Howdy, y'all. Thanks so much for being patient. I hoped that I would release this during November, but I had some unexpected plans come up. Anyway, please enjoy!


Chapter 5: An adventurer's struggle

'Wow, I can hardly believe how beautiful just outside Kakariko is.' Paya thought as she just got down from the small cliff. She was surprised that during this whole situation, she wasn't feeling scared or nervous at all.

Instead, she was so excited and filled with so much adrenaline that she didn't feel tired from the previous night.

Paya was in complete awe as her eyes gazed upon the beauty of Sahasra slope, the small herd of horses, trotting in the large field, the many small birds flying into the sky and the mountain goat, peacefully eating the grass. This was the most beautiful thing she's seen in years.

Nothing could have prepared her for this. Was all of Hyrule like this? It didn't matter, she still had a mission to fulfill.

'Hmm, the closest stable from here is still very far away, the Wetland stable. I need to eventually set up a campfire.' Just the thought of camping out in the wild made her excited. It was so small and seemed so insignificant to be happy about, especially since going to do that plenty of times. Nevertheless, it was still a new experience for her to do by herself, so that alone made her very eager for nightfall to come.

'The only way I can make it to the stable by nightfall, is if I had a horse.' She thought about taming one of the horses, but it'll take too long and it might be quicker for her to go on foot than spend all that time trying to tame a horse.

Time is of the essence.

Paya was brought out of her thoughts when she noticed something off in the distance. At first, she thought it was just two horses, but when she took a closer look, she noticed something different about them. 'Those aren't people, are they?'

Right as she realized that she was staring at two Bokoblins, they also noticed her and started to chase her. 'I need to get away quickly!'

Paya stepped back before turning to run away as fast as she could. Her fear rose when she realized how far away she was from the small cliff. There was no way she could get to safety with those monsters on horseback.

It didn't take long before both monsters caught up to her, she could hear the two monsters growl right behind her. Paya looked back and was horrified to see one of the horses was right behind her.

Slam!

"Gah!" She was knocked down and sent tumbling down hill after being hit by the horse. She quickly got back up, only to see that both monsters surrounded her front and back. They began to circle around her, just waiting to charge at her.

Paya's heart was racing, it hadn't even been 30 minutes since the sun rose, yet here she was, fearing for her life. She didn't know what to keep her eyes on, both monsters were on opposite sides of her. On her right was a large and clear field, but it was useless to run there, because those things on horses made escape seem impossible.

On her left, however, it was the edge of a small cliff that led to a small clearing. That might just give her the chance to escape. She was sweating from the situation, but she still tried to remain level headed. However, as soon as she took one step to her left, both monsters charged at her.

'Okay, j-just wait...and now!' right before the horses could get close enough, Paya ran as fast as she could and without thinking, jumped off the cliff. 'Wha-oh no!' Realizing she underestimated the height, she leaned slightly forward and tried to turn her body sideways.

She landed on the rocky surface and rolled on the ground, back onto the soft, grassy ground. She grunted in pain before getting up and was breathing heavily as she got back up.

She was also oblivious to the fact that as soon as both horses collided with each other, one of them knocked off its rider.

'I need to find a way to escape!' Paya thought in a panic. It wasn't the most ideal, but maybe she could escape using Rikoka Hills. 'I could still reach Wetland stable if I go around Millennio Sandbar. It might take longer, but I could…' Paya immediately froze from what her eyes gazed at something horrifying.

It was a small house, but it was completely ruined and was surrounded by three decayed guardians. She walked slowly towards the ruined house, she never could have expected to see something like this. Just the sight of this broke her heart.

Paya had no idea what could have happened here, but just imagining it made her shiver. She could even see a rusty broadsword, which either meant that these poor people couldn't even fight to survive. Or this was placed here as a way to pay respect.

Either way, the rusty weapon and the decayed guardians just how long ago this must've been. 'H-how could this have happened so close to Kakariko?' She asked herself as she felt her heart break at that moment.

She was brought back into reality when she heard a growl from behind her. Paya starred in absolute fear when one of the blue Bokoblins was right behind her and prepared to attack. The moment it swung its weapon, Paya used her arm to try to block the attack.

Smash!

"Kyaa!" Paya was knocked sideways and was sent rolling near the edge of a rocky slope.

