Sorry for the hiatus, I've been working on proof reading and getting my first real fiction ready to print so got a bit distracted by that. Arg. Anyway, this is the last chapter before the story kicks in (I/e the last dull chapter!) BTW, thanks to everyone that checked out my other stories. Remember to review.
Chapter Three
"The Hylian Bass is one of the more common species. Its flesh is especially good when combined with the juice of one lemon, some oil and terminian sea-salt. It's natural habitat is lakes, such as Lake Hylia, although it has been found more recently in larger rivers. Of up most interest is the fact that its scales are iridescent and stronger than some metals, the average lifespan is twenty years although in captivity they have been known to live longer."
Impa ground her teeth. She wished there was a way to shut Kru up. He had been talking about fish for the last two hours. She glared at him. Oblivious to her annoyance, Kru pushed his bottle-top spectacles higher up on his nose with a finger and continued reading aloud from the mouldy book he had brought along as a little light entertainment on the journey.
"Isn't there any way to make this carriage go any faster?" She murmured partly to herself, partly to Rauru who was seated next to her. Rauru smiled at her but did not reply. Although he could not admit to finding Kru's conversation in any way interesting, he certainly preferred it to sitting like a gooseberry in between him and Impa, whilst they argued about anything and everything. Over the course of nearly twenty years of close companionship with the pair, he had learnt the art of being a peacemaker.
Unfortunately, sitting in the middle seat of a smallish, rather smelly carriage that jolted across badly worn roads was part and parcel of being the most benevolent of the three Hylian judges.
They had been on the road since dawn. It was now early evening. The only thing keeping Rauru's flagging spirits up was the thought that they were surely near Lake Hylia now. He hoped so otherwise he would throw Kru out of the carriage himself.
"The Zora," Kru's monotonous voice interrupted his thoughts, "Now they are something special. Although not yet recognised officially as a new species, they are certainly an interesting folk. There have been two recorded sightings of these fish-people in the last year, and whilst this suggests a tiny population, many scientists believe that there are hundreds of them hiding in our rivers. They are said to grow to heights beyond our own and are amphibious. Their skin is said to be as beautiful as moonlight and they are supposedly elegant and graceful. It doesn't say whether they taste good though. Then again, if they are intelligent creatures, should we even consider them as viable prey? What do you think, they certainly look edible - here, look at this picture!"
"I have no desire to look at any pictures." Snapped Impa. She thrust the book offered to her offended vision back at Kru.
"But just look." Urged Kru.
"No."
"It's very interesting."
"I don't care."
Rauru rolled his eyes and as the book came by his chest for the fifth time, he snatched it from them both. "You are behaving like children." He said as he closed the book and placed it on his lap. Sometimes he suspected that even the most stubborn of children would not behave as badly as his comrades.
"But the Zora are fascinating." Moaned Kru as his bony fingers reached towards the book. Rauru stopped him with a look.
"Hmph, I am not childish." Stated Impa as she crossed her arms across her chest and stared pointedly out of the window. The wide Hyrule field stretched to either side of the carriage. Torrents of rain lashed down and the clouds were so thick she could barely see the sun as it set.
She wondered if 'Link' would be at their rendezvous on time. She placed little faith in their newest recruit. In her opinion, all men were useless and lazy. If one wanted a job doing, one should do it oneself. The only problem with that theory was that she had no way of accomplishing her goals. Her face was easily recognisable in Hyrule. She had made herself notorious, seeking fame in her youth. Only now did it catch up with her. She did not regret her life one bit. She was wealthy and powerful. She had nearly everything that she wanted. She objected to placing her trust in a man she only knew from brief correspondence. If only she could have found that spy – Lia – or whatever her name was. There had been talk of her in Hyrule some months back. She had carried out an assassination on one of their people. Apparently an anonymous Gerudo had employed her. She had killed Daphnes daughter, Emaela. The methods used were subtle and even though Impa could not approve of the mission, she had been impressed.
Of course the spy had vanished. They had only known her name, or the name she had used at the time for there was no guarantee that it was her true name. Of course, they would recognise her if they saw her again, such beauty was not easily forgotten. Impa herself had spoken to the girl on many occasions and was surprised by her height and had been rather jealous of her shimmering black curls.
She would have been perfect for the job. But she had been untraceable and so they had to go to plan B and employ an unknown entity to do their dirty work. The only time that ever worked was when the said entity was a slave. She did not think this plan would work well. Especially with her comrades in charge - one was blindingly foolish, the other blindingly ignorant. She sneered as she looked out of the window.
Impa remained in stoic silence until after the three judges had eaten at the infamous Old Tavern. Their journey had not been the happiest of times together. Kru mourned the loss of his book (which Impa had eventually launched out of the window when Kru had managed to sneak it out of Rauru's grasp); Rauru had had his legendary patience stretched to the point of breaking when the ensuing argument had raged between his fellows and Impa had sulked in silence when Rauru pointed out how inane the said argument was. They arrived in stony silence, neither speaking to the other.
