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"The Costume Ball", chapter 12The Costume BallBy: Sapphira"You too?" asked Liam. "What?" said Link. "Sorry, I wasn't listening." "Exactly. You're in love." "I have no clue what you're talking about." "Yeah, you do. You're in love with Fairy." Link got quiet. "So what? You're in love with Butterfly." "Don't get so defensive. I am in love with Butterfly. I have been from the first night." "Well, how did you know I was in love with Fairy, Mr. Genius?" "It doesn't take a genius. You're acting the same way I was after I met Butterfly." Link sighed. "I think I'm going to ask Fairy." "Ask her what?" "Don't be a dumbass. What was the entire point of the Costume Ball?" "Oh, yeah. Well, I'm going to ask Butterfly." "It can be a double wedding!" said Link sarcastically. "I get to pick out the décor!" "Fine. Then I get to pick the cake!" "Damn! You're going to pick one with the extra-sugary frosting, aren't you?" "You like that kind." "Oh yeah. Just don't have it decorated with little frosting fairies, butterflies, hawks and phoenixes." "I won't. Besides, that would take a lot of red frosting, and that stuff tastes terrible." "That is why we didn't put a lobster on the cake for Kingly's two week anniversary of living here." It was six o'clock, and the two of them had just woken up. The balls had completely thrown off the sleep schedule. Usually, people woke up at six in the morning, but by now, the sun was setting. "This is great," said Liam. "Once, I told Zelda that I could sleep until sunset, and we bet three rupees on it." "Liam, you can't buy anything with three rupees." "So? I won, didn't I? I'll just have her put it in my paycheck." They went down to the kitchens to have the equivalent of breakfast. No one actually called it breakfast anymore because it was served at dinnertime. Link and Liam didn't really each very much. They had to go see the King. "Your Majesty," requested Link, "please, just let us carry swords. This thing was in our room last night, and it took all of our information on the Evil Realm." "I don't want you to arouse suspicion." "You Majesty," said Liam, "the ladies that we." He didn't want to finish. "Are interested in?" finished the King. Liam shrugged. "They already know that something's going on. They know that we carried knives last night. I'm sure they wouldn't ask questions if we had swords." The King sighed. "Fine. You may each carry a sword. But Link, don't bring the Master Sword. This thing can't steal it. Besides, everyone who sees the sword will know that you're you. The balls are almost over, so don't blow your cover now." "Yes, Your Majesty," they both replied. They left and went to the courtyard. "I have a bad feeling about not having the Master Sword tonight," said Link. "I do, too. It's as if that sword would stop something from happening tonight." "Exactly. But I have this feeling that I just cannot carry it. Maybe it's against something in the prophecies." "Man, I hate the prophecies. They're always screwing with us." "I couldn't have said it better myself." They didn't speak for a while. "Do you want to try to figure out the prophecy again?" asked Liam. "It's really bothering me that we can't seem to solve this whole mess." "Same with me. I'll go get them." He left for a few minutes, and then came back with the sheet of notes. They sat on a bench and reread the notes again. "We already know that this is happening tonight," said Link. "Yeah, because it's the full moon. But what is this entire thing with the 'key?'" "I have no idea. Well, some girl has this key, and this guy wants it." "What does Zelda have to do with this?" "I don't know. She said that the Princess in the notes wasn't her, but I can't think of anyone else." "So Zelda has a key, and the key's in disguise, and somebody wants it. Well, at least we know it's a 'he' now." "I didn't know I even had any mirrors." "Was there one in your old room?" "Actually, yes. Maybe, he's going to use that to get the key from Zelda." "And then he'll ride again. Do you think it's Ganon? He's been loosed upon the world before, so 'again' makes sense." "I don't really know. You should post some extra guards near Zelda, and maybe put some outside of my old room." "Good idea. We can't let him do anything." Liam, who already had a sword, went to the barracks to assign some guards. Link went to the armory. When Link needed a sword, he always used the Master Sword. It was really old, but no custom made sword would have ever been more perfect for him. Also, his job required him to have it to slay evils that couldn't otherwise be slain. Like Ganon. So, he only had that one sword. Up until now, he had never considered