This chapter is (so far) the longest chapter in this story, and all the chapters won't be this long, probably. Also, some things in this chapter don't happen in the game, and there will be other things in this story I've changed. Things that don't make sense will make sense later, so,
in the last chapter...
Link had a great time helping people out with his best friend, Zelda. Meanwhile, Vaati put his plan to get the light force into action and stole Ezlo's powerful cap, releasing something dark from within himself and turning Ezlo into a bird-like hat. This didn't stop Ezlo from hopping off to The Human World after him to try and stop him getting the light force! However, Vaati himself was feeling both guilty for and proud of what he did, and he wasn't beyond cheating to try and win the sword fighting tournament...
Chapter 2: The Picori Festival
Cold. Cold. Why this cold, at the end of this daily nightmare?
His final dream-thought, always at the end, in the never ending cold. At this point, he always got woken up, or woke himself up.
"Link, time to get up!" Came Grandpa Smith's voice from downstairs. Link bolted out of bed, glad to be awake. He quickly got changed, taking his clothes out of a wooden box he'd never unpacked (It didn't feel right, and besides, he didn't have a wardrobe yet), before getting dressed and going downstairs to the room where Smith was. He wasn't surprised to see Zelda there too. "Hey! Link!" said Grandpa Smith, "Princess Zelda is here. She'd like to know wether you'd like to join her at the festival!"
"Yeah, Link!" added Princess Zelda, "Come on! Let's go check out the festival together! Master Smith already gave me permission to take you!"
"Yes, after all, the festival only comes once a year. Go on, have fun!" agreed Smith. "And while you're there, you can do me a favour. I just finished making this sword for the minister at Hyrule Castle. I'd like you to deliver it to him." Link smiled and accepted the blade, He put it on his back in order to make sure it wouldn't get lost, after all it was a very important delivery. Link wondered why his grandpa never went to the festival. "This is the blade that will be presented to the winner of the competition. Don't lose it. And while the two of you may be childhood friends, remember... Zelda is the Princess of Hyrule. You watch her. Don't let anything bad happen to her."
"Master Smith, quit worrying! We'll be perfectly safe!" reassured Zelda, "Come on, Link! Let's go check out the festival!" She ran out of the house. Link was just about to follow her when Grandpa Smith called after him, "Don't forget to pack a packed lunch!" Link turned around and nodded before packing a packed lunch in the other room, then rushing out after Zelda. What had happened the day before had been completely forgotten by both Link and his grandpa, and would remain forgotten.
"Link, over here!" called Zelda, bouncing up and down in excitement. Link ran over to her, but she dashed off again, calling, "Over here! Come on! Hurry up!" Link felt her pure excitement. Link's own excitement was nothing compared to how excited Zelda could get sometimes, especially during The Picori Festival! He caught he up a the entrance to Hyrule Town. Even from here, he could hear the festive music! "Well, here we are!" Announced Zelda, "The town of Hyrule!" She rushed inside, Link following. "Here we are, Link! Doesn't it look fun?" Asked Zelda, "Come on! Let's look around!" She ran off, with Link running right behind her. They looked all over town. There were banners, streamers, and balloons all over town! There were all kinds of stalls run by all sorts of people, and it was all very colourful, fun and noisy! Link and Zelda went all over the festival!
"Oooh! Look at all these cute hats!" cried Zelda when they found Jack and Molly's hat stall.
"Look! Picori figurines! Aren't they sweet?" chattered Zelda when they found a stall run by Carlov. The little figurines were tiny, about the size of Link's thumb, and they were wearing little red hats and coats made of leaves. They were mouse-like, with long, pointy ears and feather-like tails. Their comparatively large eyes were black\ green\ blue\ brown with white pupils- just like the picori Link had seen the other day!
"Do you like them? I made them based off little Molly's description of them!" Explained Carlov.
Soon after that, Zelda swept Link into a huge festive dance, where they twirled and stumbled their way to the centre of town, where they talked to Joe, a regular at the sword fighting competition. "You're that boy from old Master Smith's place aren't you?" He said when he saw Link. Zelda had run off somewhere nearby. "I'm sure you know this, but he's the best sword smith Hyrule's ever seen! Every year, I enter the tournament trying to win that sword of his. I haven't won yet, but maybe this time I will! This year's tournament is in the east of North Hyrule Field. Do come along and watch!" Link nodded as he felt Joe's hope and excitement for the tournament.
"Link, there's a storyteller here!" Called Zelda, "We should stop and listen to- oh! I wonder what's over there..." She ran off again, soon with Link right behind her. She was talking to old man Roberts in the corner.
"Only once every hundred years does the mystic doorway open. This is the door that links The Human World to The World of the Picori. When this door opens, the picori can enter our world. And guess what! This marks the hundredth year since they last appeared here! I'm sure something wonderful will happen at this festival!" he was saying.
"So the picori are real! My father always told me they were." Chattered Zelda. "Oh! Look at that!" Link and Zelda ran off after each other again. So far, this had been the most wonderful day of Link's life! Zelda always had managed to make every festival even better than the last... Zelda entered Pina's grand drawing, and Pina rang her loud bell.
"We have a winner!" She announced, "Oh my! Princess Zelda! You've won the grand prize in our drawing? Wow! You get your choice of any of these wonderful prizes. Which will it be?" Link felt happy for Zelda as Pina put out the prize choices. "First we have... this lovely heart-shaped stone!" The stone was large, and in a silver casing. "Next we have... this magnificent gem!" The gem was like a giant red rupee! "And finally there's... This teeny-tiny shield." The small shield was shiny, and it looked very tough. "So, which will it be? The gem? Oh, but the heart stone is very pretty too. Choose whichever one you'd like!" Link thoght Zelda deserved a prize for herself. He wondered what she'd pick...
"The shield is so adorable! I think I'll take it." said Zelda. Link felt Pina's frustration and realisation when she said that.
"What? Why? Why would you want that ugly thing?! What about the heart stone? It's cute? Or the gem? It's pretty! Honestly, they're both much better than that ugly sheild thing." However, Link felt Zelda's firmness come in, the firmness of a princess.
"Nope! I want the shield. Can I have it?" Asked Zelda, innocently.
"What a strange princess you are..." Sighed Pina, giving up, "Well, okay. Here's your teeny-tiny shield." Zelda picked up the shield as Pina put the other prizes away. She instantly smiled at Link, eyes sparkling.