"ugh..ah!" Paya began to grunt in pain, due to the attack breaking her arm. Luckily, the rush of adrenalin made the pain more tolerable. Her heart only began to beat faster when at the corner of her eye, she saw the other Bokoblin appear, much farther but still on horseback.

As an effort to give her more protection, Paya took off her backpack and held it in front of her.

She just thought of an idea, but was terrified that it wouldn't work. It didn't matter, since this was all she could think right now, in a life or death situation.

'I have to do something!' she thought as the monster began to run towards her. As soon as it got close enough, Paya also ran head first at it, but ducked before it swung its weapon. Paya laid on her back as the creature lost its balance and fell forward. Before it landed on her, Paya tucked her legs on her chest and used her feet to catch the monster.

Using all her strength, she carried the monster up and launched it backwards. The sudden impact of her kick caused the monster to let go of its wooden weapon and land beside Paya.

After hearing a loud thud, she looked back to see that it was sent flying farther than she expected. The downward hill made the monster roll down off the hill and onto the watery surface, beyond Rikoka Hills. 'I wonder if it's okay.'

She couldn't think of that now, as the horse, not too far from her, neighed and charged at her. Knowing the same plane won't work with the other Bokoblin, she looked over to one of the decayed guardians and took off her back pack, then ran towards it.

When the horse got close, the Bokoblin was getting ready to hit Paya, but Paya narrowly dodged it and jumped onto the guardian. Paya tried her best to climb on top, but struggled because of her broken arm.

Since all she could do was grip onto the guardian with her non-broken arm, she instead used her legs to kick herself up. With one powerful kick, she propelled herself up and stood on top of the decayed guardian.

She was able to get on top before she could get hit by the Bokoblin again. As Paya stood on top, the Bokoblin started to circle around the guardian and stare at her.

As the blue Bokoblin furiously growled at her, it pulled more angrily on the horse's mane, in order to force it to move around the decayed guardian. The horse started to shake but the Bokoblin smacked it to make it follow orders.

Even in this situation, Paya couldn't help but be saddened by the scene. 'That poor creature. It looks so scared.'

She was even more saddened when the horse still acted up and the Bokoblin made it ram into the rusty sword, knocking it down. Paya's eyes widened as the action left her completely stunned.

'How...how could you do such a thing?' Paya wondered. 'These people...they've lost their home...how could you do something this vile?'

Monster or not, the sight of something so cruel, made her want to cry.

'N-no, now is not the time to get distracted! I promise to give you all the respect that you deserve. But first, I need to figure out a way to get away.' Paya told herself. She couldn't see getting down and running away to safety as a viable option, for obvious reasons. Even if she could, fighting would be useless because of her broken arm and equally broken fighting.

She looked around to see if there was anything she could use. 'This is useless, there's nothing here that I…' Not too far behind the monster, she saw her backpack was still on the ground. Except this time there was a mountain goat rummaging its nose through it.

She was confused at first, but then realized that it must be smelling herbs that she packed. She was immediately struck with an idea, remembering how defensive mountain goats get when threatened.

Immediately setting her plan in motion, Paya jumped from the guardian, to the burnt wood. The monster, falling for the trap, made the horse run after her. 'Just a bit...and now!'

As soon as the monster reached her, it struck the burnt wood as hard as it could, in order to knock her down to the ground. Fortunately, right before it did, Paya jumped from the wood and onto another decayed guardian.

Paya looked back to see as the monster tried to get away by forcefully pulling on the horse's mane, making it even more riled up. But it was too late, most of the rubble that was standing, fell on the ground and spread dust everywhere. 'This is my chance!'

Paya then jumped off the guardian, rolled on the ground and ran. The monster tried to swing its weapon, but to no avail. All the meanwhile, the horse was getting more agitated and angry.

When Paya got close enough to the goat, she closed her hand and put it on her lips. She whistled while opening and closing her finger, to get its attention. This also caused the monster to know her location and immediately charge at her, unaware of her plan.

As soon as the goat noticed her, Paya made herself appear smaller, while also looking threatening. This worked, the goat lowered its head and prepared to ram into her. 'Yes! I can finally get away.' Paya soon heard the stomping of a larger animal quickly approaching her.

