Wandering Archer

An Original Character set in the Ocarina of Time universe. Affiliated with Telma's Interdimensional Tavern.

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A Drink in the Shade and other shadow puns

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cientheshadowassassin:

´Filled with Hylians’… She sounded just like the elders back home. Cien looked into his glass of wine and questioned if this would turn out exceedingly well or exceedingly horrible.

He scoffed, loudly. “Honor… I don’t any to risk anyway.” He took a big gulp, before setting his glass down. “Spool clan. In Holodrum.” He answered flatly. Most sheikah clans didn’t even interact with others in their own kingdom, let alone outside. He doubted she’d even know.

Realizing the dreary tone this had taken, he let out a laugh and his confident grin grew once more. “But ey, you’re here, I’m here, and that’s what matters today, right?”

The scoff about honor served to finally soothe the rest of her worries. No strict sheikah would react like that, and that meant he was okay in her non-existent book.

“Never heard of it!” She said, a bit cheerfully than needed as she took another drink. 

“And you know Cien, you’re absolutely right. We’re just two sheikah, probably far from home, drinking to excess. That’s basically a party, right? All we need is my friend Azrael-- he gets it. And then it’d really be a party.” 

She was all smiles and grins again, even though the definition she was giving for a party might have edged on ‘becoming black out drunk.’ 

“Do you take jobs from the board here? Or do you just do your own thing?” She asked, tilting her cup a bit towards the mission board. 

[estrangedarcher-blog]

A Drink in the Shade and other shadow puns

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cientheshadowassassin:

Cien looked over at Telma and chuckled. Would he take as good care of him too? She didn’t seem to mind leaving wine bottles in his room, but maybe she just knew he might take them there himself anyway if they were taken away. When the tavern owner looked over at him, he simply toasted discreetly to her.

With a sigh, he continued drinking. He thought over all the things Tae had said so far, glanced at her, and decided that… subterfuge wasn’t his thing. Especially when he was enjoying a drink.

“So, homeless until now, huh?” He began casually, and then blunty continued. “You don’t hear of homeless sheikah often, where’s your clan?”

She thought for a moment about laughing it off with a lie, but doing so would have easily been an insult to the mans’ abilities at the very least.

“Aw, we were having a nice drink and everything.” Tae said at being called out, her smile slipping.

“My clan was Kakariko, but it doesn’t matter any longer.” She took a long drink, not finishing until the cup was empty. “That town is filled with Hylians now.”

She refilled her glass and glanced towards him. “And yours? I’m a little surprised to see another Sheikah at a heavily mercenary associated tavern. Honor and all that.” 

If he was willing to be blunt, there was no point in her skating around it either. 

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A Drink in the Shade and other shadow puns

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cientheshadowassassin:

Cien chuckled as he downed his own drink after the toast, pouring himself a glass as soon as he set it down. Whoever or whatever this girl was, at least they shared a common friend: copious amounts of alcohol to soothe the soul. He thought of toasting to alcoholism, but even he could see the cruel irony was a bit too dark for the atmosphere.

Tae continued to engage in conversation, something he hadn’t expected, but he didn’t reject the attempt. He glanced at her, coy smile on his face. “Not here.” He answered flatly, only to then jump into overreacting hand motions over his face. “I mean, obviously, right? Hylian air is so dry, so bad for the complexion!”

He went back to a more calm demeanor, taking the glass in hand and sipping before continuing. “I’m from a shit swamp, how about you?”

“Hey now-- hey now.” She said in mock scolding. “What’s wrong with Hylian air? My complexion is fine, with a little makeup you probably wouldn’t even be able to see the dark circles under my eyes!” 

She waited a beat before loudly whispering to him with a grin. “Know anyplace I can get some makeup?”  

Following suit, she took a drink and looked at least a little thoughtful. Where the hell was there a swamp? Not anywhere she knew about. “Oh you know, here and there. Homelessness does that to you. But now I’m from here, as in, I live here at Telma’s. Now, I’m sure you’re thinking ‘that sound pretty great, the inn is right over the bar’ but it also means that I might have gained Telma as a mother? It’s unclear.” 

Telma had heard her name, head turning towards the two of them as she eyed them for a moment as Tae gave a small wave. 

“She cuts me off.......and makes me eat breakfast.” Tae whispered-- an actual whisper this time. She couldn’t even sound annoyed about it, still constantly grinning.

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A Drink in the Shade and other shadow puns

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cientheshadowassassin:

A small second of doubt. He could tell in the shaking of her eyes, but he didn’t mention anything. The fact she managed to keep it together was a good enough sign his suspitions might be right.

“Cien. Pleasure to meet you, Tae.” He smiled. Looking away for a second, he watched as Telma reached for a bottle of passionfruit wine from the racks. He was silent while she walked over and placed it in front of him, coupled with a clean glass.

“Here you go, honey. Don’t drink straight from the bottle, okay?” She warned.

“You clearly don’t know me if you’re asking that of me.” He joked in return. It made Telma sigh, as she went back to polishing glasses.

After seemingly empty silence, with just Cien pouring himself a glass, he eventually looked over at Tae again, full glass in hand and a big smile on his face. “A toast! To finding someone with red eyes, to make me feel less of a sore thumb!”

“Cien? Nice name.” Tae said, looking almost woefully at her half empty glass. The cups were never as big as she would have liked them, and she gave a laugh at the mans’ response to being asked not to drink from the bottle. 

“A toast? One second then.” Tae said, downing the rest of her own drink and pouring some of the wine he had gotten from Telma. “It’s very important to me, Cien, that we are on the same page here. Alcoholically.” 