using another sword, not even for one night. When he got there, Maximus the Armor was there. He was a big man with a large mustache, and Link always thought that he'd make a good butcher. "So, Link," he said amiably," what are you looking for today? I've got some really nice ideas for shields." "Sorry, Max," replied Link. "I think shields will have to wait for another day. However, you might be happy to hear this next news." "And what's that?" "I'm going to have to find a way to make a pig fly." Maximus's face lit up as he realized what Link meant. "You've come to buy a sword!" "Yeah. I need a sword for the ball, but I'm not allowed to carry the Master Sword. It's the King's orders." Maximus was not listening at all. He was practically bouncing around the armory, muttering to himself about where he put those swords. Link sighed. When he first arrived at the Castle and began to buy weapons from Maximus, Maximus had tried to sell him a sword. Link had told him that he only needed the Master Sword, and said, "I'll buy a sword from you when pigs fly." Now, he had to buy a sword, and he had to get it from Maximus so he didn't have to go into town. Fate was cruel sometimes. Maximus came out of a back room with an armful of swords and scabbards. "So, what are you looking for? I've got broadswords that are really nice for guys like Moblins, but they're sort of heavy, so I also have some that are lighter even if they aren't as brutal on the big baddies." "Actually, I only need the sword for one night." "What do you mean? You can't possibly need a good sword for one night." He narrowed his eyes suspiciously. "Are you looking for a dress sword?" Maximus hated dress swords, and he thought that everyone who wore one was a poser. "No, no, no!" Link assured him. "You see, the Costume Ball is still going on." "Oh, how is that going? Has anyone guessed who you are yet?" Maximus knew all about the ball and Link's plan. "I'm still doing well with my little plot, but there have been some major disturbances, and last night, we caught something stealing a lot of important papers from my room." He went on to explain about the incident and their theories. "So, I need a good sword, but I'll only need it for tonight." He paused and smiled. "However, I might need to use it again in the future." Maximus nodded. "I'll be right back." He left for about ten minutes, and when he returned, he was holding a sheathed sword. "This is my nicest sword ever. It's unbreakable, lightweight, and super durable. I just finished the new design that we were talking about, and so it's better than the broadswords in terms of strength and effect, and it's lighter than the light ones. Plus, it looks really nice, but not that cheap kind of nice that you see in those toothpick dress swords." He placed it in Link's hands. Link drew it and studies it in the light. It looked very similar to the Master Sword, but anyone could tell that it wasn't. It was thinner and the metal was more like silver than steel. The hilt was also a different shape, and it was a little shorter. Link was surprised at how much it fit him. "How come this fits so well?" he asked Maximus suspiciously. Maximus looked uncomfortable. "Well, remember that time we were up really late last year designing armor?" Link nodded. "Well, you feel asleep at one point, so I traced your hand and took notes. I've also seen how you hold the Master Sword, so I got more ideas from there." Link smiled and shook his head. "I should have know I couldn't trust you at all." "Well, what can I say? I'm an armor." "How much do you want?" "Ninety rupees." "What? If you sell weapons like this at those prices, you'll go broke? This is finer than any weapon I've seen in here, and some of those are priced above five hundred rupees!" "You're a great friend, and the designs you've created have made me a lot of money. I did get a lot of ideas for this sword from you, too. The Master Sword was kind of an inspiration." "Well.Fine, have it your way. Send the bill to the King. He's paying for it. He told me that as long as it was under three hundred rupees, he'd pay." "Alright. I hope this sword serves you well." "Thank you very much, Maximus!" Link left the armory feeling very odd. He finally bought a sword, and it was really nice and discounted, but did this mean that he was turning his back on the Master Sword? "No," he told himself. "This sword is excellent, and I will probably use it again because it does sheath at the waist instead of on the back, but the Master Sword is still my sword. I will still use it, although I could use this one for more mundane things." And with these thoughts, Link strapped on the sword and went back to his room. |