The Hero Of The Bay: Chapter 3
Present Matt repeatedly slapping past Matt: NEVER! SAY! SOMETHING! SHOULD! BE! OUT! SOON!!!!!
You know you'll screw yourself over
The Hebert House
7:00ish A.M
As Danny Hebert slipped out of his bedroom ready to begin his heroic quest to obtain breakfast, he paused for a moment to listen to the house rattling snores of his lovely young daughter.
"Just like her mother."
He murmured to himself fondly as he quickly and silently tiptoed past her room. They had the whole day to do what needed to be done. As he was pulling on his coat and about to head into the brisk October morning, he remembered there was one last thing he needed to do. He pulled a battered notebook from the hall table and headed towards the phone.
"Winslow, Winslow." He muttered to himself flipping through the pages. "There you are." Quickly dialing the number, he prepared for what would assuredly be just a quick phone call.
"Hello this is Janice Hughes at Winslow High School, please be aware that we accept no legal responsibility for the actions of our students outside the hours of 7:30 A.M and 3:30 P.M Monday to Friday. Now with that said, how can I help you?"
A bored voice drawled (that somehow managed to sound even more disinterested when asking how it could help him) feeling slightly stunned at how clearly bad things were at the place his little owl spent most of her days, Danny just blinked for a moment and tried to gather his thoughts.
"Hello, is anyone there?" The voice asked again. Danny shook his head quickly and responded.
"Yes, sorry weak connection. This is Danny Hebert, I'm calling about Taylor Hebert."
Danny began to launch into his lie. Saying Taylor was down with the flu should still be a decent enough excuse. Serious enough to keep her out but not so severe that it would be questionable when she was back in class after the weekend. However, he was stopped in his tracks.
"Oh, are you Taylor Hebert's Father?" The voice inquired.
"Yes, I just wanted to inform you that Taylor." Danny began again.
"Perfect." The voice said cutting him off once more. "We were planning to call you at some point this week. We would like for you to come in and discuss Taylor's behavioral issues."
"Look, if you'd just let me get a word in." Danny gritted out through clenched teeth. "I just called to inform you that my daughter is ill and won't be in class today." Having finally said what he needed to say Danny's conscious mind caught up to the conversation.
"I'm sorry what behavioral issues?" Danny asked in as calm a tone as he could muster.
"Missed assignments, disrespecting the authority of her teachers and false accusations of bullying." The voice rattled off without missing a beat. "It's really beginning to get quite serious, would you be available on Wednesday of next week, say two in the afternoon."
Danny's mind was whirling, remembering halting conversations, quick one off comments that he'd brushed off as just typical teenagerisms and seeing his Taylor who had always loved learning slowly become less and less enthusiastic about school. A picture was beginning to develop.
"Now that is concerning." Danny replied smoothly. "I assume you've investigated this all thoroughly?" With the ease of long practice, he managed to disguise his demand as a question.
"We've spoken to the relevant parties."
"I see, I don't suppose it would be possible to get the names of the people my daughter has allegedly falsely accused?" Danny asked in a deceptively light tone.
"I'm afraid not." The bureaucrat replied hesitantly as she tried to ignore the strange feeling that she was walking into a trap somehow. "We have to protect the privacy of our students. I'm sure you understand. All the particulars can be discussed at the meeting on Wednesday."
"Of course." Danny replied before his voice suddenly grew cold. "I assure you that I'll be speaking to Taylor about this. I'll find out what happened I can assure you of that. Afterwards I'm sure that Principal Blackwell and myself will be having a very, very productive discussion."
"I'm glad to hear that sir. It's best that these things are nipped in the bud." The walking embodiment of a cog in the wheel known as Janice Hughes chirped.
"I agree entirely." Danny replied in a neutral tone. "Now my daughter is sick. Would you be so kind as to mark her absent for today."
"Oh, alright then."
Danny hung up the phone before she could say anything more. Then after scrawling a quick note to Taylor that he was going to be out grabbing groceries, he stalked towards his truck. A few minutes yelling at idiots who didn't know how to drive should help him vent his anger. It wouldn't do to let his sweet and innocent baby girl hear that.
As the beams of the day star crept into the private sanctuary of Taylor Hebert she frantically grasped for another pillow and having successfully found her quarry used it to block out the hateful light. Across from her bed lay a seemingly innocuous old gym bag. From this bag a green glow emanated and the spectral form of a young girl suddenly appeared and looked over Taylor with a small frown.
"Mistress."
Taylor snored.
"Mistress."
She said in a slightly louder voice. Taylor continued to snore in blissful ignorance of the outside world. The girl somehow seemed to take a deep breath.
"WAKE UP!!!!"
The girl bellowed. With a yelp Taylor bolted upright and in all of her flailing and fumbling, she managed to fall to the floor from her oh so comfy cocoon. Pushing herself up onto her elbows she turned the full force of her glare on the see through visage of the young girl.
"Saria." Taylor began. "What was that about?"
"It was time for you to wake up Mistress." Saria replied in an irritatingly cheerful voice.
"Fine, why did you have to wake me up like that?" Taylor gritted out.
"It seemed the most effective."
"But what if Dad heard you?" Taylor asked as she clambered to her feet. "Not sure he's ready for the whole 'hi this is my magic sword. Can I keep her?' conversation."
"The being known as Dad aka Danny Hebert has left this dwelling. This seemed to be the most opportune time for me to wake you."
Taylor glared at her and made several attempts to argue the point but each time she thought better of it.
"I'm not going to win this argument, am I?" Taylor groaned tiredly.
"There is a 97.8889% chance that your assessment is correct." Saria chirped.
Taylor gave no verbal response and just began gathering up her clothes for the day. Just before she was about to head to the shower, Saria piped up.
"Aren't you forgetting something?"
Taylor paused for a moment to consider the question.
"Pants, shirt… Other things. I think I'm good. Why are you asking?"
Saria just pointed at herself and said nothing. Ah yes, Taylor began to see the issue.
"I can't exactly walk around carrying a sword." Taylor began to explain. "Well maybe if I started acting like Greg." She immediately shuddered at the horrible thought.
"No, no that won't work." Taylor continued as Saria cocked her head in confusion.
"You can't carry a sword openly?" She asked in a sweet and innocent voice.
"Not without getting a lot of annoying questions." Taylor responded with a laugh. Saria frowned in contemplation.
"So, carrying a blade isn't a universally agreed symbol of adulthood in this culture?"
Saria inquired. Taylor just shook her head in response. Saria closed her eyes and thought for a moment.
"I've got it!" She exclaimed. "Put me on!"
Taylor blinked in confusion. It was far too early for this.
"Like we were going into battle. Put me on." Saria demanded.
With a shrug Taylor pulled out the sword and scabbard from the bag and slung it over her shoulder.
"Now what?"
