Chapter 2 :) xx 2.
"What do you want to be when you grow up, my son?" Rusl sat comfortably on a chair in front of his cosy home in the hazy afternoon sunshine that dazed Ordon. He looked forward to see four children playing about a yard away, among them was his bright and cheerful son Collin.
"I want to be just like my hero, he's great, he's very nice and he helps everyone, remember when he chased them horrible monkeys away?"
"Or when he stopped all of the goats from escaping! Ahhh he's the best" Beth fluttered her eyelashes in a dreamily sort of way.
"What about the time when he rescued the village from that bunch of flesh eating zombies from the evil realm of…erm…evilness!!!"
"Talo!!!" Collin, Beth and Malo protested.
"Could have happened" Talo explained in his defence.
"Of cause it could Tal!" The children gasped and Talo jumped in surprise at the young man behind him.
"Link!" The children ran to him to greet him back from work.
Link was that kind of person, he was kind and considerate, charming and courageous. The mayor himself had awarded Link on many occasions for his acts of bravery that saved the lives of others.
He was something of a hero in Hyrule. And something of a legend in Ordon. But he always returned to his humble roots and now worked full time goat herding and always made time for the children of Ordon. Everyone loved Link.
But this time Link wasn't on his way home. He had been unexpectedly invited to join the mayor for some important proposal.
Rusl suddenly got up when he was awakened from his almost hypnotic state by the sudden arrival of Link, Ordon's own personal hero. Rusl treated Link like a son. Ever since Link was abandoned as a baby on the outskirts of Ordon.
"So my boy" Rusl started "You have any idea what big old Bo wants from you?" Rusl walked over to Link and put a hand on his shoulder. "I bet it has something to do with you earning a permanent place here in Ordon's history, if ya know what I mean" Rusl winked at him. Link was didn't know how to answer.
"Actually I don't know what you mean" He stepped back and tried to think of any good reason why he had to see Mayor Bo. Come to think of it, there wasn't a good reason. Then he realised. "No. You don't think?"
"Looks like it to me" Rusl confirmed. He then looked up at the sky. "The sun is setting Link, don't be late, Bo expects great things from you."
With his kind words Rusl withdrew to his house with Collin shortly behind. The young boy turned and gave a wave to Link before disappearing after his farther. The other children soon departed. Their parents didn't let them out passed sunset anymore. There was a growing concern in Hyrule as strange creatures kept appearing. The conspiracy is that it has something to do with the unusual visit from the prince of a distant land in a few days time. Most likely to ask the princess's hand in marriage. Most likely to be turned down.
Bo sat comfortable in front of a large fire in his home. His pretty, young daughter Ilia sat close by and marvelled at the great stories her farther was telling her. She grinned as he began to make spectacular shadows on the wall.
At that moment, their pleasant evening was interrupted by the entrance of a tall, young, hansom, blond man with the most wondrous blue eyes in all of Hyrule. They told great tales of passed encounters and challenging experiences, yet they still possessed the vacancy for many years to come.
"Link!" Ilia greeted and moved towards her childhood friend. She gave him a big friendly hug and asked him how his day was. He responded and was polite, but like a certain princess, his body was on auto-pilot. His mind battled with what issue it was that brought him here.
"Ah Link, I was waiting for you. Now let us get straight to business" Bo stood tall and intimidating. He turned to Ilia. "Ilia, sweetheart, this is business only for us men to discuss. Could you give us a few minuets please?" Ilia's smile tuned to a slight frown, but she did as her father asked and left the two of them in peace.
"Link, you are a fine young man, a brilliant example of what every Hylian should aspire to be like. You're strong, intelligent, charming and outrageously courageous. I bet you're a hit with the ladies" Bo stopped to wink at Link in a "You know what I'm saying" sort of way. Link began to feel uncomfortable and started to fidget as he guessed what this was leading. "And it gives me great pleasure to ask this of you. Link, I'm offering you the position of Mayor of Ordon when I retire in a few weeks."
He knew this was coming, but his ears refused to hear it, His mind refused to accept it. What was wrong with him? Anyone else in this position would be ecstatic and honoured with such a privilege. But as the words slowly seeped in and got underneath Link's skin, the horror hit him like a blade through his heart.
"I….don't know what to say!" Link managed to force himself to speak when the silence began to become uncomfortable. Bo smiled and started again.
"And of cause what would a new Mayor be without a" Here it comes. "Beautiful" This was it "Young" he knew this was what Bo really wanted "Intelligent" This was torture "Wife" Bingo! Link knew it all along; the real reason that Bo invited him here was so that he could sell off his daughter.
"Ilia and you would be a great match, don't you think?" Bo turned to link to put him on the spot.
"I guess so" Link admitted. Bo was right; they seemed like an ideal match. They knew each other for most of their lives. But it wasn't there, the chemistry, the passion. His heart didn't race whenever he saw her, he didn't want to be with her for every waking moment, he didn't need her to make his life complete. She was a friend, not a lover.
"What is the matter?" Bo had noticed Link's mood slowly deteriorate before his eyes. Bo seemed mildly offended. "You don't want her do you Link? But, I…I thought you loved my daughter." Bo frowned.
