Chapter 20: The Broken Laugh Chapter 22: The King of Evil
Chapter 21: To Find Tranquility
Rana’s brilliant green eyes slowly moved, shifting up near his face, then darting back to make sure his hands hadn’t moved.
Her gaze met his.
Abruptly, she fell over, clutching her stomach. Her face was crumpled up.
“Rana?”
She sat up slowly.
“Do you know what you are doing to me?” Her words were unsteady. “The memory… the pain… … your eyes… … your eyes… They are the same! I did know you… and I liked you, too! But the… remembering is the equivalent…”She mimed stabbing herself. “I… I…” She began to weep, tears pouring from her eyes now.
“Rana, I’m sorry… I will take you away from this. I’ll teach you yourself again.” He put his hand on her shoulder, and she did not flinch or slap it away; instead she took it with her own and held on with a tight grip.
“I must get you out of here,” Link said again after a while. Rana nodded and sat up, almost straight.
He picked her up and carried her to where Epona was waiting, with only a brief stop – Rana wanted her ocarina, and she knew where it was. Then he rode to Lon Lon Ranch.
Talon walked into the main room. Malon was cooking something that smelled wonderful. The farmer saw Rana.
“Is that our stray kitten?” he asked jovially. Rana gave a momentary flash of anger; tensing, baring her teeth, and clenching her fists. Talon was taken aback.
“I’m sorry, Daddy, it is her, but she’s not quite herself yet.”
Talon watched Link trying to teach Rana to stand up straight. “I can see that. I’ll go milk the cows. Smells good, Mal.”
“Just stand against the wall,” Link told Rana.
“My head feels funny in this position,” she mumbled.
“Well, it’s really too far back. But before, it was too far forward. Now- oh, straighten your knees.”
Rana stepped away from the wall, frustrated, almost crying. “Ah, now I don’t know in what position I’m supposed to be.”
Link eyed the wall. “You’re standing taller. You’re above that knot in the wall now, that one that’s at my chin. Try bending backwards and see if that helps.”
“I can bend backwards,” Rana said, her expression clearing somewhat. She stretched her hands over her head and leaned backwards. Link stared at her, amazed, as she practically bent in half.
She stood up, her face covered in almost comical astonishment. “I feel… normal, mostly. How did you know how to fix my posture?”
Link shrugged, smiling. “I guessed. I wondered what it would feel like, and what I would do to compensate… it all worked out, and that’s the important thing.” He moved a step closer. “Now let’s see if we can’t get you to smile…”
Tears came immediately to Rana’s eyes. “I don’t…” She shook her head, confused and angry, and ran away, out into the field.
Malon looked out the window. “She doesn’t know who she is… she says she remembers all the happy times, but she’s still… unhappy.”
“Overdeveloped vengeance complex,” Naeri spoke up from her perch on a high cupboard. “Please make her come back inside, Link.”
He nodded and left the house.
He came up behind the girl, staring at the sunset and waited silently.
“I don’t understand,” Rana said softly. “Naeri is all right. Why am I so upset?”
“I wish I had been allowed to stay,” Link whispered back. She whipped around, ready to attack, but relaxed quickly. “I could have helped you the day they captured you.”
“I wish you had been there too,” Rana cried, shoulders slumping. He stepped forward and hugged her, hesitantly, comfortingly.
Malon sent the two Hylians to the Kokiri Forest the next day, hoping that Rana would find spirit enough to laugh.
All the Kokiri met them at the bridge. They swarmed around both Hylians, chattering and laughing.
“Hey, Rana’s back! Where were you?”
“We missed you!”
“Is that really Link, Rana?”
“Hey, there’s a new Deku Tree! Did you know?”
Rana’s face relaxed, but she couldn’t smile.
“Rana’s had some trouble, so go and play for just a bit. If I can make her laugh, she’ll come and play. If not…” Link shrugged helplessly.
After they ate, sitting by the new Deku Tree, Link sat back contentedly.
“Do you want to hear my adventures?”
“Sure,” Rana admitted.
He told her what had happened, about Sheik, and the Master Sword, and the Forest.
“And then I was taken here, and the Deku Sprout was only this high out of the ground… except I didn’t know it was him; I thought it was just a baby plant. So I bent over it… and he went Poof!” Link threw himself backwards and yelled the way he had then, or a close imitation. Then he watched her.
