A Terminian and the Twilight of Danger (MM/OoT Fanfic)

I Mustn't Return

Not much to say here. Enjoy!
-Jooostan

A Terminian and the Twilight of Danger
Chapter 2: I Mustn't Return

"Link? Honey, are you ok?" Anju knocked on the door once again. She still hadn't gotten a response after the third attempt.

"I don't know what to do..." Anju admitted defeat and turned back to Romani and Kafei with a shrug. Just by the stairs was the strange blue fairy. Something about her seemed so familiar, but the innkeeper couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Let me try." Romani said, not referring to herself in the third person. She stood right next to Link's door.

"Oh Link? Honey, please let us in. We're worried." Romani again broke her own little tradition by calling Link 'Grasshopper' and used his real name. At least this time she got a response.

"Romani... not now."

Navi was endlessly puzzled. Who were these people that appeared to be so close to Link? This ranch woman looked like Malon, but called herself Romani? This innkeeper was acting like she was Link's mother. Her mind was left boggled at the thought of what the former Hero of Time had been up to after all these years.

There was a ring of the service bell downstairs. Someone was checking in.

"Crap, I got to see to that. Tell me if anything happens!" Kafei started downstairs, hating to be pulled away from something as important as this.

Anju finally got fed up. Fetching a key from the employee's room, she forcefully opened the bedroom door. As soon as she did, she was met with something she hadn't seen in years. Link was sitting on his bed. And he was crying.

"Link..." Anju kneeled by her son's bed. "Please, tell us what's going on."

Link hesitated for a moment. His voice had seemingly left him for a moment. Navi made her way to the frame of the door, but she didn't dare enter the room. The teen couldn't take his eyes off her distinct blue light. "I can't stop thinking about... H-Hyrule..."

Anju stepped back slightly at the last word he said. Link only reacted with a sigh. Now she knew what was making him so unresponsive. Romani couldn't recall much about the land Link hailed from, but she knew it was cause for a lot of emotional baggage. All she felt proper doing was sitting right beside him and picking up his chin to have him meet her gaze.

"Grasshopper, look at me." Link did was he was told. He didn't know what he wanted to do at that moment. "It'll be alright. Romani promises."

Link made up his mind and hugged his girlfriend. Then he started to let out all his emotion. The pair gradually lowered themselves until they were laying down, Link in Romani's arms. His tears never halted throughout the endeavor. The couple cuddled for a while until Link caught his breath at last. Anju had pulled up a chair by now and was sitting right next to the bed. She never wasted the opportunity to caress Link's hair to comfort him.

After a while, Link sat up. This time he made up his mind about something else.

"I need to be alone for a bit..." He spoke. Romani and Anju nodded without a word and turned to leave. Before Navi could join them, Link piped up again. "With her."

All present turned their eyes to the blue fairy, and suddenly she felt small compared to them.

Leaving the two alone, Anju and Romani left. It was just Link and Navi now, all alone in the room. A long bout of silence descended on them for a while until Navi decided to speak up.

"So, seems like a lot has changed..." Navi's words were uncharacteristically slow and quiet. "You... You are not the boy I know, are you?"

"Not anymore." Link said plainly, looking at nothing.