CHAPTER FOUR
"A Rude Awakening"
The blonde Hylian before her gave a slight bow and smiled warmly, his bright cerulean eyes gazing down into her own hazel orbs. "My name is Link. I'm Smith's grandson and a knight of Hyrule. Nice to meet you."
Brittany nodded her head and grinned. "I'm Brittany. It's a pleasure to me you too, Link!"
The Hylian and his grandfather pulled up a chair at the table and joined them. While everyone was helping themselves to supper, Brittany began to get pelted with questions. "So," the Smith started, "where are you from, kid?"
"I'd rather not say," the brunette said shoving another spoonful in her mouth. "It's something I would rather forget, if you don't mind."
The blacksmith and workers stared at the girl but said nothing. "Well, then, why are you here?"
"She's looking for someone who brought her here," Malon joined in. "Judging from the description she gave, I think she's looking for Din and Nayru. But they left about two days ago and won't be back until the festival begins," the young woman turned back to Brittany. "Do you like festivals, Brittany?"
The maiden shrugged. "I don't know...I've never been to one."
Malon and the others sat stunned at the answer. "Never been to a festival, eh?" Talon added. "Well, then, you'd best stick around for awhile! Our festivals are a shame to miss."
"Yeah! There's games," Malon chimed in, "and lots of good food to eat."
"Singers, dancers, storytellers, jesters..." the two workers prattled off.
"The best thing about this particular event is the martial arts tournament," Smith said. "People come from all over Hyrule to watch and take part in our sword-fighting contests. The winner is presented with the prize of a sword created by Hyrule's greatest blacksmith-that'll be me, kid."
"The festival has a lot of history for us all," Malon asked, "doesn't it, Link? Especially a few years ago."
"Why?" Brittany downed another piece of honey-soaked bread. "What was so special about a few years ago?" At that, the rancher's face paled and silence fell across the table. Everyone stopped eating and grimaces of fear struck some of the faces around her. Even the jovial Talon lost the perpetual grin he was so renown for. "What, was it something I said?"
"It was when HE came to town..."
"'He'? Who the heck is 'he'?"
Malon heaved a sigh and sloshed the milk around in her glass. "It was around seven years ago that it happened. The castle hosted the tournament the same way it has done for centuries. After the king's big speech, the contestants were pitted off and the contest began. By the time it was over, one lone man stood the victor."
She paused and set her glass down. "But when he came up to claim his prize, he instead unleashed some horrible monsters into Hyrule and turned the princess to stone," she shot a glance over at Link. "My friend here had to go on a quest to refuge the Holy Sword and save her from that freak."
HOT DOG! I'm in the Minish Cap! Or after it...she gave a mental squeal.
"In the end, Vaati-that's the little guy who caused all of the problems, was defeated by Link. The spell on Princess Zelda was broken and the curse lifted from Hyrule. Ever since, Link has been regarded as a hero for his brave deed. Why, if it hadn't been for him, that demon might still be alive and raging today!"
The blonde sort of squirmed in his chair. Brittany noticed there was a certain uneasiness about his face when the rancher had mentioned Vaati's death. The others didn't seem to notice it, but she spotted a trickle of sweat roll down his forehead at her words. From the looks of things, that probably meant that Vaati was still alive. She had played this version of the game before-she knew the wind mage was supposed to be dead. Maybe this era was more dependant on the manga? For the first time in her life, she finally had a good excuse for her playing video games throughout the years.
"Ur...anyway..." Link muttered uncomfortably. "Yeah, the Picori Festival is not a thing to miss. I wish you had come here when you were younger though, 'cause you might have gotten to see a Picori."
Malon's face fell. "Yeah, they say that only children can see the Picori. And you're, what, fourteen, fifteen years old?"
"I'm almost twenty, thank you!" Brittany huffed.
"Really?" the young workers gasped. Their faces fell, probably because they realized the young woman was too old for their teenage infatuation.
"But you look so much younger!" Talon boasted.
Brittany shrugged. "I get that a lot."
"That's cool," Malon said, "Link and I are seventeen. The princess is, too. We've hung out since childhood."
And so went the rest of supper. Brittany began to ask the youths about life in Hyrule and what they did growing up. Fish tales and adventure stories resounded throughout the night until it was finally ready for everyone to go home. The nighttime insects were blaring their serenades across the field as the girls stood in the doorway to bid everyone farewell.
"Don't be a stranger!" Malon called out to the blonde. "Come back and see us soon, Link!"
He promised and the duo headed back inside. Brittany insisted on helping Malon clear the table, so as soon as the dishes were done, she followed the redhead out to the barn. She heard the low neigh of a horse as she trotted after her host to a vacant stall. It wasn't much to look at, but it was Heaven to Brittany. An empty stall had been cleaned out especially for her. There was a pile of straw in the back fashioned into a makeshift nest, over which Malon tossed one of the blankets she was carrying. She passed the other blanket and a pillow to the thankful girl and headed out.
