An Afternoon Walk (Finished)

[adela]

Adela flew in low over the lake, sharp eyes scanning the area as she came in to land gently on the bridge. Her large black wings folded behind her and settled gently against her back. In her satchel she carried a blanket and a few wrapped pieces of meat as well as some fruits and vegetables should she wish to have her dinner here along the lake.

It had only been a few weeks since she was granted the inheritance but already the savings was starting to dwindle. She would need to find employment again soon or take to living a life in the wild, hunting and scavenging and living in a makeshift shelter.

But today was a day to get away from that. She patted her leather bag and started down off of the bridge so that she might take a walk around some of the lake and enjoy the day. It was rare that she got these sorts of occasions while under employ so she had been taking the opportunity to do this as often as she could lately.

[nestor]

Nestor was lazing around the lake, in the tall grass near Lake Hylia. Another day of watching the world go by, waiting for an interesting moment, possibly one where he would stretch his legs and travel a few feet.

That moment came when a girl swooped in from on high, carrying a leather bag. Before she even came close, he could smell something in her bag. Was it food? Yes it was. He waited in the tall grass, and when she got close he would pop his head up.

"Hello there, taking a tour of the lake are we hmmmm?"

[adela]

Adela stepped a few inches to the side when Nestor rose his head out of the bushes, allowing him some space should he wish to step out. "In a way, yes. I find that long walks help me to relax when I have little else to do." And during the course of the past few weeks, she had found herself with a great deal of time and very little with which to fill it.

She watched the minish for a few seconds before coming to a conclusion. "Is this where you live? It is a lovely place." This was one of the first times that she had come to the lake for an afternoon but if these first few minutes were any indication, it would be a place that she would come to frequent often.

[nestor]

Nestor smiled and shook his head. "Oh no, this is just where I relax every day. My home is further up the river. Yes, up the river."

He dropped his head back down into the grass before slowly rustling through the grass and emerging with a smile. He smiled often, he was very lighthearted.

After emerging from the grass, he slowly approached her. Specifically, her satchel. He began to sniff around. "I smell food."

[adela]

"It is a lovely place for it. To relax I mean." She had not often been to the lake before but if these first few minutes were any indication, this would be a place that she often traveled to. A small smile started to creep across Adela's face as she looked out over the lake. Perhaps Nestor's lighthearted nature was just a little contagious.

A look of confusion crossed Adela's face as her attention was drawn back to Nestor by his approach of the satchel. Her confusion soon faded as he made his statement. "Oh, yes. I was unsure if I would make it home by dinner so I packed some things to eat. I brought enough for a few people....in case I ran into anybody hungry." The explanation of her action was tacked hastily onto the end of the sentence. She had packed out of habit and since she had spent most of her life taking care of others she automatically packed for more than just herself.

[nestor]

Nestor listened to her explanation, knowing that there was more to it than that. He'd been around too long to not notice her hesitation. But he took no action against it, he didn't need to pry. Didn't feel the need to.

"This is a wonderful place. Very calm. Good for thought." He shapeshifted into his human form, a form he seldom used. His shell shrank into a back, and he grew arms and legs. He looked similar to a Koopa Troopa without the shell, shorts and all. He stretched out a little and went back to laying on the grass.

"Lay down for a while, the grass is surprisingly soft today."

[adela]

Adela watched in mild fascination as Nestor shifted his shape. She had only limited dealings with Minish and even then she did not normally see them as they changed. It was interesting to see, to say the least. "Thinking would be useful right now." Her mind had been cluttered with thoughts these past few weeks and she had done much to avoid them.

She sat down next to Nestor and laid back, being careful to settle her wings in a position where they would act as a cushion but not be crushed beneath her. Her arms came to rest behind her head and she watched the clouds that passed overhead. "My name is Adela. It's a pleasure to meet you."

