Chapter 4: Ballad Gone Wrong

"School champion," repeated Shane for the fifth time. He and Link were heading down the stairs to the Dinning Hall for breakfast the next morning after the selection. "School champion!"

"Shane, if you repeat that once more I swear I will…" but Link's voice was drowned as soon as they entered the Dinning Hall by cheers and greetings in his way. Several people clapped his back as he and Shane made his way to the junior's table. They sat in the seats between Sakon and Hena, with Linda and Baito sitting across the table in front of them.

"People are treating you like a god!" said Hena in amazement with a trace of jealousness in her voice.

"I don't think I deserve that kind of treatment," said Link modestly, grabbing a nearby fork and stabbing the chicken in front of him.

"Apparently some people think you do," said Linda, pointing with her index finger behind Link.

Link turned his head to see what she was talking about and his face came across two young girls, probably of freshman year, both holding a parchment and a quill in their hands.

"W-would you give me an autograph, Link?" one of the girls asked shyly. Shane wanted to laugh so hard that he started choking in his cereal. Sakon helped him by punching him in the back.

"I- err… sure, sure," said Link a bit stunned, grabbing one of the girl's quills.

"Why you sign hers first?" complained the girl as her friend's parchment was being signed by Link.

"Because it was closer?" replied Link innocently, punching Shane in the ribs with his free hand as he was chuckling hard.

After Link signed both of the girls' parchments, they left the junior's table displaying a satisfying face. Link returned his attention back to his chicken, and attempted to ignore the playful stares their friends were giving him. Wednesday was always a good day for Link. First class after breakfast was Music, by far his favorite subject… after Swordsmanship of course. It wasn't the subject itself what made the class interesting, but it was the young and energetic Zora they had for a teacher, Professor Mikau, who made the class cool. He was a retired guitarist of the famous Terminan band The Indigo-Go's, which was well-known among all the Hyrule's Academy students… well, maybe except for Shad. Their first hit "The Ballad of the Windfish", aired when Professor Mikau was still a member of the band, still sounded from time to time inside the school's walls. Students practically idolized him, and Mikau always asked them to refer to him as "Mikau" and not "Professor Mikau", as the later made him feel old. Link took a mental note of asking him at the end of the class if he knew what was required for the first task, referring to the "You must be able to play the instrument well" point.

"Oh, brave Link, would you give me an autograph, pleeease?" said Shane teasingly to Link imitating the freshman girl's voice and clapping his hands together in a pleadingly manner.

"Ha-ha-ha, so funny, Shane," said Link laughing sarcastically as his friends burst in laughter. "Hey, it's already time for class isn't it?"

"Oh my goddess, you're right!" exclaimed Linda looking alarmingly at the big clock above the teacher's room's door. She jumped out of her seat, hastily grabbed her backpack and headed off towards the staircase.

"What's her problem?" asked Baito half-laughing with an eyebrow raised, "We still got fifteen minutes."

"Yea, but her History of Hyrule classroom is at the other side of the castle," reminded Hena, eating the last slices of bacon.

"God, you're right!" suddenly exclaimed Shane, standing up, "I have class with her!"

"Hurry up, then!" said Baito, "Have a nice, boring class session with Professor Auru, just remember to avoid falling asleep this time!"

"It just happened once!" Shane defended himself as his friends chuckled, putting his backpack over his shoulder. "Well, maybe twice…"

"Hey, the old man is cool," said Hena, "Is not his fault that the subject itself is so boring."

"He's still not as cool as Mikau," Link pointed out.

"Well, I should get going," said Shane, for some reason rummaging inside his pockets and then staring at the bald student who was previously sitting beside him, "Sakon, did you just steal my wallet AGAIN?"


So Shane had to chase down Sakon around the Dinning Hall as students stared and laughed at them as they passed by. He finally managed to recover his wallet; it was the third time this month. The immigrant Terminan bald boy had some issues with himself.

Baito, Link and Hena laughed all the way to the third floor of what just happened. Once they were yards away from the door of the classroom, they heard some metal music coming from the inside. Link guessed Mikau was having a jam session with Grog. Grog, in Link's opinion, was the strangest student in the Academy, possibly even more than Shad. He only talked to Mikau, as he said the Zora was the only one that shared his passion for his type of music. In the corridors he was always alone, head down. He had a mohawk hairstyle hair and (by far his strangest quality) he refused to wear a shirt even during classes, showing his skeletal, pale body and tattoos to everyone. The only thing Link knew about him is that he used to work in a ranch of cuccos in Termina and he suffered a trauma of some kind there.

As Baito opened the door wide, Link saw that his prediction was right. The tall, light-blue-colored Zora (the color barely seen though, as his entire body was covered with tattoos of all kinds) sat on top of his desk, playing his trademark guitar made of the skeleton of a fish. Similarly, the anorexic Grog sat on top of a student desk in front of Mikau, playing the bass. When Link closed the door behind him, Mikau stopped playing the guitar and became aware of their presence.

