Year of the Great Kingdom 592
The remainder of that summer was very hard for them. The events at the Lord's Palace and their banishment from its grounds had laid a stigma upon the two that could not be easily shaken. The other farmers grew distant from Gormund and did not like speaking with him under the open sun. At night, he might be able to meet with one or two at a discreet location and sell portions of his crop – which would then in turn be sold to the garrison, circumventing the Lord's command - but this added a middle party to the business and Gormund was forced to earn less and less profit from his farm. The farmers' wives however, were -surprisingly- much more merciful.
Despite their original suspicions and misgivings about a woman of "mixed blood", the women of Dalite had come to appreciate the shy, polite nature of Telma. During their times tutoring her, each had slowly realized that she was not the terrifying monster that they had imagined, she was just some poor, sweet orphan girl that Gormund had kindly taken in. When the story of how she had dealt with her drunken assailant spread around the countryside; every woman – from the blossoming new bride to the weathered old crone – gave a silent cheer in their hearts for the 'fearsome bronze goddess and her powerful hands'!
Through discreet subterfuge, these ladies provided Telma and her father with the support they desperately needed. Many would chastise their husbands, and force them to buy Gormund's potatoes at fair prices. Others would prepare baskets of cherished foods or small items that the pair needed, and walk them down to their home. The young outcast quickly learned to go out and tend the field at specific times each day – to watch for one neighbor's wife, or another. The lady would come down the Hylian road, carrying a small basket wrapped in cloth. She would spot Telma working in the field, and call her over to the fence 'for a chat'. As the two discussed the weather or the health of the crop, they would nonchalantly trade baskets – an empty for a full – and part ways. Her father soon learned of these trades and felt ashamed to have to rely upon the charity of others, but he feared leaving his daughter in complete poverty even more; so, he allowed it to continue.
In his own mind though, Gormund still wanted to be able to provide for her himself. So, after the late summer harvest, he carefully rebuilt his "fermenter" and secretly began brewing his alcohol from the few potatoes they did not sell or eat. The King's decree was that no spirits could be prepared without the local Lord's permission, but the farmer was desperate, and the drinks would sell very well amongst the country folk.
For a few weeks, he was able to hide his contraption in the mule's shed and just insisted to his daughter that he was "checking on the beast" from time to time during the day. But before long, she discovered him and curiously asked after what he was doing. "If you prepare a special mash from the potatoes, and keep them in this chamber," he explained, pointing to the still, "with a little heat, you can make a powerful… um… 'potion' that men like to drink."
Despite his words, she could feel that something was wrong about this. Gormund had never kept secrets from his daughter before – so far as she knew – and it made her nervous that he was hiding this thing in their shed. "Can I try some of this 'potion' papa? When its ready?" she asked. "NO!" he suddenly shouted, startling her, "No… not until you are much older. And… even then… it's not a good idea."
By late Autumn, when the first frosts began to touch the treetops, Telma and her father had a small stock of bottles prepared and carefully began to sell them to her father's contacts. During the daylight hours, none would speak of it and would hastily deny any involvement if she tried to mention it. But during the night, under the cover of the edge of the forest, they would exchange several purses of rupees for crates of Gormund's bottles.
"If we keep this up," her father once told her, "We could take you to the capitol and have several more dresses made."