"I do love her" Link defended himself. "I'm just not in love with her, she is my friend, I love her as a sister, I'm sorry Bo I just can't help how I feel."
"I see" Bo lowered his head and he seemed to be displaying an emotion somewhere midway between disappointment and anger. "I do suggest that you over-look my proposal Link, you over-look it until you begin to think logically, you understand!" An annoyed tone crept into Bo's usually calm voice. He sighed and seemed to calm down. "I think it is best if you leave now Link" Link nodded and in a hurry to get out of the way of the let down Bo, he rushed to the door. Bo sighed once more and spoke one last time, he voice sounded more like pleading this time. "Just please don't disappoint me, my boy."
Link left Bo's house and in a comic fashion wiped his forehead with his hand and let out a large sigh of relief. The then chuckled to himself at the very thought of him and Ilia together like that.
He started making his way towards his home which was situated in a small clearing a little way away from the village itself. He convinced himself that it was because he didn't feel like a real villager. And besides, he craved the solitary and freedom of isolation. He just wished he had someone to share it with.
Then she popped up into his head again, like she always dose. She drugs him into a state of pure obsession and will not give in the sedation until he sleeps. Even then she haunts his dreams.
He was ten. He was a kid. And what to curious ten year olds do? They let that curiosity rule and get into trouble. He was invited to castle town by his friend Malon. She always said that they should go sometime. Her father says it's wonderful. So Link decided to make the journey to the castle one day and with the help of Rusl escorting him, he met Malon. He remembered all of the sights and sounds of Castle town. There seemed an ecstatic buzz constantly radiating from the happy residence. Rsul had decided to shop for a few things and let the children look around for a while, after all Castle town had always been one of the safest places Hyrule has ever known.
After a while of looking around and being amazed by practically everything in this new place, Malon and Link became bored. That's when they saw it, the entrance to the castle itself.
So, by the unwritten law of nature they had to go and check it out, it was just staring them in the face. Surprisingly the security was minimal. The truth may be that Castle town was practically the safest town in Hyrule but, come on, this was the Royal family! These so-called guards should at least make an effort to, um, guard!
It was so easy for Link and Malon to commit a felony and trespass on the castle grounds. They practically strolled down walkways and skipped through courtyards. But their little adventure came to an end soon enough as they were confronted by an intimidating grey, stone wall.
"Link, I can't clime that! Look how big it is!" Malon exclaimed as she examined the wall's features. "But I bet you can" She turned to him and winked "go on".
"Are you crazy!" Link started "I don't know whats on the other side of that, there could be a whole bunch of guards and soldiers waiting there to throw me into prison for the rest of my life!"
"No there wont! Look" she pointed to a grandly carved sign ahead of them. "Apparently it leads to the gardens. I can smell the flowers from here. Oh there so beautiful. I wish I was the princess, having all of this lovely land" Malon began to drift into girl world. Link rolled his eyes. "Look, Link, I'll make a bet with you. If you go over that wall and don't get caught, I'll give you my most cherished horse, Epona." Link nodded.
"Sounds great to me" He made his way to the wall.
"But! If you do get caught, you have to come by and clean out the stables at the ranch, every week for a year." Malon gave an evil little grin. "How about it?"
Link hesitantly agreed and made his way up the wall. The climbing was the easy part, what came next was something that stuck with him to the present day, something he would never forget.
Malon was right. The gardens smelled great. The many breeds of flowers bust with enchanting scents that lingered in the air. They added life to the area. It was like a sacred little part of heaven confined within a stone prison. The walls weren't too high, they let in the cooling breeze and the right amount of sunlight. A pool of this sunlight seemed to land on his main focus. Her.
She was just sitting there, amongst the flowers like an angelic fairy. She was dresses in a white and pink dress which seemed so simple, yet if you looked at the finer details it overflowed with elegance. She had long blond wavy hair which was tied back in some fancy style. He never failed to notice the few strands which rebelled. Link all of a sudden felt underdressed.
He was amazed that she didn't seem to notice him yet; she was sitting with her back to him, singing a song in ancient Hylian. Still to this day he wished that he knew what it meant.
He felt wrong spying on her, so he decided to let his presence be known by her. All memories of his bet with Malon seemed to disappear. He took a few steps towards her. She turned and met his blue orbs with Royal violet ones. They didn't say a word, not a single utterance. Words didn't need to be said, there was something much deeper than that between them. He suddenly felt scared as emotions he didn't know existed overpowered him. He had to leave. And he's been mentally kicking himself ever since. He didn't even get her name.
Link has had many friends who were girls, but none of them ever made him feel like that. She was like no other, like a fingerprint and he will never forget her.
Reality made her bitter self known once again when Link realised he had reached his home.
How could he ever think of marrying Ilia, that girl was out there somewhere, he knew it, if only he knew her name. But if he refused Bo offer he knew it would make him Ordon's biggest outcast. If only they knew, if only they would listen.
He made his way up his ladder and entered his home. He took one last look out of his window and gazed to the stars as if pleading to the goddesses themselves, hoping that she might hear.
"What happened to you?"