"Yo, Link, Hena and Baito!" the Zora said energetically, "What's up?"

The trio came closer to greet Mikau with their unique handshake, making their way through the rows of desks. Link noticed Grog was rather annoyed that they had interrupted their jam session, and merely ignored them and sat back on his chair. Students started arriving and slowly filled the classroom. When Mikau noticed that all the students were already inside, he whistled in a high-pitched tone in order to direct everyone's attention to him. The chatty students fell silent and stared at their tattooed teacher.

"Okay, guys, so today we're going to continue practicing the Sonata of Awakening," indicated Mikau, "Over there are cages with a Gel inside each," he pointed at the other side of the classroom, were two dozens of small cages displayed gelatinous, blue-greenish balls inside their bars, "They are far harder to wake up than what you had attempted before, but the job's a piece of cake, nonetheless. Once you show me your Gel jumping up and down inside its cage, you may help your classmates. If you are too lazy to do so, well, just do whatever you want as long as you don't leave the classroom. Off you go!"

Everyone stood up immediately and headed toward the corner where the cages were, leaving their instruments on top of their desks. Link thought it was so cool that everyone could choose whichever instrument they pleased. They ranged from the most common, harps, flutes and guitars, to the strangest, pipes, saxophones, violins and basses. Link, of course, played the ocarina. Rusl had given it to him as a present in his thirteenth birthday.

"Do you know the notes of the song?" Baito asked Link as he sat on a desk beside him, placing his cage with the Gel inside on top of it.

"Yes…" answered Link, rummaging inside his school bag for his notebook, "There," he said, handing Baito his open notebook on the page where he had written the song's notes. "I have memorized it; you can return it to me by the end of the class."

"Awesome," said Baito, taking out his light-brown guitar and staring at the blue-greenish mass in front him with an eyebrow raised, "Man, these things sure are disgusting."

"There's no need to mention it," agreed Hena who was sitting right behind him, sticking out her tongue in disgust and pushing the cage away from her.

"C'mon, guys, it's just a damn Gel!" exclaimed Link, chuckling, "And they're not even awake!"

"For now," added Hena under her breath.

It took Link less than a quarter of an hour to wake up his Gel, successfully doing it in his fourth attempt. Baito and Hena were not as lucky, though. Link hurried to show Mikau his Gel jumping up and down inside its cage, making angry sounds of being waken up. After the Zora congratulated him for being the second in doing so (the first one had been Grog), Link headed back to his desk and helped his friends.

"Err, Hena, why does your Gel look bigger than it should be?" Link asked her as he couldn't help noticing the enlarged size of the ball of mucus.

"I don't know! It suddenly started swelling!" she panicked, shaking the cage savagely with her hands in an attempt to manually wake up the Gel. "Wake up, you stupid thing!"

"Hena, stop!" ordered Link quite alarmed, holding her hand with his to stop her from moving the cage, "Relax! Okay, let me see you play and see what's wrong."

"Okay then…" accepted a more relaxed Hena, taking a deep breath and picking up her violin from the floor. She leaned forward to approach her Gel and started playing. Link had to lean closer too in order to hear her violin, as the uproar caused by the blended musical instruments played by his classmates made it hard to do so. He tentatively listened to her melody and after analyzing it he discovered which the problem was.

"You're playing it wrong…" he told her as innocently as he could, as he didn't want her to leave him with a black eye, "It should be Si, Sol, Si, Sol… not Si, Mi, Si, Mi…"

"Unbelievable!" exclaimed Hena looking shocked at Link, blood slowly flowing to her face. She was so focused staring at him that she didn't notice her bow had tangled with the strings of the violin. She let go of it and the strings pushed the bow forward, sending a flying projectile across the classroom and hitting Nayru on the head.

When the class was over and Mikau dismissed them, Link pretended to arrange his bag's insides as his classmates one by one exited the classroom. He had already told Baito and Hena that he wanted to ask Mikau something by the end of the class, so they left without questioning him. Link raised his head and noticed that all of the students had left for the exception of Grog, who was vividly chatting with Mikau. Link knew that he didn't plan to end their chat soon, so he decided to act.

"Mikau, can I have a word with you?" he asked as he approached his desk, leaving his backpack on the floor, "In private," he added as he noticed Mikau was waiting for him to speak.

"Sure, Link," Mikau answered, turning his attention to Grog, "Dude, could you leave the classroom just for a sec'?"

Grog didn't answer, but he merely gave Link a deadly stare and stood up from his desk. He swiftly packed his things and left the classroom at a slow pace. When he closed the door behind him, Link returned his attention back to Mikau.

"Why do I have this feeling that he will try to kill me tonight?" he asked, half-joking, half-serious. Mikau chuckled hard.

"Easy, Link, he wouldn't hurt a fly, despite what everybody else thinks," he assured him, "So what you wanted to talk about?"

"Well, last night Professor Rauru gave us this piece of paper with recommendations about the first task…" Link started saying before being interrupted by Mikau.