Rana stared for a while. Then, slowly, she began to smile, and then she actually giggled. The giggling turned into a small laugh, which suddenly exploded into her old, carefree, uncontrolled laugh, just the way Link remembered.
He grinned sheepishly, got up, and hugged her. “It’s not that funny.”
“Oh, Link, I haven’t laughed for two or three years. Thank you, thank you…” She gulped and swallowed some tears that always came after a hysterical outburst. Link hugged her tightly, and she looked up, puzzled.
They walked around the forest with an arm around each other.
He told her of Little Link, and Ruto, “-and she is definite about wanting to marry me… but… I don’t want to. She’s completely deluded herself.”
“I understand,” smiled Rana. “I didn’t see her very often, compared to Saria and Malon, but she was always talking about you. Always.”
“Did it bother you?”
“I knew you didn’t like her enough to love her, so it was kinda embarrassing…”
“Hm. Sorry.” He continued with his tale of Shadow Link, and his enjoyment of being able to breathe underwater – “Not quite as good as being a Zoran, but that’s not going to happen, now, is it?” he teased her. She laughed, then made round eyes.
“But where did you get your ears pierced? Or, I mean, when?”
“Pierced ears?” Link brought up his hand and fingered his long left ear. Sure enough, he found a small ring of metal. “What colour is it?”
“Blue, sort of like your eyes.”
“I have no idea where that came from. I never noticed it before. Anyway…” he dismissed it as unimportant.
Then he went on to the Shadow Temple, and Rana learned how anxious he’d been there, and how he’d seen her in the windmill. Then he remembered.
“I… oh, Rana, I… I found out that I’m not the first Link!” His words stumbled over each other in his eagerness. “There’s been a Link I and he rescued Princess Zelda twice, and once was from a monster named Ganon. The other one travelled a bit more and saved two other lands… I forget their names… uh… Holodrum? and Labrynna. And Princess Zelda. And I’m the third in history.”
“Wow!” was all that Rana could say, with rounder eyes.
He finished with the Desert Dungeon, and about Nabooru and the witches. “After that, well, I had awoken all the Sages, so I was going to go to the Temple of Time to talk to Sheik, but I saw an Ironknuckle behaving oddly, so I followed it… I’m glad I did.”
He held Rana very close, aware how close he had been to losing her and not knowing it. Now she was close to him again… too close?
“Go and play with the Kokiri, now. I think I need to think for a bit,” he told her. With a happy sigh, she got up and danced over to the nearest girl. Link watched her skinny, nimble figure as she swung the cord for a game of jump rope. He was glad she was back to the way she was, all happy and cheerful… but…
That afternoon, Rana demanded more detail of his journeys. He gladly gave her the particulars of every battle and maze.
“And, Rana, the best part of all this is…”
“Yes?” she prompted him, curious.
“You were… are my best friend. And… now I know you are safe… and…”
He almost couldn’t say it.
“I love you, now.”
Rana was silent.
“I… don’t know what to say,” she mumbled finally.
“May I kiss you?” Link asked shyly.
She nodded, not looking directly at him.
His lips met hers.
They stayed that way for a long moment before they parted.
“I love you…” Link whispered.
She sighed contentedly. “I… I think… I love you back.”
“You don’t know?” Link teased her. She hugged him more tightly.
“I do! I do! Only, I’ve only really known you for two days…”
“Plus all those years,” he reminded her. She nodded.
“I’m just wondering if it’s normal or good that this happened in such a short time.”
“Well,” Link began hesitantly, “I think I have an advantage over you. I have very recent memories of you as a child, and then to grow up very suddenly, and find the child, oh, so beautiful…”
“I… have memories of you… but it’s more like a nice dream that happened long ago. But you’re so kind and handsome and brave and noble… etc. etc.” She smiled up at him, and he kissed her again, holding her close.
They stayed with the Kokiri for the rest of the day before returning to the ranch.
After supper, Malon turned to Rana.“Rana, d’you want to help me put the horses to bed?”
“Sure!” Rana agreed readily.
As they rubbed down the horses in the barn, Malon turned to Rana.
“So, what’s the secret?”
“The secret?” repeated Rana.
