… familiar. Out of reflex, he looked at the Triforce birthmark on his right hand. I wonder if it has anything to do with this, he thought.
He was about to find out.
:-:-:-:-:-:-:
It was a typical afternoon on campus. The main quad was filled with students passing to and from class. They were just minding their own business. They talked with friends, discussed their homework and just socialized.
Fledge was walking with some friends when he noticed something beginning to materialize in the center of the quad. Other students stopped and watched, wondering the same thing he was; what the heck is going on? Zelda, who was on the other side of the quad, also noticed this. And yet, she was drawn to it.
There were diamond patterns sparkling in the middle of the quad. Some of the campus police stepped forward, trying to keep the students away. It was at that moment something shot out of the diamonds, killing the cops.
Now the quad was filled with the screams of students. Fledge tried to stay on his feet, while Zelda ducked behind a tree, watching the center.
The diamonds then revealed a human figure. A white-haired person appeared in the center of campus. Dressed in a white sleeveless unitard with diamond patterns cut into the fabric and a red cloak… thingie, he stood up. He looked around with a predatory expression. Then, he flamboyantly posed and shouted "HYRULE! It feels SO GOOD to be BAAACK!"
:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:
To be continued
So how'd you like it? I had a few questions that needed to be answered, and I hope I did a good job answering those questions and comments. And sorry I took so long to update this, I've had a lot of things I've got going on.
And our villain's Incoming Ham line is borrowed from a certain Slim Shady. Yes, I am that old to remember him.
The characters are borrowed from OoT, TP and SS, but Carol's an OC, so is Professor Nohansen. I'll introduce Carol later. As for the timeline, this is pretty much the distant future of the Child Timeline. There will only be a few references to OoT (sorry).
And just to make this clear, THIS IS NOT AN AU.