Everything you need

A fine rain began to fall in the early morning of the second day of the trip, it gently pattered the canvas of the carriage.

The barbarians had only made short stops (the minimum necessary), and a slightly longer one to rest. I don't know how they could go on horseback for so many hours without falling off the saddle. At least Link was sitting pulling the reins of the carriage, but the other two... the other two looked like spoiled children. They played at chasing each other across the plains, made obscene jokes, disappeared from time to time and came back with some dead vermin.

There was a mountain of boxes around me inside the carriage. Well, it was rather a wagon, a car covered with a canvas to carry merchandise, not people. When I left the castle, I was too obfuscated to decide what to carry with me, I felt as if I had been uprooted from my home and my origins. What do you put in your luggage when you are uprooted from your life? I let him make the decisions, and now I felt remorse. At least I could have taken any of my favorite books, or the telescope. I regret my impulsiveness, maybe I shouldn't have trashed my research notebooks either, if I was going to spend long hours imprisoned in the Eagle's Nest, I could entertain myself with that.

Link had gradually stopped talking to me when he saw he was not getting much response from me so far in our journey. However, he had not stopped checking on me almost compulsively. His over-concern whether I was fine or not was getting on my nerves. He wasn't to blame for my anger, but he managed to feed it, I don't know why. I didn't feel very rational, so I didn't think much of it either, I didn't even have the energy to fight him.

The first time they stopped to rest, he did it away from me, if he ever got to rest, which I doubt. I heard with my heart pounding the conversation with his men. "Do we sleep, Link?", "no, let's continue a little longer," "come on, Captain, we'll fall to the ground if we keep going a little longer, go and warm your hands for a while with your wife." Everyone laughed at the joke, even him. But he didn't come near the car any more than to check for the umpteenth time how I was doing. This time I pretended to be asleep, I curled up and prayed that he wouldn't want to warm his hands with me. He didn't. He slept away from the wagon. Or he didn't sleep at all. I accidentally closed my eyes and opened them when we were on the move and it was raining.

"Have you had a rest?"

Damn it. He must have had eyes in the back of his head, how could he possibly know I'd woken up? I didn't answer, for a change.

"We're approaching the hills. Then we will cross Tanagar Canyon to the lands of Lord Tyto," he said, as if I had asked something, which I didn't.

"Tanagar Canyon?"

"It's dark and deep like a wolf's mouth. The wind whistles in there like it's a monster's throat. But you mustn't be afraid of anything, sounds scary but it's a safe step."

"Will I be able to see it?"

"Sure, we'll have to cross it."

I found that curious. It was a gray, unexplored area. I was scared when I heard the sheikah talking about that canyon. Years ago, the sheikah tribes had a civil war. Some sheikah decided to walk away from the royal family and fought against those who remained faithful to the crown. Many perished by plunging over the rim of the canyon, and legends said that from its depths could be heard the voices of the spirits of those who had fallen in battle.

I was feeling a bit stunted from travelling for so many hours in the dark with the luggage, so I peeked a bit outside. The smell of wet earth and rain was pleasant, although the light, scarce, bothered me a little. Too many hours in the dark.

"Where are the others?" I asked, sticking my palm out to catch some raindrops.

"Good question, I haven't seen them in a while. They may have gone hunting something."

My stomach made noise, revealing that I was starving.

"I'm hungry too," he confessed, I blushed to know that he'd heard it, "there is some bread and leftovers from dinner. You haven't eaten anything since we departed."

"I'm fine."

"Yes, of course," he rolled his eyes, "you're fine, you don't need anything, you're not sleepy, you're not hungry, you're not cold. You won't make it to the Nest alive at this rate."

"One less problem for you," I grumbled.

"Ha! If the princess of Hyrule is not able to get to the West alive, it's not a problem for me at all! No one will believe that we've betrayed the pact, everyone will know it was an accident or a natural death," he ironized.

"Hence your constant concern for me."

He emitted a kind of grunt I couldn't classify, a hybrid between a grumpy word and a guttural sound.

"Eat something, please, for gods' sake," he roared.

I turned my back to him to eat something, not because he's spoken to me that way, but because I was really hungry. Afterwards, I felt other serious emergencies arise that overcame my stupid battle for not seeming needy, it had been hours since the last time. Plus, it was raining harder, and that sound only increased those emergencies.

"Link."

"Have you eaten yet? There're also some apples, look around and grab some."

"It's not that. I need us to stop."

He gave a sharp tug on the reins and we stopped dead in our tracks. Luckily, I was able to hold onto something, but I could easily have lost my teeth hitting the seat. Then Link stared at me, waiting for me to explain.

"I'll be right back," I said, rolling up the border of my dress to get out of the wagon. There was a sort of grove of low trees surrounding the path. It would be enough as long as the other barbarians weren't lurking around.

"Where are you going? No, no, wait. It's dangerous, it's raining, there may be monsters around."

"I won't get too far away, I'm just going to be out for a few seconds," didn't he understand what I was asking?

"We'll find a better place for you to stretch your legs later, when it's not raining so much. It's not a good idea to go down now."