"Here! I want to give you a present!" said Zelda, handing him the shield, "Doesn't this shield suit you perfectly?" Link was surprised and happy. This really was the best day of his life so far! He really liked the shield, so he tried it out. "Just as I thought!" Announced Zelda, pleased that Link liked it. "You look great! Now, if anything happens, you can protect me with that shield! Oh, I almost forgot, we need to take Master Smith's sword to the castle. Let's go, Link."
Link put the shield on his back with the sword and left for the castle, Zelda following behind. As he left, Link saw the strange purple person again. But this time, he felt the purple person's...
Loneliness. Guilt. Rage. Self-conciousness. Pride.
Link left for the castle, wondering about the mysterious purple person.
That same morning, Vaati woke up in Hyrule's inn. He was glad the humans used the same currency minish did- rupees.
"Did you enjoy your stay?" Asked the human running the inn.
"Yes." Replied Vaati.
Outside, everything was decorated with banners, streamers, ribbons, bows and bells; people were playing and dancing to the festive music and yet Vaati felt not a shred of happiness, or excitement, or joy, or anything like that. The day before, Vaati had signed up for the tournament which he thought may lead him to the light force. However, there was still some time before the competition started, so Vaati looked around a bit. He walked around, taking in all the bright-coloured stalls and pretty ribbons. It was terribly noisy- he'd never seen anything like it! As usual, he got a lot of strange looks, and Vaati tried to ignore them but still felt a bit self-concious. Along the way, near the centre of town, Vaati heard a girl's voice call out, "Come on! Let's look around!" Next Vaati saw a small human in a pink dress run off, and the messy-haird boy called Link run off after her. He laughed a little. Those two were strangely amusing!
After that, Vaati wandered down the east of Hyrule Town, looking at some of the stalls. A little way down, Vaati spotted a stall which caught his eye. This stall was run by a brown-haird man, and on the table were little figurines of the Minish! Vaati went a bit closer. Each of the figurines were slightly different, but yet the same. Some were holding clovers, or flowers. Others had coloured eyes or hair showing under their hats. Brown hair, blonde hair, even red hair. No purple. The old ache of being different returned. Vaati tried to get rid of it, but it wouldn't go away.
"Oh, I see you're interested in my picori figurines!" said the stall-owner. "They're based directly off my friend's daughter's descripion off one she said she saw in Minish Woods!"
"Picori?" Asked Vaati. The figurines were clearly of the minish.
"Surely you've heard of them, right? The tiny people smaller than your thumb who helped the hero years ago?" prompted the stall-owner.
"Ahh... Okay." Said Vaati. "Where I come from, they're called the minish." He left before he got anymore bad memories of years ago. This time, he cut throgh the centre of town, where a fat lady with a bell was running a drawing, and there were a few crowds of people. Vaati went to the west of town, where there were people dancing. However, some people tended to stay out of his way for 'some reason'.
He soon reached a river and stepped back as he vividlly remembered an old memory from many years ago...
Splashing. Giant drops, double the size of boulders.
Water, a river, washing away the home he would never know.
Struggling. Sinking. Splashing. Screaming.
He shivered and quickly walked away from the river. He next headed towards the north of Hyrule, as it was the way to the sword fighting tournament. Just then, as he was passing the giant bell archway, a loud ringing was heard. Then a fairly loud voice calling, "We have a winner!" The voice belonged to the fat woman. Vaati and a lot of other people came closer to see what was going on. A few people stopped talking as the woman announced the winner. "Oh my! Princess Zelda! You've earned the grand prize in our drawing? Wow! You get your choice of any of these wonderful prizes. Which will it be?" Vaati saw that the girl in the pink dress that he'd seen earlier was Princess Zelda. Link seemed happy for her. So did the lady. And everybody else. Vaati didn't even try to be happy for her. He didn't know how. The woman put out the prizes while announcing them. "First, we have... this lovely heart-shaped stone! Next we have... this magnificent gem! And finally there's... this teeny-tiny shield. So, which will it be? Let me guess... The gem? Oh, but the heart-sone is pretty too. Choose whichever one you'd like!"
Well. Vaati thought the woman's guess was pretty accurate. He hadn't expected Zelda to say- "The shield is so adorable! I think I'll take it."
"What?! Why? Why would you want that ugly thing?!" Asked the woman, dropping the act. "What about the heart-stone? It's cute! Or the gem? It's pretty! Really, they're both much better than that ugly shield thing."
"Nope! I want the shield. Can I have it?" Asked Zelda, innocently.
"What a strange princess you are..." Sighed the woman, giving up. "Well, okay. Here's your teeny-tiny shield." The woman handed Zelda the shield before putting the rest of the prizes away. People started talking after that, but Vaati noticed the princess give the shield to Link as a present. That boy seemed so delighted by that little gift... humans sure were intriguing. Vaati turned around to go when a voice shouted behind him, "Hey! Wait up!" Vaati turned to face this person, a human man. "Are you participating in the sword fighting competition?"
"Yes." Vaati replied.
"Well, it's in lower east North Hyrue Field. They've set up a stage and everything! My name's Joe. I've been entering that competition regularly for years now! What's your name?"
"Vaati." Vaati replied, wondering where this conversation was going.
"Do you want me to show you where the tournament is? It's just that you don't seem to be from around here..." Offered Joe.
"Sure, thanks." Replied Vaati, relived he wouldn't have to risk getting lost. Vaati followed Joe out of town, passing Link along the way, and into Hyrule field. When they went to the right, a bunch of seats were set out behind a stage. In front of the stage was a neat row of eight chairs, all labeled. Some people were already on said chairs. Right at the end of the row, there was a chair labeled, 'Joe Parry'. Next to it, someone was sitting on a chair, looking at Vaati. The chair next to it was labeled, 'Vaati Nightshade'. Vaati sat down.
"So, you're Vaati, right?" Asked the person next to Joe. "I'm Mike. Where do you come from?"
"Yeah, I'm wondering too!" Added Joe.
Vaati thought carefully about his answer. He couldn't exactly tell them the truth... "Rico Pico Picor." [Sunvale Village] It just burst out. The name of Vaati's village... in Minish.
"Huh? Sorry, I didn't catch that." said Mike.
"Niether did I." added Joe.
