From the moment he was able to walk Link had spent uncountable hours in the Faron and Lost Woods. He used to sneak off whenever it was time for his reading lessons with the Know-It-All Brothers or when Mido was being especially intolerable. He knew every fern, bush, shrub and tree within miles. It had been easy for young Link because the forest seemed to never change. Foresters and lumberjacks never made it farther than a few miles in and hunters had trouble maintaining their bearing after the Deku Oak started blocking out the sun. This, along with the Great Deku Tree's magic, prevented the home of the Kokiri from ever changing.
As Link and Nagina made their way to Kokiri Village, he could see that it had finally changed. Multiple trees had been felled to provide lumber for the 900 soldiers that were milling about. Fire pits had been dug, bushes and shrubs had been uprooted and tossed to the side to make a clearing.
The noise was chaotic. The braying of horses, clanging of swords, barked orders of commanders and chatting of idle soldiers reverberated through the woods with deafening magnitude. Link's heartrate spiked. The feeling was similar to when he had entered Castletown for the first time, a little boy from the woods who had never been surrounded by anything more than fifty or so children. The cacophony of the marketplace vendors, bustling adults, and squealing children had almost been too much for him.
A shrill high-pitched whistle yanked Link's attention to a tent where four soldiers were sitting around a fire. All of them were looking at Link and laughing. No, he realized, they were all staring at Nagina.
"Hey there, Love!" one of them called. The soldier calling for Nagina had shaggy brown hair and a chin that had gone weeks without the touch of a razor. Despite his messy hair his black leather boots were polished, his clothes appeared neat, and his chainmail looked well maintained.
"You should come on over here with me and the lads," he continued. He slapped the part of the log that was empty next to him. The other three soldiers smiled and bobbed their heads, encouraged by their leader's boldness.
Link looked over his shoulder to see Nagina's reaction. The Gerudo warrior slowly turned her head to the side and gave the men a bored look.
"I would sooner share a meal with worms," she called back turning her head forward.
Link chuckled, the four soldiers did not. The three looked at their leader to see how he would save their collective pride.
The shaggy haired soldier still had a smile on his face. "I would have thought a Gerudo would be thrilled to spend some time with a man." He shrugged his shoulders nonchalant. "But if it's true what they say about all the desert women being lesbians then I guess I'm barking up the wrong tree."
"Lesbian?" Link asked Navi quietly.
"On the contrary, a lesbian would love to share a meal with such pretty, small, hairy girls."
Other soldiers who'd been drawn over by Nagina and the conversation all "ooo'ed" at the shaggy haired soldier and his posse. Anger and embarrassment blossomed on the faces of the four. The leader rose to his feet and crossed his arms over his chest.
"That must make it even more embarrassing to know these 'small hairy girls' decimated your people in the war."
Link stopped mid-step, eyes widening. Did this soldier want to die?
"Tell me woman," the soldier continued. "Is it strange to see living men?"
Link spun around preparing to stop Nagina if she moved to draw her swords. More than twenty soldiers were circled around them, including the four, and more were being drawn in by curiosity every second. The shaggy haired man was pleased with himself for his insult and watched the Gerudo woman curiously.
Nagina, brought to a halt when Link had stopped, slowly turned to face the man with her whole body. Her jaw was clenched and Link could see her fingers twitching, ready to grab the hilt of her sword. To Link's relief she was able to control herself.
"The only man I see here is Link," she said setting her hand on the boy's shoulder. Everyone's gaze shifted from the fiery woman to the little boy with the giant purple sword on his back. The soldier raised an eyebrow then opened his mouth to speak but Nagina cut him off.
"But if anyone were able to defeat him in single combat. . ." she cocked her hip to the side, whipped her ponytail so that it fell over her bare left shoulder, dropped her chin, then offered her most lewd smile. "Maybe I could remember what a real man is."
The soldier's eyes lit up as he read into Nagina's challenge and its reward. Whispers rifled through the group of onlookers.
I am screwed, Link thought when he realized what Nagina had just done. He looked up at her incredulously, then back at the soldiers who were now staring at him hungrily.
"What's with that purple sword?" he heard someone in the crowd ask.
"He's not one of those forest kids is he?"
"Is she joking?"
"Maybe he's a midget sorcerer."
The shaggy haired soldier examined Link from head to toe, his cocky grin growing ever wider. "Well what say you, boy? Since you're the only man here, why don't you give me a shot?"
Casually he reached across his body and drew his sword from its scabbard. It was a plain, Hyrule-issued longsword, but that did not make its sharp edge or razor point any less dangerous.
