Chapter Two
The morning sun shone through the window into Impa's bedroom, the light falling directly onto her closed eyes. She opened her eyes and squinted, using her hand to shield the light. She yawned for a moment and sat up on her bed. She looked at the clock on her wall to see that it was almost eight o'clock. This was sleeping in for Impa, as she usually got up at the crack of dawn. But last night had been a little more taxing than most nights. After Link had brought Zelda home drunk, Impa knew she would have a lot of work ahead the next day. She had been up all night preparing her famous Sheikah hangover remedy, knowing Zelda would definitely need it. She had been in the kitchen rummaging through all the pantries, trying to find the right ingredients. After nearly three hours of working, she had finally made her remedy. Impa got out of bed and put her usual clothes on. She smiled to herself, remembering the many times she had had to use her remedy for hangovers. She just hoped that Zelda's wouldn't be as bad as some of the ones she had.
Impa quickly made her bed and then walked out of her room and down the hall. Impa opened the door to Zelda's bedroom and went inside. She looked to see Zelda lying face-down on her bed, in the same position they had left her the night before. Her hair was disheveled and pointing in all directions. Every now and then, a quiet moan would come from Zelda, a precursor to the discomfort she would be feeling when she woke up. She saw the chair that Link had insisted on sitting in all night, but noticed that he wasn't there. She walked closer to the bed and saw that Link was sprawled on the floor, sound asleep. Impa knew that Link wouldn't be able to stay up all night watching Zelda. But he was so stubborn that he didn't accept Impa's offer of a bed or sleeping bag. Now he was simply lying on the cold stone floor, sleeping soundly. Somehow it was so adorable to see him like this. He had tried so hard to stay up but simply couldn't. Link had fallen asleep in his chair and had eventually migrated to the floor.
Impa walked up to Link and gently nudged him with her foot. He immediately shot up and looked around for a moment, not quite knowing where he was. But the memories of the previous night had come flooding back to him in an instant. Link looked up at Impa's smiling face. Link stood up and tried to brush the wrinkles from his clothing, attempting to look like he was wide awake. "Oh..." mumbled Link. "I was just, um, resting my eyes."
"Yeah, I know," said Impa with a smirk. "You should've just taken the sleeping bag."
"I'm sorry, I thought I could stay up. I guess I was a little tired." Link yawned and stretched, rubbing his back and wincing. Sleeping on the hard stone floor had been more uncomfortable than he realized. Impa knew how much Link sacrificed himself for Zelda. He always insisted on giving her everything even when it was more than imposing on him. But he enjoyed making her happy, that was the only thing he cared about. Link had always put his wants and needs last. Link looked over at the still unconscious Zelda. Seeing her like this made her seem so vulnerable, which was why Link always felt like he had to protect her.
"We need to get Zelda up," said Impa.
"Can't we just let her sleep?" asked Link, once again thinking of Zelda's welfare. "She probably needs it and I don't want to wake her up if she's comfortable."
"Trust me, she's not comfortable," replied Impa in a voice that seemed to reflect the many years of experience she'd had in this particular area. "There's some things I need to give her. I made up a hangover remedy and she needs it. Plus she needs to eat something, and then she can go back to bed. How are you feeling? 'Cause I only made enough of the little potion for one person."
"I'm okay," replied Link, in a half-lie. He felt a little sick to his stomach and had a mild headache, but he'd been through worse. "I just need to wake up a little, I really hate mornings." Link hated waking up in the morning with a vengeance. He always wished he could sleep in, but there was always somebody who insisted on pulling him out of his peaceful slumber, usually Saria.
"Well, shall I wake her up, or do you want to do it?" asked Impa.
"I can do it."
"Okay, well, get her up and I'll be right back," said Impa, moving towards the door. "I have to go get some things for her." Impa then left the room to go get some food and her remedy.
Link walked over to the bed and gently poked Zelda on the shoulder. She didn't move at all, and merely groaned. "Zelda, you gotta get up," said Link in a gentle voice.
"Uhhh..." moaned Zelda.
Link then shook her gently. "Impa has some stuff she wants to give you. Please, get up." Zelda moaned once again. Link then shook her harder, finally bringing Zelda out of her unconscious stupor.
Zelda slowly sat up, but became extremely dizzy and then lay back down again. She opened her eyes and squinted at the bright light. "Oh, somebody turn off that light," complained Zelda. "It hurts." She grabbed her head, in a vain attempt at stopping the throbbing within. She felt like her whole head was going to explode. Her stomach felt awful, like it was tied up in a knot. Waves of nausea flowed through her body, almost making her want to vomit again. Every muscle in her body screamed out in pain. She propped herself up on her elbows and looked at Link. Her eyes were red and bloodshot, and there were huge bags underneath them. She looked like she'd been through a war. "What happened?" asked Zelda, cringing at the foul taste of vomit and bile in her mouth.
"Don't you remember what happened last night?" replied Link.
Zelda sat there for a moment, searching her memory. It all came back to her; she remembered the bar and getting completely wasted. Her memories ended with her vomiting in the front yard of the castle. Everything else was a blur. "Oh, that. What was I thinking?" she cursed herself.
"Hey, it was your idea to go to the bar last night," said Link in an almost accusative tone. "You really got blasted last night. You were totally drunk."
