1"He was right there, mama! Sleepin' on the hay there! He had a fairy, too, mama! I saw it! He did!" the girl blabbered.
"All right, Kalon," said the woman, "I'll look." Navi chose that instant to zip from her place beside Saya inside the hay.
"See, mama?" Kalon crowed, "It's the fairy! I was right!"
"Malon?" Navi asked, "Is that you? My how you've grown. Time flies, doesn't It? Is this your daughter? Kalon, is it?"
"Navi?" Malon looked startled. "Of course, how many fairies do I know? Where's...oh, wait."
Malon cleared away the hay. Spotting Saya, she cried, "Link? Fairy Boy!"
"Saya. And, I would be a Fairy Girl." Saya replied, grabbing Malon's extended hand. Once she had been pulled from the hay, Saya shook it out of her tunic and cap.
"Of course," Malon murmured, "It's plain to see. Your face, your hair, your eyes...You could pass for your father at that age. Oh, listen to me! Jabbering on like an old lady! I bet you're hungry."
"Just a little..." Saya muttered at the same time as her stomach roared.
"Follow me," Malon said, grabbing a pail. Kalon, however, was intent on questioning Saya. She cornered the Kokiri girl.
"Are you sure you're a girl?"
"Yes-s..." Saya replied, raising an eyebrow. She tried to back away from the possibility of any more awkward questions.
"Really?" Kalon asked, " 'Cause you look like a boy, and you dress like a boy..."
Saya sidled away slowly. "I'm a girl," she said in a tone that screamed quit while you still have a head.
"Then what happened to your hair?"
Saya had begun to follow Kalon and Navi, but now she paused, registering a double take. "My what?"
"Your hair. All girls have pretty, long hair. You have boy-hair. So you must be a boy."
Saya pulled off her cap. Golden hair fell just past her shoulders. "I keep it back in my cap so it'll stay out of my face." She walked away, Kalon trailing her, still asking five questions a second.
"Why?"
"Because I want to be able to see what I'm fighting."
"Why?"
"Because I'm going to be like my father, and he was a warrior."
"Why?" Saya stopped dead and stared at Kalon.
"Why," Saya growled, "do you ask so many darn questions?"
"Because...'cause...'cause you keep...answering them...?"
"So if I stop answering, you'll stop asking?"
"Probably."
Saya shook her head and made a mental note never to answer another of Kalon's questions.
After lunch, Saya spent almost an hour talking with Malon about possible destinations. Link had given her stories about puzzles and battles, but she knew next to nothing about how big Hyrule was, or some of its landmarks. Malon, however, knew nearly everything, since she had been to many places while delivering milk.
"Well," Malon said, brushing a strand of red hair from her eyes, "I'd suggest you visit Hyrule Castle if you feel like following your father's path, or maybe try to visit Prince Rain. If you want to forge your own way, you may want to check out Kakariko or Zora's Domain. Both are good places, although I'll be honest with you and say I never really spent much time with the Zoras. Terrified of deep water, you see."
"Anywhere else?"
"Well, Hyrule Field's mighty big, there's a lot of things to do there. Lake Hylia might be worth a look. I'd steer you away from Gerudo Valley, though. Those thieves never truly accepted your father. Obviously, they'd recognize him in you, and I don't care to think about what could happen."
"What about this thing here?" Saya asked, tapping a bump on the map.
"Death Mountain?"
"Sounds kind of evil..."
"Oh, not really," Navi assured her, "It's the crater to avoid. Anywhere else is fine. Home of the Gorons. They'll know you. You'll like the Gorons; they're a very pleasant people."
Before Saya could answer, Kalon burst into the kitchen. "Mama! Mama! It's back again!" she cried.
Malon's face paled. "Oh, dear," she whispered.