The Legend of Zelda: Twisting Threads
Co-authored by Sargent Snarky and Umi Kanshisha
Snarky: Well, as you can see, we've finally come up with a decent title. Also, I deeply apologize for taking so long with this chapter. You see, it's been finished for quite a while, BUT first my hard drive crashed, and I couldn't really do much computer-wise for a month. Then, school started and both Umi and I were very busy… and then I was waiting for Umi to do her part of the editing… and now, Umi's computer has been trashed by a virus, and she won't be around for a while. There are also other reasons behind this, but it's not my place to tell you for her.
SO, she asked me to go ahead and post this. Ergo, I am posting it. And, as soon as I edit Chapter 4, I shall go ahead and post that one as well.
With that said, if some things seem different here on out, it's because only I'm doing the editing, and I can't talk to Umi about it, alas.
As we've said before, this is a fanfic based entirely off of an ongoing roleplay between Umi and myself. Whether we'll ever finish the rp remains to be seen, but even if the roleplay winds up dying, I'll still try to continue this fic, methinks.
DISCLAIMERS:
Nila: -sighs dramatically- Ok… So, neither Snarky nor Umi actually own me or any other characters, items, places, things, et cetera in this story, EXCEPT for the characters they came up with and plot… Although, Umi will certainly claim that she owns certain characters, and Snarky will claim that she owns my hat… which neither of them do. Ok? Ok… Moving on…
Saria: Hi everybody! Ok… as for further Disclaimering… Snarky and Umi have borrowed certain ideas, information about Sheikah and information about Gerudo from the most awesome Rose Zemyla a.k.a. Lady Rose… WITH PERMISSION. But, seriously… Rose's stories are THE MOST AWESOME Zelda fanfics you will EVER read. So, go read Return and Reconciliation. Chop, chop!
Chapter 3: Medallions, Triforce Pieces and Fairies
Both Nila and Saria stood in the room, each looking rather concerned over something. The green medallion of the Forest floated in front of Saria, but in two pieces. The Sage of the Forest seemed to be trying to fuse the pieces back together.
She looked up at Nila. "It's no good... Even with the darkness gone from the Temple."
Nila nodded, then looked up at Link and Karin. She seemed about to say something, when fell shadows flickered across the room. The girl cried out softly, clutching her head for a moment, before glaring off into the distance, and holding her hands out in front of her, palms outward. A yellowish white glow spilled forth from them, and a flash permeated the room. Then the darkness disappeared.
Saria looked at Nila, concerned. "What was that?"
"Because Rauru... well, his spells of protection are crumbling..."
"Can't you fix them?"
Nila shook her head, gazing at the ground. "I.. don't know how."
Link broke in then (he had been, up until now, somewhat distracted and frazzled, what with Navi flying circles around his head, yelling at him). "What the heck are you two talking about? Nila, what are you doing here? What was that black stuff? What was that weird light? And what happened to the medallion? Oh.. and where's Rauru?" At least he asked the questions in a conversational tone.
Nila and Saria exchanged and uncomfortable glance.
"Slow down..." Karin muttered, and then noticed Navi. "And calm down, he's fine; he's the genius who knows everything." She rolled her eyes as she added the last sarcastic statement, turning back to Nila and Saria.
"Alright, I think what Link was trying to ask is: What's going on?" That would cover most of Link's questions, and Karin was still rather irked at him for the idiot comment fro before, so she just folded her arms and waited patiently for their answer.
Navi blinked at Karin, fluttering up in front of the girl's nose. "Ooh.. Who are you? You don't smell like you're from Hyrule.."
Karin shook her head at Navi. "No, I'm not from Hyrule, and my name's Karin."
Link ignored Navi, shot a glare at Karin, and looked expectantly at the two other girls. "Uh.. well..?"
"Rauru's dead," said Nila, softly. "Gannodorf killed him as he made his way back into Hyrule."
Link's eyes widened, but he didn't say anything. A sneaking suspicion of what Nila really was nagged in his mind, but he figured she answer that soon enough.
"And the medallions all broke when the seal was broken," said Saria. "I was trying to fix the Forest Medallion, but..." She held up the two pieces. "It hasn't worked, obviously."
"The black stuff was energy from the rest of the Sacred Realm. This is only a small portion that Rauru was able to save from Ganondorf's corrupting influence, via the Triforce. But," continued Nila, "with Rauru gone, his protection is falling apart. Part of that, I think, has to do with the broken medallions... But..."
She sighed, shaking her head.
"I'm taking it that you can't fix the protections?" asked Link.
Nila nodded, looking unhappy.
"And you're the next Light Sage?"
Nila nodded again, shifting and looking somewhat more upset.
Link sighed. "And why does it matter if the Medallions are breaking?"
"The seals are bound up with them, as are some other protections..."
"Lovely..."
