A month passed, and the cool weather of autumn came. Dorobis had been taking many trading journeys since the start of the season, and there was a slight change on the plantation in Carrickfergus; it was starting to be somewhat peaceful to live there- somewhat.
The biggest and most noticable change was between Jennan and Link. They were blatatnly a couple now, and everyone knew it, save for Dorobis. Somehow -and luckily- word of it had not reached him yet, for everyone was a friend of Link's now, except for Henry, who would not tell for fear of Link and getting the blood kicked out of him again, though he would never admit that.
Beth had went back to her home a week or so ago, to Jennan's enjoyment, and had told them that she would come back sometime in the winter. She had taken Ness and her other slave with her, and Ness had left reluctantly. Link could tell that the girl lived a difficult life with Beth and probably had no friendly relationship with anyone- she was more than likely not allowed. He had felt sorry for her when she had left, but she had said that she would be all right.
Artos, Memnet, Jennan, Link, Matayo, and Rhashidi could usually now be found in a group when Dorobis was not around. Rhashidi always stayed at a distance from them, for he hated a crowd, even if it consisted of his friends. He was even more timid now that his sight was dim, and it had become downright dangerous to approach him on his blind side. He did not mean to be aggressive with his friends, but it was just instinct if he was caught off guard, and Artos now knew this well, since he had been the first to be bitten. His knuckles were still healing, and Rhashidi had later told him he was sorry, but Artos was still had a wariness of the wolf-boy.
They had all become familiar with each other of the past month, though Link was a newcomer to being part of a group. He was so used to being aloof from people that he had felt very out of place when the five of them had starting making it a point to hang around together. But now he felt more comfortable, because even Memnet had accepted him now.
Link had been chopping wheat in a field he had not known Dorobis had for the past few days, and he had turned his eighteenth birthday during that time, but had told no one but Jennan, and that was after. He had told her as if he had not mattered, and then she had light-heartedly scolded him for not telling her before.
Now all of them, save for Rhashidi, were at their usual spot at the pasture, gathered around the fence near the gate. They had started coming here because it was where Link had been most of the time, and thus where Jennan came, and then the rest of them had just eventually followed along. Memnet was sitting on the top board of the wooden fence, Artos had seated himself against the post below on the inside of the pasture, Matayo stood outside with his arms folded and leaning on the fence. Link lay back in the grass with a knee propped up, and Jennan sat beside him in a pile of her skirts, her hand under his head and massaging the back of his neck gently.
A few horses, including Epona, were grazing in the pasture. Night Rider was in the stable; he was now well-behaved enough to be allowed there. Link was for the most part finished with the breaking, but when someone else tried to ride, the huge black stallion turned difficult to handle, but not quite violent. Dorobis had gotten mad and blamed Link, but Artos hadIt' assured his master that it was the horse and not the trainer. Dorobis found every reason in the world to blame Link for everything that went wrong anyway.
They were all quiet for awhile, just listening to the whistling wind, until Matayo yawned deeply and tapped his fingers on the top of the fence. "It's going to be a bad winter," he said. "I can just tell."
"Isn't it always?" Memnet replied, smirking slightly. "I wonder if Henry's going to come down with pneumonia this year." That had been a yearly thing for some time now, and though it was not right to think so, everyone was glad when the young man could not talk.
"We'll have to see," Artos laughed. "He is notorious for that, though."
Link was not listening for the conversation, for Jennan was nearly putting him to sleep, but he quickly snapped to attention when he heard a deep bark from somewhere in the woods. He sat up drowsily as everyone looked back towards the trees. "That's Rhashidi." He poked Jennan in the side gently. "Your father's probably come back."
Memnet turned around and slid off the fence beside Matayo as everyone else rose as well. Link helped Jennan to her feet and then over the fence. It was too difficult to just open the gate, for it was rusted shut and could only be opened with great force, so everyone usually just climbed the fence.
"Link, you had better get back to work before Father discovers you idle," Matayo said. He was the only one of them that ever even remotely bossed Link around, but the latter usually obeyed because of their friendship. And because Matayo was not completely serious, for he knew it might be dangerous for himself if he was.
Link hoisted himself over the fence and then brushed the grass off of himself. He said to Jennan, "I'll see you later when your father's not around."