"Yeah, I know. Oh man, I feel so bad. Everything hurts, I feel so sick. Why did you wake me up? I just want to sleep," she complained.
"Whoa, it wasn't my fault," said Link defensively. "It was Impa's idea to wake you up. She says she has some hangover remedy for you that will make you feel better."
"Please try not to talk so loud," said Zelda, grabbing her head. "My head hurts so much. I feel like I'm gonna die. So this is what a hangover is? I swear I'll never drink again." Zelda moaned a few more times to emphasize her point. She couldn't even describe how she was feeling. This 'hangover' felt like the worst experience she'd ever had. No one ever told her that drinking would make her feel like this the next day. Zelda tried to stand up, but a wave of dizziness and nausea overcame her. She stumbled forward and almost fell over, but Link caught her before she could do so.
"Whoa, slow down," said Link. "I don't think you should be getting up so fast."
Zelda gave him a pleading look and started wiggling around in his arms. He let go and she then started to fidget and jump up and down. "But I gotta pee so bad," she complained, hopping from one leg to the other. If she didn't get to the toilet soon, she was going to wet herself. "I gotta go."
"Fine..." Link replied as Zelda rushed out the door. She almost knocked Impa over as she came walking into the room. Impa shot Link a confused look as Zelda ran by like a bat out of hell. "She had to go to the bathroom," pointed out Link.
Impa nodded in understanding. She was carrying a tray with two steaming bowls and a few various bottles and empty glasses. She set the tray down on the table and looked at Link. "Okay, I was wondering why she was running so fast. I got her some breakfast and some of my remedy. I brought some oatmeal, and there's some for you too."
"Oh, thanks," said Link, walking up to the table and taking one of the bowls. He sat back in his chair and ate the warm cereal.
Impa went over to Zelda's dresser and took out a clean dress and underclothes. "I'm going to go give these to Zelda, I'll be right back." Impa took the clothes and walked down the hall to the bathroom. She knocked on the door.
"Go away!" came the response from within. "I'm trying to go to the bathroom."
"Honey, it's just me. I brought you some clean clothes, and I thought you might like to change while you're in there."
"Okay," replied Zelda. "Just open the door and put them on the floor." Impa heeded Zelda's request and cracked open the door, sliding the clothes inside. She then went back to Zelda's room and sat on the bed across from Link. She saw that Link had already finished the bowl of oatmeal in the few moments that she had been gone.
"That was pretty good," said Link, scraping the few remaining globs of hot cereal from the bowl.
"Thanks for the compliment," said Impa, taking Link's empty bowl and placing it back on the tray. "Oatmeal is about all I can make, I'm not a very good cook. I make oatmeal for Zelda sometimes, but she doesn't appreciate it."
"That's too bad. I've eaten oatmeal every single day for most of my life, so I'm used to it. But Saria usually makes it, I'm not much of a cook either. I can cook fish, but that's about it."
After a few moments, Zelda walked into the room dressed in her new clothes. She was wearing a simple violet dress with some lace embroidering on it. Impa learned long ago that Zelda disliked wearing her "princess" dresses with fancy gold thread and Triforce symbols, which were a dead giveaway to anyone, telling them that she was a princess. She always preferred wearing normal commoners' clothing. However, Zelda's clean dress did little to make her look better. Her face was tired and drawn out. Her eyes were bloodshot and their were large, tired bags underneath them. Zelda's hair was so out of order that Link almost laughed. Her normally beautiful hair was frizzy and puffy, and stray strands shot out in all directions. Zelda went and sat down on her bed, still not feeling much better.
Impa walked up to Zelda and gave her a very sarcastic grin. "Looks like you had fun last night. You really look charming this morning," said Impa sarcastically.
"Oh please, I feel like I've been trampled by a stampede," responded Zelda, not amused in the slightest.
"Believe me, I know how you feel. Maybe next time you'll think twice about going out to bar and getting drunk."
Zelda gave a look of shock. She saw the look on Impa's face and had no idea if she was in big trouble or not. Zelda prepared to put on her best puppy-dog face to try and weasel out of trouble. "How did you know that?" asked Zelda innocently. "I swear, I really didn't mean to do that. I just was having a good time and I guess I went a little overboard, I'm really sorry, please don't..."
"Shh," said Impa. "You don't have to explain it. Link told me what happened. He tells me you were really drunk last night."
"I was not drunk," protested Zelda, feeling her face flush. "I just had one too many."
"Zelda, you were blind stinking drunk," said Link. "I mean really wasted. You were..."
"I get the point!" said Zelda angrily, her head throbbing once again. She was not in the mood for a lecture. "Impa, please. I'm so sorry. I promise I'll never do it again. Please don't punish me, I'm so sorry."
Impa smiled. "Oh don't worry, I'm not going to punish you," said Impa. "What you're going through is punishment enough. Besides, there's nothing wrong with going to a tavern every once in a while. You just have to know your limits. I think you've learned that fairly well."
"I feel like I'm gonna die," said Zelda. Her mouth still tasted foul, and it was extremely dry. "My head hurts, my eyes hurt, my stomach hurts, everything hurts. Is this a hangover?"
"Oh yeah, honey. And it sounds like you've got a nice one going. Tell me something, what ever possessed you to pick Aldorian whiskey?"
Zelda shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know, I heard it was good."
"Well, that stuff is notorious for its hangovers. I'm surprised you're even conscious."