She chuckled a bit at her own joke before toasting. “To not fitting in!” 

It was getting harder to be nervous, simply because she had drank just enough already for the situation to become pretty funny to her. 

“So, where are you from?” She asked, at least wanting to know what she was dealing with. It was harmless. Probably. A chance to meet a new friend and nothing else. Probably.

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A Drink in the Shade and other shadow puns

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cientheshadowassassin:

After a healthy amount of letter writing to some eyes and ears, Cien decided it was about time for another healthy dose of sweet fruit wine. Perhaps he’d take a full bottle to his room to avoid these trips in the future, Gods know he’d rather avoid the unnecesary excersice if possible.

On the way down the stairs from the comfortable and cozy little rooms above the tavern, the sheikah heard joyful conversation in the distance. Full of complaints, but overall joyful. Perhaps he’d get to meet someone else who was a regular here? It was when he stepped out of the stairs and got a view of the bar than he took a sudden stop in his steps.

A woman sat at the bar, seemingly annoyed and impatient. To the untrained eye, she was another regular hylian, unimportant and uninteresting, but Cien could sense something about her was…. Off. Off, and oddly familiar. Like an aura he hadn’t felt around someone since—

Oh…. Oh, this was either gonna be awful or it was gonna be amazing.

Getting back his usual composed nature, he continued his path to the bar and sat next to this woman, unsubtley so. Still, he first focused his attention to Telma.

“Hey Miss T, how about a bottle of that nice wine you gave me earlier?” He asked, sickenly sweet.

“Be right with you honey!” Telma replied, from afar in the bar. Surely tending to this lady next to him first.

Speaking of the lady, Cien turned to see her, now his attention was on her. “Not a bad service, huh?” He chuckled.

Tae only had a moment of warning, a slight sense of something familiar-- like a cologne she had smelled in the past, before a stranger had sit next to her. He appeared friendly enough, addressing Telma as ‘Miss T’. 

“Not a bad service at all.” Tae said, smiling widely as she turned and inspected the man. 

It took most of her training not to react when she saw the red tattoo. It was different than what she might have worn, but it was still unmistakably Sheikah in nature. Composing herself fully, she took a drink to steel her nerves a bit more.

“Can’t say I’ve seen you before, sir. My name’s Tae.” She said, keeping her wide smile. “What’s yours?” 

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A Drink in the Shade and other shadow puns

Seeing the inside of Telma’s felt very close to entering some kind of nirvana-- a warm, land based nirvana that wasn’t suspended in the gods-damned-air. 

She trudged to the counter, laying her head down as Telma poured her a drink without needing to be asked.

“It was...in the air. How is that even possible? What kind of demon does that?” Tae asked the bartender, pushing herself up so she could drink.

“If I have my mythology right honey, it was the goddess Hylia.” Telma said, only to get a groan in response from Tae.

Woops, it seemed like she’d disrespected the goddess her people served. Woops. 

She took a long drink and straightened up. “A delicious drink, as always.” She complimented Telma and looked around the bar, glancing at the people inside but not quite registering any appearances.

“Could I get another? I’m quite traumatized-- I may never be the same after that experience.” Tae said, grinning widely as Telma laughed in response and poured her another glass. “Are you laughing at my pain?” She said in exaggerated offense.

“Of course not, I wouldn’t dream of it.” Telma responded before walking away from the place Tae was sitting. 

[snowdropsbeneathfirtrees]

That is Not a Good Pet, Sir.

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theshadowcoin:

insidious-shadow:

snowdropsbeneathfirtrees:

estrangedarcher:

theshadowcoin:

sneep

snop

Nayru was about to turn and walk down the hall, ready to begin the great hunt, when the unmistakable yowl of a startled creature sent chills up her spine.  As she jogged back towards the group, she could see a fuzzy…thing had attached itself to Azrael’s face, and wasn’t about to go down without a fight.

Hopping around on her toes briefly, the Oracle chose the first feasible course of action that popped into her head.  Whipping off her scarf, she ran up to Azrael and haphazardly started trying to wrap the cloth around the little creature.  This was made exceedingly difficult by the fact that Azrael was a solid foot taller than her, and wasn’t exactly holding still while the remlit maintained its death grip embrace on his face.

After much struggle and a few swears, the remlit was snugly wrapped up in the scarf, tightly bound so it couldn’t escape the soft, blue confines.  It looked highly displeased at it’s new condition.  Nayru’s hair was rather haphazard as well, and she sported a nice new scratch across her left cheek.  In an attempt to keep the violent little beast as quiet as possible, she spoke softly, with a singsong lilt.

“Okaaaay…I’m going to go and put Miss Mia outside now…yaaaaaaaay…won’t that just be so nice, Mia?  And then, I’ll come back in because I don’t want to be outside alone with you!  Noooo!  You are not nice!  Haha, here we goooo!”  As quickly and smoothly as possible, the Oracle walked down the stairs and out the door.

He couldn’t help but lean away from Midna as she wielded what Azrael could only assume was a weapon.  Whatever it was, he highly doubted it would be precise enough to remove the remlit from his face without removing his face in the process as well.  Tae’s barely stifled laughter sent a jolt of annoyance through him.

“By all means, whatever you decide to do, decide quickly,” Azrael sighed.  “Though I feel the need to remind you the notice wanted us to remove her from the premises, I really just want this thing off my face.  Please.”

It was Elenika who gently pried the remlit’s claws from his skin, her hair in dishevelled disarray as Azrael realized she had used her own scarf to contain the hostile little creature.  Despite the blood on his face, the stinging, and the fact that his eyepatch now hung uselessly from his ear, Azrael was admittedly impressed.

