Hi everyone! I AM SO SORRY! I haven't updated in nearly four months, and I feel terrible! Long story short, I got really busy with finals at the beginning of June, and then, I just had no inspiration to write this chapter...But now it's here! Better late than never, right? ^^ I hope you guys like it! I never played Link's Awakening, but I've heard great things about it, and I LOVEEEE Marin's new character model in Hyrule Warriors. I hope I captured her character well :)
Please enjoy this late, but hopefully still decent installment of Link's Harem!
~Aryll Jaynn
Chapter Six: Marin
My wide, brown eyes sparkled as I strummed my harp softly at the beginning of class for warm-ups
The harp is my favorite instrument. I've been playing since I was five. There's something about the gentle strumming and the sound that makes me feel at home, as if I were on an island and could just fly away like a seagull...
I've been hanging out with Malon too much. Her poetic nature tends to be contagious.
Then again, we are cousins, so I suppose some of that might be genetic.
We're more alike that you might think. Both of us have long, vibrant red hair and we also have similar facial features. So much so, sometimes people mistake us for twins. Of course, that isn't true. Our dads just both have similar tastes in women, I guess.
Once the bell rang, Miss Nayru went to the front of the room and grabbed her conductor's baton.
She loves that thing. So much so, she even gave it the title of 'The Wind Waker.' Talk about obsessed! The Wind Waker is the most important ancient artifact of our world.
Okay, well, it's the most important artifact in the world to a musician, at least.
I'm no history nerd myself, but I think I'm qualified to say that I'm sure that if I went up to a jock or something, they wouldn't have the slightest clue what the Wind Waker even was.
"Oh! And before we get started, we ought to get you an instrument to play!" said Ms Nayru to someone on the other side of the room.
"I'd love to!" replied a baritone, masculine voice.
And man, that voice was somehow so pleasing to my ears.
What? I'm a singer! I like voices!
"What are your musical strengths?" Ms Nayru asked.
"Well, I can play just about anything," the guy replied, but not in a bragging way. "Except I can't sing to save my life."
Our teacher chuckled. "Well, lucky for you, we have a shortage of an ocarina player today, so would you be willing to take that spot for today?
"Ah yes! The ocarina is my personal favorite."
"Wonderful! You can come over here next to Medli."
I looked over at Medli, one of my friends, who smiled back at me, her harp clutched in her hand. She and I take harp lessons together every week. We would be sitting next to each other, given we play the same instrument, but Miss Nayru prefers to have all the instruments spread out amongst the ensemble. She says it makes the sounds more interesting and 'magical.' So, Medli was sitting about seven chairs away from me.
The guy made his way over to Medli, and by the way they greeted each other, I could tell they had already met. The guy's face was away from mine, so all I could see were little strands of blond hair coming out of the forest green beanie he wore.
"All right, class. Let's start with 'Bolero of Fire' today, shall we? I know it's our favorite."
There was an uproar as the class collectively groaned.
Miss Nayru grinned. "Haha! Come on, guys! I know it's a challenging piece, but I know you are all capable of doing it! Trust me!"
After a long, hard practice session of 'Bolero of Fire', also known as the 'Song from Hell' (because it was so Din-damned difficult!), I was all drained out. My fingers hurt, my head hurt, everything hurt!
"I'm so proud of you guys! That was the best we've ever done on that piece, in my opinion." she turned to the new guy, "And Link, I'm impressed! You picked up that song faster than my nephew picks up girls at the mall!"
The class laughed, but I merely smiled. I was busy thinking about this guy's name...'Link.' Weird. It had a nice ring to it, but it wasn't very common. It suited his voice perfectly.
Link smiled sheepishly. "I know that song by heart pretty much...A friend of mine made me learn it when we were five because everyone in town was obsessed with it!"
Which town was that... I wondered. I mean, BOF isn't exactly considered a pop song...It's very traditional, and only elderly people listen to it nowadays...
Miss Nayru smiled. "Well, you certainly are a talented musician. Now, usually at the end of class we like to have people perform duets. It's a fun way to practice working with each other without a conductor. Would you like to participate?"
"Oh, sure!"
"Great! Come on up."
He did so as Miss Nayru went through her binder to find a song.
"Hmm...Do you know the song 'Ballad of the Wind Fish', Link?" she asked.