"Well, I wish I wasn't," replied Zelda, directing a heated glare at Link.
"Let's not argue." Impa walked over to the table and brought the tray to Zelda's bedside. "I have some things that will make you feel better. I have an old Sheikah remedy guaranteed to cure the worst hangover. I've had enough hangovers to last a lifetime, believe me, this works."
"What is it?" asked Zelda, eyeing the small jar and bottle on the tray.
"There's three parts to it," responded Impa. She uncorked a small bottle and poured a small amount of greenish liquid into a glass. Zelda was reminded of the green whiskey she had had last night. "Step one is the hair of the dog that bit you." She handed the glass to Zelda and eyed it suspiciously. "It just so happens that I have some Aldorian whiskey in my cabinet. Drink that first."
Zelda looked at the glass and smelled its contents. It was definitely the drink she had last night. With the way she felt right now, if she ever saw another alcoholic drink again it would be too soon. "Wait a minute, I'm feeling like this because I had too much of that stuff last night. And you expect me to believe that drinking more of it will make me feel better?" Zelda wondered if Impa was pulling her leg.
"Who's the one who's had a lifetime of hangovers? Just trust me. If you want, you can just forget the remedy and try to take care of it yourself."
"Fine, I'll do it." Zelda tipped back her head and quickly swallowed the small amount of liquor in the glass, slightly less than a shot. Zelda immediately began to notice the same warm feeling she'd felt last night when she took her first drink. Zelda coughed and handed the glass to Impa. "What next?"
"Now it's time for the actual remedy." Impa opened the small jar and the room was suddenly filled with a very unusual odor that neither Link nor Zelda could identify. She poured the remedy into the glass, which was a thick, lumpy, brownish liquid. It looked disgusting. Impa handed the glass of the remedy to Zelda.
Zelda eyed the contents of the glass and felt like she was going to retch. "That stuff is gross! You expect me to drink that? It looks like, well it looks like it came out of the wrong end of a..." Impa hushed Zelda before she could finish her comment. Zelda sniffed the mixture and stuck out her tongue in disgust. "What's in this?"
"If I told you what was in that, you would never drink it," replied Impa. "Believe me, you don't want to know. All I'll say is that it's an aromatic blend of various herbs and spices. Now, drink it. I recommend holding your breath and taking it in one gulp, because it doesn't taste very pleasant."
Zelda sighed. Impa had never given her bad advice, so she trusted her. Zelda plugged her nose and quickly gulped down the lumpy liquid. She gagged as she swallowed, it had an unpleasant consistency akin to mucous. Zelda retched and gave the empty glass back to Impa. "That is horrible! It tastes like dirty socks. Now my whole mouth tastes like that."
"That's where the third step comes in," said Impa. She went and placed the tray back on the table, returning with another clean glass and a large pitcher. "Water. I can't stress it enough. Alcohol makes you lose water, so you need to replace it. You should be pretty thirsty by now." Impa poured Zelda a tall glass of clear water and Zelda downed it in one long gulp. She hadn't realized how terribly thirsty she was. Zelda indicated that she wanted more and Impa poured her another glass. Zelda quickly drank that glass. She took a few more glasses of water until her ravaging thirst was finally quenched. In the end, she had drunk almost two quarts of water. "Wow, you were thirsty. I told you booze makes you lose water."
"I guess that explains why I had to pee so bad this morning. I swear, I've never peed so much in my life. I thought it would never stop. Is that everything?"
"Well, you should have something to eat now, too. I brought you some oatmeal because it's probably the only thing that won't make you throw up." Impa gave the bowl to Zelda, and she began to eat the oatmeal slowly. "That remedy will take a while for it to work. You should start to feel better in an hour or so."
"Thanks, Impa," said Zelda.
Impa stood up and patted Zelda on the head. "Honey, I have to go do some important work. I have a meeting to go to in a few minutes, so I have to go. Don't worry, Link will take care of you." Link gave Zelda a broad and almost funny smile. Impa opened the door and walked outside. But she then leaned her head inside and looked at Zelda. "Oh, by the way, we won't tell your father what happened," said Impa in a quiet, conspiratorial voice. "This'll be our little secret." Impa then left and closed the door. Link sat down and stared at Zelda while she ate. The look he gave her was adoring, but she began to feel uncomfortable.
"What?" she asked self-consciously. "Is there something on my face?"
"No, I was just looking at you. Even when you're sick you still look beautiful." Link couldn't believe how sappy he was being, but he knew Zelda liked it.
"Thanks. I know I look as bad as I feel. I'm sorry I put you through all that last night. I got a little carried away. Why didn't you keep me from drinking too much?"
"What did you expect me to do?" asked Link. "You begged me to let you have more. And you gave me that pathetic face. You know I can't say no to that face."
"Yeah, you're right," said Zelda, placing the bowl on her nightstand. She didn't feel all that hungry. "It always works on Impa, and I guess you're not all that different. I have you trained just the way I want you," said Zelda in a baby-voice, pinching Link's cheek. "How come you stayed here all last night? I didn't want you to have to sleep on the floor."
"I was just worried about you. I wanted to make sure you would be okay. You've watched over me enough times, and I thought I should return the favor. You know how much I love you, I was just looking out for you."
