A Link to the Heart Chapter 2
Kakariko village had grown a lot over the last ten years. The once sleepy hamlet sitting in the foothills of Death Mountain had swelled from a collection of stone houses into a bustling township. Traders from lands beyond the mountains came to barter their wares as did the Gorons, those belligerent stone creatures who lived in the inhospitable high crags. Kakairko has become the meeting point for them all and trade was booming. Yet the town still dwelt under the shadow of its windmill, the building sitting on a high bluff overlooking the town, its endlessly turning mechanisms drawing up fresh water from an underground aquifer.
Link looked upon the town as he stepped out of the stables and noted the changes. He had last passed through here ten years ago, upon his departure from Hyrule. He had met the inhabitants and helped them as best he could but he had never felt welcome. In hindsight it had probably been the way he tried to tell people about his adventures in time. Folk hadn't understood when he spoke of his travels to the future and past, freeing Hyrule from the threat of Ganondorf, (twice), and finally sealing the Gerudo Sorcerer in another realm. He'd got a lot of blank looks when he tried to explain his adventures which quickly became confused glares and angry mutters. He'd quickly learned people didn't like to be told someone had really sailed the currents of time and determined not to speak of it again. Better not to confuse people with matters they didn't want to understand.
Link left Epona comfortably in the stables, making sure to give the stableboy a shiny blue rupee as he left and wandered across the muddy street. Set between a target range and a shabby house was a small inn. It had taken Link two days to reach the village since his encounter in the mountains and the prospect of a cooked meal and a real bed made him giddy. Sleeping rough may sound exciting in the minstrel's tales but in reality it was anything but. Link could fend for himself in the wild but that didn't mean he wanted to do it every single day.
He pushed open the wooden door and stepped within, finding himself entering a large common room. The space was wide but low, the wooden beams of the roof only a handspan above his head. There were many long tables laid out on the stone floor, occupied by a variety of beings. The majority were Hylians and other human races but a couple of Gorons were visible in the corner, chewing on a sirloin rock. The stone-based creatures rarely liked to leave their mountain fastness and they only came to down to Kakairko to trade their valuable explosives with the Hylians. The noise of chatter filled the room and as did the crackling of a large fire in the hearth, making the inn feel warm in comparison to the air outside and there was the head of a stag mounted over a bar space, where a young woman served ales to burly customers.
Link started as he realised he recognised this serving girl. He stepped to the bar and waited for her to notice him. After a minute she turned to him and said, "Yes, how can I help?"
Link stared at her and urged, "Anju, it's me."
Anju frowned, "I'm sorry, who are you?"
Link was taken aback and exclaimed, "Link... I passed by ten years ago. I saved the Gorons… drove out the Dudongos… rounded up your Cucco birds."
Anju didn't seem to remember him, "Well I thank you. Now what do you need today?"
Link sighed wearily, "A meal, a drink and a room for the night."
Anju pulled out a tankard and poured him a frothing ale, "Have a seat, the cook will bring your food."
Link took the mug and wandered over to a long bench. He sat down next to a pair of warriors in leather jerkins and supped his ale. It was a warm and frothy brew, not at all watered down like some he'd tasted and he downed the rest in one long pull. He slapped the empty mug down with a thud and then looked about the room. Everywhere men and women sat and chatted, concerned with their own business. They ate and drank and laughed as if there was nothing wrong in the world. It always struck Link as strange, beyond the stockade of the village monsters roamed the wilds, demon gods plotted and terrible nightmares lurked in fetid dungeons, but people still went about their daily business. Across many lands Link had seen this behaviour. The world was filled with Gods and Goddess and Demons, guardian spirits, drifting magic and Fairies, yet somehow people found a way to make it all normal. Even with wonders and horrors roaming free someone had to bring in the crops, brew beer, weave clothes and make babies. Sometimes it struck Link as noble defiance and determination to live life to its fullest, at others it seemed to him wilful blindness and an expectation that someone else would deal with the problem.
