The Precursor to Number 5

The story behind how I ended up getting this tattoo is just as interesting as the true reason I wanted it.  I think it’s rare to hear stories like this.  You might be thinking I’m full of it and it’s just because it’s my story that I think that - well, maybe. You can judge that for yourself after I’ve told you everything. 

FREE TATTOO DAY!!!!

Now, what could be better than a free tattoo? Nothing! Well, of course there are things, but at the moment, it’s nothing. Deal with it. So, being a person who has fallen in love with tattoos (doesn’t have a lot of money to drop on them) and desperately wanting another one, I opt to go to the Free Tattoo Day.  Luckily I was still in college and didn’t have to work during this Free Tattoo Day I had stubbled across, so I enlisted my friend Kimber to go with me.  A little bit about my friend Kimber - she’s my sister (not by blood,  but neither of us cares - to us we’re family and our families are each other’s families) and she only had one small tattoo on her foot at this point (one she’ll admittedly tell you looks horrible).  So, we both go to this event, neither of us knowing what to expect out of it.  We showed up pretty early, because that’s the kind of person I am, and discovered that you were to get a raffle ticket and wait.  As the time passed more and more people showed, but it wasn’t a terribly large group - surprisingly.  I had expected a lot more people, but I think the now Annual Free Tattoo Day was in its infancy, so the word hadn’t completely gotten out about it. 

The time had come for them to draw the lucky winners of a free tattoo. It happened just like you’d expect, they pulled the corresponding raffle ticket from a container and called the number. If it was yours, you went inside, chose a tattoo and made an appointment with an artist. I don’t recall how many free tattoos were given out that day, but it was a decent number.  Anyway, I didn’t get one, but Kimber did.  I was rather disappointed, to say the least. I still happily accompanied Kimber to get her tattoo, though.  To my disappointment, there was a display of the tattoos available to those who had won one free to choose from.  I suppose I should have expected this, but I hadn’t thought it through that well (I get really excited about things sometimes and don’t always think them through as much as I should).  I don’t remember all of the tattoos that were available, but most of them kind of sucked, at least to me.  Kimber chose the same tattoo I would have chosen - a victorian key.  Lucky for us, they had available time with an artist a bit later that day, so we made the appointment and headed off to the mall, which was just across the street.

The only comment I’m going to make about our shopping trip to the mall is that we bought Batman and Robin shirts with capes!!!! I only mention this because they will come into play later with another tattoo excursion.

So, we return to get Kimber’s victorian key, which she had decided would go on her left hip (right by the bone in the front).  As I’m sitting in a chair across from the tattooing table where Kimber is trying her best not to cringe in agony from her tattoo, I look to my left and see a stencil of the Crest of Hyrule and squeal like a little girl with immense excitement - 

Me: You have a stencil of the Crest of Hyrule!!! That’s so awesome. I would totally get that!
Spike: Yeah, that was actually one of the pieces for Free Tattoo Day
Me: Are you freaking kidding me?! That’s so damn unfair. 
Spike: Really? Do it! This guy had come in to get that tattoo about a year ago, paid his deposit, then never came back to get it. I’ve been trying to find someone to get it forever.
Me: I totally would. I freaking love Legend of Zelda. I’m seriously bummed I didn’t get a free tattoo.
Spike: You can still get it. I give you a killer deal on it.
Me: Really....? Hmmmm maybe I should.
Kimber: DO IT!!!
Me: Okay, I’m doing it.
Spike: Sweet (or something like that)

*I don’t remember the conversation verbatim, but it’s damn close.

So, Spike finishes Kimber’s tattoo, which didn’t really take too terribly long as it was rather small. After she was finished we started trying to devise how we would do my tattoo.  I awkwardly stood there motioning my hands to places where it could go...I thought just above my pelvic bone. No, that could end up terrible. Then I figured something along the lines of what Kimber just did with her key on my hip, but the shape would make it look weird. After some time Spike just said we’d figure it out when I came in.  He was super pumped to do it and would be thinking of what to do with it in the mean time.

So, the appointment was set.