Link watched up at the clouds as Epona trotted through the forest that he now found them in. It had been a peaceful ride so far, and it was a beautiful day. It was hard for him to believe that he was once again on a quest to save the land of Hyrule, and maybe the world. He sighed loudly at the thought of adventure. It wasn't really something he was opposed to, but he wasn't really looking forward to it either.

He patted Epona's mane when she whinnied, letting her master know that she was getting tired. "Just a little further, girl," he assured her. "We'll stop and rest soon. You know I won't overwork you."

Epona whinnied again and gave the equine equivalent of a nod. It always amazed Link how the chestnut mare seemed to be able to understand him perfectly. They soon came upon a stream in the woods, and the young hero decided that it was time for that break. He dismounted Epona and led her closer to the stream, letting her drink as he checked his supplies. He made sure his bombs were secure and wouldn't explode when he didn't need them to, and checked all of his arrows to make sure that they were decently sharp and then checked the feathery ends were straight so that they wouldn't impede the arrows' speed and trajectory. It was a dull but necessary process.

His long ears twitched when they heard a sudden noise. He turned in the sound's direction, his hand on his sword's hilt, just in case there was a threat. He relaxed when he saw that it was just a rabbit. The small mammal dashed off at his sudden movement, as Link sighed at himself.

"Sheesh," he said out loud. Adventuring in unexplored areas always set him on edge. Possibly because of his ancestors' past adventures. "I really need to relax." He laid himself down on the ground, with his hands behind his head and his eyes toward the sky. He soon dozed off, feeling very comfortable in his grassy bed.

-o-

"Dammit!" Amaterasu complained as she gave painting with an actual paint brush another go. Painting with human hands was just so damn frustrating! She had always been used to using her tail to draw, but that was obviously a no-go now. "I can't even draw a decent circle with these things! Issun, help me out here, will you?"

Issun sighed in frustration. They had left Kamiki Village, and went beyond Nippon's borders, and were camping out in a small clearing at the moment. He was pretty much acting as Ammy's art teacher. It was a stressful job, to say the least.

"Look, Ammy," the tiny artist began simply. "Art is never perfect the first time around. It's like a person. You might not like the way it is at first, but given time, it could become your best friend. You just have to be patient."

"But what if I'm in a fight and can't use my Celestial Brush techniques?" she asked, but before her companion could answer, she suddenly panicked. "Oh, man! My Brush techniques! I always used them with my tail! I don't have any magical brushes on me! And would I fight to begin with? I have no idea how to use any of my Divine Instruments in this form! Crap! Where are those pieces of junk anyway!?"

Issun sighed yet again. Ever since becoming human, Ammy had been freaking about every little thing. It was kind of funny at first, but got annoying quickly. "Calm down, Ammy. Things'll get back to normal once we find this 'Hero of Twilight' guy. You'll see."

"I can only hope so!" the former she-wolf shouted with fire in her eyes. "When I get my hands on the guy who did this to me, you'd better believe that there's gonna be hell to pay!"

"It's not all bad, you know," Issun assured her. She gave him a strange look, as though he were crazy. "Your human form has an AWESOME rack!" Amaterasu just stared at the Poncle for several silent moments.

"I'm starting to see why human women hate guys like you," she deadpanned rather heartlessly.

Issun pouted for a few seconds, but soon sighed in defeat and said, "Come on, Ammy. We've still gotta find that hero guy." Amaterasu nodded and rolled up the painting scroll that Waka had given her to practice with. They then set off, continuing their search

-o-

Link was back on the road, riding Epona through a large, grassy field. It was pretty nice, really. A wide-open plain, the gentle breeze that made his hat soar, the sound odf Epona's hooves trotting across the ground. Nothing could ruin this moment.

Link immediately reached for his sword when he heard what sounded like a moonstrous roar. He quickly dismounted Epona and drew the Master Sword and his Hylian Shield, sinking into a battle stance. He soon discovered what had made the roar.

Approaching him was a large, four-legged monster that looked like a bizarre amalgamation between different animals and a giant teapot. Link raised an eyebrow at the unfamiliar creature and said, "You're a unique case, aren't you?" The monster roared at him and charged, trying to claw him to death with its tiger-like paws. The green-clad hero blocked the blow and sliced at the creature's exposed stomach. Its stomach wasn't as exposed as he thought it was, however, as the Master Sword only scraped against the monster's iron-like hide. Link jumped away from the monster and gave it an analytical look.

"This might be a little tough," he thought out loud. The monster glared at him. It apparently was also a fairly intelligent combatant, because it didn't immediately attack him again. It instead watched him with a strategic eye, waiting for him to leave an opening. Link smirked at his new opponent. "This is gonna be interesting." He ran straight at the beast, releasing a battle cry and holding his blade in a ready-to-strike position.

The monster unleashed its own battle cry as it charged at the Hylian. Link quickly ducked under the beast's attack - another claw swipe - and swung his blade at its head. The monster just barely reacted in time, dodging most of the young hero's attack. But the Master Sword was still able to nick the beast, and was able to work its holy magic on it. The monster felt searing pain in its neck shrieked in agony. It held its paws over the tiny cut on its throat, hissing and gasping in pain. Before the monster could continue fighting, Link quickly finished the fight with a quick decapitation. The monster's head rolled on the ground as its body collapsed, both parts eventually exploding into a dark, purple-colored mist.

Seeing that the fight was definitely over, Link sheathed his sword and shield and headed to Epona, who pretty much hadn't even budged. That wasn't much of a surprise to him. The mare gotten used to the presence of monsters and other sources of evil pretty quickly. It would take more than a demonic teapot to frighten her.

Having taken care of business, he mounted his horse again and said, "Come on, Epona. We've still got a ways to go." The chestnut mare whinnied in response and headed forward. As he rode his mare through the field, he had to wonder: exactly what was that thing that attacked him? It was unlike any other monster he had ever seen. He shook his head, pushing the thought out of his mind. He had more important things to worry about.

-o-

They had simply been walking (or in Issun's case, bouncing) throught the forest when Ammy literally tripped over her own feet. Again. She landed on the ground with a comical thud, but quickly sat up on her knees and screamed in frustration. "How the hell am I supposed to walk with only TWO feet!? How do humans live like this!?"

"Stop complaining, Ammy!" Issun shouted in an extremely annoyed tone. "Geez! And I thought your silence was what annoyed me the most about you!"

"Oh, shut up!" Ammy shouted at him. "Do you have any idea what it's like to all of sudden be in a totally different form than what your used to!? Its way less fun than you might think!"

"I don't think it's fun at all!" Issun shot back at her. "Just stop whining about it and keep walking!"

Amaterasu pouted at the Poncle, but stood up and started walking. So far, being human sucked.