Tilting her head thoughtfully, Nila voiced an idea, which had occurred to her: "Say... Link, do you have any idea how to access the power of the Triforce of Courage?"
Karin, meanwhile, didn't understand everything they said completely, but she get the basis of it. When that Ganondorf freak had broken out, he had murdered someone, and in doing so, he split the pretty medallion that Saria was holding. Karin had to agree with Link. That was just lovely. Not only was Ganondorf a murderer, but also he obviously had a thing for breaking jewelry.
However, what the Triforce of Courage was, Karin wasn't sure. When she was younger, her father had told her and her older brother stories of Hyrule, and the Triforce was in a lot of them, but... She was never one to pay very close attention (A/N: ADD perhaps?), and she always tuned out the explain-y bits. Wishing she hadn't now, she tried to split her attention between Nila, Saria, and Link.
Navi fluttered around Karin a little more. "Where are you from, then?"
"I'm from Westaria," Karin replied easily, then remembered with a touch of anger that it was where Draconis claimed he was from. Eh. Jerk.
Link, meanwhile, rubbed the back of his hand and shook his head, an odd look on his face as he regarded Nila and Saria. "No. Why? Is there a way to access it?""Of course," said Saria as if it was obvious. "Didn't you know that?"
Link shook his head. "Uh… No... I just thought it was just along for the ride."
Saria rolled her eyes.
"So, why and how, then?"
"Because we might be able to use the power of the Triforce, since its normal dwelling place is in this realm, to repair the protections upon this place and perhaps repair the medallions," said Nila. "As for how, well, Zelda and Ganondorf are the only ones who know for sure, and neither of them are available for questions... so.. I think you're on your own there."
"It's probably a lot like accessing our own powers," said Saria, after a moment.
"And you guys do that… how?"
"Like you access your own magic. You know, Din's Fire, Nayru's Love and Farore's Wind?"
"But that's fairy magic..."
"No it isn't. The Great Fairies were merely the ones to guard it. Anyway, it should be pretty easy to use the Triforce's power here, although it may be unpredictable, given that it does not have its sisters to balance it."
"They're sisters...? Oh never mind..."
Link sighed. Well, this wasn't going anywhere. Truth be told, he'd never really thought about accessing the piece of the Triforce residing within him. Now that he thought about it, it made perfect sense that he ought to be able to put it to use. He closed his eyes and concentrated upon summoning the power of the Triforce of Courage.
He felt it stir, but it did not come forth.
"Hmm.. Try harder. I'd say that was a tentative effort at best," remarked Nila as she pulled something out from beneath her tunic. Link saw that it was the Light Medallion, severed cleanly in two, although she'd done something to get both halves to hang upon a cord.
"Umm... Might I ask how you knew I was trying?" he asked.
Nila shrugged. "Maybe because technically you could call this my temple, ergo I can sense things in it? I honestly haven't a clue."
"Right..." Link sighed and tried once more, with a little more vehemence.
Suddenly, he cried out in surprise, eyes opening wide and staring at the back of his hand. Through the gauntlet, a brightly glowing triforce symbol, well, glowed. The medallions flickered in response, and, indeed, the air seemed to stir as well.
Nila arched an eyebrow. "That was interesting. You really ought to concentrate better, though."
Navi 'jumped out of the air' in surprise, landing upon Karin's shoulder.
Karin didn't feel anything, but then noticed the Triforce glowing upon the back of Link's hand. It's pretty... She thought, gazing at it. Though from the way that he yelped, it must have hurt or something...
She felt Navi land on her shoulder, and turned her head slightly to offer the fairy a small smile. Sure, it was filled with monsters, spiders, freaks in black who came out of black voids of doom, but Hyrule did have an awesome point -- and it was the fact that fairies actually existed. Or at least, that fairies felt comfortable enough around you to perch on your shoulder.
Anyway, to Link, the Triforce hurt and yet it didn't. It was sort of a burning prick, and yet it was a comforting warmth. The precise feeling was indescribable.
"Try again," said Saria with a smile. "But hold onto the connection this time."
Link sighed. He glanced over his shoulder at Karin and Navi, then closed his eyes and tried again. This time, he managed to hold a tenuous connection with its power. He could feel the Triforce's fire running through his veins. Gritting his teeth against that strange fire, he looked to Saria and Nila.
"Good," said Saria.
"Now concentrate upon one or both of the medallions and will them to mend..."
Karin watched as Link tried to focus his power. Her golden orbs occasionally flicked between the medallions and back again, and slowly -- ever so slowly -- the green one came together.
"Cool," She commented, watching as the Light medallion pieces struggled to fit themselves together. It took a few moments, but eventually they fit together; a seam was still visible, but they were, for the most part, together.
