Chapter Two
Link speaks
The Captain sent me on a tour of the Castle with Willie, one of the soldiers I knew from the trip home. Willie was impressed with my morning test. The instructor was known as an expert fighter. As usual, my silence caused him to chatter, and I learned a great deal, some of it useless but some of it enlightening. The clothes I was getting outfit by outfit had belonged to a knight's son who died of a wound gone badly. The room I had been given was below the Princess's on her request, as she wanted to be sure I was well treated. Then he asked if I were really the Hero of Time. I said I didn't think I looked like the hero in the stories. He grinned. "How old were you when you started your first adventure?"
"Twelve," I said without thinking.
"Twelve?"
I cursed mentally, annoyed that I responded at all. "Yes."
"Were you scared?"
I wondered how old he was now. "I was terrified. I'd never left home before. Where are we?"
That got him talking about the Castle again, and before he remembered to ask another question, a maid came up and told him the Captain wanted me. She gave me a curious look and watched us out of sight. I led the way back, having automatically mapped the area in my head as we went. Willie was panting by the time we got there.
"It took me two weeks to learn my way around," he gasped.
"You're a good guide," I told him, and to my relief saw the Captain in his office. I left Willie grinning at the compliment. The Captain told me to go to my room to wash and change clothes. At my expression, he laughed and said that it was the Princess, not the King, and asked if my throat was still sore. At my negative, he sent me on. I found the stout lady, Gwen, carrying water into the room. She pointed out my midday meal, which included some small round pebble-like things.
"Those are for your throat," she explained. "Here's your water for washing, and mind you wash well. We put the rest of the clothes in the wardrobe here." She showed me how the wooden doors opened. "There's just enough to get you through a week." I couldn't believe her. It looked like enough to get me through a year, if I never did any work in the softer ones. Fortunately there were several like the one I was wearing. "Now you should wear one of these." She showed me the more practical ones. The softer ones were for Court or eveningwear to see the King or Princess. I chose the black one. It fit my mood. She also showed me where the closest "water closet" was. She seemed surprised when I thanked her. I was ready by the time the Captain appeared. He approved the clothes and my state of cleanliness. He looked over the by now empty tray, and smiled. I didn't tell him that the sweets resided now in my pouch. I'm not fond of honey even when my throat hurts.
The princess was waiting in the garden. On the way, I remembered when I came to speak with her, how she was looking in a window where her father was going to see Ganandorf. Then I flashed on the rainy night not long after when Impa was taking her away and she tossed the Ocarina in the moat, knowing I would find it, and the first sight I had of Ganandorf, including the first time he knocked me down. The sight of her, between the frightened twelve-year-old and the composed nineteen year old I knew later, brought me back to the present. The Captain told me to bow, which I did, still feeling silly, and she waved me over. "Is your throat better?" she asked, blinking at the bright sunlight.
"Much," I said, and then blurted out, "Can I go home now?"
She sighed, and my heart landed in my boots, the one piece of clothes they let me keep. Before she could comment the Captain said, "Lad, you cannot speak to the Princess like that..."
He retreated at the look the Princess gave him, not even seeing Link's puzzled one, "...can he?" he finished to Impa, who was hiding a smile. The two children talked urgently while they watched. He could see the look of appeal on Link's face, and how seriously she replied. A breeze blew her hair into her face, and she brushed it aside impatiently. Then she stood and they walked about for a time, still talking.
"After rescuing her from a dark magician, protecting her from outlaws, and telling her stories through days of carriage rides so she wouldn't be afraid?" Impa asked. "Not to mention playing the ocarina for hours at a time. In their mind, she owes him. And he wants her to get him out of here. "
"Will she?" His hopes for training the boy dropped.
"No. The king explained the situation to her, and she understands that we can't just let him go, but the traditional method won't work either. That young man would just wait his chance and off he would go, and we'd never see him again. Most landed orphans need care. He doesn't. He needs guidance, and at his age it has to come from someone he respects. "
"Hmm." Hope rose again. "He's a good fighter, but he could learn more. New weapons. New methods. Can he read?"