"That's so sweet," said Zelda. It always amazed her how dedicated Link was to her. She had never met anyone who gave of himself so selflessly. She wished everyone had a friend like Link. "Thank you for that, I really appreciate it. I can barely remember what happened last night, it's all such a blur. I didn't humiliate myself, did I?"
Link tried to think of what a good definition of 'humiliated' would be. "You were pretty drunk, but you didn't do anything that bad. You were actually kind of funny."
"I remember one thing really vividly. When you were taking me home, and I...kissed you. I didn't mean to try and seduce you like that. I wasn't myself. You know I would never do anything to make you uncomfortable. I hope you can forgive me."
"You don't need to apologize," said Link. "Actually, I kind of enjoyed it. You've never kissed me like that before."
"I know. But I did that because I love you so much, it wasn't because I was drunk. But being drunk like that, I wasn't thinking straight. I didn't mean to try to force you into anything. I know that most guys would just want to...use a girl for their own gain. And if you were anyone else, you probably would've followed my advances. I didn't mean to put you in a position like that. Thank you for not taking advantage of me."
Link thought about Zelda's words for a moment. He remembered her advances last night, but he knew she hadn't been herself. Zelda wouldn't have done that had she been sober. Link was proud of himself for his self-control, or more for restoring Zelda's self-control. In Link's mind, taking advantage of Zelda wasn't even a possibility. He would never do anything she didn't want, and he knew she didn't really want to do that last night. Link couldn't imagine how some other men took advantage of women. It seemed so abhorrent to Link. Zelda was his reason for living, and taking advantage of her in any way was absolutely unthinkable to him. "I would never take advantage of you," said Link. "I love you and I'd do anything for you."
"I know," said Zelda. "I know you would never take advantage of me. Actually, I'm worried that I'm taking advantage of you."
"What do you mean?" asked Link.
"Well, it's just that you always do whatever I ask without question. You're always babying me, and going out of your way to make me happy. I'm just worried that maybe I'm imposing too much and that you're just too nice to tell me."
Link was taken aback by Zelda's statement. He never once thought that Zelda was taking advantage of him. He enjoyed doing things for her, it made him so happy to see her happy. "What are you talking about? You're not taking advantage of me. It makes me so happy to do things for you. I just love it when I see you smile, it makes me feel like I've made a difference in your life. Seeing you happy is all I live for. When you're happy, I'm happy."
"Oh, okay," said Zelda. "You just give so much of yourself, and I never give anything back. You know that if there's anything you want, I can make it happen."
"Your happiness is all I want. I don't worry about petty things like money and possessions. Things like that don't give people happiness. Material stuff doesn't last forever, but love does. The only thing I want from you is your love. It makes me feel good to give of myself. I never liked getting things. That's why I don't like my own birthday. It makes me feel guilty when people give me things and I don't give anything in return. To tell you the truth, I'd rather give you a present and see the happy look on your face then to get a present from you. The smile on your face when you're happy is the only thing I want in return. It lights up my soul when I see you happy. I couldn't ask for anything more."
Zelda was almost brought to tears. What Link said was so heartfelt and sincere. She never thought that her own happiness was so important to him. She always tried to make him happy, never realizing that all he wanted was for her to be happy. Zelda felt so blessed that she had someone who was so loyal and dedicated. Link was so noble, just looking at him made her feel loved and protected. Zelda couldn't think of any words to tell Link how she felt, so instead she leaned over and hugged him. "I love you so much," she said, kissing Link on the cheek.
After he embraced Zelda, Link looked her over and made a disappointed sound. "You look like hell. Your hair is all messed up."
Zelda felt the top of her head, knowing that she must look like some kind of undead zombie. She blushed slightly. "Well, you're not looking so hot yourself. Well, you're always hot, but that's something else entirely. Besides, what are you gonna do about it?"
Link smiled and took Zelda's hand. She had no idea what Link had in mind, so she blindly followed him. Link took Zelda to the vanity and sat her down in the chair. Her vanity was a simple table with a mirror on the wall in front of it. Strewn on the desk were various makeup supplies and a myriad of brushes, combs, and other hair accessories. "I've always wanted to do this for you," said Link as he picked up one of Zelda's hair brushes. Link gently smoothed down Zelda's hair and began to brush it. Link caressed the thousands of beautiful golden strands as he moved the brush through her hair. He had always loved how beautiful Zelda's hair was. It was so smooth and delicate. He always desired to just touch her hair once, and now he was brushing it for her. Link was almost in a state of bliss.
"That feels so good," said Zelda. She couldn't believe that Link could be so gentle to her. This brought back so many wonderful memories for Zelda. When she was a little girl, Impa would always brush her hair for her. It had always been part of their daily routine, and it was when they always engaged in their 'girl-talk.' But Impa had stopped brushing her hair years ago. Zelda had become so much more independent then. Now she usually did it herself. She never knew that Link could brush her hair. She never thought of him as the type of person to do this. She had always wanted him to, but always felt too embarrassed to ask.
Link was enjoying this as much or even more than Zelda. He had always loved her hair so much, it was the most beautiful thing about her. Now he held the soft strands in his hands, and he gently stroked them with the brush. He saw the calm look on Zelda's face and knew she was enjoying the experience. "This is almost like a dream come true," said Link in a dreamy voice. "Promise you won't laugh at what I want to say."
"I would never laugh at you," said Zelda.