After a few minutes there was a heavy tread behind him and Link heard a gruff voice exclaim, "Why, is that little Link?" Link turned about and saw a heavyset man looming over him, carrying a platter of meat and vegetables. He was a jowly man with a broad moustache and beefy arms, wearing a stained shirt with braces holding up trousers below a sagging belly. The man was grinning ear to ear and Link started as he exclaimed, "Shan?"
"That's me," the man replied as he set the platter down, "I haven't seen you in ten years."
"You remember me?" Link asked warily.
Shan laughed, "How could I forget the boy who broke the record on my shooting gallery! You swanned in from nowhere, smashed my record and then disappeared without a word. Say, do you still do that backflip trick?"
Link abashedly admitted, "I got a bit too big for that."
"Aye, I hear that," Shan said, "We're all a bit larger now, though I'm only speaking of my belly. But it's nice to hear you say something other than 'Hyrgh!'"
Link sighed, "It's nice to meet someone who recognises me. Anju forgot my face, even after I helped her with her Cuccos."
"I wouldn't take it personally," Shan retorted, "She loses them twice a week. I think every passing traveller has helped her round them up. Don't know why she keeps them in the first place."
Link cocked his head as he asked, "How come you're in the mountains? You used to run the shooting gallery in castle town market."
"Had to relocate," Shan explained, "Times are dangerous in Hyrule. It's safer in the mountains so I bought an inn. Plus business is booming, demand for Goron explosives has never been greater, what with the war and all."
"War?" Link inquired, "What war?"
"With the Gerudo," Shan replied, "Well not officially yet, but everyone saying it's gonna get bloody."
"The Gerudo?" Link started, "Why is Hyrule fighting them?"
"Don't ask me, that's the king's business," Shan replied, "Mine is running an inn for paying customers."
Link caught the hint and took out a large bag asking, "How much for a night?"
"Twenty rupees," Shan replied.
Link rummaged about in his bag and fished out a red jewel and said, "Here you go."
There was a soft gasp from further down the table as Shan took the jewel and shuffled off. Link turned to see the pair of warriors still at his table gawping at his bag with wide eyes. They were hardened veterans by the looks of them, with scars aplenty and hard eyes. One was blond and clean-shaven, the other black-haired and with stubble upon his chin. They were loitering over their drinks and the blond one asked, "By the Triforce, where did you get all that?!"
Link hastily covered his bag and tucked it away and as Shan wandered off he said, "I took them off some ruffians who tried to jump me."
The other one laughed aloud, "He's worried we're going to rob him Jortan. Leave him be."
"I was only curious Tarren," the blond one whined, "Where'd one loner get that many rupees?"
Link hadn't survived so many adventures without developing a sense for trouble and his hand drifted to his sword's hilt as he growled, "Keep your eyes to yourself."
Yet Tarren only laughed, "No need for concern friend. We're sworn Hylian Knights. Look, see for yourself."
The pair pulled up their sleeves to reveal the royal crest of Hyrule tattooed on their biceps. The three golden triangles, eerily similar to the mark on Link's hand, though his was far more extraordinary than they could ever know. Still Link was reassured by the sight. Hylian Knights were a respected order of soldiers, sworn to the Royal Family of Hyrule and protectors of the realm. They were the first line of defence against the monsters that roamed the lands, putting themselves in danger so the people could live in safety. It was thanks to the bravery of men like this the people of Hyrule could have their normal lives.
Link took his hand off his sword, "My apologies for doubting you good sirs."
"Think nothing of it," Tarren replied waving a hand in the air, "We don't look at our best. We've been up here hunting monsters for months. My little brother and I haven't seen a bathhouse in ages."
Link quietly informed them, "I saw a couple of Stalfos up on the slopes, not two days ago."
Eagerly Jortan enquired, "Did you see where they went?"
"Into the ground," Link answered, "I destroyed them."
"By yourself?" Tarren commented, "I am impressed."
"Is that where you got the rupees?" Jortan asked.
Link shook his head, "I mostly get them from abandoned dungeons."
"Oh, an adventurer," Jortan sniffed dismissively, "I should have known."
