A great woman, Impa, opened this village to us poor folk."
Unseen Kindness
"Get out of the way!" A man grumbled as he dashed past. The few rupees the beggar had collected tumbled from his hands, scattering on the stones of Castle Town.
The ragged beggar hunched over and slowly started to collect the rupees. He couldn't move very fast. He had never been able to.
"Look it's the Moblin!"
"Get him!"
A small stone struck the ground next to the man. He turned his head. The group of boys shrieked in mock terror and ran away laughing.
"He's going to eat us!"
"Run away!"
The man put a hand on his knee stood very slowly.
It didn't matter if he was slow. It didn't matter if he was ugly. It didn't matter if he wasn't liked by others. It didn't matter if he wasn't normal.
It didn't matter.
He counted the few rupees he had managed to collect. He had to make sure they were all there.
Six rupees.
This might be the best he could do.
The man stumped away from his spot near the fountain in the center of the town.
It was a busy day as usual. The city was bursting with people, goods, and energy. Sunlight beat down on the hordes of shopper who swarmed around stalls, each clamoring to outdo their comrades. The astringent smell of sweat was mixed with the aroma of grilled Cucco. A fine cloud of dust and dirt seemed to permanently grace the ground as shoppers hurriedly rushed this way and that. The harsh calls of street vendors over the white noise of the shoppers' chatting created an awful cacophony of sound...
It was such a nice day.
The man tromped slowly through the square. Constantly bobbing his head and apologizing whenever he got in someone's way. Occasionally his apology was met with an annoyed glare before they moved on. More often than not, he was simply ignored. More like intentionally ignored.
No one wanted to look at his lopsided face with his slack-jawed gaping mouth.
The residents of Castle Town never knew where to look when they actually gave him a passing glance. His eyes had a tendency to point in almost opposite directions.
His father used to tell him he could just see more of the world that way.
The man slumped into a back alley in between a stall that sold fabric and one that sold stuff in bottles.
The instant he was in the shadows of the alley, the noise level dropped conspicuously. The roar of the shoppers was now quieted to a hushed whisper, as if they were but a distant memory. It was cold in the alley way, but the shade was welcomed after standing in the sun for so long.
The soft shuffling sound of his footsteps echoed off the gray stone walls of the empty alley. A few rats skittered away into their hole as he approached. Empty pots filled with stagnant rain water and weeds littered the doorways. A dog barked from an upstairs window somewhere before it was quieted. Tattered and well-mended clothes hung from clotheslines strung between the buildings in an attempt to dry them in the sun that never reached here. The buildings had been built haphazardly in this neglected part of the town, as if the city couldn't be bothered with proper planning. Even narrower alleys branched off the one he now trudged, creating mazes that would be impossible to traverse without a good sense of direction. It wasn't too uncommon for those who wandered in here to be lost for what would seem like days. There were so many dead ends.
It was kind of nice back here.
Peaceful even.
The man limped along, turning into one of the branching paths. He stopped at a small run down home. The walls had long since fallen into disrepair. Gaping holes had made themselves known in the stonework. Only the Goddesses know what lurked in the tiny crevices and niches. Bright yellow eyes peered out at the man as he hobbled along.
The sun was now high in the sky, lighting up the alley with a blinding light. A slight scuffling noise ahead caught his attention. He moved toward the large alcove he had been looking for. The bright light of the sun cast the alcove in sharp relief, making it impossible to see what dwelled within.
"Good afternoon." The man said slowly kneeling down. His knees popped with the effort. "How are you today?"
There was the quiet sound of something moving in the shadows.
"I guess I'm bit out of practice," the man said pulling the rupees from his worn-out pants pocket. "It's not much, but here."
He deposited the rupees in a neat pile.
"I used to be able to get a lot more back in the day, but this should be able to buy you something to eat at the very least."
A small pale hand emerged from the shadows and moving toward the offering. The man grinned his lopsided grin, revealing missing teeth. The few teeth he did have were misshapen.
The hand retracted quickly.
"Oh no need to be afraid. My face if frightening, but I am not a bad person!" He said scratching his head. "Well I just wanted to let you know that I know what it's like." He smiled broadly, "If you ever want to live somewhere else go to the village just southeast of here."
There was no response. Just the brightly glittering rupees sitting in a neat pile.
The man got to his feet awkwardly, "I hope you have a nice day." He turned and trudged back the way he came.
"Th-thank you," a cracked dry voice said.
The man turned around and smiled another lopsided grin and waved, then he set off. It was a long trek back home.
It didn't matter if he was slow. It didn't matter if he was ugly. It didn't matter if he wasn't liked by others. It didn't matter if he wasn't normal. It didn't matter that he probably needed the rupees just as much as the child in the alley.
It didn't matter.
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All that mattered was that he had a home. That he had a small bit of happiness. That he had hope.
That was all that mattered.
Dampe smiled all the way back to Kakariko village.
If you are more inclined to the shadows of Hyrule, please take a look at my other fanfiction From theShadows