Chapter Sixteen: The Princess of Bugs
Midna was next to him when he opened his eyes, her back propped up against the other pillow that he hadn't used, book in her hands. She had spent another night right next to him and thought nothing of it. She probably never would get it. He wondered if she would still be laying down in a bed next to him like that if she wasn't cursed. Probably not. She'd be able to sleep, and have her own bed.
Link sat up, feeling stiff. As far as he knew there were no bruises this time, but his muscles felt sore from all the running and fighting he had done as a wolf, not to mention the jump off the bridge. He groaned a little when he threw the soft quilt aside and got out of bed.
"You sound like an old man." the imp said, not looking up from her book.
"I feel like an old man." He stretched, grunting. "I wish using my muscles as a wolf didn't translate into sore muscles as a human, but muscles are muscles I guess."
"That's a problem shapeshifters can run into, yes. Be glad you weren't wounded."
"Now that's not a pretty picture." He ran his hand through his hair, able to see himself in the large mirror that was opposite the bed on the wall. Maybe it would behave itself today. He had about as much control over his own hair as he had over his assignment as hero. "Hey Midna, can I ask you a question about magic?"
"Ask away." She lowered her book to look at him, reflected in the mirror as she sat behind him on the bed.
"I can figure out where my clothes and gear go when I'm transformed. How does that work for enchanted things, though? I have this hero's heirloom that's been enchanted to never age, and then I have a boomerang with a fairy living in it. What happens to that fairy?"
"Oh, good question." Midna took a deep breath, and then launched into an explanation. "First off, enchantments remain, but they're locked away beneath the spell that transforms you. Think of it like locking a lump of ice inside a box. That water is still cold and frozen, but you can't tell once the box is closed. If you had gone up to Death Mountain with me yesterday, your bracelet wouldn't have worked." She set aside her book and stood on the bed, taking a few steps forward to look at his reflection in the mirror. "The fairy is different. Fairies are magical beings that can transform their physical forms into magical energy, and vica versa. She's magical energy right now as she sleeps in that boomerang, and when that boomerang is transformed her consciousness remains asleep."
He raised his eyebrows at her, having half-expected her to give a dismissive response. The explanation was intelligent and given in such a way that she figured he'd understand. It wasn't like before; both of them knew how bright the other was at this point. "The enchantment thing is a good thing to know, even though I'm done being a wolf. I won't miss it."
"I will. You were so nice and fluffy and now you're…" She waved a hand at him. "Very hairless. You don't have very much body hair, do you?"
He scowled at her. "I don't know what's worse: you picking on me over that, or the implication that you would like to pet my body hair if I had any."
She wrinkled her nose at him. "Ew, no. Look, I know I'm a little bit clueless about how to behave around you, but I think that goes way beyond personal. And I do not like the mental image you just gave me, thank you."
"Me either, so try to think about what you're saying before you say it. I'm certainly not commenting on how you look." He knelt to find the sharp knife he used as a razor, going through the satchel on the floor.
"No, you're not. Then again you know I'm cursed. You don't know what I really look like, anyway." She floated up to perch on the end of the bed near him. "You're a bit self-conscious about your looks, aren't you?"
"I don't like it when people comment on them. It doesn't matter if the comments are positive or negative." He grumbled, taking the knife and its sheath over to the wash basin. The table also had a mirror behind it, and the excessiveness of it all was ridiculous. How many mirrors did you need, anyway? "It makes me feel weird. I don't really think about what I look like too much. Other people shouldn't either."
She floated over to him to hover behind his shoulder as he busied himself with the act of shaving. "I know I phrased it as half a joke both times, but when I say that you're an attractive guy, do you believe me?"
He looked at himself in the mirror and saw the same familiar features. "I mean, I guess I do. But I'm not seeing it when I look at myself."
She laughed. "Of course not. You're not self-absorbed. It's all right, you don't have to believe people or like it. But as it is, they will notice. I said that you're charismatic, but it isn't just your voice or the way you talk. It's your pretty eyes. It's your smile. People respond to attractiveness, you know?" She gently patted the top of his head. "You'll get used to it. It's something I had to come to terms with too, except it's even more of a big deal when you're a woman. Although it might be just as big a deal because you're the hero."
He gave a sigh but didn't say anything. Her admission that people flattered her over her looks didn't mean much, because he had no idea what she looked like normally. As for himself, he simply couldn't see what the ladies in Ordon were talking about. He had gotten compliments or had heard offhand comments that they thought he couldn't hear, but he dismissed them. The one woman that he wanted to hear it from never said anything, although he never told Ilia how beautiful she was either.
He would see her soon. He knew where she was, and he planned on going back up to Castle Town to talk to Ralis. The idea of seeing her in person made his heart skip a beat. What would she say? He wasn't sure what he would say, only that he would stop beating around the bush and be open with her. Probably the first thing he'd do is hold her in a hug. After the vision last night, the idea of holding her in his arms was even more appealing.
After shaving and washing he inspected his clothes, and strangely found them looking cleaner. The spatters of blood on the green tunic, vambrace and gloves were gone. He frowned and picked up the gambeson and sniffed at it, and found that it didn't stink of sweat anymore.
"I'm going to guess that smells like you." Midna said helpfully.
"Cute. Except it doesn't smell like I was sweating in it on Death Mountain anymore. The blood is gone too, look. I don't understand."
"The Light Spirits use sacred magic when they teleport you and transform you back into being human, right? The wolf form is kind of a curse, like I said. It's what your own innate magic came up with in response to what the Twilight tries to to do with you. Since it's a curse, the sacred magic is purifying you." She swooped down to pick up his left glove, which had gotten a considerable amount of blood on it during the chase on the Eldin plains, but was now clean. "I guess that could count for gross bodily fluids like blood and sweat, too."
"Either that or the gods like me to look pretty. I'm kind of their representative, if you think about it." He began to dress. "It would be bad PR if the hero was dirty and stinky."
"Considering they pierced your ears, it wouldn't surprise me in the least." Midna said with a smirk.
A half an hour later he was seated in a dining room with thick blue velvet curtains and a matching patterned carpet, eating a late breakfast of eggs, sausages, tomatoes and tea. The price of the food was just as exorbitant as the price of the room, but Lanayru provided him with more than enough rupees. The other people in the room were the type to wake late and eat breakfast mid-morning, or perhaps it was technically considered brunch. Leave it to the nobility to come up with a meal halfway between breakfast and lunch, designed to cover both because they didn't wake up as early as the common folk.
The vision and Lanayru's words came back to him, and now that he wasn't drained of both emotional and physical energy he could approach it with a clear head. Yes, the Fused Shadows were frightening, but it was a magical relic. It was a tool to be used just as his sword was, and it was entirely possible that Midna could ignore the whispering voices that he had heard and use it to defeat Zant. Every time she went to pick up a fragment, she would be distracted for only a moment and then go back to her usual self. She seemed to be strong-willed and resilient, so he most likely could trust her. If not...he'd handle it. If she went rogue he'd have to fight and possibly kill her, but he could do it. Even though he hated the thought of doing so, he could kill her if necessary. Despite the terrible power the Fused Shadows had, he also had power that let him become as strong as he needed to be, even if he didn't quite understand it yet.
"Excuse me." a man's voice said to his right. Link didn't want to be bothered by these nobles, and had hoped that none of them would bother someone who was dressed like a commoner, but unfortunately that didn't seem to be the case.
He cut a piece of sausage from his second plate of breakfast, and raised the fork halfway to his mouth. "Yeah?" he said, pointedly putting the food in his mouth. He was eating. Couldn't this man see that he was eating? If he was seated alone, it was probably for a good reason.