"Um... I'm not sure how it translates into your language." Explained Vaati. That was the safest answer, he figured. It wasn't like he could lie. Soon after, a small, old man with a big white moustache and round glasses arrived on the stage.
"Ahem. I'm sure you all know the rules, but I'll go over them." He announced.
Also that morning, Ezlo was feeling incredibly grumpy at the fact that he was hopping everywhere, and that it was taking ages AND he'd had to sleep in a bush. A BUSH! It was either that or risk being chewed or stepped on by all the cows around here, neither of which was very appealing. So now he was hopping south, hoping to reach the woods. Soon, he overheard a voice nearby. "Epona, we've got a delivery today!" It was a sing-song girl, talking to her horse. Ezlo felt relieved. he, like all minish, could speak to animals! Maybe Epona would be willing to help him. The girl left, presumably to get the delivery, and Ezlo carefully hopped over to the horse, Epona.
"Escuse me, but could you please take me to the forest?" he asked.
"I must be daydreaming," snorted the horse, "a hat is talking to me."
"NO, no, a sorcerer called Vaati turned me into this! Please believe me!" Explained Ezlo.
"Fine, I'll believe you. It doesn't matter wether I'm daydreaming or not anyway. I'll get in trrrrouble if I take you to the forest, but I'm going part the way there, and I can drop you off near the entrrrrance." Said Epona.
"Thank you very much." Replied Ezlo.
"Okay, now when Malon- the girrrrl- gets back, jump into the deliverrrry wagon. I'll tell you when to get off, I'lll even stop forrrr a second!" Instructed Epona.
A couple of minutes later, Malon came back with the delivery cart. She attached it to Epona's saddle, and Ezlo hopped in it while Malon got on Epona.
"She's an excellent rrrrider." Neighed Epona approvingly, "Unlike someone I know. HE rrrrides like a sack of potatoes."
The ride was actually very pleasant, despite Ezlo's only companions in the cart being bottles of 'Lon Lon Milk'. Ezlo enjoyed the veiw, and hid whenever Malon looked back. Epona made sure the journey wasn't a rattly one, and Ezlo felt quite relaxed. All along the way, Malon was singing a tune Epona liked. Ezlo liked it too. Also, Epona decided to talk about a not-so-nice incident two years ago. (Random Story Fact: Epona half-thought Ezlo being there was her imagination, and she just wanted to talk about it with the first person who'd listen.)
"You see, the rrrrreason why I can't rrrrisk getting in trrrrouble is because of two years ago. I didn't mean to, but two humans were killed!" Explained Epona. "I was going along this very path, when some of those rrrrowdy dogs nearby really scared me. I freaked out, and those dogs made it worse with their horrrrrrible barking! Malon couldn't find her whistle, because she had put it in the cart was rrrrampaging with me. Some people were sitting nearby, A man and a woman, talking about theirrrrr son. They were blocking the only place where the dogs weren't barrrking, and I didn't rrrrreally notice they were there until it was too late!"
"Ah... I'm sorry to hear that." replied Ezlo, really quietly so Malon wouldn't hear.
"You know, it feels good to be able to TELL someone these things. The dogs are mean, the cuccos are stupid, the cows don't listen and humans can't understand me! I'm lucky I didn't get sold for that incident!" Finished Epona.
Ezlo wondered who the unlucky boy was or if any minish had been affected. Thinking about sons got him thinking about Vaati. The truth was, Ezlo was worried about him, even though he'd turned him into a hat. A hat. Why a hat? Was there a reason? Nah- he was over thinking it.
"Jump off now!" neighed Epona, stopping, "Thanks for listening!"
"What's wrong, girl? Why are you stopping?" Asked Malon to Epona.
Ezlo took the chance and jumped off, before calling, "Picou!" [Thank you!] to Epona.
"You'rrrre welcome!" she replied, before moving on, much to Malon's confusion. Ezlo, grateful for Epona's help, hopped towards a bridge that led into Minish Woods. Actually, he was getting used to the whole 'hopping' thing. (Perhaps it's good exercise!) thought Ezlo, (I certainly feel more lively!) Ezlo was now hopping across the bridge. on the other side was a lush green forest... It was beautiful. Ezlo, however, realised that finding Minish in a forest as big as Hyrule Town (The wall had been there all along the journey with Epona) was going to be hard...
Outside Hyrule Castle, in North Hyrule Field, once the purple person had passed by, Zelda, still excited about the sword fighting competition said "Come on, Link! Let's hurry to the castle!" As usual, Zelda rushed ahead and Link just about followed. The two of them passed the sword fighting competition preparations (What a mouthful!) along the way. When Link caught up to her, a deku scrub and a bunch of small trees were blocking the path to the castle. The deku scrub spat a nut at Zelda, and the nut hit her bang on the shoulder. "Owwch!" said Zelda. "That must be the business scrub I heard the soldiers talking about. They were saying a deku scrub was hassling all the passerby... Link, do something about it! Otherwise, we can't get to the castle!"
While Zelda was talking, the deku scrub had shot another nut at her, and Link had defended her with his shield, causing the deku scrub's own nut to whack it in the face. So when she stopped talking, the deku scrub was dizzy thanks to its own nut and apologising, "Please, forgive me, sir! I heard there was a festival, and I came to town hoping to hawk my wares. Unfortunately, we scrubs have a tendency to spit nuts as we speak! Everyone got scared and ran away, and no-one would buy anything!" The scrub's frustration was growing and its somewhat squeaky voice went a bit higher, "This is a terrible place to do business! I'm going back to my cave!"With that, the scrub and the small trees popped underground in a puff of white dust. Admittedly, a cave didn't sound much better for business.
Zelda looked back at Link. "I actually feel a little sorry for that business scrub. But that nut hurt!" Link could feel Zelda's forgiveness. "Oh well! It won't be hassling anyone now! We'd better hurry to the castle!" Zelda followed Link all the way there, where Minister Potho was waiting for them.
"Oh! Link! You brought the sword, did you?" Asked Minister Potho. Link handed the sword over to him. "Then, as minister to the king of Hyrule, I, Potho, accept this blade. You came just in time. Follow me to the sword fighting competition, you two!"
They followed him right back down the path they'd come up. The sun was shining, everybody nearby was happy or some variation of happy, and Link could not imagine how this day could get any better.
