Uncharted Waters

“Where did you go?”

Link had lost Gigi in the marketplace, and she ended up finding him. She looked a little startled, linking arms with him and staying a little closer than usual. Link frowned, tilting her chin up so she’d look at him.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

“Nothing,” she said a little too quickly, shaking her head. “People are a little strange. This man was just staring at me. It was just a little unsettling.”

“Which man?” Link asked.

Gigi looked around, then frowned. “Oh. He’s gone.”

“Probably for the best,” Link shrugged. “Let’s get you home, before it gets dark.”

Gigi nodded and walked back with him. As they walked, Link caught sight of Julio, speaking to a few giggly young women. He looked up and frowned when he saw Link with Gigi, and Link smugly stood up straight and pulled Gigi a little closer. She seemed surprised, but she certainly didn’t mind it.

She stayed close to him until they neared the house, where they were finally split apart. Link headed to the library to where Ben was, while Gigi ran upstairs, claiming she was going to go through the things her mother planned on throwing out and stealing a thing or two.

Ben was carefully packaging up all the amazing artifacts he’d collected and had been showing Link, while a maid busily dusted off the empty shelves in the back. Link watched as he wrapped a small, porcelain sculpture in paper and tucked it away into a case. He looked up and smiled when he saw Link, giving him permission to come in.

“There you are,” he said. “I’ve been meaning to speak with you.”

“Of course.”

“I’ve been thinking about what you said, about energy,” he said. “And you’re right. It can’t be created nor destroyed. I have several theories for what may have happened. Harmless theories.”

“Yes?” Link asked, his eyes flitting to where the maid had been and finding that she had left.

“Prior to returning the amulet to the island, but once Gigi was born, there were some… complications with her infancy.”

“Complications?” Link asked.

“I had no explanation, other than the amulet’s effect on Scarlett, who carried her.” he said. “She was aging rapidly. She wasn’t quite six months old yet, but she’d taken her first steps. She was about the size of a one year old, perhaps even older.”

“And your theory?”

“When Gigi was, ah, concieved, the amulet’s power transferred from her to Gigi,” he suggested.

“So the power was never in the gem,” Link realized. “Of course, it had power, but the immortality was within Mrs. Griffith. And then Gigi.”

“That’s right,” Ben nodded. “It’s just a theory.”

“Sir?”

“Yes?”

“Gigi isn’t still aging rapidly, is she?” Link found himself asking, suddenly concerned that he’d been kissing a girl who was only ten or eleven years old.

“No,” he chuckled. “After the amulet was returned and thought to be destroyed, its power was put to sleep.”

“So, theoretically, it could still be asleep inside of Gigi?” Link asked.

Ben frowned suddenly, scratching the back of his head. “Let’s hope not.”

Link nodded and stopped the subject altogether, seeing a trace of worry in Ben’s eyes. He helped Ben pack up everything else on the desk before excusing himself up to his guest room. On his way out, he caught sight of the maid who was in the room earlier with her ear pressed against the door to eavesdrop on the conversation. Startled, Link came to the realization that the maid was none other than Catherine. She stood up straight, giving Link a sly grin and smoothing out her skirt.

“You,” Link whispered. “How did you even get in here?”

“This family is so rich, they don’t even know what the help looks like,” Catherine smirked, tickling Link’s nose with her feather duster and making him sneeze.”

“I’ll tell someone,” he threatened.

“I’ll cry ‘assault’,” she answered.

“They’ll believe me over you,” Link snapped.

“Yes, but do you really want to tell daddy dearest that you were plotting against his daughter the whole time?” Catherine pouted. “Gavin was right. We never should have trusted you. It’s a good thing you were stupid enough not to notice us follow you when you left.”

“You followed me?” Link said.

“Of course we did,” Catherine scowled. “You didn’t really think Gavin was just going to let you leave, did you?”

Now that she said it, he realized she was right. She was horribly right. Link started to speak, but another voice cut him off and he spun around.

“Link, have you seen a small jewelry box?” Ben asked him. “I had it sitting on the desk.”

“No, sir,” Link answered.

“Strange,” Ben frowned. “I could have sworn I didn't put it away. It's not even going to the bags, it was going around Scarlett’s wrist.”

“Oh, was it for a special occasion?” Link asked, a little concerned now.

“No,” Ben chuckled. “I just love my family. When Gigi was six years old, a single tear rolled down her cheek because she realized she couldn't keep a horse on the ship. I turned the ship right around. Now, she owns an entire ranch from a distance. Good night, Link.”

Link wasn't sure if Ben was kidding or not, but he nodded slowly as Ben patted him on the shoulder and walked away. Link turned, but Catherine had gone missing. With new information. Link’s heart pounded in his chest as everyone started getting ready for bed, and he still hadn’t seen Gigi. Thankfully, she came to him before he got too paranoid.