"I hate to impose and I can see that you are eating, but I must say that I noticed that you are wearing a sword and a bow." After glancing over, Link could see that the man was wearing a long black coat and vest, and immaculate white gloves. He appeared to be in his mid forties, but had very little gray in his dark hair. It was neatly combed, and his pointed ears were nearly as short as a regular human's. A half-Hylian, and some kind of servant by the look of him.
"How astute." Link said, seeing where this was going. While he had seen others with swords, they were the more narrow type favored by the rich, and not meant to be used in normal fights. Out of all of them, he was the one who looked the most capable.
The man in black leaned in closer and lowered his voice. "When saw you enter the room, I could see how you move. You're an actual swordsman unlike these puffed-up roosters sitting around us." That was unexpected. He had thought that the man wouldn't be critical of the nobility since he was employed by them, but then again servants were commoners too. "I'll be frank: I need to hire a sword to guard my mistress on her way back to Castle Town. It's less than a day's ride, but you'll be paid well for your services."
Now that was interesting. He wasn't hurting for the money, but the idea that they could ride to Castle Town and be there by tonight was appealing. That is, it was appealing if he had something to ride. Epona was still at the Goron outpost. "I don't currently have a horse. I came here on foot." he told the immaculately-dressed man.
"That's not a problem. We have a coach. All you need to do is sit there and possibly shoot any Bokoblins you see with that bow of yours." He glanced around the room, still keeping his voice low. "I don't know if you're actually a noble's son or not, but it doesn't matter. I'd much rather have you instead of anyone else here." The man's speech had become more informal when he lowered his voice, so he likely did doubt that Link was nobility. It was ironic that the man was wrong, and that Link technically did have a title.
"I'm not. I only went here because I came into Lakeside late last night, and this was the first hotel I saw." He gave the man a small smile, playing the part of the traveling swordsman. It was getting far too easy to lie or pretend he was something he wasn't. "If you're willing to pay, then I'm willing to work. Staying here ate up most of my rupees, but I was too tired to think about it last night." The second part of that statement was true, but he couldn't explain to the man that the Light Spirit gave him hundreds of rupees last night. It was yet another thing that he couldn't tell people about. The list was growing.
"Excellent." the man in black said, straightening and assuming his more formal tone. "I shall inform my ladyship. Please meet us by the coach house on the west side of the inn soon; we shall leave within the hour." He glanced about, and then lowered his voice again. "Please don't be offended by anything my mistress says. She can be...eccentric. She's a kind girl, though." He gave a short bow. "I'll take my leave."
Link watched the man as he walked from the room, and no one else seemed to pay attention to their conversation. While he had gotten a few looks when he had entered the room, it didn't appear anyone had really cared. If the servant mentioned that he could be a noble's son, that's likely what the others thought. He resumed eating, enjoying having a hearty meal for once.
"That solves a problem for us, doesn't it?" Midna's voice said, close and in his ears. "We need to get back up to Castle Town to talk to that injured Zora kid, and this gets us there in a hurry." He couldn't answer her in this room full of people, and didn't really want to either. He probably would be reduced to things like bread and oatmeal again before long, so he was going to eat every last scrap on his plate. "Getting that water-breathing armor might be nice, but there couldn't be anything else in Castle Town that you're interested in...right?"
He did his best not to scowl and look grumpy, but he must have anyway because she laughed at his reaction. He shoved more food in his mouth, ignoring the laughter in his ears. Why tease him about Ilia? Why tease him at all? Banter was one thing, but he couldn't answer her right now. This was straight up bullying, whether she realized it or not. He considered asking her if she had any friends that she misses, but then decided that being a jerk was not the route he should take. He'd take the higher ground this time.
Since he had a coach to catch, he didn't look for more supplies in Lakeside like he had considered doing. There would be plenty of shops in Castle Town, and if he went to Gamo's store he might be able to get a discount. He didn't need much by way of supplies if he was getting there today, anyway. Midna still had plenty of arrows stowed away, and he hadn't used too many of Barnes' bombs.
The coach was garish and overdone, looking ugly in contrasting colors as it sat out in front of the coach house. It was purple and green with gold filigree around the door and windows, but as he approached he could see that it wasn't actually gilded, only painted gold. The man in black that he had spoke to earlier was hoisting a piece of luggage into the green-painted trunk on the back of the coach while a young Hylian girl looked on.
The girl matched the coach: green skirt flared out by a white petticoat, white puffy blouse, purple coat, green parasol, and a strange pair of fabric purple and pink butterfly wings on her back, worn almost like a backpack. Her outfit was horrendous and looked like it should be worn by a toddler instead of a girl, but there was no accounting for taste when it came to the rich. Link was unsure of her age; she was short and slender like a prepubescent girl, but she wore the typical makeup that seemed to be popular with Castle Town ladies, multi-colored dots of pigment near the eyes. If he had to guess he would estimate that she was between ten and twelve years old, despite how she was dressed.
She turned to look at him and made a sound of delight as he approached. "Oh! Are you a grasshopper?" Okay, the man had said she was eccentric, but that was just plain weird. Didn't the nobility say hello like everyone else? "Since you're dressed in green, you must like grasshoppers." He opened his mouth to say something but she kept talking. "Do you like bugs?" The look on her face indicated that he should not tell her the truth. Insects were disgusting, and the ones that weren't disgusting were just kind of boring. If he had told her that he'd probably lose his ride to Castle Town.
He gave her a pleasant smile. "Sure do. Especially butterflies." That much was true; at least butterflies were pretty, so it wasn't exactly a lie. The fact that she was wearing a fake pair of butterfly wings made his answer seem like a safe bet.
The girl made another delighted sound, something halfway between a sigh and an exclamation, and not a sound he'd heard children in Ordon making. "I could tell that you liked bugs just by looking at you. You seem like a nice man, and nice people like bugs."
Link did not follow that logic at all. What did he say in response? He continued to give her a smile and hoped that she would either talk about something else or get into the coach. The man in black saved him then, calling from where he had just shut the trunk. "Lady Agitha, the guard we hired won't have time to chat. We must be on our way if we plan to get to Castle Town before nightfall."
Agitha pouted in an absolutely childlike manner, looking rather young. "But he's nice. He's a nice man and I would like to make friends with him." She snapped her parasol shut and recovered from sulking. "What's your name, Mr. Grasshopper?"
"Link. My last name is not 'Grasshopper' either." He actually did have a surname, but he never used it. There was no point in doing so anymore.
She gave a careful little curtsy and smiled politely. It seemed to be a very rehearsed movement, something a child would be taught over and over, yet do with very little grace. "I am Lady Agitha of the house Artho. It's a pleasure to meet you."
The neatly-dressed man opened the door to the coach. "My lady, if you would be so kind, please have a seat and we shall get going."
She briefly looked disappointed, but then assumed the polite expression again. "We will have a chance to speak later. I look forward to that time." The girl turned and climbed up into the gaudy coach, and had a seat inside.
Her servant shut the door behind her and then motioned to Link. "Sit up front with me with that bow of yours." The man climbed up to sit on one side of the front seat, and he waited as Link made his way around the coach to haul himself up and sit next to him. "I heard your name, but you don't know mine." The formal speech was gone again, one commoner speaking to another. "I'm Erol. I was at my wit's end about how to get Agitha home safely, and had hoped to find someone to help. I know you're young, but like I said I saw how you walk. The nobility doesn't move like a warrior does."
He didn't know what to think of that. Link thought he walked as he always did, but perhaps his recent experiences had changed the way he moved without him noticing. "To be honest, I was hoping to find a way to get back to Castle Town in a hurry. There's somebody important waiting for me there." Two somebodies, in fact. Ralis was the far more important one of the two, but Ilia was the one he kept in the back of his mind constantly.