She kissed him on the cheek, and then he was off to the field. She watched him go for a moment, then turned and followed her brother and sister back to the house. Gelert was on the porch, wagging his tail as they approached, and Matayo stopped to give him a rough pat. Artos headed off to the stable to take care of Dorobis horses, and as Memnet opened the door, they were hit with a wave of the smell of fresh bread, and knew that Ima had been at work.
They came inside, Matayo last, for he was trying to work at being a gentlemen, and quickly closed the door behind them to shut out the cool air. Ima looked up from the fire pit in the corner and wiped a streak of ash from her wrist. "Master Dorobis is back, then?"
"Yes, we think so," Matayo said. He sat down at the table and stuck a finger into the cooling bread, and burnt himself.
Ima laughed. "That's what you get. Leave the bread alone until it's actually time to eat it."
He held his finger to his mouth as his sisters pulled up chairs at the table as well. Jennan was spacey, obviously daydreaming as usual, and Memnet looked as if she did not feel well. A few minutes later, the door flew open and banged against the inside wall. They all looked up as Dorobis came in and slammed the door behind him. At first Jennan thought he was angry because he had seen her and Link together, but he just sat down at the table and did not even look at her. Artos slowly came in the door after, smelling of horse.
"How was the journey, Master?" Ima asked carefully, and Dorobis grunted in reply. Jennan got up and poured her father a cup of hot tea, and he drank it slowly as she sat back down. She looked at Matayo, who was stroking his small beard and studying their father with interest. Jennan could not tell what her brother was thinking, and somehow that slightly worried her.
There seemed to a tension in the room, for no seeming reason, and no one spoke. Ima continued to rummage around by the fire, and Memnet traced a crack in the wooden table with her finger. Dorobis set down his cup hard, and some hot tea flew out and hit his hand. He ignored it and stared at the wall.
"Arots," he finally said, and the one he addressed quickly looked up at him with dark brown eyes.
"Yes, Master?"
Dorobis paused, then said, "I need you to take a journey out to Barrack. I have a message I need you to give my sister."
Barrak was a city somewhere between Carrickfergus and Hyrule, and Artos looked confused. "Why is that, sir?"
"You don't need to know that!" Dorobis boomed, and everyone was quickly silent. Jennan glared at her father out of the corner of her eye, and Memnet merely stared down at the table. "Just do what I say. And when you go, take that Hylian slave of mine with you."
Jennan scoffed silently at the title, and Artos said after a pause, "When do we leave, sir?"
"Early in the morning." Dorobis stood up and rearranged the folds of his cloak, leaving his steaming cup of tea on the table. "And I don't want to hear any back-talk about it from anyone." Everyone knew that by 'anyone' he meant Link. He reached into his cloak and pulled out a taped envelope. "Do not read the contents. Just take it and come back."
Artos took the envelope and hid it in a pocket behind his light-brown jacket. "Yes, Master."
Dorobis stopped in front of the door and said without looking back, "And by the way, I will be having use for the Hylian boy's horse tomorrow, so make sure that he takes Night Rider on the journey."
No one questioned this, but when the man was gone, Jennan immediately spoke up. "Why Night Rider? That horse is too unpredictable."
Matayo shook his head. "I don't see why Link has to go anyway, but I'm certainly not asking."
Jennan pushed her chair back hard and stood up. "I do beleive he's trying to break Link's neck. It makes no sense that Link cannot take another horse. It makes no sense that he has to go at all!"
"I just said that..."
Jennan ignored him and continued on her rant. "Father is just trying to cause trouble."
"Jennan," Ima spoke up, "I think your father is just trying to get Link away from you. A journey to Barrack will take seven days in total. It makes sense, anyhow."
Jennan shook her head and gathered up her skirts, mumbling to herelf, and headed upstairs. Matayo watched her from behind, then looked at Ima and shrugged. "It upsets her that much?"
For some reason, Ima gave him a sharp look. "Women are not as tough with feelings as you men. Leave your sister alone."
"Sorry." Matayo's gaze then fell to Memnet. "Are you all right?"
She had now laid her head and arms on the table. "Yes, I'm fine."
He shrugged and went outside, confused and annoyed at all three of these women.
