This chapter spans over the Endless Night, the Three Goddess Statues, the Tower of the Gods, and Link's Trip to Hyrule, as well as Link's sailing trip back to the Forbidden Fortress.
I wasn't in a very good mood that morning. In fact, one could say I was rather crabby, not that it was necessarily my fault.
It was Ganon's fault.
I stared at my bread with a feeling of vexation. All day I stared out the window, feeding the birds. I had decided that would be my stress reliever, and it was working.
Somewhat.
The clouds had not cleared since yesterday. It seemed there would be a storm, and a rather violent one at that, and I blinked in surprise as a raindrop fell onto my freckles.
"It's raining," I muttered darkly as I returned to where Aryll and Maggie had been talking with Moe. It seemed he was back on duty. But at my words, he turned a little pale, and started grunting random words into the air.
"What?" asked Maggie. Moe looked away, and I felt that urge to smack him with my fan. But it was troublesome to go to the other side of the cell to fetch it, so I suppressed that train of thought.
"Me not supposed to be sayin' this," he suddenly whispered, mainly to Maggie, "But the Master's jus' cast a curse on the sea."
"A curse?" asked Aryll, leaning her head to the side. The Moblin nodded before speaking again. "Be ready fo' a long, long night…"
He then scuttled away, waving at the pauper girl as he left.
We looked at each other in awkward silence. Then, before I realized it, we were all cramming our heads through the window. The sky was even darker than before! I couldn't believe how fast it turned so bad. The Great Sea was crashing against the Fortress walls, and storm clouds surged toward what was a far away island.
"I hope that storm isn't near Windfall," gasped Maggie as she pointed at it.
"Or Outset." moaned the smallest girl in worry. I shook my head. Those clouds weren't going to gather at some village islands. No. They would be set in a place that is a threat to them.
"Don't worry." I said, removing myself from the windowsill. The two girls looked at me in wonder as I sat down at our table. They took one last look at the sky before joining me.
"I think we should tell a story," said Aryll, a forced smile appearing on her small face. I could see in her eyes that she was nervous. But, feeling sorry for the tiny child, I played along, saying she could be the first to tell a story to us. Maggie nodded in accordance.
"There's this story my Grandmother told me." Aryll began, leaning back slightly, "A long time ago, there was a land that held a scared power that had been given by the Goddesses Din, Nayru, and Farore. Grandmother said that a great evil tried to steal that sacred power, but a Hero that traveled through time came to defeat the evil, using a sword that banished evil. He was garbed in all green."
"Like your brother?" Maggie interrupted.
"Yes. Grandmother says it's a custom for boys his age to start wearing green clothing like the Hero." stated Aryll with a smile. For a minute, I thought she was going to start weeping again, but her smile remained. "Anyway, he banished the evil, but it came back, throwing the world in turmoil. The people hoped the Hero would return, but he didn't, so they asked the Goddesses to help them. Then the land vanished." I realized that the land she was talking about was probably Hyrule, the land of Princess Zelda that Ganon informed us of.
"What happened to all those people then?" I asked, trying to wiggle my way into the conversation again.
"Grandmother says that we are supposed the legacy of those people, but she didn't say anything else." Aryll explained, "She also mentioned there were the three spirits of the world, but she says she doesn't know much about them."
"I know those!" said Maggie excitedly. I had to hush her in order for her to keep quiet. We didn't need guards eavesdropping on our conversation.
"The three great spirits are positioned around the Great Sea," said Maggie, pointing a finger in the air in a matter-a-fact tone, "The most famous is Valoo, the protector of the skies who lives on Dragon Roost. Then there's the Great Deku Tree in the Forest Haven somewhere out on the sea, and Jabun, the water spirit who's whereabouts are unknown."
"So there's a giant fish, dragon, and tree protecting us?" I asked skeptically. I had actually heard these rumors before, from my father's "friends" he invited over sometimes. It had been a terribly boring subject to listen to before, but now I wished I had listened instead of having to rely on Maggie's feedback.
"I heard that too though!" said Aryll, "Jabun lives on Greatfish Isle north of Outset."