He raised his eyebrows, smirking despite his injuries.  “Well, that was … tactfully done,” he noted in amusement.  “Glad to be of service in your remlit-catching shenanigans.”  As Elenika left the room with the swaddled animal, Azrael turned to his companions.  “I don’t know about you, but I am more than ready to leave and put this behind me.  With a bottle of rum, preferably.”

Midna dismissed her orb and steeled her expression; despite the swiftness of their errand, Az’s state wasn’t worth a quip or relaxation yet.

She looked him up and down–though didn’t focus as heavily on the ‘up’ part–and tapped her cheekbone. “The kitten may have done a bigger number on you than you realize, friend.”

Midna then turned to Tae. “And here I thought you would have time to name it.” Glancing to the door out which Elenika deposited the creature, she muttered, “Perhaps our lovely traveling companion did the honors? Ehehe.”

“It looks like Elenika was the hero for today.” Tae commented, looking towards where the woman had went with the bundle of furry rage. 

She had glanced at Azrael’s eye before politely looking away-- after all, people didn’t wear eyepatches just for shits and giggles, she always figured there was something unpleasant under it. 

When Midna spoke to her about naming it, Tae gave a wicked grin. “Yes, I was really considering giving it the name Fluffles, considering it’s friendly temperament.” She said sarcastically. 

She perked up a little upon hearing the word ‘rum’, and clasped her hands together. “Sounds like a plan-- also your eyepatch is danglin’” Tae said, unclasping her hands to point at his face. “Although, I mean, that’s probably not the only thing going on with your face right now.”

“Anyways can we please leave? We’re a lot higher up than I’ve ever wanted to be in my life and I can feel my hair turning white.” Her smile wavered just a little bit at the thought of going outside again, but she’d manage if it means she’d be safe in the tavern again.

[snowdropsbeneathfirtrees]

That is Not a Good Pet, Sir.

[estrangedarcher-blog]

theshadowcoin:

insidious-shadow:

snowdropsbeneathfirtrees:

estrangedarcher:

theshadowcoin:

snip

snap

Nayru visibly jumped when Azrael spoke.  For such a large man, she hadn’t heard him come up to her, and the sudden break in the dull noise of the Academy had startled her.  She let out a tiny laugh at her own expense, shaking her head.  “I apologize, I wasn’t expecting anyone else…”  She looked up and met his eyes, smiling and giving a tiny bob, “A pleasure to meet–and work with–you, Azrael.  Mine is Elenika.  Had I known others were taking up the same job, I would have suggested we all travel together, but I…I was in a bit of a hurry…”

She looked towards the stairs at that moment, and saw two other figures who seemed out of place in the Academy, and could only assume they were the rest of the party.  She was about to extend a greeting, when the one woman spoke.  Nayru raised an eyebrow at the…forwardness of the introduction, and formed her mouth into a thin line, clearing her throat.  “My name is Elenika, I’ll be working with you on this job.”  She spoke a bit shortly, wary of this new woman.  Nayru felt as though there were fangs behind that smile.

“We’re already running a bit late, I think.  The mission mentions it being “problematic” if this Mia is in the Academy at nightfall, and…well…”  Nayru gestured to a nearby window, indicating that it was, in fact, nightfall.

“This may pose a bit of a problem.”

As Midna and Tae joined them, Azrael idly cracked his knuckles.  “Perhaps, but I think we’re reasonably well equipped to handle whatever it is that poses a problem,” he said confidently.  “What, with our … diverse skill set, you could say.”

Gesturing to the Academy corridor, Azrael continued.  “If Horwell specified that Mia shouldn’t be here, it’s probably best if we search inside first,” he suggested.  “If we can rule it out, we’re good to go.  If not… well, I imagine we’ll deal with that ‘problem’ when it arises.”

He paused, rubbing his chin.  “I… am averse to the notion of splitting up, but we might cover more ground that way,” Azrael pointed out.  He turned to face Tae and the others.  “One of you can come with me, the other two should stick together.  Or you can all stick together and I’ll fend for myself, I’m not picky.  Don’t be afraid to give a shout if you need something.”

Truthfully, he had been rather confident at first, especially in the fact that he would be fine if Midna, Tae, or the mysterious Elenika did not follow him.  However, looking back, Azrael had not known what to expect of “Mia”, and it was only when he entered one of the empty broom closets and found himself face-to-face with this thing that he began to acknowledge just how “problematic” this mission had become.

“Well… this is a bit uncomfortable,” he muttered plainly as the agitated remlit lunged for his face, a flurry of claws and teeth.

It took approximately two seconds upon turning the corner and finding Azrael, Tae and a tunic-less blue-haired young woman, to hear Tae make the surrounding company exceedingly uncomfortable. Midna rolled her eyes and rested her hand on her hip while Az spoke.

“Split up?” she asked. “As a safeguard against the cat or, I don’t know, falling into oblivion?”

Newly introduced Elenika spoke up about the notice. Midna rubbed her chin; she remembered now. “Perhaps the notice exaggerated about the house pet? I’d be cranky if I’d been left to starve all day, too–”

It was then that Az opened a nearby closet and a terrible screeching noise rang out through the Academy.

Midna took a lunging step back. “What is that thing?!” She cupped her hand beneath her cloak and spun an orb, glowing red with prickling lighting bolts amidst the clustered shadow, as safeguard. “Quickly, are we rescuing it or killing it?”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Elenika.” She said with a little bow before turning her attention to Azrael as the man gave them some options for the search. She was certain the academy wasn’t large enough to warrant splitting up.

