The Mountain Village Part 1
Zelda sat quietly in her courtyard, observing her father with Libby at her side. She couldn't believe what he was saying! The town's people were starting to become confused and upset. The once kind and gentle king had turned into a tyrant!
'Please send the courageous one soon Farore, things are getting worse here by the day! I wish Impa were here? Please keep her safe.' Zelda silently prayed to the Goddess of Courage.
It had been three days since Zelda had seen the mysterious maiden in the Temple of Time. She had given her name as Kari and told Zelda that she should expect a Hero to come and save her. Kari hadn't told her anything else though except that her suspicions were correct and that Ganondorf was indeed corrupting the king's mind.
"Princess Zelda, His majesty, the king wishes to speak to you," A guard said, from a window that was in the courtyard. Zelda looked at the guard and then sighed. Meeting her father had become a nightmare. He would either yell, or complain as though she wasn't even in the room.
She made her way through the hallways that had beautiful paintings of the ancestors of the royal family, as well as story telling tapestries similar to the ones that were in the Temple of Light. Walking on the plush red carpets in the hallways down to the throne room.
She walked in and bowed to her father and then she noticed the prince that was standing near the king. Inside she was seething, the suitors hadn't shown up for the last three days and she was not happy to see one.
"Zelda, this is Prince Damon," King Harkinian introduced. Zelda gave the prince a cold smile. "And what am I to do with the presence of such a noble?" Zelda asked sweetly. The King gave Zelda an angry warning glance, and Zelda only glared back.
Damon watched the princess, a certain curiosity for why Princess Zelda seemed furious. He wondered why the king was glaring just about as coldly back at Zelda.
"Um, excuse me sir, but if Princess Zelda could show me around that would be fantastic," Damon asked, with a slight note of uncertainty in his voice. Zelda saw this as an opportunity to tell the prince off without her father interfering.
"Fine with me, let's go," Zelda said curtly, giving a short forced curtsy to her father. Once they were out of the courtroom, Zelda turned and backed Damon into the wall.
"I want you to leave and seek a bride elsewhere, and if you see any other princes on their way in tell them they are wasting their time. I am not marrying. Don't let the doors hit you on the way out," Zelda said bitterly and she left a stunned Prince Damon in the entrance hall of the castle.
Zelda returned to her room and desperately wished that Impa would come back soon and that the "Hero" would come to her rescue.
Link had taken off his old worn clothes and pulled the forest green tunic over his head. Shaking messy blonde hair out of his eyes, Link quietly admired the clothes before strapping the Master Sword and his quiver of arrows over his back. He picked up the gems and carefully and securely tied them in a small pouch along with the Ocarina of Time to his belt.
'It's a wonder that I have been chosen to help the same princess that I saved, and she in turn has saved me. Now I have been chosen by Kariah and Farore to save the royal family by awakening and reuniting the races of Hyrule by awakening the sages within those races. I only know of two races but I know that Kariah will teach me how to be the best that I can be. She has faith in me and I need to remember that if I want to truly find out who I am, I will have to help this princess because I have memories of her castle when I have only ever believed that I was raised on the street. I need to know about my past, the one that I have seem to have forgotten. I know I will defeat Ganondorf," Link thought, determination setting in.
Suddenly Link thought of something and he went out to meet Kariah. He exited the temple and saw that Epona was waiting for him. Standing quietly beside her was a stallion. This stallion looked like he was made out of copper, his fur gleaming in the sunlight and almost had a fiery glow. Epona was also shining like she was on fire too. Kariah sat silently upon the stallion, watching and nodding in approval of Link's appearance.
Epona whinnied and Link gave her an affectionate forehead rub. He murmured to her and then swung up onto her bareback.
"Kari, you are a goddess, and I would like you to tell me where Nabooru is," Link stated quietly. Kariah looked at Link evenly and gently shook her head.
"I am sorry Hero, I do not know where she is. My powers are limited while I walk within this realm. If I knew I would tell you, but I don't know everything, even if I am a goddess," Kariah said quietly. Link nodded knowing that Kariah wouldn't lie to him.
"Where are we going anyway?" Link asked changing the subject. Kariah smiled at his curiosity.
