Oro plucked absently at the harp as he sang, allowing himself to get lost in the old lyrics. "The kingdom of Hyrule is a vast and storied land, oft grasped in the palm of a villainous hand." His ear twitched as he heard movement behind him, trying to determine if it were animal or monster. When nothing appeared immediately, he carried on with his song. "A dark force of destruction, many times undone, rises once again - Ganon, the calamitous one."

His fingers plucked over the notes as he sang, letting the cold winds of the mountain behind him caress his face. "But hope survives in Hyrule, for all is not lost, two brave souls protect it, no matter the cost."

A man threw a rupee as he passed by the bard. The blue color glinted in the light and Oro nodded his gratitude. "A goddess-blood princess and a fearless knight, they appear in each age to fight the good fight. Their battle with Ganon I've committed to song, to keep it through time, no matter how long."

A rumble could be heard and he looked up, seeing a storm approaching and sighed. He gathered his things, setting the harp against his hip as he tied the money bag tightly. He'd worry about counting everything later. For the time being, he needed to keep moving towards Kakiriko Village. He shivered a slight as he moved, glancing back at the mountain. The Spring of Wisdom was contaminated. Nothing could be done about it. He silently wished luck to the great spirit he'd heard resided there as he moved.

A snap echoed in the trees and he froze, listening carefully. He gripped his bow, readying himself for a possible attack. His Hylian ears twitched at every movement before his eyes fell on a figure before him. He paled, seeing a Hylian had been frozen where he stood. It was the same Hylian who dropped the blue rupee into his bag.

Magic surged into the air and Oro could only think, "Run!," before charging forward. An arrow struck where he'd been standing, freezing the ground. He hissed in fear, focusing on steadying his breath as he moved quickly.

As he moved further down the path, he could see more frozen bodies in every which position, some completely unaware that they'd been frozen, others with horrified faces as they'd faced whatever monster had been attacking them.

He ducked down as another arrow launched over him, freezing a tree as he ran past. He heard a horse whinny and blinked, seeing what looked like a warhorse charging forward. He dodged out of the way, seeing a blonde Hylian atop it and paled, watching the man charging at the creature.

It was only then he finally realized that it was a Lynel that was attacking. Oro had stumbled right into Lynel territory. Every fiber of his being told him to run. He fought against it and drew an arrow, focusing as he watched the Hylian leap from the horse and bring down a sword onto it. When it swung at him, the Hylian dodged effortlessly.

Oro wondered briefly where this man had gotten his training, as no one in all of Hyrule had skills as he did. At least, not for the last hundred years.

Once he had an opening, he released an arrow. It flew true, striking the monster in the jaw. The Lynel let out a roar of pain and snarled, looking right at Oro before charging at him, wielding an ax. Oro made to retreat but the Lynel lobbed the ax at him. Oro barely dodged it, the blade slicing his thigh. He hit the ground with a shout of pain and whimpered. The Lynel quickly loomed over him and he turned, firing another arrow into its face.

The Lynel roared in pain, gripping at its face to try and remove the arrows when another arrow speared through its forehead, the metal poking out for Oro to see. He blinked as the creature staggered and rolled out of the way as it crashed to the ground.

He panted softly as the Hylian hurried to him. He frowned, taking in Oro's appearance. Oro smiled softly. "Hey, good teamwork there, Friend," He panted, laughing a slight. The Hylian smiled softly then frowned, kneeling. Oro frowned and looked down at his leg, seeing that it was soaked with blood. He gulped. "Oh...yeah...when it threw the ax...Whoops," He muttered as his vision blurred.

The Hylian caught Oro, making sure he wouldn't hit his head and quickly got to work. He wrapped the wound tightly and whistled. The horse came trotting back, unfazed by the dead Lynel. As if reading the Hylian's mind, it knelt for him to get the injured bard on its saddle. Without haste, the Hylian rode hard to the nearest village, Kakiriko.

"Again, again!" The little girl clapped happily. "Please, please, please!"

Oro laughed and nodded, plucking at the strings. "As you wish, my dear," He said before he began his song.

The girl danced to it happily, almost flitting about like a fairy. Oro smiled as he played, loving how quickly she fell in step to the rhythm.

"Oro, Ara, dinner," A woman called from inside the house.

"Aw, but-" The little girl protested as Oro stopped his song. He patted her head and walked in with her. "Promise you'll sing me to sleep tonight?"

"What kind of brother would I be if I didn't?" He asked with a smile. She cheered happily, squeaking as he scooped her up and set her on his shoulder.

"I love you so much!" She squealed, squeezing his head.

"Ara..." The Hylian blinked as the bard shifted before opening his eyes. Oro looked around in surprise before sitting up. The Hylian stopped him, pushing him to lie back. Oro hummed. "The warrior...Where are we?"

The Hylian made a few gestures, making him frowned. "Maybe I should," A gentle voice stammered. Oro turned to see a young Shiekah woman stepping forward. Her hands gently checked at his leg. "You're in Kakiriko. Link brought you here. He said you'd been attacked by a Lynel."

Oro blinked. "Yeah." He frowned, looking to the warrior named Link. He smiled a bit. "After the knight."

"Something like that," The woman chuckled. "You'll have to forgive him. He's mute. Not to say he's dumb, but he just doesn't speak." Link looked a bit offended at that, making the woman giggle. "You know I don't mean it like that."

Link rolled his eyes at the jest, still smiling a bit. "So that was Sign, right?" Oro asked. Link nodded. "My sign isn't the best. I haven't practiced it in years. All I know is thank you," He said, doing the gesture with a smile. "Though, I guess that's good, considering."

Link chuckled at that but held Oro in place when the woman did something to his leg. Oro jerked in reflex, grateful for Link holding him in place. "You're damn lucky Link found you. That Lynel is the cause of many deaths. Considering this wound, you could've lost your leg."

Oro hummed, watching her. "Would've been difficult to propose to you in that case?" The woman's face went beet red at that as she stammered over a response. "I mean, it's the only thing I can do to thank a beautiful woman for caring for me."

The woman whimpered and hid her face. "Oh! That-You shouldn't-That's far too bold!"

Oro winced when his ear was flicked. He groaned and looked up at Link, meeting the stern look. "Or would you rather I propose to you, Link?" He teased. Link rolled his eyes. He smiled at the woman. "I only jest, miss. I am very grateful for you both, though. If there's any way I can repay you...uhm..."

"Paya," The woman mumbled.

Oro smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Paya and Link. I'm Oro. I'm a traveling bard. If I can help at all, please tell me."