Link brought his hands up in front of him. "I don't want to fight you," he said trying to deescalate the situation. He didn't even bother turning to Nagina for help, she seemed delighted by the turn of events.
The soldier took a step forward. "It's not a fight, just a little friendly sparring match." He pointed at Din's Wrath protruding over Link's shoulder. "Surely that giant weapon isn't just for show."
"It looks like you don't have much choice, Link," Navi said.
Link glared at Nagina once more then drew Din's Wrath. He took his stance immediately and focused on his opponent.
The man raised an eyebrow. "Ho ho ho! What do you know? The kid's got guts." Laughs and cheers bounced through the crowd. "Try not to get hurt, kid." The soldier lunged forward.
"Impa's coming!" someone shouted from the back of the crowd. Like mice when the cellar door is kicked open, the onlookers scrambled to get away and make themselves look busy. The shaggy haired soldier had his sword in its sheath faster than Link could blink. He gave Link one last arrogant, bemused grin then turned around to busy himself with the gear inside his tent.
Sure enough Impa was picking her way through the soldiers' clearing, making a beeline for Link and Nagina. The Gerudo woman bowed as the Sheikah approached.
"Malukha."
Impa nodded her head then gestured back the way she came. "May I join you two on your walk to the village?" She scanned the area around them, searching for a soldier who was bold enough to make eye contact with her. None so bold were in the clearing.
"Um, of course," Link said sheathing Din's Wrath. "It's good to see you too, Impa."
"You were only gone a week," Impa said turning her back and heading for the village. Link and Nagina looked at each other then fell in behind the Sheikah. "I was not expecting you for another week. I presume you took a shortcut through the Zora Domain."
"How'd you know that?" Link asked. He'd considered their shortcut to be a stroke of brilliance.
The three of them stepped around a row of tents brimming with gear, swords, plate male and the sort.
"Kaepora Gaebora is out scanning the fields for you," Impa replied. "And you've returned without Epona in such a small amount of time."
"Well, yeah I guess," Link said quietly with a shrug.
"And you smell like fish."
As they continued through the forest Link could see his initial impression was correct, the woods had changed. Impa explained that with the 923 soldiers more than 1200 civilians had made the trip into the woods. Hundreds of trees had to be cleared to provide shelter and accommodate the two thousand souls. Link's first question was how all of his had been accomplished in little more than a week. The answer was the Gorons. Shortly after Link left with Nabooru and Nagina the Gorons had led the deserters and their loved ones through their tunnels into the forest. One hundred of King Darunia's people had been ordered to stay behind and help the Hylians settle in.
Link's next question was concerning the Kokiri, specifically Saria and the Know-It-All brothers. Impa assured Link that everything had been done with permission of the Forest Sage. The answer didn't sit well with the boy though, he wondered what the Great Deku Tree would have thought. When Link asked about the Kokiri villagers Impa assured him that the children were safe. There was a mile of vacant forest between the farthest Hylian and the edge of the village. The Hylians had been forbidden from entering the village but there was no way to prevent curious Kokiri from peeking into the camps.
Cutting Link off Nagina began to inform Impa why they had arrived so early. Impa listened the whole time without any sort of reaction until Nagina mentioned Ganondorf's mothers. A slight tick in the side of Impa's face was the only hint of emotion. Aside from that, it appeared to Link that Impa had expected such results from their trip.
Just as Impa had said, the last Hylian tent, which was really more of a finely built cabin, was miles away from the village. As they arrived dusk was nearing but it was not so dark that the children had retreated to their homes. Link breathed a sigh of relief as he saw Ryen and Latia skipping through the streets. Some things had managed to remain the same.
"The girls will want to see you, Link," Impa said when they had passed through the center of the village. "Go to them. Nagina and I will be under your balcony."
"You're more than welcome to go on inside," Link said with a shake of his head. It seemed to be part of Impa's nature to always be so formal.
The Sheikah inclined her head and she and Nagina began to split away.
"Hey, Nagina," Link said stopping her. The woman raised an eyebrow. "That soldier's words were not lost on me. I'm sorry for having ever used them." Link lowered his head apologetically.
Nagina only smirked, dismissed the boy with a wave of her hand, then turned and left.
"That was good of you, Link." Navi said.
Link turned towards Saria's house. "Yea but I don't think it'll be enough to stop the Hylians. We should tread carefully whenever we go through their camp."
Navi hummed in agreement.
Link was wondering how Sheik, Saria, and Malon would greet him when an eerie sight stopped him dead in his tracks. The "Kokiri" known as Shylock was sitting atop Saria's roof dangling his legs over the side with his hands folded in his lap. He seemed to be staring up at the moon contemplatively.
