Chapter 5

Hyrule Castle Town

Link began to tremble with excitement as he crossed the bridge leading into Hyrule Castle Town. He could hear voices humming in the distance, and somewhere, music played. It sounded like a lute accompanied by a tambourine and drum. After the bridge was a small, walled-in passage with a wooden guard house on one side of it. Guards operated the drawbridge and stood guard during the day. One of the guards smiled down at Link.

"Visiting for the day, sonny? Good for you! These days, many are afraid to travel."

Link looked up at the guard, wide-eyed. He was a tall, muscular man wearing gleaming silver armor and carrying a long spear. A metal helmet covered his head and part of his face. Link had spent so much time as a Kokiri that it was difficult for him to imagine that, one day, he would be tall and muscular like that. The other guard laughed. He was just as muscular as the first guard, but slightly shorter.

"Look at him! He's awestruck!" The second guard chuckled. "Do you want to be a guard when you grow up?"

Link shrugged and both guards roared with laughter.

"Well if you're interested, feel free to look around. Things may be getting dangerous around these parts, but this town will always be safe as long as we're here to guard it. Nothing can be lost as long as there's hope. You'll keep your hope alive, won't you son?" The first guard asked. Link nodded and the first guard barked out another laugh. "Good man! Why don't you visit the guard house over there? One of our trainees is in there. He's looking for some excitement. Maybe you can help him out."

Link nodded and advanced towards the guard house as the men shared another laugh. He opened the door cautiously and peered inside. Another guard sat in one of the corners inside. His spear was propped up against the wall and he looked bored. He was grumbling to himself. The guard house was full of wooden crates and ceramic jugs. The guard looked up when Link stepped inside.

The guard gave off a sigh. "Oh, it's just a kid. Did they send you in here?" The guard nodded towards the wall. Link nodded in response. The guard sighed. "Figures. They always tease me because I want more excitement. All they talk is peace, peace, peace, but wouldn't it be much more fun around here if there were action? I mean what's better? Fighting off enemies or staring at the wall all day? Ridiculous. I want something to happen. Anything!"

Link, as he slowly approached the guard, stumbled into one of the crates. The jug that was perched on top of it fell to the ground with a crash. The guard jumped up. At first, Link thought he was in trouble, but then he noticed that the guard was smiling and laughing. He pointed at the crate next to the one that Link had bumped into.

"Now that one! Do that one!" The guard cried. Link hesitated and the guard took a step forward, fire in his eyes. "Now! Do it now!"

Link knocked the jug onto the floor with another crash. The guard kept screaming for Link to continue, and so he drew his sword and smashed all of the jugs. Then he rolled into the crates, smashing them as well. Soon, the guard house was a mess of splinters, ceramic pieces, supplies, and rupees. The guard was breathless with laughter.

"Oh, it's been a while since I've had so much fun. Thank you." The guard gestured to the supplies and rupees. "Take all you want. These are all just supplies. There's never any action, so we never use it. Look at all the rupees. The castle gives us an allowance to buy more supplies, and the rupees just sit there. Take them! Come back later and you can have more. It does get pretty boring around here. This gives me an excuse to re-stock the guard house. Who knows? Maybe something terrible will happen along the way!"

Link filled his pockets with rupees. He didn't really have much use for most of the supplies, but he was able to find some seeds for his slingshot. Apparently some of the guards used slingshots as well. When he was finished, Link thanked the guard and left quickly. When the guards outside saw his frightened expression, they burst into laughter. Link turned and ran.

"Don't worry, son! He's harmless. He's just a bit strange!" The second guard called after him.

The hum of voices grew louder as Link ran deeper into Castle Town. All at once, the walls opened up, and he found himself in the town square. There were people everywhere. Link had never seen so many adults. They were standing in groups talking. Some where selling things and others were buying them. There were children too, and they ran and played. Stray dogs and cats could be seen here and there. All around him, Link saw shops and houses. Some shops were closed up. Their signs indicated that they only opened up at night. The square was devoid of trees and grass. Stones were set in the dirt to create walkways. Link had never seen flooring outdoors before. He wandered around curiously, listening to conversations, watching the children play, and taking in the sights. There were shops that sold medicine. Other shops sold weapons and supplies. Finally, there was a third type of shop that offered up games of chance to anyone who would pay the price. Link wandered down alleyways and found that they were lined with more houses. In the distance, Hyrule Castle stood.

"There's the castle! We have to get to the princess, but how? I doubt they'll just let a strange boy walk in and see her. Things are so dangerous now… You'll have to sneak in." Navi hissed in Link's ear.

Link took another look around him. He felt small in this big square with people all around him. The children ignored him for the most part. Some pointed and laughed at his strange green clothing. Link edged towards the path leading to the castle. It led to another walled-in pathway that ended at a pair of tall iron gates which were guarded. The path and the area leading up to it were less finished. Trees and grass grew within it and in the area leading up to it.

