Watching the bulblin like a hawk, after having located it amid a group of three, Link dismounted Epona and crouched down behind one of the larger rocks in the vicinity. Deciding that it would be better to take out the other two before attempting to retrieve the mirror shard, he reached behind his back and pulled out crossbow, along with three arrows; Midna, having guessed what he was up to, dismounted her own horse before falling back into Link's shadow, just as she had done before she'd been restored to her true form.

"You shoot, and I'll retrieve the piece before that thing explodes into nothing." She whispered into his ear.

Link said nothing but simply nodded in understanding to ensure that he did not break his concentration. Drawing back the string, aiming an arrow at the smallest of the group, he closed his left eye to get a better focus on the target. Once he was certain the arrow would hit, he released it and watched as it flew through the air before piercing the bulblin in the head, causing it to shriek as it burst into ashes. Moving the bow in the direction of the second bulblin, he readied the arrow and repeated the same method he'd used to strike the first. Within half a second of releasing the arrow, it had struck the bulblin through the chest and he watched as it too, burst into ashes.

Moving on to the third bulblin, Link lowered the bow when he saw that the demise of the other two had alerted the monster. He ducked even lower as it came towards the rock, as though trying to investigate where the arrows had come from. As Link watched it intently, Midna slipped out of his shadow and picked up a few nearby stone, launching one at the bulblin to distract it and then throwing another at the wall that circled the perimeter of Castle Town. Just as she'd hoped, the bulblin turned its attention to where the stone had hit the wall, and ran towards it to investigate. Returning to Link's shadow, she continued to allow him to take over from there. Now that the bulblin was distracted, Link raised the bow again and took the opportunity to shoot the arrow. He watched in both excitement and anticipation as the arrow flew through the air and landed in the bulblin's throat. It let out the same ear piercing shriek that the others had, and Midna moved quickly to retrieve the first mirror shard. As the ashes began to shower the grass, she grabbed the shard and raced back to Link, who had just put away his bow.

"You got it?" He questioned anxiously.

"I got it." She confirmed.

"Wha-ha! I could hug you right now!" He exclaimed in excitement.

"Eh- I'd rather you didn't. I'm not a hugger." She quipped.

"Of course not. It was just an expression." He explained, mounting Epona and patting her on the side of her neck.

Midna mounted her own horse, and watched Link as he caressed Epona with gentle hands. She saw the excitement from a moment ago had disappeared and been replaced with sadness, evident in his eyes. She bit her tongue, wondering if she should speak or not, then decided to try and start a conversation.

"You miss her, don't you?" She questioned, feeling dumb for having nothing better to say.

"Huh?" He muttered.

"Zelda..." She clarified.

"Oh. Yeah... But I know all will be okay. I won't rest again until she is safely by my side." He vowed. "It's just..." He began, but trailed off with a sigh. "Don't worry about it, we've got more pressing matters to deal with." He shrugged.

"You won't be able to think straight if your mind is troubled though." She pointed out. "Talk to me." She pleaded.

"It's just... I can't believe I failed my duty that night, and in doing so failed her... And our unborn baby." He confided. "I didn't even know and found out through her diary; which I shouldn't have read... I feel as though I let her down." He admitted solemnly.

Midna thought for a second, unsure of what to say that would comfort him. She didn't know the Princess very well and had really only met the girl twice during her previous travels with Link. It wasn't something that she was experienced in either. She'd never been so close to someone as to know what it was like to feel like she'd let them down. It was one of the few perks of being a Twili.

"You haven't." She told him simply. "I don't know the Princess very well, but from what you have told me, she is a kind and compassionate soul. If what you speak of her is the truth, then I highly doubt that she is disappointed in you. She had her reasons for not telling you right away, but I'm sure that it has nothing to do with how she feels about you." She reassured him. "For what it's worth, I just know you're going to make a great husband... And father." She added.

Link let out another sigh. He wanted to believe what Midna was saying, but without Zelda around to confirm it, the words just couldn't reach his heart. Not wanting to seem rude, he gave her a weak smile before striding ahead with Epona, glancing briefly over his shoulder to ensure she was following.

"So... Where do we go from here?" Midna asked, wondering about the second shard of the mirror as she quickly caught up with Link.

"Your guess is as good as mine." He replied, guiding them back towards the entrance to Castle Town.

"Link!... Enough with the doomsday voice! Where did this doubt even come from because you were just fine a moment ago?!" Midna questioned, unhappy with his sudden change of mood.

"You don't get it!" He yelled. "And why would you? You've been on your own for Hylia knows how long! How could you possibly know how it feels? You don't, so don't try to tell me how I should feel or that I was just fine a moment ago!" He snapped.