“I’m a little bit wary about splitting up, I feel like that’s an invitation for things to get more difficult. It’s just an animal, after all.” Tae said, waving her hand slightly and giving Midna a wide smile at her comment about safeguarding against a cat...or falling. 

Although it seemed none of them had to give it too much thought, as Azrael seemed to hit the jackpot-- or rather, it hit him.

It was hard to keep the laughter in, and she covered her mouth with a hand as the cat(?) seemed to hiss in rage. “Well, aren’t you just making new friends left and right, Azrael?” 

[snowdropsbeneathfirtrees]

That is Not a Good Pet, Sir.

[estrangedarcher-blog]

theshadowcoin:

insidious-shadow:

snowdropsbeneathfirtrees:

estrangedarcher:

theshadowcoin:

snip

snap

As night began to fall, Nayru made her way towards the Academy, directed by one of the villagers.  The wind was a bit stronger, and carried a chill with it.  The Oracle pulled her scarf around her tighter, a tiny bug of anxiety creeping into her heart.  There was something odd and ominous about how the villagers seemed to hustle inside, shutting out the creeping darkness, as though they feared the night.  Guards gracefully lept of the edges of the city, reappearing a moment later on the backs of vibrantly colored birds, circling (and, Nayru had to laugh a little, showing off for each other) overhead.

Pushing open the door to the Academy, Nayru was greeted by a warm and cheery space.  The interior matched the rest of Skyloft: bright, open, and welcoming.  Students bustled around, finishing chores and spreading the days gossip as fast as the light died.  She smiled, briefly missing the energy of the sanctuary.

After scanning the job sheet for her contact, the Oracle looked around, trying to spot someone who looked vaguely like a teacher or an authority figure of some sort, but to no avail.  After a few failed attempts, she managed to hail down a student, who politely took her up to Horwells room.  He was in a meeting with students at the moment, her guide informed her, so it would be a few minutes before he’d be free.  Nayru nodded and smiled, indicating that that was acceptable and releasing the poor boy from duty.  She slowly paced around, examining the paintings and knicknacks that decorated the hall.

The Academy hallways felt claustrophobic in their narrowness, as buildings often did for Azrael, but the growing darkness of nightfall brought some comfort with it.  He was able to remove his thickly woven scarf at the very least, and eventually his hood along with it.  For a kingdom so painfully bright, Skyloft was comparatively eerie after dusk.  A curious thing, he thought.

He had seen his companions flitting about, but hadn’t wanted to risk seeing them in direct sunlight; his masking abilities were good, but not that good, Azrael was forced to admit.  It was better this way.  Safer.  Less questions asked about an injury he could not have possibly survived from, judging by the looks of it.

As he idly paced the Academy corridors, a shock of blue caught his attention.  He squinted from where he stood, as if in disbelief; no, it was indeed that very same blue-haired maiden from the tavern earlier that day.  Perhaps it was silly to assume it could have been a coincidence with hair that bright.  As he saw her now, it almost appeared to glow in the dim light of the Academy halls; her eyes, equally blue, scanned the various paintings and ornaments, mundane creations she seemingly found astonishing.  His stomach felt fluttery.  He didn’t like it.

Swallowing his nerves, he closed the distance between them, doing his best to force his face into a pleasantly friendly expression.  “Are you in Skyloft for Horwell’s request as well, then?” Azrael asked pleasantly.  “I believe we were in Telma’s at the same time, but never granted the opportunity to become formally acquainted.  My name is Azrael – myself and a few others are also here to assist, once we meet up with them.”

The Twilight Palace floated in space, too. Funny, then, how this little island felt so much higher up.

Used to treacherous walkways over void, she was nevertheless uneasy taking the stairs up to the conspicuous beige building sitting on the hill (was it a hill?) top. The Academy, she supposed, judging by the tunic-matching teens juggling books on their way through the tall wooden door. The sun could still set so far in the sky, it seemed. The orange and red glow painted the buildings gold and crimson, where they weren’t shielded by flitting gray clouds.

At the Academy entrance, she paused for a moment, considering if she actually cared that she stuck out more than a bookmark, with her height and dress. A shuffle of movement was distracting, and she turned to spy a student hurriedly walking away, casting the wary odd glance over his shoulder.

Well, then. If it saved her conversation, maybe her appearance helped more than hurt.

With that, she shoved open the heavy door and slipped inside, catching her robe before it could snag in the entry behind her.

Once she could stand again she wobbled her way into the nearest building, in which she was immediately accosted by a young man wearing the ugliest outfit she had ever seen. 

“Are you alright, miss?” He spoke, as if he wasn’t wearing a sunny yellow tunic. 

“Yes. Maybe.” Tae said, waving away the man. “Don’t do random shit to impress girls, young man.” 

“What?” He asked in confusion, leaning back to inspect Tae.

“What? Is this Skyloft Knight Academy?” She said, quickly changing the subject.

“Oh, yes it is! Welcome, are you looking for someone? My name’s Pipit.” He said, introducing himself.

“A man named Horwell, if you could point me in the right direction.” Tae said, and Pipit nodded, pointing to the stairs. 

Tae ditched the sunny boy, feeling a bit better now that she was inside and didn’t have to think of being suspended in air. The moment she saw Azrael she nearly sighed in relief, but seeing the blue haired woman from the bar stopped her from exclaiming rudely. 

“Good evenin’” Tae said, hoping that she didn’t look too stressed out from earlier. “Azrael, who’s your beautiful new friend?” She smiled widely at the blue haired woman. 

[snowdropsbeneathfirtrees]

That is Not a Good Pet, Sir.

