The Legend of Zelda: Shackles of Memory

Chapter 1: Amnesiac Arrival

Tingle the "Fairy" was making maps near his favorite map-making spot, the road leading to Romani Ranch. He found the mooing of the cows helped his map drawing. By now, he must have drawn maps of all areas in Termina, all except those dungeons. Before that fairy boy had left, Tingle asked if he could have the maps of those dungeons. The fairy boy did not seem to care at all, so Tingle got his maps. Tingle now spends his days redrawing the maps of those dungeons, trying to have every square inch in Termina mapped in the name of Tingle the Fairy.

Tingle was rechecking his map of the area he was in, being a nitpicker at such detail.

"What is this thing I see? A tree I did not mark, a big rock, perhaps?"

Tingle floated over to where this oddity resided and it was neither a tree nor a rock. It was a person. This person did not look well, with one hand on the wall and another clutching his head. His steps were short and took a couple of seconds in-between and his breaths seem labored. Maybe if he didn't wear all that chain mail, he could walk easier. He was headed toward the ranch, or did he know that?

From his red balloon, Tingle watched this person shuffle over into the field that took up the front yard of the Romani Ranch, which he confirmed on his map.

"What an odd sir." Tingle said before going back to his map-checking.

-

The hand he had stuck out suddenly lost its leverage, causing him to almost fall on his side. His current condition left him blind and losing energy fast. He had to get help.

He heard the brushing of grass beneath his feet. He smelled it as well and felt the soft thuds. He came to a conclusion he had stepped off of dirt into grass. The sound of cows mooing in the distance was a sign of some sort of civilization.

-

The Ranch enjoyed yet another picture perfect day. The cuccos enjoyed themselves on seeds that were meant to last them the whole day, the cows sat lazily, swinging their tails back and forth, and the little girl that the ranch shared its name with was enjoying some target practice with her bow and some balloons.

Romani aimed the arrow right at the balloon and let it fly. It sailed into the air true and burst the balloon. After a short celebration, she walked over to retrieve the arrow that had fallen to the ground. When she looked up, she saw a figure approaching at a very slow pace.

By the way he was walking he seemed badly hurt. Romani considered calling her sister over to help this person when he suddenly lost balance by tripping over a stone on the ground. He involuntarily dove forward - apparently he did not see it - and landed on his arms. Romani deducted that he needed help now.

-

That cursed stone may very well have caused him to lose his chance of staying alive. He considered loss of hope when a voice filled his ear.

"Are you okay?"

The voice sounded like that of a little girl's. Nine, about. He tried to communicate, but his mouth would not move. In fact, it seemed his entire body was locking up from the head down. He tried lifting himself up in some vain attempt but it was met with failure as he felt his hand slip off the ground and his head and shoulder hit the ground at the same time, drifting him into unconsciousness…

-

It wasn't every day a lone soldier was singled out and summoned for the purpose of gaining favor. He had a new burden to accept and willingly clamped the metal on to his wrists as a sign of his eternal loyalty…

-

"Ohh…"

He sat up in a bed. His head was throbbing. He opened his eyes and the brownness of the room filled his sight. He looked to his left and sees a wall. To his right he saw a little girl looking at him.

"You're awake!" The girl yelled happily before running out of the room in what seemed like a giddy joy.

He did not know in the least what was going on. He did not know where he was or who the girl was or why she had left. She had shortly returned with what could only have been a fallen angel on earth. Yet he knew that the older girl was only a regular person with some relation to the little girl. They did look alike, now that he thought of it.

"See? He woke up!" The younger girl said, obviously to the older girl. The person in the bed felt slight discomfort in being watched like an animal and was about to say so when the older girl spoke, breaking an awkward silence.

"Are you okay?"

He did not know if he could even speak, or what he would sound like, as his body felt plagued with fatigue.

"Yes. I am fine." He was amazed at how easily he spoke. Clearly, healthily, with no indication of the aching in the arms he used to keep himself up and his head.

"Are you hurt?"

His head throbbed with an unknown headache and his arms were tired, but he knew the definition of "hurt" meant superficial pain, so he replied, "No."

Without warning the younger girl spoke up. "Are you hungry? We're going to have dinner soon!" Despite the fact this stranger appeared on the ranch only earlier that day and all he has done was answer "yes" and "no" questions, the little girl still invites him to join them. The older girl's silence indicated that they actually expected an answer.

"A little, I guess." He did not feel too well giving such short replies, but he did not know any way to make them longer as they came.