"It's not much but at least it's dry," Malon crooned. "If you need anything else, just let us know."
"It's more than enough, Malon. Thank you so much for letting me stay here. I'll try to work really hard tomorrow to make up for it!"
The redhead giggled. "After all of the work you did today, you'll be out of it half a day tomorrow," she sighed. "You should probably rest that knee of yours. When Din comes back, maybe she or one of her sisters can heal it for you. Either way, it's best you not damage it any further than you already have."
A few yawned protests later and Malon left. With a tired sigh, the brunette tossed the cushion on top of her makeshift bed and fell back into it with a groan. Oh, how wonderful it felt to get off of her feet after a nice day's work! She purred contently-an old habit she developed when she was a kid (guess she believed early on that she was going to wind up an old cat lady :) )-and wrapped the blanket around her. Stretching out her legs to where her feet just barely dangled over the edge, she heaved a sigh and stared up at the ceiling.
It was dark inside the barn, but at least she could hear the animals around her. The lullaby of the insects filled her ears with its deafening orchestra, and she could hear a couple of owls hooting off in the distance. Sure, the smell was a little odd, but years of living on a farm back in her old realm helped tune it out. Instead, she found herself comforted by the thick, wheaty scent of the straw and the occasion wafting of freshly cut grass through the aisles of the barn. With her body worn out from the labor and her stomach full of food, she soon gave herself up to the music of the night.
Before she knew what was going on, her eyes snapped open and she shot awake. She didn't know what time it was, but she knew it had to have been early as it was still a bit dark inside the barn. The nocturnal insects had put away their instruments for the night apparently, because it was very quiet in the stall. She heard nickering around her. Then...something else. Footfalls, barely audible if you were not listening for them, were making their way up the aisle. She heard latches being undone and the sound of a horse rearing back. A man's voice started growling.
"Don't you be like that with me!" it said. "You are MY horse now. Those bumpkins at the ranch don't deserve such a fine, noble animal like you..."
Easing out of her nest, Brittany crawled over to the corner of the stall and looked out. Twilight flooded the aisles but still had not managed to penetrate the darker recesses of her stall. She peaked her head out in time to see a tall man in armor tugging on a rope lassoed to a frightened horse. The creature kept shaking its head and trying to rear back, angering the man enough to haul off and smack the poor beast.
"Be quiet, you fool! Do you wish to wake the whole house!" he jerked hard on the rope, earning a raspy snort from the horse. "I WILL have you as my horse, regardless of those fools wishes!"
By now, Brittany had climbed to her feet. She had managed to find the pitchfork Malon had tossed the hay down with and had it poised in her hands like a spear, ready to run the man through if necessary. The horse started bucking up, tossing the man to the ground. He leapt up, cursing, then pulled a whip from his belt and began to flog the creature. Finally, when Brittany could take the animal's whinnies of distress no longer, she silently darted out of the stall and straight for the thief.
The man didn't know what hit him. The moment Brittany reached him, she thrust the pitchfork between the man's knees and threw her weight against it, sending the wretch crashing to the ground with a yell. She was on back on her feet before he was, the pitchfork in her steady grasp pointed at his throat.
"Don't you DARE move an inch!" barked the girl. "How DARE you steal from such nice people?"
She started screaming at the top of her lungs for the ranchers. That's when the man took the opportunity to grab for his sword. Brittany thrust the tip of the fork just below the thief's chin, making him relinquish his hand on the blade. When Malon and Talon got into the barn, they found the armored man at the brunette's mercy.
"Goddesses above, Brittany! What is going on-you!" Malon gasped when she saw the figure. "Sir Verdun, what is the meaning of this?"
"I caught this guy trying to steal a horse," claimed the Earthling.
"How could you, Dunstin?" Talon's face fell. "You were never like this when you were a boy. You used to be such an honest man...Do you realize how a thing like horse stealing could tarnish your record?"
"But it won't!" while Brittany had turned away, the knight had managed to wrangle the pitchfork out of her hands and throw the woman to the ground. He turned and bolted out the opposite end of the barn and into the field. The ranchers ran after him.
"Stop!" Talon bellowed. "Don't let him get away!"
Brittany was about to run off after him when something stopped her. A soft nicker from behind made her whirl around. The horse that man tried to make off with was still there. She patted the beast on the neck and crooned softly to it. "Please, please forgive me for this, but we need to catch him!" The maiden stuck the pitchfork in the ground and climbed up on the side of the stall. Throwing her legs over the sides of the animal, she nabbed her weapon and twisted a fist in the horse's lasso. She lightly kicked her feet against its flank and shouted.
"Let's go!"
