Chapter 3 – Old Friends
The vendor woman watches, very interested, "Hm, you seem to have a way with fairies, dear." Link blinks, staring at Mina as the fairy flitters around her head.
Looking at the boy, Mina asks, "What is it?"
"Uh, nothing," Link scratches his cheek, nervously looking away, "Why don't we head to the next stall?"
"Okay," Mina smiles, looking up at the fairy as they walk. There was something about the tiny creature that felt so familiar to her.
Link and Mina spend a few hours walking around together, looking at different stalls and talking to the vendors. Mina buys a few items, some fabric and cotton, a bit of wood and twine, thread. Finally, Link asks, "What is all of that for?"
Mina smiles, "Something for Thistle."
"Thistle?" Link asks, confused.
"It's her name," Mina motions towards the fairy who lands on her shoulder. Link blinks, looking at Mina as she smiles happily.
"You… named the fairy?" Link asks.
Mina looks at the boy, "No, she told me."
"You can understand her?" the surprised look on Link's face earns a frown from Mina.
"Is that… really so strange?" Mina asks, suddenly feeling self-conscious.
"Uh…" Link looks to the side, scratching the back of his head, "Not many people can actually communicate with fairies."
"Oh," Mina looks at the fairy, smiling, "Maybe it has something to do with where I'm from. It feels kind of… familiar."
Link smiles, "That's good, I suppose." Link looks at the clock tower. "Hey, why don't we head back to the Inn and get something to eat? It's almost lunch time."
"That sounds good to me," Mina smiles and wraps her arm around Links again and the two head towards the inn. The inn keeper had prepared a stew for the guests with warm bread and cheese. Mina smiles at the woman as she and Link walk into the dining hall. "Something smells good," Mina comments as they head towards the woman who was handing out the food.
"Thank you, a couple of the guests helped me prepare lunch today," Lana smiles as she watches Link and Mina take their share. Noticing the pink glow near Mina's head, Lana asks, "Is that a fairy?"
Giggling, Mina nods, "Her name is Thistle. A woman was selling her down in the market. I just felt so bad for her, trapped in a little cage that I had to buy her and set her free. After that she decided to stick around."
Lana blinks a couple of times, "Well, just be careful, dear. Fairies aren't pets."
"I know," Mina smiles up at Thistle before heading to a table to sit down, Link right behind her.
As the two eat, Link thinks about Mina's situation, about her lost memories. He remembers how difficult it was for Ilia to regain her own memories when she lost them when an idea occurs to him. Smiling over at Mina, Link asks, "After we finish eating, would you mind showing me where you woke up? Maybe if we head back there, it will help you remember something."
Mina glances up, surprised, "Uh, okay. I suppose we can go look."
After eating, the two take their dishes back to Lana and head out of the inn. Link grabs Epona and the two head towards the South Gates. "I woke up next to a stream to the south of here. The walk didn't take very long, so it should be close. I think I can find it again."
"Okay, lead the way," Link follows behind, leading Epona by her reins.
It's quiet outside the city and Mina pauses to take a deep breath. It was peaceful, just the sound of the birds and the few scattered people chatting in small groups or couples. Mina leads Link out of the little garden area and into the fields outside of Castle Town. It takes her a while to find the little wooded area that lead to the stream. Though the initial walk from the area only took Mina about half an hour, going back took nearly two, but they finally find the clearing where Mina first awoke.
"This is it," Mina says, walking around the small clearing. They were surrounded by trees on three sides and a stream on the fourth. It may not have been very wide, but it was deep enough that Mina was sure it went over her head, perhaps just over five feet deep. Mina frowns, furrowing her brow as she gets a flash of memory. Underwater. Bubbles. Can't breathe. Mina shakes her head, moving closer to the edge of the water.
"What's wrong?" Link moves closer, seeing the look on Mina's face.
"I… don't know," Mina mumbles, looking at the water. Scales. Something grabbing, pulling. A body smaller than her own. Something moves in the water and Mina kneels down to look. Link notices and moves to get a closer look.
A head pops out of the water, causing Mina to flinch back. "Oh, Prince Ralis," Link speaks to the Zora as he moves closer, "What are you doing here?"
"I was just swimming by," the odd looking boy answers, looking at Mina, "It's nice to see you're doing well, Miss."
"You… you saved me," Mina blinks, focused, "You helped me out of the water."
Nodding, the boy smiles, "Are you okay now?"
"Yes, thank you very much," Mina answers.
"I should be going," Ralis says, looking at Link, "If you get the chance, you should stop by Zora's Domain some time. It would be nice to catch up."
"I'll do that," Link smiles and waves as Ralis goes back underwater and quickly swims upstream. Link looks over at Mina who stands, staring down at the water. Something felt wrong. "Mina?" Link asks, standing next to the girl as she slowly closes her eyes, shaking her head.