She had slipped into his room while he was in the washroom, and he came out to find her sitting on the edge of the bed with a content smile on her face. The smile faded when she saw Link, and the sort of worried look on his face.

“Are you alright?” she asked.

“I’m fine,” Link lied, sitting beside her on the bed. “Shouldn’t you be in bed?”

“Don’t worry, Daddy already checked on me,” she assured him. “He won’t go to my room anymore. You look tense. Tell me what’s wrong.”

“Nothing, nothing is wrong,” Link sighed, running his hand over his face.

Gigi didn’t argue with him again, instead scooting behind him and kissing the side of his head. She took his glasses off and set them aside. Link may have had terrible vision, but he didn’t need to say a thing. Gigi left a trail of light kisses down his neck, then started to rub his shoulders. As much as Link wanted to protest, he hadn’t realized how much he needed it.

“See? You’re tense,” Gigi said, laughing softly. “Honestly, Link, when was the last time you relaxed?”

“I don’t know,” he mumbled, voice cracking a bit.

It was the truth. Since the moment Link stepped out the front door of his family’s home, his life was slowly getting more and more stressful. And for a moment, things seemed okay. And then it wasn’t. He feared for Gigi now, and he couldn’t even tell her why.

She stayed for a while, and they just talked, until it was very late and Gigi was starting to doze off in his arms. They were tangled up in each other on the bed, and Link felt a little guilty telling her to get up and go to her own room. Not just that, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to let her out of his sight, knowing that Catherine was out there somewhere with the idea that Gigi was the holder of the amulet. He let her sleep in his bed, keeping one arm tightly around her until he fell asleep himself.



“Rise and shine, sleeping beauty…”

Link groaned as Gigi gently woke him up, running her fingers lightly over his face and through his hair. He woke up with a start, accidentally bumping his forehead against hers and making them both wince.

“Sorry,” he mumbled.

“That’s okay,” she said, laughing softly and kissing his forehead where he’d bumped it. “It’s getting a little late in the morning. We should get out of bed before someone checks on us.”

“Right,” Link yawned, rolling out of the bed.

“Link?”

“Hm?”

“Forgetting something?”

Link frowned and thought for a minute, but he couldn’t figure out what he was missing. Gigi laughed softly and got out of bed, putting Link’s glasses on for him and pulling him down into a deep, lingering kiss.

“I forgot my glasses?” he asked.

“You forgot to kiss me,” she answered. “And your glasses.”

Link leaned down to kiss her again, making sure not to accidentally bump her forehead again.

“Go get changed,” she said. “I’ll be right here when you get back.”

Link nodded and went into the washroom to freshen up while Gigi sat by the mirror and started to fix herself up. Once Link had a moment alone, he let out a deep breath and stared at himself in the mirror, leaning on the sink for support. Thankfully, no one had tried anything. Still, Link knew he couldn’t stick to Gigi forever. Once they were out to sea, it would no longer be a problem, but until then he intended on keeping close to her.

He heard a thud in the bedroom and frowned, walking back in and blinking a few times in confusion. A chair had fallen over, the window was open, and Gigi was gone. Link rushed to the window, but no one was there. He started to panic, going to Gigi’s room and knocking. When there was no answer, he let himself in and started to panic more when she wasn’t there, either. His fear had come true.

Link rushed down the stairs and started wandering the house, careful not to attract too much attention to himself, but he didn’t know what else to do. He didn’t want to cause any commotion, but he was almost positive that Gigi was gone. And not at her own will. He turned and nearly slammed into someone, taking a step back to see Scarlett standing there.

“Mrs. Griffith!” Link stammered. “My apologies…”

“Oh, that’s quite alright, Link,” she laughed. “Are you alright? You look pale, dear.”

“I’m fine,” Link lied.

“Have you seen Gigi?” she asked. “I wouldn’t be surprised if she might have left to see town one last time, but usually she will tell me first. I can’t find her everywhere.”

“I don’t know,” Link said a little too quickly. “She’s probably in town.”

Scarlett’s smile changed a little bit, and Link couldn’t help but feel threatened by this smile. He suddenly remembered that despite how calm and sweet Scarlett had always been around him, she did have quite a different personality when she was younger. And some things never change.

“Is there something you’d like to tell me, Link?” she said calmly.

“Actually, I was wondering where Mr. Griffith was,” Link said.

“In the library,” Scarlett told him.

“Thank you,” he said, nodding to her and backing away.

He hurried away to the library, thankful that Scarlett didn’t try to follow him, but he had an even bigger fear to face. Ben looked up at him and smiled, but the smile disappeared as soon as he saw Link’s expression.

“Mr. Griffith? There’s… an issue.”