'Now!' Paya moved out of the way, right at the nick of time. Both the horse and the goat stopped before ramming into one another. According to her plan, the horse even successfully knocked its rider off as well. Paya looked relieved, now she can run without having to fear the monster catching up.

Paya grabbed her backpack and started to run as fast as she could. 'This is it! I actually managed to get-pfft'

"Ugh Agh!" Out of nowhere tripped and landed on top of her broken arm. She grunted in pain and clutched her arm. It was by far the greatest pain she felt, but it didn't hurt as much as what she felt the moment she saw what it was that she tripped over.

It was a spiked Boko club, the very same one that the first monster dropped.

'Paya, you idiot! How could you forget about something like that?! Even a child wouldn't make such a mistake!' Paya berated herself. She tried to get up, but it was too late. The monster reached her and glared hatefully at her.

The moment it raised its weapon, Paya closed her eyes and prepared for the worst.

However, both her and the Bokoblin's attention were caught by the sound of a loud neigh, right behind them. Paya was surprised to see the horse's two front legs raised above the monster.

Stomp!

The monster shrieked when the four legged creature dropped its hooves right on top of it. Paya was shocked to see her unexpected savior was the horse that she was prepared to leave behind, even if it pained her to do so. She was left even more shocked when the horse turned around and kicked the monster off the cliff

After the monster was finally gone, the horse turned around and lowered its head towards Paya's. Admittedly, she flinched from the action, worried that it would do the same thing to her. instead, it merely sniffed her hair and rubbed its head against hers, it even gave her a gentle neigh.

Paya got up nervously, still shaken up from the 'battle' with those monsters. However, her attention was brought back to her arm when waves of pain hit her arm suddenly.

She probably looked through her backpack and pulled out a few medical supplies. Taking off her traditional Sheikah jacket, she began to make a makeshift cast with what she had.

'It's not perfect, but my arm can heal properly.' After struggling to put on her jacket, she stood up and looked over towards the remnants of the former structure.

It still broke her heart, she was left with a somber look. 'No, this isn't the time to cry.' She told herself. Paya then began to gather small rocks from the area. After she felt like she'd gathered enough, she took it all towards the front of the structure.

She then started stacking them in a small pile. Once she was finished, she picked up the rusty Broadsword that was knocked over and planted it in the ground, once again. Paya stepped back, looking over the sword and rocks. 'It looks perfect.' Paya then got on her knees and started praying.

After a few moments of praying, Paya got up and walked away, continuing her adventure. After she picked up backpack, she began to think over what happened. 'It's still morning, I not only had to fight monsters, but I also saw how truly ruthless the wild can be.' Paya tightened the grip on the strap of her backpack. 'Is this what Link has to deal with, every single day?'

Before they could fall, Paya wiped the tears that were beginning to form in her eyes. 'I have to find him as soon as possible. I don't care if he'll come back to Kakariko, after freeing this next Divine beast anyway. I refuse to sit back and do nothing.'

Now with more determination than before, Paya looked forward with hope and passion visibly burning through her eyes. However, she was startled when something bummed into her back. She yelped as she looked back, only to see the horse from earlier.

With things more calm, she saw that the horse was white with brown spots all over its body. It reminded her a little of a cow, as silly as it may sound.

It continued to neigh as it rubbed itself against Paya's cheek. "O-oh, do you want me to take you?" As if to say yes, the horse turned to its side. "I suppose that's a yes. Thank you." Paya said happily as she climbed on top of the horse.

Once she was on safely, the horse began to run forward at high speeds. Paya was surprised at first but held on as tightly as she could. Moments after the initial surprise, Paya smiled as she felt butterflies in her stomach. This was the first time in a long time that she rode a horse, it was as exciting as riding one for the first time.

'At this rate, I can make it to the stable in no time.' Paya said with absolute joy. 'I can catch up much sooner, Link. Please be safe until I see you.'


Meanwhile, in Kakariko:

"Hey Lasli, can I get some help with these boxes?" Claree asked loudly in the back.

"In a minute! I just need to finish cleaning." After she finished sweeping, Lasli went to help her sister.

"Jeez, how much stuff can fit in this one box?" Lasli stretched arms. "Oh, do you think Paya will be able to help us today?"

Claree looked at her sister, after she dusted off the displays. "Most likely, Olkin and Mellie already had their harvest. She also helped Trissa restock some inventory yesterday. But she's still going to play Koko and Cottla today, so she'd only be able to help us for a short time."