Mina can feel pain slowly beginning behind her eyes as flashes of memory crash around her head. She was walking, no, riding? There was a horse. Mina begins to breathe heavier as the pounding behind her eyes grows. There were other people. One, two, three of them. Two males and a female, perhaps? Mina grips the side of her head. Her ears begin to ring. They were going somewhere. It was important. It was dark. Raining? Mina can feel her knees give out. There was a bridge. It was small and slippery because of the rain. Falling. Water. Shouting, hard to hear over the storm. People calling her name. Mina grips her head with both hands, trying to make the pain stop. She was panting hard now. Link could tell there was something wrong, this wasn't like how Ilia got her memories back at all.
When the pain subsides, Mina is breathing hard, her hands shaking slightly as she slowly lowers them to look around. Link was kneeling next to her, arm wrapped protectively around her shoulders, a worried expression on his face. "I…" Mina takes a deep breath to try and slow her pounding heart, "I was traveling with other people. I think we got caught in a storm and I fell off a bridge while we were crossing. I think that's how I got separated from them."
"I see," Link keeps his hands on Mina's shoulders as he helps her to her feet. "Do you remember anything else?"
Mina looks down at her hands. They were still shaking, "We were going somewhere together, somewhere important. I can't remember where. We got separated far upstream."
Link frowns, "I think we should head back to town." Mina nods and follows Link over to Epona. Her legs felt weak and Mina was grateful when Link helped her into the saddle. Taking the seat in front, Link aims Epona towards Castle Town and they begin making their way back at a slow trot. Mina sighs, wrapping her arms around Link's waist and resting her forehead against his back. Her head still hurt and she just wanted to close her eyes for a bit.
"Did it hurt your friend to get her memories back?" Mina asks, keeping her eyes closed.
"No," Link keeps his eyes forward, "Ilia just sort of, closed her eyes and things came back to her. It wasn't like that at all."
Mina sighs, "I see…" Maybe… could it have something to do with the memories I have of this place? Could they be affecting my memories of home, or… making it painful to remember? Mina slowly opens her eyes and glances around.
"Are you going to be okay?" Link suddenly asks. His voice was soft and concerned, making Mina's heart flutter.
Looking at the back of the boy's head, Mina shrugs, "I'm not sure. I think so, but I don't think I want to try remembering anything else for a bit. My head still hurts."
"I'm sorry, I really thought this would help," Link tightens his hold on Epona's reigns.
Mina smiles, "It did, I remembered I wasn't traveling alone and that I was saved by that little boy. Thank you for being so worried about me, Link." She tightly hugs Link from behind and his face heats up, though Mina can't see the color on his cheeks. When they arrive back at the gates, Link hops down from the horse and leads Epona on foot, Mina still on her back.
"Do you want to head back to the inn and rest for a while?" Link asks from beside the horse.
Mina thinks for a moment before answering, "Actually, could you show me around a bit more? I'm feeling better and I really want to see more of Castle Town."
"Okay," Link smiles up at Mina who can't help blushing slightly. After stabling Epona, Link decides to take Mina to one of the places he visited often during his trips to Castle Town the prior year. Walking into the slightly underground building, Link announces, "Welcome to Telma's Bar."
"A bar?" Mina asks, looking around.
Taking the girl's hand, Link leads her towards the counter, "Don't worry, Telma is really nice. They helped Ilia a lot when we were here." Mina looks a bit skeptical as Link takes her over to a tall, robust woman.
"Well now, look who it is," the woman smiles at Link, "It's good to see you again, honey. And who is you're little friend?" Mina stiffens as the woman looks at her. Like with several other people, Mina gets a strong sense of déjà vu when Link introduces them. A few flashes of the woman come to mind, but Mina quickly dismisses them. Telma was an… intimidating figure and Mina moves to half hide behind Link. She lightly grips his sleeve with her free hand, the other still being held by the boy.
"Telma, this is Mina," Link introduces the two, "Mina, this is Telma, the owner of this bar."
"H-hello," Mina mutters, obviously intimidated.
Telma raises an eyebrow at Mina's reaction, "Nice to meet you, sweetie. And how is Ilia?"
"She's doing well," Link says, "Happy to be home with her father."
"That's good to hear. And, how exactly do you two know each other?" Telma asks as she begins to wipe off the counter, the fact that Link still held onto the girl's hand not going unnoticed by the bar owner.
"Ah, w-well…" Link rubs the back of his neck.
"We actually met yesterday, ma'am," Mina quietly offers, "Link is helping me try to regain my memories, but… it's not going well."
"Oh, like Ilia?" Telma asks, looking at Link, "Well, that's real sweet of you, honey. If you want, you can try going to visit Doctor Borville over at the clinic."