"Guess what?" chattered Zelda, "I saved front-row seats for us! I know how much you like sword fighting, as long as no-one gets hurt, and I hope you enjoy it!"
"You t-too!" replied Link, so happy his voice burst out- a rare occasion. "Thank you f-for today."
Zelda smiled back, eyes sparkling with happiness and excitement. When they got to their seats, Link noticed the purple person sitting among the eight competitors, near Mike and Joe- rivals and regulars. Among the competitor's hope, excitement, and focus, the purple person's unexcited purpose and self-concisnous stood out like a sore thumb. "Where do you think that purple guy comes from?" whispered Zelda as Minister Potho stood on the stage, silencing everyone.
"Ahem. I'm sure you all know the rules, but I'll go over them." Began Minister Potho, reading off a bunch of cards in his hands, "Rule one: Use only your wooden sword. Rule two: I will announce the match-ups. Whoever knocks the sword out of their opponent's sword first wins. Rule three: All sword fighting must be on this stage only. If a competitor leaves the area, they're out. Rule 4: No magic allowed. Not everyone can do it, so it would be unfair if we allowed it. Anyone who is caught using magic will be out immediately. Rule five: Have fun!" Minister Potho grinned. "Now that I've gone over the rules, I, Minister Potho, will introduce the competitors. Competitors, please stand up when your name is called. First, we have Mira [Meer-ra] Lisan [Lee-san], who has just returned from her training at Mount Crenel!" Everyone, as well as Link and Zelda clapped and cheered.
A tall woman with long black hair, which was tied up in a ponytail, and wearing a professional-yet-a-bit-scuffed-up-looking fighting outfit, stood up and gave the crowd a look before sitting back down. She was clearly not someone to be messed with.
"Next, we have Bizzie Amur [A-mer], who is a newcomer to our competition, and LIzzie Amur, twin sister of Bizzie, who is also a newcomer!"
Bizzie and Lizzie were teenagers who were nearly identical to each other, except Bizzie's eyes were blue and Lizzie's were green. Both had short-ish red-orange hair. They gave the crowd a bow before sitting back down.
"Fourth, we have Tom Crew, a regular at the competition who got first place last year! Will he do it again?"
Tom had black hair and black eyes, and he was wearing a very brightly-coloured top and trousers that contradicted each other- mainly what had thrown his opponents off guard last year, when Mira wasn't there, was his aggrasiveness. He bowed to the audience before sitting down.
"Fifth, We have another regular, who got second place last year... Pyra [Pie-ra] Jones!"
Pyra had very short blond hair and deep orange eyes. Link found the colour a bit unnerving at times. She sat down as soon as the crowd started cheering.
"And now, I am introducing... Vaw-tee? Vay-tee? Vat-tee?-"
"It's pronounced VAH-TEE!" interjected Vaati, crossly.
"-Vaati Nightshade, a mysterious traveller from an unknown land!" continued Potho, looking somewhat embarrassed.
Vaati, who was the purple person, stood up a bit awkwardly to the crowd's polite clapping and soon sat down again.
"Next, we have Mike Wallow, known rival and friend of Joe's!"
Mike wore a red t-shirt and orange trousers, and had yellow-orange hair and brown eyes. He gave the crowd a cheerful smile before sitting back down, still smiling.
"And last but not least, we have... Joe Parry!"
Joe was well-known for entering and losing every year, so well known that no-one bothered to write it on the cue cards anymore. He always wore his yellow top and white trousers for this competition, and he had dark brown hair and black eyes. He smiled and waved at he crowd as the stood up and sat down again.
"Now that I've announced the competitors, I will now announce the first match... Vaati vs. Mike!"
While Minister Potho was talking, Vaati was absorbing temporary knowledge from the wooden sword and making it tougher using magic. Using these two advantages of magic, Vaati knew he would win despite never having used a sword before in his life- that he could remember, something told him otherwise. He really didn't enjoy being in the centre of attention all that much... he focused on his opponent instead as he went onto the stage as Minister Potho got off the stage. He held his sword in his left hand, while Mike held it in his right.
Link felt Vaati's calm purpose and Mike's rushed over-exsitement. It was clear to him who would win this match.
Mike rushed towards Vaati, sword outstretched, and Vaati simply stepped to the side, nearly causing Mike to fall off the stage and get himself out. However, Mike quickly regained his balance and began a series of sword slashes, all that Vaati blocked while using a basic form of magic to strengthen his grip. A second later, Vaati twisted his sword in an upward manner and sent Mike's sword flying up into the air then crashing to the ground- and all this happened in record time!
"Vaati wins! Mike is out!" Announced Potho.
"Good game!" Said Mike, offering Vaati a handshake. Vaati did not recognise the gesture and was about to return to his seat when a voice from the front row whispered, "Y-You shake it." Vaati knew he could trust it. He gently shook Mike's hand. Then the two of them returned to their seats.
The voice had been Link, sitting in the front row, glad he could help.
"Whoa! I wasn't expecting that!" said Zelda, "It was so nice of you to help Vaati, Link! I'm sure he must be new to Hyrule."
"Ahem..." Came Minister Potho's voice. The crowd silenced. "The next match is... Lizzie vs Bizzie!" The two both sighed. Link felt their reluctance. However, they got up there and began to battle it out, smiling all the way. Link was soon feeling their joy, and his own. The two were evenly matched and the battle went on for more than an hour! Wooden sword clashed against wooden sword, and not even Link or Vaati could tell the difference between the near identical twins. Eventually, Minister Potho announced, "It's a tie! You're both still in! Now let's get on with the next match- Mira vs Joe!" The twins got off the stage, Mira and Joe got on it.
"Good luck!" said Joe.
"You too." Replied Mira.
Link felt Mira's strong sense of purpose, similar to Vaati's, and her deep inner focus. He felt Joe's excited lack of seriousness. Once again it was clear who would win.
Vaati watched the other competitors carefully, tracking and learning the way they fought and their weaknesses, patiently waiting the twins' match out and now carefully, closely watching Mira and Joe's match.
Mira had Joe stuck defending and it was clear that her training on Mt. Crenel had paid off. It was obvious that Joe paid more attention to rule five than anything useful. Sure enough, Joe was defeated generally quickly. He and Mira did the 'good game' and handshake thing Vaati was unfamiliar to.
