The Prince and The Wolf
(Dave’s P.O.V)
‘Wow. Lalonde really did a number on this place huh? I mean I know about the self defence mechanism but this is taking it really far isn’t it?’ I thought to myself, looking around the dark gloominess of the forest I was currently in.
My eyes froze on the limp form in front of me. So this was the chosen one or whatever huh? I had been following him all morning, and he didn’t seem that heroic, but the light spirit did say it was the one who didn’t turn into a wondering spirit like most Prospitians
He was pretty small, and really furry. His fur was black, and really fluffy looking. There were some glowing blue lights along his flank.
I sighed. He didn’t look like much, and I hope what that stupid light spirit said was true, because I did not just save this guy’s ass for nothing.
I looked away, focusing instead on the forest around me. I’m pretty sure it wasn’t normal for this forest to be wrapped in the wispy shadows of Derse and covered in the twisted purple spirals of my sister Roses magic.
It was strangely beautiful and deadly looking at the same time. I can see why it’s Roses.
My thoughts were interrupted by the figure in front of me stirring from his sleep.
He was moving, slowly, experimentally moving his limbs, but he was still moving. Well this was his first time in a new shape after all. I settled down on the grass and waited for him to wake up. When I believed he could move and react well enough, I spoke up.
“Nice to see you’re awake starshine”
He whipped around, blue eyes blown wide in shock. Seeing me, he relaxed a little, but not much. He looked at me warily with a questioning look in his eyes.
“Yo so you’re probably wondering what the fuck is going on huh?” I asked, getting up and floating towards him. He seemed to nod, so I continued (I would’ve anyway).
“Ok. So you know there’s Prospit right?” He rolled his eyes at me. I glared at him playfully. “That was so rude I just can’t believe you would do that that is so hurtful I’m going to go sit in a corner and cry.” I lamented, clutching my hand to my chest and floating around dramatically in a circle. “Anyway. So there’s a parallel sorta world called Derse. Where instead of ‘The Land of Golden Towers’ it’s ‘The Land of Violet Spires’. The knowledge of the two worlds is kept under lock and key, except for royalty and the ‘trolls’. And no, before you ask, I’m not a troll, we don’t know where the fuck those fuckers are. They’re just kinda…non-existent. Not there. A fairy tale. Vamoosh. I’m a prince so you know. One of the si-four members of the royal family.” I held my breath and closed my eyes, trying not to remember the corpses of Mum Lalonde and Bro fill my vision. I shook my head to clear those thoughts and continued.
“So the Condesce came and fucked us all over. My siblings are all in shit. This” I gestured around me “is my sister’s fault. It’s a self-defence mechanism us Dersians have. We can’t stand the golden light of your world, so we pull all our fears and insecurities and negative emotions and expel them into clouds of Twilight so we can survive. It the same for you Prospitans. Except you don’t do that. You turn into spirits.
That woulda happened to me, except I landed in a light spirit’s spring. The light spirit said I had some big destiny to play in saving the world, and you’re helping. No choice in the matter.” I finished, looking at him and shrugging.
“I think we have to go to the Faron light spirit spring or something. I don’t know. I wasn’t listening.” I cautiously floated forward and then leapt atop his back. I felt him stiffen underneath me.
“Well I need to get there, and I don’t want to go there by myself.” I roll my eyes at him and he kinda does this weird huff that sounds like a sigh? So let’s call it that. And we set off into the Twilight.
^ ^ ^
(John’s P.O.V)
This red character is…interesting. I still don’t know his name, or whether or not to trust him.
He’s rather short, shorter than Karkat even (although he told me that this isn’t his true form, and he was cursed by the Condesce), with milky white skin mixed in with black around his chest and on his legs (like pants). Upon further inspection, I noticed that those black spots on him had the same consistency as the surrounding Twilight, so I guess they were like clothes? A pair of small, red and black wings were resting comfortably against his back. There were bands of glowing red around his arms and neck, and a singular one on each leg. But perhaps the most curious thing about his appearance was the mask he wore. It was circular and red, with ten little squares jutting out, making it look like a cog. Over where his eyes would be, there were ovalesque tinted black glass shapes, and above that, a mess of cog shaped patterns.
I galloped throughout the shadowy forest, tearing through monsters (with the help of the Red guy) and laugh-growling at reds stupid commentary.
Eventually, through much one sided banter (he could read my face quite well, and responded as though I was actually speaking. Which was…nice.) we reached the Faron Light Spirit’s Spring.