-O-
Link woke up especially early the next morning, irritated and unwillingly. He did not think that it made any sense for him to accompany Artos on the journey, unless Dorobis wanted a bodyguard for his slave, which did not make any sense either. Link got dressed in the loft and groggily made his way down the ladder. It was barely even daylight outside, and though he had always gotten up early all of his life, this was ridiculous. He and Artos had packed for the seven-day trip the night before; it would be three days on the way and three back. Link remembered being in Barrack a year or so ago while on his slow search for Zelda, and had been ill-treated and now had no wish to go back.
But under the control of another man, it was not like he had a choice. And it was so early that everyone else on the plantation was still asleep, except for Artos and Rhashidi, the former coming into the stable and the latter somewhere out probably hunting. Artos had dark rings under his eyes as he came inside, and buttoned his jacket.
"It's too early to be awake," he complained, and grabbed his horse's tack from the wall. Link could see the other young man's breath, but was not as cold as Artos looked. After years of being in the elements, Link had toughened and was not much affected by the cold until the dead of winter.
"I don't think it's a good idea to handle Night Rider when I just woke up," Link said. "But I guess I have to."
"I'm sorry about all this; Master Dorobis sometimes thrives off of making people miserable." Artos entered his horse's stall and began to tack up. Epona was looking at Link with her ears perked up, somehow knowing that he was going to travel and eager to go. He felt bad for not being able to take her, and told her so quietly in Hylian. He patted her forehead, then picked up his sword from the corner and strapped it on. He had hidden it in the rock by the creek for a long while until now. He did not want to go on a seven-day journey without a weapon.
"Don't tell I am complaining... but I should still be sleeping," Artos grumbled.
"I should still be sleeping," Link said, yanking Night Rider's saddle from the wall, "and I'm not afraid if Dorobis hears it."
Artos yawned and led his horse from the stall. "Hopefully I do not fall asleep on the journey. I already cannot wait until it is time to rest tonight..."
"That'll be awhile," Link said, throwing on Night Rider's tack, carefully so not to spook the horse. He had opened up a little over the past month when it came to talking to other people. He used to stay quiet, even when spoken to, but next to Jennan, Artos was now the one he talked to the most.
Artos checked over his horse's tack to make sure that everthing was safely in place, then ran his hands down the horse's white blaze. "Well, whenever you are ready, we should go."
Link led Night Rider from the stall and then quietly slipped Epona a sugar cube. "I'm ready." He mounted the massive black horse slowly and gathered the reins in his hand. Night Rider was still not completely broken and shied easily; he had been spooked at seemingly nothing just the other day, and had thrown Link clear from the saddle and to the ground a few yards away. Link had sprained his shoulder in the crashing, somersaulting landing, but was quite fine as of now. No one but Jennan even knew that Night Rider had thrown him.
"We have a long day ahead of us," Artos said. He sighed and rolled his eyes. "Or seven days, to be exact." He kicked his horse into a walk and left the stable. Link patted Night Rider's neck as a sign of peace and rocked forward in the saddle, but the horse did not move. Link had a lot of experience with horses and knew that getting frustrated would do nothing but make the situation worse, so he gently tried again and softly told the horse move. Still not the response he was looking for, and Artos turned his horse back into the stable to see what was taking so long.
"Horse being stubborn?" he asked, eyeing Night Rider warily.
"A little," Link replied, but was focusing his concentration on the horse. Of all the times that he had ridden him without incident, and now the stubborn thing did not want to move!
Artos raised his eyebrows and looked at Link sympathetically. "This would all be a lot easier if you could just ride Epona."
Link wanted to say 'I know', but did not. He dismounted and gave the reins a slight tug, and then Night Rider followed. Link was tired and annoyed but fought back showing it. He stopped the horse and mounted again, with a firmer hold on the reins, for Night Rider was not soft-mouthed, and gave the horse a kick to the side. At last, he was in command.
"I hope that horse doesn't do this frequently," Artos said as the two of them left the stable at a trot. "We don't need things to be more complicated than they already are."
Link suddenly saw Jennan on the trail from the house and yanked Night Rider to a halt. Jennan spotted them and waved slightly before rushing over. She held something in her hands, and stopped at the left side of Night Rider.
"Miss Jennan, it's too early to be awake," Artos said.
Jennan's eyes shifted to him, then fell back on Link. "I didn't want you to leave without taking this bread that Ima baked last night. But if you don't want it..."