[estrangedarcher-blog]

theshadowcoin:

insidious-shadow

He had not been prepared for the abysmal light in Skyloft – he never was.  Even with his hood drawn over his face, it had been difficult to keep the glamour Azrael desperately relied on to mask his scars, and as the sun had begun to set he had developed an irritating headache.

As the sun set and night began to creep over the town, he noticed the distinctly eerie tone Skyloft took on, one that set him on edge.  He stood by what he could only assume was the Academy mentioned by Horwell, their client at the present moment.  He hadn’t seen Midna or Tae in Skyloft yet, or even the strange blue-haired woman they’d encountered in the Tavern.

Perhaps they’d gotten lost?

Midna barreled out from the crimson and violet tented eyesore, hands over ears. Bad enough she had emerged from a stall where hawkers awaited to pawn their pitiful human wares, but they had to bring their miniatures along to cry on their hips!

She shook her head and cautiously lifted her chin. There were far fewer people in the square–and fewer still as she heard a bell from within the market chime. The doors, roped open until now, unceremoniously closed with a swish. It seemed that the dwellers would retire for the night. Good.

Midna took her first deep breath and drew her cloak about her waist. She let her eyes adjust to the dying light, usually her favorite time of day, and saw…sky. The stone platform nearly looked like it ended with the clouds–but that was impossible! Ruins, yes, but an entire city?

She looked left and right, but homes, terraces and high rises blocked any further view of the town’s perimeter. A sudden blast of cold wind did nothing to soothe her nerves. If the Goddess had the humor to put her a kingdom’s length into the sky…

While she looked, she spied a yellow building on higher ground than the rest. Something someone said just before they left jogged her memory. She was to look for an Academy.

If the building wasn’t an academy, then perhaps it could offer a view for guidance. With nightfall approaching, Midna needed all the visibility she could get.

She turned toward the path uphill and began her hike, stepping over the odd bush and side-stepping blue butterflies in her path.

She slipped out of a closed curtain, slapping it out of her way as she got her first view of Skyloft.

It was definitely pretty, and breezy, although the sunset looked a bit odd from the island. It was also a bit chilly, which she wasn’t a fan of. She pulled her cloak tighter around her shoulders, wishing she had something a bit heavier.

She couldn’t see anyone immediately, but figured they’d rendezvous at the academy, wherever that was. She’d just find whatever building looked like a school. 

Going towards the closest bridge, she walked to the edge before freezing in place like she’d just been assaulted by a freezard. She hadn’t quite put two and two together upon her first lookover--thinking that the place was just islands, but now that she could see over the edge she realized the terrible truth.

Skyloft wasn’t some dumb contrived name for an island in the sea, the damned place was somehow in the sky. Who would live in a place like this?! How was it safe? Her 32 year old heart felt at least 40 years older as it pounded in her chest. She couldn’t help but think of the terrible death that would happen if she slipped and fell off. 

But she had to get to the academy-- she’d cross one bridge and that was it. She was about damn ready to live in whatever building she found ahead of her if it meant she’d never have to see a bridge again. 

She held the railing as if it was the only thing standing between her and death, and was fairly sure the stress was returning her hair back to white as she edged across. Every creak felt like imminent death.

When she finally got to the other side she fell to the grass, crawling as far away from the edge as she could get before she concentrated on her breathing. 

“Oh Goddesses.......Oh Goddesses....” She spoke quietly, almost praying. 

[estrangedarcher-blog]

The Daily Grind

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insidious-shadow:

theshadowcoin:

estrangedarcher:

snip

Midna paused while the two had their banter. She turned to Telma and only winked silently in response to her remark.

Midna shrugged again–this time, sweeping her cloak further out of the way in the process. “I don’t have much choice, now do I?” She smiled…but her mind briefly returned elsewhere. Only briefly. 

If she could learn the means of this sort of travel, well. One step closer to returning to her own castle.

“That’s enough.”

This voice was new. Midna’s smirk fell in a microsecond. She shoved off the bar and craned her neck silently toward the disturbance on the other side of the room.

He laughed shortly at Tae’s remark. “I already did,” Azrael replied dryly.  His attention was not long with Tae however, as the woman with the blue hair caught his eye once more.

Rather, it was the confrontation she found herself in – it seemed an argument had been brewing between her and the hooded figure she sat with, and while many may have crumbled beside such a hulking form, she did not.  On the contrary, she seemed to be threatening him.  Azrael couldn’t help but smile.

He became aware of the fact that he wasn’t the only one watching them when another young woman, this one with hair redder than the setting sun, approached them to end the quarrel before it rose.  The tavern’s attention immediately turned to the corner of the room where the three found themselves, and at that moment the hooded figure disappeared.

Azrael raised an eyebrow.  The blue-haired woman and the cloaked man had piqued his interest.  Sipping his coffee, he made a mental note to ask Telma more about the two of them later on.

“Excellent!” Tae responded to Midna’s response to joining them. 

Anything else that could of been said was cut off by the red womans’ exclamation and Tae found herself lifting an eyebrow.

When was the last time there was anything close to a dispute in the bar? Weeks? Months? Maybe even longer, if it occurred when she wasn’t around. It was over as quick as it was really noticed, and Tae leaned against the bar so she could see Telma out of the corner of her eye. 

“Neat.” She said in response, watching the three people involved scatter. 

“I hope it doesn’t become a habit.” Telma spoke after the red haired woman had gone off to sit alone. 

“I’m suuuure it won’t.” Tae said, drawing it out while grinning. Drinks and a show? She could definitely get behind that. “Shall we head out? Since it’s not going to get anymore exciting than that.” 

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Midna suppressed a laugh under another wry smile. “This isn’t my first visit to…” She glanced around the room again. “…Telma’s Hyrule. Shad never met me, but I…heard of his exploits.” She shrugged.