The conversation dulled from there, and we waited for night to fully fall. The rain was coming down hard now, and as we waited, huddled in our separate corners, I felt a nagging of some kind engulf my stomach. It felt like hours had passed, but the sky didn't seem to have changed. There still was no moon, and stars did not show themselves. After a few more minutes, or what could have been hours, I wasn't sure anymore, I glanced around and saw Aryll fast asleep. Maggie was staring at the window from her corner.
We exchanged a glance, though it was very slight. I couldn't take the silence anymore.
I stood, wiping dirt from my dress. I was far from tired. I had slept a good, long while, but there was no way light still hadn't broken through the clouds. I strode to the window, patting my fan across my face.
I dropped it.
Where was the sun? Where was the sky? The birds? The light? Everything was the same!
What was happening?
"How eerie is that…?" said Maggie grimly. I knew it was a rhetorical question, so I did not bother to answer. We stood in silence in the window as the storm continued to rage on. After several long hours, yet again I was unsure of how much time really had passed; Maggie broke the silence with a most unexpected question.
"Before we came here, did you ever wish you could escape Windfall?"
I faced her abruptly. "No, of course not!" my reply had been louder than I had anticipated, and the look on the pauper's face was that of slight doubt.
"I did." she replied, "I wanted to leave Windfall and adventure the Great Sea with some strong sailor. That has always been my dream, and I was quite fond of that dream too. For a few minutes into my capture, I was happy it was happening.
"But then I remembered my poor father," she added, "and I knew that I would need to find a way back. My father would most likely die of grief."
I felt a pang of shame at the fact that I knew better than to think my father only wanted money. I'd always told myself that when Father would decline my invitation to play. I knew, though, that that was never true. My father was busy. He had work. He did care.
Maggie's father was pretty much the same, only he was poor and unemployed. I really wanted to make this comparison between her, and me but my pride would not let up.
"I wish my situation was the same way." I lied through gritted teeth, "My father only cares for our money." Maggie stared at me through the corner of her eye, and I didn't know whether she bought that stupid lie. Frankly, I didn't want to know. It was a lie. A stupid lie.
I concluded I was still a bad person.
I was a liar.
Night 10
"How long has it been since we arrived here?" asked Aryll with a yawn. It was another day of doing nothing. It was almost becoming unbearable…
"A week or so." Maggie said solemnly. Three days had passed since the storm clouds cleared. Just last night, three lights showed themselves on the horizon. Red, green, and blue cast a shimmering aurora into the sky. I had spotted it while feeding the seagulls, and had called over Aryll and Maggie. We had stared at the lights for a minute or so before something shot out of the water.
"Where did that thing come from?" asked the youngest girl, trying to get a better view. I shrugged, before hoisting her up so she could see. She was surprisingly heavy.
"It kinda looks like a tower!" noted Maggie with enthusiasm. I squinted, still trying to hold Aryll, and confirmed the redhead's guess.
Lunch had arrived, we ate, and then we heard a particular sound. I held up a hand, a gesture that made the other girls stop chewing to listen, and I glanced at the window, where a clear view of the tower was.
"Bells…" muttered Aryll, listening to the chimes.
"I've never known of a bell tower in the Great Sea." Maggie whispered to me, catching my eye. I stood, and walked to the window. Maggie and Aryll followed almost instinctively. It was becoming a custom to gather at the window, what with all the strange things happening to the Great Sea. I gasped as I saw a golden light seem to spread across the sea. The moon was not creating this reflection. It was too golden, to pure, to good to be cause by an anomaly in the sky. No, was this the power of the Gods? What in the world was happening? We stared at the sight in silence, before the clink of a door made us turn around in alarm.
"Well, ladies, I see you've witnessed the power of the Gods," said the terror before them. Of course, it was Ganon again. How sweet of him to come and say hi…
"What power of the Gods?" Aryll asked as she inched behind me.
"The golden light will open a path to Hyrule." My eyes widened a bit at this news. Maybe his plan was to go to Hyrule and see if the Princess was there instead. "Right now, the new Hero is going to make a terrible mistake, and I am going to become a very powerful man." Or maybe it wasn't. He chuckled, but then stopped himself. "Correction: I will become and even more powerful man than I already am."