"We are going to a mountain village. Where you will find another sage. This mountain village is located on the other side of Zora's River, and at the base of Death Mountain. We must get going or we won't make it out of Hyrule City before the drawbridge closes for the night," Kariah said, using her legs to turn the beautiful stallion to the market.
Link followed slightly nervous about going through the guards in the town. He wondered if the guards would recognize him or Epona. Epona had often bailed him out right at the drawbridge and not many horses looked like Epona.
"Um Kari, won't the guards wonder about Epona, they have seen her before, and other than the clothes, I haven't changed either," Link said, voicing his concerns. Kariah looked thoughtfully and then hoped he would agree with her.
"I have an idea if you are willing to go through with it Hero. If we are stopped, we both look well off, and I could be some noble woman with you as a protector. Hopefully they will buy into that and if they ask about Epona, just say that most of the horses where we come from are the same colour as Epona. I just hope it will work," Kariah said, voicing her plan. Link nodded. This goddess was clever he would give her that.
They received some stares of wonder and awe as Link and Kariah rode through the city. The Hylians assumed that they had just come from the palace and didn't really question their presence other than not seeing them enter the village in the first place.
Link desperately hoped that the Hylians didn't recognize him. He knew that somewhere along the way that people would have seen him, and he hoped that they didn't associate him as a thief at the time. Although now he really hoped they didn't recognize them.
They made it to the drawbridge uneventfully and found that they had also hit the bridge on a guard switch, which was fortunate. They rode southeast until the sun sank below the horizon and they stopped to break camp.
Link made a circle of rocks and lit a small fire. They sat down and ate from the supplies that Kariah had attached to her stallion. They sat quietly around the fire until Link asked about the stallion curled up behind Kariah.
"Where did you get him, he is definitely a handsome beast," Link commented. Kariah glanced at the stallion as though she was having a private conversation with him.
"Arden came from a beautiful valley in the forbidden lands. My sisters gave him to me when I was but a young child. He has been by my side since then," Kariah said, fondness in her voice. Link chuckled slightly and she gave him and inquisitive look.
"It's nothing, you just reminded me of Epona and me. I rescued Epona when she was born. Her mother had troubles and happened to come across me in the field. It was raining and I wasn't able to save the mare but Epona was alive. I took her into a secret grotto and feed her. She followed me around after that and we have been together since then," Link said quietly relating back to that rainy night so many years ago.
Kariah listened quietly and knew that if something were to happen to Epona he would be losing a valued friend.
"Sounds like you two would die for each other. A friendship like that is what keeps many people alive," Kariah commented giving Epona a respected glance. Link nodded in contentment. They both slipped into slumber knowing that the stallion and mare would both protect them.
The next morning broke clear and Kariah and Link were ready to go at a moments notice.
"Where is Zora's River, I haven't really explored this region of Hyrule before," Link asked. He looked ahead and wondered where it was.
"It is just a ways ahead. I hope Epona doesn't mind crossing them, there is a bridge but we are to far south and I don't feel like going back north to get to it," Kariah said.
"She will go through it. She trusts me wholeheartedly," Link said confidently. They continued and the sun was becoming hot. They made it to the river at about midday.
"Wow! It is so clear," Link marvelled seeing down to the bottom of the river.
"This river is feed by the snow in the mountains. Mountain water is often very clean," She said as Arden plunged in enjoying the feel of the water. He swam to the other side with a wet Kariah riding on his back. Link followed and was just as soaked. They laughed and kept on riding, the sun drying them quite quickly.
Soon they came across the passage that led up to the mountain village. They walked through this narrow mountain passage and came into the village in a matter of five minutes. The first thing they encountered though was a Hylian guard.
"State your purpose in Kakariko Village," he ordered. Kariah narrowed her eyes at the guard.
"I will have you know that I once lived here and I am now visiting my family," Kariah stated curtly. The guard looked at her suspiciously. It was clear he didn't trust her or her traveling companion. Suddenly all of the village children came running.
"Kari! Your home!" a young girl around the age of seven cried. This girl had ash blonde hair and blue eyes and cheerful face.
"Rhiannon!" Kariah shouted above the noise of the children. Link was confused. How did Kariah know these children and more importantly how did the children know her.