"Just equip everything from last night. The Tunic, the Shield. All of it." Taylor began to open her mouth to ask a question but was cut off before she could ask it. "Just think of them and I'll do the rest."
Taylor closed her eyes and pictured herself clad in the green tunic and hat she wore last night, sword and shield at the ready. When she opened her eyes once more her vision had become reality.
"Okay now what?"
If Saria's feet were touching the ground, she would have been bouncing on them in her excitement. As it was, she merely repeatedly raised and lowered the height she was levitating at.
"Now think of the clothes you were just wearing."
Taylor thought about the ratty old t-shirt and basketball shorts that had served as her pyjamas and once more when she opened her eyes anew, she found herself clad in them once more. The Tunic, Hat, Shield and the Sword had vanished along with the image of Saria.
"What the!!" Taylor exclaimed. "Where are y-."
"I'm still here Mistress." Saria's voice rang in her head. "I'm merely in your inventory waiting for when you have need of me. Same as everything else."
"Wait." Taylor began hesitantly. "You're basically the inventory, right? Like you store the things in you? Did I get that right?"
"Yes mistress."
"So you're storing yourself… Inside of yourself." Taylor asked wondering where exactly her physics had gone.
"A trifle simplistic but essentially correct."
Realizing that would be the best she was going to get Taylor headed out of her room but not before muttering one last aside to herself.
"Magic is so weird."
By the time Taylor had showered and dressed and made her way downstairs she found a catastrophe in progress. Smoke was rising from the stove and her Dad was frantically trying to wave it out the window before it set off the fire alarms. Moving quickly Taylor dashed to the stove and grabbed the smoking frying pan, dancing around her Dad she managed to dump the charred remains of… Something into the garbage bin. As she did that the last of the smoke was cleared out and thankfully the only thing that had been harmed was the dignity and pride of one Danny Hebert.
As he tried to avoid his baby girls gaze Taylor just smirked at him and she was a very good smirker. Something else she got from her Mom Danny mused, with just a single facial expression she could make someone feel like a colossal failure in every way imaginable.
"Soooooooo." Taylor began in as innocent a tone as she could manage. "What happened here?"
Danny ran a hand over his face and chuckled ruefully.
"Do you remember those omelettes your Mom used to make?"
Taylor nodded.
"I decided I was going to make them for breakfast. Start the day on a good note y'know." Danny looked away. "And then I didn't." He finished ruefully
As he surveyed the damage he'd done to his own kitchen Danny Hebert showcased the quick decision making and inspiring leadership that had elevated him to the defacto boss of the Dockworkers Association.
"What do you say we go out for breakfast?"
Taylor nodded in agreement and with that Father and Daughter headed out the front door in search of copious amounts of bacon and eggs.
"I'll get the western omelette and a cup of coffee."
Danny said as he passed his menu over to the waitress with a small smile.
"Sure thing hon." The waitress replied. "Do you want milk, sugar, cream?"
"Just black, thank you."
The waitress nodded and turned to Taylor with a smile.
"And how about you, sweetie?"
Taylor frowned as she looked at the menu one last time before finally handing it over.
"I'll get just the bacon and eggs. Scrambled and if you could get the bacon as crispy as you can that'd be great." Taylor grinned at the thought of breakfast as her stomach rumbled its approval. "Oh and tea with some honey if you got it."
"Sure thing." The waitress finished jotting down their orders on her pad and prepared to head on her way. "That should be out in no time."
As she headed off Danny and Taylor smiled at each other and tried to think of things to say. They'd managed to cobble together a polite if shallow conversation about the latest book Taylor was reading (Ivanhoe) when the food arrived. As he was working his way through his omelette Danny screwed up his courage and asked something that actually mattered.
"Hey." He began as Taylor paused from scarfing down her eggs to look at him. He suppressed a smile at seeing her cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk and continued. "I called your school this morning and they asked me to come in for a meeting with your principal."
As Taylor tensed in the seat opposite him and clearly started preparing herself for an argument. Danny wished and not for the first time that Annette was here. She was always so much better at this stuff than he was.
"Look whatever they told you." Taylor began heatedly.
"It's bullshit I know."
Danny said quickly and as Taylor stared at him in awed surprise he felt another stab of self-loathing hit him. How badly had he failed that him being on her side was a surprising turn of events.
"Look, I know I've…" Danny hesitated as he tried to find the right words. "Not really been around for the past… While. But I like to think I know who you are at the heart and you wouldn't do the things they're accusing you of."
Taylor pushed her food around on her plate for a bit and Danny waited for her to decide what she wanted to say.
"What are they accusing me of?"
"Missing assignments, disrespecting your teachers." Danny paused to take a look at her face for any clues as to what she was feeling. When he saw nothing he could decipher, he continued. "Falsely accusing people of bullying you."
Taylor gritted her teeth and started to rise out of her chair looking like she was about to yell at the entire world about the injustice.
"And since they're clearly getting it all wrong." Danny continued. "I have to think there's something actually going on. So." He leveled a stare at Taylor. "What's going on?"
Taylor slowly lowered herself back down into her seat and deciding to be brave one more time began to explain.
"It started on the first day of school. A group of girls picked me as their favorite target and nothing I do can make it stop." Taylor began. "I go to the teachers and they either ignore me or they ask them if they're bullying me, they say no and then everyone just accepts that I'm lying. They break my stuff, steal my work and no one does anything." She paused to take a few deep breaths and try to calm herself down. Across from her Danny frowned in contemplation.
"Who are they?" Danny asked. "And this might not be the responsible Dad thing to ask." Taylor let out a small chuckle as he waggled his eyebrows at her. "But does Emma know about this. She was always good at the social thing and I can't imagine –"
Danny trailed off as Taylor looked away as soon as he said Emma's name. He frantically cast through his memories trying to remember the last time he'd seen Emma, the last time Taylor had mentioned her. It was the summer before Taylor's first year of.
"Shit." Danny growled.
Taylor nodded and closed her eyes.
"I can't believe." Danny began. "Emma could, but you and her were." He trailed off. "You were each other's people." He finally settled on as the best reaction he could find.
"Yeah." Taylor said softly.
Danny reached out and placed his hand on Taylor's.
"Let's get out of here."
Taylor nodded and Danny raised his hand to signal they were ready for the cheque.
The two drove through Brockton Bay in silence for what felt like hours until finally they arrived at a small hill on the outskirts that had a view of the waterfront. Danny's old pick up truck rumbled to a stop.
"Here we are." Danny said. "I come out here on rough days when I just need to be by myself. Figured it was a good a spot as any to talk."
"Okay." Taylor questioned. "But why drive out here? Why not just talk at the diner."
Danny looked at her with a small fond smile.