Part of being in a small and secluded village is that you partially know everyone. It's like being in one big neighborhood.

"I see, well any help from her will definitely make things much more manageable." Claree wholeheartedly agreed with her sister.

"You know, with all that she's done, we should do something for her. To thank her." Lasli said.

"That's a great idea! Especially since we have a lot of shipments that arrived." Claree said as she picked up another box. "Seriously, for a gentle girl, she's surprisingly strong. You think it's all the cleaning she does for the heirloom?"

"Are you kidding? Why else do you think I've been doing all the cleaning for the past 3 months?" Lasli said as she started sweeping again. However, she noticed something unusual when she was sweeping.

"Did we get a customer, right before closing? We're down an armor set." Lasli pointed out.

"Oh yeah, Dorian told me that he needed a set for someone. I don't know who but it seemed important."

"I see, I'm going to get some fresh air." Lasli then started to walk towards the door.

"Wait! I still need- and she's gone." Claree sighed as she was now the only left to get things ready, before they opened the shop. 'Oh well. But she is right, we could get a gift for Paya. Maybe we can all throw her a surprise party.'

Claree then took one more look at all the inventory that she had left. 'Maybe it's all the farming she does…'


Splash!

"*whistle* Wow, I'd definitely sink to the bottom if I fell from this height." Link said, after seeing the rock he dropped, splash in the mud below.

"It took almost all morning, but I actually managed to pass all those monsters." Link said, while taking a look at his Sheikah Slate. "Hmm, this whole region looks pretty empty. Only one big forest and some really dark places."

"The Lost Woods would only be a waste of time"

'The Lost Woods. That must be the place he was talking about.' Link thought, after remembering the stable worker's warning.

Instead of listening, Link merely smiled with excitement. 'This place doesn't have a lot of places to, but those two places look really cool. It's worth checking out.'

Before Link got down from the tower, he looked up at the giant stone structure that was above him. "Man, I'd hate to be the monsters that were in here when this tower rose up."

Naturally, his curious nature made him instinctively start climbing the rocky wall and go through the large hole, near the floor. Reaching the top, he was amazed with the impressive view from on top of the rocky structure.

However, before he could get excited about the view, he also got a very clear view of Hyrule Castle. At first, he had a neutral look but eyes looked very dejected. He looked away as he sighed.

"Save her, Link. Save them. Our friends, the Champions and Princess Zelda."

"Good luck, Little guy! And give my regards to the others."

He could still hear their voices when he looked at the castle. As well as the unfinished task he had left.

Walking near the edge of the curved structure (ignoring the giant, golden sword). 'I still can't go just yet.'

Link immediately jumped off the structure and fell with his arms open. Before he got too low, Link used his Paraglider to glide towards the same direction of the nearby Stable.

After reaching the front of the Military training camp, Link let himself fall on the ground. He was happily greeted by his dark brown horse. Link smiled as Epona nuzzled against him. 'Yeah yeah, I get it. I love you too.'

Link hopped on Epona, with his current destination now being the Lost Woods. Leaving behind a ruined training camp, filled with now empty monster huts and weapons scattered everywhere.

It didn't take long for Link to enter the Lost Woods, but he very quickly noticed that everything got dark and foggy. 'Creepy.'

It didn't take long for him to spot a lit fire, just beyond a broken arch. 'Did the old man that said he visited here light these?' Link thought as he also noticed more lit torches one his right. Curiously, Link started to follow the lit torches until he saw two torches. "Guess this is the end, Epona."

Despite the thick fog, he quickly noticed something different about the trees. 'Jeez, were these trees someone's idea of some weird joke?' Link thought as Epona stepped back.

Link hopped off of Epona and patted his head. "I'll be back, just stay here." Epona really wanted to follow its master but reluctantly did what he said.

Link tried to make his way through the forest, with only a torch in hand. 'Wonder why that guy told me not to come here. He said it was a waste of time, but this place doesn't seem so bad. Creepy though.'

After walking for a short time, Link heard Epona's cry. He looked back but was surprised that he couldn't see his horse anymore. "Epona?" After calling out his name, Link quickly noticed the fog around him got much thicker than before.

