Chapter Two: Lon Lon Ranch

Muffled voices were heard from beyond the door, followed by the sound of footsteps drawing closer. Come to check on him again. This time though, they would find him awake.

The door opened, and a middle-aged man stepped in; the man he assumed his life was indebted to. And he was a curious looking man indeed. He was taller than he himself was, but not by much; short was a fitting description. Short, but not at all small. The most noticeable feature was perhaps his ginormous belly, which made up more than half of his body he suspected. It was perfectly round, which he had to try very hard not to smile or indeed, even laugh. Built upon that round bubble of a belly though were short, but stocky legs, and, more prominently, powerfully built arms.

He might have taken the man more seriously by these, but his face was just as peculiar as his rounded body. The man was balding considerably, yet he bore a fantastic pair of sideburns, blending perfectly into his exquisite mustache that lay under his large nose as round as his stomach; he possessed no beard, however. His blue eyes were nearly hidden by the large eyebrows he also sported, shaped at an angle where he always looked worried, yet his eyes were soft and kind. His pointed ears, rather than extending outward more, remained close to his head, extending back instead, the dark hair that was left on the sides of his head and back were pulled back into a short ponytail.

Add that to the clothes he wore - brown boots, blue overalls that were too short to cover all his legs (he wondered how they even supported the weight of the man's middle), and a tight red shirt - made him look quite strange indeed. Neither threatening, nor comical, just strange. If he had to make any judgments of the man, he would have to say he would fit in perfectly with a circus of some kind. He thought no ill of the man however, and he gave a weak smile toward him.

By comparison, the man's greeting was much more profound. Upon seeing the smile he gave a wide one of his own, marked by the mustache being pulled upwards, and with a swiftness that was unexpected came and pulled a stool from beside the bed up and he sat upon it. Even as he was walking his tenor voice carried across the room.

"Excellent, excellent, you are awake, much sooner than I expected. How are you? Well I hope? Are you hungry?"

"Uhh."

It was all Link could say, taken quite by surprise by the man's fast speech. He seemed to catch on immediately, and leaned back a little in his seat, smiling reassuringly.

"I'm sorry, did I startle you? I'm just a worried old man, don't mind me. I have my own daughter, see, and I'd hate to see anything happen to her or any other child. I must say though, you certainly got yourself in a squabble," He noted, speaking more slowly now. "I'd certainly like to hear your side of the story, but that can wait. How are you feeling?"

"Well, uh...It hurts to move too much, and my head hurts, but I think I'm fine."

"Good, good" the man nodded, satisfied. "I was afraid that...well, never mind that now. The pain is a good sign; it means your body's healing, eh? It'll pass in time as your body recovers more. But to heal properly you need food, and I can bet your hungry, or am I mistaken?"

"No, you're not," He answered. As if to confirm it his stomach chimed in with a loud growl of its own. The man laughed, a hearty booming sound, as he pushed himself up from his seat.

"Well then, you're in time for a late dinner! I'll have it up for you in a moment. Oh, and lest I forget," He added, turning from the door to face him again. "Th'name's Talon, and welcome to Lon Lon Ranch." He smiled one last time before exiting the room, closing the door gently behind him.

~0~

Somewhere beyond the confines of the house and his bed, a cucco crowed loudly. The sun was only beginning to rise above the horizon, the round shining sphere not even visible as its rays extended forth to announce its coming; the cucco was merely the trumpet call.

Link was awake already. He had had a quick meal for dinner, and then was left alone to rest. The pain from his wounds had diminished to a dull ache, unless strained, and his headache had departed. For all that though, he had slept only a little, unable to grasp the sleep he needed as it eluded him. The little sleep he did get was restless, and the same dream would prevail his mind: a great stone structure with towers set in a green field. The sun was high in the sky, always above the massive edifice of stone. But then the sun would grow dark and menacing, and the blue sky would grow black. The towers would crumble and the stone walls would chip away, leaving the fortress in shambles. The sun would only shine its grim red light upon the ruins. He would wake then, unable to grasp any answers.

Despite the lack of proper sleep, the morning found him rested. He sat up, careful not to strain himself, and looked around the room for any changes. He noted his clothes beside him on the stool, freshly laundered. He dressed himself quickly, and tested his strength then, carefully walking about the room. In doing so he found his other possessions at the foot of the bed. He took his slingshot and ammo, another pouch, empty, and gently placed around his neck the cord that was tied to the ocarina Saria had given him.