"We want it," Link said with a smile. She passed it up to him, and he put it safely inside a saddle bag. "Did you get up just to come out here?"
Jennan folded her hands in front of her and rested them on the front of her thick skirts. "I did. And I wanted to say good-bye, for you won't be back for at least another week." She meant 'you' to be plural, but it was no secret that she mostly was talking to Link.
And Link could tell that she wanted to kiss him good-bye, but it was quite difficult when she was standing on the ground and he was on horseback, so he just leaned over and squeezed her dainty hand gently. "We'll be back soon enough. It won't be too long."
Jennan blushed and nodded, her thin fingers grasping around his hand. "All right, I'll be waiting for you. Be safe."
They let go and she waved as they started off, and Artos was giving Link a suggestive look with his eyebrows raised. Link ignored him and turned back in the saddle to look at Jennan. She was standing with her hands behind her, her head bent low, but he knew that she was still watching them. He lifted his hand in a motionless wave, and she slowly waved back, as if she was trying to hold onto him so he could not leave. But what Dorobis said went, and there was nothing else to be done.
She was out of sight when they entered the woods, and Link turned forward again and righted himself in the saddle. So far, Night Rider was behaving well, but there was no telling when the horse would suddenly change its mind. He knew Dorobis had made him ride the huge stallion purposefully, as if the man was hoping the horse would turn wild and seriously wound its rider, but Link had different thoughts. He believed he could control the horse if he tried hard enough, and he was intent on trying. There was no sense in dying before he returned to Jennan.
Link saw a movement at Night Rider's flank, and he looked back to see Rhashidi. The wolf-boy was looking up expectantly- for the past two years that he had travelled beside Link, this was his normal spot alongside. His ears were perked up as he stared intently at Link's face; if one did not know the boy, they could not tell that he was blind in his left eye.
"Rhashidi, you should stay here," Link said. "With Memnet." Rhashidi was known for hanging close to Memnet, for some reason.
"But aren't you travelling?" Rhashidi asked quietly.
"It's only for a week; stay here. I'll be fine."
"I know, but..."
"It's all right." Rhashidi stopped, and the horses continued on. Link felt bad for making his friend stay put, but there was no reason for him to come along too. After all, Link did not know what was in store on the journey up ahead. He did not want Jennan to know that he was slightly uneasy about where they were going. It was only Dorobis' sister, but who knows why the man made Link go along?
After awhile of silent travelling, the two of them left the large plantation and headed east. Link's thoughts kept falling back on Rhashidi, as if making him stay was a mistake. Link was very capable of taking care of himself, but Rhashidi was better than a whole pack of hounds when it came to protection. The handsome wolf-boy had very keen senses, sharp fangs, and the will to fight. Link knew that the people on the plantation wondered of Rhashidi's origins, but Jennan was the only one who knew, for Link told her. Princess Zelda had somehow come across Rhashidi a couple of years ago, and the boy had been in bondage by a couple with ruthless plans in store for him; Zelda had had him broken free, and in deep thanks Rhashidi had offered to do anything he could for Zelda. And after awhile of pondering, the princess sent Rhashidi to Link, for protection. And that was how Link and Rhashidi's bond had started, after the wolf-boy said that it was the princess who sent him, so that had been Link's sign that all was well.
Link had thought on this situation for the past two years and had come to the conclusion that if Zelda could send Rhashidi to Link, that meant she knew where Link was. So if she had not come to him, that meant she was still in exile. But of course, that was nearly two years ago, and it was unknown what had happened to the princess since then.
Link watched the many trees of the forest pass by, his mind wandering and nearly forgetting about Artos, who was riding close beside. Link leaned forward in his saddle, staring off between Night Rider's black ears, and reluctantly prepared himself for the week long ride ahead.
-O-
Prince Marth had been spending that month in recovery, but he did not seem to notice the time that went by. He mostly stayed in his dwelling alone, only allowing Anya, Gathan, or his nurse to come in, and that was seldom enough. He had always had a violent temper, but lately it had been worse than ever. Anyone who annoyed him suffered some sort of pain, thrown out directly from the prince himself, and most of everyone steered clear of him. It was the way he liked it, for he wanted nothing else than to be left alone.