"What the..." Link stepped back as the fog got closer to him. He braced himself for what could happen. It was odd, but as soon as the fog reached him, he didn't feel anything. While he attempted to walk forward, he could have sworn that he heard the sound of a familiar voice.

"Yahaha"

'Koroks?'

Bam!

Link was sent flying back after he was suddenly kicked in the chest from his scared horse. "...Ow."

Link quickly got back up, but was confused to see that he was at the same place Epona was. "Epona? How did I get here?" Instead of getting an answer, Epona merely rubbed up against him, as if to say sorry for his action.

Link patted his head to comfort him. "Hey it's okay, sorry I spooked ya." This calmed Epona down. 'What was that? That laugh, it sounded just like a bunch of koroks.'

Epona continued to nuzzle on Link, waiting for Link to lead them through the forest. "Hmm alright, let's try to make it through."

Link began to guide them both through the fog but pulled Epona by his bridle. Epona felt really uncomfortable walking through the forest, but was grateful that its master was taking the lead. However, he felt completely spooked from the faces on the trees.

'Maybe there's a specific path. Nothing really happened when I followed the torches, so maybe it's similar here.' Link concluded. They both took a different path from what Link took but that ended the same way.

The fog got closer to them, which made Epona get riled up and try to get away. In response, Link pulled Epona's head closer to his and comforted him. "It's gonna be okay. We'll be alright."

"Yahaha."

Soon, they were completely surrounded by an intense fog and brought back to the place they started. 'I can see why he called it a waste of time.' Link looked over at Epona and immediately noticed how anxious he was.

Instead of trying to go through that again, Link thought it was a good idea for them to eat lunch. "Hear you go." Link held up an endura carrot for Epona, which he quickly ate.

While Epona ate his food, Link used his Sheikah Slate to bring out the remaining food that he got yesterday. The same bento box that Paya gave him. 'Wow she made me a lot. And it's so good!' Link thought as he took a bite of the remaining food that was packed.

'I gotta remember to give this back to Paya when I get to Kakariko Village.'

After their meal, both Link and Epona were caught off guard when they saw the fog was suddenly getting thicker, despite neither of them moving.

"What the-" After being consumed by the fog again, they were met with a familiar path, with normal trees. "Isn't this the entrance to the Lost Woods?"

After a little bit of walking, Link saw the same training camp that he passed earlier. He looked back towards the forest. "What's ever in there, probably doesn't want to be found."

He then pulled out his map and tried to find the best path for the dark place, behind the forest. 'I can't waste my time here. I could always come back another time.'

Hours later:

Soon Link and Epona arrived at their destination and were surprised to see a dark space. 'Woah, this is even creepier than the Lost Woods.' already knowing that Epona will refuse to go in there, he lets him stay just outside dark space.

"Don't worry, this won't be like last time. Just wait here."

As Link entered the space alone, he was nearly caught off guard when everything suddenly became pitch black. 'You know, I don't know what else I expect.' He used the Sheikah slate to replace his sword with a torch.

Link also noticed that the statues and pillars looked familiar. 'These look kinda like that maze in the Akkala region. Paya likes history, I wonder if she knows what these are.'

After a lot of encounters with Keese, wolves and lighting up torches, Link was beginning to think that he was going in circles. Before Link could question how many torches he had to light up, he heard a less friendly familiar sound.

'A Hinox. Something tells me that I'm gonna need to fight that thing.' As if it was planned, he saw an orange light, not too far from the sound of the monster. 'Called it.'

Without a second though, Link charged head first towards the monster. He used a Knights Broadsword to slash at the monster, making it get up, very angry.

Rwar!

"Alright big guy, let's see what you got!" Link said with a smirk. The monster slammed its fist down on the ground. Link dodged the attack and threw a boomerang, hitting it on its eye. Link then brought out a flame bald and slashed the wooden shin guards.

The monster tried to put out the flames but it was knocked to the ground when Link used a sledgehammer on its stomach. The impact of the monster falling could be felt throughout the entire forest.

After putting the giant hammer back into his Sheikah slate, Link ran towards the trees and kicked himself upwards to be above the giant. As soon as he got high enough, Link jumped towards the monster but before he landed on it, he once again used his sheikah slate to bring out a weapon, this time being a Mighty Lynel crusher.

Smash!

With the monster nearly finished, Link ran across the monster with his last attack being a one stab at its biggest weakness.