Link smiled and continued brushing with smooth, even strokes. "I've always been fascinated by your hair. It's so beautiful and smooth and shiny. It's always been a kind of obsession for me. I know it sounds kind of weird, but I always thought it was the most beautiful thing about you. Whenever I saw you, your hair would always be bouncing and shining and it was like seeing some kind of angel. It's silly, but I always wanted to touch your hair, and feel it between my fingers. It's even more luxurious than I imagined. You truly are the most beautiful person I've ever seen. I hope you're enjoying this as much as I am."
"To tell you the truth, I've wanted you to do this, too," said Zelda. "But I was always too embarrassed to ask. I thought you wouldn't want to do it. But now that I know you're willing to, you can brush my hair anytime you want. Thank you so much."
Link smiled and continued brushing. He was almost hypnotized by the smooth motion of the bristles through her hair. It was almost like a dream, he couldn't believe it. Link stroked the hair on the top of her head and moved the brush all the way to the very bottom, about halfway down her back. He brushed back the strands at the top of her head until they were finally perfect. He stood back and looked at the job he'd done. It was more perfect than he'd predicted. Her hair was brushed smoothly back all the way from her scalp to her back. Her hair was no longer frizzy and tangled, now it was smooth and fell down in exquisite waves and layers. It was perfect. "I'm done," said Link. "What do you think?"
Zelda peered at herself in the mirror. The face that looked back at her was no longer drawn out and tired. Her eyes sparkled and her golden hair shone. She had never seen her hair like this before. It was so smooth and perfect. Link had done a better job than she or Impa had ever done. She was so impressed that he was able to brush her hair so professionally and dexterously. "It's perfect," said Zelda. She stood up and gave Link a long kiss on the lips. "That was so wonderful."
Link laid the brush back on the table and looked at the various accessories on it. "Do you want any of those thingies in your hair?" asked Link. "I could put one of those flower things or bows or something in it. It would be like icing on the cake. And you can't have cake without icing."
Zelda smiled at Link's thoughtfulness. She sat back down in the chair. "That's sounds nice. Why don't you pick something for me?" Link smiled and picked up a small basket with a hodgepodge of hair accessories in it. He wondered which one he should pick. Then his face lit up.
"I've got a great idea," beamed Link. "I think you'll like this." Link took a clump of strands from the side of her head, just above her left ear. He took the strands and smoothed them into a longer, larger strand that went from the side of her head to just below the back of her neck. He then split this large string of hair into three smaller clumps of strands. Then, with diligence Zelda had never seen, Link began to weave this small line of hair into a tiny braid. In just a couple minutes, he had formed a small, tight braid that led from the top of her left ear to the base of her neck, and ended up being about seven or eight inches long. Still holding the braid, Link took a small piece of purple ribbon from the basket and tied a small bow at the bottom of the braid, thus securing it. He draped the braid over her ear to store it temporarily. Then he repeated the entire process on the right side of her head, forming another identical braid on the right side. Link then took medium-sized violet bow from the basket, which had a small hair clip at the bottom of it. He pulled the two braids together and connected them with the bow where they intersected at the back of her head. He stood back and looked at his creation. The two small braids he'd woven were now tied together with a bow at the back of her head. Half of each braid hung down below the bow. The majority of her hair hung free down her back, save for the two small braids on the side.
Zelda only saw the front of each braid going from the side of her head to the back. She couldn't see what else Link had done. "So what did you do?" asked Zelda.
"I hope you like it," said Link. He picked up a small hand mirror from the table and angled it behind Zelda's head so she could see what Link had done. She saw the two small braids and the bow and beamed. She had never thought of a hairstyle like this before. It was something new and refreshing. "What do you think?" asked Link nervously.
"It's beautiful," replied Zelda. "Where did you learn to do hair like that? And how did you manage to make those cute little braids? I didn't know you could do that." Link simply smiled. The hair was wrapped around the middle of her head, almost like the back of a little crown.
"I can do a lot of things you don't know about," said Link mysteriously. He set all the supplies back on the table. Zelda stood up and kissed Link on the cheek.
"It's really pretty, thanks for doing that for me. You know, I feel a lot better now. Maybe it's you or maybe it's that crap Impa gave me. Or both."
"Well, I'm glad you feel better. That's great because I had plans for later today," said Link.
"Oh? What kind of plans?"
"Don't you remember? I signed up to go see a lecture at the University today. It's at noon."
Zelda tried to think for a moment. "Oh wait, I think I remember you saying something about that. That's today?"
"Yes, it is. I signed us all up to go see it a week ago."
Zelda shrugged. "Okay, whatever. But why would you want to go to a lecture? I mean, I listen to Impa's lectures all the time, and they're not fun. You didn't bump your head or go crazy, did you?"
"It's not one of those lectures. It's an archaeologist who's gonna talk about ancient myths and artifacts. I always thought that kind of stuff was interesting. Who knows, maybe they'll talk about some of the Triforce legends or something. Maybe about something we don't know about. I'm just so bored, and I wanted to do something interesting for a change."
"Well, whatever you want, Linkie-pooh," teased Zelda. "You always do things for me, so I guess we can do that."
"I should probably get home, too. Solo was just as drunk as you and I hope she's okay."
"Oh, I forgot about her," said Zelda. She took Link's arm. "Well, let's go. We can take them with us too." Link and Zelda walked hand-in-hand out her door and down the hallway. In just a few short moments, they were out of the castle and on their way back to Link's home.