"Oh, you're right, lucky dog!" exclaimed Mikau, clapping his shoulder hard, "Congratulations for being selected as our school champion!"

"Yea, thanks," replied Link with a smile, having heard similar words all morning, "And, well, somewhere in the list says that I need to be able to play an instrument well. I was wondering if you knew how good I need to play, or what kind of music I must be able to play or what?"

"Mmm… to be honest, Link, the only ones that know the details about the tournament are the headmasters," Mikau told him, causing Link to lose hope, "But," he added, causing Link to lift his spirits again, "I guess I know why they are asking you to be able to play an instrument well."

"You do?" asked Link surprised, giving Mikau his fullest attention.

"You see, instruments throughout history have been used in this tournament in case that the champions are in danger," explained Mikau.

"How come?" asked Link completely clueless.

"Well, let's say, for example, that the champions are inside a maze," explained Mikau, making Link remember that the Gerudo champion had indeed asked if the first task would be a maze, "If a champion is in danger and wants to retire, he may simple play a song, telling the judges beforehand which song, so that they could send someone to rescue the champion by following the sound of its melody and be able to find them."

"Oh, I get it know," Link said, understanding what Mikau just said, "So, any song I know would do?"

"Yes, though I would like to give you some recommendations, man," said Mikau, "Be sure that the song has no magical powers whatsoever, unlike the Sonata of Awakening, as you don't want your surroundings to change especially if you're in danger, cachas?" Link nodded heavily, "Also, make sure that the song is an easy one that doesn't require a lot of finger movements or that has a fast beat, because if your hand is injured you won't be able to move them a lot."

"Man, those are good things to know!" thanked Link, doing that peculiar handshake with Mikau again, "Thank you very much!"

"Anytime!" yelled Mikau as Link was making his way to the exit door, "And tell Grog that he can come in now!" he added as Link picked up his backpack from the floor, "I know he's waiting outside the door."


Next morning, Link woke up with a smile on his face as he knew that he wasn't completely lost in the task that would be taking place in two weeks. Something Shane told him a bit afterwards made him even happier.

"Link, lazy bastard, wake up already!" exclaimed Shane, as he pulled Link's blankets off him. "… Why are you smiling?" he asked with eyebrow raised, "Been having a good dream?"

"No, is not that," he answered him followed by a yawn, standing up from his bed and heading toward his wardrobe.

"Well, guess what?" Shane asked him with a trace of excitement in his voice.

"What?" asked Link boringly as he put on his shirt, expecting a lame response.

"We're having our first trip to Kakariko Village this weekend!"

"Awesome!" exclaimed Link, which were indeed good news, "I've been missing that small village lately!"

"Me too!" said Shane, "They placed the announcement this morning."

"By the way, what time is it?" asked Link, as he knew that Shane just came from the common room and that he must have seen the clock. "Did I miss breakfast?"

"No, it's 6 A.M." replied Shane calmly.

"Ha, ha, nice one," said Link, putting on his left boot, "If that's true, then why Baito is not here?"

"He always jogs around the school grounds at these hours," reminded Shane, "He's absolutely nuts."

"Yes, he totally is… Wait," said Link as he paused tying his shoelaces and stared madly at Shane, realizing the facts, "So it's indeed 6 A.M.!"

"Yes, I just told you," said Shane rolling his eyes.

"Then why were you calling me lazy! Our first class starts in four freaking hours!" yelled Link furiously, throwing himself back to bed.

"Well, yea… that," said Shane rolling his eyes again and pretending to sound casual, "Well, I guess I was just excited about the news that I overreacted, sorry. I saw the announcement in my way to the bathroom."

"Those are good news, actually," said Link comprehensively, "But I'll sleep a few more hours like every other NORMAL student."


"I don't know why you guys are all excited," Linda told his friends as they were descending the hill's path that led to Kakariko Village, being escorted by Professor Medli at the front. "We just came here two weeks ago when we were looking for the Poes."

"Yea, but that was definitely not a pretty experience," Hena pointed out, "Plus, we only saw that ugly cemetery."

"Can't wait to have a drink at the Milk Bar," said Baito enthusiastically, kicking a small rock that was on the road.

"Thinking about alcoholic beverages already, huh?" asked Hena skeptically, "I still can't get it how a guy like you that cares a lot of his body image likes to drink."

"Hey, drinking once in a while is not that bad, right?" asked Baito as if the answer was obvious. Hena merely rolled her eyes.

"Remember the time Malon got drunk?" reminded Shane, chuckling hard, "She was dancing like crazy on top of the counter with the old bartender!"

"That was freaking hilarious!" exclaimed Hena before joining their friends in a scandalous laughter.

"Would you shut up already?" barked an angry Professor Medli from the front, "Or do you want me to take you back to the castle?"

"Sorry, Professor!" exclaimed Link, still half-laughing.

"Oh, leave the poor girl alone," Linda defended her in a whisper after she couldn't help but laugh too, "She used to drink a lot of milk back at Lon Lon Ranch."

"Why are you whispering?" Shane asked her.