"You would? I've barely set the table for three ever. Frankly, I wouldn't mind if you ate my share of the dinner because," And with this she pointed a thumb at the older girl and whispered, "She's cooking…"

The older girl smiled and nudged the other girl's shoulder with her hand, "I heard that. Now go on and set the table."

"Okay, Romani likes setting the table." The little girl said before walking out of the room and supposedly down a flight of stairs. The older girl that was left in the room pulled up a stool and sat down on it, giving a sigh.

"Her name is Romani?"

The older girl looked up with a start. She apparently didn't expect him to talk without being spoken too. This was all fine, though. "Yes, it is."

"Does your daughter always talk about herself in the third person perspective?"

"Oh! No, no, no. She isn't my daughter. She is my little sister. I am only eighteen… and about the third-person, I don't think it is odd. I used to speak like that when I was her age. It was always 'Cremia this' and 'Cremia that…'"

"… And your name is Cremia?"

"Yes, that is my name. What is your name?"

That was the one question he did not expect to be asked. He met the question with a blank stare followed by staring at the bed sheets covering him while in deep thought. By nervous habit he started to fumble with them until eventually looking back to Cremia.

"I… I don't know…"

Cremia put a hand over her heart, "Oh, dear…! Then… you must have… amnesia!"

His first impulse was to say that what she said wasn't true, but he started to think if he could remember anything that had happened before he woke up in the bed. No events, places, people came to mind, only the ways of life and general knowledge, like what it meant to have amnesia for example.

"I guess you're right…" He said, hanging his head.

Cremia wore a somber look as well. All her life she had heard of the effects of amnesia, but she never knew anybody who had actually suffered from it. The concept terrified her. Amnesia is literally losing anything, anyplace, and anyone you ever knew in your life, even if they still existed and were right in front of you. Amnesia did not care if the memory was an event you are embarrassed about or a person you loved.

"I'm so sorry…"

"Aw, it's okay… as far as I'm concerned. For all I know, I have no important memories." He said with a grin.

Cremia's return smile was a weak one, as it was nice of him to try to lighten the mood, but the whole thing was sad that he needed to do so. The silence that followed was a very awkward one, so they both silently thanked the goddesses when Romani announced she was done setting the table.

-

All Romani did at the table was stare at her plate. By some form repulsion she did not even dare poke at it with available silverware, though made some half-hearted attempts, "Yuck."

Cremia sighed, more embarrassed because they had a guest. "Romani, you are only thinking that because I made it. Look, our guest seems to enjoy it."

She was right. "Their guest" was eating the meal at an accelerated rate. "It's the most delicious thing I've ever tasted!"

"You mustn't have tasted very many things…" Romani said, still staring with only her eyes and nose above the table.

"…At least that I can remember." He said still with an upbeat tone. "I do have no memories past today, you know."

"Really?" Romani piqued, suddenly in her seat like normal, "Don't you remember when you came here?"

He shook his head.

"But I remember that!" without knowing, Romani was poking at her food throughout their conversation, and then was eating without being aware of it. Cremia saw this with a surprised expression. Usually Romani doesn't eat anything she makes, or at least puts up a big fight before doing so.

"Well, I don't. Did I hit my head or anything?"

Romani nodded. "You just came all of a sudden and fell down on your head. It seemed like you were hurt but there were no signs of hurt, or at least that's what sister said."

"Hmmm… I guess I'm not from around here, seeing as how none of you recognize my face or anything."

"How come you don't remember anything?" Romani said by pure child innocent curiosity.

"He has amnesia," Cremia cut into the conversation, and then asked smugly, "So how's your dinner?"

Romani looked down at her half-finished plate and realized that she ate something Cremia made right away, "It's okay… I guess…"

"Ha! So it was in your mind all along! I am an excellent cook!"

"No argument here." the only male voice of the three spoke up.

"You're really nice," Romani ate just a little slower after her realization, but still she ate, then suddenly, "you remind me of Grasshopper."

Cremia looked up from her plate. "The bug?"

"Grasshopper! Don't you remember? He helped me fight the aliens when the moon was really very close?"

There was an awkward silence at the table.

"I guess she has an active imagination…"

"Oh, no. Not all of it," Cremia said matter-of-factly, "There was a boy that Romani called 'Grasshopper' because he wore green clothes. His real name was Link, though. He was a really nice boy… about Romani's age."

"… And I remind Romani of him?"