"Because I want you to talk and if there was anyone else around you wouldn't." He reached out and ruffled her hair. Taylor batted his hands away and glared at him but Danny continued as if he didn't notice.
"You're a private person Taylor. Always have been. If you thought anyone but us could hear what you were saying I wouldn't get much out of you. You get that from me."
"Really, the way you and Mom would tell it I could talk to anyone about anything."
Taylor snarked in what was certainly not an attempt to direct the discussion away from her character.
"Oh you could go up and talk to anyone about a, a book you were reading." Danny answered. "Or some cartoon you were a fan of, or whatever game you and Em- you and the other kids were playing. But the stuff that mattered, the stuff that means something to you."
He paused and looked at Taylor meaningfully.
"That you would always keep in here." He poked at her forehead. "And in here." He poked at his chest.
"Until you knew what you wanted to do with it. So, here's what we are going to do. You and I are going to sit here and rest and relax. You'll do your thinking and when you are ready, I'm right here. Sound good?"
Taylor contemplated that for a moment and nodded.
"Sounds good."
The two sat in silence for about half an hour before finally it was broken by Taylor.
"Dad, can I ask you something? Before we talk about me, I mean."
Danny smiled at her and nodded.
"Of course. Ask away."
Taylor wet her lips and asked something that had been gnawing at her for a while.
"For the past. I mean after Mom." Taylor almost stammered trying to figure out how to ask what she wanted to ask.
"I've not been the best Dad." Danny completed her thought in a somber voice.
"Yes, that." Taylor said softly. "Why are you? I mean why try to change things now."
Danny maneuvered himself around in his seat so he was looking Taylor in the eye.
"Do you know what the three happiest moments of my life are?"
He asked and Taylor shook her head.
"The day your Mom agreed to marry me." He started counting them down on his fingers. "The day you were born." Taylor rolled her eyes. "I'm serious, the day you were born. And the day my old man died."
There was a tense silence and finally Danny continued.
"I mean that. He was." Danny paused. "I don't really talk about him with you much but he was a bastard, he was well and truly a bastard. Drank too much and hated too easy. Thanks to that the day he died I felt relieved."
Danny angrily wiped away a stray tear as Taylor just sat there processing.
"I hated the man." He continued. "I hated him and when you were born I swore to myself, I swore that my little girl would never think of me like that. I'd be someone she could be proud of. A good, decent hardworking man and that she would never ever doubt that I loved her."
He frowned and looked away from Taylor before continuing on his voice filled with shame.
"You started growing up and I did the best I could but Annette… She was the natural parent between the two of us. When you were upset or scared or what have you, she always knew what to do and I'd be left scrambling." His frown grew deeper and he continued. "Then one day, she was gone and me and a little girl were left in a world that didn't make sense anymore. I fell back on what I understood. I worked and I kept a roof over our heads and I lied to myself that I was still a good Dad."
Taylor reached out and took his hand.
"Hey, you are a good Dad." Taylor said emphatically.
Danny shook his head and gripped her hand tightly.
"No, I haven't been." He continued. "But the fact that you said that means maybe I can still do better. Look last night you came to me because I forgot to feed you. The most basic thing a parent has to do and I wasn't doing it and then I could have died." Slowly he wrapped an arm around Taylor and after a moment she settled into the hug.
"I could have died and the way things were that might have actually been a good thing for you and I hate that thought. So here I am just trying to do better and hoping you'll give me the chance."
There was a pause that seemed to stretch out for an eternity.
"I think I'm ready to talk now."
"Alright."
Taylor took a deep breath.
"It started the day after I got back from camp. I went to see Emma we'd made these stupid little friendship bracelets and I wanted to give her one. One I knocked on the door there was this girl I'd never seen before."
They talked for hours and at the end both Father and Daughter were emotionally drained but things were on the path towards healing.
Danny and Taylor both felt lighter somehow as they walked along the boardwalk, letting the energy of the crowd wash over them. As they were going past the third barker trying to convince them to step right up and win a prize Taylor's eyes landed on a certain game. It was seemingly rather simple, take the toy bow and arrow, shoot as many balloons as you could in five minutes and win a fluffy, plushy friend. Taylor look at the targets, the bow and a stuffed horse that was displayed in a place of honor and decided she had to do this. Without a word to her Dad she began to push her way through the crowd and as soon as she reached the booth she slammed five dollars down.
"How many for the horse?" Taylor demanded as her Dad came up behind her.
"Well little lady." The conman in a cheap bowtie began to say in a frankly insulting attempt at sounding charming. "Now for the horse you just gotta hit twenty of the bullseyes."
"Sounds easy enough." Taylor said lightly as she picked up the bow and quiver. "Start the timer."
The barker clicked a button and the clock began counting down.
"Taylor are you sure about this?" Danny asked as Taylor released her first arrow and hit the bullseye. "Never mind."
Danny chortled as his question was answered. Not even acknowledging Taylor just continued firing, arrow after arrow after arrow and hitting bullseye after bullseye after bullseye. Finally, mercifully the five minutes were up.
"That was fifty bullseyes." They stall operator whispered. "A NEW RECORD!!!!" He roared.
"Take whatever prize you want." He said in as grand a tone as he could manage. "Then never come back here." He muttered.
Taylor just pointed at the stuffed horse and with her bounty in hand. She collected her Dad/loot hauler and the two continued on their way.
"So, what's the big deal about this horse?" Danny asked as he moved it to a slightly more comfortable position. "You're a little old for stuffed animals and you didn't like them much when you were a kid even."
Taylor blushed lightly and looked at anything but her Dad.
"Oh, I uh made friends with this girl at school and she's into horses so when I saw it. I just kind of figured…" She trailed off as she noticed Danny trying to suppress a grin. "Shut up."
"Hey I'm not judging." Danny replied cheerfully. "It just took one date with Annette for me to start trying to guess her ring size."
"I said shut up." Taylor growled before the friendly argument was interrupted by the sounds of screams from behind them. As one they turned and saw a stampede of people running towards them and behind them was quite a strange sight.
About a half dozen creatures for lack of a better word that looked like some odd cross between a bipedal pig and an ape were chasing the crowd. All of them were armed with clubs and swords and anything they swung at was shattered. A crew of enforcers came from one of the storefronts and attempted to tase the creatures but it had no effect. Even from where she stood Taylor could hear one of the monsters laugh before with a might swing of his club sending the glorified security guard flying fifteen feet away.
"What are those things?" Taylor wondered aloud.
"They are Bokoblins." Saria's voice chimed in her head. "Creatures from Hyrule. They are highly aggressive and often used as foot soldiers in the service of others."
"Who cares." Danny rushed out grabbing Taylor's hand and pulling her along behind him. "Let's just get out of here!"
Taylor allowed Danny to pull her along after him until finally she spotted her chance. Near an alleyway Taylor allowed her hand to slip from Danny's grasp and using the crowd for cover she ducked into the alleyway and out of sight.