I could tell it was in disarray. I make it my job to maintain the Ordon Spring, and, as it’s close by, the Faron Spring too. It was no longer covered in sparkling water (now completely frozen over), golden light and flora and fauna of many kinds, but dark, intrusive tendrils of shadow and curling purple runes. The once .
I could hear a weak voice in the back of my mind, the Light Spirit.
“Brave heroes, whose destiny was chosen by the three golden goddesses long ago…”
“Yo that’s us, wazzup”
“You must travel around this land, and collect the Tears of Light the Princess shed, this will protect my land from the Twilight, but retreat the darkness into the Temple of the Deku.”
“Right so collect my sister’s tears, dispel the dark and then venture into a dark scary temple to save my sister from herself got it.”
“Collect her tears in this.”
A brightly shining flower-like object materialised and floated towards me. Red quickly put it in his sylladex and saluted the Light Spirit. I bowed slightly before trotting off to find the tears of light.
I knew my way around Faron Woods quite well, but underneath the thick layer of darkness, it was hard to navigate. The tears were placed in such a way that it looked as if whoever shed them was fleeing something. Or to something.
The tears themselves were easy enough to find, as they were shining bright orange/yellow in the darkness. But collecting them was another story. They were put in the hardest to reach places; on top of trees, in monster nests, in poison fog, and behind large piles of rock. Each time we got a new one, red would take out the Tear of Light collector and place it inside.
Eventually, after many tries and tribulations, we managed to collect the last Tear of Light.
A great white light enveloped us, and I could feel red clench his fingers into my fur tightly as we were warped to the Light Spirits Spring.
The Spring was back to its former glory. The water had thawed, and was back to the shining pools I knew it to be. Small birds had settled down by the edge and were happily bathing. It was warm again, golden sunshine was filling the area. I felt red grumbling in annoyance, face pressed against my fur.
A greenish gold light appeared amongst the rocks, and a monkey-esque creature with a long tail appeared amongst the rocks, holding a ball of swirling green light appeared.
“Brave heroes…you have freed me from the Twilight but it still lurks…”
“Wow jeez, you’re making it sound like that’s a bad thing. It’s literally just my sister sulking.”
The Light Spirit ignored him and continued on, clearly annoyed.
“Young hero of Prospit, you need to navigate the temple, but you can’t in that form. Take this. It will protect you against the darkness…”
A green ball of light floated down to me and touched my chest, and a great feeling of warmth and happiness wash over me. I closed my eyes and laughed, feeling myself being lifted up into the air. When the feeling passed, I opened my eyes to find that I was human again, but I was wearing different clothes to my old Ordonian ones. These were blue, with a soft, comfy feel and had a blue windsock hood.
“Nice pyjamas starshine” I looked up, realising red was perched on my shoulders.
‘Hey! These are really comfy.” I signed back. He looked at me, confused.
“Why the fuck are you-“ He was cut off by the Light Spirit.
“These clothes were worn by the Legendary Hero of Old, they are a gift from the three Golden Goddesses themselves.”
“Oh joy old dead person clothes, my favourite.”
“Well they aren’t…they’re not! Look, just go to the Temple of the Deku Scrub and stop your sister from destroying my worshippers and their temple.”
The Light Spirit disappeared in a huff of annoyance and frustration.
‘Aww you pissed him off…’ I signed, laughing slightly.
“Why do you keep doing that? Moving your hands and not speaking?” He asked, confusion clear on his face.
I flushed red from embarrassment, but drew out from my sylladex my emergency chalkboard. Nanna, Jade and Karkat asked (Karkat heavily insisted) me to take it with me, saying ‘people from Castle Town generally don’t know sign language, this will help you communicate’. I guess it will come in handy after all. I began to write.
‘I don’t speak. I’m selective mute.’
He froze, shock evident on his features, before settling down into a cool indifference.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”
‘That’s ok. Also, I still don’t know your name! Mines John!’
“Mines Dave.” He said offhandedly, floating off my shoulders. “John huh? That’s a rather normal name isn’t it?”
I fluffed up, offended ‘Hey! It’s a great name!’ I wrote, pouting. He twisted around in the air, so that we were face to face, but he was upside-down.
“I’m kidding starshine, it suits ya.”
I grinned back at him
‘Shall we go save your sister brave knight?’
“We shall good sir…we shall”