"I guess. The thing about the moon is also true. For three days we noticed that there were two moons in the sky. One of them was large and came closer and closer and wore a very disturbing expression." Cremia shuddered at the memory.

"Expression?"

"Yes. Like somebody carved a face into it. But it vanished due to the elemental guardians. Romani believes that Link did it, though."

"Grasshopper did do it! I saw him falling from the moon when it vanished!"

"…Which leads me to the one thing she said I am skeptical about. These aliens…"

"Aliens?" the young man said with skepticism, "Did they want to steal all your cows or something?"

"Exactly!" Romani yelled, giving the other two a start, "I wanted to stop them and then Grasshopper came and held them off until the sun came up and destroyed the aliens!"

"Did he have a nickname for you?"

"He called me Butterfly! I think it fits!" A remark met with Cremia rolling her eyes, "What's your name anyway?"

"I don't know," He said, tapping his temple, the action indicating why.

"Oh…" Romani looked at her food for a while, poking her fork in a bit, then her face lit up, "you should be called 'Grasshopper,' after the Grasshopper that visited us during those three days!"

"I'm sure," Cremia started, her voice indicating that she thought Romani was nuts, "that he would rather have a person's name rather than be actually named after some small creature."

"I don't know…" The third person spoke, "I kind of like it."

Cremia lowered her head and gave a laughed that said. "You've got to be kidding me."

Romani stood on her chair as if preparing to make the naming official, "So you like the name Grasshopper?"

"I guess I do."

There was a silence as they both looked to Cremia.

"This is a human being, Romani. Not a newborn cucco…" Cremia said, but a smile crept to her lips as she picked at her food, "But I think it's adorable."

With that, the amnesiac that stumbled into Romani Ranch was thereby known under the name "Grasshopper," as Romani confirmed very ceremoniously.

-

"That was a wonderful dinner." Grasshopper said, helping to pile the plates on top of each other.

"Thank you," Cremia said, and then looked to Romani, "You liked it, too. Don't lie."

"I guess…" Romani said in a surrendering tone, then to change the subject, "Where are you going to sleep, Grasshopper?"

"I don't really know. Is there a town nearby where I can get a room and stay?"

"Clock Town?" Cremia thought aloud, then cast a look out a nearby window and saw how dark it was outside, "No! Not this late. Outside the ranch there are monsters that just wait for a traveler to wander by them at night. Besides, Clock Town is very far away. I insist you stay here."

"Okay. I guess I'll sleep down here…"

"What about the room where Grasshopper woke up?" Romani asked.

"But Romani-! That's…"

"Is something wrong?" Grasshopper noticed the tone Cremia put on when that room was mentioned.

"Oh… It's just that… that room was our father's room… before he died of an illness."

"I'm so sorry…" Grasshopper knew better than to do such a thing against a person's wishes, "I guess I will sleep down here, then."

"No," Cremia said, for the first time her tone confident, "You should sleep there. It's about time we did something with that room and stopped living in the past."

-

Grasshopper was given a tour of his new room, which had nothing special, besides homey touches. Eventually, something caught Grasshopper's interest.

"What are these?" Grasshopper referred to a whole row of odd items and garments strewn about the top of a dresser.

"I truly do not know…" Cremia said. There were many thing and objects and shirts and instruments and whatnot.

"You two found all this on me when you found me? Where did I keep it all?"

"In that!" Romani pointed out what looked like handbag.

"This? This doesn't look big at all!"

"That's what we thought until…"

Cremia demonstrated by taking one of the belongings, an odd carrying case that was half the size of the bag, and dropped it in the bag with ease and the object seemed to completely vanish.

"Woah." Grasshopper blurted.

"We'd rather not think about it now. It is almost eight o'clock. We turn in by this time."

"Romani stays up later than most kids in Clock Town!" Romani beamed.

"Yeah, that's because you make a ruckus if you're put to bed before I am." Cremia said and pointed to Romani's room. Romani said good night to her sister and their new friend before going to bed. Cremia then looked to Grasshopper. "Will you be all right?"

Grasshopper looked at Cremia. "I'll manage. I haven't forgotten how to sleep, you know."

Cremia smiled. "Good night…" Then before she closed the door to her room, "Grasshopper."

"Grasshopper…" He said to himself. He liked that name. He wondered what else he was called before he got amnesia. Probably wasn't "Grasshopper."

The mystery of the amnesiac known as Grasshopper only begins to unravel as the sun sets on another day…