As the Forest Medallion began to heal, Saria exerted her influence on it as well, and a green glow surrounded it. Unfortunately, cracks were still visible, but the medallion was in tact again, and the varying protections it helped to support were re-bolstered.
Nila, too, helped in mending the Light Medallion as much as she was able. She could feel the barriers that kept the darkness out strengthen just a bit. Not as strong as they were by any means, but... they were enough... for now.
When the Medallions were as fixed as they were going to be, Link released the Triforce's power and fell to his hands and knees, breathing coming in gasps. Why the heck did Triforce magic have to be draining? It wasn't like it was his power...
Or so he thought. But, then it occurred to him how channeling magic worked. Like Din's Fire, the energy to wield the power came from him and nothing else. Oh joy. ( A/N Looks like that magic meter is going to have to be upped again!) The glow faded from his hand.
Saria bent down next to him. "You gonna be all right?"
Link nodded, starting to stand up. However, though he managed to get to his feet, he swayed and stumbled. Then he gave up, and just sank to his knees again, clutching his head.
Nila and Saria regarded him sympathetically.
Karin bent down beside Link, grabbing one of his arms and putting it around her shoulders. "Easy," She told him quietly. "You don't want to push yourself too hard..."
She slowly stood up, holding his hand tightly in her own. Damn, he was heavy. Well, it probably wasn't him, just the sword and the shield that he had equipped. Whatever it was, pushing herself to her feet was difficult -- and it didn't help that she was shorter than he was.
Finally managing to get to her feet and hold Link steady, though after a few moments, he was able to stay standing with less support, the last words she heard were Saria's:
"Help the other Sages, Link. I know you can save Hyrule!"
She then found herself standing in the Sacred Forest Meadow, still managing to help balance Link. He murmured a thank you to Karin for her assistance. Yes, it was the sword and shield that weighed a lot. They were solid metal, after all. Link, on the other hand, was relatively light. I suppose it comes from a lot of physical labor (as in fighting things, lifting heavy objects, moving heavy objects, cleaning out temples, milking cows with a song, did I mention fighting things?) and never really eating a lot. Ok, so when he had the chance, his teenage appetite compelled him to eat a lot, but when one is out and traveling... it's kind of hard to satiate the teenage appetite most of the time.
Nila was there, as was Navi, but the voices that they heard next did not belong to either of them.
"LINK!"
Two bright orbs of light tackled Link in the face. One was yellow and white, and the other was purple with a red lining. A second later and Karin realized they were fairies; the one with the purple hair and red eyes was a boy, and the one with short and spiky platinum blonde hair was a girl.
"Link! Link! You have to help! It's terrible!" The boy cried, clasping onto Link's face. "It's--"
"Tael! Shut up!" The girl snapped. "He's my partner!"
"But sis--"
"He's MY partner, Tael!"
"Fine..."
Karin arched an eyebrow at the two. She had thought that Navi was Link's partner. Eh...
Navi had been hovering anxiously around Link before they teleported, asking him if he was all right, if he was sure he was all right, if he was really sure he was all right. Nila had finally snapped at the fairy, just as they teleported, "He'll be fine. Shut up already, Navi!"
And she had shut up until they reached the Meadow, and two other fairies she did Not recognize came flying in, shouting at Link. Navi just floated by, staring at them for a few moments. Then, she flew in front of Link, pushing the two other fairies away.
"Now, wait just a minute! What do you mean by calling him 'your partner'? Link is MY partner, you hear? He may not be Kokori, but I'm still his fairy," she shouted, not at all pleased.
Link looked cross-eyed at the two fairies tackling his nose, and then looked cross-eyed at Navi before looking back to the two other fairies.
"Navi, calm down," he said, still leaning against Karin, though now supporting most of his his own weight. "Talt, Tael, what are you doing here? I thought you two were in Termina... What's happened?"
His voice wasn't as strong as it usually was, but at least it was coherent. He was just strangely and extremely tired and shaky.
Navi rounded on him. "You /know/ these fairies!"
One thing you must understand is that, even though Tael would take it, Tatl DID NOT like to be pushed. As such, she shoved herself forward and pushed Navi right back, snapping, "He's my partner, you idiot, and the next time you even THINK about touching my little brother I will ram your head through a tree." She then turned back to Link, replying, "We were in Termina, and then we went to the Lost Woods. What happened is that the Skull Kid is completely out of his mind."
"He really is," Tael added, recovering from the shock of being pushed by Navi and ignoring his sisters upfront behavior. "Even worse than the last time you helped with him,"
"He's gone completely beserk!" Tatl went on with her rant, throwing her hands up into the air. "He got all depressed and junk for about a week, then he decided that he needed a name--"
"--he said that he knew his name--"
"--and then he said that it was Majora, because he was Majora's reincarnation, and he went and got the mask--"
"--put it on again--"
"--and now he's going to destroy everything!" Tatl finished angrily. "Link, you and I have to go back, kick his ass, and hopefully knock some sense into him!"