Erol leaned forward and took the reins in his gloves hands, and tapped the horses with the whip to start the coach moving. "Ah, so that's why you didn't try discussing a price beforehand. The destination is far more important than the payment." The truth was Link hadn't even considered haggling for his services. His patrols in Ordon were a salaried job. "That's fine. I was really hoping that you wouldn't insist on payment before we left. Not to judge your honor, but you can't trust people these days."
If he had only lived in Ordon all his life, that statement would not have made sense to Link. It was a community built on trust and kindness, but it was also isolated. The rest of Hyrule was far more cynical. "Afraid that I'd take the money and run?" He gave the man a smile, amused by the thought. Did he really look like somebody who would do that?
Erol turned the coach out of Lakeside and onto the road that zig-zagged its way up the cliffs, driving the horses at a slow pace as they moved uphill. He glanced to his right at Link, and then returned the smile. "It's not an unreasonable fear. Although you really don't look like the type." He gave a short chuckle. The man was so informal now that Agitha couldn't hear him. "I guess you don't really look like the type to be a warrior either, at first blush. You're not tall and serious-looking like most mercenaries are."
He wasn't sure if that was a dig at his height or not. Probably not, but he still had to try to not be offended by it. "You can't judge based on appearances. Like your Lady Agitha; she does seem a bit eccentric, but she also seems like she's a nice kid."
The man gave a bit of an awkward cough. "Yes, about that. She's obsessed with insects, much to her parents' chagrin. It's a strange thing for a young girl to be interested in, but it is almost completely her whole life at this point. If she speaks with you and gets on the subject of bugs, can you please go along with it?"
The girl did seem to be rather obsessed with bugs. Who would call him a grasshopper of all things, other than somebody with insects on the brain? "Sure. I don't want to upset her. The truth is I really don't care for insects, but I don't want to make a little girl cry."
Erol shook his head. "No, she wouldn't cry. She simply wouldn't understand, and she wouldn't understand if you tried to change the subject. Agitha is…" He frowned, trying to put it to words. "She isn't dumb, but it's almost as if there is something in her mind that keeps it focused on insects most of the time. As long as we humor her, she's more than willing to focus in her studies and etiquette. She's still a good girl, even if her tastes are a little odd."
It certainly was odd. Sometimes children would have an interest while younger that they'd pour all their energy into, only to abandon it when they found something new. That didn't seem to be the case here, if Agitha's interest in insects was frustrating her parents. He thought of a man back in Ordon who drove one of the carts full of produce up to Coro's depot. The man was nice enough and good at his job, but he had a strange obsession with birds. While Link could look at a sparrow and know it was a sparrow, the man would look at it and know it's scientific name, its diet, its breeding habits and if it migrated or not. There were people who enjoyed watching birds, but this went beyond that. The amount of information he held in his head on the subject was amazing, especially considering that he had a limited vocabulary and sometimes had problems speaking to others. Perhaps Agitha was like him, someone who viewed the world a bit differently and put their heart and soul into something they loved.
"What roads did you take to travel here? You said you didn't have a horse, so I'm assuming you went on foot." Erol asked, interrupting Link's thoughts. "You didn't go through Central Hyrule, did you?"
"No, I know Central Hyrule's a mess right now. I came from Castle Town and went south through Lanayru and across the bridge over the lake."
"Did you run into any trouble or see anything unusual? There have been rumors of strange black monsters, and raiders that ride giant pigs." Erol thought they were rumors. If he had spent his time in some mansion serving tea to Agitha instead of traversing Hyrule, of course he would assume that.
"They're not rumors. I went across Central Hyrule and saw the Bulbins, and the Shadow Beasts too." Link said, and Erol looked alarmed. He could have told the man that he was the hero and supposed to take care of the problem, but it didn't seem necessary. For now he was only a swordsman who was looking for a lift to Castle Town. "There wasn't too much trouble when I traveled to Lakeside, though. There was somebody or something up on the towers at the north end of the bridge, but they didn't do anything." A partial truth. The Shadow Bulbins on the Great Bridge of Hylia were lookouts, meant to send a signal to their brethren that the green wolf was coming so they could trap and kill him. They were likely still there, or at least in the area. The odds of them transforming back into regular Bulbins was slim, since the Shadow Beasts didn't turn back into humans after leaving the Twilight. He hoped that he didn't run into any of the group that chased him onto the bridge.
"Hopefully the people on the tower are soldiers and not bandits or Bulbins. It was safe to travel down here, but things are getting worse everywhere." Erol said. The well-dressed man guided the horses around the curve of the crossroads and to the northern road that led to the Great Bridge of Hylia. So far, they were the only ones on the road.
Link kept his eyes on the top of the towers at the southern archway of the bridge as they approached, but nothing was up there. After their failure to kill him, the Shadow Bulbins probably continued down one of the roads heading east to rejoin the army that he had spotted just south of Castle Town. That army was concerning, but also strange. If Zant wanted to invade Castle Town, he could have done it while he invaded the castle and killed the king. The location of the army could be coincidence, having little to do with Castle Town and more with the Zora's River and the farms of Central Hyrule. Feeding and watering an army did take a certain amount of resources.
Once the coach was on the flat stones of the Great Bridge of Hylia, Erol picked up the pace. His approach to driving the horses was a kind and patient one, which Link approved of. Some coachmen liked their whips a little too much. They passed over the blackened patch of stones that still smelled a bit of oil, and Erol frowned at the burn marks.
"What happened here? Did something catch on fire on the bridge?" The man had no way of knowing that the ambush was intended for the person sitting directly to his right. "This wasn't here three days ago."
"It was here when I passed through yesterday." Link lied. "I don't know what happened, but I didn't see anything on fire." He took his bow over his shoulder to hold it on his lap, and looked down the length of the bridge. "Maybe somebody was attacked. I'll keep an eye out. You concentrate on driving."
As it turned out there were still Shadow Bulbins on the northern towers of the bridge. They stood out against the white clouds of the sky as they scurried to look at the approaching coach. "Stop." Link told Erol sharply, and the man reined in the horses to bring the coach to a halt. Before either one of them could say anything an arrow flew in their direction, but was blown to the side by the brisk wind and came nowhere near them. The over-zealous Bulbin had just unwittingly given Link an advantage, who was using the exact same kind of arrows. He could see how the wind pushed at the arrow as it flew, and was able to adjust his aim. He stood up, left leg bent with his foot up on the seat, and set an arrow. Another arrow was shot by a different Bulbin and came a bit closer, and he realized that they were in range. He drew and fired, and a black form stumbled and fell from the tower, tumbling to the lake far below.
"Nice shot." Erol said, impressed. At least somebody appreciated his skill with a bow. Midna certainly didn't.
The two Shadow Bulbins at the center of the bridge were taken out with two arrows, but he missed the one on the left tower, the unpredictable wind disrupting his shot. The Bulbin responded with its own arrow and it hit the stones to the right of the coach, only a few feet away from Link. He was determined that his next arrow not miss, and it didn't; the last Bulbin disappeared behind the parapet surrounding the tower as it died.
Link turned to Erol and shouldered his bow. "Wait here." He climbed down from the coach and began to run down the bridge, keeping his eyes on both the towers and the archway for any movement. Running across the bridge as a human felt a lot better than running on it as a wolf, since he had a good night's sleep and a decent breakfast for once.
There was no ambush, but even so he put his hand on the hilt of his sword as he approached the archway. He slowed to a walk as he went through, and peered past the stones of the towers to see if anything was waiting for him. There was nothing outside of a pair of mutated black boars standing not too far from the archway, likely the rides the Shadow Bulbins took to get to the bridge. The two pigs were not there yesterday, so the Bulbins that he shot from the bridge were likely different raiders.