[nestor]

"Nestor. It's good to see someone willing to lay down, so many travelers these days are in such a hurry. It's amazing their hearts can sustain it. Take some time to just relax, take in the air." Nestor continued to sit there until his stomach rumbled. It was certainly mealtime.

"So Adela, when shall we eat? My stomach is trying to tell me that time is now." He began to clear a small field for a picnic. All that relaxing was making him hungry.

"So tell me Adela, what is your purpose in this world."

[Nylan]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,width:410px;background-image:url(http://i53.tinypic.com/wl23uo.gif);-webkit-border-radius:150 0 50 0px;-moz-border-radius: 150 0 50 0px;border-left: 5px double #FFF; border-top: 5px double #FFF; border-bottom: 5px solid #FFF; border-right: 5px solid #FFF;] Nylan Fearon you're always hiding behind your so called goddess. so what? you don't think that we can see your face? resurrected back before the final falling...i'll never rest until i can make my own way, i'm not afraid of fading. i stand alone, feeling your sting down inside me. i'm not dying for it. Nylan followed the pathway with a sublime attitude, her blade hanging from her back with her typical black strap. Her eyes focused upon the female as she cast out from the skies and onto a small field. As she continued her walk, she spotted another a figure, and eventually it morphed into a human form. As she got closer, they seemed to sit back, and simply relax. Something she hadn’t done in years. So far, on this pathway back to Castle Town, she had yet to find any travelers; the only people she had seen were related to her job, and obviously she had no choice but to fight them, being a mercenary and whatnot. Her job was a small one and only asked to eliminate a small group of people. She came up to the two people in time, stepping over the bushes that Nestor had emerged from. She stood still, eying the food with hungry eyes. She had only a few rupees, as her pay wouldn’t be received until confirmation of her deed was in. Nestor, he introduced himself as, and she was Adela. Unique names she rather liked, in all honesty. Nestor was a Minish and Adela and Oocca; apparently by their introductions they did not previously know each other. She simply stood there, listening to Nestor’s question, a good one. What was her place in the world? She hadn’t thought about that since Madeline was born, although since her death it had somewhat began to mingle in the boundaries of her mind. “Hm…”

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[adela]

"I will admit that it has been a long time since I have felt comfortable doing this. Much of my life has been spent working with very little time for much else." At the mentioning of the food she sat up and began to set up the cloth that she had brought for her lakeside picnic. "We may eat now. I will not make you wait."

Her attention turned to the other nearby and she waved to Nylan. "I packed enough that you may join us as well, so long as your intentions are good." Adela gave a friendly smile and gestured for her to sit along the edge of the cloth as she pulled out several cured meats as well as a good deal of fruits and vegetables, and finally a small loaf of bread.

"My purpose?" She repeated the question as she thought on it, taking a seat on one side of the cloth. "My purpose is to see to the needs of others. I am currently without work, however. The woman that I saw to all my life passed on recently. She was quite old even before I started to care for her."

Adela turned her attention to Nylan one more and gestured once more for her to sit if she hadn't already. "It is a pleasure to meet you. My name is Adela. What brings you out this way?" The question was asked in a conversational sort of tone with no demand for an answer.

[nestor]

Nestor was glad that Adela was being very hospitable. Normally his upfront yet calm behavior, not mention his willingness to eat the food of other travelers didn't go over well. Normally they had to talk for a long time before Nestor was welcome at the table. He liked this winged girl, she was nice.

Nestor shifted back into his turtle form before turning toward the new girl who approached. "Hmm? Somebody is intrigued, no? Another traveler walking the roads of the lake. My, it certainly is my lucky day." He let out another old man chuckle before turning back to Adela, the smile on his face still remained.

"I would disagree, Adela. You are still young. Perhaps that has been your purpose until now, but you still have time to find your destiny. What your purpose was and what it will be may not be the same." He turned to look at Adela. "Your eyes tell me much about you, young one. Please, sit, you must have stories to tell, no?"