They quickly passed the spot where Zelda had gotten sick and Zelda gave a disgusted face. All that remained was dried and there was a whole army of ants crawling on it. This brought back the memory of what happened the previous night. Link then remembered the advances Zelda had made on him. "Zelda, remember abut last night? When you said that you... 'wanted' me?" Zelda blushed and nodded. "Well, I can't complain about the kiss you gave me. But you know I didn't want to do anything else because I know we're to young for...you know, that. But I just wanted to know, out of curiosity, I mean I would never do this because it wouldn't be right, but I just want to know..."
"Can you get to the point?" interrupted Zelda. Link always started rambling when he was nervous or embarrassed.
Link blushed and tried to look like he wasn't feeling self-conscious. "Okay, I was just curious. If I hadn't have stopped you, would you...um... would you have gone all the way?"
Zelda stopped abruptly and turned to look at Link. She flashed him an almost seductive smile and leaned over to whispered in his ear, "I guess you'll never find out." Zelda flashed Link a sarcastic grin and they both continued walking.
Saria woke up a couple hours after sunrise. She had spent most of the previous night just relaxing. Since Link and Solo had been gone, she didn't need to do any work and she didn't even bother to make dinner. She just had some of the fruit left over from breakfast. Yawning, she stood up and stretched. Saria looked out the window and thought that this would probably be a nice day. She made her bed and then put on her normal green dress. She wondered if Link and Solo had even come home last night. Earlier that morning Link had said they would be gone all day, and then he came back saying that he would be gone all night, too. Still shaking off the drowsiness of sleep, Saria decided to walk over to Link's house to see if he was home. She quietly climbed up the ladder, just in case he was there and sleeping. Saria pushed through the drape over the door and look over at Link's bed. It was empty. He must not have come home last night, thought Saria. She then looked over to Solo's bed to see that it was occupied. She reasoned that Link must have stayed at Zelda's house and that Solo had decided to come home. When Saria walked closer to Solo's bed, she noticed that it had not one, but two occupants. Malon was sleeping on her back, with her head turned towards Saria. Solo was face down with her head buried in a pillow next to Malon's head, and her arm around Malon's chest, snuggling up close to her. Saria had never seen such an adorable sight.
Saria was startled when Malon rolled over and opened her eyes. For a few brief moments, Saria and Malon stared at each other. Finally, Malon decided to sit up. "What are you doing in here?" asked Malon sleepily, rubbing her eyes.
"I'm always in here in the morning," replied Saria. "I was just coming to see if Link or Solo came home last night. Apparently Solo did. How come you're here? If I had known we were having visitors, I would've made breakfast."
"That's kind of a long story," responded Malon. "I had to bring Solo home last night because she wasn't quite...able to come home under her own power. Zelda decided to take the four of us to a tavern in town, and, well, Solo had a bit too much to drink. And so did Zelda. So Link took Zelda home and I took Solo home. She got pretty drunk."
"Drunk? What do you mean?" asked Saria, slightly confused. She had heard the term before, but never quite knew what it meant.
"They had too much alcohol to drink, and when that happens they get drunk."
"Alcohol? Like wine?" asked Saria. She knew that people drank wine in the outside world, but she had never had any herself, as well as the other Kokiri. Saria only knew what it was from hearing Link's tales.
"Yeah, except she had too much. And when you have too much, you get all dizzy and wobbly, and you can't think straight. Her speech was slurred and she kept falling over. People just get goofy and really weird when they're drunk. And then they get sick too."
"That sounds horrible," said Saria. "Why would anyone drink it if caused so much trouble?"
Malon was charmed by Saria's naïveté, she had no idea of the many seamy aspects of the outside world. "Well, it's supposed to make you feel good, but if you have too much you get sick. That's what happened to her." Malon pointed to Solo, whose face was on the pillow next to a small puddle of drool. Malon poked Solo on the shoulder, causing her to moan. Saria giggled. "I don't think she's gonna feel too good when she wakes up. She'll probably have a headache and be really queasy."
"Tell you what...I'll go back to my house and make something for breakfast. I'll make some oatmeal, if she feels sick that'll be good for her. I'll bring the stuff over when it's done so you guys don't have to get up."
"That's really nice of you," said Malon. Saria smiled and left. Malon then turned to Solo and tried to shake her awake. Solo rolled over and moaned. "Come on, wake up," said Malon, poking Solo's side.
"Uhh...Link I don't wanna get up," mumbled Solo, half-asleep. She pulled the covers over her face.
"Link's not here," said Malon.
Solo pushed away the covers to see Malon looking down at her. Then she remembered the night before. "Oh, what happened to me?" she groaned..
"Remember? You got wasted last night and I had to practically carry you home."
"Oh yeah," groaned Solo. She sat up and tried to stop the world from spinning. "I feel sick. Uhh, my head hurts and I feel like puking. What did I do to deserve this?"
"Oh...I don't know...maybe it was those drinks you had," replied Malon. "Those things really pack a wallop. You know that you have no self-control."
Solo gave an unamused smile. "Thanks for pointing that out," said Solo sarcastically. "Oh man, I feel so bad. How come you're so up an at 'em?"
"Because I know my limits. You went crazy last night and had quite a few too many."
"I'm sorry if I put a burden on you," apologized Solo.