"Taylor! Taylor!" She heard Danny's cries from behind her as he unsuccessfully tried to fight his way back through the mob to reunite with his daughter.
"Sorry Dad." Taylor murmured. "Saria suit me up."
With those words Taylor was once more clad in the green garb of the hero and with sword and shield drawn and at the ready she charged into battle a single thought running through her mind.
I need a better catch phrase.
As Taylor arrived on the scene she caught sight of one of the monsters (Bokoblins Saria oh so helpfully reminded her) grabbing a young girl who looked maybe somewhere around ten being pulled away from a woman who was most likely her mother before being tossed through the air to another bokoblin. This one was loading children into some kind of wooden cage being carried on a cart which was pulled by… Skeleton horses. Now this wouldn't do at all. Putting on as much speed as she could Taylor, charged towards the bokoblin who was loading up the prisoners.
With a diagonal slash across the chest the monster staggered back just as the little girl landed where his arms had once been. Taylor winced briefly at the sight of her landing hard on the ground. As the girl was groaning in pain the creature charged at her club raised high. Taylor stepped in between the monster and the girl and with her shield batted the club away with deceptive ease. Two swift sword strikes followed and in a puff of smoke the creature vanished. Taylor's eyes widened in surprise.
"It appears whatever magic them to this world is tenuous at best." Saria mused. "If they take enough damage it is forced to dissipate. Interesting."
"Cut monsters make go away. Got it." Taylor thought back.
The cart holding the girls began to pull away but before Taylor could go after them, she was cut off by a sword being swung at her head. Leaping away from the blow with a picture perfect back flip Taylor quickly assessed the situation. Four monsters (Bokoblins, Saria insisted sounding progressively more irked.) surrounding her on all sides and armed with carious weapons of the pointy or smashy variety. Lovely.
The one on her left attempted to strike her with his club but that was easily blocked by her shield, another attempted to stab her with a spear but this was deflected with casual ease by Taylor's own blade. The one in front of her attempted to bring his sword down on her head. Taylor quickly sidestepped out of the way. Before they could attempt another attack on her She quickly spun in a circle, turning her blade into a whirling cyclone of pain. With that these four disappeared.
Not missing a beat Taylor began to charge after the cart idly noting that the mother of the girl she'd managed to save had pulled her daughter into a hug.
"Dinah, oh Dinah thank goodness your alright."
Taylor heard the mother murmur as she ran by. Not stopping to allow herself a moment of pride Taylor continued after the slowly moving cart. She was gaining ever so slowly, foot by foot, inch by inch and was almost in range to where she was sure she could leap on to the cage when one of the captives screamed out.
"LOOK OUT."
Before she could even wonder what they meant by that something round and heavy and hard impacted Taylor's side. As she was sent rolling by the impact the driver of the cart came to a stop having decided to watch the show. As she came to her feet she could hear the grating laughter of the bokoblin, the screams of the captives and the enraged roars of the creature that had attacked her.
Emerging from the alley was a creature, nine feet tall and made of muscle a great pair of horns growing from its head. It looked somewhat similar to the bokoblin's in much the same way as a chimp looks like a gorilla. As it approached her it started swinging the great ball and chain it was carrying back and forth. Taylor moved her shield into a ready position, held her sword low and ready to strike and waited to see who would make the first move.
With a roar the creature (It was called a moblin, Saria helpfully informed her) sent the ball flying towards her. Not wanting history to repeat a second time Taylor leaped to the right and avoided the hit before charging towards the moblin. It pulled the ball back towards itself frightfully quickly and once more launched an attack at Taylor.
This time Taylor used her shield to block the iron ball as it flew towards her and sent it right back into the monsters ugly face. As it reared back and bellowed its pain to the heavens, Taylor reached sword range. With two quick strikes at its legs the moblin fell to its knees. Not wasting a moment Taylor jumped on to its back and stabbed her blade through the back of its skull. The moblin vanished in a puff of smoke and Taylor rolled to her feet as she hit the ground.
The last remaining bokoblin attempted to flee the scene with its captives but Taylor noticed something very interesting. The ball and chain the moblin was using had remained behind and it had somehow adjusted to be just her size.
"Magic." Taylor thought at Saria.
"Magic." Saria responded.
Quickly grabbing her newest toy/weapon and running towards the cart as it began to turn left Taylor swung the ball in a circle once, twice and then she sent it slamming down on the front of the cart. The cart was destroyed and the bokoblin faded away. As Taylor walked over to let the children out of the cage she felt her heart fill with joy at a job well done.
Winslow High School
Monday Morning
Taylor looked left and right quickly before breathing a sigh of relief that the coast was clear. Moving quickly she shifted her treasure from her backpack to her locker and closed the door.
"Taylor! Taylor! Taylor!"
As she turned around she could hear the sound of running feet and soon found herself face to face with a newspaper that spoke with the cheerful voice of Melanie Lon.
"Check it out, check it out, check it out."
Her new friend said cheerfully. Taylor leaned in and quickly scanned the article.
"New hero Link saves group of children from monsters."
Taylor let a small smirk pass over her lips as she looked at the rather dramatic photo someone had caught of her charging the moblin. Allowing her moment of pride to pass she reached out and pushed down the newspaper so she could see Melanie's beaming face.
"Okay, neat." Taylor said. "But why's it got you all excited?"
Melanie was bouncing on her feet.
"Don't get all cynical on me." She pouted. "I move to town and there's a new superhero. It's cool isn't it."
"Huh, you're right." Taylor looked down in faux contemplation. "You moved to town and suddenly a new hero shows up." She arched an eyebrow at Melanie.
"You trying to tell me something?"
"Oh ha ha." Melanie sniffed. "Here I am wanting to share my joy with my dear friend Taylor and all I get is scorn and mockery." She paused to wipe away an imaginary tear and looked at Taylor.
"This working on you?"
"Not even a bit. But I do have something for you. Can you keep a secret?"
Melanie nodded her head.
"Friday wasn't the first time that Link chick showed up. She saved my dad when the Empire tried to shake down the dockworkers last Thursday."
"Is he okay?" Melanie yelped in concern.
"Yeah, he's fine, it just shook him up a little so he pulled me out of school Friday for some family bonding. We ended up at the boardwalk and well."
Taylor opened her locker and stepped aside to reveal the stuffed horse. The fur was a beautiful red color and the mane was a shock of white. A huge grin came to Melanie's face.
"Oh, she's so cute." Melanie gushed. "But why are you showing her to me?"
"She's yours." Taylor replied with a slight blush.
Melanie squealed in glee and glomped Taylor into a hug.
"I love her so much, she's wonderful, she looks just like a horse on my grandpa's farm. I love her and thank you so much! You are the best friend ever!"
