Looking For Group

Part 17

Sun had never looked so beautiful. She wore a soft white summer dress, and though it was way too cold be to wearing such an outfit, she was unbothered. She relished in the way the wind fluttered her dress around her knees, letting her hair fly. She had several Silent Princess flowers pinned to her hair, and silver gauntlets decorated her wrists. She may not be wearing a crown, but she looked absolutely regal.

"Hello, Wind," Sun said softly. "I am Sun, the chosen princess of Skyloft. It's very nice to meet you."

Wind could barely look at her, he was so entranced. Blush bloomed over his cheeks as he squeaked out, "It's very nice to meet you too..."

Twilight and the other Heroes stood to the side, watching in silence. Today was Wind's last day in Hyrule. He was going back to Outset Island with his family, and Time with him to help finish his training. This was the last time the entire group would be together until Wind's official knighting ceremony held at the castle in later months.

-or Wild's, whenever that will be-

"I know you're about to leave for home," Sun continued. "But if you would allow me... I would like to say a small prayer for you before you go. Is that okay?"

Wind nodded.

Sun bent down, tucking her dress underneath her. To Twilight's side, Sky's cheeks tightened. He revered the Princesses with the same passion as he did the Goddess, and the sight of his princess kneeling like a commoner irked him.

Sun took Wind's left hand, held it gently between hers, and said, "Great Goddesses, guiding lights and protectors of our people, grant your blessings and mercies to this Valiant Youth. He has been chosen the Master Sword and he has accepted Her in return. May his bravery echo through time. Amen."

"Amen," the Heroes said together.

***

Everyone helped Wind's family load up their luggage into their rented car. Once done, they exchanged emails and social media accounts, promising to see each other soon.

Time pulled Twilight into a hug, patting him on the back. "I'll see you in a few months at the ceremony. Don't hesitate to call if you need something."

Twilight debated if he should tell him about Wild. It would be intelligent thing to do so. But as Twilight thought back to their last conversation, how Time refused to reveal the name of their fallen brother, Twilight gave into a childish urge to be petty and kept his mouth shut. Let's see how Time liked it when secrets were kept from him.

"Teach him well," Twilight said, stepping back. "I'll see you all later."

***

Charles' father looked exactly like him. They both had the same facial structure, the same piercing blue eyes, strong nose, and though Mr. Pumber bore grey hairs around his temple and had crows feet at the edges of his eyes, he was just as handsome.

Warriors and Twilight sat in the living room of Charles' childhood home. Warriors had already been here before and he described the place as "a cowboy's wet dream." Twilight didn't know what he meant by that until he crossed the threshold.

"Ah," Twilight said, staring. Though the house sat in the middle of middle-class suburbia, the walls werre decorated with mounted animal heads, including those wild boars. The carpet looked like came out of the sixties with its maroon-colored pattern. The furniture was covered in a sheet of plastic and when Twilight sat down, he squeaked.

"Look, I don't know how many times I have to tell you boys," Mr. Parker said. He came out of the kitchen with mug of tea in hand. He offered none to the guys. "I don't know where Charles is. He hasn't talked to me in days."

"We're just trying to fill in the gaps," Warriors said. "I know some people can feel humiliated after being rejected by the Master Sword, but going from wanting to be a Hero and suddenly leaving everything behind isn't a common behavior. Now we're wondering if there was another factor in play here."

Mr. Parker took a sip of tea. "Like what?"

"Was Charles struggling in class? Did he have any financial issues? We're wondering if stress got to him."

"Not that I know of. We were all proud of him, you know, when it was revealed you were considering him to become a Hero. We celebrated. And when he later told us he was rejected, we mourned."

Twilight schooled his features to stay neutral though on the inside he was grimacing. Mourned? It was fine to be upset, but to act as if someone had died was too much.

"Did he have a girlfriend we can speak to?" Warriors continued.

Mr. Parker shrugged. "If he was to become a Hero, he needed to spend every moment studying and training. He didn't have time for frivolous activities like women."

Twilight frowned, slowly catching on. He shared a look with Warriors, confirming their thoughts.

Parents who actively forced their kids into becoming Heroes were called Poes. They hovered around their kids, watched their progression with needless intensity, and if a child failed, they wailed and whined like ghosts. There were reports of children having nervous breakdowns from the high expectations their parents put on them. In the end it didn't matter: rarely did any of them pass the first round of interviews.

"Who knew Charles would end up such a loser?" Mr. Parker continued. "No wonder he burned."

Warriors and Twilight stood. "Right, we think we got what we need here. Thank you for your time, Mr. Parker."

"Oh! Okay then. I'm sure Charles is fine, he's just having a hissy fit. It's not the first time he threw one..."

Once outside, Warriors gritted his teeth and said, "Goddamn, no wonder Charles went mad. Remember that Poe from last year, who kept trying to set up Sky with her daughter? Mad, the whole lot of them."

"Now I don't even want to follow through with an arrest," Twilight said, running a finger down the thin scar on his cheek. "Charles is probably just suffering from a mental breakdown. He needs our sympathy, not punishment."

"Right. We have to find him first. I do hope he's alright."

Twilight nodded. "C'mon, let's go. Sun is waiting for us."