"What are you doing there, Shylock?" Link demanded as he approached. If the man disguised as a Kokiri heard the boy he didn't show it. "Don't make me come up there, Shylock."
The man/child sighed woefully. "It should be falling right now," he said in a voice that was strangely slow for the mask salesman.
"What should be falling?" Link asked walking around to the side of the house so he wasn't standing outside Saria's door.
"But then again, it should not be falling right now."
Link glanced at Navi, imagining that her little fairy face was as perplexed as his.
"Shylock what are you talking about?"
"Not that it bothers me, mind you," he continued, ignoring the boy. "It is always risky when other gods decide to play in this world."
"You are freaking me out. Get off of Saria's roof or I'll knock you down with my boomerang." He'd left the weapon in his saddlebag on Epona but the creepy man/child didn't need to know that.
Shylock finally tore his gaze away from the faint moon and looked lazily at Link. He seemed to think for a moment then pushed himself off with both hands and landed on the ground with an "oof". He looked at Link with strangely sad eyes.
"When you left I had hoped you would bring joy back with you," his speech was still slow, normal by most people's standards, but slow for the Happy Mask salesman. "But I fear you have brought only tragedy. It is not too late to travel with me as my employee." He seemed almost hopeful as he said those last words.
Link shook his head, more than a little off put by the man/child's queer behavior. "I will not leave Hyrule until Ganondorf is defeated."
Shylock dropped his head in defeat then trudged past Link and Navi. "I fear this quest will be even heavier than the moon."
"What do you think he was talking about?" Link asked Navi as soon as Shylock was out of earshot.
"I don't know," Navi replied. "But he always gives me the strangest feeling."
Telling himself he was being ridiculous Link glanced up at the moon. It was still a few days until the full moon and it wasn't quite dark enough to see the stars. "Me too, Navi. Me too." With a final shake of his head Link knocked on Saria's door, then was ushered in.
"Link!" the three girls cried. They all rushed over to hug him. Despite himself Link couldn't stop the huge smile from spreading across his face.
"We missed you!" Saria said. She was the first to wrap her arms around Link, followed closely by Malon and then Sheik. Sheik was a little more reserved than the other two as she joined the group hug.
"I was only gone a week," Link tried to say nonchalant.
"Why are you all wet?" Saria asked not pulling away.
Link waited until the group hug was over then told the girls everything that had happened after he left with Nabooru and Nagina. Malon was none too pleased that Epona had been left behind but she restrained herself from berating Link too badly. Link chose to exclude the run in with the would-be thieves but he did go into great detail about the Spirit Temple and the Iron Knuckle. Sheik nearly attacked him when he started talking about Ganondorf's mothers.
"Shhhhh!" she hissed putting her hand over Link's mouth. Everyone, including Link, looked at the girl curiously. "You cannot utter a witch's name without her hearing you," Sheik explained.
"Really?" Link asked, more than a little creeped out.
Sheik nodded seriously. "When a witch's name is spoken aloud she can hear everything that's spoken afterwards for a certain period of time. Powerful witches can even be summoned just by their names."
Malon shivered off to the side. Suddenly Saria's hut was too cold and dark for the girl.
Sheik continued, "If you know their names, it would be wise to never speak them. Give them a nickname and refer to them only with that."
"Err, if that's the case I'd rather not talk about them at all," Link said.
Malon's hand shot up in the air. "I second that!"
Everyone laughed which helped warm up the room and clear the air.
"So that was my adventure," Link said after taking a seat. "What have you all been up to?"
One by one the girls shared their past week with Link. As the boy had suspected, everyone had their hands full with the newly arrived soldiers and their families. Malon had immediately seen to the horses and mounts of the arriving men. She'd worked right alongside the squires in helping setup an acceptable stable as well as securing water and feed for the troughs. As it turned out she knew most of the cavalry soldiers as they'd all been to Lon Lon Ranch at one point or another. Link hadn't expected there to be a cavalry unit at all, so he wasn't surprised when their numbers were less than one hundred.
Saria had taken full charge of the Kokiri children, who had become rambunctious as of late. She had teamed up with the Know-It-All Brothers and found tasks to assign most everyone in the village to keep them busy. There was about as much follow through on those tasks as one would expect from children but Saria assured Link that it was helping. Of course the Kokiri would not be helping much in the coming battle but Saria saw no need for them to not contribute.