"She's right there, idiot!" Linda whispered back, pointing the back of a redhead girl walking a few yards ahead of them beside Agitha.

Link noticed that the students walking in front of them abruptly stopped and the students from behind joined the crowd gathered around Medli standing in front of the gate that led to Kakariko Village.

"So, remember the rules," she said in an authority tone, "You must return back to the castle at maximum 9:30 P.M. No exceptions, all right, Mr. Hermes?"

"It just happened once!" cried Shane before the crowd of students started chuckling.

"Also, if I catch any freshman student here," she said, eyeing the crowd of students with her flaring red yes, "Let's just say that I'll make your life impossible."

"And she means it," Baito whispered in Link's ear, "Poor brat if he thinks he can escape from Medli's claws."

Link tried hard to avoid chuckling hard as the Hylian soldier opened the gate for them. As soon as the metal bars were out of their way, the students hurried forward, drowning an angry Professor Medli who stood in the middle. The cluster of students quickly dispersed as soon as they were beyond the gate, separating into small groups of friends.

"The soldier was totally checking you out," Link heard Din gossiping to Zelda, whose group of friends was walking beside Link's.

"Was he?" asked Zelda distractingly, "I didn't really notice."

Link secretly thanked the goddesses that she hadn't paid him any attention. Link turned his head in her direction, just to see that she was staring back at him.

"Hey, Link!" she said happily, separating from her group of friends to greet him.

Link needed a full second to realize that the kingdom's princess was talking to him. He tried hard to change his dumbfounded face with a smiling one.

"Hi, Zelda!" greeted Link, taking a step closer. Link couldn't help noticing with the corner of his eye that his friends were quite stunned that she had talked to him as well, "How are you?"

"Doing fine," she replied. Link noticed that she began getting nervous as well, as her friends had fell silent and were eavesdropping their conversation, "By the way, congratulations for being chosen as our school champion!" she added, displaying her even, white teeth in a smile.

"Thanks!" replied Link with shaky voice and feeling his cheeks burning. Thankfully, Farore interrupted the tense moment.

"So, Baito, you're totally coming to my party, right?" she asked flirtingly and stepping forward, staring at Link's friend.

"Oh, yea," answered Baito, lacking enthusiasm and avoiding eye contact, "Tonight at the Milk Bar, right?"

"That's right," said Farore giggling.

"Please, Link, why don't you come too?" asked Zelda clapping her hands pleadingly, "You can bring your friends," she added, as she noticed Linda staring at her angrily in an obvious manner.

"Sure, why not," answered Link grinning at her.

"Here are the invitations," she said, grabbing Link's hand and leaving four rectangular pieces of paper with her free one, "You'll need them to enter the bar."

"Awesome!" exclaimed Link, still feeling the warmth of her hand after she let go of it.

"See you there, then," said Zelda as she continued smiling.

Before Link could respond, Zelda had already turned her back to him and had started walking away with her friends.

"Bye, Baito!" yelled Farore as she waved at him enthusiastically walking in reverse to keep up with her friends' pace.

"Bye…" said Baito weakly, making a huge effort to smile.

"Oh, so now Miss Royalty starts noticing Link now that he's school champion," said Linda rolling her eyes when she was sure Zelda and her friends were out of earshot, a trace of annoyance in her voice.

"What do you mean?" asked Link indignantly, "In case you didn't know, I met her BEFORE I became school champion!"

"Yea, whatever," replied Linda furiously, crossing her arms over her chest and staring at the floor.

"So you were planning to go to her party without telling us, you, dog!" exclaimed Shane to Baito, punching him in the arm.

"I didn't want to go, actually," said Baito sincerely, taking out the invitation Farore had given him a few days ago from his pocket and examining it in his hands, "Farore's really getting on my nerves…"

"What she has done to you?" asked Hena hopefully.

"She's so annoying, following me like a stalker," answered Baito, shrugging his shoulders just by thinking about it, "But I guess I'll go, as Link looks like he wants to."

The four friends stared at Link, causing him to feel intimidated. They were now walking between the village's houses and stores, students shopping here and there.

"Well, it might be fun, right?" excused Link, pretending to sound casual while deep inside he felt really excited.

"Why do we need an invitation to enter the bar as if she owned the place in first place?" asked Hena, reading the invitation that she took from Baito's hand.

"She rented the place for her birthday," explained Baito, "Only people with invitation are allowed to enter it after 6 P.M."

"I say we should go," said Shane excitedly, "C'mon guys, it'll be fun!"

"Yes, count me in," finally agreed Hena. Baito, Link, Shane and Hena looked at Linda pleadingly.

"Fine," she snorted. Her friends beamed.

"Well, we have a lot of time to kill before the party," Baito pointed out, "I suggest we go somewhere else in the meantime."

"I need some ingredients for my potions," said Linda, pointing a red building ahead of them with escaping fumes from its chimney.

"Still into advanced potion-making?" asked Shane skeptical.

"Hey, it's good to practice doing potions before we see them in class!" the blue-haired defended herself.