"I..." She began, but trailed off as her voice became uneven.

"Forget it! I'm going back to Ordon go gather a few things before we set out to find the next shard." He stated, yanking Epona's reins so that she broke into a gallop.

With a heavy sigh, Midna gave her own horse a little kick to get him moving, slower than Epona to keep her distance to prevent provoking Link further.

Ordon Village; Link's House

Slowing Epona into a walk, he quickly halted her besides the ladder that led up to the front door of his old home. Midna still hadn't arrived yet, but he could tell that she was not far behind as he could hear the faint sound of horse hooves in the near distance. Without waiting, he dismounted Epona, offering her an apple for the journey that she took from his hand gratefully, and patted her head before beginning to climb the old wooden ladder. Once up top, he tried the door, which opened easily with a click of the catch.

He stood in the doorway, taking a moment to admire how well the old house was holding up and breathing in the familiar smell of farming tools, earth and bread. Coming back here, he felt as though he'd entered a time tunnel and gone back in time. Everything had been so much simpler back when he was just an ordinary farm boy, but he wouldn't give up the life he had now for it, no matter what struggles he faced. The only thing he wished for was to have Zelda back safely.

As he heard the sound of Midna calling his name, he ventured further into the house, not ready to talk to her yet unless necessary. He hurried down into the second ladder inside the house, this one leading into the basement where he kept a chest of old stock he'd gathered during his travels at the time of the Twilight invasion. He knelt down on the wooden floor and reached out to open it when a shuffling noise caught his attention.

"Great. I guess this place has an infestation of mice now." He muttered to himself.

He turned his attention back to the chest and once again reached out to open it when the shuffling sound got louder and closer. Withdrawing his hand, he turned around and rose to his feet.

"Midna, stop playing games with me!" He demanded.

"I'm not Midna." A familiar voice spoke.

Link turned his attention in the direction where the voice had came from and he almost couldn't believe his eyes when he saw who'd stepped out of the shadows of the room.

"You?... Buh- Wha- Wait, how did you even get down here?" He questioned.

"I've been waiting for you to return here Linky boy. I have a letter to deliver." The postman informed him.

"Letter? For me? How come it didn't arrive at the castle instead?" He questioned.

"Well, you're not at the castle and this is a rather urgent matter." The postman answered.

"Urgent?... I'm so confused right now. I told absolutely no one, except Midna, that I was coming here, how did you know that I would be here?" He asked, growing alarmed that Zant's power may have become greater over Hyrule.

"I really can't recall how I know, anyhow, here's the letter." The postman stated, offering out the letter.

Although hesitant, Link took the letter and picked up a small hunting knife from one of the wooden crates in the corner, using it to break the wax seal. He placed the knife aside and opened up the envelope, sliding the letter out and unfolding it.

Link,

Long time, no see. It has been while. Yeta realises that you are used to hearing from husband, Yeto. Unfortunately, Yeta needs to inform Link that Yeto is sick. He need some famous pumpkin soup, but due to storm, Yeta cannot get out to find the ingredients needed, as well as a healing fairy. Yeta was wondering if Link could gather ingredients and fairy and bring to help Yeto. In return, Yeta has something that you might be looking for.

Regards,

Yeta, of Snowpeak.

Lowering his hand, Link looked up from the letter wanting to ask how long the postman had been waiting there for him, but it seemed that he'd already slipped away silently while he was reading.

Without another thought on how long ago the letter had been written, Link drew in a breath and headed upstairs. He walked up to the little wooden desk that hadn't been used since he'd resided in the house, and pulled a quill from a vase before dabbing it in some freshly made up ink and listing down all the ingredients needed for the pumpkin soup. He was curious about what Yeta had meant when she'd mentioned being in possession of something that he was looking for. The first thought that came to mind was a mirror shard, but he brushed it off, deeming the idea laughable. Yeto and Yeta holding on to a mirror shard was as likely as Ganondorf making peace with himself and Zelda. Even still, if it was an item that could aid his travels and if the soup was the one thing that could save his old friend, then he would invest his time and effort into lending Yeta a helping hand.

Once he'd gathered the list, he placed the quill down on the table and folded up the piece of paper he'd written on, tucking it away into his pocket before heading outside to where Midna was waiting for him. Despite her expectant look, he didn't speak a word and instead mounted Epona and set off Faron Woods. Midna, growing annoyed with his ignorance, mounted her own horse and raced to catch him up. She would not let the subject drop this time until he told her what he was up to.