"...Again." Tael added as Tatl finished her lines.
Karin was severely confused by this point, her eyes switching between the fairies. As for Navi and Tatl's little spats, well... It looked to her as though they were going to continue.
Navi pushed Talt back. "Now hold on a minute, wanabe," she snapped. "Link was mine, is mine, and will always be mind. I've been with him since he was ten, and that's a hell of a lot more than you can say, poser!"
Link sighed. This was one reason why he'd been glad that Termina and Hyrule were two different dimensions. No clashing of over-possessive fairies. Shame about that Lost Door deep in the woods. Nila tapped him on the shoulder, and he glanced at her. She handed him a green potion, saying that it would restore his strength. Therefore, ignoring the fairies for a moment, he drank it down and felt better. Energy coursed through his tired limbs, and he felt mostly rejuvenated.
He stopped leaning on Karin and raised an eyebrow at the trio of little glowing lights. "Navi, Talt," he said, snatching each of them in separate hands by the wings. "Calm down both of you. Navi, when you went missing for a bit, I went pretty deep into the Lost Woods looking for you. To make a long story short, I chased a skull kid with a weird mask through a Lost Door into Termina, which is an alternate plane or something. Anyway, there a lot of stuff happened, and Talt insisted on following me around and acting as a fairy partner while we were trying to save Termina from being crushed by a large and rather ugly moon, and find her little brother, Tael."
"Oh, so the moment I was gone, you replaced me!" hissed Navi.
"No! Hey, I never asked to have Talt follow me around. She just did."
OK. So he probably shouldn't have said that, since Talt would be mad at him, but Link really didn't care if any fairies got mad at him. They were fun to argue with, and he knew they'd get over it eventually. Besides, they tended to enjoy it, too.
But Link continued before Talt would have a chance to yell at him, and he looked at Tael, since Tael was less erratic than his sister. "Let me get this straight, then... The Skull Kid thinks he really is Majora, and the mask, therefore, technically belongs to him, or at least it does in his mind. So, he stole the mask from that creepy mask guy, and is trying to destroy Termina? Again?"
Nila, meanwhile, listened with growing worry. Yes, she knew of Termina. And, yes, she'd actually been there once. Gerudo as pirates on the water cracked her up. Anyway, she'd gone there after the three days Link relived at least as many times as Phil from Groundhog Day. And so, she hadn't been witness to the Skull Kid, or his moon. However, she had toured the lovely area, though she spent a fair amount of time in Ikana. Why? Because of a friend. But, we'll speak of that friend later.
Anyway, she wasn' t thinking about that now, but just thinking about what she'd heard from the locals about the kid wearing weird green clothing who'd saved them.
"Hey!" Tatl snapped, wrestling out of his grasp and hitting him upside the head. "I wasn't acting, buddy, I was. You would have been completely demolished without me anyway! Not to mention clueless! First of all, you didn't understand what the Four Giants were saying, so I translated for you. Second of all, I targeted for you! Without me, Majora would have slaughtered you -- Fierce Deity's mask or not." She glared at him. "He was too fast for you, and you know it. Not to mention that without Tael and I, you would still be a Deku Scrub to this day. Tael gave us that clue about the Four Giants, and again, I targeted so that you could get the Skullkid to drop your ocarina. By the way, you're still stupid kid and a jerk and I still hate you." Now Link, having been around Tatl enough, should have known that this directly translated to, 'I'm glad to see you're okay, and I love ya.' Tatl then, however, turned to Navi.
"And after you left? From what I'm hearing, you don't even deserve to be his partner! You abandoned him, and gave the Skullkid the perfect opportunity to turn him into the Deku Scrub! Some partner you are!"
Tael -- still ignoring his sister -- nodded.
"Well, yeah. He thinks he is Majora. And... Erm... It might not be just Termina he's wanting to destroy..." Tael cast his eyes to the ground, then back up at Link, edging closer to the Hero as to avoid getting caught in the middle of Navi and Tatl's fighting. "See... A pirate approached him. Only, this pirate wasn't like the other pirates. This pirate was a boy. And he said... He said..." The fairy closed his eyes, trying to remember. "Oh! He said that the power that the Skullkid wanted couldn't be found in Termina, so once he got finished there, he could come here. To Hyrule." Tael looked at Link with concerned eyes. "I have a really bad feeling about this. Just like I did when Skullkid took the Mask the first time."
Karin cracked her shoulders a bit to get them back into place. She didn't know what was so bad about this pirate, but she also had a bad feeling about it.
Link, indeed having been around Talt, understood her perfectly. "Glad to see you, too, Talt," he said, though his attention wasn't on the two female fairies.