"I don't see anything." Midna said, close to his ears. Where did she go to speak to him like that? He'd have to ask her one of these times. "Those four Bulbins were probably there to pick off easy targets."
"I never intended to be an easy target." After seeing that things were safe, he turned to run back to the coach. He panted a bit from the run as he climbed back up to sit next to Erol. "We're good. Just a few Bulbin bandits."
"You're quite handy with that bow." Erol commented.
"Thanks. I prefer to shoot rabbits instead of bandits, though. At least I can eat the rabbits." This got a laugh from Erol, and Link gave a small smile. The man appreciated his jokes too. He was beginning to like Erol, and had judged him wrongly when he first met him.
They continued on their way without incident, passing beneath a large dead tree that spread its broad roots across a plateau, of which the road ran right through via some ancient river or creek bed. The tree reminded him a bit of the large one that had the baboons in it, although this one didn't have any windows. Only part of the tree remained upright and most of it lay on the left side of the plateau, the ancient wood slow to decay. There were a pair of Moblins sitting at a fire in the shade beneath the roots of the tree, back from the road a ways. They both watched the coach as it passed but neither one moved from where they sat, the two of them eating some kind of meat that they had roasted over their fire. The coach was not worth interrupting their meal.
After they had began passing through the rolling fields of farmland at midday, Erol found a spot to pull some distance off the road and into the shade of a stand of trees. As soon as they slowed, Link began scanning the area with his eyes to make sure nothing was nearby. He might not actually be a sword for hire, but he wasn't going to let anything happen to Erol and Agitha.
"I thought this was a good place to let Agitha stop to eat lunch." the black-clad man said after bringing the horses to a halt. "There are trees nearby, but it's mostly open."
"Yeah, I don't see anything." He had been getting hungry as well, despite the two plates of breakfast he had. Fighting had increased his appetite, but he suspected his magic usage had something to do with it as well. "I'll keep an eye out while you take care of her." He still had some rather stale cornbread and a couple of apples, which was not a great lunch, but would serve.
"You're welcome to eat with us once I have things prepared." Erol climbed down from the coach. "Lady Agitha did want to speak with you. She likes to meet new people." He raised an eyebrow at Link. "Just...remember what I said, all right?"
"No worries. I'm not going to be mean to a kid." If he could have patience with Malo and his rudeness, he could have patience for Agitha's obsession with bugs. He continued to sit at the front of the coach, watching the fields nearby for any activity. There was another group of trees and brush on the opposite side of the road, but it didn't appear anything was there. The green parasol appeared near the door of the coach as Agitha got out, and then it moved around to the side Link was sitting on.
The girl looked up at him. "Mr. Link? I want to call you Mr. Grasshopper, but you said that isn't your last name."
"It isn't. Not that grasshoppers are terrible, but that's not what my last name is." He figured Midna was keeping an eye on things, so he looked down at Agitha.
"Do commoners have last names? What is your surname, if I may ask?" It was an innocent question with a complicated answer. Agitha could possibly recognize the name, or the name of his father if he mentioned him. Or not, since she looked to be only about ten years old, the same age as Beth and Luda. He didn't need to tell her, since it was none of her business.
He didn't need to, yet he found himself doing so anyway. "Lon." It was like mentioning that his father was a knight to the Gorons. There was no need, no real reason, yet somehow revealing a small fact about himself to someone he barely knew felt good. He had kept so much of himself hidden away and bottled up over the past five years, and now that he had left Ordon it was starting to come out, bit by bit.
"Hmm, the name is familiar but I can't quite remember...is it a Knight of Hyrule house?" She couldn't remember, yet she guessed correctly. "I saw your shield and it's the kind the knights use."
Link shrugged. "I couldn't say. I found the shield at an abandoned guard station, and I needed a good sturdy shield so I took it. It's hard to find shields for left-handed fighters, so I wasn't going to leave it behind." The truth. "As for the name, my parents told me that I had extended family living in Central Hyrule, so it's possible it's one of the knight houses." A lie. "I don't think I'm a noble, or anybody special. I'm just a guy with a sword." An even bigger lie. He hated lying to this polite young lady, but revealing his surname was more than enough.
"Your name is like mine, you know. Agitha Artho, Link Lon. They both begin with the same letter for the first and last names." She smiled. "It's kind of funny, to meet somebody else who has a name that does that."
"Yeah." He thought it was stupid. Not her name, but his own. Not only was the surname a ridiculous-sounding one, but having a full name with alliteration made it sound as if his parents were trying to be cute. Not that he had any choice in either matter. It was his name no matter how he felt about it. He stood up and took one more look around, and then climbed down from the seat to stand next to Agitha.
"Oh, you have very pretty eyes!" That comment came out of nowhere, and it brought back the conversation he had with Midna earlier. She had used that same description before: pretty eyes. He had no idea if Agitha's outburst was a compliment or simply an observation. "They make me think of Princess Zelda's. She has very pretty blue eyes. Have you ever met Princess Zelda?"
"I can't say that I have." More lies. He had expected a discussion about insects, but instead it was a proper, polite conversation with a child. She didn't have the social graces of an adult, but she was at least attempting to talk about him just as much as herself. That was likely due to her training. It was too bad that the subjects she talked about regarding him were awkward, and he had to keep lying.
"Lady Agitha, please come and eat." Erol called from back behind the coach.
Link was thankful for the interruption, since Agitha was probably going to ask him something else personal that he didn't need to talk about. He gave her a small smile, and the girl turned to walk around the coach and over to where Erol was. He followed, figuring that he'd stand nearby and keep an eye on things in the area. Link then realized that he was putting as much care and effort into this job as he had his others in Ordon. There was no reason to, yet he was. It was a habit, and he tended to put a lot of effort into most of the things he did. The only thing he didn't put too much effort into was feeding himself properly.
"Please come and sit." Agitha said, delicately sitting on a pink checkered blanket spread in the shade of the nearby trees. "There's more than enough for you to eat, too."
He looked at the food, which wasn't a fancy spread like he was expecting for nobility. It was simple: ham, buttered bread and wooden cups of cold tea from a jug. Erol had a practical meal for his lady, which made sense. The man seemed to be logical. "Are you sure it's all right? A nice young lady like you eating lunch with a random swordsman like me?"
"Sit down and eat." Erol told him, picking up a large piece of buttered bread and cramming it in his mouth before walking to the coach to give the horses some water. He had things to do so he was leaving Agitha in Link's care. Or perhaps leaving Link in Agitha's care, since she needed somebody to talk to.
Link sat down, grateful for the shade. His cloak had come in handy, but on warm summer days like this one it felt way too warm. As soon as he bit into a slice of bread, Agitha began talking again. Of course she would start talking immediately after he put food in his mouth.
"Do you really like butterflies?" That was where he had expected the conversation to go initially, but she had done her best to be polite. Now she was going to talk about what interested her. That was fair.
"Yes, I do." he said after he had chewed and swallowed. "They're very pretty, and it's nice to watch them fly around flowers." Ordon had a large variety of butterflies, and sometimes he would watch them as they flit around the wildflowers of the ranch. It was far more interesting than staring at goats.
"What's your favorite kind?" She was young, but the way that she ate was very ladylike and controlled, no doubt due to her training. Being a noble probably was hard on a child.
"I don't know the name of the species, but there's a kind of blue and purple butterfly with orange spots that I see around the Faron region every summer." That particular one came to mind because Ilia loved them. She would always comment whenever she saw one. His heart ached a bit thinking of her, even thought he knew he would see her later.
