Okay, welcome to "The Final Adventure"! I don't know if I'll be able to finish this one, but we have a helluva lot of reviews to respond to! Feel free to scroll past them all and read the chapter!
JMG: I'm serious! Muffins! There we NO muffins!
Dragon-Charmer16: Umm... no epilogue. Continuity instead. Continuity is better, yes? Yes, continuity is better! But I REALLY need to wrap this up soon...
Dragon-Charmer16: O.o Innovative cheer thing... EVIL COMPUTER! -flogs computer, then realizes that it is only doing ill- Whoops...
Blondie91: I even intended for there to be one more chapter! I was halfway through writing it! But I stopped... and decided to write a new story. n.n; Sorry 'bout that!
Dragon-Charmer16: Can't very well kill YOUR OC without your permission, can I? That wouldn't be fair... At least that's my view on it.
Dragon-Charmer16: Yep, Kaze's in the sequel. Where're my pictures! I want my pictures! Hurry with those pictures! TT Nope, no more chapters. Second sequel instead! Yippee!
Dragon-Charmer16: (Legend of Advertisement!) Insane humor is the best kind! MWEEHEEHEE!
Fire god101: Sorry... no more chapters. It's over. All over. Besides the sequel! This sequel! ENJOY!
JMG: (The Legend of Advertisement!) That's the one! Thanks!
Lady Jill: (A Doll Upon Evil's Shelf) Of course I remember you! You're the author of that great fanfiction I have on alert! Yeah, I tried my best with the rhymes. It kinda ended up sucking, though... Thanks for the review!
DragonCharmer 16 to lazy to log in: Yes, Kaze's in the next story. No epilogue, no one-shots, not even sure if the school story will pull through. ;;
still to lazy to log in! DC16: (The Legend of Advertisement!) S'okay. I got, like, five different reviews with the lyrics. oo People like TV or something...
DC16: You saved ALL of my e-mails? oo Okay... Good thing, though! Otherwise you'd be story-less! ...which is bad. Very bad.
Bridget: (The Legend of Advertisement!) Thanks for the lyrics! Okay, I'll put Zelda in the next one!
Kitty29: (The Legend of Advertisement!) Mmm... cheese! Yay!
Blondie91: Technically it's a quartet, if you include "Trust Me" by Dragon-Charmer16. But trilogy works, I suppose. McDonald's? O...kay. O.o
Da marshmallow: HI! I remember you. n.n Welcome back! The second chapter is one of the WORST. It's sooooo slow. -.- But it does initiate the plot and that has to happen at one point, doesn't it?
JMG: I'm taking requests for "For the Sake of the World" and this story. When this is done and I get the full collection up, I'll take requests for all of them except "Face Your Demons". Merry... Christmas?
Da marshmallow: Wanna know a secret? I like grape popsicles too! n.n I have no idea where the answering machine thing came from, but it's pretty funny nonetheless!
Da marshmallow: When I type your name I have this dying urge to capitalize the "m". Whatever. Chapter 4 was a little slow in my opinion...
Da marshmallow: I think I got their names mixed up... Which is fire and which is ice? I'm pretty sure I have it backwards, but I'm not even sure what I wrote the first time! Is it... Koume is fire and Kotake is ice?
Numdenu: (The Legend of Advertisement!) ..
Mxedcherub: You only reviewed because I made you...
Da marshmallow: I do my best! n.n Tankoo!
Da marshmallow: Okay, I'm demented, but not THAT demented! Actually, at first, I considered making that the song! But I changed my mind quickly. Very quickly. You have no idea just how quickly I changed my mind!
some random reviewer: (The Legend of Advertisement!) The song is "Soshite Boku Ni Dekiru Koto", which is the opening theme for the Playstation2 version of Tales of Symphonia. If you want to know what the lyrics translate to... join the club! We have pie. No, seriously, I have no idea what it means!
Bob Villa: Momentarily... means soon, yes? And yet it's days and days later and this is still the only review I've gotten from you! Well, whatever. You and your IB program go hold an anti-stress party or something.
Da marshmallow: Yeah, short... It was accidental, but I just left it that way. Short and sweet!