Taylor returned the hug and enjoyed the affection it had been a while.
Taylor: This is how you friend, correct?
You know you'll screw yourself over
The Hebert House
7:00ish A.M
As Danny Hebert slipped out of his bedroom ready to begin his heroic quest to obtain breakfast, he paused for a moment to listen to the house rattling snores of his lovely young daughter.
"Just like her mother."
He murmured to himself fondly as he quickly and silently tiptoed past her room. They had the whole day to do what needed to be done. As he was pulling on his coat and about to head into the brisk October morning, he remembered there was one last thing he needed to do. He pulled a battered notebook from the hall table and headed towards the phone.
"Winslow, Winslow." He muttered to himself flipping through the pages. "There you are." Quickly dialing the number, he prepared for what would assuredly be just a quick phone call.
"Hello this is Janice Hughes at Winslow High School, please be aware that we accept no legal responsibility for the actions of our students outside the hours of 7:30 A.M and 3:30 P.M Monday to Friday. Now with that said, how can I help you?"
A bored voice drawled (that somehow managed to sound even more disinterested when asking how it could help him) feeling slightly stunned at how clearly bad things were at the place his little owl spent most of her days, Danny just blinked for a moment and tried to gather his thoughts.
"Hello, is anyone there?" The voice asked again. Danny shook his head quickly and responded.
"Yes, sorry weak connection. This is Danny Hebert, I'm calling about Taylor Hebert."
Danny began to launch into his lie. Saying Taylor was down with the flu should still be a decent enough excuse. Serious enough to keep her out but not so severe that it would be questionable when she was back in class after the weekend. However, he was stopped in his tracks.
"Oh, are you Taylor Hebert's Father?" The voice inquired.
"Yes, I just wanted to inform you that Taylor." Danny began again.
"Perfect." The voice said cutting him off once more. "We were planning to call you at some point this week. We would like for you to come in and discuss Taylor's behavioral issues."
"Look, if you'd just let me get a word in." Danny gritted out through clenched teeth. "I just called to inform you that my daughter is ill and won't be in class today." Having finally said what he needed to say Danny's conscious mind caught up to the conversation.
"I'm sorry what behavioral issues?" Danny asked in as calm a tone as he could muster.
"Missed assignments, disrespecting the authority of her teachers and false accusations of bullying." The voice rattled off without missing a beat. "It's really beginning to get quite serious, would you be available on Wednesday of next week, say two in the afternoon."
Danny's mind was whirling, remembering halting conversations, quick one off comments that he'd brushed off as just typical teenagerisms and seeing his Taylor who had always loved learning slowly become less and less enthusiastic about school. A picture was beginning to develop.
"Now that is concerning." Danny replied smoothly. "I assume you've investigated this all thoroughly?" With the ease of long practice, he managed to disguise his demand as a question.
"We've spoken to the relevant parties."
"I see, I don't suppose it would be possible to get the names of the people my daughter has allegedly falsely accused?" Danny asked in a deceptively light tone.
"I'm afraid not." The bureaucrat replied hesitantly as she tried to ignore the strange feeling that she was walking into a trap somehow. "We have to protect the privacy of our students. I'm sure you understand. All the particulars can be discussed at the meeting on Wednesday."
"Of course." Danny replied before his voice suddenly grew cold. "I assure you that I'll be speaking to Taylor about this. I'll find out what happened I can assure you of that. Afterwards I'm sure that Principal Blackwell and myself will be having a very, very productive discussion."
"I'm glad to hear that sir. It's best that these things are nipped in the bud." The walking embodiment of a cog in the wheel known as Janice Hughes chirped.
"I agree entirely." Danny replied in a neutral tone. "Now my daughter is sick. Would you be so kind as to mark her absent for today."
"Oh, alright then."
Danny hung up the phone before she could say anything more. Then after scrawling a quick note to Taylor that he was going to be out grabbing groceries, he stalked towards his truck. A few minutes yelling at idiots who didn't know how to drive should help him vent his anger. It wouldn't do to let his sweet and innocent baby girl hear that.
As the beams of the day star crept into the private sanctuary of Taylor Hebert she frantically grasped for another pillow and having successfully found her quarry used it to block out the hateful light. Across from her bed lay a seemingly innocuous old gym bag. From this bag a green glow emanated and the spectral form of a young girl suddenly appeared and looked over Taylor with a small frown.
"Mistress."
Taylor snored.
"Mistress."
She said in a slightly louder voice. Taylor continued to snore in blissful ignorance of the outside world. The girl somehow seemed to take a deep breath.
"WAKE UP!!!!"
The girl bellowed. With a yelp Taylor bolted upright and in all of her flailing and fumbling, she managed to fall to the floor from her oh so comfy cocoon. Pushing herself up onto her elbows she turned the full force of her glare on the see through visage of the young girl.
"Saria." Taylor began. "What was that about?"
"It was time for you to wake up Mistress." Saria replied in an irritatingly cheerful voice.
"Fine, why did you have to wake me up like that?" Taylor gritted out.
"It seemed the most effective."
"But what if Dad heard you?" Taylor asked as she clambered to her feet. "Not sure he's ready for the whole 'hi this is my magic sword. Can I keep her?' conversation."
"The being known as Dad aka Danny Hebert has left this dwelling. This seemed to be the most opportune time for me to wake you."
Taylor glared at her and made several attempts to argue the point but each time she thought better of it.
"I'm not going to win this argument, am I?" Taylor groaned tiredly.
"There is a 97.8889% chance that your assessment is correct." Saria chirped.
Taylor gave no verbal response and just began gathering up her clothes for the day. Just before she was about to head to the shower, Saria piped up.
"Aren't you forgetting something?"
Taylor paused for a moment to consider the question.
"Pants, shirt… Other things. I think I'm good. Why are you asking?"
Saria just pointed at herself and said nothing. Ah yes, Taylor began to see the issue.
"I can't exactly walk around carrying a sword." Taylor began to explain. "Well maybe if I started acting like Greg." She immediately shuddered at the horrible thought.
"No, no that won't work." Taylor continued as Saria cocked her head in confusion.
"You can't carry a sword openly?" She asked in a sweet and innocent voice.
"Not without getting a lot of annoying questions." Taylor responded with a laugh. Saria frowned in contemplation.
"So, carrying a blade isn't a universally agreed symbol of adulthood in this culture?"
Saria inquired. Taylor just shook her head in response. Saria closed her eyes and thought for a moment.
"I've got it!" She exclaimed. "Put me on!"
Taylor blinked in confusion. It was far too early for this.
"Like we were going into battle. Put me on." Saria demanded.
With a shrug Taylor pulled out the sword and scabbard from the bag and slung it over her shoulder.
"Now what?"