Navi also squirmed from Link's grasp. (it wasn't hard; he wasn't holding them very tightly) She glared daggers at Talt. "I did not LEAVE him voluntarily, unlike you. From what I hear, it seems you abandoned Link and stayed in Termina, where ever the hell that is."
Nila frowned. "The male pirate... Was he really tall, with broad shoulders, gleaming yellow eyes and a really long nose?"
Link gave her an odd look. "You know you're describing Ganondorf, right?"
She nodded. "Yes. So, Tel - isn't it? - Did this male pirate have a name? And did he look like I described?"
"It's Tael," Tael replied, "and yeah, that's him. He was really creepy, too. And then, when Tatl and I tried to stop Skullkid from leaving, he siced him on us..." He then shuddered, creeped out at the thought.
"I didn't leave him," Tatl, meanwhile, snapped at Navi, "And even if I did, it wasn't voluntarily! I was staying with my little brother, because I happen to care about the annoying little brat--"
"Thanks," Tael muttered,
"--and he wanted to stay with Skullkid, who was sick of being abandoned! Besides, when Link was going back here, I tried to stop him, but his damn horse is way too damn fast! So sorry if you took that the wrong way, but it really isn't any of your business, you high-pitched flea wannabe, because he's my partner and Termina, Hyrule, and Tael and I have a really large problem on our hands!" Satisfied, she set her eyes into a glare and folded her arms at Navi.
"He?" Karin asked in response to Tael's question. He nodded, just as a high pitched male voice broke the silence --
"FAIRIES!"
"Holy shit!" Tatl cursed, grabbing Tael. "Here! Hide under here, Tael! I used to always go in there whenever I got tired of flying beside Link..." She stuffed her brother under Link's hat and then turned as Tingle came into the clearing.
"Tingle, Tingle, kooloo limpah!" Tingle cheered, dancing around in a circle and throwing confetti. "I've found my fairies!"
"We are NOT your fairies, you creepy stalker person!" Tatl yelled furiously. "Just leave us alone -- okay!"
"Uh..." Karin was deeply distrubed by Tingle, who looked way too old to be dressed the way he was.
"But Tingle saw you! Tingle saw you in Clock Town!"
"Tingle saw us going to Hyrule to help with a problem! We are with him!" Tatl pointed to Link. "Not you! Quit stalking us! You've been following us around with the Skullkid ever since Link left Termina!"
"Tingle has found Tingle's fairies! Tingle is very--"
"TINGLE HAS FOUND NOTHING!" Tatl shouted at the top of her voice.
Link sighed as Tael was zipped under his hat and as Tingle came into view. Do note that it was not a happy sigh. Navi looked somewhat confused. What was up with this… strange man?
Nila muttered something about Tingle being a creepy stalker Kokori Wannabe, and glared at Tingle with her golden eyes.
Link looked sorely tempted to draw his sword on Tingle. But he resisted the urge. Navi, on the other hand, yanked Link's hat off of his head, saying, "My hat! My head! My bed! Get out!"
"For Din's sake," snapped Link, exasperated with the fairies. "Will you knock it off, already! Both of you have been my partners. Why can't you both just be my partners and have done? Navi, give me my hat back..."
Navi reluctantly let Link take his had back, but the boy didn't put it back on his head. Only now did he really turn his attention to Tingle. "Look, Tingle," he said, voice taking on that lovely tone of infinite patience stretched to its thinnest. "Talt and Tael are not your fairies. And don't you go eyeing Navi, either. And don't you dare try and take any of the fairies in this forest. Fairies CHOOSE their partner, and, since none have chosen you, you have no fairy. And, before you even begin to offer, NO we do not need any bloody maps."
"Yeah!" Tatl shouted, ignoring Navi for the moment. She would deal with Navi later. She still had some of that itching powder that Kotake had made for her... Oh yes... She would deal with Navi later. "What he said!"
"Tingle knows he is not a Kokiri, Mr. Fairy!" Tingle replied, dancing around some more. Karin quirked an eyebrow at the name, but Tingle went on. "But fairy saw these fairies without partners! They are Tingle's fairies! They have been chosen!"
"I HAVE A PARTNER! SO DOES TAEL!" Tatl screamed. "We were not chosen to be your anything! Now go away, you creepy, fairy obsessed, map making, stalking, thirty-five year old wannabe COS-PLAYER!"
"He's thirty-five!" Karin blurted, astonished. Tatl nodded.
"Yeah! And he's a creepy stalker person!"
"Mr. Fairy has lots of fairies!" Tingle was ignoring them now. "Mr. Fairy has Tingle's fairies!"
"I don't like where this is leading..." Karin muttered,
"Tingle will get his fairies now!" Tingle wasn't even paying attention to who he was grabbing. Instead, he managed to grab Tatl and made an attempt for Navi, obviously mistaking her for Tael.