Damn it. I had to explain it to him with puppets.

"I need to pee, Link. I can't take it anymore."

"Oh… y-you…"

"Can you help me get out of the carriage, please? This stupid dress is no good for traveling, it's absurd."

He grabbed my waist and put me down on the ground as if I weighed nothing. The only good thing about his clumsiness was that he turned red up to his ears.

"Don't go too far away," he warned me, and stood soaked in the rain instead of taking refuge in the wagon. Where would the other two be?

There were some low bushes around that were more than enough for me. Who would have told me a week ago that I would be crouching in the middle of a copse, in the rain? Seriously, if someone had told me this was going to happen, I would have taken them for crazy. I really felt like laughing, it was too surreal and that was funny. Travelling to the West was much less boring than I had imagined. In fact, it was much more fun than sitting in my tower drinking wine and watching the hours go by while Father denied me permission to go to the sheikah excavations.

I heard some noises, like a few cracks and a splash. I decided to stay crouched and approach cautiously, the noises were coming from the trees. It all happened so fast, actually. Out of nowhere came up a hoodie, jumped from a tree with a dagger up and was going to fall on Link, who was on his back.

"Link!" I shouted, coming out of my hiding.

In a movement I barely noticed, he left the hoodie lying on the ground. I didn't even see him draw his sword.

"Get in the car!" He yelled at me. He got rid of another man who came down the right flank.

I rolled my dress up to my waist and ran, but it was raining, there was mud. I tripped once and hit my face on the ground.

"Hide, damn it! Get in the car!" He repeated. I heard his sword cutting the wind like a hiss.

"I know, I'm not an idiot!" I answered, "I can't move in this stupid dress…"

This last I muttered for myself. I decided to free myself from my burden, so I slipped on my own dress and ran to the wagon. I peeked over the seat, he had four hooded men on his feet. He looked back and forth, went a little way into the grove. Nothing.

"Captain!"

The two barbarians then appeared from inside the forest on the side of the road. They dismounted and approached to examine Link's victims. I decided to get close too. With a mixture of curiosity and horror I saw that what was under the hood wasn't human, nor was it any creature I knew. They were like some kind of... I couldn't say, they looked more dead than alive.

"What the hell are you doing? I told you to stay in the car," Link grumbled behind me.

"What are they? They're not bokoblins or any monster I've seen before," I ignored his orders, and grabbed a stick to try to feel one of them a bit.

"We've interrupted something, haven't we, Captain?", the barbarian with a beard laughed.

I looked up and when I saw his face... oh, right. I've left my dress behind.

"Damn it," Link sighed. He took off his cape (soaked as if he'd put it in a river) and threw it over me before I could complain.

"We can go around again and leave you two alone," the barbarian laughed.

"You haven't interrupted anything," Link growled. It was so… I started to laugh. I laughed out loud. Link got more uncomfortable, and I laughed even more, I couldn't help it. What could I do but laugh at everything?

The other barbarian (the one who growled around and was unfriendly) devoted himself to removing the bodies on one side of the road, while I felt my stomach hurt from laughing so much. Link went to get my dress, it was all full of mud, it had no solution. He gave it to me with his face unhinged, he was really angry, and I made an effort not to keep laughing.

It took us a while to get going again. I'd gotten in the wagon to get some dry clothes. It wasn't like I was naked or anything, he didn't have to make a world of it because I was wearing my inner nightgown. His bewildered face was too much for me, I couldn't think of it without laughing again. I opened a chest and found one of Gae's robes, one he used to train or travel. Why the hell would Link have packed Gae's clothes? Maybe it was in my quarters and they packed it by mistake. As I was changing, I glued my ear and heard them say the word "Ikana" several times. I would look into the matter for myself when I had the chance.

We'd already been on the move for a couple of hours after the altercation. Link and the barbarians went ahead with their clothes soaked, like nothing had happened. Deep down it seemed to me an act of stubbornness, we could have stopped, lit a fire, dried our clothes... take a damn breath. They decided to continue wet as wild dogs until we were near Tabantha. I'd had enough of the darkness in the wagon, and even though it was dark outside too (it had gone completely dark), at least I could distract myself a little.

"May I sit here?"

He shrugged and made a little room for me next to him. The landscape changed, it was getting more arid and of course it didn't rain. I didn't know just this region of Hyrule, true that I had crossed it to the rito village, but I was too small when I did, I kept vague memories of the place.

"I've eaten and even slept a little bit," I said, trying to soften his mood, "what were those things?"

"If I ever ask you to hide, you have to obey. Obey without complaining," he grumbled.

"What-were-they?" I reiterated. The issue of unquestioning obedience should be discussed. Who did he think I was?

"They're Ikana wraith. I don't understand how they got this far; I don't have a good feeling about it."

"You got rid of them well," I observed. Actually, I've never seen anyone move so fast, just maybe Impa.

"By the way, thank you."

Aha. Was he softening?

"Why?"

"For warning me. You yelled my name when that thing attacked."