He paused, staring at the musical instrument in his hands. How long would it be before he returned? He wanted to believe all he had to do was give the stone to this princess he was supposed to meet, then return home, but somewhere in his mind he knew it would not be so.

Sighing, he tucked it under his tunic, and glanced around the room again. It was only now he noticed Navi had disappeared; she was nowhere in this room, at least. He smiled. Amid all the commotion, he failed to realize, as he suddenly had now, that he, Link, had a fairy of his own. Perhaps they had not met in the conventional way, but regardless the two were now joined, and he could officially be called a true Kokirian. The thought gave him confidence. He belonged.

Navi...How much did he know about her, really? The question came unbidden, but it was significant in its own right. Not much, admittedly. She tended to be more rational than he was. Certainly more knowledgeable. And she was stubborn and sometimes irritable. But what about the other things you learned about someone; their likes and dislikes, their habits? He knew virtually none of those. Did she know any of those things about him? If she did, she never revealed it.

He shrugged to himself, walking towards the door. Perhaps another time it would become part of discussion. Bracing himself for the questions and the unknown that he was sure to encounter, he opened the door - marveling at the unlocking device - and stepped beyond.

So much for the unknown, he thought to himself. He forgot to include the bizarre in that category. He stared in unexaggerated surprise at the awkward scene before him. Though perhaps not unexpected, recalling the owner's own peculiarity. He stood at the top of a set of stairs, going down to his right. The room he was in was huge; two stories, open, and about two or three times the size of the room he just came from. Several large beams supported the roof above and lined the walls. The smell of hay was laced with the air.

And then there were the cuccos. Lots and lots of cuccos.

Shaking his head in bewilderment, he travelled down the stairs and walked along the wall back where he had come, careful to avoid treading on the feathery occupants of the room. One door passed under the stairs to his left, leading elsewhere into the house. He paid no mind to it, instead went straight for the door in front of him, leading outside. It was the fresh air he wanted.

Sunshine rained down from above, the light temporarily blinding him even as his hand rose to shade them. There was hardly a cloud in the sky to dull the sun's power. Undaunted, he squinted as he observed his surroundings, waiting for his eyes to adjust to the light. He was on a pathway of sorts, the entrance to the ranch to his right, and to his left was a wide expanse of empty space. In front of him was a building much smaller than the one he had just come from; shorter, only one story, but just as wide.

And there was life. He could still hear the cuccos from behind him, and there were even more to his left at the end of the building roaming free. A low drawling voice of a cow could be heard from inside the building across from him, which led him to believe the building was some kind of pen. And in the field, farther out, he witnessed the majesty of Hyrule's finest horses as they roamed freely.

A smile brightened his face as he made his way towards them. Most all of them ignored him. Even so, he recognized that these were indeed fine horses. He walked up to the closest one, slowly, and placed his hand on its thigh, reaching up as high as he could go. He could feel the tough muscles underneath the soft hair and skin. The horse turned its head to see him, then went back to grazing the grass.

A new sound reached his pointed ears in the open, and they perked up in recognition. It was the sound of someone singing. And it was coming from somewhere in the smaller fenced area. Curious, he went to investigate. Reaching the large entrance, the gates wide open, he could see in the center a young girl and a foal, and she was singing to the young horse. He found both fascinating. As he walked close, he could clearly see this horse was better than all the rest, even as young as it was. The auburn red, and black tipped ears and snout, clashed well with its white mane and tail. The tail, in fact, was black and it faded to white. The same case appeared on its legs. The red coat turned black at the joints, before white hair grew out to cover most of its hooves. The dark gleaming eyes showed uncommon intelligence.

The young girl looked about as old as he was, and the first thing he noticed about her was her thick flaming red hair, which cascaded down her back like a fiery waterfall. She wore a plain tannish white dress, slightly dirtied with dust and dirt around her booted feet, with blue embroidery patterned around the sleeves, hem, and neck, where a yellow scarf was tied. Her eyes were closed as she sang to the horse, one hand wrapped under its neck, the other gently brushing her fingers through the mane.

He stood there for a moment, watching the pair, captured in the beauty of the scene. The song was a simple one, without even any words, simply sound, but he could feel the emotion in the music. There was love, and joy, and a profound sense of peace. He could feel the music flowing through him. It called for him to respond, beckoning him to join. He felt his hands grasp the ocarina tucked away in his tunic, and he drew it out.

He let the music take him, and he played. The notes came naturally to him, hardly giving any thought. Her voice and his ocarina blended perfectly.