"Look, you fat ugly moron," snapped Navi as she fluttered out of his reach. "A fairy doesn't have to choose a partner. Fairies can and do go solo! That's why the FAIRIES pick who their partner is..."
Tael didn't like his sister being grabbed. "Hey! Let her go! Let my big sister go!" He yelled, and began hitting Tingle.
"Yeah, you jerk!" Karin yelled, and kicked Tingle in the shins. "Let them go!"
Link snapped, "Tingle, for Din, Nayru and Farore's sake, - not to mention yours - leave the fairies the hell alone!"
"TINGLE WANTS HIS FAIRIES!" He yelled suddenly, grabbing Karin and shaking her roughly. "TINGLE WANTS THEM NOW!"
"LET ME GO, YOU FREAK!" Karin yelled, struggling out of his grasp.
Navi picked up a random Deku nut from Link's pouch and chucked it into Tingle's eyes, where it flashed brightly, blindingly, painfully, forcing him to release Karin
"And did I mention that he's been hanging around the Happy Mask Salesman!" Tatl yelled, gasping for air as she was released from Tingle's grasp.
Oh. That explained it. The Happy Mask Salesman. A creep if there ever was one. Link shuddered just thinking about that bipolar freak that really had no business selling masks to children. Even when he'd been in his shop in Castle Town, Link had found him insanely scary.
As soon as Tingle released Karin, an angry screech was heard and a blur came shooting down from the sky. Atreyu grabbed the top of Tingle's hat -- which seemed to have been glued to his head and dragged the fairy-obsessed map seller straight into a tree.
Tingle yelped as his head collided with the bark and Atreyu released him, staying just in front of the map sellers face. He was glaring, which -- considering his fierce and awesome looking hawk eyes -- was actually impressive.
"Look, you ignorant freak," Atreyu snapped, "What you do in your free time is none of my business, and, believe me, I DO NOT want to know, but the next time you go to touch Karin, the only thing that my talons are going to be doing is gouging out your eye sockets." With that, he swooped up and landed on a tree branch.
Grinning at Atreyu, Karin walked over to Tingle, drawing her sword as she did so.
"Hey!" Tael yelped. "Are you really gonna kill him?"
"Yes! Go for it!" Tatl shouted, bobbing around in the air. "Shish-ka-bob that freak!"
The moment she got over to Tingle, though, she did slice her blade down -- and the flat of it collided with his skull. The map seller collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
"Creep," She muttered, and put her sword away. Tatl seemed disappointed, but she wasn't complaining that Tingle was unconscious.
Nila edged away from the body of Tingle, golden eyes glinting with distaste.
Link glanced around the clearing. "Say, where's Saria?" he asked.
"She stayed back in the Sacred Realm," said Nila.
"Oh."
Link seemed to be considering something for a few moments. Then he looked sidelong at Karin. "You don't have any protection against high temperatures or fire, do you?"
Navi fluttered around Link's head as he put his had back on. "Aw, do we have to go to the Fire Temple next? It's so hot there..."
Link glanced up at Navi. "No, really? It's not like the Temple of Fire is located in a volcano or anything," he said, sarcastically.
"It is?" asked Navi, her tone holding even more sarcasm, if that were possible. Whole buckets of mockery sloshed in her tone. "Well, I never!"
Karin shook her head. "No, not at all." However, her eyes seemed to light up. "We're going to go into a volcano next? Awesome!
Tael nodded. "It's just as well. We can't exactly go into the Termina temples right now, though we need to..."
"You see," Tatl began to fill in. "Skullkid -- after putting on Majora's Mask -- had a tantrum. Remember Kafei and Anju? Well, the Great Fairy in the laundry pool decided to come out of her hole and turned Kafei back into an adult, so they got married. And since they were already married, Skullkid couldn't stop them from getting married, obviously. So he took a fit and put seals on all of the temples. You can't get in."
"And that was when the pirate showed up," Tael added.
"And it gets worse!" Tatl said brightly, smirking. "Remember our Not-So-Happy Mask Salesman? He's looking for you. He went that-a-way." She pointed towards the Kokiri Forest.
"Great." Karin muttered. "More freaks."
Tatl sat on Link's bangs and peered down into his blue eyes with her pale yellow ones. "I say that you go kick his ass, but then, you were never one for beating on him even though he just loved to strangle you. But I do think robbing him might prove useful this time. If what Tael said is right--"
"Which it is," Tael interrupted stubbornly.
"--the Mask Salesman has a bunch of the masks. Plus, he knows where others like the Zora, Goron, and Fierce Deity's Masks are. So, do what you want, but he should be reaching the Kokiri Forest right about now."
"Lovely," said Link upon the news of the Happy Mask Sales man being there. "Let's hope some of his.. um.. issues have been sorted out.."
"Issues?" queried Navi as she perched upon Link's shoulder.
"Nevermind."
