At Malon's insistence, Link and Zelda spent another night at the ranch. The next morning, she filled a saddle bag with bread and smoked meat. She entrusted Zelda with a basket of apples and cheese, and provided one of her childhood dresses with a cloak.
"Now, the two of you be careful," she said, patting Epona on the neck. "An' you too, Epona." A smile crossed her face, for a moment, but the three of them were still not much in a smiling mood.
"Goodbye, Malon," Link said, his voice quiet. "Thanks."
"Thank you, Malon," Zelda piped up, as Epona started forward. She clung to Link's back.
"Mr. Link, have you ever been to the Temple of Nayru before?"
"Once. And you can drop the mister thing," he said, realizing immediately how callous he sounded. "Um... it's quite a sight. It's really..."
Link searched for words, but found none. He'd never been the faithful sort, and he'd never been much impressed by lavish architecture.
"Big," he finished.
"Oh," said Zelda, clearly grasping just as desperately as he was to be conversational.
A tense silence followed them until they reached a brook, where Link stopped Epona and dismounted for a drink. Zelda tried to make a graceful landing this time, but ended up in a heap in the grass again. She watched Link drink from the brook with his hands and followed his motions. Some of the water dribbled down her chin and neck and into her dress. She shivered. Link didn't seem to be having a problem.
"The Temple of Nayru isn't far from here. We'll just follow this stream for a while," Link said. He climbed back up onto Epona's back and offered the princess a hand up.
"By the way, Mister- um- Link- I have something that might be of use." Zelda reached into her dress pocket and handed Link a folded piece of parchment. He faltered.
"Your Highness, you should know now that I'm not much of a reader."
"What do you mean?"
"Never went to school, never had money for books. I can read, I'm just awfully damn slow." He unfolded the paper anyway and was relieved to find a map. "Oh..."
"It's magic," Zelda said, with a hint of excitement in her voice. "See the glowing spot?"
A small dot on the paper glowed, as if it were about to burst into flame, near a brook running through Hyrule Field.
"That's where we are right now," Link said, scratching his head. "Well, that's something."
"I found it in the palace. Um... I kind of stole it."
"You're more devious than I imagined." Link grinned and handed the map back. "Keep it safe. We may need it."
As they approached Lake Hylia, Zelda held on to Link's shoulders and looked out around him, gazing in awe at its sparkling blue waters. On the far side of the lake, great grey pillars framed a dark cave in the side of a cliff.
"You see that cave with the fancy door? That's the Temple of Nayru. Up on that cliff there, that's not Hyrule anymore."
"I've seen illustrations of it in my books," Zelda gasped, "But I never thought it'd be so big. How do we get in?"
"A boat. We'll just rent one here." Link tied Epona off to a fence outside a shack. Zelda stopped in front of a sign.
"Boat rentals, three hundred rupees," she read.
"Three hundred?" Link spluttered.
"That's not much," mused the princess. "Though I didn't have time to bring any money..."
"Not much?"
"Had to raise prices since the Scourge came around," said a man leaning out of the window. "Nobody comes down to Lake Hylia anymore."
"What if I told you that I'm trying to escort the princess-" he gestured to Zelda- "to the Temple of Nayru so she can pray for guidance?"
"I wouldn't believe a word of it." The man smirked. "If you're really hurting for rupees, I'll let you use the raft for cheap."
"How much?"
"Two hundred."
Link sighed and emptied his wallet into the man's waiting hands.