The attic was much larger than Sable expected, perhaps another one of Koume's spells at work. It easily dwarfed the space she lived in at the observatory. Much to her surprise she could also stand quite comfortably in it. A hole in the floor led down to Koume's living room and two round windows stared at each other from opposite ends of the room. The ceiling appeared to be lined with the membranous wings of an unknown insect, probably to waterproof it. Sable placed her bag on the ground and began to unpack her belongings. An empty chest remained near one of the windows and a mattress was unfurled on the floor.

Upon closer inspection of the floor boards and supporting beams one could see an accumulation of symbols and pictures. How many of Sable's descendants followed the same rites of passage by the demands of Midna? The time frame alone boggled her mind as she tried to accurately guess how old this collection of new people in her life was. Also as to which ancient era they belonged to and if so, what mysteries in Termina's past could they unveil? The answers to these questions had gotten the better of her reasoning. If she had to learn about magic and hunting monsters to get them, then it was a necessary part of the journey.

"Ah, good, you've settled in," Koume said as she poked her head up "Now come along, it's late and it's time you meet some of the locals over dinner."

She did not want to argue with the witch out of fear of getting on the wrong side of her. Sable followed Koume out of the hut as the witch slammed a large 'closed' sign on the door. Like a duck to water, Koume mounted an old rickety broom and soared off downstream. She wildly waved back with one hand to Sable as she disappeared into the distance.

A short walk in ankle deep water downstream came to a split in the river. The right fork ventured into deeper waters and through the unknown darkness of the swamps. The left fork was where Koume had flown and appeared to be shallower, yet the plants were denser. The narrow corridor of trees and rock walls ended in a wide glade with a waterfall cascading down an eastern cliff side. Even in the south, the Stone Towers loomed over the horizon like the Eastern Giant was watching over them.

The shallow river widened to a small lake around a gigantic tree. The trunk was riddled with various ladders and wooden platforms leading to a home among the high branches. A red and white kettle shaped building perched on its nest like a fat bird. Its chimney expelling colourful clouds of smoke that faded into the sky. On the lower platforms were unfathomably large vats and pots, Sable guessed they could even fit a Goron in them.

Behind the strange tree house was an ominous opening into the forest. Although the strange darkness that cloaked the entrance screamed that those were no ordinary woods. The rest of the glade was solid ground with a path leading back to the north. A large fire pit was dug just to Sable's left on the far side of the glade. A familiar armoured caravan had set up camp near the welcoming flames. The weary horses rested on the soft earth near the clear water. The caravan was reinforced with a steel frame gilded with golden patterns. Many fearsome iron masks were also carved and bolted to the edges to proudly herald the owner's presence wherever she rode.

A large cauldron bubbled over a corner of the pit where a witch was tending to the brew. Strangely enough she appeared to be identical to Koume in every way aside from favouring blue over red in her fashion choices. She hovered over the cauldron and was tossing in various powders while balancing on her broom. Over the flames was an elaborate spit from the spears of a warrior. An animal carcass had been skinned and was now rotating over the fire under Onox's supervision.

Koume landed beside the other witch and began telling her something privately. It was not overly private though as they used a lot of exaggerated arm gestures as they spoke. Finally the witch in blue floated over to Sable who was just approaching the campsite. She dismounted her broom and smirked "So you're Stalfos and Ambi's kid? We'll see what you're made of in the weeks to come." She shot a knowing smile back to Koume who had taken over watching the cauldron. "By the way, call me Kotake, I'm Koume's beautiful twin sister."

Koume piped up defiantly "Don't listen to her, I'm the beautiful one!"

"Don't listen to her, she's as mad as a bat out of hell," Kotake jested, she then gestured to Onox who waved to Sable nervously "That is Onox, he's part Gomess like you as well, so is Veran… actually," her voice lifted to a scream, startling the nearby crows in the process "VERAN! STOP BEING RUDE!" she then glared back at Onox "And comb your hair young man, looks like lightning struck you and then you fell in a river!" In response he quickly ran his hands through his hair and tried to smooth it down. Kotake then rested her chin in her hand "That's a little better I suppose… And where is Ganny and Iris? They should've been back from picking mushrooms hours ago."

"It's nice to meet you Kotake," Sable thought afterwards 'I think?'

The caravan door then opened as a voluptuous woman emerged, her hands were stained with ink from drawing constantly. Sable guessed her to be at least five or six years older than her. Her pale skin was slightly blue in the light of the fire and one could see the blue blood vessels that pulsed beneath it. Bright orange hair that shimmered like a flame was cut to her scalp on the right side of her head. The left side of her face was framed by long curved locks that resembled a taloned claw. She wore a tight bodice decorated with eye patterns and long sarong trailing with silver hoops at her waist. A pair of tights covered her legs and she wore matching silver bangles and anklets.

"Wow, it's really her," Sable felt giddy at meeting the young rising artist "It's really Veran."

Veran narrowed her golden eyes at Sable and muttered to herself "A half blood Gomess? I thought there weren't any in the younger generations." She noticed Sable's dumbstruck gaze "What're you looking at, kid?"