[Nylan]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,width:410px;background-image:url(http://i53.tinypic.com/wl23uo.gif);-webkit-border-radius:150 0 50 0px;-moz-border-radius: 150 0 50 0px;border-left: 5px double #FFF; border-top: 5px double #FFF; border-bottom: 5px solid #FFF; border-right: 5px solid #FFF;] Nylan Fearon you're always hiding behind your so called goddess. so what? you don't think that we can see your face? resurrected back before the final falling...i'll never rest until i can make my own way, i'm not afraid of fading. i stand alone, feeling your sting down inside me. i'm not dying for it. Nylan smirked at Adela’s gesture; she liked the invitation, and took a step back as the two continued their talk. Slinging blade out from behind her, Nylan allowed the broadsword to lie in the grass. She never was one to strike the ground with her blade so that it may sit upright, it just never felt right. Moving back over to Adela and Nestor, she rolled her shoulders as the relief of having no sword weighing her down overcame her. She was used to it, and it was not soreness, but a relief of lightness. She watched Adela as she spoke of recent loss, something that struck home for Nylan. Sitting on the ground Indian style with her legs crossed, she nodded when she was addressed out of habit. “Adela and Nestor, yes. I heard the introduction when I came up on you.” She eyed area before her, looking for some food she could eat without honestly indulging too much. “I’m Nylan, common mercenary. It’s nice to see some friendly faces, but please tell Adela. I too, know the feeling of loss.” Her hands rested on her knees and she simply stared forth, lusting for the food but refusing to be the first to dig in.

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[adela]

She seemed to show surprise at their words; surprise at Nestor for his belief that she could be something more and surprise at Nylan for wishing to hear more. Perhaps it was because she was used to talking with those who either already knew her or did not care but their interest was strange to her.

"Very well. I was taken in as an infant by an older woman, a human, and never knew my true parents. She adopted me into the household first as someone to help around the house and eventually as someone to be her personal attendant. Her recent passing was inevitable, she was very old." Adela did not mind sharing this information. It was nothing that she held to be terribly personal.

Reaching out to the loaf of bread, she broke it into three relatively equal parts, giving the two larger pieces to Nestor and Nylan. "Tell me, what is it like to be a mercenary?" As she awaited an answer, she began to pass out the cured meats.

[nestor]

Nestor listened intently to the story of Adela. The old maiden and being a house servant. Made sense she would believe herself to be helpful by nature. It made Nestor think about his own mortality. He may only be almost 50, but he felt older, and looked it as well.

As he waited for Nylan to give her story, he took a piece of meat and bread and began to eat it as a turtle would eat. He laid it on the ground and just nibbled at it for a while, taking his time as he always did. Days were short, but time was long to him. He'd annoyed many a person with his ways, but cared not. Those who were important had the time to wait.

[Nylan]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,width:410px;background-image:url(http://i53.tinypic.com/wl23uo.gif);-webkit-border-radius:150 0 50 0px;-moz-border-radius: 150 0 50 0px;border-left: 5px double #FFF; border-top: 5px double #FFF; border-bottom: 5px solid #FFF; border-right: 5px solid #FFF;] Nylan Fearon you're always hiding behind your so called goddess. so what? you don't think that we can see your face? resurrected back before the final falling...i'll never rest until i can make my own way, i'm not afraid of fading. i stand alone, feeling your sting down inside me. i'm not dying for it. She listened to the story, Adela’s words speaking true to Nylan. Hyrule was full of people with troubled histories, but people always seemed to come out on top, still holding to their morals and ethics. Nylan was one of these people, and even more importantly, they were women who had come out of situations that not even some men could have come out of. Nylan was still very different from Adela. While she wouldn’t speak it, her pain and loss was, in her mind, much greater. How could you honestly compare loss and tragedy though? It was a sticky situation, and the mercenary would rather keep her stories to herself. She didn’t know these people after all, opening up to them wasn’t on her to-do list. “It’s a job, I suppose. I’ve been a mercenary since I came of age. My mother was a Gerudo, my father a Human. I never grew up around the Gerudo, but my mother instilled their values and teachings into me. I guess it’s made being a mercenary….easy.” She was in her late twenties, sitting here talking about her life to strangers, and she hadn’t even had a keg of rum. Reaching forth and digging for some food, she began eating, but not too much, she had to be polite after all. Nestor was an interesting Minish, wasn’t it his turn now? “What about you, Nestor?”