Midna heard the sound of hard glass on wood and looked over her shoulder. Telma had placed a glass of water by her elbow. She took it and sipped while the young woman (why didn’t Hyrule have more of her when she was trapped here last?) and not-as-young man deliberated over the posters.

She saw Telma lean on her elbows in her periphery. She turned around. 

“It looks like our Tae might have found a morning mission,” she mused. She caught Midna’s eye. “If that’s the case, let me know if you want something stronger.”

“I think it sounds like someone needs to keep a closer watch on someone… or something,” Azrael drawled.  “Frankly, the way I see it, it will either turn out very well or…”

He trailed off, momentarily distracted from his conversation by the emergence of a particular salesman.  He couldn’t help but smile, winking at Haeyin as their eyes met.  Turning his attention back to his conversation partners, he was about to open his mouth when the infamous Shad made a comment loud enough to hear.

“If you’re set on it, Tae, best let Telma know before someone else takes it,” Azrael noted dryly.  “Unless you’d rather wait a little longer for another influx of missions.”

Heard of his exploits nearly made Tae laugh, but she kept it to together for the time being. 

She nodded towards Azrael, acknowledging his input before grinning widely as he trailed off, glancing at what had stopped up his voice. While she hadn’t had any sort of in depth conversations with the ginger man, Tae knew that the two were close--close enough to share a room. 

“You can go kiss him goodbye if you want.” Tae teased, not losing the grin. “We can wait a bit.”

Tae looked at Midna now, giving the woman another once over. “You’ll come with us, won’t you?”

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Midna rose an eyebrow at Tae’s exclamation–she wasn’t the most sure of Hylian slang to know it’s literal meaning, but she caught its drift. Rather than reply to the complement, she mulled over the presented drink options and waved them aside. “Perhaps another time,” she said diplomatically.

She cast a glance sideways at the gentleman to which they referred. Her blood ran cold. She cleared her throat and turned her eyes back to the bar; she couldn’t waltz around another dimension judging everyone who deigned to wear a hood and robe. “From what I remember of Shad,” she said slowly instead, “he certainly winds up in places you…wouldn’t expect. He has the capabilities to get around somehow.” She shrugged her shoulders. There. That sounded nice, right?

Then, she turned to the board. “What made today’s missions unattractive, if the country is in as much trouble as you say?” she asked the man. She frowned slightly. She truly didn’t like the news that, for all her effort such a short time ago to expel evil, they appear to have been for naught.

Her reaction to the cloaked stranger in the corner was, if nothing else, reassuring – in that it mirrored the reaction Azrael had towards the man himself.  She seemed startled by his presence, as if she knew him… a curious notion.

He couldn’t help but laugh at the two women’s comments on the scholar known as Shad.  It sounded as if the latter needed to force the niceties through her teeth.  “He can’t be that bad,” Azrael insisted, unable to stop himself grinning in amusement.

Gesturing towards the notice board, Azrael shrugged his shoulders.  “I was saying to Tae earlier, the notices on the board in the morning are usually leftovers from last night,” he explained.  “The missions nobody wanted, or the ones that are… not time-sensitive.  And of course, the ones that crop up every Wednesday or so, like that poor loss who keeps losing count of her cuccos.”

“Do you know Shad?” Tae asked, raising an eyebrow at her ‘sort of’ defense of the man. “Because, like, Telma’s cat winds up in places too and that’s not necessarily a good thing. It just means that someday I might wake up to find Shad stuck in a barrel or down a well.” 

Tae hummed out loud, remember the missions on the board. “Yeah-- that Anju...I’m not sure if you can put cuccos on leashes but she should try it out. There did seem to be a missing persons mission though, which might be fun. And of course the one Shad ran off with.” Tae thought about the missing person-- Mia.

Missing person missions always seemed to end up really happy or really sad, depending on whether the person missing was alive or not. Although the mission itself seemed to imply that the person missing was still in the building. Perhaps it was a child that took hide and seek too seriously?

“What do you think, Azrael, about the missing persons one?” She queried, wanting to get the mans’ opinion on it. 

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Midna resisted raising her eyebrows at the amused man’s description of the tavern’s so-called ‘missions.’ What an odd joint occupation for a place of business–though she could admit that she only felt surprised that Telma wasn’t as kept secret about her causes as she had been the Resistance. “Are these missions a true reflection of the state of Hyrule kingdom?” she asked. That familiar, annoying seed of empathy she developed for the light worlders at the conclusion of the Twilight kingdom’s near destruction began to root. She ground her teeth. She needed to return to HER people, not waste her resources on the mistakes of OTHER people. Why did she linger?

Midna listened to the young woman and realized she hadn’t caught either of their names. Her face clouded. She remembered needing to help herself…and how well that went over. “I am no stranger to the problems of Hyrule,” she said quietly. Oh, she could never forget: stoppered waterways, highway robbery, cave-ins in the canyons, Bokoblin at every turn. She should have known their newfound freedom wouldn’t result in total peace.

What deity was playing a trick on her this time?

“I suppose…” I’m here to help? Midna glanced down the bar and cast her eyes over the net of customers; there were many shades of hair, many varieties of hood and cape, and Shad, as the woman accosted, indeed sitting at the bar raving about something or other.

Coming to an unspoken decision, Midna sighed. She lowered her hood and shook out her orange hair from the fabric’s straggling folds.

“It appears to be morning,” she went on. “What drink does Telma serve at this fine hour?” For the first time her entire visit, she let a sly smile slip.

