Note: I've decided to introduce some of the other mothers besides Zelda and Salydia. You meet one of them in this chapter. Review!

Chapter Seven: I Can See It In Your Eyes

Yalon sighed as she crated another batch of Lon Lon milk. If it hadn't been for baby Malon's daily nap, the entire ranch would have fallen into disrepair. It wasn't that Yalon didn't trust her husband with the work. It was just that Talon was so…lazy. But Yalon didn't mind. She loved her husband despite his idleness. And a young man named Ingo would be helping them soon, so she wouldn't have to handle the farm-work by herself. Not that she minded. Humming a cheerful tune, Yalon left the barn.

She started towards the exit to the ranch, carrying a box of milk. She blew a stray strand of her auburn hair from her sun-weathered face and undid the latch with her free arm. She was going to start the daily deliveries, same as always.

Or so she thought.

Yalon opened the door wide and walked through with her usual cheerfulness. Then, as she turned to go to Hyrule, she screamed. The box of milk crashed to the ground, sending milk and shards of glass all across the soft grass.

There, lying before her, was a woman. Or, at least, Yalon thought it was a woman. The stranger's garments were soiled with blood and her dark storm-tossed hair masked her face from view. The poor woman lay prostrate on the ground, clutching something desperately.

Yalon, being the sensible woman she was, immediately went into the house and fetched a bucket of water. Bringing it back to the wounded stranger, Yalon ripped off a piece of her gown and wet it. Then, she applied the washcloth to the woman's wounds.

Salydia stirred at the rough touch of the wet cloth. Opening her azure eyes, she gasped at the sight of a peasant woman tending to her scrapes. The woman continued to help her determinedly, wiping away as much dirt and blood as she could. Salydia found herself too tired to stop her.

"What happened to you?" Yalon asked softly, ripping off another strip of clothing from her dress.

Salydia sighed, then closed her eyes again.

"I…I'm…I'm praying…"

"Praying?" Yalon exclaimed in confusion. "Since when have the heavens answered prayers with misery?"

"Please…" Salydia groaned and forced herself to stay awake. A loud cry erupted from the baby hidden in her arms.

"Heavens," Yalon breathed, looking at the filthy babe in Salydia's arms. "You're a mother."

Salydia looked at Yalon and laughed bitterly.

"You…you're a mother…as well. I…I can see it…in your eyes," she managed to say to the farmer's wife.

Yalon shivered, finding herself uncomfortable in this strange woman's gaze. Her eyes strayed to the symbol that shone in the corner of the baby's blanket. A triforce.

"You're with the royal family, aren't you?" Yalon stated with a sigh. "I'll send Talon to tell them you're here. Don't worry, ma'am, we can send you home before you can say Hyrule castl—"

"No!" Salydia gasped, clinging to Yalon's arm. "Oh please…no…"

Yalon's gray eyes widened as Salydia's tears rained down onto her sleeve. There was something so desperate, so pitiful, about this woman. Even if Salydia weren't in such a terrible condition, Yalon could still see herself feeling sorry for her.

"It's alright," Yalon whispered, putting her arms around Salydia and baby Link. "Don't cry, now. We'll get you all cleaned up, and you can stay here. It'll be fine. I promise."

Salydia cried anyway, burying her head in the kind woman's shoulder.

"I just don't know…what to do anymore!" she sobbed.

"Stay here," Yalon urged her gently, stroking Salydia's muddy hair. "It's safe here."

Salydia shook her head.

"Nowhere is safe anymore. Please…oh, please let me leave. I… I have to go."

"Go where?" Yalon whispered, her loose braid being undone by the wind.

"Far away. Far, far away," Salydia answered quietly. Link whimpered a little, and Yalon heard him.

"I'll go fetch some milk for him," she insisted, hitching up her skirt and rushing off to the barn. The first bottle she grasped fell from her shaking fingers and broke onto the floor. Ignoring it, Yalon found another bottle and hurried back to the mother and child.

"Here," she said as she handed the milk to Salydia's baby boy. Link drank it messily (as it didn't have a stopper) which sent streams of the liquid down his already dirty clothes.

Salydia's eyes shone in thanks. When Yalon offered her the bucket of water to drink from, Salydia refused with a simple shake of her head. Yalon glanced at Salydia and saw a puddle of blood under her left thigh. The fragileness of the woman struck Yalon intensely, and she decided right then and there she just had to alert the castle.

"I'm going to get you the help you need," Yalon told Salydia firmly.

"Don't make me go back! Not to the castle!" Salydia pleaded, wrapping her arms around Link again.

"I'm afraid so. It's the only truly safe place I can send you," Yalon explained.

"You don't understand…! I can't go back there. I just can't! He'll just endanger them. I can't hurt them. I don't want to hurt them!" she begged.

"Don't be a fool!" Yalon snapped. "Look at your condition! That wound on your thigh is serious. Continuing on like this will certainly hurt you and your son more than returning to Hyrule Castle would."

"Please understand…" Salydia began again. Yalon stared into Salydia's eyes. A light of desperation shone there, and Yalon was inclined to notice it. "Wouldn't you do anything to protect your child? Anything…anything at all?"

The farmer's wife nodded.

At that, Salydia smiled.

"Then you can understand. I can see it in your eyes," she whispered to Yalon.

Yalon felt a strange sort of kinship with this woman. They had different situations, but shared the same feelings: anxiety, desperation, and a powerful driving love for those they held dear. They shared the mantle of motherhood and all its burdens and joys.

And Yalon found she did understand.

"Do what you have to," she instructed Salydia with a pained smile.

Salydia stood up gradually, picking up her baby boy with her.

"Would you like a change of clothes or something to eat?" Yalon entreated her.

"I've taken enough of your generosity. I shall be fine. Besides, I have much ground to cover," Salydia declined, holding her bedraggled self up with the dignity of a lady of her status.

"May heaven guide you," Yalon whispered. And slowly, Salydia started off again.