It did not have much to do with his physical injuries; the bruises and cuts had healed away, and the split in the side of his head was gone, though sometimes he was still assaulted by terrible headaches. The physical thing that bothered him the most was his left knee, which had healed well enough, but he still had a hard limp in his walk and a continuous sharp pain, day and night. He had begun to ignore the pain after awhile, but sometimes it became unbearable to where he could not even begin to stand. His nurse had done everything she could for it, but now there was nothing else to do. She told him that it might get better in time, but it seemed to do nothing but get worse. It was a strange sight to see such a young man, just turned nineteen, to have such a bad limp. It interfered with his proud walk of a prince, and he hated it.
As if all of that was not bad enough, there were worse things that Marth had to deal with. He had thought he was tough enough to take anything, but the terrible mental images from the war a month ago were etched hard into his mind, every detail, and it haunted him like a nightmare. He could still even smell the horrible reek of the blood on the battefield at times. All of this had made him sink into a state of depression, and no matter how hard he tried, he could seldom think of nothing else. And even if he was preoccupied with other things, the horror was still in the back of his mind. At first he had felt foolish for not being man enough to accept it all, but then later discovered that it had nothing to do with being a man. One would have to be inhuman to not be bothered by the things he had seen. He had always known that the battles of war were bloody and terrible, but the exact details could not be imagined until they were seen.
His deep state of depression had pushed everyone away from him, even the king. Anya seemed to be the only one that would put up with him. He had once tried to tell her of the things that haunted him, but thought better of it; there was no reason to make her suffer with him. And besides, though she was only two years younger than he was, the blood of war was not a thing for women to be concerned with.
Now, on a dark and moonless night, he sat at his usual place in his dwelling- at the desk in the corner of the room, with the back of the chair to the wall and facing the huge double doors. He would write at times, sometimes trace over maps, but mostly he just sat idle. He knew it was unhealthy for his mind, but he felt that it was too late now.
He was so deep in thought that he was nearly in a trance; this actually happened frequently. His dark blue eyes would stare off at nothing in particular, and he would remain completely still until someone distracted him. It was like a deep sleep, but he was awake. And when he was alert, there were still things that annoyed him. Just the other day Gathan had tried so hard to get the prince to go out of the castle for some fresh air that Marth got so irritated after refusing so many times that he had slapped his advisor clear to the floor with one swing. And the thing was not suggested again. Under normal circumstances, Marth had a way of getting what he wanted. All he had to do was stare squarely at the person he was commanding and raise his left eyebrow- only the left and never the right - and somehow it just sent people off running to do his bidding, but that day he had skipped completely over that step and went to violence. It was wrong, he knew, but he was past caring.
And he was in such a terrible mood today that he immediately snapped out of the trance and yelled at the person who was opening the door not to enter. The door hesitated, but Gathan stepped in anyway.
"Highness, your father the king is requesting to see you," he said, bowing low.
"No," Marth snapped.
Gathan took a few more steps towards the desk, nearly grovelling. "But sir, I cannot tell him that you will not come. He is irritated."
"So am I!" came the yelling reply.
"Forgive me..."
"Get out," Marth growled, clenching his fists and throwing his gaze towards the dark window.
"Yes sir, but please come with me, your father is losing patience."
"Gathan! Get out!"
The man took a step backwards. "Of course, sir. But your father is going to be very displeased..."
Marth suddenly slammed both palms on the desk and shot out of his chair. His knee was giving him terrible pain, but if he put his weight on his right leg he was still fast enough to go after Gathan- and catch him. The man's eyes widened and he backed up quickly, taking off at a near run when he reached the doorway. The door closed with a loud, swinging thud, and Marth was once again alone. He sat back down painfully and flicked back his long cape. It cascaded across the floor when he sat down, it was so long.
After a few moments of lonely silence, both doors suddenly swung open and banged against the inside walls with the force of it. Marth was about to pick up a weapon until he saw that it was his father himself that was standing in the doorway.
"My son," the king said sternly, "when I give you an order, I expect you to obey it. I requested to see you at my throne, and Gathan told me you refused."
"Father, is it so hard just to be left alone?"
The king entered the dwelling and slammed both doors closed behind him. "You have been alone for the past month! Now, I may have given you control over most of my kingdom, but you do not have control over me. You are still below me in rank, and you are my son. You may be able to act like this with your subjects, but I will not take any of this rude stubborness. Get up."