Resisting the urge to follow Tae’s pointed gaze, Azrael already knew who she was referring to; he’d noticed the scholarly chap earlier, eagerly grabbing the first mission he’d seen on the board.  Shaking his head, he chuckled softly.  “Can’t fault the bloke for his enthusiasm,” he replied.  “Besides, you and I well know none of us were jumping at the missions on the board this morning.  Let the lad have a go.”  What’s the worst that could happen?

The strange woman seemed… taken aback, genuinely, at the nature of ill times.  “You seem surprised, dearie,” Azrael sighed, allowing himself to smile crookedly.  “Wherever it is you’re from, it must be in a better state than this sorry place.  There’s always trouble around here… and if there isn’t, trouble goes looking for it.”

And she smiled for the first time.  Finally, it seemed as if her guard were loosening – and she seemed less likely to want to murder Azrael and Tae for merely deigning to look upon her.  At the mention of drinks, his mouth curled into a smirk as he regarded Tae.

“If you’ve been cut off, you get the wee babby stuff,” he teased, nudging her gently with his elbow.  “But the coffee is good, if you’re into that sort of thing.  Or you could try the… goddesses-forsaken draught that shady fellow in the corner’s got.  Might clear your sinuses, if nothing else.”

If Tae had exclaimed holy shit before, when Midna took off her hood and revealed how she looked it was time for the woman to be a broken record. “Holy shit! Well, aren’t you beautiful, miss.” Tae said with a grin. 

Telma chuckled at both Azrael and Tae’s responses, waiting for Midna to state what she wanted patiently.

“’Cut off’s a mean way to put it..isn’t it more like ‘Telma knows’ best?’” Tae said with a grin. “My name’s Tae, and if you want what I’m drinking...it seems to be orange juice.” She said flatly. 

“Also, I have my doubts about how capable Shad is. He looks like any sort of heavy lifting will take the air out of his sails.” She joked, giving one final look towards Shad before focusing solely on her company. 

“Aw, it’s not always bad here. Some of the missions are really fun-- and not the ‘walk my dog’ sort of fun but like...well, nevermind that. You look to be a noblewoman of some sort, don’t want to scare you off with the ‘behind the cat’ missions.” Tae said, backpedaling a little before giving Midna a wink.

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Midna looked the strange man up and down after his explanation. Ordinarily, she’d be impressed someone from the light world could grow so tall. Right now, however…“Don’t call me that,” she sniffed. She would be no one’s ‘love.’ She looked over the dining room in one sweep. “Would you believe I’m from no corner of the world at all?” she asked, only momentarily glancing at her feet. 

“And anyway,” she went on, this time turning toward the girl, “what use would I have for a currency I don’t even use, to help people I don’t even know?” Once upon a time, in fact, people she didn’t even like. 

But she couldn’t say the same now, not matter what she wanted them to believe. Despite her lack of options and the mounting anxiety to return to her castle and people immediately, she reflexively peeked toward the wall of notices. Their clamoring headlines and exclamation points were visible even from the bar.

“Dangerous…?” she echoed. “Are the people who ask for help in real danger?”

As he struggled to contain his laughter at Tae’s chagrin, Azrael nearly spewed coffee everywhere in the process.  Telma may have been the bartender here, but she also had a strong maternal instinct – a bad combination for a tavern, Azrael thought.  While other pubs he had frequented had been content to ignore how much he’d had to drink so long as there was coin in his hand, Telma promptly cut off her patrons before they could hurt themselves or others… and sometimes she served them juice in the mornings.

The woman’s sudden interest at Tae’s mention of “dangerous tourism” caused Azrael to raise an eyebrow.  She had been mysteriously guarded up until this point, and for someone to be more paranoid than even he was made him both curious and guarded around her.

“Sometimes, yes,” he responded, nodding slowly.  “There’ve been a few missions that come through that are rescue missions for kidnappings and the like.  Bounties for killers who are terrorizing townsfolk and such.  All sorts of missions come through here.  People know where to come when they need help.”  As he said this, he glanced towards Telma, who winked at him in response.

Turning his attention back towards the strange woman, he shrugged his shoulders before taking another sip of his drink.  “You may not have a need for rupees, but it doesn’t hurt to have a bit of spare change while you’re travelling here.  Or if you wanted to buy a drink.”

“There’s other things too--” She began, before raising her voice loud enough to carry across the bar to the scholarly fellow that ran into the green haired girl. “Sometimes missions are deceptively hard however, being dangerous for those who just grab the notice and go.” She said loudly, pointing at Shad. 

“Now now honey, Shad is a lot more capable than he looks.” Telma scolded the woman. “He’s scrappy and reliable in a pinch-- good to have on a team.”

Tae turned back to Telma, raising her eyebrow in complete disbelief. “That..sounds fake but ok.” She said, shaking her head. 

“So, what do you think has brought you here, miss?” Tae said, dropping the Shad topic. “Do you like to help others, or do you need help yourself? Everything Azrael has said is the truth-- those sorta missions turn up every other week. You wouldn’t believe the trouble people can get into. Or maybe you would.” Tae looked her up and down again.

She could have been a damsel in distress, or something along those lines-- she definitely seemed cautious enough for it. Although that didn’t count for much, most people stumbling in for their first time were a little paranoid or afraid. She certainly had been, for all of ten minutes. 

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Midna leaned slightly from the stranger at her left and regarded him with squinted eyes–only to jump from the second, who materialized on her right with far more…enthusiasm. She tensed like stone, shoulders practically to her ears. 

“Telma!” she snapped past the heads of either conversationalist. “You may not know me, but I know you well! Who are…what are…?”

“Often the case,” the barkeep mused. She traded glasses to wipe with her cloth. “I don’t mind, sugar, so long as you find the help you need.”