"Thank you, but I think I'll pass for now," Mina answers, glancing to the side.
Telma looks at her, "What do you mean?"
Looking down, Mina shifts from one foot to another, "Well, there are things I do remember, like my name, how old I am and that I'm not from around here. That I have a mother and I'm from a small town, but… there are a lot of other things, details about my life and where I'm from that are missing. When I did get a few bits and pieces back, my head started to hurt and, well… I just don't want to push it right now."
"I see," Telma looks a little worried, "If there is anything I can do for you while you're here, let me know, okay hun?"
Mina smiles, "I will, thank you ma'am."
"You two should stay for dinner, on the house of course. It wouldn't be right to charge Hyrule's hero," Telma gives Link a wink, earning an embarrassed blush from the boy.
"Hyrule's hero?" Mina asks, looking between Link and Telma.
Counter cleaning forgotten, Telma laughs, "Oh, do I have a story for you!"
"Ah," Link tries to say something, but Telma comes around to their side of the counter and pulls Mina towards her, taking her over to the fireplace where there are a couple of free chairs. Mina nervously glances back at Link, but follows the woman. Mina and Link eat at Telma's bar while the woman tells Mina the story of how Link helped save Prince Ralis by escorting them to Kakariko Village. She starts by describing Link's fight with the large, pig looking creature called "King Bulblin" on a bridge, squaring off with him before racing across the bride, attacking with his sword and knocking him off the bridge after a few passes.
Then she describes the race through two monster infested fields, Link fighting more monsters on boar back while they try to set the caravan on fire and how the strange birds kept trying to drop bombs in front of their horse, but Link kept them away with his arrows. During the story, Mina kept getting flashes of memory, images of Link doing exactly as Telma describes, making it all the more exciting to hear.
Mina was on the edge of her seat by the end of the story, listening intently as Telma finishes her story, "And so we finally arrived at the gates to Kakariko, Link racing over to open them all while finishing off the enemies."
Mina lets out the breath she had been holding, "Wow."
"That story keeps getting exaggerated," Link argues, "It wasn't like all that."
Telma chuckles, shaking her head, "Oh, don't be so modest, Mr. Hero. You did a great thing and deserve to be recognized for that."
Mina looks over at Link, and expression of awe on her face, "She's right! What you did was so brave, you could have been knocked off the bridge yourself!"
Link rubs the back of his neck, obviously embarrassed. "It was the right thing to do. I couldn't just leave them to fend for themselves." Telma chuckles again and Link stands, "Anyway, it's gotten pretty late. We should head back to the inn."
"Alright, take care, honey. And come visit again while you're here," Telma sees them to the door.
"We will!" Mina smiles back at the woman and waves as the two head out onto the street. Mina and Link fall into a comfortable silence as they walk. The streets were mostly empty and it was quiet out except for the occasional late night traveler heading home or towards Telma's.
After a few moments, Link breaks the silence, "It really wasn't that big of a deal. Everyone keeps exaggerating that story each time it gets retold, really."
Mina giggles, looking over at Link, "I'm sure, but what a story! You've done some very impressive things, Link." Link doesn't answer for a few moments. Mina can see the color in his cheeks. Mina links her arm with his, walking a bit closer. Link glances over at the girl, giving an embarrassed smile. It's so cute how bashful he is about this!
Mina giggles again and Link asks, "What?"
"Nothing," Mina glances away.
When Mina and Link arrive back at the inn, they are greeted by silence. Most of the other tenants have already gone to sleep. "I think I'm going to go bathe before heading up to the room," Mina says, letting go of Link's arm and starting in the direction of the bathhouse.
"Okay, I'll see you upstairs," Link heads for the stairs while Mina heads down the hallway, Thistle accompanying her.
"That really was an impressive story," Mina whispers to the fairy as she hangs the 'Occupied' sign on the bathroom door. Thistle answers in her little jangle of a voice in agreement. Mina giggles again, "And Link's face was just too cute when Telma was teasing him." Mina smiles to herself as she strips down and enters the pool of water. Link really is an amazing person. He has endured so much, done so much, and is still the same sweet, down to earth guy. I suppose that's just how he is, but still. Mina washes, taking special care with her long hair since it was so easily tangled.
After a while, Mina sighs and decides to get out of the bath. Standing, she wraps a towel around her body and moves towards the changing area. As she is about to move the curtain, she hears the door to the bathhouse open and close. Mina freezes on the spot, hand reaching for the curtain. A feeling of panic settles in her stomach and she quickly glances at Thistle before moving the curtain to the side. Standing by the wall of baskets was a tall man wearing a white shirt and tight black pants. He looks back at Mina and panic explodes inside her.
"You're the girl from town, the one who almost walked into me," the boy says, turning to look at Mina.