When Marth did not move, the king came over and grabbed his son, half by the back of the neck and half by the cloak, and pulled him up to his feet. The two of them glared at each other, eye to eye, and then the king spoke again.
"Have I given you too much authority, that you try to command even me?" They slowly moved away from the desk and towards the window, still glaring. "Don't forget your place, Marth. You are still under me until you are king. And I expect that it will be a good decision to crown you so." The last sentence was said very sternly, and Marth suddenly wondered if he was threatening his own position.
"Faher-"
"Do you want to be king?"
"Yes."
"Then watch your step, my son." The king's voice was more gentle now, and the long glare was broken. "Now, the thing I want to inform you of is the danger that is surrounding us. Doluna seems to be nonexistant since we beat them in the last battle, but we are now having close problems with Hyrule."
"Aren't we always?" Marth shifted his weight only to his right leg and stared at the darkness of the window.
"Yes, but it could turn very serious if we let it go idle for long. Now if you will get yourself into a thinking mind, I will ask your opinion of what you believe we should do."
Marth was too tried to think and he wanted to say so, but if he was to be future king of Altea, he must get used to this sort of thing. He sighed and called out, "Gathan!" The man, who had been just outside the door, came rushing in, bowing. Marth crossed his arms over his armor and barked, "Advisor, advise me."
-O-
The trip to Barrack was more uneventful than Link had expected, and the most interesting thing that happened on the way there was that he and Artos had gotten caught in a rainstorm and had had no shelter, save for a few trees. That had been unenjoyable, but at least it was something besides riding silently. Even Night Rider had been dull, which was really a good thing, but Link was easily bored. Artos talked of being saddle-sore on the beginning of the third day, but other than that neither of them complained.
When they reached Barrack at last, Link kept his guard up. The last time he had been here, a group of boys had thrown stones at him for no apparent reason, and he had been too timid to dismount and fight back. Now he kept a sharp eye out for flying objects, and if now if anyone messed with him, he would not just sit back or run away. He had changed over the past two years.
"I think we're almost there, at last," Artos said, massaging his own back with his free hand. They had arrived in the town of Barrack, flanked on both sides of the cobblestone street by shops and houses, and people would literally stop on the street to turn to stare at the two strangers. Link was beginning to feel like a spectacle, and he looked straight ahead in an attempt to ignore the people around him. He noticed out of the corner of his eye a man, holding a basket on his shoulder, turn and blatantly gape. A girl on up the road was trying to make flirtatious eye contact, but Link ignored her as well. A few dogs ran across the street in front of them and he felt Night Rider stiffen. He gripped hard on the reins and with his knees and looked at Artos questioningly. Link did fine at travelling when he knew where he was going, but now he had to rely on his friend.
"Night Rider's got all of his strength on the bit," Link murmured to Artos. The other looked over and saw that it was true; Link's arms were holding tight just to keep steady, and the horse was straining forward as if pulling a cart.
"He's nervous," Artos said quietly, "and I cannot say that I blame him. Look at all of these people staring at us."
Link took a moment to glance around the street. "They don't even try to hide it."
Artos suddenly broke out into a grin. "I like to imagine that they're looking because they think we are easy on the eyes!" He laughed and then nodded to the right and said, "Look at those girls over there; they are staring at you."
Link flushed and looked over at them, then quickly averted his eyes. There were three of them, standing at the threshold of a large hut with shawls around their shoulders to keep away the cold autumn air, and they were twisting handfuls of hay in their fingers, obviously to make something to burn. The one that seemed to be the oldest, a tall young woman with auburn hair, smiled and lifted her hand in a friendly wave. Link's hands were too preoccupied with Night Rider's reins, but Artos waved back.
Night Rider very suddenly lurched to a halt, and Link struggled to stay in the saddle. He quickly looked down and was annoyed to see two young men, each with a hand on the huge horse's bridle. Link gave them a dirty look and was about to tell them to let go of his horse when he realized who they were, and then he was far more than annoyed. Even after two years, he could still tell- they were two of the boys from the group that had thrown stones and tried to assault him the last time he had been in Barrack. No doubt they recognized him as well, for though he looked more of a man now, he had certain characteristics that were hard to miss.