"Yes, at least a little. I saw him reading street signs and puzzling out a proclamation. I don't know if he writes. Zelda spoke to me about bait that might keep him hooked a while. Orphans always want to know who their parents are. Of course we can't make promises, but there's no reason an investigator can't look into the matter. The word's gotten out already, have you noticed? Pretty soon we'll have the ambassadors from Termina, Holodrum, and Labrynna sounding us out on if Link's the Hero of Time, and so how they can deal with the debt they owe him, before he demands something more expensive than they want to handle."
"I see. In that case, he'll need some manners training."
"Not Lady Spoilt. That old dragon would have him running in a day, if he didn't kill her when she used that fan on him." They both shuddered.
"No. I was thinking of Sir Wills, the librarian. He's kind, he knows his history and his manners, and I think Link would do well with him. If we could make the wardship through Princess Zelda, we could keep him here, and transfer it later if need be." He nodded to himself and looked over at the teenagers. Link was listening intently to something the Princess said, and nodding. "I'll recommend that plan to His Majesty and see if he'll approve."
Link speaks
The Princess explained that there had to be some kind of reward for me and I needed to stay until it was arranged. I told her I didn't need a reward. I looked into the laws on orphans once, when Kakoriko Village adults looked like they might try to get the authorities involved, and I know that no one outside a family member can force an orphan to stay with them unless they file with the courts to be responsible and the child agrees. This was done after the war to stop farmers from grabbing older children to work on the farms for free. Not even the King could force me to stay at my age, by the law. In real life, of course, there wasn't anyone who would argue with him. Even if I managed to slip off, he could get angry enough to look for me. The Lost Woods are home, and I was willing to bet that no soldier was going to set foot in them, but I didn't want to be stuck there for months until they gave up. From what the Princess was trying to explain, there was some kind of obligation involved, not only for him, but for all the other countries, too. Before, they could ignore the situation because they didn't know who the Hero of Time was. Now that they knew, they had to pay the debt. To not do anything would make them look bad to their people, and to wait until I asked, or in this case, the king asked for me, might mean they would be asked to do something they did not want to do. Now that I was proven to be not only the Hero, but Hylian, and present at the king's court, they would come to him. For that to happen, I had to be available. My head started to ache. I could feel my life changing. She could see how I felt, I guess. "Is there anyone who can act for you, Link?" I explained that up to now, the only guardian I had was the Great Deku Tree, and a Hylian could not get to him. I was the only Hylian who could enter the Lost Woods and come out with my memory intact. Anyone else would be lucky if that was all he lost. "Would you like to know who your parents were?" That got my attention. I did want to know. She explained that while they could not make promises, there were investigators who could at least look into the situation. I would need to be available to assist them. She would also look into an income for me. I agreed to that; money is always useful, and it always runs out. Then she asked me to play the ocarina for her. I took it out and started with the Song of Healing. After a time, Impa had to interrupt to take the Princess to an appointment, and we both noticed that a lot of people had appeared in the garden. She told me to find the Captain's office, and I slipped away. It took me a little while, but I found it. Unfortunately, Willie and some of his friends found me too, and they had a pile of questions, Willie having figured out by now that was the best way to get information from me.