"Mira wins, Joe's out." said Minister Potho. "Now, there are six competitors left. Everybody, you can go get a snack because it's the break!" Then he muttered, "I could sure use one..." The crowd of people left, and Link and Zelda walked over to the competitors in order to congratulate the ones who had fought and wish good luck to those that hadn't. They were all already going their separate ways, but Zelda and Link managed to catch up to them.
"Wow, Mira, you fought really well!" Squealed Princess Zelda.
"Thanks." She replied, "It seems you've started a two-person fan club."
However, when they got to Vaati, Zelda insisted that Link do some of the talking this time.
Meanwhile, Vaati was wandering nearby, not really sure what to do during the break. He'd just made the decision to look around North Hyrule Field a bit more when Link and Zelda came running up to him. "Go on, Link!" Whispered Zelda, "Just say hello or something!"
When Link, trying to be polite, made eye contact with Vaati, he felt Vaati's feelings again...
Self-conciousness. Purpose. Confusion. Unnerved.
But then, he felt as if he were staring deeper, past the red eye he could see...
A deep ache inside. Deficiency. Lonliness. Wonder. Patience. Cruelty. Malevolence. Timidness.
Guilt. Pride. Longing. Missing someplace, someone. Curiosity. Kindness. Fear. Rage. Confliction.
Link felt as if he was Vaati for that short moment of time. In that moment, he'd felt everything Vaati was feeling, he'd even picked up bits of his personality.
In that same moment, Vaati felt recognised Link but not his special ability. However, he had the unnerving feeling that Link had been staring into his deepest emotions, and had even felt his personality...
"What are you looking at?" He asked, guessing (correctly) that Link didn't realise what he was doing. Link snapped out of it and his cheeks went rose-pink in embarrassment.
"S-sorry." apologised Link, "Was I-I being rude?"
"Come on, Link, the contest is starting again!" Called Zelda. Link ran off after her. Vaati found Link's power interesting, but he did not know of it... That got him thinking about Ezlo again as he went back to his seat.
"Ezlo, what is that power? How did you do that?"
"By using a power that sleeps within all of us, some more deeply than others."
"Is it... Magic?"
"Some call it that. Some call it-"
"Now that we've all had a break, we'll be continuing this tournament with Vaati vs Tom!" announced Potho, snapping Vaati out of his thoughts.
"Oh! It's Vaati again! Remember how he beat Mike, Link?" commentated Zelda to Link. Link was thinking about what he'd felt within Vaati, but he didn't understand what had happened. It was confusing to both Vaati and Link.
Vaati calmly walked up to the stage. Tom began the fight by swinging his sword heavily towards Vaati. This time, instead of blocking, he dodged. In the process, he tripped Tom, who was unsteady thanks to the swing, up using tiny whirlwinds that formed on the tips of his fingers. Nobody saw the magic- all they saw was Tom tripping and Vaati knocking the sword out of Tom's hand in literally five minutes flat. Maybe less. An unbeatable record that stands to this day. The crowd gasped in surprise- then leapt to their feet, cheering Vaati's name, led by Princess Zelda herself. She pulled Link up too- by grabbing hold of his hand.
Vaati really didn't like all the attention. It made him nervous. He felt bad for cheating, but he never wanted to be afraid... to feel that fear... The light force would give him the power he needed to be stronger than anything he'd ever feared. The power to leave everything behind. He did the shaking hands thing again and sat down.
After that, it was Lizzie vs Pyra, and Pyra won after nearly an hour. Link was soon enjoying himself again while Vaati was carefully working out how to beat whoever was next against him. Both put the incident in the back of their minds.
"And now... Mira vs Bizzie!" announced Potho, who's boredom Link felt. Clearly, Potho was bored of reading cue cards. Sword fighting just wasn't his thing.
Mira's tactics had become very clear to Vaati, but her weaknesses were not so obvious; like clumsiness (Tom) or impulsivity (Mike). However, Mira's fighting seemed a bit stiff somewhere, and perhaps that somewhere was her weakness... Mira defeated Bizzie in the exact same time Pyra defeated Lizzie, down to the last second. Even Potho was getting interested.
"Mira wins, and Bizzie's out! The final three are Pyra, Mira and Vaati!" The crowd cheered. "Next... Pyra vs Mira! Whoever wins will battle Vaati for the rare chance to approach the Picori Blade- and for Master Smith's sword!" More cheering. Zelda cheered loudest of all, and Link clapped loudest (to make up for his lack of cheering).
As the two female sword fighters stepped onto the stage, there were no cheerful 'good luck's, only a hard, determined glare at one another. Link could feel their determination and focus surging through both him and them. Vaati made sure to watch them both carefully.
"Nobody, least of all YOU, is going to stop me winning that sword for my sister!" Hissed Mira to Pyra.
"Nobody, least of all YOU, is going to stop me finally seeing the Picori Blade up close!" Hissed Pyra to Mira.
Vaati, having sharp minish hearing, heard every word. So did Link, as he was connected to their emotions at the time. Nobody else heard a word. The battle began.
Admittedly, Ezlo was lost. Lost and covered in dirt around the rim. Not to mention annoyed. Vaati was going to get the telling-off of a lifetime once Ezlo found him! But for the moment, he was currently trying to find the minish of the human world, and failing. In fact, he thought he was going around in circles! He was at a very foggy part of the forest, and could not see where he was going. Having no hands, he couldn't feel his way around, so he had slammed beak-first into a tree more than once. That had not been pleasant, considering the effort it took to get himself unstuck from certain trees, and also, he was hungry, very hungry, despite now being a hat...
Ezlo had been lost for hours now, was thinking of shrinking to try and find the minish. However, in his current state, and his magic limited, if he shrunk he might not be able to grow again- which would be very dangerous in a world full of big creatures like cats (Ezlo shuddered at the thought), dogs, humans, cuccos, etc. He eventually found a small, medium-ish puddle that wasn't very deep. To a minish, it would be as large as a swamp, but at his current size, the puddle was perfect for cleaning himself off a bit. Ezlo managed to get the dirt off, and he discovered that he was now rather absorbent- what an odd sensation! On the other hand, this whole situation was a bit odd.
The good news was that he was now clean. The bad news was that he was feeling rather... sloshy. He was finding it harder to move.