"Just equip everything from last night. The Tunic, the Shield. All of it." Taylor began to open her mouth to ask a question but was cut off before she could ask it. "Just think of them and I'll do the rest."
Taylor closed her eyes and pictured herself clad in the green tunic and hat she wore last night, sword and shield at the ready. When she opened her eyes once more her vision had become reality.
"Okay now what?"
If Saria's feet were touching the ground, she would have been bouncing on them in her excitement. As it was, she merely repeatedly raised and lowered the height she was levitating at.
"Now think of the clothes you were just wearing."
Taylor thought about the ratty old t-shirt and basketball shorts that had served as her pyjamas and once more when she opened her eyes anew, she found herself clad in them once more. The Tunic, Hat, Shield and the Sword had vanished along with the image of Saria.
"What the!!" Taylor exclaimed. "Where are y-."
"I'm still here Mistress." Saria's voice rang in her head. "I'm merely in your inventory waiting for when you have need of me. Same as everything else."
"Wait." Taylor began hesitantly. "You're basically the inventory, right? Like you store the things in you? Did I get that right?"
"Yes mistress."
"So you're storing yourself… Inside of yourself." Taylor asked wondering where exactly her physics had gone.
"A trifle simplistic but essentially correct."
Realizing that would be the best she was going to get Taylor headed out of her room but not before muttering one last aside to herself.
"Magic is so weird."
By the time Taylor had showered and dressed and made her way downstairs she found a catastrophe in progress. Smoke was rising from the stove and her Dad was frantically trying to wave it out the window before it set off the fire alarms. Moving quickly Taylor dashed to the stove and grabbed the smoking frying pan, dancing around her Dad she managed to dump the charred remains of… Something into the garbage bin. As she did that the last of the smoke was cleared out and thankfully the only thing that had been harmed was the dignity and pride of one Danny Hebert.
As he tried to avoid his baby girls gaze Taylor just smirked at him and she was a very good smirker. Something else she got from her Mom Danny mused, with just a single facial expression she could make someone feel like a colossal failure in every way imaginable.
"Soooooooo." Taylor began in as innocent a tone as she could manage. "What happened here?"
Danny ran a hand over his face and chuckled ruefully.
"Do you remember those omelettes your Mom used to make?"
Taylor nodded.
"I decided I was going to make them for breakfast. Start the day on a good note y'know." Danny looked away. "And then I didn't." He finished ruefully
As he surveyed the damage he'd done to his own kitchen Danny Hebert showcased the quick decision making and inspiring leadership that had elevated him to the defacto boss of the Dockworkers Association.
"What do you say we go out for breakfast?"
Taylor nodded in agreement and with that Father and Daughter headed out the front door in search of copious amounts of bacon and eggs.
"I'll get the western omelette and a cup of coffee."
Danny said as he passed his menu over to the waitress with a small smile.
"Sure thing hon." The waitress replied. "Do you want milk, sugar, cream?"
"Just black, thank you."
The waitress nodded and turned to Taylor with a smile.
"And how about you, sweetie?"
Taylor frowned as she looked at the menu one last time before finally handing it over.
"I'll get just the bacon and eggs. Scrambled and if you could get the bacon as crispy as you can that'd be great." Taylor grinned at the thought of breakfast as her stomach rumbled its approval. "Oh and tea with some honey if you got it."
"Sure thing." The waitress finished jotting down their orders on her pad and prepared to head on her way. "That should be out in no time."
As she headed off Danny and Taylor smiled at each other and tried to think of things to say. They'd managed to cobble together a polite if shallow conversation about the latest book Taylor was reading (Ivanhoe) when the food arrived. As he was working his way through his omelette Danny screwed up his courage and asked something that actually mattered.
"Hey." He began as Taylor paused from scarfing down her eggs to look at him. He suppressed a smile at seeing her cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk and continued. "I called your school this morning and they asked me to come in for a meeting with your principal."
As Taylor tensed in the seat opposite him and clearly started preparing herself for an argument. Danny wished and not for the first time that Annette was here. She was always so much better at this stuff than he was.
"Look whatever they told you." Taylor began heatedly.
"It's bullshit I know."
Danny said quickly and as Taylor stared at him in awed surprise he felt another stab of self-loathing hit him. How badly had he failed that him being on her side was a surprising turn of events.
"Look, I know I've…" Danny hesitated as he tried to find the right words. "Not really been around for the past… While. But I like to think I know who you are at the heart and you wouldn't do the things they're accusing you of."
Taylor pushed her food around on her plate for a bit and Danny waited for her to decide what she wanted to say.
"What are they accusing me of?"
"Missing assignments, disrespecting your teachers." Danny paused to take a look at her face for any clues as to what she was feeling. When he saw nothing he could decipher, he continued. "Falsely accusing people of bullying you."
Taylor gritted her teeth and started to rise out of her chair looking like she was about to yell at the entire world about the injustice.
"And since they're clearly getting it all wrong." Danny continued. "I have to think there's something actually going on. So." He leveled a stare at Taylor. "What's going on?"
Taylor slowly lowered herself back down into her seat and deciding to be brave one more time began to explain.
"It started on the first day of school. A group of girls picked me as their favorite target and nothing I do can make it stop." Taylor began. "I go to the teachers and they either ignore me or they ask them if they're bullying me, they say no and then everyone just accepts that I'm lying. They break my stuff, steal my work and no one does anything." She paused to take a few deep breaths and try to calm herself down. Across from her Danny frowned in contemplation.
"Who are they?" Danny asked. "And this might not be the responsible Dad thing to ask." Taylor let out a small chuckle as he waggled his eyebrows at her. "But does Emma know about this. She was always good at the social thing and I can't imagine –"
Danny trailed off as Taylor looked away as soon as he said Emma's name. He frantically cast through his memories trying to remember the last time he'd seen Emma, the last time Taylor had mentioned her. It was the summer before Taylor's first year of.
"Shit." Danny growled.
Taylor nodded and closed her eyes.
"I can't believe." Danny began. "Emma could, but you and her were." He trailed off. "You were each other's people." He finally settled on as the best reaction he could find.
"Yeah." Taylor said softly.
Danny reached out and placed his hand on Taylor's.
"Let's get out of here."
Taylor nodded and Danny raised his hand to signal they were ready for the cheque.
The two drove through Brockton Bay in silence for what felt like hours until finally they arrived at a small hill on the outskirts that had a view of the waterfront. Danny's old pick up truck rumbled to a stop.
"Here we are." Danny said. "I come out here on rough days when I just need to be by myself. Figured it was a good a spot as any to talk."
"Okay." Taylor questioned. "But why drive out here? Why not just talk at the diner."
Danny looked at her with a small fond smile.
"Because I want you to talk and if there was anyone else around you wouldn't." He reached out and ruffled her hair. Taylor batted his hands away and glared at him but Danny continued as if he didn't notice.