"Hyaa!"

The monster could only let out a massive cry as its body began to turn black, then disappearing in a puff of smoke. The only thing it left behind was a big glowing orb. 'Jackpot!'

'You know, we really should have realized that all of you look the exact same.'

Link then picked up the orb and placed it into the glowing platform. Resulting in the ground shaking and a shrine rising above the ground. 'Alright! Wonder if it's a cool puzzle.'

Instead it was a blessing shrine. 'Well it's better than those annoying tests of strength.'

After Link left the shrine, he checked his Sheikah slate and was surprised to see how late it's gotten. 'Seriously? 10 already? It was like noon when I left the forest. Whatever, doesn't look like I can do a lot here, so I might-'

Slam!

Link was completely brought out of his thoughts when he walked into a wall. "Ow…why didn't I expect that?"

'Okay, I'll use a torch this time.' Link thought, a little frustrated.

Soon Link made it out of the dark forest and was happily greeted by his trusted horse. Link chuckled as Epona nuzzled against his cheek. "Sorry I took too long. Let's get some rest."

Link made a camp and immediately started making food. "Can't sleep on an empty stomach." His mouth was already watering from the spicy aroma.

"Hey, you want some?" Link asked after he poured himself a bowl. Epona looked confused as he tilted his head. Epona simply lied back down to sleep.

"...I guess not." He then looked at the cooking pot that had plenty of food. 'That might be a bit much, even for me.'

As Link began eating, he looked up at the sky and thought about his adventure so far. 'I wonder how Sidon and Yunobo are doing. It's been a while since I've been to Zora's Domain, maybe I could visit soon. I need to get the ceremonial trident checked anyway.'

He then realized something. 'Maybe I can take them to Kakriko, Impa would love to meet them. I could even introduce them to Paya. They helped me a lot so they'll like to meet them.'

He thought about the conversation they had, right before he left and the one where she told him about her past. 'Or maybe I can take her to Zora's Domain and Goran City. It's so much more different than Kakariko. I wonder how all of them are doing.'


"The Stable is right over there. You can register your horse there." A traveler said.

Paya looked with pure relief and joy as she finally made it to the stable. "Thank you so much, Mr. Spoone. I don't think I could've made it here in time if it wasn't for your assistance."

"Yes well…" his eyes shifted towards the makeshift cast on her arm. "...just try to get some rest. It won't do any good for you to go on with your injuries."

Paya then looked at her arm with slight shame. "yes...I'll try not to strain myself."

"*sigh* I understand that you young folk like to seek out excitement. Either way, I wish you and your friend the best of luck." He raised his hand, wanting to shake her hand.

After a moment of hesitation, she gladly shook the traveler's hand. "This will most likely be the only time we meet each other. I'll keep moving forward."

"I see, I wish you the safest of travels." Paya said with a slight bow. She made her way towards the stable. It was sundown, the stable was finally in front of her and she even befriended an adorable companion.

As soon as she reached the stable, she was greeted by the stable workers. "Oh, Miss! Are you alright? Here, let me help you inside the stable." She was led into the stable and sat down. "Would you Like anything to drink?"

"Oh yes, just some water." Paya said. As the man got her drink, she was left to her thoughts. Admittedly, she accomplished so much in one day. But then there was that moment that made her feel ashamed.

She tried to shake away the feeling and rummaged through her backpack to see if there was anything medicine she could make for herself. However, she gasped when she saw something important that she had the whole time.

She picked a rectangular shaped item that was wrapped in a small piece of cloth. It was the short sword that helped her realize the decision she must make. 'I had this the whole time. Yet, I didn't even think to use it.'

Paya clenched the wrapped hilt as felt so frustrated with herself. Her own life was on the line. Not only did it happen within the same hour as she left, but she also didn't think to use this blade to protect herself.

Maybe her arm wouldn't be broken now.

'All I could think to do is run and I couldn't even do that right.' Not only did she feel like a failure, but she also felt incredibly stupid. 'How could I possibly think I can help Link, if I can't even fight? Let alone think about defending myself properly.'

Then there was the small house, surrounded by three guardians. Just the image of that in her head made her want to cry. 'It was so close to Kakariko. Would Kakariko have looked like that?'

Nothing could have prepared her for what she saw. Were there other parts of Hyrule, just like that?