"Were you really scared when you started?" he asked. I nodded. "Where were you living?" In the Lost Woods, I told him. "Why were you living in the Lost Woods?" I gave up and told how my mother was caught in a battle in the nearly village and ran into the woods with me after being wounded, and she had no choice but to ask the Great Deku Tree to take care of me because she was dying. They were quiet for a time, and I was trying to find something to ask them, when Willie wanted to know about the fairy children. I told him that the Kokeri looked like children but they were not, and each of them had a fairy. They took care of the forest. I warned them, not that they needed it, never to go in there. It was crawling with Wolfos, and I knew that they accounted for most of the deaths, not the Kokeri. "Did you have a fairy?" No, I had not, until the actual adventure, when I needed her help. I remembered how I was tormented about that by some of the other children, and they got quiet again. Somehow what may have looked like a romantic and exciting adventure was looking less dramatic and grimier. I was glad. Maybe they would stop pestering me. "You mean, you didn't have any adults around?" No, I said, we had to do all the work ourselves. They got quiet again. Then I asked them about their families. Willie talked about his father and his brothers and sisters. Most of them had at least one parent and brother or sister. One had a brother who was a lot older who had raised him. One had a grandfather and another, an uncle. They realized I wasn't sure what grandparents or uncles were, and they explained relatives. The problem was, they tried to talk all at once. I managed to understand what an uncle and grandparent was, but got bogged down on what made a cousin, half sister, and stepbrother. They were arguing over what made a second cousin as opposed to a first cousin one removed when the Sergeant came up and sent most of them to some kind of duty. I was to go to the King immediately; he was fitting me in for a quick audience.
This might be strange to say about a King, but he was stubborn. I'm sure he says the same thing about me. He offered me a wardship with him, to train under the Captain until I was old enough to take a position. He asked if I agreed. I did not agree. I had to say it several times in various ways before he understood that I was, in fact, refusing his kind offer. I had no interest in being a soldier. I fight because I have to, not because I enjoy it. I am not sure, to this day, if he was impressed because I was not intimidated, or if he was exasperated because I didn't just say yes and not waste his valuable time. He made some other offers, all of them tying me directly to him in some way. It took a while for him to understand that I would not accept a reward that came with service to him. I have been called again and again to fight by the Goddesses. I could not accept a position where I would not be able to leave when called. Finally he offered to set up a wardship with the Princess. I would accept some training from the Captain, and there would be a investigator set up to try to find who my parents were. This wardship would stand until there was some kind of result from the investigation, one way or another. Then the matter would be looked at again. I agreed. It was essentially the agreement the Princess and I had made, after all. I also held out for one day a week to do whatever I needed. He agreed only if I left after dawn and returned before sunset. I don't know why he wasted his time with the other stuff, but I don't understand politics. I was sweating underneath that new tunic while we fenced with words, which are not my best weapon. I found out that fighting with words is much like fighting with a sword, in that if you keep fighting, you can wear your opponent down. When he dismissed me, I bolted as fast as I could for the garden outside my room, and I stayed there, playing my ocarina, until Willie came and took me to eat with his friends, where they finally agreed on and explained the rest of the family stuff for me. Gwen came by and listened for a time, and was able to clarify the second cousin and first cousin once removed part, then patted me on the shoulder and said something about my being a poor orphan boy.
Well, at least they didn't ask for any more stories. Not that night.
The King watched as the Hero of Time bowed awkwardly and retreated as fast as his dignity would allow, and finished his other audiences, before sending for the Captain. The captain listened to the result of the interview without comment, but the King could hear the "I told you so," underneath the silence. Instead he simply said that he would set up a schedule for Link. That evening Zelda wanted to know what happened, and he told her of the arrangements being made, but not the other offers. The interviews with the boy disturbed him. In some ways Link was just a boy. In others, he was the Hero of Time, and as such he made it clear that he felt he had a higher calling than serving the King. He would, however, serve the other holder of the Triforce, therefore establishing a connection the King could use. He has guts, the King thought. I can believe now that he has done what he said. At the same time, the thought galled that the Hero of time was a boy, a small, slender teenaged boy, and one that was not under his control. The only thread of authority he would accept was the agreement they had. Under the law, the King could not enforce his service or a wardship over the boy, and somehow the boy knew it. The King hoped that a family would appear in the investigation. No one could be more stubborn than that young man, with the possible exception of his daughter and his old friend, Stefan. Stefan would be a match for the boy, he thought whimsically, and wondered if there was any possible relationship.
