Legend of Zelda: Relics of Stone

Chapter 32 - Mourning

     Several days had come and gone since Volga was killed by the white dragon Cydu. A sad, grey mood had settled over the group as they mourned the fire dragon. Vaati had taken the loss worst of all; refusing to eat most times and often watery eyed. Anya had tried to talk with him many times to try and get him to at least eat, but he only answered with head movements most times or a mumbled answer.

     She semi-hoped this time would be different as she approached him. He was sitting at the edge of a lake near the edge of Kakariko Village, staring out at the gently rippling water. With a sandwich on a plate in her hands, she slowly walked up next to him. When he didn't acknowledge her she sat down next to the grieving wind mage.

"I brought you some food," she said quietly as she offered him the plate with the ham and cheese sandwich on it. He looked at it with dull red eyes for a moment before he shook his head in refusal.

"I'm not hungry," he said quietly as he looked back down at the water. Anya's brows furrowed together in pity as she sighed, setting the plate next to her before scooting a bit closer to him. Figuring he needed a hug, she wrapped her arms around him from the side. A moment of silence followed her action, the only sound was that of the water lapping at the sandy edges of the lake.

"I know how you feel," she said quietly as she looked out at the water. He turned his head slightly to her as he listened, blinking a few times.

"You do...?" He asked her when she didn't answer him. She nodded as she looked over at him.

"Yeah...I lost my mom when I was young," she said as she released him from her hug. She crossed her legs and looked down at her hands, her pointed ear twitching a bit under her straight strawberry blonde hair.

"Oh...I'm sorry..." Vaati said as he looked back at the water. She looked over at him with a sympathetic smile as she shrugged.

"Don't be, Vaati. I just want you to know that you're not alone in this. I know what it's like to lose someone you depend on in rough times," she said with a soft smile. He looked at her from the corner of his eye as a sad smile twitched at the side of his mouth.

     "Thanks," he said quietly. She nodded silently as they both turned and gazed out at the lake.

     They sat there silently for a while, watching as the sun rose over the horizon. It struggled to shine through the overcast clouds, nothing more than a watery grey light filtering through and giving everything a dulled look. The wind blew gently by the two and ruffled the smooth surface of the water, blurring any reflection it had. The sound of the lapping waves on the sandy shores of the lake and the gentle breeze of the wind, mixed with the overcast clouds and grey skies, had a strange calming effect on the two as they sat next to each other in silence.

"How did you lose your mom?" Vaati finally asked her, his voice quiet as he looked at the young teen. Anya looked at him for a moment, glad that he was at least talking now on his own without having to be spoken to first.

"She fell really sick with pneumonia..." Anya said as she looked down at her hands before continuing, "I was only a kid when she passed away so I didn't really understand it at the time. One day she was there and the next...she wasn't," she said quietly. She felt Vaati's soft gaze on her as she stared at her hands.

"I'm sorry," he said again. She gave a small smile and a shrug.

"It was a long time ago. I've had time to heal from it," she said. There was another long pause between the two, but Anya felt more comforted by it than awkward.

"What's it like? Having parents that love you?" Vaati asked out of the blue. Anya blinked and turned her head towards him in surprise. His red eyes were watery with emotion as he turned his head and looked away from her in shame.

"It's...I don't really know how to explain it Vaati...well, they're always there for you when you need them...and when you don't. They hug you when you're sad, calm you down when you're angry, help you when you hurt yourself. They guide you and show you what's right and wrong, and-" she said, stopping when she heard a sniffle come from the wind mage. She looked over at him to see his shoulders shaking with hidden sobs, quiet sniffles rising from his turned figure. When he noticed she stopped talking he looked at her, sniffling again and wiping the tears off his face with his sleeve.

     "Sorry, I didn't mean to get emotional," he said with a nasally voice as he tried to wipe away his tears. Anya put a comforting hand on his shoulder. He sniffed as he looked at her with red, swollen eyes as she then moved to hug him.

     "It's okay to be sad Vaati," she said as she hugged the emotional wind mage. He nodded as he leaned into her hug, laying his head on her shoulder slowly. Anya blinked at the action as she looked at him in surprise. He looked up at her and, as if just realizing what he did, moved to lift his head off her shoulder.

     "Sor-" he went to say, just for Anya to shush him and push his head back onto her shoulder with a gentle hand.

     "Stop apologizing," she said with a soft smile, only removing her hand from his head when she felt him relax. He opened his mouth to speak, before shutting it again and rethinking his word choice.

     "Okay," he eventually whispered. With an arm still wrapped around his shoulders Anya turned her gaze back out towards the lake. She started to hum a little song quietly as she sat next to Vaati. She didn't know the lyrics, she was only ever really taught the melody of the song. She watched as Vaati closed his eyes slowly, his pointed Hylian ear twitching as he listened to her voice.

Anya kept humming as Vaati's breathing evened out slightly, turning from sharp sniffles into steady breaths. She smiled as she slowly stopped humming, leaving them in silence once more. Vaati shifted slightly so that his back was turned to the wind as a chilled breeze blew past them, unintentionally moving closer to Anya. He opened his eyes as he looked up at her.

"You know where we're going next right? For the last stone?" He asked her quietly, his voice clearer.

"No...where?" She asked him, her own voice as gentle as his.

"The Shadow Temple in the Dark World...where only people and creatures of darkness can go and survive," he said, pausing before continuing in a barely audible whisper, "where the world's most dangerous villains are buried to be forgotten..."

     "Is that where you were buried?" She asked him quietly. He nodded slightly as he heaved a sigh.

     "And Volga. We were both buried there...and I don't want to go back. It's awful there," he said in a pitiful voice as he looked up at her pleadingly. She gave him a soft smile and a nod.

     "I'll tell Link so he won't make you," she promised him. A small smile twitched at the corner of his mouth as he looked up at her.

     "Thank you. You know you can't go either right? You'll be turned into a spirit and trapped there forever if you do..." he said. Anya blinked in surprise at his words.

     "Well I know that now. So who can go?"

     "Link can most likely. I can, Volga could, and Midna can."

     "Well at least Link won't have to go alone if Midna goes," Anya said. She gently patted his shoulder companionably as she gazed down at the wind mage, who nodded slightly.

     "Thank you for coming to talk to me, by the way...it really helped," he said as his red eyes met hers.

     "Of course. It's what friends do," she said, smiling at him. Once again they both fell into a comfortable silence as they gazed out at the now calm waters of the lake together.