'It-it's so frustrating!'

After letting her emotions get the better of her, she took a few deep breaths and realized her mission. 'No, I can't can't waste time being a crybaby. I need to train for a reason. Link must've also felt this way at some point. If I want to help him, then I need to be stronger!'

That included being used to seeing such heartbreaking sights.

That morning may have been a bad start, but she couldn't doubt herself now! There were still so many things for her to improve on, so if she managed to do that, there is no way she can hold Link back.

"Excuse me, Sheikah." her attention was grabbed when a man with beetle shaped backpack approached her. "I couldn't help but notice that you have a very rare beetle with." he said eagerly.

Confused, Paya looked in her backpack to see that she did have a jar with an Electric Rhino Beetle in it. 'I brought this in case I needed to make a potion.'

"If you're interested, I can trade you a Fairy Tonic for that beetle." he said while barely containing his excitement. "It seems like such a good trade, especially since it'll help you with your injuries."

The man wasn't lying, Fairies are hard to come by and she'd be far more useful to Link if she could use both her arms. Not to mention, Fairy Tonics are extremely difficult to make, even for an expert.

Paya grabbed jar, "well...I suppose-"

"Great!" That was all the confirmation that he needed as he swiped the jar away from her and put a bottle down on the table, startling Paya. "pleasure doing business with you!" He said before walking away happily.

After processing what just happened, Paya picked up the jar and contemplated drinking it. 'It's not like I'd be worse off if it didn't work.' Paya drank it and was shocked to see not only how effective it was but also how quickly it worked.

She took off the makeshift and her arm felt like it was completely fine. 'It doesn't hurt anymore. It feels like it was never broken.' Paya thought with absolute astonishment and joy.

"Hey, Sheikah." Her attention was once again grabbed when a stable worker at the front desk called for her. "I noticed that I came here with an unregistered horse. Would you like to register your horse now?" He asked as he pointed outside.

Looking at the direction he was pointing at. Paya was worried when she saw some people trying to calm her horse down. Paya immediately got up to help the stable workers and her anxious horse.

Going outside, her horse ran up to her and nuzzled against her cheek. "I'm sorry for the trouble she caused. It won't happen again." Paya said while bowing to the people that tried to calm her horse down.

They all left, relieved that the horse didn't cause too much of a recuse. "Good…I need to get back to my training…" one stable worker grumbled under his breath.

When they all left, Paya tried to calm her horse down by petting her. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have left you like that."

"So, would you like to register your horse?" The man at the front desk asked.

"Oh yes." Paya answered.

"Gotcha! We'll grab a complementary saddle and bridle for you. But first, what would you like to name it?"

Admittedly, that question caught her off guard, she didn't really think of that. Mainly due to the having of mind occupied with the events that happened earlier. "If you can't think of one, then we have a whole list of names for you to choose from." The stable worker then pulled out a big book, filled with many different names.

Curiously, Paya looked at them, most were nice, while others were quite silly. 'Neigh-ru?'

Though they were nice, she didn't feel like they fit her horse. She then thought of a name that might suit her well. "Oh, what about, Lon Lon?"

"Hmm, it's unique. That's a great name…" when Paya looked towards the newly named Lon Lon, the stable worker quickly wrote down in the book. 'That's a good one.'

While he did that, Paya placed a hand on the horse, "Do you like the name, Lon Lon?" Lon Lon neighed happily. 'I suppose that's a yes.'

"Speaking of which, do you want a bed for the night? We'll have the saddle and bridle on her by the morning." The Stable worker asked

"Oh yes, that'll be nice." Despite the rough start, things were looking up for her. The people were so kind and had someone to join her quest. It was a long day, so it's best to get some rest.

However, that night she couldn't help but ask herself one question, 'How is Grandmother doing?'


Petit Hyrule: like Mother, like Daughter!

~40 years ago:

Fwoosh!

"Wow, amazing!" A young Shiekah man said in astonishment. "Despite being young, she's showing great promise." The other Shiekah warriors couldn't help but agree.

They were of course talking about one of their greatest warriors and the daughter of their leader, Mizuki. "Damn. That wasn't any better than last time." she said, slightly annoyed to herself. She was practicing firing arrows, not her specialty, but it's significantly better than her first day training.