“Why do you look so blessedly happy?”
Rana smiled, and whispered to her friend: “I’m engaged to Link…”
“Ah, yes. Link’s been obsessing over finding you since he got here, and you know, I figured that would happen sooner or later. I just had a crush on him… but then, everyone does! So, just be in love. I understand completely.”
“Whoa, that’s a convincing argument.”
“It’s true!” Both girls laughed. Malon winked. “Besides, there’s this cute guy in Kakariko named Alan. He used to be a knight until Ganny took over. I might decide to fall in love with him.”
“That’s wonderful!”
On the second day, they went to Zora’s Domain. Shoza and Bitu were hacking at the frozen waterfall and carrying the ice chunks to a bonfire near the entrance, dumping the melted water into the river.
“Gotta get a head start on spring, you know?” Shoza said. Then he saw Rana. “Hey, Rana! Kittengirl!”
Rana laughed and hugged the Zora. “I asked you not to call me that, finboy.”
“Yeah, I know, but you’re alive! I was pretty worried, since you didn’t show up for two or three years… and meanwhile I was wondering if I was alive. Anyhow…”
“Hmm? Link, who’s that?” asked Ruto, startling all of them.
“Ah, this is Rana, the girl I was looking for.”
“Ah, I see,” Ruto smiled. “I recall you a bit, now that I see you. Let’s go chat.” The Zoran princess grabbed an ice saw and wandered over to the waterfall, Rana following. Bitu trailed after both of them.
“So, are you going to marry the princess?” Shoza asked slyly. “She’s begun to talk of nothing else. Not to King Zora, though.” He laughed.
Link blushed a bit. “Well, I wasn’t really listening the first time she proposed…” Both men chuckled. “Anyway, now…” His gaze travelled over to Rana.
Shoza looked closely at him. “I see.”
“Huh?” Link blinked and looked around, directly into Shoza’s blue-black eyes.
Shoza grinned. “I can see you’re sweet on that pretty giggly sword girl, huh? Anyway, it’s just as well for me, since…” he looked over at the ice chippers too.
“Ah.” Link nodded. He leaned in close. “What say we…”
“Hmm…” Shoza considered. “We get Ruto’s crush off you and on me?”
“Precisely. Just after I beat Ganondorf, we’ll get together and … make it happen.” Link’s shy smile turned into a mischievous grin as he imagined the amusement the project would generate. Shoza grinned along with him.
The day after, Epona at last carried Link and Rana to Hyrule Castle in the rose of dawn. They got off and walked to the Temple door.
“Stay here,” Link told Rana. “I’ll go in and see what Sheik wants.”
She nodded.
Link ran in. On the pedestal close to the entrance, he waited.
There was a light sound, like the flit of a bird’s wing, behind him. Link turned, smiling.
“Hello, Shiek. Sorry I’m late; I found Rana.”
“Good morning, Hero.”
“Hero again? I thought you didn’t like that formal language.”
Shiek stood straight and slim. “This occasion is different. This is the final turning point for Hyrule.” He paused, and said impressively: “You have awoken the Six Sages. However, the Seventh Sage must still join you.”
“There’s a Seventh Sage?”
“Yes, which is why I never knew why they called the group the Six-Sages-and-one-extra.” Sheik rolled his eyes. Link smiled.
Shiek’s knees bent, and he shifted his weight into an awkward looking pose. There was a brilliant flash of light.
When Link could look again, he saw pink.
He caught his breath.
The Princess Zelda stood before him, ten times lovelier than she had been before. Her shimmering golden hair flowed down her back and her sky-blue eyes were large and shining in her pale face.
Link tried to say something, but couldn’t.
Zelda quickly grasped his hands. “I need to give you this. Without it, you won’t win.” She pressed arrows into his hands, golden arrows with peculiar fletching. Arrows of Light magic! Link grinned. With these he felt almost invincible.
“I am the Seventh Sage,” Zelda was saying very rapidly. “I disguised myself with magic all these seven years so Ganondorf wouldn’t find me; crimson Shiekah eyes, and my outer magical layer of skin tanned in the sun… We must go quickly, before he does someth-” She cut off with a cry. The ground rumbled, and dust quivered from the ceiling. The two Hylians looked around wildly.