“Help?” Midna leaned into the bar on both hands. Her voice dropped to a hiss. “I won’t be the one needing help if I don’t find a way back to my–”

Castle. Her castle. But she stopped short; she didn’t know the company she kept. No, now wasn’t the time to panic. Now was the time to…plan.

She took a deep breath after her pause and stood straight once more. “Very well,” she said. Telma had stopped to eye Midna closely, but upon Midna’s word turned back to her chores.

She turned from the bar and for the first time toward the visiting co-conspirators. “I don’t drink,” she said shortly. “Is that the only reason Hylians wind up in this place?” She glanced to the door again, idly wondering if the Hylians–one Hylian–she left behind could, or had, arrived to this mysterious tavern as well.

He couldn’t help but laugh at Tae’s enthusiasm.  Chuckling quietly, Azrael shook his head.  “No, no, not in the slightest,” he responded evenly.  “Telma serves a mighty fine ale, but generally the tavern’s used as a gathering place o’ sorts.  Some people come here to post jobs they need help with, rescue missions and manual labour and the like.  Others come here to help them out.  Simple as that.”

“Gee, Az… I should hire you for my marketing team, you really know how to sell the place,” Telma remarked dryly, a hand on her hip.  Turning her attention towards the strange woman, she smiled warmly.  “Like Azrael said, you can find job listings for things the locals need help with.  Locals, and … not so locals.”

Taking a sip of the drink he held, Azrael pursed his lips.  It was still hot, though not painfully so.  “All taverns lead to Telma,” he remarked bemusedly, leaning against the bar counter.  “Which I’d wager is probably how you ended up here.  Took a wrong turn somewhere, did you, love?  What corner of the world are you coming from?”

Tae sat on a bar stool, the only real way to get any sort of equal height on her two current companions. “A drink, Telma? Something nice.” She asked for, watching the interaction between the strange woman and Telma. 

Tae mentally filed away the woman cutting herself off before taking a drink of what Telma had served her. Her face instantly screwed up at the taste of juice. Just juice. “Juice?” She questioned, frowning.

“It’s too early honey.” Telma said firmly, ignoring as Tae gestured wildly at the other patrons who weren’t drinking juice. “They don’t live here for free.” Telma responded.

Tae sighed, turning her attention back to Midna and Azrael. ‘All taverns lead to Telma’ made her chuckle a bit to herself. 

“The money’s good, most of the time. And the missions take you everywhere, even to completely foreign worlds. It’s a bit like tourism, almost.” Tae grinned. “Dangerous tourism at times, but don’t let that discourage you.”

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Midna opened the door and glided through the doorway without a second thought, for all of two seconds. She froze when, eyes trained to the ground, her bare feet met warm floorboards adjacent to the cool stone halls of her castle. Light spilled into her periphery. 

She slowly lifted her head and with a gasp and a whirl turned back to the door. In the process, however, she lifted her hand from the knob and it slammed furiously at her back.

She stood, staring at the eye-level window etched into the wood, too perplexed to turn immediately.

“A rupee for your thoughts would soon as buy you a drink!”

Midna straightened. She knew that voice. And she recognized “rupee,” even if she hadn’t use for the coin in some time. 

In truth, she didn’t think she would hear the word again.

When she finally steeled herself to slowly approach the bar where Telma stood, fiddling with the register, she realized she wasn’t alone. Hmm. And she wasn’t bottled in a shadow this time, either. Perhaps approaching the Hylian hero as an acquaintance was a bad move. But then, she would have her chance to make acquaintances with the other bar residents once she demanded what in Hylia’s green earth she was doing back in the world of Hyrule.

Midna stood aloft of the stools rather than take a seat. She preserved her height this way; even from across the bar she found herself tall enough to warrant an upwards glance. “Is that so?” she replied to Telma’s offer. “And what would it cost to leave…and never come back?”

There was a sudden spike in the noise level; Azrael, without turning his head, listened with muted interest as two book-wielding scholars bumped headlong into one another and a new patron entered the tavern with the door slamming shut behind them.  Hopefully the morning wouldn’t last too long.

Turning away from the bulletin board, he scanned the new faces in the tavern, hoping to sate his curiosity.  “I know of Ikana Castle, I can’t say I’ve ever been,” Az admitted when he heard Tae’s question.  “I do, however, know that that lad who looks like he were dragged through a hedge backwards has been to Ikana.  Might be worth asking him about it, if you’re curious.”

As he gestured to the blonde man sitting at the bar, he noticed the newcomer, presumably the one who had slammed the door behind her.  Nodding in her general direction, as if to signal towards Tae that he was heading to the bar to grab his drink, Azrael met the stranger there at the same time that Telma did, dishrag in hand.

He took the mug Telma slid towards him across the bar gratefully, sipping the drink gingerly.  Even through the porcelain, it burned his fingers.  “Leaving so soon, newcomer?  Stay a while, you might find you take a liking to this place.”

“Hah!” Tae responded to the comment about the blond man. It was, however, sound advice. She followed him towards the bar, about to break away to head for the man when she spotted the woman Azrael had spoken too.

“Holy shit.” Tae exclaimed, taken aback by the strange beauty the tall woman. She definitely didn’t look Hylian, or any other race Tae had encountered thus far. The woman was hooded, but there was still evidence of grayish skin.

“At least stay until I buy you a drink, miss.” Tae said, leaning against the war to try to get a look at the womans’ face. “I’m sure it’s past noon somewhere.”

Tae gave a smile, wondering what category this woman would be in. Someone to take up missions, or someone who needed something done. 

Talking with the backwards hedge man escaped her mind for the time being.