Oath and Vow (KafAnju: Majora's Mask)

Chapter 6: Oath and Vow

The boom of fireworks continued to echo through the city streets as their colors dotted the blue sky above. While many townspeople danced and laughed, drinking in the bar or celebrating under the flares outside, a few stood outside Clock Town's gates, awaiting the anticipated wedding that had been dreamt of for so long. While the families of both the groom and the bride stood lined up on separate sides at attention, Kafei stood at the end, nervously staring at the shadowed gateway entrance where he knew his bride would appear. Inside said shadow, however, Anju stared out into the field they stood in, trying not to focus on the rapid beating of her heart.

"You've been standing there for quite a while, haven't you?" a voice asked from behind her. "Soon a few crows will start landing on you."

"I doubt that with how hard my heart is pounding," Anju said, placing a hand on her chest before turning to her farmer childhood friend.

"What's wrong?" Cremia asked. "Are you getting cold feet now? You can't give me false hope like that, you know."

"Cremia..." Anju murmured to her friend, yet she matched her gaze with earnest eyes. "I... Is this really okay? I can't do much... I'm not like you... maybe... Maybe you should—"

"Didn't I just say not to give me false hope?" Cremia scolded, shaking her head. Gently she placed a hand on the innkeeper's shoulder. "If it were supposed to be me, then I'd be in that dress. But... It's not me. It's you, and you look beautiful. All that matters is that you are truly in love, and so is the guy waiting for you right outside this gate."

Suddenly, she pulled Anju into a hug, to which Anju returned.

"Go out there and make your dream finally come true," she whispered into her ear. "Do it for him and you, okay?"

"Okay," Anju whispered back.

The two remained locked in an embrace before Cremia slowly pulled away. Wiping a few tears from her eyes, she gave a final tiny smile before walking past her and into the light to become a part of the crowd. Anju stared out the gate, taking note of each and every face that stood waiting for her. Madame Aroma and Mayor Dotour were there to support their son, though the mayor had strangely dragged his large chair with him to sit in. The master carpenter, Cremia, and the captain of the guards stood next to them, with smiles on their faces, though the carpenter's mouth noticeably hung open from time to time. Standing on the opposite end was her own family, her mother and her grandmother who remained in her wheelchair, along with the sketchy salesman that she knew had ties to Kafei's side of the family.

With a deep breath, Anju tightened her grip on the bouquet she held. Allowing the voices of Cremia, her mother, and her lover to guide her, she stepped out of the shadows and into the sunlight, allowing it to blind her for a brief moment. As her vision returned, the vivid colors of nature's greens and the rainbow of colors her family wore started to return, yet all she could focus on were the sharp red eyes of the one waiting at the end of the line for her. As if they were a beacon, they slowly guided her forward before she stopped just before them, unable to look away.

"You're beautiful..." Kafei said, taking her hand into his own to pull her closer to him.

"I'm glad you think so," Anju answered nervously as a blush appeared on her face. "I was worried I would look strange."

"Not at all," the husband said. "Though... I'm not exactly sure what we should do. It's usually now that we would exchange masks, but we already did, and gave the Couple's Mask away..."

"When your father and I were to be married," Anju's mother spoke up. "Not only were we to exchange masks, but promises as well. They were vows that we planned to uphold for the rest of our lives. Maybe you could do the same, and you'll have the chance to actually live by them."