[AN: I had no idea what a lot of the monsters in The Legend of Zelda were called, hence the terms "orc", "goblin", "vulture dragon", and "boarcharger" (wut). The names I did know, I knew from playing Ocarina of Time. Also, the scene where Link explains the purple chus was almost bad enough for me to not post this chapter.]
I woke slowly. It was barely light. The sky was pink with the light of the slowly emerging sun. I saw the morning star, still twinkling in the west. I smiled. I was so, warm, so drowsy, so comfortable . . .
Wait.
There was something on me.
I snapped awake and looked over, to see Link's arm. I tentatively poked at it, and heard Link groan. The arm shifted.
I gulped and rolled over. I was still outside. I looked over at Link, lying on the ground, still half naked. His eyes flickered blindly under his eyelids. He grunted and murmured, "No . . . n . . . no . . . you . . . can't . . . no . . . stoppit! Unh . . ." His eyes fluttered open. "Hmm . . . mm?" He stretched and yawned. "Mornin'."
I got up and brushed myself off. "Mornin'," I said, sort of bluntly. "If you could call it 'Mornin''."
Link scratched his side, the side with the wound. "Yeah . . . hrrmmmmhh . . ."
I gestured to the bloody patch on the makeshift bandage. "How's it feel?"
Link grimaced. "It's . . . better."
I walked up to him, saying, "I need to wash that. It's too bloody; it could get infected." I held out my hand.
Link leaned backwards and began untying the long strip of cloth, which he gave to me. As he did so, our hands brushed. I pulled back in surprise, holding the cloth. Link flexed his fingers on his partially outstretched hand, and pulled back as well. He murmured something about breakfast and hurriedly walked into the cave. I turned to watch him enter the cave and almost called out to him. But I thought better of it and walked to the river to wash the bandage.
We spent breakfast in silence. The first time Link would speak to me since that morning would be breakfast, when he said, "We should get going. If we stay too long, Ganondorf could get away." As he said "Ganondorf", he looked at me with a strange look.
I bit my lip. "Alright. What such dangers will we face ahead?"
Link paused in his chore of packing. "Well . . . orcs, goblins, Lizalfos, vulture dragons, boarchargers, and the occasional stallwolf, not to mention deku babas, keese, crows, and—though rare—maybe . . ." He stopped and shuddered. He turned to me and beckoned me closer. I tentatively stepped forward. Link leaned inward, and I followed suit. "Re-dead. Terrible things. As they say, 'When they scream, all is lost.' They freeze you up, then strike hard. I still have a scar from that. Eurgh." He shuddered again. "Imagine; the last thing you know in this god-blessed land is the shriek of a horrible mummified warrior and empty eye sockets staring back at you." He licked his lips. "Oh! And chus."
I cocked my head. "Chus?"
Link nodded. "Jelly-like creatures. Many colors. Each color jelly has a different effect. Purple—oh, don't bother with purple. They either make you a little healthier or weaken you, depending on whims. Their jelly is thick, so when the Chu dies, the jelly soaks into the ground slowly . . . very slowly . . ." He slowly ran his hand up my arm. "Yes . . . slooowwwlyy . . ." I closed my eyes for a moment, almost enjoying the ticklish sensation of Link's fingers running up my forearm . . . past my elbow . . . up my shoulder . . . to my neck . . . (Oh, keep in mind he had no shirt on. Ugh.)
I opened my eyes. My cheek was now in his hand. Link was looking at me tenderly, like a father to a child, or . . .
I grunted and pulled back. "What else?"
Link cleared his throat. "Red. Ah. Yes. Red. Their jelly acts much like a Red Potion. Blue acts like a Red Potion as well, but it does its job much better. Yellow burns easily, so you could use it in a lamp or as a fire starter. Then there's gold. Very potent. It heals you fully—physically and, it's said, mentally. It quickens thought and reaction time. But, the jelly is very runny, so it soaks quickly." Link clapped his hands together and rubbed them. "Well, your brief lesson on monsters is over. I hope you learned a thing or two."
By afternoon, we were out in the open, in Hyrule Field. Link talked to about firsthand experiences with hordes of goblins, clans of orcs, packs of Stallwolves, duos and even trios of Re-deads, and gigantic Purple Chus over 20 feet long.
". . . So I just slashed and stabbed at the huge purple mass, but it only divided into smaller ones—first 10 feet, then 5, then about three feet, then finally one foot long—by then there were 16 chus—but just as they were about to jump on me, I swung around my sword like this and WHAM! All 16—blllrrbllllzzzz . . . down into the ground. Bleh. That's when I thought, 'What does it taste like?' Drank 12 bottles before realizing it made me weaker sometimes, so I stopped. Not too tasty, but Über-addictive. Like mead. Or rum."
I giggled at Link's story. "So, if that was your #2 most favorite moment, what was #1?"
Link suddenly went quiet. "Well . . ."
"Come on!" I pleaded. "Just tell me! I can keep a secret!"
Link stopped the horse he was riding. I stopped the one I was riding, too. "You'd kill me . . ." He looked over at me apologetically.
I shifted my horse sideways. "Whisper it into my ear."
Link looked at me, blinked, and hesitantly leaned towards me. I turned my head so that he could whisper into my ear.
At first, Link said nothing. Then I felt warm pressure on my cheek. My eyes widened and my jaw dropped.
Link whispered, "That was it."
After Link's kiss, we sort of stopped talking. Link made an occasional comment about the weather, which told me he wanted to say something, but he didn't want to say it. I know. Because I commented about the foliage.
Our conversation:
Me: Nice trees here.
Link: Mm-hm.
Silence.
Link: Judging by the clouds, we might get rain.
Me: Yeah.
Link: Good for the crops.
Me: Mmm.
Silence.
Me: The grass looks healthier here than where we stayed last night.
Link: Well, the grass is always greener on the other side of the river!
Me: Tee hee!
Silence.
So, it went on like that for a while; Us riding in silence, then commenting on the weather or the foliage, and occasionally fending off the odd orc or deku baba. But, at one point, we saw a large, moving speck in the distance.
Link grimaced. "Why him?"
I looked to Link with scared eyes. "Who?"
Link pointed at the mass in the distance, now getting closer. "The Orc King. And he has backup."
[AN: The chapter names ware exactly as they were in the original Flower-Covered Journal. Next chapter is called "I Almost Die, But Don't Somehow". I kid you not. Hoooooly cow.]