"It's okay, I know you would do the same thing for me. Besides, I like babying you. It's kinda fun." Malon blushed slightly.
"Well, thank you for staying with me last night. I just wanted some company. Did Link ever come home?"
Malon pointed to the obviously empty bed. "No, he took Zelda home last night. She was drunker than you were. You weren't too bad, but you were a little tipsy."
"Yeah I remember," said Solo. "I remember having a great time last night, but I didn't know I would feel like this in the morning. My head hurts, and I feel so sick. And I'm kind of thirsty." Solo gave Malon a pleading look.
"There's some water over there. I'll get you some." Malon padded over to the table and poured some water from a pitcher into a small glass. She handed the glass to Solo and she drank it so fast that Malon almost did a double-take. "I guess you were pretty thirsty."
"Thanks," said Solo handing the glass to Malon and taking a deep breath. Solo started to rub her temples in a vain attempt at making the throbbing pain in her head go away.
"Saria's gonna come and bring us some oatmeal pretty soon."
Solo rubbed her belly and made a discomforted groan. "I don't really feel like eating."
"But you have to eat something," insisted Malon, like a mother talking to a child. "Breakfast is the most important meal of the day."
"Yeah, well, if I eat it I'll probably end up losing it anyway. My stomach feels like it's being tied in knots and I feel like I've been spinning in circles for the last six hours."
Malon felt bad for Solo, she looked so sick and uncomfortable. Malon wished she could be the one who was hungover and not Solo. Malon went and sat on the bed next to Solo and put her arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry Angel, I'll make you feel better."
Solo leaned her head onto Malon's shoulder. "Thank you, I feel better just being next to you. If only you could make my stomach stop churning, then we'd have something."
"You'll be fine later," said Malon. A noise came from just outside the house and they both looked to see Saria coming up the ladder holding a basket. "See, there she is with the food right now. I want you to promise me you'll eat something." Solo nodded.
Saria walked into the house and set the basket on the table. She began to remove its contents and place them on the table. "I brought the oatmeal and some bowls and stuff." Saria took three empty bowls from the basket along with a much larger lidded pot filled with oatmeal. Saria also removed a tea kettle and a wooden cup. "I also made some special tea for Solo." Saria poured a steaming liquid into the mug and handed it to Solo.
Solo sniffed the hot liquid and blew on it. "What is it?" asked Solo.
"It's a special herbal tea I made," replied Saria. "Malon said you might have a headache and your stomach would be upset, so I made a special blend for you. It's got willow bark, ginger, and honey in it. It should make you feel better. It's the same thing I always gave to Link when he had a cold."
Solo nodded and took a sip. Luckily, it wasn't too hot. The ginger gave the tea a sharp, almost spicy taste, while the honey gave a more smooth, sweet flavor. "This isn't bad," said Solo, sipping the tea. She held the cup with one hand and massaged one of her temples with other. "If anything, I hope this makes my headache go away." The throbbing in Solo's head had only gotten worse since she'd woken up. The dull throbbing had now transformed into sharp stabbing pains. While Solo was busy sipping the tea, Saria and Malon began eating their oatmeal. Solo cringed at the sight of them eating in front of her. "Do you guys have to do that in front of me?" said Solo in a sickened voice.
Malon and Saria both gave innocent looks. "Well, it's not my fault you drank yourself silly last night," said Malon. She took another spoonful of oatmeal and purposely made a show of eating it. Malon put the spoon into her mouth and rubbed he stomach. "Mmmm...that's good," moaned Malon. She took another spoonful from the bowl and ate that one. "You should have some, it's so filling."
Solo only flashed a cold stare. "You keep doing that and you'll be wearing that oatmeal," threatened Solo. Malon smirked and went to eating her food normally. Solo drank the last of the tea in a long gulp and held the glass out to Saria. "Do you have any more?"
Saria nodded. "Yeah, there's some more in this kettle." Saria stood up and took Solo's cup, going over to the table and pouring her some more. Saria handed the refilled mug to Solo, who smiled to show her appreciation.
Solo took a sip of the new cup of tea. This one seemed a bit sweeter than the last, but perhaps she was just imagining it. "You know, I think this stuff might actually be working," said Solo in a slightly improved mood. "I think my headache's gong away and my stomach feels a lot better."
"See, Saria knows what's best for you," said Saria with a smile.
"Whatever you say, mother," remarked Solo with a grin. She went to the table and took the bowl of oatmeal that had been prepared for her. Solo sat back down and began to eat it in small spoonfuls. To her surprise, the oatmeal helped to calm her stomach more. "This is pretty good."
"Thanks," replied Saria. "I finally managed to get my hands on some fresh oats, so it should taste a lot better than normal. The big bag at home was full of bugs, so I had to find some more."
"Eew," remarked Solo, pausing her eating and staring into the bowl. She swirled the spoon around to make sure there were no creatures crawling in her oatmeal.
"Don't worry, that stuff is okay, I checked."
"You know, if you didn't throw the oats away yet, I could take them," offered Malon. "I can give it to the horses, I don't think they'll mind if there's a few beetles in their food. Besides, the bugs give it a nice crunch."
Solo gave a look of displeasure and put down the spoonful of oatmeal that she had been about to eat. "Ugh, I don't think I'm hungry anymore," said Solo. She stood up and put the bowl back on the table.