Unbeknownst to them, there was a young boy, watching in amazement at all the warriors train from a safe distance. "Hey, Shona!" The boy was scared from the sudden arrival of his friend.

"Oops, sorry about that. Anyway, thanks for meeting me here." Risu said.

"Yeah...why exactly did you make me come here?" Shona asked nervously. His friend grinned menacingly, "because, you're gonna go up there and confess your feelings now!"

Shona immediately tried to run away but was stopped by another friend. "Nope, I've put a lot of work into knowing her favorite flower for you. So take this and go!" Hoshi then gave Shona a Blue nightshade. "She's not exactly the kind of girl to pick flowers."

They tried to push him forward but he was terrified to go up to her. "Please don't make me do this."

"Why not? You can't hide it forever." Risu said. "Plus, it's not like she's gonna beat you up."

"Don't you remember what you said when I first told you?"

"What?! Mizuki?! I mean, she's hot but only a guy with a death wish would ask her out!"

Smack!

"You Idiot!" Hoshi said, as she smacked Risu on the back of the head.

"Alright look." Hoshi looked Shona straight in the eyes. "I know she can be a little...hard to approach, a bit impatient, quick to use violence and I'm probably her only friend in the whole village, but she's still worth going after. Every other guy is too scared to even talk to her but that doesn't make her a bad person."

Shona then looked at Mizuku, saddened that her status affected her social life so much. "No matter what happens, she at least deserves friends."

"Alright! I'll go!" He spoke with confidence but his knees were shaking. "Wait, aren't these from my room?"

"No time for questions! Her training is over, now go." Hoshi said as she pushed Shona forward.

"You think she's gonna be fine?" Hoshi asked.

"Hylia, no! The man is walking up to a buffalo with a flower, he's dead-"

Smack!

Finally finishing her training, Mizuki grabbed her stuff, wanting to go home. "uh-um...Mizuki…" She was somewhat surprised to see someone approach her without noticing.

'Oh it's the guy from the flower shop. Uh...what was his name again?'

"Flower boy?" Mizuki said. 'Ah! Well...she's not wrong.'

"Sorry, I just wanted to give this to you!" He bowed as held the flower in front of her. Being caught off guard, she hesitantly held the flower in her hand.

"I just wanted to tell you that...I think you're really pretty and well...Do you want to join me for lunch?!" Shona said, while practically yelling the last part. 'Phew, I managed to say it.'

"Huh?" Mizuki said loudly

'That's probably a bad sign.' He looked up to see that Mizuki's face was...red? 'Is she angry? Oh Hiylia, she's angry!' Panicking, he looked behind him, hoping his friends might have a plan. Instead, he saw them running away. 'Oh crap.'

"uh-I...um. Sorry!" He yelled as he ran away, as fast as he could.

As he ran away, Mizuki was left standing there, all she could do was stare at him running. After a moment of clenching the stem of the flower, she too decided to run home.

She ran past the person guarding her house and ran inside. Luckily, her Mother wasn't home, so she just ran up to her room.

Slam!

'I can't believe it.' she stood with her back against the door. Completely frozen, shaking and confused. 'A boy…really gave me…a flower!' Mizuki said she looked at the flower with her cheeks completely red.

'He-he-he-he even called me, p-p-p-pretty!' her heart began to beat loudly. This was something completely new to her. What can she do?

"I didn't even remember his name! Mother and I visit his parents' shop a lot! W-well, he is kinda cute- wait no! Why am I thinking that?!" She yelled as she threw her arms up in the air, as well as the flower.

She gasped when she saw the flower in the air. Before it landed on the ground, she jumped to try to catch it, she caught it but…

Slam!

She also slammed her face on the wall. "Ow…"

She put her hand over her face, to try to ease the pain. After the pain went away, she realized her mistake. "All I could say was 'huh'." She facepalmed at her stupidity, only for it to hurt more than expected. "Ow…why didn't I see that coming?"

"Why couldn't a Stone Talus attack the village? That would have been easier to deal with."


Hope you guys enjoyed that! It turned out longer than I expected, (that's what she said) mainly because I wasn't sure if I wanted to keep the Kakariko part in it or not. I still wanted to write that part, but I wasn't sure whether to keep it here or in the next chapter. But after a while, I didn't like the next chapter starting with that. Also, go check out arystocracys on Twitter: Horse pun.