"Freak," I heard Maggie mutter under her breath as he laughed evilly. I almost smirked.
"I am sorry, but, again, you have made a mistake. None of us are this princess you're looking for." Maggie said when he was done. He raised his left eyebrow in doubt. He stood still for a moment.
"EEEEK!!"
He had moved so fast I couldn't have reacted in time. He pulled the poor girl up by her dress of rags, before saying in a deathly tone, "I wouldn't be giving me lip if I were you, girl. I've just received all my power again." He threw Maggie like a doll, and I had to catch her from hitting her head on the floor. She was definitely still conscious, but more than a little shaken. She was actually trembling in fear.
I grit my teeth in frustration, knowing even if I did anything, I'd end up the same way. This rage… it boiled in me. Why was I suddenly so defensive of the girl who had all the friends and all the dirt? She had no money! She was not beautiful! She was not my friend!
… Wait, what?
"How dare you…" slipped from my lips as I helped Maggie gain back her ability to stand on her own, "How dare you hurt someone who has done nothing wrong to you personally!!"
Ganon smirked, but I remained calm. I was far enough from the bars to keep away from his hands. Now that I thought about it, Aryll needed to be the same distance. I unconsciously pulled her behind me completely. We all stood in silence for what seemed like an eternity, before Ganon turned on his heel.
He said darkly, no fun in his voice, "I now know you are not Zelda. None of you are Zelda."
"Then why keep us here?" asked Maggie through a split lip.
He eyed us dangerously, before snickering. "I need hostages to lure the new Hero here. He won't come if no lives are at stake. Then I can kill him."
I felt my eye twitch as he laughed his way out the door.
When he was gone, I sank to the floor, breathing heavily from not breathing at all. That night, we decided, for one night, we would sleep together under the window. Aryll was in the middle, while Maggie was on the end. I was under the window. I could see the moon and stars. They were actually quite funny looking tonight. A few seemed to be winking at me. But I had registered it into my brain that it was my eyes playing tricks on me, so I closed my lids and waited for sleep to take me.
But when I realized I could here Maggie's snoring and the soft whistles made from Aryll's nose, I knew I wouldn't be able to sleep any time soon.
Something was different with me. It wasn't good, but it wasn't necessarily bad either. I felt Aryll nudge closer to me, for we had no blanket (I refused to sleep under Maggie's), so I let her curl into a ball. Slowly, and very unsure, I awkwardly wrapped my arms around her in, what I hoped, was a sisterly thing to do. She was not crying tonight. No, she was peaceful. Her breathing was light on my neck, and I discovered warmth in my heart I had not felt before.
For a moment I was slightly alarmed, but then I noticed it was not like fire, but like…
Actually, I had no way to describe this.
Since I had never known my mother, I had never received motherly comfort of any kind, for no dad could make up for what only a mother could give. Was this what it felt like to be caring? Was this friendship? Or was it sisterhood? I recalled the defensiveness I put out on behalf of Maggie. Was she my friend? I knew she would do me no harm, but had I really already put aside my loathing of her so readily.
I shook my head in disdain, and shut my eyes tightly, willing my mind to go blank.
This time, sleep complied…
Night 12
"Please forgive me!" yelled Moe as he pleaded with Maggie to forgive him for letting her get hurt. I almost barfed if not for the fact that I was trying to become a better person.
"It's not your fault Moe!" cried Maggie dramatically, holding his pig hands.
"Okay, now I'm gonna barf…" I muttered, mainly to myself, but a small giggle escaped from Aryll, and we chuckled together, her more than I.
The past two days had been wind down days, and boredom seemed to be eating at my insides. After Moe had served us our dinner, he had disintegrated into a heap of sobbing pork because of guilt.
Now, Maggie had been trying to get him to stop for well over ten minutes. Now it was just pitiful instead of pitiable.
"What can I do to make it up to ya?" asked the Moblin. I jerked my head in their direction. Aryll had apparently taken interest at this point as well. This sort of… giddy look of tempting options came over Maggie's face, and I was dangerously close to asking if she were possessed.