Da marshmallow: They didn't teach us how to say blood... I made a point of learning it myself! MUAHAHAHAHA! The cleanup thing is yet another example of my random humor... So random, so funny, so GOOD! Am I right?
jiminycricketX: (The Legend of Advertisement!) Yay! Lyrics! I've gotten those lyrics so many times, I'm hearing the song in my sleep! Well, not really... But I should be! Now I know for sure what the lyrics are! Yay (again)!
Japanimeniac: (The Legend of Advertisement!) Pointless, random humor is the best kind! More lyrics! Yay! And I totally forgot about the whole "Pink does more than you think" line! I wish I had used that!
Hopeless Maiden: (The Legend of Advertisement!) Heheheh… Yeah, I was planning on making a commercial during Link's conversation with Rauru. Not a horrible idea at all! IT WILL BE DONE! Maybe a Barbie commercial? Oh wait, they don't have Barbies anymore…
Dragon-Charmer16: (The Legend of Advertisement!) Ideas are hard to come by… Insanity DOES rock! GO, INSANITY, GO!
CheeseFromJupiter: (The Legend of Advertisement!) Oh, I'm sorry! I didn't even think about that when I had this idea! UK television doesn't get American commercials, does it? And American television doesn't get UK commercials! Man, this sucks. We need some universal commercials!
JMG: (The Legend of Advertisement!) Rubberband man… Heh. Maybe. I'll put that in the 'possibly' box. –puts in 'possibly' box-
Kitty29: (The Legend of Advertisement!) OH MY GOD! IPod! Do they have a catch phrase? I'm trying to do one's with catch phrases… If IPod doesn't have a catch phrase, I'm gonna sue them until they get one!
Da marshmallow: XP I see you have a high self-esteem!
That was an entire page in Microsoft Word. And I bet near to none of you read it! So here's the chapter!
Chapter 1: Memories of Another World
"Oh, look who showed up again," one of the girls from the 'popular' crowd sneered. Lor, seated casually at his desk, looked up from his book with a friendly smile. "Afternoon, ladies," he greeted. "How can I help you?"
"Go home, you loser!" another of the girls spat. The others giggled, a few of them taunting the indifferent boy. Lor placed a bookmark between his pages and shut the novel. He looked at the five or six girls curiously.
"But I was so looking forward to English class today," he protested. "Certainly you'll permit me attendance to at least that class." It seemed that no matter how much he was insulted or mocked, Lor would always be cheerful. It was this that his classmates detested the most.
"Go die, freak," the girl who originally spoke scoffed as she led the others to their seats in the back of the room where they could gossip without being easily heard by the teacher. Lor sighed. That took care of the female antagonists; next the football team would have their go at him. Often he met with the sturdy pack of gentlemen several times throughout the day. Their last meeting was always concluded with them chasing poor Lor across town and eventually catching him and beating the living daylights out of him.
But it was routine, and he had grown used to it. Somehow he was always content. He never harbored any dark thoughts towards his tormentors. He never considered himself unfortunate to live such a life. It bothered him not that he couldn't recall his childhood. It didn't affect him that his mother was never home or that his father was a stark raving drunk. When it rained he would talk to the raindrops as though they were lifelong friends. When the sun shined anew he would greet it with a smile. When the night fell he would tell the stories of his day to the stars and moon.
And nothing ever intruded upon Lor's miniature paradise.
Class ended and the students filed out. School was monotonous, nothing more or less. Lor was satisfied with being home, but he didn't disdain school. He picked up his books and headed for the school's exit. It was only a few blocks to his home. However, every day he found himself running about town to escape from the football-playing gentlemen. It wasn't that he didn't want to be pummeled to a bruised and bloody pulp. It was just that his acquaintances enjoyed the chase and Lor would do whatever he could to please them.
The black-haired boy stood beneath the oak in front of the school. Someone tapped him on his shoulder and turned around. "Chris, hello," he welcomed. "Are you leading the pack today? I guess I'll get started then."
The brutish captain of the football team made a fist and grinned at Lor. "Ya got a three minute head start. Better get going," he informed as he looked at his watch. Lor rubbed the back of his head with an apologetic grin.
"Right. Sorry," he said as he turned and began running. Even though the kindly gentleman Chris had given him time to escape, Lor knew that actually using the time to its full extent would peeve his pursuers. So he always took his time during his occasional head starts. Three minutes passed and he could hear the battle cries of Chris and the rest of the boys. When they were within sight, Lor quickened his pace. This was how the chase normally proceeded.