It lasted only a few moments. She opened her blue-gray eyes the second he began to play, and almost faltered, surprised by his unexpected appearance. But she smiled then, and continued to sing a few notes more, before slowly fading out to hear his playing. He played for only a few seconds more, and then lowered the instrument from his lips, a smile of his own coming to his face.

"You're really good at playing that," she said briefly pointing to the ocarina still in his hands.

"Thanks, you're not too bad yourself. It's a nice song."

"Thanks, my mommy used to sing it all the time. I don't remember the words though, so I just sing the notes."

"I think the notes are enough."

She smiled even more, then cocked her head slightly as she looked at the rest of him.

"You're the fairy boy from yesterday." It wasn't a question as much as a statement of fact. "I'm surprised you're up already. That's good though."

"Fairy boy? I'm not a fairy, I'm a Kokirian. My name's link."

"What's a Kokirian? Is that...Oh! You're a forest boy!" she exclaimed, evidently very excited by this news. "I'm Malon, and this" -She gestured to the horse beside her- "is Epona. She's mine; I take care of her all by myself.

She snorted at the sound of her name, and trotted over to Link, sniffing his shirt, and lowering her head against him. Malon looked on with obvious glee.

"Looks like Epona is fond of you already, she's usually really shy. I bet it's because you played that ocarina."

"You think so?" he asked, patting the horse gently on her long snout.

"Uh huh, I know so." She looked at him then with a curious expression. "If you're a forest boy, don't you have a fairy? That's what was with you before, right? Where is it?"

He nodded, then shrugged. "I don't know; I haven't seen her since I woke up. Her name is Navi."

"That's a strange name, but pretty too." Link nodded, unsure of what else to say. Malon didn't seem to mind at all, instead switching to a new topic. "Have you already eaten breakfast yet? I was about to go in and get some for myself."

"No, I just got up a few minutes ago," He answered. She smiled, whispered something into Epona's ear, then grabbed his wrist, already walking back to the house.

"Well come on then, why are we still out here?" She laughed at his bewilderment, then let go of his wrist and skipped forward a few steps, backwards. "Afterwards, would you like to come with us to town? We have a few deliveries to make, is all."

"Town?" Link asked, confused. Malon looked at him similarly.

"You don't know what that is?" Link shook his head. She sighed, shaking her head, but smiled anyway. "You guys must not have those. They're like big villages, with lots and lots of shops and people and fun things to do. We only have one, and there's a castle there too, it's really really big."

"Oh! That's where I'm going!" Link exclaimed, smiling happily. Malon broke out in a wide grin, giggling at his sudden outburst.

"Then you'll come along?"

"Of course!"

"Great!" She exclaimed happily, and planted a kiss firmly on his cheek before darting through the door, calling after her dad. He stood there frozen, his eyes only following after her until she vanished. His hand rose up to where he had felt her touch, and He could feel his face growing warm. Had she really just….kissed him? Was that ok? He had only met her less than five minutes ago. And why was he so embarrassed? He had been kissed on the cheek before; Saria had done so a few times, purely in a friendly fashion. Yes, maybe that was it; she did it as a friendly gesture.

But why couldn't he shake the feeling that wasn't it?

~0~

So it was that Link found himself in the company of Malon in the back of a horse-drawn wagon, driven by her father, Talon, on its way to Hyrule Castle Town the hour before noon. Navi had finally returned just as they were about to leave. She was disapproving of him up and about already, but made no move to argue the case, evidently satisfied that he was recovering quickly. When inquired of her whereabouts, she answered that she had been meditating, and she had required being alone. She seemed slightly put off as she said this, Link noted, but he said nothing. Perhaps when they were alone, he would ask.

Malon had been thrilled when Navi had returned, and made a hasty introduction before bombarding her with questions. Link sat back, amusing as he watched the conversation. Before long though, the conversation turned back to him, with more questions. He answered all kinds of questions, from his favorite color and foods, to how he had lived, what the forest was like, and what had prompted him to leave the forest. The last one he kept short, omitting some parts from the telling as well. She needed not know about his Father's death or the curse he had been vanquished by.

Just as curious about her as she was with him, He too asked many questions. What her life was like on the ranch, her favorite things, her dreams and aspirations. And for the first time since leaving the forest, he felt a sense of contentment. He felt, for the first time in his life, at home.

Talon smiled as he watched the two of them - three of them - before turning back to the front. It had been a long time since he had seen her daughter laugh like that. Not since her mother had left. It had been so hard for her. When he had gotten her Epona to raise as her own: that was the first time he had seen her smile again. And now here she was laughing. Because of the green-clad boy. He would have to repay him, somehow.