The horse bolted out of the barn, nearly throwing Brittany off in the process. Luckily, the maiden maintained her grip on the rope and braced herself against the jostling as the beast shot across the field like a streak of summer lightning. Finally, the tiny dot that was Sir Verdun began to grow bigger and bigger until the girl was right on his heels. Just as he was about to reach the entrance to the farm, the brunette summoned her courage and leapt from the horse, knocking the knight to the ground. The armored man threw Brittany off and fumbled for his sword, but the enraged maiden brought the wooden end of the fork up and busted him right beneath the chin. The man tossed his head back, dazed, as the American darted for his legs again. Quickly, he shook his head and jumped to the side, drawing his sword as he took his stance. Malon and Talon started running across the field, the older farmer panting and struggling to keep pace.
"Watch out, Brittany!" the redhead shouted. "Sir Verdun is one of Hyrule's best knights!"
The knight stood in position with one foot drawn back, his sword arm extended and free arm behind his back. "They don't call me Verdun the Swift for nothing!" growled the man as he lunged forward. Brittany brought the pitchfork back up and just barely caught the blade between the prongs. The shock recoiled through her body and her arms began to tremble as the knight forced his entire weight down upon her weapon. She started regretting all of that wood chopping from the day before as her limbs grew weak beneath Verdun's attack. Brittany shrieked out a war cry and forced the blade off to the side. With a grunt, the thief jumped back into another fighting stance. As he lunged forward a second time, Brittany darted to the side and rolled out of his path. Unfortunately, her dodge caused her weapon to fall from her hands. As she scrambled for her pitchfork, her eyes widened. Verdun was poised and ready to deliver the final blow.
...But that blow never came. The moment his sword rushed down, a flurry of green flashed in front of him and brought another sword up to meet it. Clang! Cha-ching! Sir Verdun ricocheted from the attack and stood back to scan his new opponent.
"What's a knight like you doing fighting a lady, huh?" shouted the swordsman.
"Link!" Malon cried out. "Sir Verdun tried to steal a horse!"
"Not that you will live to tell it!" the man brought his arm down again, but Link quickly sidestepped it. The raging sword swung around in a fierce arc only to be dodged and countered by the green-clad hero. Another blow, then another. With each attempted swipe, the younger knight pranced around his attacker, always managing to slip out of harm's way. After a few moments of watching his opponent remain unscathed, Sir Verdun roared out a battle cry and charged for the boy with renewed fury. Brittany watched the duo encircle one another, blow blocking blow, step matching step, pant after pant as they continued their dance of death. Finally, he unthinkable happened...Link stepped into a wet patch of grass and his feet flew out from beneath him.
"LINK!"
"!"
CRACK! Instead of plunging his blade into the youth's vital flesh, the knight merely collapsed on top of Link. The boy blinked in surprise, then looked up with a smile to find an enraged Brittany standing above him, her arms gripping the handle of the pitchfork with blinding intensity. The metal prongs were positioned just over Verdun's head.
"You got him!" Link shouted.
Brittany tried to control her furious breath, blurting out what words she could. "Serves...pant...the bastard right...pant..."
Link gave a light chuckle as Malon ran up to the battleground. "Omigosh, Link, are you alright?" The blonde rolled the unconscious man off of his body with the help of the girls and helped himself to his feet.
"Everything's fine, Malon," the youth beamed. "We stopped Sir Verdun."
"I see that!" the redhead cheered. "Thank you so much, Link! Brittany!"
"Meh, not like I helped any," the brunette shrugged, her breath a great deal calmer now. "Link here did all of the hard work. I just had a lucky shot."
"Not true!" Malon said. "I saw what you did before Link got here!" she clasped her hands together. Had it been possible, Brittany swore that Malon would have gone starry-eyed. "That was amazing! How did you ever learn to fight like that?"
Brittany tapped the toe of her foot with the pitchfork. "Whad'dya mean, 'fight'?" she mused. "I just conked the idiot on the head with a pitchfork. Anyone could have done the same."
"Not necessarily, Brittany," Link joined in, "I saw you, too. You were able to hold your own until I got here. And with a jumping strike as powerful as yours-you have the makings of a wonderful knight, Brittany."
"Hell, anybody is better than this guy here," she hauled off and kicked Verdun's side, wincing as the ball of her naked foot collided with the thick metal of his armor. She bounced around on one foot for a minute then hobbled over to the horse and took off the lasso.
"What are you doing, Brittany?" Malon asked.
"Tying this loser up," the brunette flipped the man over onto his stomach and proceeded to lash his wrists together. When she was sure he wasn't going to get lose, she ripped the whip from his hip.
Talon finally caught up, scarlet-faced and completely out of breath. He collapsed onto the ground. "Hey, you got him!" the rancher hollered.
"Yeah, old news," Brittany said. "Mr. Talon, toss me one of your socks."
He stared at the girl with a confused expression. "Huh? Why do ya want my sock?"
Brittany took hold of the whip in both hands and pulled it taught with a snap! "Payback time for a rude awakening," she mused.