It was thanks to the wonderful quality of the service and standard of food provided by the innkeeper Kafei and his wife Anju that eased the tensions between them.
"Have you any other visitors at this time, Innkeeper?" Asked Impa as she sipped on her after-dinner wine. If this form of demeaning address offended Kafei he did not show it. He merely bowed and said, "The Inn is a popular one, ma'am. As a policy I do not disclose the names of any of my visitors to any other party."
Impa glared at him and he smiled back peacefully. "I demand to know the answer from you!"
Kafei bowed again, "I am desolated to disoblige you, my lady, but I will not disclose any information to you."
"Don't you know who we are?"
"Yes."
"Well, I demand the answer to my question."
"You may demand as much as you like but you will not get the information you desire from me. I am sorry but that is my policy."
With a final, respectful bow the innkeeper withdrew from the room leaving two of the three judges fuming. Impa was offended, Kru was annoyed with her for mishandling the situation, and Rauru was thoughtfully contemplating the contents of his wine goblet.
"Now what? We don't know if that idiot has arrived yet." Muttered Impa. Kru instantly retorted that it was all her fault. Rauru continued scrutinizing the contents of his goblet.
"I am sure if and when our friend arrives, we will be informed of the matter." He said calmly.
"It's all very well and good you saying that, you always think the best of everybody!" Exclaimed Kru, turning his frustration towards the one man who never appeared to get frustrated. "That innkeeper is hiding something, we must discover what it is."
"And how do you propose to do that?" Asked Rauru. "You cannot sneak around the inn, looking in each room. People have a right to their privacy and it is admirable that the innkeeper is willing to be so devoted to his guests' interests."
"It is not admirable. It is irritating. He is an disrespectful, uncultured slob." Announced Impa.
"He is none of those things." Rauru smiled at her irritation. "He is a discreet man. You just think ill of him because he would not bow to your request. You must know that not everything you demand can be given to you."
"We could sneak a look at their guest book." Said Kru. Apparently he had not heard the last few minutes of conversation and was still planning on discovering the inn's secrets.
"You must not do that." Said Rauru hastily. Really his fellow judges were getting out of hand. "What would they think when they caught you?"
"What do you mean 'when they caught you'? I wouldn't get caught!" Retorted Kru.
"You would. You're about as subtle as an elephant." Snapped Impa. "I could do it."
"I have said that nobody will attempt to do such a thing. Now, unless you wish to directly go against my wishes, I request that you refrain from doing anything that would make us more notorious than we already are. We have already created a stir by coming here. We must not let King Aganhim suspect a thing." Rauru visibly shuddered at the thought of that monster as their king.
"I know that." Snapped Impa, irritated by the way Rauru was yet again talking to her as if she was one of his students. "I am merely wary about our surroundings. How can we trust this innkeeper if he won't even reassure us of our safety."
"We can't, of course." Said Rauru, "We can trust him though. You should learn to trust people more, Impa."
Trusting people more was one thing Impa was not prepared to do. For the second time again, she folded her arms across her chest and pouted.
The undercurrent of hostility ran between Rauru and Impa for the rest of the evening. Even Kru, who was normally so lost in his own greatness, began to notice the tension. If anyone fell out it was he and Impa, Rauru had never before angered her so. Kru wished he still had his book on fish to keep him occupied, for then he would have an excuse for not paying any attention to either of them.
Kru distracted himself with thoughts of how soon their sell-sword would appear and what he would be like when he arrived. His expectations were low. The mercenaries they had hired in the past had not exactly been noted for their glorious victories. In fact, they had been lucky to be still alive at the end of their adventures. Only Rauru had faith in their latest recruit. Kru personally believed that they had hired an escaped lunatic, and he knew a lot about them.
Impa, he knew, thought that the mercenary would be less than useless. Then again, she thought anybody not female was less than useless. She should have been a Gerudo, thought Kru with a slight smile. He was not brave enough to make that suggestion to her. Being of Sheikah descent, the very word Gerudo was a profanity to Impa. Kru always thought it odd that such a strong feminist would dislike such a powerful matriarchal society with such passion.
They had arrived at the inn a day early for their assignation with the so-called Link. Of course, thanks to Impa's intervention, they had no idea if he had arrived yet. They had booked a private sitting room and had requested not to be disturbed. The innkeeper may not have shown them any respect when dealing with their demands but he certainly was capable of leaving them be.
Without the prospect of even getting to stare at the innkeeper's pretty wife, Anju, Kru foresaw a long, very long evening ahead. He looked over to where Rauru and Impa sat at opposite sides of the fire, each politely ignoring the other, and sighed.
tell me what you think! Press that little review button! PS sorry if Impa is OOC but didn't she strike anyone else as slightly grumpy?!