"Oh, goodness!" Agitha gave her hands a little excited flap. "That must be a Pipevine Swallowtail! I have a few in my collection. They're very beautiful, and have a set of hindwing tails like all Swallowtails. Did you know that their caterpillars are black and have little orange spots on them? They like to hide on the underside of leaves so they won't get eaten." The rate at which she talked about this interest of hers was astounding as she excitedly talked about that particular species of butterfly, and then went to list the kinds of leaves the caterpillars ate.
Link politely smiled and ate his food while she continued. He couldn't imagine devoting one's mind almost entirely to one subject, but Agitha seemed nice regardless of her obsession. He found his brain and ears switching off, not really listening anymore, even though he knew it was rude. There was only so much about Pipevine Swallowtails one could listen to. There was silence then, and he realized she had stopped talking. At first he panicked and thought she had asked him a question, but she had finished her monologue to eat some of her lunch.
"Have you read any books on nature?" she asked politely. The girl was trying, and despite her quirks was far better at conversation than other children her age. Heck, she was better than some adults he knew.
"Yes, I have a few. I have a book about both helpful and harmful plants. It's supposed to teach you how to safely forage for food and herbs. I also have a book on ocean fish, a book about horse breeds, and an encyclopedia on the native wildlife of Faron and Central Hyrule." He had a few others, but he didn't want to list them all.
"I could tell that you had books to read, because people who like bugs are usually pretty smart, and smart people read a lot." The logic didn't make sense to anyone but Agitha. "Did you know that not everyone in Castle Town can read?"
"Yes." No matter where you went in Hyrule, the human population had a certain rate of illiteracy.
"So you've been to Castle Town before?" She carefully sipped her tea.
"Yes. Actually I came from there to visit the Spirit's Spring." A partial truth. Halfway to a lie was better than a full-on lie.
"I did too!" Agitha smiled, excited that she had something else in common with him. Her smile faded. "I came from Castle Town so I could pray that momma and poppa are safe. They're at our estate in Central Hyrule right now, and Erol told me that it's scary there right now."
He hadn't passed through the noble holdings in the northern part of Central Hyrule, but that was likely where the army was. It was entirely possible that this poor girl's parents were now Shadow Beasts. "It's a little scary, but I'm sure they're safe." he said with a smile, trying to be reassuring.
"What about you?" she asked. "What did you pray for?"
The question threw him off more than the others. The vision that Lanayru had given him last night was still fresh in his mind, as were its terrible implications. He had already come to the decision to trust Midna, but the possibility that he could have made the wrong choice was still there, looming behind him. "To do the right thing." he said eventually.
"The right thing…" The girl tilted her head slightly to look at him quizzically. "The right thing for what? Are you doing something wrong?"
"Lady Agitha." Erol returned to the little picnic he had set up for his mistress. "We will leave soon. If you wish to relieve yourself, then you may do so behind the trees next to the coach." After the girl wandered off, the black-clad man turned to Link. "You might want to do the same. It's a long trip to Castle Town." He reached for the remaining ham, working on finishing his lunch now that he had a chance.
Since Agitha was in this group of trees, Link decided to wander to the other side of the road to find a tree to water. He moved out of sight and thought about the things he should do while in Castle Town outside of speaking to Ralis and Ilia. He could likely find better food supplies to bring with him and stop pilfering things from Kakariko.
"That girl's a mooncalf." Midna said, close to his ears.
"Midna!" he whispered, halfway through what he was doing. "Didn't I tell you to leave me alone at times like this?"
She gave a soft giggle, which did not help the situation. "I promise my eyes are shut." Yeah right, like that made it any better.
He growled angrily, able to finish what he was doing. "I'm getting sick of these intrusions on what should be personal time. You don't give me privacy for much of anything." It was hard to tell if she was actually watching or not, but even if she wasn't it made him uncomfortable. She was with him when he shaved, cleaned up, got dressed, squat in the bushes, everything. She didn't care when he was in his underwear anymore either, since she seemed to have gotten over her aversion to seeing his bare skin. That resulted in a completely different kind of awkwardness for him when he got out of bed, and he hoped that she didn't notice the things that certain parts of the male anatomy did in the morning.
"I give you your space when I can, but the sun is out and I can't move too far away from you right now. Do you think I like getting stuck in your shadow all day? Your chain mail smells and you get sweaty." She made a disgusted sound. "Do you have any idea how unpleasant it is to be close to somebody when they're moist?"
He wasn't listening to her complaints, and was distracted by a sound he heard in the patch of trees. It sounded like something moving around, and he wasn't sure if it was just an animal or not.
"Maybe once you get a chance, you can actually take a real bath." she continued. "Not sit in some hot puddle for a while, and actually use some soap."
"Shh!" He held up his hand with the sound, hushing her. There was an animal in there for sure. It was dark under the trees, but he thought he saw eyes peering at him through the leaves of the dogwoods and ferns that crowded around the stand of ash trees. The eyes were brown, but they were not in an animal's face…
He rolled to the side, dodging the arrow that was shot from point-blank range. They had a chance to shoot at him the whole time he was distracted, yet chose that moment to do so. It was as if when he made eye contact with the Bokoblin, it panicked and fired. Bokos weren't known for being terribly bright.
He got to his feet, drawing his sword as a group of blue-skinned Bokoblins emerged from the trees. There was no time for him to set his shield, since the one that had fired at him had emerged from its hiding place and was nocking another arrow. He lunged forward and ran it through before it had a chance to fire, and turned to face the next one coming at him with a rusty short sword. The four remaining Bokoblins ignored him and ran across the road towards the coach.
Link opted to use a backhand swing to disarm the Bokoblin, able to use that move fairly easy on right-handed opponents, and while the monster was nursing its sore hand he pulled out his shield. He began to run across road and banged his sword and shield together to make a lot of noise as he did so. "Hey! You forgot about me!"
The group of four turned to gawk at him stupidly for a few seconds, but that was all the time he needed to sprint and close the gap to where they stood at the edge of the road. Lucky for him these northern Bokos were about as bright as their Faron cousins, even if they were far larger. The nearest one took a clumsy swing at him with a sword, and he dodged to the left and sliced at its sword arm. The Bokoblin's arm went limp, and he ran it through its skinny chest before kicking it off his blade and then flipping backwards to avoid a blow from a second one. The knight's shade was right to teach him that. He never would have thought to use it in a fight, but it worked well in this situation and gave him a bit of space between himself and the other Bokoblins.
At that point Agitha had come back to where the lunch was set and screamed at the sight of the monsters. This got the attention of the remaining three Bokoblins, and they turned from Link to run towards the girl. He could stop one, but not all three.
There was a loud bang and the smell of gunpowder, and one of the Bokoblins dropped in a spray of blood. Link looked across the patch of grass next to the road to see Erol standing at the trunk of the coach, a flintlock rifle in his hands. The man quickly lowered the rifle and began to reload it, which seemed like a complicated process. Link had heard of guns but he had never actually seen one used before.
The effect of the firearm on the Bokoblins was immediate. After hearing the loud sound, the remaining two turned to flee. One ran towards the patch of trees they had hidden in, and the other ran north up the road. He was able to get to the one headed to the trees first, slicing cleanly through its neck before continuing on to chase the one he had disarmed. That one was running towards a row of aspens planted at the edge of farmland, and the means that they used to sneak up on the coach became clear. He couldn't see that row of trees and the tall grass surrounding it from where he had sat with Agitha, the view blocked by the group of trees and dogwoods.