"That's one of my favorites! My sister loves it a lot, so she makes me play it for her on harp all the time."
I froze. Ballad of the Wind Fish? Harp?
Those were like, two of my most favorite things in the world! That song is probably the most relaxing, beautiful thing I've ever heard, and although others find it difficult and tedious, I find it mesmerizing and I absolutely love it.
"We should have Marin sing it while Link plays it!" called one of my classmates.
My eyes widened. YES YES YES! I wanted to scream.
"Yeah, she's always singing it anyway!" said someone else.
Everyone seemed to be cheering me on, and I wasn't one to complain. I grinned and headed over to the 'stage' (AKA, the front of the room), my heart fluttering with joy and excitement, and confidence as I sat down next to Link.
He turned to me, and for the first time, I saw his face in full view.
And suddenly, all my confidence disappeared.
His sky blue eyes were sparkling like sapphires, and his smile was so intoxicating, it felt as if I were face-to-face with a prince.
"Hi! I'm Link," he said.
"I'm, uh, Marin." I replied, not able to take my eyes away.
"I'm ready when you are," he said cheerily, holding up his harp.
What are we doing again...? Oh, right! The song!
I cleared my throat and forced myself to look away. Even so, I felt his presence by my side, I couldn't help but feel giddy inside, knowing that he was there.
"I'll count off," I said.
"Let's do this," he replied, nodding.
I took a deep breath. "One, two, three, and,"
He started to play the song, and I turned my focus to the notes he was playing. Then, at the right moment, I began to sing:
Fade away,
In the gray
Of an unknown dream...
Where the sea
Swallows me
In the stream...
Please never forget
The adventure and the dreams we had
I'll fade, it is my fate
Farewell, dear Hero...
The music started to wind down, as did my voice, and the song was over.
Link and I looked at each other, and he was smiling brighter than the sun as the class exploded with applause. I swear I even heard someone yelling 'I ship it!'
"That was amazing!" Miss Nayru chirped, clearly pleased. "Wonderful job, both of you!"
The bell rang, and everyone started packing up for lunch.
"Nice working with you, Marin." Link said, patting my shoulder as we made our way back to our seats. He was significantly taller than me, which I didn't quite mind.
"Thanks! You too!" I said with a smile. "You're wonderful at the harp! Who taught you?"
"An old friend," he replied wistfully. "With some help from my mom, too. Both of them wouldn't let me sleep until I played the songs they wanted perfectly!"
I chuckled. "Seems like you harbor a tough crowd."
He laughed. "Tell me about it. Now, what about yourself? Who gave you a voice like that?"
I blushed a bit. "Oh, uh...my mom really loves to sing, so she signed me up for choir at a very young age...And I've loved it ever since."
"Looks like we both have musical mothers," Link joked, swinging his backpack over his shoulder and smiling.
"Yeah," I giggled, doing the same.
"Well, it was really nice meeting you, Marin!" he said as we walked into the hallway. "See you next class!"
"Likewise!" I responded, "have a great lunch!"
"You sound like my mom now!" he laughed, heading the other direction. "See ya!"
I smiled, my insides screaming with joy.
We sure had a lot in common! And who knows, if we'd be having class like this every day...maybe, just maybe...he'd start to like me?
Oh, Marin, come on! Keep your fantasies out of this! He probably already has a girlfriend...
But...complimenting me on my voice and jokingly calling me his mom was his way of flirting, wasn't it? Not to mention, he touched my shoulder...
The sensible side of me was saying 'That's just a friendly gesture! Get over yourself!"
But the dreamy, fantasizing part of me was swooning at how magical it all was...
I smiled to myself and blushed, clutching my binder close. I was such a girl, jeez...
But hey, a girl can dream, can't she?
Okay, there you have it! Chapter 6. It's not my favorite, but I'm still okay with it. Not gonna lie, I was really inspired to write this after watching the anime Your Lie In April. SO MANY TEARS WERE SHED! That show kills me.
The lyrics I used for the song were game4ce's lyrics for Ballad of the Wind Fish on YouTube( watch?v=nmk5jsP2Q9s) if you want to check that out. Really well written lyrics, by the way.
Anyway, next up Link's going to go through some shenanigans during lunch, so stay tuned, and don't forget to review! :)