A/N: No dedication this time :( The lucky number has yet to be reached, and the only person who commented on the last part got that part dedicated to them, (you know who you are :p) so sadly, this part goes undedicated unless someone leaves me an awesome comment xD don't get me wrong, I still love you, I was just letting you all know the reason behind the lack of dedication-ness xD Get excited, we're getting close to the FIRST TEMPLE!!!
Part Ten
It wasn't long before he heard it. He was coming to a clearing that crossed his path on the map when soft, whimsical music met his ears.
The tune was beautiful. The closer he got to the clearing, the more pronounced the music became. He began to feel the rhythm and the articulation of each of the notes. It was almost as if he could feel the music rushing through him, straight to his soul.
He kept walking and the wall of trees began to dwindle to one side of him. The clearing broke out before him and that’s when he saw them. One was a woman, a wood sprite older than both Iredean and Jayrend. He hair was a rich mahogany brown, her eyes he knew to be black we hidden as she looked down at her arm. She wore brown cloth clothing, similar in style to Iredean's leaves, and a purple gem necklace on a gold chain around her neck.
She was completely bandaged over her torso, neck, and left arm, and she wore segments of bandaging over parts of her legs. She was slowly wrapping her right wrist in a bandage.
For a split second he saw the burn underneath, but it didn't look like anything he expected. He almost recognized the shape but then it was gone, covered by the white bandages.
The other wasn't a wood sprite, though he had red hair, he didn't bare bandages or burns, and he wore a soldiers uniform. If Link looked hard enough, he could almost see the trees through the mans figure.
It was the man that played the music, his eyes closed as he stood next to the woman.
Link, that's it. The wisp said quietly. The Instrument of Separation.
The instrument was long and wooden, and the man held it to one side of his head as he blew into it on one end, his fingers dancing along the holes in the wood.
It's called a Flute. The wisp told him.
He didn't speak, but he kept watching the two. When the woman finished wrapping her arm, she looked up. The music stopped abruptly, and the man disappeared before Link's eyes.
"Who's there?" The woman asked, standing up on bare feet. Link stepped out from behind the trees. "Who are you?"
Link was about to speak when the red streaks fell from the trees over their heads. He recognized Iredean and Jayrend as they stood in front of him.
"Mom." Iredean said, stepping forward. "This is, Link. He's agreed to help us with our problem."
"Our problem?" Their mother questioned. "What problem?"
"Mother, you remember, don't you?" Jayrend asked her. "The monster in the tower."
"Of course I remember." She said. "I thought you and Solire were taking care of it."
"Mom, Solire-"
"Where is your sister anyway?" She asked. "I haven't seen Solire since you left for the tower ... some... time... ago..." She trailed off as if she couldn't remember.
"We'll talk later." Iredean interrupted whatever Jayrend was about to say. "Link, this is my mother, Adalane."
Link nodded to the woman in greeting.
Who was that playing the flute? The wisp asked the three of them suddenly.
"No one." Jayrend and Iredean chorused. Adalane looked at the two of them, confused.
"My husband." Adalane corrected them and they each winced as she did so. "Iredean and Jayrend's father. He left for the war... a while ago... I can't remember exactly... how long..."
"Mother-"
"Jayrend, don't." Iredean snapped.
Adalane. The wisp addressed her. Do you know where to find the flute your husband was playing?
She shook her head no. "When he left for the war he had only one piece of it, and he gave it to me for safe keeping. He said he didn't know where the other two are."
Well where is the piece he left you?
"In the tower."
"The tower?" Jayrend spoke up. "Why'd you put it there?"
"He told me to." Adalane said.
"Who told you to?" Iredean demanded.
She pointed her finger at Link. "He did."
"Me?" Link asked, confused.
She nodded vigorously. "You told me to."
What else did he say to you? Did he tell you why? Anything? The wisp asked suddenly.
"I... don't... really remember... that well..." Adalane said, looking deep in thought. "I think he said that it needed to be hidden. He also said something about... not telling anyone where to find it... And something else... he said... 'Not even me'."
Everyone was silent. "Oh..." Adalane looked down at her hands. "I'm sorry, sir. I wasn't supposed to say anything to you about it either. Please, give me another chance, I promise I won't let you down again." Adalane begged Link, who was too incredibly confused to speak.
Adalane... What did Link offer you in return for hiding the flute?
"He told me, that he would tell my husband where I was, so he could come visit me, as long as the flute remained hidden." Adalane said, nodding her head in clarification with her words.
How did he go about doing that? Did he tell you?
"He... played a song on the flute... and then his eyes turned black like ours... and he wouldn't talk or move..." She turned to face Link and talk to him instead. "And then your eyes were back to normal... and I could see him, my husband." Adalane smiled, and then she looked down at her hands clasped in front of her.
All was silent for the longest moment, finally, the wisp beside him spoke softer, and with more fear in her childlike voice than Link had heard before. What happened after that? Where did he go?
"He saw to it that I hid the flute piece in the tower, said he couldn't do it, that I had too, and then he left." Adalane said.
He didn't say why?
"He said he had to hide the remaining pieces of the flute, and then I never saw him again... until now."
... Did he tell you why he couldn't hide the flute piece in the tower?
"Not exactly. He said... 'I can't hide it, or I'll know where it is. I can't let myself find it, any of them. If I go inside, I'll remember exactly how to get back to it, what to do to get to it, and I can't allow that to happen. Our souls should not be joined, it's far too dangerous.' He was talking to himself, but I over heard. He also said something about the future, the next Link, but I didn't know what he was talking about." Adalane told the wisp.
Link. The wisp finally turned to talk to the stunned boy in green. We must go find the piece of the flute, and the sword, we should go.
"Wait!" Adalane called after them as they turned to leave. "If you take back the flute, will I still see my husband?" She asked Link desperately.
Link, paused, unknowing of what to say to her. Then suddenly, it hit him, he didn't know where it came from, but the words poured from his mouth before he could think about them. "Yes, Adalane. You've done your part, now I have to do mine."
She smiled in relief. "Thank you."
Link nodded to her, and then followed his original path out of the clearing, and into the thick of the trees, leaving the red haired wood sprites behind.
When he looked back and they were gone, he stopped.
Link?
"You're keeping something from me." He stated.
I... Link- He cut her off.
"Tell me what you know."