Tael sat down beside his sister. "Since you're an adult now, you may look a bit... Strange with the Bunny Hood on, even if it does make you faster."
"Strange? He'll look hilarious!" Tatl replied, cracking up. "But that isn't the point. The point is that the transformation masks will prove dead useful -- just like they did before."
"True," Tael nodded his consent as Atreyu fluttered down to Karin's shoulder.
"Say," said Navi as they began to make their way back towards the Lost Woods. "Didn't the Happy Mask Salesman open a shop in Castle Town for a bit?"
"Yeah, but he wasn't insane then... Just a bad salesman, which is why he made me go out and sell the masks. But, at least he let me use that Gerudo mask.. Oh man, Nabooru's reaction to that was hysterical..."
Link then looked cross-eyed at Tatl and Tael, who were still seated on his bangs. "You know," he said. "In Hyrule, there're Zoras, Gorons, some Deku Scrubs, and a female race rather like the Pirates. However, here, while the Gerudo are thieves, and while they look the same, they aren't pirates, and they're a bit paranoid about water. The reason for that is that they live in a desert... And this 'male pirate' is the King of the Gerudo, although he's not terribly popular among them, and their female leader, Nabooru, refuses to acknowledge him. But, Ganondorf is from the desert..."
Nila walked next to Karin. "Atreyu... What are you exactly? Yes, I can see that you are a hawk, but I mean besides that..."
"I'm a Guardian," Atreyu answered simply. Then, realizing that Nila probably didn't know about all that, which she didn't, went on to explain. "In Westaria, everyone who has potential for combat or magic goes to school. The most prestigious one -- for the most talented, obviously -- and the one where this naive girl went to," he motioned to Karin, who scowled at him. "is Cariaescence. There are eight years there, just like every other school, and the person is either trained as a Healer or a Warrior. Those are, of course, just general categories, and you can mix them."
"Atreyu," Karin warned, "don't start about the different types of magic, now."
"I wasn't going to," He snapped back. "Anyway, once a person completes their training and ends their school career, he or she goes through the graduation ceremony, and the Coming-Of-Age, also known as the Sotsu for females, or the Kakun for males. After that, he or she takes a test, which is different for each individual. This is for a couple of reasons: one, so no one can cheat, and two, to determine the personality of that individual."
Karin gave a large, fake yawn, and Atreyu scowled at her before continuing.
"After that's over, and if he or she passed, he or she is given his or her own Totem, Pendant, whatever you want to call it." He reached down to Karin's neck and pulled up a chain with his beak, showing a circular amulet with words carved into the back in Kanji. It also had a symbol on the front, but it was dropped again before it could be seen clearly. "This allows whoever wears it to summon their Guardian -- or animal spirit, guide, whatever -- for advice, help, or whatever. This will work for others if they have a blood relation to the original wearer, and then only if they have a strong connection."
"So you're a Guardian?" Tael asked. Atreyu nodded.
"Yes, but I'm not her Guardian. She," he motioned to Karin, "never graduated."
"You're a drop-out?" Tatl began laughing. Karin glared at her.
"Yeah. What of it?" She demanded harshly, but Atreyu went on before she could finish.
"I'm actually her brother's Guardian, but she wears his Totem because he wanted her to be protected, and knew that she wouldn't have time to graduate." Atreyu fell silent then after a glance from Karin. It wasn't a glare, just a glance; nothing could even be told from it, probably.
Tatl looked down at Link. "Do you really think the Mask Salesman has resolved his issues? That guy still hasn't managed to find his sanity. I mean, did you see the way Tingle was acting? The HMS is about a thousand times worse by now. He tried to attack Kafei at his wedding."
"And what do you mean the pirates live in the desert? The Gorons are still in the snow, right?" Tael asked.
"No, actually," said Link. "The live on the slopes of a volcano."
"Oh, by the way, Lulu is looking for Mikau. The idiot still hasn't figured out that he's dead," Tatl informed Link. "So you better have that Zora Mask before we go to Great Bay again."
"Hmm," said Nila to Karin. "Sounds somewhat like what the Sheikah do here... Only... We don't have Guardians... and our education does not focus upon magic.. at least not for most of us. Few Sheikah are gifted in magic, but for those of us who are... well.. it depends on how many of us there are. Right now, it's just me and my mother... and so I learned from her, but I'll still have to take the Quisros... Our version of your Sotsu or Kakun, I suppose. Except, that all blood Sheikah take it, warrior or mage. Choosen Sheikah also have their own test, rather like the Quisros, but… I'm not sure what it's like."
She paused, reflecting for a moment. "I envy you that you have actual schools of magic... There must be so much that you can learn! So much more than anyone here knows... well, except maybe the Great Fairies, but they're pretty hard to find, and they refuse to give you a direct answer. Sure, they'll teach you a spell or two, if you've got innate talent and they like you, but they won't teach you how the magic works or anything."