So, it didn't really help when monster spirits came barging in out of nowhere two hours later, sending Ezlo flying into a clearing with a stump nearby. Ezlo looked closer at the stump in question. (A magic amplifier? Hmmm...) Thought Ezlo. He left the clearing. soon after, he realised that it was for making minish big or small. That could help. Unfortunately, by then he was lost again, and the place was filled with monsters thanks to that rush of spirits. Weak monsters, but dangerous none the less, particularly as he was a hat at the moment. Ezlo remembered a little chat he'd had with Vaati once concerning offensive magic, or attacking magic.
"When will I learn to use attacking magic? When?"
"When you learn that it is NOT to be used irresponsibly and is only to be used in self-defense in DIRE situations ONLY."
"Aw... How come?"
"If you are not careful, you could kill someone."
"...I don't want to kill..."
Vaati hadn't asked about it since. But now that Ezlo really thought about it, he had seemed unhappy. Ezlo wondered if he should have asked why. If only he had... no. Now was not the time for regrets. Ezlo hopped along, now more determined than ever to deal with Vaati and fix himself- then apologise for not asking him how he felt more often.
The battle between Mira and Pyra could only be described as awesome. The two were nearly as good as each other, and now even Link was having trouble remembering who was who in this epic battle. Mira and Pyra were pulling off sword skills that only the best of the best could learn, like the flying-flip-charge-pointy-shell-thingy-majigy that Link could never remember the name of. There were bits of wood all over the stage and Mira and Pyra's swords looked as if they were going to break from all the pressure- they weren't made for such intense battling.
Vaati kept a close eye on them, discerning their tactics and weaknesses. About halfway through the battle, Vaati figured out that Mira had a leg injury and Pyra had an injury in her sword hand. In fact, that injury cost her the tournament. It cramped after a terribly awkward defence from Mira, in turn making her drop the sword.
"Mira wins! Pyra is out! Mira and Vaati will battle in the final round of the tournament!" Announced Potho.
"Second place AGAIN..." sighed Pyra, getting off the stage.
"Maybe next year." Replied Mira as Vaati calmly walked onto the stage- but then Mira whispered, "I'm going to win that sword and you're not going to stop me!"
"I heard you the first time." Replied Vaati.
"I've seen your tactics, Vaati. Whatever you're taught over where you come from, that is not actual swordplay." her eyes narrowed, "I wouldn't be surprised if you were cheating this whole time. Let's see how you do against a real sword fighter!" With that, Mira suddenly began attacking using simple slashes and pointy jabs, nothing fancy in the grand scheme of things. As they were battling, Vaati's eye widened a little, and in his mind's eye he saw an old memory from before the flood, a fragment of what he forgot that day.
Two year old Vaati had been sword fighting against a training dummy.
He was having fun, yet the training was serious.
Vaati's pupils narrowed a bit and his mind focused, then he spun high into the small room...
Vaati's pupils narrowed a little and his mind focused, and before Mira knew what was happening he spun high into the sky...
...and spun on the way down, sword outstretched, faster, faster...
... and spun on he way down, sword outstretched, faster, faster...
... landing with a satisfying THUD, facing the training dummy, which promptly fell to pieces.
... landing with a satisfying THUD, facing Mira, who promptly dropped her sword and held her leg injury.
The crowd, Mira, Minister Potho, Link, Zelda and even Vaati himself were all shocked into complete silence. Vaati's pupils widened again and he had a lot of questions in his head at that moment in time- what was he doing with a real sword at the age of two? What was that thing he'd just done? Where did he learn how to do that? Who had taught him how to do that? What ELSE did he forget all those years ago?
"Are you okay?" asked Vaati to Mira, though he felt no real concern as he knew she'd be fine.
"Yes, I'll be fine. Sorry for being so rude earlier. By the way, where did you learn that move?" She asked, picking up the sword and standing up.
"That's what I'm wondering..." Mused Vaati, eye looking far into the distance.
Now that everybody knew Mira was fine, the crowd cheered even louder than ever before. Vaati felt no victory, only a bit of shame. But he would do whatever it took not to live in fear again...
Link had felt Vaati's remembrance earlier, and now he felt his shame and determination. It was an unusual combination... Link didn't know what he'd remembered, but that he'd remembered something.
"...and the winner of this year's Picori Festival Sword Fighting Competition is... Vaati!" Announced Potho, "Also, Vaati has SMASHED the record time on twenty minutes, setting a new one of four minutes and thirty-six seconds! The award ceremony will be at two-thirty. Fewf... the guy who usually does this must really hate his job..." That last sentence was muttered.
Link found Vaati confusing. Vaati had felt no joy, no excitement and no happiness even as he'd calmly won the contest. So, much to Zelda's surprise, Link walked right up to Vaati and said, "W-well done for winning the c-contest, Vaati!", with a large, genuine smile on his face. Maybe that would help him feel better!
Vaati looked at this messy-haired boy, and his expression softened and he smiled a little at how innocent he seemed. Yet for some reason, the boy's smile faded. "Why d-do you feel no j-joy?" He asked, almost to himself, before running off after his friend.
Vaati wondered about his question, but what he was really interested to know was, (How did that boy, Link, know I felt no happiness at all?) He pushed the thought to the back of his mind and left to find some place where he could get some food.
"Come on! Hurry! We're going to the castle for lunch! Really, I am personally inviting you!" Excitedly chattered Zelda, dragging Link by the hand (once he'd caught up to her) as the two of them ran all the way to the castle.
When they got there, Link, Zelda, Minister Potho, some of Hyrule's best soldiers, a few castle-keeping people and even King Daltus himself all had lunch in the large dining hall before the awarding ceremony. The lunch itself was delicious. Link's day had just got better. It was wonderful, and though he did wonder about Vaati, Link knew he should enjoy his best friend's hospitality and be polite to the king. King Daltus knew that Link didn't really speak much (though why exactly was anyone's guess, not even Zelda knew) so he did not consider Link rude at all. In fact, Link felt Zelda's excitement, the soldiers' joy, Minister Potho's relaxed feeling... and Vaati's longing.
"V-Vaati's here." Said Link.
"Where?" asked King Daltus, "I haven't congratulated him on winning the contest yet." Everybody in the room looked around for Vaati, but it was like he was invisible or something. "Are you sure he's here?" Asked the king. Link felt how puzzled he was. Link felt equally confused.