Somewhere along the line the fleeing boy took a wrong turn and ended up in the alley beside the library. This was perfectly all right; after his chasers had their fill of his pain, he could browse Mr. Glenwood's library for a while before going home. The elderly archivist was very kind to Lor and always sympathized, even though he said repeatedly that he enjoyed his life.
Lor leaned against the chain link fence and tried to catch his breath. He could hear the footsteps of his acquaintances drawing nearer. Soon they rounded the corner. Chris was no longer in the lead. A powerful lad by the name of Brandon headed the group. There was a switchblade in his hand and a murderous grin on his face.
"Gentleman," the black-haired boy began, "I thought we agreed that there would be no weapons." Brandon advanced slowly. Two boys from behind him hurried ahead and restrained Lor by the wrists. "I changed the rules. Didn't you get the memo?" the thug of a boy growled. His captive shrugged with an amiable smile.
Inside the library, Mr. Glenwood shuddered at the sounds he heard coming from the alley behind his humble building. After five minutes of the incessant din, Lor limped in with miscellaneous cuts and bruises. A long gash ran down his face, and his left wrist was bent awkwardly.
"Afternoon, Mr. Glenwood," the black-haired boy said with a nod to the librarian. "Goodness, Lor!" Glenwood shouted as he dug out a first-aid kit from beneath stacks of dusty tomes. He lifted the lid of the old tin box and gestured for Lor to have a seat. The boy did so and waited to receive attention. He winced as the alcohol-soaked swab came into contact with the cut along his face.
"You know, sir, you should really save your medical supplies," Lor said. "I appreciate this, but one day an innocent puppy will be hit in front of your library and you'll have wasted all your bandages and such on me."
Glenwood shook his head, chuckling. "Don't worry. I restock my first-aid kit whenever necessary," he assured as he took Lor's wrist and studied it. The boy bit his lip, uttering no more than a slight whimper of pain. "You need to see a doctor for this," Glenwood proclaimed, wrapping a bandage tightly around the injured wrist to hold it rigid.
Lor was busying himself gazing upon the shelves and shelves of literature. "Do you mind?" he asked when the librarian was through. Glenwood snorted. "Leave it to you to go running off after a book with a broken wrist," he muttered. "You can only have a look around if you return some of the last three books you borrowed."
Lor reached into his bag and pulled out two thick novels, placing them on Glenwood's desk. He gave the man a smile and eagerly began browsing the selection.
"That boy… I'll never understand him," Glenwood said to himself. "His life his hell, but he hides no tears behind his smile. It's hard to believe he really doesn't mind when those bullies hurt him so badly, or when his father goes after him in a drunken fit. It would be more understandable if his mother was a compassionate young woman who cares for him constantly, but she's never home…"
"Mr. Glenwood!" Lor called, interrupting the old archivist's spoken thoughts. He emerged from the halls of shelves with a book open in his hand. "What is this?" he asked as he set his find down on Glenwood's desk and opened it. The entire book was written in some foreign tongue that the librarian had never seen before. Lor began turning the pages and pointing to different pictures. There was an illustration of a mountain with a circle of clouds around the peak and one of a steep canyon. Another depicted a gorgeous lake, and yet another showed a majestic castle.
"For some reason, all this looks familiar," Lor concluded. "Especially this one." He gestured to a picture of three golden triangles.
"This is clearly a fantasy book," Glenwood decided as he continued surveying the pages and found illustrations of dragons, fish-people, and so much else that couldn't possibly be real. "I'd like to check this one out," Lor announced. The librarian gave him a wary look, but scanned the bar-code on the back cover and handed his young friend the book nonetheless. "Don't you forget to go see that doctor!" Glenwood called as Lor left.
The black-haired boy strode down the sidewalk victoriously. So what if his wrist was broken and his face was bloody? He had found a challenge. Lor planned to decode this strange book he had come across.
It was upon this resolution that something stirred deep within Lor's soul…
Whoo hoo! First chapter FINALLY up! Okay, you aren't going to like this but…
I think from now on I update twice a week. I'll make the chapters longer, okay? That'll make it better. Worth the wait. As a result of school, I'm not going to enforce any review-to-update ratios, but I will beg you to review!
-gets on knees- Please, sir or madam! PLEASE review! (cough) I need it so very badly!