The children were enough to convince the guard that she had indeed been in the village before. Kariah grinned at them and they also started firing questions at both Hylians.
"Where did you go?"
"Do you have any cool stories?"
"Did you meet any scary monsters?"
"Who are you, mister?"
"Did you see Princess Zelda?"
"What does Hyrule City look like?"
"Who is your boyfriend?"
"Where is he from?"
The questions continued and Link and Kariah didn't have a chance to answer any of them. Link was surprised by some of the questions and rather embarrassed by some of them too.
"Hello children, please move, we need to speak with Kelian and Revadania," Kariah said, giving a grin to Rhiannon and the small boy standing beside her. They urged the horses to go through the mass of eight children surrounding them. Kariah led them to a small house with a red roof just down the hill from the Kakariko Well and Link saw that a tall man with a medium build and tanned skin, an immediate clue that he worked outside a great amount, He also had stern blue eyes and had chocolate brown. His wife stood slightly in front of him. She had ash blonde hair and pale blue eyes. She had a slender build and had sun kissed skin. They were beaming fondly at Kariah. Kariah dismounted and was immediately pulled into a huge hug by the woman.
"Welcome home Kari. We missed you so," The woman said enthusiastically. Link dismounted and was nearly pounced on by the children and bombarded with more questions. He was fighting to get out from under the mob when the husband of the woman came to Link's rescue.
"Children, please be civil to visitors. There is no need to jump on them," He reprimanded with a hint of amusement in his voice. Link decided to answer a few questions and he quieted them down. Kariah watched him and then noticed that a young boy was ready to jump on Link from behind.
"Link watch out for Tigo!" Kariah shouted. Link moved suddenly and caught the small blue-eyed boy and Kariah realized that Link knew he was there. It made sense cause the Triforce would have heightened his senses.
"Come Link, I want you to meet Revadania and her husband Kelian," Kariah called. Tigo and Rhiannon followed Link to the house and the other children ran at the calls of their mothers. Kariah introduced them and the children to Link.
"Welcome Link, I hope our rambunctious children didn't scare you," Revadania said, throwing a knowing glance at Kariah.
"Actually they amuse me, they have a far better childhood than I ever was able to have," Link said, hoping his street talk didn't slip into his speech. Kariah shot a warning glance at Link but the couple nor the children seemed to notice.
The inside of the small house was very simple. It consisted of a bunk bed on the far wall and a bigger bed for the couple on the opposite wall. The hearth was in the corner and had a loaf of homemade bread cooling on the mantle. A table sat in the corner and had stools around it. Link felt honoured to be allowed in this simple home. He had never had such a home and that saddened him slightly.
The family was sitting down to some homemade soup and bread. A very simple meal but sustaining. Link mostly watched in wonder and observed the beautiful way of the family life. Something he never had. He had to admit that he did feel a little uncomfortable sitting with the family because he wasn't used to people being nice to him and it was the first decent meal he had had in a long time.
"So Link, where are you from," Revadania asked. Link didn't really know what to say for he was supposed to be acting the part of a prince. "Say you are a prince from the country of Labrynnia," Kariah's voice cried in his head. Link wheeled slightly in surprise before finding his voice to reply to Revadania.
"I come from the country of Labrynna, I am here to seek Princess Zelda's hand, although I know she seems to be turning down all of the suitors that have ridden up to the palace, but I may just have a chance," Link said sounding hopeful and hoping that Kariah wasn't going to yell at him again with her fancy mind tricks.
"Oh, so you and Kari aren't…" Revadania said pausing, as a Link and Kariah both turned red.
"No, we are just friends and I am guiding him through Hyrule. It is a big country you know," Kariah said, the blush still evident on her cheeks. Link nodded and silently continued eating.
"Kelian, do you know the whereabouts of the Sheikah?" Kariah asked, grabbing Link's attention again. Kelian thought about it for a moment and then answered truthfully,
"No I haven't heard anything about them lately. You should ask Riako about them," Kelian answered. Link was about to ask Kariah who the Sheikah were when a resounding whiney sounded outside and Link jumped up recognizing the sound of Epona. Kariah also jumped and made for the door. They found a…