When Link asked about Mido, the girls shared a look. Ever since the Hylians showed up Mido had been in a mood. He despised the big people and would have nothing to do with them. Link thought their presence would comfort the ornery Kokiri since their noise, size, and smell was deterring monsters in the woods but it was just the opposite. According to Saria, Mido had come to crave his role as protector. He'd developed a taste for combat. Now that the Hylians scared off all his "game" Mido would venture as far as the Forest Temple and beyond, sometimes camping out in the woods overnight, to fight foes. Unsure of what creature did it, Saria reported that one day Mido had returned after a three day absence and the wooden shield Link had given him had been smashed to bits. He was likely in the woods this very night with a makeshift shield of his own design.
Link got the sense that Sheik was reluctant to share anything about her past week. All she would say was that she would chip in here and there to be helpful, then spent the rest of her time "preparing for what is to come" whatever that meant. Saria and Malon both averted their gazes while Sheik spoke and Link couldn't help but wonder if something had happened. Whatever it was, now probably wasn't the best time to ask, he decided.
"So are we training tomorrow morning?" Link asked Sheik when it was clear she had nothing further to share.
"I'm afraid not," Sheik said with a shake of her head. "In fact, I don't think you and I will have another lesson until this is all over."
"Oh," Link said a little disappointed. Sheik's training had proven incredibly valuable during his clash with the marsh bandits, and it was a great way to keep his mind occupied. "What will I be doing then?"
Sheik assumed her very adult-like posture and voice. "Well, you have nine days to familiarize yourself with the Hylian, Zora, and Goron forces. I imagine Impa will want you to be fully engaged in that. There are also last minute factors and strategies that need to be taken into account now that the number of soldiers at your disposal is no longer theoretical. On top of all that," Sheik continued, "I am sure that Impa will want you to get one last look at the layout of Hyrule Field. There are plenty of pressing tasks for you over the next nine days."
Link scratched the surface of Saria's wooden table with this thumb nail. During his week with Nabooru and Nagina he'd forgotten how massive he responsibility in the forest was.
"Yeah, I suppose you're right."
The four of them sat there in silence for a moment, each contemplating what the coming week would bring, then after that, the battle. Each child had their own idea of what the battlefield would bring but they each knew the conjurings of their imaginations would somehow fall short of the actually chaos that lie ahead.
"It's late, Link," Sheik finally said. "We won't be going anywhere for a while. Why don't you get some rest and we'll all have breakfast together in the morning?" Sheik smiled sweetly and brought her hands together. The gesture reminded Link of a much older woman.
"Sounds good. Apparently I smell like fish anyway so I'll get out of here."
He heard Malon giggle then leave over towards Saria.
"I wasn't going to mention it," she whispered.
"Have a good night you three."
Link realized exactly how tired he was as he made his way over towards his home. All the cliff diving, swimming, and plunging through dark tunnels had finally caught up to him. He got to his ladder and peaked into Impa's lean-to. Of course the Sheikah was nowhere to be seen. Goddesses forbid that woman ever be caught sleeping.
Link ascended his ladder and stretched on balcony. He kicked off his boots and shed his now crusty dried tunic. He had a spare in the chest in his room, he'd wear that one tomorrow.
"It'll be nice to sleep in my own bed tonight," Link said to Navi as he passed through his doorway.
"I wouldn't be so sure about that," Navi said. His fairy companion dimmed her glow and hovered over Link's bed. A large lump was visible and soft, deep breathing could be heard.
"Who in the. . ." he crept forward and gently pulled the top of the covers down. Nagina, was comfortably and pleasantly lost in sleep, curled up in Link's bed.
Link let out a quiet sigh and slowly returned the covers to their spot. "That woman," he muttered quietly. Making no more noise than a mouse Link crept to his chest, pulled out his flax blanket, and laid down on his hard wooden floors.
"Goodnight, Navi," Link said.
"Goodnight, Link."
Link looked over at Nagina suspiciously. Nothing, she was still lost in her dreams.
Good, he thought to himself, and let his own tiredness consume him.
Author's Note: Almost there. For serious this time, the battle is just around the corner. Again, no action this chapter but now you know the soldiers and their loved ones are staged and ready. Admittedly there are going to be one or two more uneventful chapters preparing us for the battle.
On a side note, what are your (the reader) thoughts on some of my characters? Nagina is an original character and I know some people vehemently oppose the use of such. Same with Angler. I've changed Mido a decent amount and Shylock is still a weirdo. I think most everyone else has stayed consistent with how the games and inadvertently other fanfics present them. Impa is a badass, Saria is a good friend, Malon is a sweet little girl, Ruto is an entitled princess and so on and so forth. Since there isn't a whole lot else going on in this chapter I would love to hear your thoughts. PM or otherwise.
Thanks for reading!