Link speaks
The lessons were not too bad. The weapons training was in things like the pike and other soldier's weapons, along with practice with the sword and shield and with archery. Then I headed to my lessons with Sir Wills in the library. I liked Sir Wills. He was a knight, but he was a scholar too, and he would explain things in ways I could understand. If I was having trouble, we would go walk in the gardens and he would ask me about Termina, or the oracles, or the Great Deku tree. He said once that he was learning as much from me as I was teaching him. He was firm about the manners, though. I tried hard with him, but felt clumsy. He assured me I was not; it was just a matter of practice. He also drilled me on how to address nobles, ambassadors, and other specially titled people. The reason for the drilling was one I understood and was willing to work with. I had to attend court. Termina had already sent a delegation. The Captain took me to court, but had to deal with an urgent matter and told me to find Impa. I tried. I really did. What neither of us thought of was that one of the Princess's ladies knew me by sight, and I got swarmed by a unending sea of pretty girls in nice dresses, with sweet-smelling fans and chattering voices, all of them determined to talk to me somehow. I got away into one of the side rooms and I was afraid to go back in without help. Gwen finally found me and got Impa to come for me. That night I spoke with the Termina ambassador, and with some of the people he brought with him. I recognized two; one was the Mayor of Clock Towne, and the other was the banker who still had an account with me. I had to tell about what happened in those endless three days. I could tell they were surprised by what I said, but they were convinced. As much of the Court as could crowd around was listening, but I didn't see them until after my recital was over. The worse part of that was not that night. I had to listen to Impa, the Princess, and Gwen laugh themselves sick when they figured out what happened to me. Link, the Hero of Time, was able to deal with a demon mask and a dark magician, was able to face down the King of Hyrule and rescue the Queen of Labrynna, but he didn't know how to handle a girl, they said, and laughed some more. After a time they picked themselves up, took deep breathes, and worked out a plan to have me escort the Princess the next time I had to go to Court.
Sir Wills was also teaching me penmanship. I could write, but not very well; he said he could set one of his clerks to reading my attempts at writing for a punishment. He usually wanted me to write about the dark times, and to describe what I remembered of them. I don't know why, but I had to fill two parchments each lesson. Today I had to write about the Forest Temple and Saria. I consoled myself with remembering that I could see her the next day, as it was my day off. I was really looking forward to it, too. I was most of the way through the first parchment when I heard, "Yink?"
"Ian?" I said, craning my neck around. The plumb little boy, with his dark hair and eyes, about three, was charging through the room, and, when he got to me, climbed into my lap. I reached into my pouch and got him one of the sweets for my throat. I looked around and saw Anna, his twelve year old sister, charging behind him, as usual, and behind her was the Captain. I stood up, putting Ian on the chair. Anna, her long, dark brown hair reaching to her hips and her merry blue eyes twinkling, went to pick him up, and he grabbed me and giggled. Sir Wills, hearing the noise Ian seemed to carry with him everywhere he went, came over.
"Are we invaded?" he asked, looking at Ian and Anna.
"The children were to pick up the letter for their mother," the Captain said. "When the little one saw me, he though Link must be nearby. You," he said, addressing Ian, who giggled again, "are an imp." I nodded, agreeing. The child had managed to get into the practice field somehow, and I had gotten him out and found his sister and nursemaid hunting for him. It turned out that they were in the garden next to mine, and there was a gap in the hedge just small enough for both of them to squeeze through. Ian had found it and tagged after me. He reminded me of the child at Lon Lon Ranch, the son of the blacksmith by an earlier marriage. I remembered I had to get him and Malon something before I went to get Epona. Sir Wills found the letter and sent them both off with it, and set me back to the parchment. "Link, I was to remind you that you have from sunrise to sunset. No later."
"Yes, sir."