"Well, it's guarded, but not too heavily." Navi whispered as she bobbed next to Link's ear. "If you can scramble up that wall somehow, you can sneak along it and hop down on the other side. Then you can use the trees for cover and sneak up towards the castle gardens. This should be easy. Plus, you're just a curious kid, right? They won't do anything to you if you get caught."

Just then, the sound of a guard's angry voice caught Link's ears. He looked down the path and saw one of the guards dragging a boy about Link's age out of the gate by his collar.

"Sneaking in again, eh?!" The guard barked. "That's the third time I've caught you, and this time I'll teach you a lesson you'll never forget!"

The guard ripped one of the thinner branches off of a nearby tree and began whipping the boy's bottom with it. The boy howled. Finally, the guard let the boy run off. He ran past Link, sniffling.

"And tell your friends they'll get the same if I catch them anywhere near here again!" The guard growled after them.

Link's mouth dropped open in horror.

"Well, at least he didn't throw him in jail." Navi said weakly. Link swallowed hard.

"'Boy am I glad I didn't sneak in after all!" A voice said suddenly.

Link turned to find a little girl with long, red hair leaning against a nearby tree. She wore a white dress and carried an egg in her hands. The girl's eyes grew wide suddenly, and she ran towards Link.

"You have a fairy! Oh, I knew it! I knew they were real! Wait until I tell Ingo! He says they don't exist! Oh! How wonderful! How did you catch her? Is she your pet?" The girl cried.

"PET?!" Navi cried suddenly! "Listen you… you…"

"My name is Malon." The girl offered.

"Listen, Malon! I'm no one's pet! I'm helping him get along because he's hopeless! That's all and… and you're not supposed to see me, so forget I'm here, got it?!" Navi raged.

Malon laughed. "Got it."

Navi disappeared into Link's clothing.

"Wow… if you've got a fairy, you must be special!" Malon said.

"THERE'S NO FAIRY!" Came Navi's muffled cry.

"Listen, can you help me?" Malon went on as though nothing had interrupted her. "My father runs the ranch in Hyrule Field. He delivered some milk to the castle, but he should have been back by now. He's a good man, but he gets lazy some times. If I know him, he's napping under a tree somewhere even though he promised he wouldn't."

"How can I help?" Link asked, shyly.

"Link, we have no time for this!" Navi hissed.

"Oh, it's not that big a deal. I want you to sneak into the castle, find my father, and wake him up. I would do it, but I'm no good at climbing, and anyway, I've already talked to the guard and he warned me not to try and sneak in. If he catches me, I'm sure to meet the business end of that stick. I have a plan, though. See, the guard isn't that bad a guy. He's just strict and tired of chasing after the kids who sneak into the castle. They really are a pack of brats, and you'd think they would have more sense than to bother the guards during such a dangerous time. If I distract him, you can climb up onto the wall using the guard tower. That should get you to the other side." Malon explained.

"I can help you. I wanted to get into the castle too. I need to talk to the princess." Link said, ignoring a warning hiss from Navi.

"The princess? Wow! I knew you were special! Oh! I almost forgot. Take this egg. We raise cuccoos on the ranch. This egg is going to hatch within the next hour. Bring it to my father. I have a feeling it will help wake him up."

Link took the egg and placed it carefully among the other things he carried. The pair set off toward the gates. The guard looked down sternly at the two of them as they approached. The branch was propped against the gate within his reach. Link hovered in the background as Malon stepped up to speak to him.

"Hi, Mr. Guard sir." She said in a I'm-a-sweet-little-girl voice. "I just wanted to ask you if you've seen my father yet. You know, I've had to spend the whole night under that tree, and I'm getting worried."

The guard looked sympathetic. "No, sweetie. I haven't seen him. I'm sure he's fine, though. They would have alerted us if anything had gone wrong."

Malon rubbed her eyes and sniffled. Link edged towards a door in the wall. It was only a few yards away from the gate, and Link broke out into a sweat. The guard clicked his tongue sympathetically and muttered something about irresponsible parents. He turned around and Link dashed into the door. Thankfully, it was open. It was a small chamber with a large ladder leading up to the top of the wall. Link heard music suddenly, and the guard singing. It appeared as if the guard was playing a lute in order to cheer Malon up.

Link began to climb the ladder. When the song ended, Malon cheered and asked for another. The ladder seemed to go on forever. It was during the guard's third song that Link finally emerged on the top of the tower. Link could see other guards patrolling the grounds in the distance. There was a knot in his stomach as he climbed on the wall and began crawling across the top of it on his stomach. Malon's attention was focused on the guard, but as soon as the guard looked away from her, she peered up at Link and winked. Link was crawling over their heads, and his heart was in his throat. It seemed like an eternity had passed when Link finally made it to the other end of the wall. Holding his breath, he swung over the side, hung on with his fingertips, and fell into the grass below.

The guard had not heard the soft thud over the music. Link scrambled to his feet and snuck off to crouch behind a bush. He heard Malon thank the guard and watched her walk back up the path. The guard put his lute away and took up his spear. Link trembled as he peered over the bush and saw half a dozen other guards patrolling the fields between him and the castle.