"Actually, I also want to buy some red potions," said Link, remembering the first task and staring at Shane and Baito, "We'll need a few of them during our practice sessions of swordsmanship."

"It's pointless for all of us to go inside that cramped place," Hena pointed out, stopping at the front door of the building, "Why don't you two go and buy your stuff and we wait for you at McKakariko's?"

"Okay, fine," agreed Link as Baito, Hena and Shane walked away from them, "Save us a seat!"

"Obviously," yelled Hena back as a matter of fact.

"Hold your breath, Linda," Link suggested as he opened the door of the Potion Shop for her. Despite she had a grim expression since Zelda's encounter, she couldn't resist laughing before getting inside.

The gloomy store welcomed them with strong odors of all kinds emanating from the diverse potion cauldrons placed at either side of the counter in the back. An old hag was soundly asleep, using her arms as a pillow on top of the counter.

"She always does that," Linda whispered to Link smiling.

Link laughed as they approached the counter, the floor making cracking sounds under their feet. They weren't loud enough to wake her up, though.

"Um, excuse me, ma'am?" asked Link in a tender voice, speaking very close to her ear.

There was no response. The gray-haired woman with peculiar, dark green skin color remained asleep. Link even noticed that she was snoring heavily as she breathed out, a sound he didn't hear before as the cracking floor had drowned it.

"You won't wake her up," uttered Linda frankly to Link. She sat on top of a wooden box that was on the floor, bending forward and placing her arms over her knees, "There's nothing else to do but wait."

"I guess you are right," admitted Link, dragging a similar wooden box that was behind him and drawing it closer to her before sitting down on it.

"So, Link, you have been preparing yourself for the first task, right?" she asked.

"To be honest, no, I haven't," replied Link shamefully.

"I hope you don't disappoint our school," she said, more like a threat than a statement, "You are very lucky for being selected, you know that?"

"Why is that so?" asked Link, frowning.

"I did some research about the tournament," she explained to him, "You're the second student from junior year to be chosen to participate in the tournament ever!"

"The other ones, all of them have been of senior year," Linda said, raising both eyebrows in way that expressed amazement.

"Are you serious?" exclaimed Link surprised, "Who was the first one?"

"He was a student from our academy too, about one hundred years ago," she told him, "I don't remember his name, but he was presumably a descendant of the Hero of Time."

"How awesome!" exclaimed Link, "Maybe I'm a descendant of the Hero of Time too," he joked.

"Yea, right," said Linda rolling her eyes, chuckling.

"But seriously, Link," she continued in a more serious tone, "People have died in this tournament."

"Yes, I know…" uttered Link with a straight face, "Shad mentioned it to me."

"And that's why I want you to prepare yourself well for this tournament," said Linda, hesitatingly half-grabbing Link's elbow, "I don't want to see you getting hurt."

"Don't worry, that's why I have the world's best friends to help me," replied Link smiling, emphasizing the word "friends" and grabbing her shoulder.

After they let go of each other, they remained silent for quite a while, the only sound coming from the old hag's snoring. Linda was staring at the floor, an empty expression on her face, submerged in her thoughts. Link knew that something else was bothering her, and it had nothing to do with the tournament.

"So when did you meet Zelda?" Linda suddenly asked him in a forcedly casual way, returning her stare back at him.

"Oh…" said Link blankly, stunned by the sudden question, "I met her when we were looking for some Poes in the cemetery."

"How?" she asked, deeply interested.

"Well, Hena got tired of walking because of her supposedly tiring P.E. class session so she rested under a tree while I continued to look for the Poe," Link explained, uneasy about the whole subject, "And I just came across her in the mist, and… well, we just started talking."

"Oh, nice," said Linda, her tone expressing the opposite feeling.

"Yea…" uttered Link lowly, staring at the floor.

"…Do you like her?" she asked him.

Link lifted his head to look at her. She was looking at him in a way Link had never seen before. Her eyes displayed pain and sorrow.

"Well, I…" started saying Link before being interrupted by a harsh, weird sound coming from the counter.

Both stared in the direction of the sound, just to see the old woman yawning heavily and stretching her hands upward behind the counter. After she finished, she looked at the pair of them with half-closed eyes.

"Woo... whooot?" she said drowsily before realizing that she had costumers, "Oh, welcome to Koume's Potion Shop, the best and only potion shop around!"


"What took you so long?" asked Hena looking suspiciously at Link and Linda when they arrived to their table in McKakariko's and were leaving the bags they held in their hands carefully on the floor.

Linda and Link had remained quiet during their way from Koume's Potion Shop to the restaurant, still tense about the weird moment they had a while ago. Linda refused to respond to Hena, and she sat on the chair beside her silently.

"The witch was asleep when we arrived," explained Link, looking worryingly at Linda with the corner of his eye as he sat between Shane and Baito, "We had to wait until she finally woke up."

"Talk about some bad luck," said Baito shaking his head, playing with the small parasol of his drink with one finger, "Did you guys find what you were looking for?"