"Go out with me!" she screeched, grabbing his face to make sure he heard her right, which I'm sure he thought he hadn't.
"Um… 'kay?"
"Yes!" she did a little jig, before giving me the thumbs up. I didn't give it back, but I sure as hell sneered congratulations through bouts of laughter wanting to burst out from my vocal chords. Aryll nodded in agreement, a little more pleasantly than I did, before she smiled wide.
"I'll 'ave to take ya tonight though."
"EVEN BETTER!"
The Moblin took out a single key. I jumped when I saw it, and stalked to the door where Maggie was waiting.
"You had the key the whole time?" I questioned. He shrugged. "But I can only take Maggie. I'll be eliminated if I let you go free. I'm going to have to bring her back."
I sighed, hoping scuttling away from me again. I understood his predicament though. It was survival. He was a good monster of darkness shaped like a pig. He would let us out if he could without death as a consequence.
Aryll and I waved goodbye as both skipped away. I had a feeling that even by doing this, he was still risking his life for her.
"How very noble…"
"What, Mila?" asked Aryll, large eyes looking up at me.
"Oh, uh, nothing."
We called it a night soon after. What was there to do anyhow? I slept in my corner as usual, but a little after midnight, I felt a trembling hand meet my shoulder, obviously wanting me to wake. I opened my eyes a crack, but then shot them open wide when I saw Aryll crying next to me.
"Aryll, what's-"
She embraced me so tightly that I though I felt my lungs rise into my throat. Releasing her hold as gently as I thought I possibly could, I seized her shoulders tenderly, before asking what was wrong.
"M-My b-b-brother…" she started, before she collapsed into a weeping puddle of tears onto my lap. I instinctively placed my hand on her forehead, and realized she had a small fever.
"Did you have a nightmare about your brother?" I asked as my eyes narrowed to see in the darkness of our cell.
"T-THEY'RE NOT NIGHTMARES!" she screeched into the night as a new wave of salt water erupted from her tear glands, "T-They're r-r-real. I s-saw my b-brother sailing h-h-here on a talking b-boat, and that h-he was the h-h-hero…"
"I… I'm pretty sure that was a dream." I tried to assure her. Glancing around desperately, I realized Maggie had not yet return with Moe. I was officially winging it here.
"B-But it was so real…" she squeaked into my bosom, which was now partially soaked with tears. But at the moment, I was not worried about my dress, nor was I worried of someone barging in here because of the noise she had made. I wrapped my arms unsteadily around her, hoping it would calm her down. It worked, but she would doze off soon.
"How about…" I whispered, taking in a deep breath. Again, I was winging it. "How about… I let you sleep with me this one night. Just the two of us. Would… would that help?" I had no idea why I had suggested something so intimate to satiate her need of comfort, but it was all I could think of at the moment. I felt guilty though. This was something the motherly figure should perform for a discomforted child.
I was no mother figure.
I lied down, as did she next to me, before she snuggled against me, tears now dripping silently from her eyes. Then she started speaking to me, as though I were a therapist, about how worried she was about her brother. She told me his wierd habits of sleeping outside, and of being so protective. Then, to my mild surprise, she told me of how the pirate girl Ganon had been talking about had visited Outset hours before her kidnapping. She explained that the bird was actually going after the pirate, but had mistaken the poor child for the scum of the sea. She then muttered, more sadly, that when the bird got her, Link had practically jumped off a cliff to try and save her. She fell asleep soon after, and I felt this waking feeling of… care… building inside of me. But I swallowed hard, shoving it down. I was strong and independent. This was merely a task I needed to accomplish to prove that.
That pirate should have been the one with us. Not Aryll. But then again, one of them had to be Princess Zelda, if you were to believe the evil that Ganon was. I sighed, unable to wrap my mind around the news.
If Link was the new Hero, Aryll might become an only child soon. I grimanced at the thought. It also meant that Link had just made Ganon stronger unintentionally. I felt my brain throb from thinking too hard, so I closed my eyes, hoping for sleep to wash away my thoughts.