"I cannot afford for you to die before you reach your idolised fortress. If you died, everyone would think it was me, that I've betrayed the pact" I joked, turning his words against him.

"This isn't a game, Zelda. It may be for you, but it's not for me."

No. I hadn't softened him even a little bit.

"It's not a game for me. Being soaked and full of mud in the middle of nowhere, with three barbarians and surrounded by monsters, is not my choice. It's the last place on earth I'd want to be."

"Perfect. We agree on that. Believe me the last thing I want or need is to put up with... this."

I snorted and went back inside the wagon, I couldn't talk to him anymore. Let alone joke around. Richard had a curious sense of humour. I wondered what my trip to the eastern border would have been like if I'd married Richard. Very, very different, that's for sure.

We spent all night and the next day travelling tirelessly, but at dusk on the fourth day, they decided to stop for a rest (finally!). They even lit a bonfire this time. I heard them moving around and skinning something they had hunted, but I stood by, curled up inside the wagon. They started having dinner without me. I didn't blame them, anyway, I had always refused Link's every offer. This was what my new life would be like, a little rough, unpredictable, and perhaps lonely.

"Zelda."

I didn't expect to hear him again; I was starting to fall asleep.

"Are we leaving now?"

"No," he seemed to hesitate, "it's… you… do you want to dinner with us? Fridd's hunted a rabbit."

I was surprised that he asked me again despite all my former negatives. I suppose if the barbarians were stubborn to ride non-stop hours, they also insisted other things.

"Okay, yes. I'll have dinner with you."

The other two stared at me with surprise when they saw me appear (they didn't expect it, clearly), and got silent, slowing down their cheerful chattering. The floor looked dark, I checked it in case there was a stone or something else. I sit down and I felt cold on my legs, Gae's robe wasn't too long, and I was just covered in the thin inner dress. Goddesses, if Amy saw me looking like that...

"You can sit here, on top of this," Link laid his cape on top of a bed of fallen leaves. I accepted; thanks to that I felt a bit warmer.

"Enjoy the meal, Your Highness. I've seasoned this rabbit with mountain herbs. It's my mother's recipe," smiled the bearded barbarian, serving me a roasted thigh. It smelled really good.

"Anyway, as I said, there's no word from the others, some tragedy must have befallen them," said the unfriendly barbarian, Fridd, as if I wasn't there. In fact, it was like I was transparent to him, so I ate quietly, without losing detail of his conversation.

"They've gone down the north route, I've already told you. Passing through Tabantha is a waste of time for anyone heading for the Steppe or the mountains, which is most of them," Link responded.

"But there wasn't a single hawk with news, nothing. It's a sign of bad omen."

"They'll be there when they arrive, that's all" the friendly barbarian replied, "do you like it, Your Highness?

"It's really good, thank you," I smiled. He smiled too, satisfied.

"I'm Ardren from Nightfall," he held out his hand, it was a little greasy from dinner, but I accepted it anyway—and I live in Fort Hawk, I serve Captain Link.

"We know who the hell you are," the unfriendly barbarian growled.

"Fridd is from Hebra," Ardren grinned, "the sun hardly ever rises there, that's why he growls so much."

"My ass."

"Thank you for the hunt, Fridd," I said, and I tried to show my friendlier smile. He looked aside.

"My father will arrive at Fort Hawk tomorrow at noon," Link interjected, continuing the conversation where it had been left, "and we will arrive at the Nest at night. I don't think the rito will stop us at the border, they have orders from King Rhoam."

"Aren't you going through Nightfall?" Fridd-the-grumpy asked.

"No, first we settle down and then I'll go to Nightfall. You can go home directly, you don't have to follow us to the Nest," Link clarified.

"You should go to Nightfall, you're taking too long to be there," Fridd said.

"I know I have to go, but first I'll leave Zelda safe in the fortress. I can't go around so much with the carriage and all the luggage."

"Sure, luggage...," Ardren said, with a mocking smile.

It was clear they were speaking in code or something I didn't know.

"What's in Nightfall?" I asked. All three turned to look at me—if... if you can tell."

"What's in Nightfall, Princess of Hyrule, is an undone family because your little brother killed a girl," Fridd said, mumbling the words.

"Fridd, stop it," Link warned.

"And what's in Nightfall is-

"Enough, Fridd," Link rebuked him, standing up, "We will follow my plan and that's all. Ardren, you're going to make the first watch, I'm tired and I want to lie down a bit. We'll leave at dawn."

"Yes, Captain."

None of the barbarians said anything again, and what had been a halfway pleasant dinner (as far as I could tell) became uncomfortable for everyone. And I was the cause.

I decided it was best to retire, so I got in the wagon and huddled in a corner I had made mine along the way. I heard them put out the fire so they wouldn't attract any enemies and they agreed the watch shifts. I also heard Link hovering around the car. I didn't know if... he might come to lie inside, by my side. I didn't know if he intended to sleep with me, that situation stressed me every time it was coming, although I had no choice but to get to the idea of a stranger crawling into bed next to me every night. And that, at some point, he would want me to fulfil my wifely duties to him.

I don't know where Link slept that night, but he was away again.