"Yea, everything's fine," said Link, when deep inside he knew things were not, "I bought enough red potions to heal all the wounds I'll inflict on you when we practice," he joked to Shane and Baito, planning to cheer himself up.

"Yea, right," said Shane laughing before eating a Gerudo fry from the dish in front of him, "We'll kick your ass and you know it."

"In your dreams!" exclaimed Link, his mood lifting back again.

"I'll go to the restroom," Linda said quietly, standing up from her chair and walking away before anyone could respond.

"Me too," said Hena quickly, leaving the guys alone in the table.

"Why chicks always have to travel in packs to the restroom?" asked Shane with an eyebrow raised, watching Hena catching up with Linda.

Link heard Baito answering him, but he wasn't paying attention to what he was saying. He was thinking hard of what just happened, staring down at the table blankly. So Linda had a crush on him? Yes, that was the only possible answer Link could find. Why would she care too much for what he thought about Zelda otherwise? Link had never considered her as something more than a friend, not even when they first met in freshman year. Would there be another reason for her weird behavior?

"Link, Link, hello? Are you there?" said Shane, snapping his fingers in front of him.

"Yes, yes… what were you saying?" asked Link distractingly.

"I asked you if you have been practicing your skills as an archer," repeated Shane.

"Not really…" Link answered quietly.

"Man, you sure need to take this thing seriously!" exclaimed Baito looking serious.

"Yea, I know, I know!" said Link really stressed out, "I promise I'll start getting serious next week."

"We'll practice really hard," assured Shane to Link before his gaze changed in Hena's direction, who was walking back to their table, alone.

"Listen guys, Linda and I are going to take a walk," she informed them when she arrived, "We'll meet you at Farore's party, okay?"

"O-okay?" responded Baito, frowning.

"The truth is that this place grosses us out," she invented, "This food is SO heavy!"

"Girls and their dieting," said Shane rolling his eyes, not suspecting that something wrong was happening.

"See you there, then," said Hena, giving Link a particular stare before she headed off toward the exit door. Link inferred Linda was already outside.

"What's with them?" asked Baito curiously, first staring at Shane and then at Link.

"Dunno," said Shane clueless, "You know how weird they can be sometimes."

Link was debating inside his mind if he should tell them what just happened. He concluded that it was too soon to make speculations of what the reason might be of her weird behavior, so he decided to keep it as a secret, for now.


The guys spent another hour at McKakariko's, mainly talking about the tournament and the first task, giving Link a good distraction away from Linda. After leaving with satisfied stomachs, they decided to explore the village and visit some stores. Shane and Baito accompanied Link to the Bazaar to buy the bandages he would need for the first task. After that, they went to the Shooting Gallery so that Link could practice his archery skills. Despite he was given the most beaten bow out of the three, Link showed his two friends why he was chosen to represent their school. He shot the ten targets with perfect accuracy, while Shane only managed to hit eight and Baito seven. Link won himself a black, leather quiver to his amazement. When there was only one hour left to kill, they decided to go to their favorite, secret spot: the windmill.

Standing on top of a high hill, the windmill overlooked the whole village. At the back of the towering structure, a long, wooden ladder led to their secret spot, where a beautiful view of the village could be seen. Shane had already his left foot on the first rung when he noticed Link was looking at him hesitatingly.

"What's the prob?" he asked looking at him.

"I can't climb up with all of this stuff," uttered Link, showing him the two bags held on his right hand and the quiver on his left hand.

"Why don't you tell the Guru-Guru to keep them for ya?" suggested Baito, crossing his arms, "You can come back for them after the party, as they could be a nuisance there too."

"You're right," agreed Link, turning his back to them and running around the circumference of the building, "I'll be back in a sec'!"

"Okay!" yelled Shane who was already standing on the fifth rung, his arms firmly grabbing the ladder, "We'll wait for you at the top!"

"And don't make him mad!" shouted Baito, cupping his hand in front of his mouth to direct his voice, "You know he has such a shaky temper!"

Link was finally facing the door that led to the windmill hut. He grabbed and turned the doorknob and pushed the door open. The rotating, wooden wheel on the floor that caused the windmill outside to spin with a column that protunded from the middle was the first thing Link saw when he entered it. The barefoot windmill man sat on his usual spot, happily playing his phonograph. Link had always hated the sound of that thing.

"Hello, Guru-Guru!" greeted Link, taking a step closer. Because there was no other way to reach his side, he had to board the rotating wheel and then step out of it just in time to come across him face to face.

"Hey, Link, how are you?" asked the middle-aged man as he fully stopped playing the phonograph, much to Link's pleasure, "You and your friends are at the usual spot, aren't you?"

"Yes, we are," confirmed Link, "Listen, Guru-Guru, I wanted to ask you a favor."

"Ask right away, my boy," said Guru-Guru, nodding.

"Can I leave these things here for a while?" he asked pleadingly, showing him the bags and the quiver, "I have a party in half and hour and I don't want to carry them around."

