Chapter Two: The Cabin

It seemed like life was over. That everything with meaning had been destroyed.
Life will return. I know it. A blur of brown faded into sight. Link shuffled around the soft textures of the blanket around him. Someone must care...

Link sat up from the bed and saw a woman sitting down and staring out a nearby window. It was midday and Link had been taken to this woman's home. The woman spoke to him without turning around. "You awake?" Link held his hand around his waist. It ached with pain.

"What happened back there?" Link answered. The woman waited a moment to reply.

"You were apparently attacked by a wolfos. It knocked you out. I came in and finished it off and brought you back here." She left no sign of emotion in her voice.

"Where...exactly is here?" Link took a moment to observe that he was in a cabin of sorts, likely still in the woods.

"This is my home. It's about half a mile east of where I found you."

Link was startled by the distance this woman claimed to carry him.

"Half a mile? You must get a lot of exercise."

The woman sighed. "It isn't that far. But why were you out here in the first place?"

"I think...I was supposed to be looking for someone. A dangerous criminal."

The woman gave a soft chuckle, one which Link seemed not to notice. "Well, is there a reason you were looking for a criminal? Want to get mixed up in the wrong business?"

"What would you know about such things? I was to challenge him to a duel. To stop him from causing crime in western Hyrule."

The woman turned around and stared at him with unbelievable eyes. They were as red as her hair and gleamed in the light like a cat's. As far as her shape went, she was thin and tall, but her body structure was perfectly balanced in the same way. "Now, just who said the thief was a he?"

The woman showed a devious smile.

"So what next? Do you plan on killing me now?"

The woman gave an insulting laugh. "You pose little threat to me seeing as how you struggled with a black wolfos. Anyone in these woods should know they should be dealt with long-range."

Link was steaming with rage. Who does she think she is? He reached for his sword and realized it was no longer behind his back.

"If you're looking for your sword, it's downstairs."

He should have realized. Even if this woman wasn't a crook, she would have removed weapons. It is considered rude to sleep with a weapon in one's presence anyway(1).

Link pulled the blanket slowly to the side of the bed with pain. He moved his foot to the right, trying to get out it. He lifted himself with his arms, but quickly reused one of them to clench to his waist, falling back on the bed.

The woman sighed. "If it's a duel you want, you should wait until you're in better condition."

He knew he couldn't defeat her in this state.

She was right, but if he could walk, maybe she would let him go.

"Yeah, I guess so..."

"I'm always up for a fair fight, so I'll let you sleep here for a couple nights. You're in no shape to travel anyway." She grinned and walked over to the door opposite to the window.

"Where will you sleep?" Link asked suspiciously. The woman, who was going to leave the room had Link not asked this question, moved her index finger to point at a couch against the wall opposite to the bed. Link didn't notice it earlier, for the bed was slightly too high for one to see over it. "How do I know you won't kill me in my sleep? No honor among thieves, right?"

The woman looked at him almost as if irritated. "You are no thief, so I'll honor our arrangement to a fair fight." The room became silent.

"...Thanks for the help." he said. The woman smiled and left the room.

Link sighed. Who is she? I didn't even catch her name...

He looked around the room he was in. It had wooden walls, flooring, and ceiling. The walls had black rectangular fabrics, ones with red diamond designs like found often in Hyrule(2). A chest crested with blue gems was humbly covered with a grey towel-sized fabric. A thin black sword hung next to a black axe on the wall above the bed, and in each corner of the room were three to five baskets each. They were probably filled with stolen goods. Curiously, there were no pictures in the room. She must have lived alone for a long time...

A while later, the woman returned to the room with a bowl of something hot in her hands. "Here," the woman said, "Eat this. It's good for you." her expression seemed calm and unconcerned. She sat down on the couch with one leg over the other, facing the window again.

"Thank you." said Link. He tasted the contents of the bowl to discover a soup. "Why did you become a thief?" He said abruptly.

The woman made no change in expression; just the same, almost depressed look.

"I like to steal things." said the woman.

"Come on, nothing is that simple." he said. The woman looked straight into Link's eyes.

"And why not?" Link wasn't exactly sure.

"Well...You seem troubled, or at least concerned. You must have some reason for why you do this."

"Life isn't easy for all of us. I never knew my parents. I just...remember my father riding off into the distance. One night he left me all alone in the market. I waited, but he never came back. After that, I wound up in the alleys. I learned to swipe food and money. I also learned to hate those who selfishly turned me away at their door. I had no home, so I ran away to the forest seeking refuge."

"If it's any consolation, I never knew my parents either. I was raised in the Kokiri forest."

Link had about finished his soup, which tasted of familiar forest-grown spices and remedial mushroom.

"You're Kokiri then? It's my understanding that they never leave the forest. That they never grow old. Why have you then?"

This was something Link never really spoke of. He ignored the past mostly, but he felt like he could trust this woman, even though she was a dangerous criminal.

"I guess," he started, "my destiny had other plans for me." There was a long silence, and then the woman stood up.

"It's getting late;" she took the empty bowl from Link "you should rest before nightfall."

"What is your name?"

Link remembered to ask. The woman smiled and told him her name was Phae.

She left the room with two last words: "Good night."

Link sighed, and then rolled over on his side. A couple minutes later, he was asleep.

Phae returned to find Link silently sleeping. She walked over to the curtains quietly, trying not to wake the hero, and closed them. She laid down with her head on her fist and looked at Link from the other side of the room. She slowly fell asleep, with the picture of Link in her head.