"You're a private person Taylor. Always have been. If you thought anyone but us could hear what you were saying I wouldn't get much out of you. You get that from me."
"Really, the way you and Mom would tell it I could talk to anyone about anything."
Taylor snarked in what was certainly not an attempt to direct the discussion away from her character.
"Oh you could go up and talk to anyone about a, a book you were reading." Danny answered. "Or some cartoon you were a fan of, or whatever game you and Em- you and the other kids were playing. But the stuff that mattered, the stuff that means something to you."
He paused and looked at Taylor meaningfully.
"That you would always keep in here." He poked at her forehead. "And in here." He poked at his chest.
"Until you knew what you wanted to do with it. So, here's what we are going to do. You and I are going to sit here and rest and relax. You'll do your thinking and when you are ready, I'm right here. Sound good?"
Taylor contemplated that for a moment and nodded.
"Sounds good."
The two sat in silence for about half an hour before finally it was broken by Taylor.
"Dad, can I ask you something? Before we talk about me, I mean."
Danny smiled at her and nodded.
"Of course. Ask away."
Taylor wet her lips and asked something that had been gnawing at her for a while.
"For the past. I mean after Mom." Taylor almost stammered trying to figure out how to ask what she wanted to ask.
"I've not been the best Dad." Danny completed her thought in a somber voice.
"Yes, that." Taylor said softly. "Why are you? I mean why try to change things now."
Danny maneuvered himself around in his seat so he was looking Taylor in the eye.
"Do you know what the three happiest moments of my life are?"
He asked and Taylor shook her head.
"The day your Mom agreed to marry me." He started counting them down on his fingers. "The day you were born." Taylor rolled her eyes. "I'm serious, the day you were born. And the day my old man died."
There was a tense silence and finally Danny continued.
"I mean that. He was." Danny paused. "I don't really talk about him with you much but he was a bastard, he was well and truly a bastard. Drank too much and hated too easy. Thanks to that the day he died I felt relieved."
Danny angrily wiped away a stray tear as Taylor just sat there processing.
"I hated the man." He continued. "I hated him and when you were born I swore to myself, I swore that my little girl would never think of me like that. I'd be someone she could be proud of. A good, decent hardworking man and that she would never ever doubt that I loved her."
He frowned and looked away from Taylor before continuing on his voice filled with shame.
"You started growing up and I did the best I could but Annette… She was the natural parent between the two of us. When you were upset or scared or what have you, she always knew what to do and I'd be left scrambling." His frown grew deeper and he continued. "Then one day, she was gone and me and a little girl were left in a world that didn't make sense anymore. I fell back on what I understood. I worked and I kept a roof over our heads and I lied to myself that I was still a good Dad."
Taylor reached out and took his hand.
"Hey, you are a good Dad." Taylor said emphatically.
Danny shook his head and gripped her hand tightly.
"No, I haven't been." He continued. "But the fact that you said that means maybe I can still do better. Look last night you came to me because I forgot to feed you. The most basic thing a parent has to do and I wasn't doing it and then I could have died." Slowly he wrapped an arm around Taylor and after a moment she settled into the hug.
"I could have died and the way things were that might have actually been a good thing for you and I hate that thought. So here I am just trying to do better and hoping you'll give me the chance."
There was a pause that seemed to stretch out for an eternity.
"I think I'm ready to talk now."
"Alright."
Taylor took a deep breath.
"It started the day after I got back from camp. I went to see Emma we'd made these stupid little friendship bracelets and I wanted to give her one. One I knocked on the door there was this girl I'd never seen before."
They talked for hours and at the end both Father and Daughter were emotionally drained but things were on the path towards healing.
Danny and Taylor both felt lighter somehow as they walked along the boardwalk, letting the energy of the crowd wash over them. As they were going past the third barker trying to convince them to step right up and win a prize Taylor's eyes landed on a certain game. It was seemingly rather simple, take the toy bow and arrow, shoot as many balloons as you could in five minutes and win a fluffy, plushy friend. Taylor look at the targets, the bow and a stuffed horse that was displayed in a place of honor and decided she had to do this. Without a word to her Dad she began to push her way through the crowd and as soon as she reached the booth she slammed five dollars down.
"How many for the horse?" Taylor demanded as her Dad came up behind her.
"Well little lady." The conman in a cheap bowtie began to say in a frankly insulting attempt at sounding charming. "Now for the horse you just gotta hit twenty of the bullseyes."
"Sounds easy enough." Taylor said lightly as she picked up the bow and quiver. "Start the timer."
The barker clicked a button and the clock began counting down.
"Taylor are you sure about this?" Danny asked as Taylor released her first arrow and hit the bullseye. "Never mind."
Danny chortled as his question was answered. Not even acknowledging Taylor just continued firing, arrow after arrow after arrow and hitting bullseye after bullseye after bullseye. Finally, mercifully the five minutes were up.
"That was fifty bullseyes." They stall operator whispered. "A NEW RECORD!!!!" He roared.
"Take whatever prize you want." He said in as grand a tone as he could manage. "Then never come back here." He muttered.
Taylor just pointed at the stuffed horse and with her bounty in hand. She collected her Dad/loot hauler and the two continued on their way.
"So, what's the big deal about this horse?" Danny asked as he moved it to a slightly more comfortable position. "You're a little old for stuffed animals and you didn't like them much when you were a kid even."
Taylor blushed lightly and looked at anything but her Dad.
"Oh, I uh made friends with this girl at school and she's into horses so when I saw it. I just kind of figured…" She trailed off as she noticed Danny trying to suppress a grin. "Shut up."
"Hey I'm not judging." Danny replied cheerfully. "It just took one date with Annette for me to start trying to guess her ring size."
"I said shut up." Taylor growled before the friendly argument was interrupted by the sounds of screams from behind them. As one they turned and saw a stampede of people running towards them and behind them was quite a strange sight.
About a half dozen creatures for lack of a better word that looked like some odd cross between a bipedal pig and an ape were chasing the crowd. All of them were armed with clubs and swords and anything they swung at was shattered. A crew of enforcers came from one of the storefronts and attempted to tase the creatures but it had no effect. Even from where she stood Taylor could hear one of the monsters laugh before with a might swing of his club sending the glorified security guard flying fifteen feet away.
"What are those things?" Taylor wondered aloud.
"They are Bokoblins." Saria's voice chimed in her head. "Creatures from Hyrule. They are highly aggressive and often used as foot soldiers in the service of others."
"Who cares." Danny rushed out grabbing Taylor's hand and pulling her along behind him. "Let's just get out of here!"
Taylor allowed Danny to pull her along after him until finally she spotted her chance. Near an alleyway Taylor allowed her hand to slip from Danny's grasp and using the crowd for cover she ducked into the alleyway and out of sight.