I escorted the Princess to Court a few weeks after the lessons started. The Holodrum and Labrynna delegations came together, and they included the Oracles. The Oracle of Seasons, Din, teased me about becoming "polished" and I squirmed. The Princess told her about the hunt for my parents. The oracle became very intent. "Do you have anything from your parents?" she asked. I nodded, thinking of my mother's locket. "Bring it to me tomorrow." I did, after lessons. I found the Princess there as well. I was glad for her support, until the scrying was over. Then I wished she wasn't there, because I needed to cry and I couldn't in front of her. I thanked the Oracle and left as fast as I could. The Oracle called up a girl, not much older than the Princess, who was crying and writing a letter to her mother. She was blond with brown eyes and looked somewhat familiar. I did not know why until the Oracle told me she looked like me. We were able to read the letter, which was a apology for running away and a plea to forgive. It was signed Bethany Link. At least I knew my mother's name now, and I knew that she had been in the village because she ran away from her home to marry my father. She did not give his name in the letter. I went into the garden and thought I would play, and I didn't. Instead I let the tears come. After a time, I heard the children come in. Ian, little imp, saw me crying and wanted to kiss to make it better. Anna took out her handkerchief and wiped my face, saying I should have my own. Then both of them sat by me and hugged me, not sure what was wrong but trying to help just the same. Then their nursemaid came in, and she shooed the children out, and told me she had made a drink for me and to drink it down, dear, and lie down, I would feel better. After a time, I went in my room, and found a note on the bed telling me I was excused from Court.I told myself I was being stupid, that I had never known her except as the figure in my past, but it did not help. I had heard from a living person who had left her family to go with the man who had been my father, and died far from home because of it. I wondered about my father. He had never been more than a shadowy necessity, a sire, but now he was someone Bethany Link had loved enough to leave a secure family for to marry.
After weapons practice, I told Sir Wills what Din had found, and he pointed out the investigator who was working on my parent search. Together we all hunted for a Link family. Finally the investigator found it, buried in dust. The Links were a old family. The last entry regarding the family had been over twenty five years ago, when the last male in the family died. He left a family, including his wife, Beatrice, and two daughters, Bethany and Elaine. The Bethany listed was about right for the age of the young woman I had seen in the scrying. There was an estate, Woldshold, in the north of Hyrule. The investigator said he would look into the matter immediately.
None of them liked giving me the days out, but I needed them; I missed Saria, Malon, and open, untamed space. I always went to Lon Lon ranch and saw Malon and her family and got Epona, and then went to see Saria and the Kokeri. If any of them needed anything, I helped. Otherwise, I spent the day outside. Saria knew, as I did, that my time in the Castle was the beginning of my leaving the Lost Woods forever. The Great Deku Tree told me that I must follow my heart, but I was always welcome. Malon just wanted to hear about the people in the Castle. She giggled when I told her that Ian was just like her stepson, and described the Princess and Impa. I told her about my first day in Court, and wished I had not, because she laughed as hard as Impa did. She cried when I told her about seeing my mother, and I almost did again. Instead I picked up the child and fed him one of the sweets, and she told me I spoiled him. "Why do you change into those clothes when you come here?" she asked.
"You almost didn't know me when I came back in the other ones," I told her.
"You're outgrowing them," she pointed out practically. I had to agree. The Captain firmly believed that boys my age needed food, and made sure I got at least four meals a day. The strange thing was, he was right. When the food was there, I wanted it, and I was not only filling out, I was growing taller. I could still wear the Kokeri tunic, but it was tight and getting short. The blacksmith said that I was growing up, that was all. "Getting man-tall," he said with approval. I glanced at the sky, and went to groom Epona and change. As I walked back to the Castle, I thought about how everything was changing. I waved to Willie, who was on guard duty. The investigator was waiting for me. He said that he had seen Beatrice Link, who confirmed that she had a daughter Bethany Link who had married outside the wishes of her family. If I wanted to know more, I would come and see her in person. I thanked him. The Princess sent for me and dragged the story out of me before she let me go to bed and advised me to get permission before I went.