"Don't be rude," Tarren admonished his brother, "Someone's got to go in and clear out those ruins. They're everywhere, those relics of dead kingdoms and all filled with the worst sort of monsters."
Jortan didn't sound abashed, "I've seen far too many idiots haring off to find their fortune and die before getting past the front door."
Link didn't bother to explain he had survived dozens of crumbling dungeons so changed the subject, "Is it common to see Stalfos outside the Lost Woods?"
Tarren sighed, "Sadly yes and more with every passing year. Rumour has it the Great Deku Tree died and without its guardian spirit the forest isn't what it was. The ancient wards have fallen, Hylians can go in now and monsters can come out. We even see Kokiri wandering outside the boundaries, the little folk braving the big world for the first time. We Knights have been fighting to hold back the monsters but this trouble with the Gerudo is drawing our eyes away. The King is mustering his armies for war and we are recalled to the Castle."
"So it's war then?" Link inquired, "Gerudo are passionate but I'd never imagined them starting a war."
Jortan sighed, "There's a lot of rumours but trouble is certainly brewing. Hylia suddenly isn't big enough for all of us. It's not right, Gerudo should stay in the desert, like the Gorons stick to their mountains, or the Zoras do their rivers.
"Don't worry," Tarren scoffed, "The king will give them a bloody nose and send them packing."
Jortan looked distant as he rubbed his jaw and mused, "Is it true Gerudo are all ladies?"
Link informed him, "Almost all, and trust me its not nearly as fun as it sounds. They aren't dainty waifs waiting to be rescued, they are dangerous. They'd cut your nose off and rob you blind before you'd finished saying hello."
Jortan turned to Link and asked, "You know a lot about them, are you signing up for the fight?"
Link shook his head, "No, I have a promise to keep, I am going to meet Princess Zelda."
For some reason that statement sent the pair into guffaws of laughter. Link was bemused by the odd reaction but Jortan chuckled, "He's an adventurer all right."
Tarren laughed, "If I had a rupee for every lad who claimed he was off to see the Princess, I'd be a rich man!"
Link scowled as he snapped, "I'm serious, she gave me her own Ocarina and I swore to return it someday."
"Course you did," Tarren laughed, "And I don't blame you for making it up. They say she's the most beautiful lady in the kingdom. Regal and stunning, half the lads in the Knights think they're in love with her."
Jortan added, "They say she's a powerful enchantress. She knows things before they happen, she can see into distant lands and read the past and the future like a book. She speaks with the Great Fairies and knows the secret of the Triforce. She foresaw this war coming before anyone else did."
Link realised they weren't going to believe anything he said so demurred, "Anyway… I need to visit a girl on Lon Lon ranch on the way."
Tarren beamed, "Then we should come with you, the roads aren't safe and it's barely out of our way."
Link frowned as he countered, "There's no need to trouble yourselves."
Tarren however insisted, "Don't be silly, it's a lonely road and we'd enjoy the company."
Jortan added, "Besides a man with that many rupees shouldn't travel alone."
From their grins Link knew there was no point arguing, they would tag along regardless. They may not be thieves but he was sure he'd be paying for room and board on the road. Old soldiers had a knack for getting other people to pay for things. But after his long journey he couldn't deny he would enjoy having someone to talk to. It was only five more days to Lon Lon Ranch and he could afford two more mouths. So he nodded in agreement and tucked into his meal.
Jortan picked up his tankard and guzzled it but Tarren leaned over and in a quiet voice whispered, "If you're serious about going to see a girl then there's a barrel of clean water behind the inn. You might want to dunk yourself before we set out."
Link paused and slowly sniffed his collar, causing him to wince slightly, "That bad?"
Tarren whispered, "Let just say you smell like someone who's been scrambling about in mouldy dungeons. Girls notice that sort of thing."
Link hadn't noticed, but then after a few weeks one never did. He decided to follow the advice and said, "My thanks."
"See," Tarren beamed, "We're already making ourselves useful. This is going to be a beautiful friendship."
