Chapter 1- Who Am I Now?
It was sunrise, and the Hyrulian sun was peeking through. No longer did a young, chipper girl sit on the old fence, but a young woman of seventeen leaned casually against it. He fiery red hair had a sense of griminess to it, and her shiny green eyes had lost their childish sparkle. She stared long and hard into the sun, and she didn't even flinch when the sun rose its rays, burning her eyes.
It was hard to believe it was Malon you were looking at.
Malon had changed, as had the ranch, or in Malon's eyes, the torture field. And the rumors said it was all Link's fault.
Talon had looked at her with sorrowful eyes that day. She was heading to Zora's Domain, since she loved the ocean; it was what she lived for. Talon had hugged her sister tightly.
"Malon," She had said, "Link opened the Temple of Time; he must be the Hero of Time." Talon had looked away, as though afraid to continue. "But Gannondorf followed him in. That's why the world is a mess." Talon had then walked swiftly away, turning back only once to wave sullenly.
Things got even worse after Talon left.
Mr. Ingo had taken control when Gannondorf came. He was using them to gain Gannondorf's favor. Mr. Ingo kicked Malon's father off the farm, and in his brief letter, he said he now lived in Kakariko Village with two women who let him stay with them.
But as long as Malon worked, Mr. Ingo promised to keep the horses in good shape. But if Malon didn't work, he was going to torture them until they died. So Malon agreed to work.
Her life was long and lonely. Talon hadn't written in over a year, and her father was banned from the ranch.
"You lazy girl! Get over here and start your chores!" Mr. Ingo barked irritably. Malon jumped. He had startled her. Malon submissively went over to get the bucket and mop to clean the stables with.
Malon stood and mopped. The cows mooed. The chickens crowed. She would finish mopping in 3 ½ hours and 15 seconds from now. Her life was one long boring routine.
But it was all about to change.
A noise startled her. She jumped, and tripped over the bucket of water, much to her dismay! A newbie! Her childlike love for newbies returned momentarily, and she relished in it. But as soon as it came, it left. She became Mr. Ingo's sullen slave girl again.
The day lasted forevermore. Eventually, the sun, the same one she fell in love with Link under, began to fall into the horizon. She went to the fence without thinking.
But even the sunset didn't like Ingo Ranch anymore. It lasted what felt like mere moments, before Mr. Moon rose high into the sky.
She watched the lights in Mr. Ingo's room go out. He'd be asleep in minutes with exhaustion, even though he only ordered her around.
She headed towards the horse arena. All the horses were in the stable, and Malon hopped the fence. She couldn't help performing this ritual every night with the hope that one day he would come back.
Malon cleared her throat. She sang through a few scales. She started out softly, and then louder until she was at speaking level.
She was singing the words to her lover's song.
"Hmm hm hmm. Hmmm hm hmm. Hmmm hmm hmm hmm hm, hmmm hm hm." She kept humming and humming until her voice was cracking and she was too fatigued to go on.
She was almost to her crawlspace of a room when she heard a voice.
"Malon?" It croaked. The figure stepped foreword.
"Who's there?" She said weakly, and she found herself gasping and becoming lightheaded. "Uhn." She groaned, and she fought to stay standing. She had the 'Jelly Legs' as Talon would have called it.
"It's me. Don't you remember?" It said, the voice sounding concerned. "Are you alright? Malon? Malon!" It reached out to grab her arm.
"Fatigue." She wheezed. "Every night. I do it. I pray. I want." But Malon couldn't bear to spill her troubles onto this man. He was tall, and that's all Malon could tell. She felt her knees buckle beneath her.
"Malon!" The voice yelled, and it ran towards her. Then the black, silent ness took his place.
"Malon?" Asked the voice. A rooster crowed in the background Morning! Malon sat up, her energy replenished.
She got up and she changed into a fresh outfit. She must have fallen asleep yesterday. She had been quite fatigued. But something had told her to just keep singing and humming. And she had.
She was outside, watching the sunrise. But there was no sign of the boy. She wanted to thank him.
The day was half over in a flash. Malon found herself childishly twirling in the horse field, but the horses were inside because Mr. Ingo didn't want them out. She twirled again, staring up at Mr. Sun.
Malon didn't see the figure until he touched her shoulder. Malon gasped and jumped, tripping mid-twirl. But the man grabbed her hand. She stared at him, grateful, before she burst into tears.
"Welcome. Welcome back, Link."
Now that Malon and Link have been reunited, what will happen next! And just for the record, Malon's name is pronounced May-Lon. And Talon's name is pronounced Tay (rhymes with May)-Lon. Just to let you know! KLS