Bulbins couldn't run faster than him, and neither could Bokoblins. Even though the remaining three ran in different directions, he was able to catch up and put an end to them. He breathed a bit heavily from the running at the end of the fight and wiped his blade on the last Bokoblin's body before sheathing it. He put up his shield and began to walk back to the coach. A week ago he was nervous about fighting six Bokoblins with Midna's help, and now he took care of five on his own easily.
Erol had moved to the front of the coach and was trying to calm the two dapple grays that were hitched there. They had been unable to see the Bokoblins due to their blinkers, but they could smell them. The loud gunshot had spooked them as well. The poor man was having a hard time, and so Link came over and put his hand to the neck of the horse closest to the road, humming the song he used for Epona.
He didn't think of what he was doing, humming in front of strangers when he didn't like others to hear him. The horses were frightened, and his only thought was that he knew that he could soothe them. After the first one calmed, he reached over and patted the nose of the second one, still humming.
"You do realize that your horsey song is freaking that guy out, right?" Midna commented in his ears.
Link stopped humming and glanced over at Erol, who was looking at him with eyes wide. Given the context, he couldn't blame the man. He had just killed five Bokoblins, and then went over to the horses and calmed them down with a song and a few pats.
"Is that a spell or something?" Erol asked.
"No, it's just a song. I use it for my horse, so I guess it's habit that I hum it to myself when dealing with horses." He gave the gray another pat and smiled. There shouldn't be any reason why the two horses calmed down immediately, but they did. "I guess I'm good with them."
"I think I understand." Erol said quietly, so Agitha couldn't hear from where she was. "That story you told about being distantly related to the Lons was a lie. Nobody has seen him in years, but there are those among the nobility who remember Gwyn and the horses he bred on his ranch. That's where these two came from, in fact. Many of them were trained to respond to a song."
Link felt a twinge of panic at hearing his father's name. He hadn't thought Erol was listening when he had been speaking to Agitha, and now he was caught. He was the hero, but he was still supposed to be anonymous. Nobody needed to know where he came from, even if he had revealed a bit to the few people he trusted. He couldn't hide his reaction well enough, and Erol noticed. The man gave a small nod as he understood exactly whom he was speaking to.
"I thought so. I used to visit there with the Arthos to purchase horses, and I remember that Gwyn had a son with light hair." Erol smiled at him kindly. "I won't tell anyone."
He relaxed a bit. "Thanks."
"What happened to him, by the way?" The man knew that he was actually Gwyn's son, yet was willing to keep it a secret. Even then no details were needed to explain what had happened to his family. The magic purge and the abandonment by the knights was well-known.
Link dropped his hand from the horse's nose and looked away from Erol's eyes. "Adelbert's law happened." He stepped away from the horses and went around the side of the coach to check on Agitha. He didn't want to talk about his father, especially since Erol knew too much.
The girl was pacing back and forth, agitated and close to tears. He had hoped that she hadn't seen too much, but Erol had shot one of the Bokoblins right in front of her, and its body still lay in the road in a pool of blood. Children shouldn't have to see things like that. When there was a proper military, the Bokoblins and Moblins were kept away from the roads, and families could travel safely across Hyrule. That was no longer the case.
He considered asking if she was all right, but figured that would be the wrong thing to do. She needed confidence. "It's all right now." he told her gently. "The monsters are gone."
"You killed them." Her pacing did not stop. "Erol only shot one, and you killed all the rest."
"Agitha, that's why I'm here. I'm supposed to protect you, and I did. I'm sorry you had to see it." He knew how to handle a child that was crying, but this was something else. It was as if her anxiety and fear needed an outlet, and the outlet her body chose was to pace back and forth. He stepped closer and reached out to touch her arm, not really thinking that it would be inappropriate to touch a nobleman's daughter. "Did you need to move to the other side of the coach?" Perhaps the dead Bokoblins were what bothered her.
She stopped her pacing at his touch and looked up at him, her eyes spooked. "Why did they want to hurt us? Why did they come?" Perhaps reaching out to touch her wasn't such a good idea. She had stopped pacing, but now she appeared even more frightened.
"Bokoblins like shiny things. They probably planned to steal whatever they could, but they like rupees. They don't understand money but coins are shiny and look like gems, so they try to take them when they can." He dropped his hand from her arm, realizing that he was still holding on to her elbow.
"We could have thrown some rupees at them and they would have left us alone." Agitha said, beginning to calm down.
He smiled at her, still trying to be calm and friendly. "Yes, that certainly could have worked. What would have happened if we left them behind, and they attacked a different group of travelers? It's better this way, so everyone is safe."
She relaxed a bit and returned his smile. "Your prayers to Lanayru have been answered. You're most certainly doing the right thing."
"Lady Agitha, why don't you pick up your parasol and go sit in the coach?" Erol suggested from where he stood behind Link. The man was quiet when he approached, but Link could still sense that he was behind him, quietly watching the exchange between Agitha and himself. The girl went to do as she was asked, and Erol spoke again once she was out of earshot, his voice low. "That was kind of you to do. Sometimes it can be difficult to calm her down when she's upset."
Link didn't turn to look at him and shrugged. "People prefer to be told things are all right instead of being asked about it. Being a little confident can go a long way when helping someone." He turned to face Erol. "You never told me you had a firearm."
"I'm sorry about that. Usually people see a rifle and assume it's some kind of magic, but firearms take a good amount of time and care to load and fire properly." He smiled and shook his head. "In the time it took for me to reload, you had chased down the rest of the monsters and killed them. I got one, and you killed five. I haven't seen anyone fight like that before. You're very quick on your feet."
Link shrugged again. "I couldn't let them hurt Agitha or you. I did what I needed to do." That's what he always did. He never really thought about it too much as he did it.
"Link...when you're in Castle Town, you should consider going to a pub in the merchant's district. It's run by a woman named Telma, just to the east of the central bazaar. Warriors of skill gather there for certain reasons, reasons that may interest you." Erol glanced past Link at Agitha, who was climbing into the coach on her own, not waiting for him to open the door for her. "I can't say why right now, but it's in your interest to hear what they have to say. Your personal interest." That last comment was said with emphasis. If Erol knew who he was, then there was likely something about Telma that had something to do with the late king. She had mentioned she knew somebody that worked at the castle. He had planned to go there anyway, but he could at least ask about it.
"I'll keep that in mind, thanks. Let me get these bodies off the road and we can get going."
The rest of the trip went smoothly, and Erol did not mention anything about Link's family again. He was sitting next to someone who could have known his father, yet he was afraid to ask anything. This was someone that had a connection to his parents, but asking too many questions from a person who was basically a stranger didn't seem wise.
They passed a group of Gorons and Hylians in a merchant's caravan about an hour from Castle Town. The Gorons wore clubs and their whistles while leading dodongos, and the Hylians led mules and horses. There were a few armored guards of both races. They were likely on their way to Lakeside with goods, since there were many shops and stalls crowding the cliffs in the long, single-road town. Since they were there on foot, the group would likely get there in the morning. It wasn't the travel schedule Link would have picked, but Gorons traveled the roads at all hours.
"Hey, there!" called the Goron in the lead once they were close enough. "Are the roads clear?" As they got closer Link could see that the Goron was looking at him, not Erol. He was the one with the sword, after all. Erol brought the coach to a halt so the two groups could talk.
"They are now, although don't mind the dead Bokoblins on the side of the road." Link replied.
"You hear that? This kid did all the hard work." The Goron nudged a darker-skinned Goron guard next to him that was dressed in steel armor. The armored guard laughed and gave Link a thumbs up.
"There were a couple of Moblins at a fire late this morning, just north of the bridge." he added, figuring that he should mention them. "They may have moved on by now."
"Only two? No problem." said the guard with a grin. "Thanks for the info." He waved his hand to the group behind him. "Come on, brothers."