As Artos pulled his horse to a stop to see what was going on, the boy on the left side of Night Rider gripped the bridle tightly and sneered up at Link. "Harrassing my sisters, are you?"
Link sat in silence, and he could feel the horse tense under him. An angry shout rang out, and the tall auburn-haired girl came over and grabbed her brother's arm. "Stop it, Lae," she said sternly. Her brother pushed her away and continued to glare at Link, who met the sharp gaze with one of his own, having no fear. Artos began to speak, then quickly stopped when he got a hard look from the other boy that seemingly had no name.
"Don't think I don't remember you," Lae said to Link. "You were here near three years ago, and why? You should be in Hyrule, shouldn't you?"
Now Link knew what this was all about- it had nothing to do with harrassment or sisters, but rather Link's race. He bristled, still not speaking, and thought on his next move. He was suddenly glad that he had not let Rhashidi come; his wolf-like friend would like to have killed one of these young men, or there at least would have been a bloodbath.
The nameless boy spoke up. "Well, are you just going to sit there or what?"
Link said bluntly, "Let go." He indicated his meaning with a nod to their hands, which were still grasping Night Rider's bridle.
The two boys shared a look and then grinned. The girl protested again, but they rudely told her to stay out of the way. The other girls, their sisters, were still at their hut with wide eyes. Link had a good mind to urge Night Rider on and tried to do so with his knees, but the hores would not move. If only the half-wild stallion would act up like he usually did, it would be a quick ending to all of this nonsense; the boys would move. But the only problem was, Night Rider would not.
"Nice horse," Lae said. There was something terrible in his voice that Link could not quite place, but he knew what the boys had in mind. It was quite common for someone to be robbed and then have their horse stolen, but would the boys try it in front of everyone that was watching? Artos knew what was going on exactly. Still on his own horse, he came over and scoffed.
"Leave him be," he said. "It's not even his horse, anyhow."
Link wanted to tell Artos that that was not helping, but a spark suddenly went through Lae's eyes. "A great for work horse, he would be." The two boys nodded to one another. "I think we'll take the stallion."
"What? You can be hanged for horse thievery!" Artos cried.
Link was not about to let someone else fight his battles for him. He leveled his deep blue eyes at Lae and said flatly, "You've got to get me off first."
The challenge was quickly accepted and followed through with; it was not hard for the two boys to get Link off the horse, for gravity was on their side. But once all three of them were on the ground, things turned to chaos. The street quickly cleared of pedestrians, and onlookers stood against the front of the houses and shops to stay out of the way. Night Rider shied away from the raging battle beneath him and was luckily caught by Artos before he could escape. Artos wanted to dismount and help Link, but he was nothing of a fighter, and besides, Link obviously had things under control. Even though it was a two-on-one fight, Link was bigger, stronger, and somehow faster than his two opponents. And he knew how to fight. At first Artos had thought that Link could only do battle with a sword, but those thoughts had quickly diminished when he saw what had happened to Henry for getting in Link's way. Now these two boys were facing the same fate.
Link's blows were powerful and always aimed at the right places; he was fast, but not quite fast enough to dodge two of them at once, and he took a fist square to the mouth and was soon spitting blood when he had a moment to spit, but which was not very often. He caught the nameless boy by the back of the neck and threw him to the ground with such force that he wondered if he had heard something crack. But no time for that now, the few seconds that one was out of the way was a good time to take on the other one. Lae was fast, and obviously used to fighting, but Link had had some changes over the past few years and was way too stubborn and headstrong to merely give in as he had done before.
He could hear the yelling of the crowd as his fist collided with Lae's tender stomach, then in an uppercut to the chin, followed by a quick smash across the right jaw. Lae was falling hard towards the ground, but Link was ruthless and did not let him even get that far in peace. A hard kick to the ribs sent the other boy sliding a few yards on the cobblestone. The crowd was yelling mixed messages, most rooting for Lae, but also some for Link. Even's Lae's sister was yelling out in Link's favor!
The nameless boy had crawled to his knees and had forfeited from the fight, his hands covering his face. But Lae was tougher, and he shoved himself to his feet and came at a mad rush towards Link, his fist ready to strike. Link dodged the first swing, then blocked and caught the flying fist in his left hand. He squeezed hard, heard a crack and then a cry from Lae, and Link's right fist came smashing across the boy's left cheek. Lae stumbled back as Link released his hand, then growled angrily and rushed foward again. Link moved out of the way as Lae rushed by, then reached out and grabbed the young man by the back of the shirt, whirling him around and then punching with all of his mind, one fist at a time on each side of the boy's already bruised face.