"Oh, sure, sure, leave them there," accepted the Guru-Guru, pointing somewhere on the floor.

"Thank you very much!" exclaimed Link thankfully.

"Anytime!" said Guru-Guru, with the same permanent smile he had on his face. Well, it sometimes changed into a diabolic one, and Link wanted to avoid that at all cost, deciding it was better to leave now before he screwed up.

"I'll come back for them in a few hours!" assured Link as he boarded the spinning platform again.

"Fine!" exclaimed Guru-Guru when Link had a hand on the doorknob before playing his phonograph again.

"Shane and Baito, stop making out, I'm coming!" joked Link as he was reaching the last stairs of the ladder.

"Ha, ha, ha," laughed Shane and Baito sarcastically in unison while Link stepped out of the ladder.

"I never get tired of this view," admitted Link as he saw Kakariko Village down below, sitting beside Shane.

"I know, me neither," said Shane before a running figure dashing between the buildings drew his attention, "Hey, isn't that the old hag that works at the Potion Shop?" he asked to Link and Baito, pointing the figure with his index finger.

"You're right!" confirmed Link, looking at her small running figure, now and then, peering over her shoulder. Link couldn't decide if she ran more comically than Dampé or not.

"She just came out of the House of Skulltula," informed Baito, tracing her route with his eyes.

"What do you think she was doing there?" asked Shane, freaked out.

"Dunno, crazy witch," answered Baito, shaking his head.

"She could barely stay awake a while ago, and now she's vividly running," said a confused Link, frowning at the old woman as she entered the building corresponding to her potion shop.

"Look, Link," said Baito to him, nudging his arm to get his attention, pointing the flaring sun hiding behind two distant hills in the horizon, "Always remember that the sun comes out from the east and hides in the west in Hyrule."

"Why would Link want to know that?" asked Shane, frowning at him and looking at Baito as if he were nuts.

"It might help him during the task," assured Baito to Shane, then turning back to Link, "You said that you needed to practice your sense of orientation right?"

"Yes, I did," confirmed Link, realizing how useful his tip really was, "Now I'll be able to know where every cardinal direction is! That's like carrying a mental compass everywhere!"

"That's right," confirmed Baito, too pleased with himself.

"Where did you learn that?" asked Shane jealously.

"Professor Shikashi mentioned it last night in Astronomy class," said Baito proudly.

"But you never put attention in Astronomy class!" Shane complained.

"You don't put attention in any class at all," Baito pointed out before laughing.

"Look, people are starting to arrive at Farore's party," informed Link to stop their argument, pointing the Milk Bar down below, right next to the Shooting Gallery, where people indeed were arriving in packs.

"Let's roll then," said Baito, standing up from the floor, quickly joined by Link and Shane.


"Let me see your invitations," ordered a mighty-looking Hylian soldier standing at the front of the Milk Bar, halting their pace. Shane, Link and Baito rummaged inside their pockets and showed him the green pastel piece of paper. He stepped aside to let them in.

The Milk Bar was popular for being the only local building to be underground. As soon as they entered it, a long, descending staircase welcomed them. Link peered over the railing of the stairs to see what was going on downstairs. The bar was really dim, illuminated only by flying Forest Fireflies swirling near the ceiling, close to where Link and his friends where. Link estimated thirty-five people were there, some students having drinks at the counter, others at the front of the stage watching a band's performance, and finally others dancing to the fast beat melody.

"I can't believe it!" exclaimed Shane shocked when they where midway down the stairs, "They are the Indigo-Go's!"

"What?" exclaimed Baito surprised, looking at the stage. He saw that Shane was right, observing the dashingly beautiful Lulu wearing an elegant blue dress singing at the front of the stage.

Link couldn't help but laugh at his friend's gaping mouths. As they came closer to the floor, he noticed that a few Kokiri, Gerudo and Sheikah were there too; it seemed that Farore had already befriended some of the foreign students.

"Baito!" called a familiar voice from the crowd as soon as they stepped off the last stair.

"Oh, no…" muttered Baito under his breath before Farore appeared out of nowhere, grabbing his arm and forcefully dragging him to a group of friends.

"There's so many people I want you to meet," she said happily while Baito peered over his shoulder to stare pleadingly at Shane and Link.

"I feel sorry for him," said Shane honestly.

"Yes…" replied Link, "Why don't we go for a drink?"

"The school champion wants to drink?" asked Shane teasingly.

"C'mon, don't be so dramatic!" exclaimed Link rolling his eyes, "The Romani Shake has barely alcohol in it."

Link and Shane made their way through the crowd of students, now and then stopping to greet familiar faces. When they finally reached the counter, Link and Shane sat down on a pair of empty chairs in front of it. The chubby bartender approached them with a couple of empty mugs.

"What can I get for you, guys?" he asked, putting one mug on the counter and cleaning the other one with a piece of cloth.

"Piña Colada for me," said Shane quickly.

"I want a Romani Shake," indicated Link.