"Uh, um…" Mina shifts, pulling the curtain over to hide her body. In a weak voice Mina says, "I hung the occupied sign on the door. If you don't mind, could you please leave for a bit? I was getting out, so you can have the bath."
The boy doesn't answer, instead he looks at Mina up and down before crossing his arms, a smirk pulling at his lips. Thistle can sense how uncomfortable Mina is and does the only thing she can think of. Flying through a vent, she heads to find Link. Since he had to get his gear for Epona out of their room earlier that day, Thistle knows where to go. Flying through another vent she finds the boy lying on his bed, staring at the ceiling. Coming to stop right in front of his face, she tries her best to get him to understand, but he simply looks at the little pink creature for a few seconds before asking, "Hello Thistle, where's Mina?"
Grabbing onto the boy's shirt, the fairy tries to pull him towards the door. Link stares at her for a moment, confused. Trying another tactic, she tries flying between the door and him a few times. "What is it?" Getting frustrated, Thistle bangs on the door as hard as her little body will allow, flying between Link and the door another time. Realization slowly dawns on the boy as he asks again, "Where's Mina?" Thistle bangs on the door once more and Link is up and garbing the knob within the second. Following the fairy, Link runs down the stairs and into the hallway leading to the bathhouse in time to hear a scream.
A second later the bathhouse door flies open with a loud bang and Link sees a boy on top of Mina, pinning her down. Without a second thought, Link runs over and grabs the boy by the back of the shirt, throwing him into the wall. After that, everything happens so fast. Link is there, struggling with the other young man. Punches are thrown. Miss Lana, who had heard Mina's scream and the bangs, rushes into the bathhouse to find the boys fighting and Mina pressing herself against the far wall. After that, the fight is broken up and the boy is roughly taken away by Lana.
The bathhouse door closes and Link comes over to Mina. "Mina, are you okay?! What happened?!" there is a sound of panic in Link's voice. Mina opens her eyes and looks at the boy. His lip is bleeding, but otherwise he's fine. Breaking down into sobs, Mina throws her arms around Link's neck, shaking and crying. Link wraps his own around Mina, trying to comfort her. Sighing, Link pulls Mina to her feet, rubbing her back with his left hand, "It's okay, I've got you. You're safe now."
It takes a few moments for Link to calm Mina enough for her to tell him what happened, "He came in as I was going to go change. I asked him to leave, I told him he could have the bath, but… he just looked at me and said he wanted me to stay and bathe with him. When I said no, he kept insisting. When I told him to leave or I'd scream he attacked me." Mina starts sobbing again, "I was so scared."
Link gently squeezes Mina, "It's okay, Miss Lana is going to lock him in the storage shed and have the guards deal with him in the morning. He won't hurt you again."
Mina sniffles, looking up at Link, "Thank you."
Link smiles, wincing slightly at his split lip. Mina looks at him sadly, reaching for his face. "I'm so sorry you got hurt."
"It's okay," Link dabs at the injury with the back of his hand. He takes a step back from Mina and his face goes red. Link quickly looks away and says, "I'll wait outside the door while you change." Looking down at herself, Mina blushes as well, trying her best to cover what her towel can't. After Link leaves the room, it only takes Mina a few moments to throw her clothes on. Link is leaning against the wall when Mina exits the bathhouse. Lana is there as well, trying to tend to Link's lip.
"It's fine, really," Link protests.
Lana gives him a stern look, "You're bleeding. At least let me put a salve on it."
Mina clears her throat and Lana is immediately at her side. "Are you okay, sweetie? Did that filthy animal hurt you?!"
Mina shakes her head, speaking quietly, "No, Link arrived in time. Thank you. I'm just shaken, that's all."
"You just give the word and he'll never see the light of day again, I swear it," Lana has a slightly scary look on her face.
"Um, thank you? But I think the guards should deal with him," Mina looks over at Link, "I'm really tired, so…"
"Oh, right, you poor thing, you go right on to bed now," Lana pats Mina on the back and sees her and Link off as they head back to their room on the second floor.
Link keeps a hand on Mina's elbow as they walk through the halls, "Are you sure you're okay?"
Mina nods, "I think so." As they walk into their own room, Mina makes sure to lock the door behind them.
"Okay," Link still looks worried, but Mina changes the subject.
"Will you at least let me put something on your lip?" Mina asks. Link sighs slightly and concedes with a nod. Going to her bag, Mina pulls out a small tin. "This will help it heal faster," Mina explains. Opening the tin, she moves close and uses the little finger of her right hand to gently apply a rose scented ointment to Link's split lip. The boy's cheeks turn a rosy pink color as he silently watches Mina tend to his injury. When the girl looks up from her work, their eyes meet. Th-thump . Link looks away quickly and Mina can feel her cheeks heat up as well.