The crowd went crazy when Lae once again hit the ground, some angry and some glad, but the boy was not down for long. He jumped back up and took a swift kick at Link's shin, who quickly moved back, but not quickly enough. Their ankles hooked, and Link took the chance to twist to the side and throw and Lae foward. Link was not in the mood for the fight to last much longer, so he reached down and grabbed the other boy by the lapels, and once they were both erect, Link seized Lae's arm and turned his body to where the other boy's arm was bent, and the next throw from Link sent Lae across the Hylian's back and over his head. Nearly everyone could hear the breath go out of Lae, and the fight was apparently over.
Link wiped the blood away from his mouth and looked down at his former opponent in silence, his shoulders broad, fists clenched, and his expression serious and angry. Lae leaned up on his elbows and looked up at Link, who said nothing. There was nothing that need to be said- the previous fight expressed enough.
Link finally turned around to Artos and mounted Night Rider slowly. His muscles hurt from the fight, but it did not matter because he was victorious. He took one last look down at Lae, who was still lying on his back on the ground, Link's expression clearly saying, "I'm not like I used to be", but his mouth silent. He gathered Night Rider's reins, and he and Artos were off once again with nothing else said. The onlookers were silent, some obviously angry at how the fight had turned out, but Lae's oldest sister met Link's eyes and gave a quick thumbs-up.
Dorobis' sister's house was not too hard to find, and as they halted their horses in front of the hut, Artos said, "You fight like a wolf." It was obviously a compliment, but Link just looked at him for a moment.
"You have no idea," he mumbled as they dismounted and tied their horses.
The door to the hut opened and a middle-aged woman who favored Dorobis' looks greatly stood in the doorway. The three of them stood motionless and studied each other for a moment. Link thought the woman looked like Jennan, only older and not as pretty.
"Ma'am, I am Artos from your brother Dorobis' plantation," Artos said, bowing slightly.
"I know who you are," the woman snapped. She even acted like Dorobis. Her gaze fell on Link. "Who is this?"
"Also from the plantation, this is Link," Artos said.
The woman looked at him, and Link looked back without speaking. He was glad that Artos had not introduced him as a slave.
"Well," she finally said, "why are you here?"
Artos reached inside his jacket and pulled out the envelope. "Master Dorobis wished for me to give you this." He handed it to her, and she snatched it greedily, tearing open the paper and reading the letter, or note, whichever it was. While she read in silence, Link looked about the surroundings while holding the palm of his hand to his mouth to stop the bleeding. The woman's hut was surrounded by trees and chickens that ran loose.
When she was done reading, she kept the paper elevated but looked over the top of it, squarely at Link. She stared at him and looked him up and down, as if in detail. He purposefully looked away from her and shifted his weight back and forth uncomfortably. What was it with all of these females staring at him?
"Well, ma'am," Artos said, "if there's anything else you would require us to do..."
"Yes," she said absentmindedly, her eyes still on Link. She finally disappeared into the house and was gone for a few minutes until she came back out to the threshold and handed the same envelope to Artos, but the letter she had read was nowhere in sight. "Take this back to my brother." She was still staring at Link, even when talking to Artos. Link made himself look at her eyes, just to see what exactly interested her so much, but she was still just looking him over, taking in everything that there was to see. He looked away again but stood rigid.
"I suppose we should be on our way, then," Artos said. "It is another three days back to Carrickfergus. Good day, ma'am."
"Yes," she said, in the same tone she had used before. She watched carefully as Link mounted Night Rider, and Link found himself clumsy under her gaze. He gathered the reins and kept his eyes on Artos, who unfortunately seemed to be taking his time. Link wanted to get out of here but did not want to scramble over himself to do so. He nudged Night Rider into a walk as Artos came up beside him. Link began to relax, but when he took a glance over his shoulder he stiffened again.
The woman was leaning in the doorframe and still staring at him.
-O-
What a creepy lady. It took me forever on this chapter because I've been real busy this week. Please review lots. Lots!