"Perfect, hang on while I prepare them," said the senile bartender as he looked among the hundreds of bottles he had on a shelf for the right ones.

"I finally found you," said a too familiar voice.

Link and Shane turned their heads in the direction of the voice just to find Hena standing behind them.

"Hey, how was your promenade?" asked Shane as Hena sat on a chair beside him.

"Good, I'd say," answered Hena expressionless.

"Where's Linda?" asked Link worryingly, bending over the counter so that Hena could see him past Shane.

"She lost her invitation," said Hena rolling her eyes, "She just noticed it when we were standing before the intimidating soldier at the door. He thought we were party crashers!"

"So you left her outside?" exclaimed Link incredulously.

"No, no… she said that she might have probably dropped it in Koume's Potion Shop, so she went there to check," Hena explained, "I insisted on accompanying her but she refused, saying that it shouldn't take her long."

"Link, you came!" suddenly exclaimed Zelda, sitting next to him and giving him a swift hug, "When did you arrive?"

"About five minutes ago," responded Link, feeling as if electricity were flowing through his veins the moment she embraced him.

"I love that song," said Zelda as the Indigo-Go's started playing a slow song Link knew very well as the "Ballad of the Windfish". Her blue eyes were staring at Link in a peculiar manner, "Would you like to dance?"

Link really thought he would faint for a moment. The beautiful princess was asking him to dance, and his eyes opened wide when she asked it. Zelda had already stood up from her chair and was offering him a hand temptingly.

"Sure," accepted Link, faking a natural, confident voice while his insides were actually trembling, "See you, guys!" he said waving to Baito and Hena with one hand while Zelda dragged him to the center of the dance floor with the other. Shane gave him a thumbs up, while Hena's face was absolutely neutral.

More and more people started leaving the dance floor as they didn't have a partner to dance, leaving Link and Zelda rather exposed to everyone's sight. Another five or six couples were also dancing. Link couldn't help but smirk when he noticed Farore and Baito dancing nearby, his friend's expression rather grumpy.

"This song is for the birthday girl, Farore!" yelled the Zora bassist from the stage.

Several people clapped and cheered enthusiastically as Farore let go of Baito's shoulder and raised a hand in acknowledgment, grinning broadly.

"C'mon Baito, smile a bit," pleaded Farore as his companion's expression displayed everything but happiness.

"Enjoying the party so far?" asked Zelda to Link, both hands behind his neck.

"It's awesome!" assured Link, his hands trembling a bit on Zelda's waist, "I still can't believe Farore had the Indigo-Go's coming!"

"Em, guilty," admitted Zelda, chuckling, "I practically had to beg to my father to have them coming."

"Oh," was all Link could utter, looking surprised.

"That was my birthday present for her," Zelda told him with a smile.

"Can't think of a better present," assured Link, smiling back at her.

"Where's your friend?" asked the bartender as he gave Shane a mug full of Piña Colada, leaving Link's Romani Shake on the counter. Hena hastened to grab Link's drink and gulped a healthy amount out of it.

"Dancing," Shane told him, "Hena will pay for that one, don't worry."

"Hey!" exclaimed Hena indignantly, her mouth surrounded by foam.

"Okay, then," accepted the bartender before heading toward a new pair of costumers.

"You know, it's strange that Linda hasn't arrived yet," Shane pointed out, drinking some of his Piña Colada.

"It's good that she's not here," said Hena sincerely, watching Link and Zelda dancing really close to each other.

"Why you say that?" asked Shane, frowning at her.

"Never mind," said Hena shaking her head, "But you're right, she's taking too long."

"I hope nothing wrong has happened to her," said Shane seriously.

"Wait here," Hena told Shane, standing up from her chair, "I'll go and look for-"

But her words were drowned by the hard sound of the bar's door hitting against the wall as it was burst open. An unknown figure was rolling down the stairs incredibly fast, beating hard against each step. When it reached the end of the staircase, people gasped worryingly as they approached the figure that lay on the floor. Even the Indigo-Go's had stopped playing and they were getting off the platform to see what the scandal was all about. Link grabbed Zelda's hand and dragged her to the accumulating crowd, managing to push his way to the front. Then he finally saw it. The figure was the Hylian soldier that was guarding the Milk Bar's entrance, a spear crossing his chest through the middle, a pool of blood slowly expanding on the floor. Characteristic red strings that Link had only seen in his History of Hyrule book were tightly tied where the wooden shaft and the pointy head met.

"Moblins… all over the village…" mumbled the weary solider before spiting blood over his mail and convulsing madly. Then he stopped moving; he was dead.

Panic spread among the surrounding people like a plague, running in random directions and pushing people around while screaming their lungs out. Farore in particular gave a piercingly annoying shriek behind Link, causing him goosebumps. The bartender passed running past him, climbing the long staircase in a hurry. He took out a rusty, old key and locked the door. Only Link seemed to notice his action, though, as the people were still yelling and running like zoo animals. Zelda remained by his side, grabbing tightly his arm and looking petrified. Then Link remembered… Linda was still outside.