Erol urged the horses forward, and the merchant caravan started walking again. The merchants politely nodded their heads as they passed, but one of the Gorons looked directly at Link, and then he opened his mouth in surprise. The Goron recognized him, either from Death Mountain or from a description. He could hear the Goron excitedly say something to the others, but the coach moved too far ahead for him to hear what he had said. That wasn't a bad thing; he really did not want anyone making a big deal of things out on the road. That caravan would realize who he was, but word was going to get out sooner or later. There would be a time where he would get recognized more often, despite what the knight's shade said about "toiling in obscurity".
The coach made its way into Castle Town at dusk, although the sun was no longer visible, hidden behind a bank of gray rain clouds. Link had put his hood up, glad that he had his cloak despite how warm it was earlier. Erol retrieved a wide-brimmed black hat from a compartment beneath the seat, the only protection he had available against the weather.
The lamplighters were making their rounds as they made their way to the Nobles' Quarter in the southwest part of the city. While there were a few people out in the rain when they passed through the west part of the city, the streets of the Nobles' Quarter were empty. They passed high stone walls and carefully trimmed hedgerows, and came to a smaller walled-in yard with a more modest home compared to the others. It was still very much a rich family's home, with its own stable and flower garden.
"You're welcome to stay here for the evening if you like." Erol offered, rain dripping from the brim of his hat. "I know the city house is not as large, but it's far safer than our villa in Central Hyrule. There are plenty of guest rooms, and Lady Agitha would enjoy the company. There are only a few of us staff here, and being separated from her parents has been difficult."
"No thank you." Link felt a bit guilty declining. Agitha seemed like a sweet girl who was living apart from her family, and could use somebody new to talk to. His need to speak to Ralis was far more important. "Like I said, somebody is waiting for me here. I have a few other errands to run too."
The coach pulled to a stop near the front door of the manor, Erol taking care to bring it around and close to the building so there would be very little rain for Agitha to walk through. He climbed down and opened the front door of the manor, and went inside for a moment.
Link decided to hop down from the seat and look into the coach, where Agitha sat with her folded parasol on her lap. "Well, Lady Agitha, this is where we part ways. It was nice to meet you."
The girl looked sad. "Are you sure you won't come in for dinner? It may be a bit late, but I promise that our cook is very good."
"Thanks, but no. I have somebody important I need to speak to, and then a friend is waiting for me." He felt a bit anxious so close to Ilia, yet still not able to speak to her yet. He wished that the day could have gone faster so he would be with her by now.
"Oh. I see." She leaned closer to the open window of the coach to look at him. "I know you said that you're a relative of the Lons, but they're gone now. You know that, right? Maybe you could talk to the royal family about that. You said that you're nobody special, but you could be." If only she knew. "I watched you fight, and you're really strong. You could be a knight."
"Maybe, but a lot of things are going on in Hyrule, and now isn't the time to chase after abandoned titles and honor." He was interrupted as Erol came back out, open umbrella in hand as he approached the coach.
"Come inside, Lady Agitha. Link, please wait here another minute." He opened the door and held the black umbrella over the girl's head as she stepped down and out of the coach.
The young girl gave Link another one of her careful curtsies. "Goodbye, Grasshopper Knight. It was very nice to meet you. You're always welcome to visit us here." The innocent way that she gave him such a silly title made him smile. He hoped that she didn't lose that quality as she got older.
He returned her rehearsed curtsy with a bow, still smiling. "Goodbye, Princess of Bugs. Maybe we'll meet again one day."
Agitha's face lit up with a broad smile, pleased at his impromptu title for her, and let herself be escorted into the house by Erol. Link stood outside in the rain with his cloak drawn about him and waited for Erol to return.
"They know who you are." Midna said near his ears. "Is that all right? You didn't have to tell her about your last name."
"It will all come out eventually." He replied quietly, so no one through the open door could hear him. There were a couple of maids scurrying about to take care of their young mistress just inside the foyer. "Like you said, it can be hard to keep secrets."
"And this is one you've been hiding for years. Maybe you won't need to hide anymore after we take care of Zant." She grew quiet as Erol returned.
"Here." The man held out a closed hand, and when Link extended his, Erol dropped a number of orange and purple rupees into it. "I admit I was only going to pay you two hundred, but your skill with the sword saved us. I'm paying you double."
Four hundred rupees. That was far more than the cost of his room and meal at the expensive hotel at Lakeside. Between this and the money Lanayru gave him, he had over a thousand rupees. Link looked at the gem-like coins sitting in his open palm, droplets from the rain on them sparkling in the lamplight from the front of the manor.
"Are you sure? I mean…" He trailed off, thinking of whether accepting that many rupees for a simple day's work was appropriate or not. I'm the hero and I probably shouldn't be making money for doing the kinds of things I'm supposed to do. I'm the hero and money should really not be a concern for me when I have more important things to worry about. I'm the hero…and what?
I'm the hero, I don't know how long this invasion will last, and I still need to eat. "If you're all right with it, then I'll accept it. It just seems like a lot for one day's work."
Rain pattered against the broad-rimmed hat on the man's head. "Don't be so modest, you're worth it. You protected us with a certain amount of skill, and on top of that you were very kind to a child you don't know."
People shouldn't be rewarded for being kind. That should be the status quo. "All right, thank you." He pocketed the rupees.
"Where will you go, if you don't mind me asking? Now that I know who you are…" The man shrugged. "Let's just say I'm interested in what happened to the families affected by the magic law. The Arthos and those who serve them have sided with Princess Zelda, as have other noble houses. If some of the knights came back, it may help restore things to normal."
Erol likely did not know that King Adelbert was dead, and mentioning that he "sided with Princess Zelda" implied that there was some kind of political drama happening in Castle Town. As interesting as that was he had other things to worry about, the least of which was being a noble. While being a Knight of Hyrule was a position that children were expected to inherit from their parents to continue the bloodlines, Link certainly was not a knight. He had very little training outside of combat, and he didn't understand his own magic yet. Outside of being the Hero of Hyrule, he knew little else he could offer. "I don't know what happened to the knights who left, only what happened to my parents." He shook his head. "I'm no knight, and I have other important things I need to do."
"What is more important than picking up the pieces and fixing Hyrule?" Erol seemed incredulous, not believing that something could be more important than what was hinted at was a resistance, or even a coup.
He turned his head to stare off at the rain splashing on the stones of the manor's courtyard. "I can't go into details, I'm sorry. There's something only I can do, and I'm trying to get it done." He turned back to Erol. "I do plan on going to Telma's Bar. I know where it is, and there's a friend of mine there. If there are people there I should talk to, I'll listen to what they have to say. But I'm not going to drop what I'm doing for them, because I can't stop."
Erol's brow furrowed for a minute as he considered something, looking at the young man in green in front of him, and then his eyes widened as realization dawned on him. The green clothes, being named Link, and considerable fighting skill were all were all evidence as to who he really was, and anyone who knew of the legends of previous heroes would be able to identify him. Once again, Erol figured out who he was. He could have directly said it, but instead the man asked in an awed voice, "Who are you?"
Link gave him a small smile. "A swordsman. Good night, and thanks." He turned and walked off into the dark rain of early evening.
"That guy was too bright for his own good." Midna told him once they were walking the empty streets of the Nobles' Quarter. "He figured out who your father was, and now he just connected the dots and knows you're the hero."