She sighed. "So... Even though you haven't graduated, what sorts of magic do you know?"
Nila knew better than to ask after Karin's brother, such as how he died and whatnot...It was obviously a painful subject.
Navi, meanwhile, gave Tael and Tatl a strange look. "Gorons..? In the snow? Hello! They live on Death Mountain! A fiery volcano! So.. it does snow there and in Kakariko, but... Uh... Not enough for them to live in it..."
Link chuckled softly. "As I said, things are different here than in Termina. The Gorons live as Navi said... The Zoras live behind a waterfall, and travel to Lake Hylia via a really random portal thing... But the pirates aren't pirates here. They're called Gerudo. And they live in a fortress in the desert near the Temple of the Spirit, which is called the Goddesss in the Sand, or something like that. They really don't like men at all, and don't let them into their fortress... And the only reason they tolerate me in their fortress is because they gave me an 'honorary' membership in their ranks."
"That's only because they were impressed by the fact that you were stupid enough to keep trying to fight them, even after they'd beaten the crap out of you forty times..." said Navi.
"Hey! I only lost against the White, or when a bunch of the Purple surrounded me," said Link, defensively. "Otherwise, I beat them every time."
In the meantime, "Well, I'm horrible with magic -- more of a fighter, myself -- but I can heal a bit, and use elemental magic. My best is my trick with my sword. I can charge lightning around it to increase the power behind each strike and momentarily stun my opponent," Karin replied. "It's useful, but unless I've used enough magic before hand to have sort of a warm up, it takes a bit of time to charge."
Nila nodded. "Do you think you could teach me that spell? Lightening is Light, so... I should be able to do it... That would be a terribly useful spell..."
Tatl, meanwhile, smirked. "Yeah, well, the pirates didn't like you either. And they beat the crap out of you too. You had to hide up in the ducts and shoot them with arrows. Then you went around getting Lulu's eggs back... I'm surprised you actually made it through that, actually. I thought you were going to wet yourself every time they popped up behind you."
"Hey," Tael replied, coming to Link's defense. "He was only ten."
"Yeah, yeah, yeah." Tatl rolled her eyes. "He may be grown up now, but he's still a shrimp to me." She looked down at him again, still holding her smirk. "And after living through all of those days with him, I think I should know."
Link glared up at the two fairies. "I was twelve when I went to Termina," he muttered, irritably. "I was just small for my age. And the perspective's a bit different from when you've the body of an adult or the body of a kid. Gerudo can be downright scary when you're little!"
Navi glared at Talt, but surprisingly, didn't make an insult to Tatl. Instead, she commented to Link. "He was even shorter when he was ten," she said. "And man... You should have seen him when he first learned how to wield a sword. I think any Gerudo or Pirate would have died laughing."
Tatl grinned. "I died laughing when I first saw him anyway. I mean, Goddess, he was pathetic! Normally, Skullkid had to knock someone unconscious to steal from them. He managed to take Link's horse and Ocarina and get away. Not only that, but he turned Link into a Deku Scrub!" At the memory, she started laughing uncontrollably and had to hold onto her brother for support.
Link sighed and muttered, "You trying being a Deku scrub... And then let me see you laughing."
"And twelve, fine, fine. But you were still small." She messed up his hair -- at least, as much as a fairy could, anyway. "But I have to admit, that didn't stop you from kicking some serious ass. Remember the Sea Snakes? That was seriously awesome."
"Sea Snakes?" Tael and Navi asked at the same time. Tatl nodded, her grin growing larger.
"Yeah! See, the pirates had lost some of Lulu's eggs in a Sea Snake nest, and Link -- after putting on the Zora Mask so he wouldn't drown -- dived down in there, killed the giant Sea Snakes, and took the eggs back."
"Awesome! You rock, Link!" Tael cheered enthusiastically.
Karin meanwhile, studied Nila for a moment. "Hmm... I'm not sure... How many rai spells can you do?"
Nila cocked her head to one side. "Rai? You mean lightening spells? Only a couple. I mean, lightening is, after a fashion, light, so… They aren't that hard. But… Rauru didn't know very many lightening spells himself."
At that moment, though, they were interrupted. A dark hooded and cloaked figure suddenly dropped out of the trees, landing right behind Nila, and an argument reached their ears as several people, some familiar, some not, came into view among the trees.
Authors' Notes:
Snarky: Well, in this case (singular) Author's notes, due to reasons stated in the first portion of the notes.
To reviewers: If you didn't get a reply via the spangly new review reply system or by email, that's because either I forgot about you OR because you left neither email nor a review via your account. Considering that there's not very many of you, though… Chances are it's the latter reason. (( Also, as of the moment I am posting this, I haven't replied to reviews. I'm replying directly after, so… ))