"Taylor! Taylor!" She heard Danny's cries from behind her as he unsuccessfully tried to fight his way back through the mob to reunite with his daughter.
"Sorry Dad." Taylor murmured. "Saria suit me up."
With those words Taylor was once more clad in the green garb of the hero and with sword and shield drawn and at the ready she charged into battle a single thought running through her mind.
I need a better catch phrase.
As Taylor arrived on the scene she caught sight of one of the monsters (Bokoblins Saria oh so helpfully reminded her) grabbing a young girl who looked maybe somewhere around ten being pulled away from a woman who was most likely her mother before being tossed through the air to another bokoblin. This one was loading children into some kind of wooden cage being carried on a cart which was pulled by… Skeleton horses. Now this wouldn't do at all. Putting on as much speed as she could Taylor, charged towards the bokoblin who was loading up the prisoners.
With a diagonal slash across the chest the monster staggered back just as the little girl landed where his arms had once been. Taylor winced briefly at the sight of her landing hard on the ground. As the girl was groaning in pain the creature charged at her club raised high. Taylor stepped in between the monster and the girl and with her shield batted the club away with deceptive ease. Two swift sword strikes followed and in a puff of smoke the creature vanished. Taylor's eyes widened in surprise.
"It appears whatever magic them to this world is tenuous at best." Saria mused. "If they take enough damage it is forced to dissipate. Interesting."
"Cut monsters make go away. Got it." Taylor thought back.
The cart holding the girls began to pull away but before Taylor could go after them, she was cut off by a sword being swung at her head. Leaping away from the blow with a picture perfect back flip Taylor quickly assessed the situation. Four monsters (Bokoblins, Saria insisted sounding progressively more irked.) surrounding her on all sides and armed with carious weapons of the pointy or smashy variety. Lovely.
The one on her left attempted to strike her with his club but that was easily blocked by her shield, another attempted to stab her with a spear but this was deflected with casual ease by Taylor's own blade. The one in front of her attempted to bring his sword down on her head. Taylor quickly sidestepped out of the way. Before they could attempt another attack on her She quickly spun in a circle, turning her blade into a whirling cyclone of pain. With that these four disappeared.
Not missing a beat Taylor began to charge after the cart idly noting that the mother of the girl she'd managed to save had pulled her daughter into a hug.
"Dinah, oh Dinah thank goodness your alright."
Taylor heard the mother murmur as she ran by. Not stopping to allow herself a moment of pride Taylor continued after the slowly moving cart. She was gaining ever so slowly, foot by foot, inch by inch and was almost in range to where she was sure she could leap on to the cage when one of the captives screamed out.
"LOOK OUT."
Before she could even wonder what they meant by that something round and heavy and hard impacted Taylor's side. As she was sent rolling by the impact the driver of the cart came to a stop having decided to watch the show. As she came to her feet she could hear the grating laughter of the bokoblin, the screams of the captives and the enraged roars of the creature that had attacked her.
Emerging from the alley was a creature, nine feet tall and made of muscle a great pair of horns growing from its head. It looked somewhat similar to the bokoblin's in much the same way as a chimp looks like a gorilla. As it approached her it started swinging the great ball and chain it was carrying back and forth. Taylor moved her shield into a ready position, held her sword low and ready to strike and waited to see who would make the first move.
With a roar the creature (It was called a moblin, Saria helpfully informed her) sent the ball flying towards her. Not wanting history to repeat a second time Taylor leaped to the right and avoided the hit before charging towards the moblin. It pulled the ball back towards itself frightfully quickly and once more launched an attack at Taylor.
This time Taylor used her shield to block the iron ball as it flew towards her and sent it right back into the monsters ugly face. As it reared back and bellowed its pain to the heavens, Taylor reached sword range. With two quick strikes at its legs the moblin fell to its knees. Not wasting a moment Taylor jumped on to its back and stabbed her blade through the back of its skull. The moblin vanished in a puff of smoke and Taylor rolled to her feet as she hit the ground.
The last remaining bokoblin attempted to flee the scene with its captives but Taylor noticed something very interesting. The ball and chain the moblin was using had remained behind and it had somehow adjusted to be just her size.
"Magic." Taylor thought at Saria.
"Magic." Saria responded.
Quickly grabbing her newest toy/weapon and running towards the cart as it began to turn left Taylor swung the ball in a circle once, twice and then she sent it slamming down on the front of the cart. The cart was destroyed and the bokoblin faded away. As Taylor walked over to let the children out of the cage she felt her heart fill with joy at a job well done.
Winslow High School
Monday Morning
Taylor looked left and right quickly before breathing a sigh of relief that the coast was clear. Moving quickly she shifted her treasure from her backpack to her locker and closed the door.
"Taylor! Taylor! Taylor!"
As she turned around she could hear the sound of running feet and soon found herself face to face with a newspaper that spoke with the cheerful voice of Melanie Lon.
"Check it out, check it out, check it out."
Her new friend said cheerfully. Taylor leaned in and quickly scanned the article.
"New hero Link saves group of children from monsters."
Taylor let a small smirk pass over her lips as she looked at the rather dramatic photo someone had caught of her charging the moblin. Allowing her moment of pride to pass she reached out and pushed down the newspaper so she could see Melanie's beaming face.
"Okay, neat." Taylor said. "But why's it got you all excited?"
Melanie was bouncing on her feet.
"Don't get all cynical on me." She pouted. "I move to town and there's a new superhero. It's cool isn't it."
"Huh, you're right." Taylor looked down in faux contemplation. "You moved to town and suddenly a new hero shows up." She arched an eyebrow at Melanie.
"You trying to tell me something?"
"Oh ha ha." Melanie sniffed. "Here I am wanting to share my joy with my dear friend Taylor and all I get is scorn and mockery." She paused to wipe away an imaginary tear and looked at Taylor.
"This working on you?"
"Not even a bit. But I do have something for you. Can you keep a secret?"
Melanie nodded her head.
"Friday wasn't the first time that Link chick showed up. She saved my dad when the Empire tried to shake down the dockworkers last Thursday."
"Is he okay?" Melanie yelped in concern.
"Yeah, he's fine, it just shook him up a little so he pulled me out of school Friday for some family bonding. We ended up at the boardwalk and well."
Taylor opened her locker and stepped aside to reveal the stuffed horse. The fur was a beautiful red color and the mane was a shock of white. A huge grin came to Melanie's face.
"Oh, she's so cute." Melanie gushed. "But why are you showing her to me?"
"She's yours." Taylor replied with a slight blush.
Melanie squealed in glee and glomped Taylor into a hug.
"I love her so much, she's wonderful, she looks just like a horse on my grandpa's farm. I love her and thank you so much! You are the best friend ever!"
Taylor returned the hug and enjoyed the affection it had been a while.
Taylor: This is how you friend, correct?