"Oh, I know!" announced Zelda. "Link said he 'felt my happiness' once. Vaati must be nearby, but outside the castle! I think Link can feel his feeling, but he's not in this room!"
"Ah, yes, of course." agreed King Daltus, "See, everyone, this is just what Hyrule needs once she gets older, a clever, young, ruler."
"Besides, if Vaati were in the room, he'd have stuck out like a sore thumb! This room's red, and he's purple; and wears purple!" Pointed out a soldier to another soldier.
Soon, everybody was talking about what fun they'd had at The Picori Festival, and trading stories with one another. Zelda chattered away about what fun she'd had with Link! Soon, Link no longer felt Vaati's feeling.
He just wondered why it was longing.
Soon after Vaati saw Link run off, he found a bakery. He bought some food for now and for later (because the baked goods were delicious) then wondered about what to do next, and ended up wandering towards Hyrule Castle. Vaati decided to explore it a bit. After all, maybe he'd want to come back one day. He turned himself invisible and went around the castle, noting all the noticeable parts of the castle such as the throne room, Minister Potho's study (Where the competition prize sword was), and Princess Zelda's room. It was so... pink! Pink and bubbly... something inside Vaati repulsed that room...
He passed several portraits of the king, his ancestors, and a few of Princess Zelda and one of Princess Zelda and Link (who was looking like she'd dragged him in there) both smiling innocently, like that smile Link had given him earlier. Vaati mildly wondered what having a friend was like. Even the teachers at his school had thought he was odd, at the least. And there was nothing else to say about it, Vaati just never really trusted Ezlo. Back then, he wasn't a very trusting person, he still wasn't, but at least his gift would tell him if one was lying, or twisting their words. Well, Ezlo was a hat now.
(Strange.) thought Vaati, (Why a hat? Of all the things to turn into... Another thing strange. I barely know the princess and her friend, yet I'm drawn to them like a moth to a flame. Why is that?) Vaati pushed his thoughts down again. He had to focus on his goal.
Vaati walked through a nearby door, and found himself in a large dining hall, where Minister Potho, the king, Princess Zelda, Link, some guards and some castle-keeping people were all merrily eating lunch and talking. They all seemed to be having fun. Vaati had seen similar things all around him at school. No-one had ever wanted to sit anywhere near Vaati. This bit of thought got him thinking about why nobody really wanted him there (barring Ezlo). At first it was because he looked different...
"A purple minish?" "He must be some sort of freak!" "Those red eyes are creepy..."
...but things got worse when somebody found some legend about purple minish being cursed and unlucky. That had become a rumour, and honestly, even he half-believed it by now. Everybody did, except maybe Ezlo. MAYBE. He was different in other ways too...
Vaati tried to squash his thoughts but only ended up making his old ache and longing stronger. Entranced in a sense, Vaati walked deeper into the room, nearly forgetting he was invisible, listening to people's stories about The Picori Festival.
"Vaati's h-here." said Link.
For a second, Vaati thought his invisibility had worn off and panicked, but he quickly found that he couldn't see his hand in front of his face and calmed down, though the powerful longing was still there.
"Where?" Asked the king, "I haven't congratulated him on winning the contest yet." Everybody proceeded to look around for Vaati, though of course nobody saw him as he was invisible. "Are you sure he's here?" Asked the king, sounding to Vaati a bit puzzled.
"Oh, I know!" announced Princess Zelda, "Link said he 'felt my happiness' once. Vaati must be somewhere nearby, but outside the castle!" Vaati looked to his right and saw a large window overlooking the castle gardens. Luckily, nobody looked over there except him.
"I think Link can feel his feelings, but he's not in this room!" concluded Zelda.
"Ah, yes, of course." agreed the king, "See, everyone, this is just what Hyrule needs once she gets older, a clever, young, ruler."
"Besides, if Vaati were in this room, he'd have stuck out like a sore thumb. This room's red, and he's purple; and wears purple!" pointed out a guard to another guard.
That had been too close. Oh well. Now, he would be able to slip away anyway. Vaati left the room, then the castle, and took a quick walk around the castle gardens then North Hyrule Field. He actually quite liked the sunny weather, as much as he tried to ignore it. After that, he headed back to the courtyard in the castle gardens, where the awarding ceremony was about to begin.
After the meal, Zelda said, in full 'Princess Mode'; a mode in which Zelda was often very serious and less chatty, as opposed to her 'Zelda Mode'; in which she was very excitable, mischevious and chatty. At least, that's how Link often saw it. He often wondered wether his friend was two people at one!
"I'm sorry, Link, but I'd better go. I have to prepare for the ceremony. I had a good time at the festival! Thanks for coming with me!" She left the dining hall. Soon, the king and everyone else left too. Before Link left the room,
Potho suggested, "Since you're here, Link, why don't you join us for the award ceremony?" Link happily nodded, then followed Potho out of the dining hall, and soon after, out of the castle. Four guards came out after them, holding the Bound Chest and the Picori Blade. "Do you know about that sword, Link?" Asked Minister Potho. Link could feel his seriousness, and that spark of excitement he was hiding so well. "It is called the Picori Blade, and it locks much evil away in that chest. The Picori Blade is sacred to the people of Hyrule."
Link already knew all that. He was excited just to be this close to the blade! Surely the soldiers must realise that guarding it is an honour and a huge responsibility... "Legend has it that, long ago, the picori gave us this blade. Whoever wins it gets the honour of touching the sacred blade." explained Minister Potho. The king and Zelda arrived from inside the castle, dressed in formal, royal clothes.
"Let the award ceremony begin!" Announced Potho, "Vaati, champion of the competition, you may approach the blade!"
Vaat thought that all this formality over a sword was pretty pointless. Well, he'd get the light force at the end. But... something was wrong. Something dark within himself filled his heart as he approached the blade... then a laugh escaped. A satisfied laugh, Link noticed, feeling Vaati's malevolent satisfaction. "Heh heh heh..." Sniggered Vaati, "To think things would go this well!" The truth was, Vaati did have a little habit of talking to himself sometimes... well, who else was he supposed to have talked to, Ezlo? It was happening again, but Vaati was feeling rather strange... he didn't feel like himself, and part of him liked this new, dark, powerful feeling, but another part of him was scared of it, even repulsed by it."The Picori Blade and the Bound Chest of Hylian lore... that chest must hold that which I seek! I'll relive you of its contents now."