"I… uh…" Sable's face turned red "It's just I'm such a fan of your work. Your masks are so beautifully made it's like the monster has possessed the person and they're right there." She exhaled "Sorry, you must get this a lot."

"Not as often as you think," Veran laughed to herself, brushing a loose wave of hair behind her pointed ear "Well, it's nice to have another girl to talk to. I take it that we will get to know one another better." She pointed to Onox "He may be chivalrous and polite but that goes right out the window when he's angry."

He protested loudly behind them "My anger is not that bad! You know my motto is to be a gentleman at all times."

Her hands made air quotes as she reminded "If by 'at all times' you really mean, 'when you feel like it' or 'you haven't gotten carried away and remember that you have to be civil'. It's like having a pet dragon, your temper is reminiscent of a dodongo that's eaten a bomb flower." Veran smiled back at him "Lucky you have a sister like me to keep you in check."

Sable went to his defence "I don't know what you mean Miss Veran, I met Ox earlier and he was very nice to me."

"Call me Veran, and he was only nice because you're on Ox's good side," she leant in and whispered to Sable "Don't ever get on his bad side. I've seen it and it's terrifying."

The rustling of plants heralded the final companions to join the campsite. A tall dark skinned man with hair the colour of blood emerged from the Woods of Mystery. His amber eyes looked fierce yet he was dressed in rather simple dark clothes with a heavy looking pack of mushrooms on his back. Two machetes were sheathed on his thick leather belt along with a few pouches. The man was quite fearsome to behold with a powerful aura better suited to a warrior on the battlefield, not a farmer.

In tow was a much shorter Deku Scrub with bright yellow eyes. It appeared to be female with long leaves for hair that reached below her waist. Strangely she appeared to be dressed like a witch, wearing a similar dress to Koume and Kotake. The key difference was the purple gem resting at the base of her wooden neck. At first the Deku walked alongside the imposing man, then she ducked behind him once she caught sight of Sable.

He dumped his heavy pack on the ground and cracked his spine with an arch of his back "That ought to keep you in business for most of the year."

"Thankyou Ganondorf," Kotake looked to Sable "He's the grandson of Koume and I, such a good boy, collecting mushrooms for his grandmothers."

Ganondorf drained his water skin, he glanced back to Sable and nodded "Oh, another Gomess in need of training?" He smirked "Relax, I'm a warlock. You don't need to hide it from me." Sensing something was amiss, he looked between his legs "Iris? What are you doing?"

The Deku was curled up on the ground, she timidly lifted her head to catch a glimpse of Sable before burying it in the dirt again. Ganondorf scooped her up with one arm "Say hello."

Iris merely waved back nervously before leaping from his arm. She landed on the ground and scurried off to hide beneath the caravan. Veran laughed out loud, taking a seat around the fire "See what I meant Sable, you and I are probably the only sane ones here."

"How am I considered insane?" Ganondorf grumbled aloud, accusingly pointing at Koume and Kotake who were busy sorting through the mushrooms he'd gathered "I'm here because I'm related to those old hags, not because I choose to be."

She pouted at him "And yet you still won't go out with me?"

He took a seat next to her "Veran I have better things to do with my time than pursue romance."

"Like picking mushrooms."

"Well, they're part of my side business." He slyly added "Without my concoctions how would Chateau Romani get it's kick? You seriously think it's just the cows that do that?"

Veran prodded his face "And seeing strange pirate women in Great Bay."

"I do business with the Gerudo pirates, poisons are selling well at the moment." He shivered "Those women are terrifying, especially Aveil… and Nabooru."

"And-"

Ganondorf caught her hand before she could poke him again. He politely responded with an intimidating gaze "And I think you're a little too interested in my personal life. Perhaps you should find a hobby?"

Sable felt a little lost as the others became engaged with their own conversations. She took it upon herself to tend to the brewing cauldron near Onox and Iris. She looked back at the Deku who was warily keeping an eye on her. "Did I do something wrong? Is there some Deku greeting I've overlooked?"

Onox responded "Give it time, Iris is really shy and not very good with outsiders or strangers. She still won't talk to me either and I've known her for years." He then nudged her aside with a wooden spoon and leant over the cauldron. Dipping the utensil in the mix, he swallowed down the mouthful. Carefully tasting it he informed "The meat is tender, it's good to go."

Sable wrapped a glove around her hand then grabbed one handle of the cauldron, Onox took hold of the other handle to help her move it off the flames. She remarked as she noticed his bare hand keeping grip "Isn't that really hot? Actually how did you eat it without burning yourself? I could see the steam from here."

Onox sheepishly grinned and looked away. Before Sable could probe for an actual answer Koume and Kotake had become reinterested in the cooking. The evening progressed in what felt like the blink of an eye as Sable became politely introduced to the people in her new life. Too soon, she found herself walking back to Koume's hut as the bonfire and the fire pit were extinguished behind her. The moon was almost done with its daily journey to the west and soon morning would be upon them.