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[adela]

As Adela listened to Nylan speak on her childhood she wondered what she might be like now if she had been raised by an Oocca or someone with the knowledge of the culture. She had no regrets about her life, however, it was just idle thinking.

Her attention turned out to the lake for a few seconds and she let out a contented sigh, though she wondered what sort of loss Nylan had experienced she would not press. It was not her place to ask.

As Nylan questioned Nestor, her attention turned back to the two of them, watching their conversation as she nibbled on a piece of cured meat. She had not been hungry but she could not stand by while another was. Adela would likely eat the left over food later in the day.

[nestor]

Nestor perked up at the question. He always his life to be uninteresting compared to others. Maybe because he was the one who lived it. Stories always glorify everything, and he didn't get stories.

"Hmm? Ah, I'm afraid my story isn't nearly as interesting. I read my way through childhood and live as a hermit up Zora's River, succeeding the last hermit who lived up Zora's River. I come down and talk to travelers like yourselves to pass the time until the gods have decided I've bothered enough people for one lifetime." He let out another light old man chuckle and began to nibble on the bread laid out before him.

[Nylan]

[atrb=border,0,true][atrb=style,width:410px;background-image:url(http://i53.tinypic.com/wl23uo.gif);-webkit-border-radius:150 0 50 0px;-moz-border-radius: 150 0 50 0px;border-left: 5px double #FFF; border-top: 5px double #FFF; border-bottom: 5px solid #FFF; border-right: 5px solid #FFF;] Nylan Fearon you're always hiding behind your so called goddess. so what? you don't think that we can see your face? resurrected back before the final falling...i'll never rest until i can make my own way, i'm not afraid of fading. i stand alone, feeling your sting down inside me. i'm not dying for it. How interesting, a hermit Minish. As he nibbled on the bread and Adela on other pleasantries, Nylan lifted a small piece of meat and bit into it. Chewing on it momentarily, her reply to Nestor was delayed but her nodding to acknowledge him was immediate. Swallowing, she glanced at Adela, then back to Nestor. “What have you studied in then?” She didn’t have much else to ask, but she was wondering if this Minish could be a resourceful friend in the future. If he is a hermit she would have to travel a distance to reach him, but he could turn into a good source of information if she ever comes across a difficult situation.

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[adela]

"I'm sure you must have met some interesting people during that time." A life like that was an enviable one. To one such as Adela it seemed perfect, no schedule and no expectations.

"And I do not think that your story is uninteresting. You have done something that few ever have the chance to do. You get to live your life. Most people rarely get to do what they wish to." She set down the piece of meat she had been nibbling on and grabbed a small fruit. Adela rubbed it on her shirt sleeve before taking a bite.

[nestor]

Nestor let out another old man chuckle. "I never said it was what I wanted to do, lass. I said it was what I did. Alas, I am too old to live out my childhood dreams." The smile remained on his face, even though the subject was saddening. He lived with little regret, regret slowed things down too much, even for him.

"I studied a few things here and there. Meditating under a waterfall and all that. I met quite a few travelers, whether or not they were interesting is not my judgment. I find stories interesting, except my own. Stories are more interesting when you can make them into glamorous epics. I lived mine out, and it was no glamorous epic." Unlike what he told to everyone, he knew his destiny was written. There was little else for him to do besides wait for the hands of time to pick him up and whisk him away.