"It's not a bad thing, Midna. It's not like he's going to run around blabbing about it to everyone." He adjusted his hood, pulling it farther over his bangs. The tips of his hair had gotten wet despite the cloak, and he had stowed his long hat in his belt since it was difficult to wear with the hood up. His shoulders and the top of his head were starting to feel wet through the heavy brown wool, but he'd dry once he found somewhere to stay. Hopefully he could stay wherever Ilia was staying. With the rupees that he had gotten recently, he could get the two of them a nice room at a hotel or inn. His pulse quickened at the thought of sharing a room with her, and his mind proceeded to fall into the gutter.
"What are you thinking about?" Her tone sounded a bit amused. She couldn't tell, could she? It wasn't like she was reading his mind. He certainly hoped she wasn't reading his mind.
"Nothing important."
He made his way east through the city to the bazaar on the main thoroughfare. Most of the stalls had closed for the evening, and the merchants were going through the process of putting away their wares and counting out their earnings. A few late shoppers were there, trying to haggle over the prices of food or goods, but everything was marked up due to shortages caused by the Twilight. More guards patrolled the street, halberds on their shoulders and wearing oiled leather cloaks over their armor to keep it dry.
There was a certain tension among the people of the city that hurried about their business through the summer rain. He wasn't able to pick up on it as well while a wolf; his mind was too distracted at the time, but now he could see it clearly in the way people moved. The people of Castle Town didn't realize that they had been invaded already, but they acted as if war was coming. Considering Hyrule's history with wars over the centuries, it was not an unreasonable reaction.
Link came to the corner with the closed-up Goron stall and found the poor Goron child curled in a ball there beneath the awning. He was no longer crying and had balled up to rest, or perhaps had done so due to being alone. He walked beneath the awning and knelt down on the wet street to get closer to the boy's level. "Hey there. Are you all right?"
The Goron uncurled and looked up at Link with his large dark blue eyes. "You're talking to me...right?" With the amount of people that had ignored him yesterday and presumably today, he was surprised that someone would bother.
"Yes I am. I saw you crying here yesterday, but I was in such a hurry I couldn't stop to help you. I'm sorry about that." He had wanted to help him as a wolf, but had no way to do so. It had made him feel terribly guilty. Something about crying kids tugged at his heartstrings. "Are you doing better tonight?"
The little Goron's lip quivered, and he put his hands to his eyes as fresh tears came from them. "No. Nobody will help me. The humans here don't care about anyone but themselves." He sniffled. "But...but you care, right?"
"Of course I care. I'm talking to you, aren't I?" He kindly patted the child on the head. "Tell me what's wrong and I'll see what I can do to help you."
"It's my dad. He left to go get more supplies from the outpost east of town, but that was days ago." The boy hiccuped in a half-sob. "He hasn't come back yet."
This poor child was alone for days? He must have been so frightened. "I was just at that outpost two days ago and everyone seemed all right. There were merchants there, so he probably was one of them. They have been unable to go into Castle Town because of monsters by the east gate." There was the possibility that the boy's father was one of the transformed Gorons, but even then somebody else may know him. "I'm going back there soon. What's your name? I can ask if anyone there knows you."
The child's face lit up as Link told him about the outpost. "My name is Gamoson."
Gamoson? Wait a minute. "Wait. You're looking for Gamo, aren't you?"
"That's my dad!" the Goron said excitedly, his tears forgotten. "Do you know my dad?"
"No, but I know your grandfather Liggs. When I was back in Kakariko a few days ago, your grandfather asked me to look in on his family while I was in Castle Town." He gave the child a smile. "It seems like I found someone."
"You know granddad?" Gamoson asked, excited. "No, you must know granddad! He goes to Kakariko a lot."
"And now I'll be able to tell him you're okay." The fact that he had been alone for days was worrying. "Do you have anyone to stay with, Gamoson?" Link asked him. "It can be scary for a kid to be all by themselves."
The little Goron nodded. "I'm staying with a grown-up. We share a house with Caram and his two little sons over by the west wall of town, so I haven't been by myself there. He makes sure I eat good."
"You should go home and tell him about what happened. Don't worry about your dad's stall, just be safe with people you know. Do you need me to walk you home?" It would take up more of his time and he'd get in to Telma's late, but he didn't like the idea of a child walking the streets all by himself at night.
"No, I'm a big boy and can roll home all on my own." Gamoson moved forward to give Link a hug, much to his surprise. The boy was so grateful that someone would care, he hugged a stranger. "Thanks, mister! I'll tell Caram all about what you said. What's your name?"
"Link." A lot of people had been asking for his name lately.
"Thanks, Mister Link! I'm gonna head home now!" The young Goron curled into a ball and began to quickly roll down the main thoroughfare and up to the fountain square. One of the guards patrolling stopped to shout at the child as he rolled past, telling him not to roll in town. Link stood and smiled, watching the boy go home. At least that was one thing handled.
"That was really kind of you to help that kid." Midna's voice sounded like she was in the shadows of his hood. That would be an easier place to hide than wherever she normally hid when she spoke close to his ears. Where did she hide normally? His hair, perhaps?
"I regretted not helping him yesterday, even though I couldn't at the time." He stepped out from beneath the awning and back into the rain.
She made a small sound that could have gone along with a smile, if he could see her face. It was hard to read somebody when you could only hear their voice. "You're really a good guy, aren't you?"
He gave a small laugh. "I guess."
Link retraced his steps, following the path he had taken as wolf the day before. The landmarks were different at night, and the streets of Castle Town were dreary from the wet weather, but he found the chandler's shop eventually. The alleyway next to it had a single lamp on the stone wall of the shop to light the way, and the top and the bottom of the stairs leading to the pub had two more. Even then it was far darker than it was in the Twilight, and he thought it was an ideal place to get mugged. While he was carrying hundreds of rupees, he doubted any thugs would be able to beat him in a fight.
His mind went back to Ilia as he descended the wet stairs and stepped over the metal drainage grate. He knew that Ilia was safe, but he had been growing increasingly anxious about meeting her again. He knew that that the two of them would be happy to see one another, but there was an underlying fear that something would be wrong with her. It was only a week and a half since she was shot, and she could still be in pain. She could have been affected by her kidnapping, just as the children were. He certainly was affected by it, and he wasn't the one who had been taken away.
She would likely be worried about Colin and the other children, if she had helped them escape. Maybe he should bring her to Kakariko to see them after helping Ralis. No, he should discuss it with her after they had met up again. He put his hand on the door and pushed it open, and stepped into the warm light of the tavern.
Ilia's voice was the first thing he heard, and it was angry. She was practically shouting. "You're a doctor, aren't you?" she demanded of a short gray-haired man with thick glasses. "He needs your help!"
His heart fluttered at the sight of her in the flesh, at the familiar, determined expression she wore when she insisted on getting her way. She was being stubborn, but she was also extremely frustrated to the point of anger. This time it didn't seem like she was getting her way; the doctor carried his bag with him as he walked towards the door.
"I've only treated humans before." the man said, shaking his head. "There's only so much I can do for a Zora." He gave a sour grunt and glanced up at Link, who stood in the way in front the door, and then pushed his way past him.
Ilia rushed after the doctor, hurrying past Link and not giving him a glance. She was so intent on helping the Zora child that she didn't notice him. Or perhaps it was because he had his hood up. Link lowered his wet hood as she shouted out the open door at the retreating Dr. Borville. "Please, I'll pay you double! Please don't leave!"
When the doctor slammed the door to the pub behind him, her expression fell into one of disappointment. Link opened his mouth to say something, one of the many things that came to his mind, his heart pounding with excitement at seeing her again. Ilia slowly turned from the door and gave him a glance as she did so, quickly making eye contact. Then her eyes moved on, no recognition in them, and she walked back into the pub without giving Link a second glance. It was as if he was a stranger.
His heart suddenly felt as if it was being crushed as she moved away; Ilia did not know him.
Author's note: Heh, boner jokes.