"You're such a wimp," remarked Malon. Solo just stuck out her tongue mockingly at Malon.
"Thanks for the tea, Saria. I feel a lot better now." Solo gave Saria a thankful smile and placed the empty cup back on the table. They all heard a noise come from outside and turned to Link and Zelda climb up the ladder and walk inside.
Link was surprised to see the three people already in his house. "What, are you guys having a party and you didn't invite me?" asked Link sarcastically.
"Oh yeah, you missed all the fun," replied Solo. "We were partying and having a blast all night. Too bad you weren't here."
"Does anybody have anything serious to say?" asked Link, ignoring Solo's comments.
"I was just bringing breakfast for these two," said Saria. "Looks like you finally decided to come home."
"Yeah, well I thought I should come check on Solo. She looks like she's not feeling too good." Solo merely gave Link a look that only a brother could understand. "But she looks like she's just fine."
"I am now," said Solo. "Saria's tea really helped."
"Tell me, were you really...hungover this morning?" asked Zelda. "'Cause you had some of that Aldorian stuff last night, and I'll tell you right now that I didn't feel very good."
"A hangover?" said Solo. "I guess that's what it was. I don't think I'll ever drink anything again for the rest of my life. It felt worse than the days before...you know, that time of the month. And I thought that was really bad."
Zelda and Malon nodded in understanding while like stood there trying to decode what Solo had said. Then it hit him, and he gave a disgusted look. "Eew, do you have to talk about that?" said Link. "I think that falls into the 'too much information' category."
Zelda sighed. "You wouldn't understand unless you had to go through that," commented Zelda. "Boys are wimps, and you wouldn't be able to handle it. But I think Solo's right. I just thank the gods Impa gave me that remedy of hers, at least I feel better now."
"Well, Solo, since you feel better, you should get dressed because we've gotta go in a little while," said Link.
"Go where?" asked Solo.
Link sighed, apparently Solo's memory was just as bad as Zelda's. "Remember? I signed up for that archaeology lecture today. It's in a little over an hour and we should all get going."
"But I thought that was for you. Why do I have to go?" whined Solo. "Schools are boring."
"I thought you could get a little culture for once. You can't stay cooped up in the house all day. It'll be fun. The guy's gonna talk about ancient history and show people all sorts of cool artifacts. Like masks, and armor, and swords and stuff."
"I think that would be interesting," chimed Malon. "Living on a ranch and feeding horses all day is so boring, I think it would be fun to find out about all those ancient myths and stuff. I really don't get much of a chance to look into that stuff on my own. My dad's got a couple books, but they're not that informative."
"See, at least somebody's on my side," remarked Link, glaring at Solo.
"I never knew you were into myths and stuff," said Solo to Malon.
"Well, it's just that they're a little more interesting than the modern world. Life today is just so uninteresting."
"Fine, I guess I'll get dressed and get ready to go," conceded Solo.
Saria gathered the bowls and cups she had brought and put them back in the basket. "I'll clean up and you guys can go to your little lecture thingy," said Saria. She packed up the basket and left the house.
Solo got off the bed and dug around for some clothes to wear. When she had finally picked something clean enough to wear, she looked at Link, Malon, and Zelda, who were standing there staring idly. "Do you mind?" said Solo, slightly annoyed. "This isn't a freak show, do you think I could have a little privacy while I put some clothes on?"
Link and Zelda turned around and went out on the balcony with slight looks of embarrassment on their faces. Malon remained for a moment and smirked at Solo. "You weren't that modest last night," remarked Malon.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"Oh nothing," said Malon as she turned around to join the other two on the balcony.
Link leaned over to whisper in Malon's ear, "I hope she wasn't too much trouble last night. Zelda threw up and passed out, so I had to carry her the rest of the way home."
"Oh, she was just fine," said Malon. "She was such a cute little drunk. She acted just like a little kid. I tucked her in all nice and she just fell asleep. But that was after she rambled endlessly on the way home. I don't know what's going on in her head, but I don't think I want to know."
"I know what that's like," said Zelda, wrapping her arm around Link's shoulder. "He goes on for hours when he starts talking about something he's interested in."
"Oh, that's so cute." Link glared at Malon, and she just smiled back. He hated how girls were always systematically trying to embarrass him. It was as if the mission of every female was to make him as uncomfortable as possible.
"I don't ramble," huffed Link, folding his arms over his chest with an expression of stern determination. "I just have a lot to say."
The awkward moment was interrupted when Solo came out from the house, dressed in her usual blue tunic. She walked up to Zelda from behind and stopped for a moment to look at her hair. Solo gently touched the braids on the back of Zelda's head and made a gleeful sound. "Oh, I just love what you did to your hair!" exclaimed Solo.
"Really?" asked Zelda, smiling self-consciously.
"Yeah, it's so cute. How did you think of that?"
"Link did it for me," replied Zelda, hugging Link proudly. "It was all his idea."
"That's so sweet," said Malon in a cute voice. Link blushed slightly. "It's so nice of you to do that. Girls really like getting their hair brushed and stuff. And you did such a good job."
"Yeah, Link. Where'd you learn to do that?" asked Solo, amazed that her brother could be so creative.
Link merely shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know, I just did it," said Link meekly. He looked at the girls for a moment and then began to climb down the ladder. "Why don't we get going? I don't want to be late." The other three nodded and followed Link down the ladder.