No sooner had he said that, then the soldiers rushed towards him, spears at the ready. The first two charged, but Vaati knocked them aside, not even bothering to use magic, sending them flying across the gardens in different directions. "Mmmm ah hah hah!" laughed Vaati, delighted that the soldiers were this weak, powerless against him! He ignored that bad feeling he was getting, enjoying the power he felt flowing through him... "Do not interfere with me... As victor I've earned the right to approach the Picori Blade... I've been waiting for this moment!"
Link was shocked, and felt everyone else's shock too, as well as Vaati's unnatural malevolence and delight. Link could also feel, faintly, fear coming from Vaati. He was also worried that Vaati might hurt somebody else, but what could he do against a powerful person like Vaati?
The other two guards carefully prepared to attack Vaati, but he simply formed a ball of pure defusion magic right at the blade, sending the guards flying and breaking the Picori Blade in two... The monster spirits of long ago caused a huge ruckus as the burst out of the chest all at once, sending everybody flying except for Link; who protected himself with his shield, and Zelda; who was protected by some sort of magical light.
"What are you? Why are you doing this?!" cried Zelda. Link and Zelda were both absolutely terrified. Vaati's eye widened in shock when saw those monsters rush in all directions.
(What did I just do?!) thought Vaati in shock. However, the currently stronger part of himself felt as if he'd meant for that to happen. That he wished to do more than take the light force... Vaati noticed the mysterious light that protected Zelda, remembering something he'd read about he in the minish legends... His eye narrowed.
"The princess with the mystic aura..." He said ominously, "The power that was gifted to the people of Hyrule still flows within the ladies of the royal family? Interesting... If I leave you now, you'll only cause trouble later. That will never do."
Already, Link felt Vaati's intention... He leapt in front of Zelda, shield ready to block whatever was coming, determined to protect the friend who'd done so much for him...
Vaati focused his mind, never breaking eye contact with the princess, seeing her in his mind's eye as nothing more than a stone statue... "To stone with you!" he shouted, releasing a blast of magic directly at Zelda!
The blast of magic rushed towards Link; who tightened his grip on the shield, expecting the magic to bounce off, but instead the magic shoved Link out of the way and hit Zelda, who screamed before being turned to stone just as Link's head smashed into the ground, knocking him out instantly. He could do nothing but feel other's feelings. Zelda was scared and Vaati was both satisfied and horrified... Soon he felt nothing at all.
Vaati looked down at them. He knew they were both alive. Vaati would do anything but kill for the light force and his ultimate goal... Turning people to stone was relatively convenient. He wished he'd thought of that earlier, as Ezlo could still be a nuinsance, even as a hat.
"Heh heh heh... All who stand in my way shall share this fate!" He said to himself, "Now, to find out what power awaits me in this chest!" He walked over to the chest and leaned in, only to see... "?!"
...nothing. "Empty? There was nothing in there but a rabble of monsters?" Vaati took a moment to process this. That bad feeling, how could he have been so stupid? It must have been his gift trying to warn him about the monsters! Then why did he feel as if he wanted this to happen?! "What is the meaning of this?" he asked himself. Well, there was nothing he could do about it now... he was feeling like himself again. The strange, dark feeling was gone and whatever that memory was, it was all in the past now. "Well, I know the force I'm after is out there somewhere. I'm in no hurry, I can take my time searching for it. Pleh heh heh..." He laughed again before teleporting away.
Cold. Cold. Why this cold, at the end of this daily nightmare?
Link suddenly woke up, having felt that strange cold at the end of the nightmare without even experiencing the nightmare. What a curious feeling...
"Oh, thank goodness!" Cried Mrs Thaip, the friendly castle-keeper. "You've awakened! Master Smith is here as well. He's come to see his majesty the king, but he's very worried about you!"
Link headed outside the door, feeling rather worried himself about whoever else Vaati thought might get in his way... He went out of the room and into the throne room, and walked to Grandpa Smith.
"Oh, Link, you're awake. Are you feeling all right?" he asked. Link nodded. "Stand at my side. The king of Hyrule is about to speak."
"It is as you have all heard." gravely explained the king. Potho was to his right and Zelda had been moved to his left. There were a lot of soldiers in front of him, and Link and Smith were standing to the side, side by side. The king addressed everyone in the room. "A sorcerer called Vaati has cursed my fair Zelda and turned her into stone. If we had the sacred Picori Blade, we likely could have broken the curse. But Vaati shattered the blade... however, I have not given up hope. What do you know about the Picori?" This question was directed at Grandpa Smith.
"The Picori?" Asked Smith, confused. "Not much, beyond what the fairy tales say... They're supposed to be very tiny, if I'm remembering correctly."
"Yes, the ones from the fairy tales..." answered King Daltus. "But the picori are no mere legend. They certainly exist. No-one outside of the royal family know the truth about them." He was clearly overlooking all the Hyrulian children who'd seen the picori. "The Picori, who forged the sacred blade, live deep in Minish Woods. They should be able to repair the broken blade and reforge the sword."
"What?!" cried Minister Potho, surprised, "Then we must dispatch the soldiers there at once!"
"No, soldiers will not do." Patiently explained the king, "The Picori do not show themselves to anyone but children. Our soldiers could search for days and still find no sign of them."
"I see..." said Grandpa Smith, getting an idea, "If that's the case, why not send Link?"
"If Link has recovered, then yes, I would like to ask this of him. I know that you are Zelda's best friend, and I'm sure you would like to save Zelda." 'Would like' was a huge understatement. Link was DESPERATE to save Zelda, he needed to know she would be safe and he would go see the picori even if the king DIDN'T ask him to! "Please, turn my precious Zelda back to normal. The Picori should know how to create a new sacred sword. It will be a dangerous journey, now that the monsters have been freed, but I take it that you've been learning sword fighting for six years...? Please, take this sword with you, along with the broken Picori Blade." said the king, "I know we can rely on you," Now he muttered, "unlike most kids."
Link walked up to the king and accepted the broken Picori Blade, putting it in his (over-stuffed) side-bag which was attached to his belt, knowing that he had to keep it safe. He was then given a sword, which Link recognised as the sword Grandpa Smith had made for one of the (now-injured) soldiers that Vaati had sent flying. He put the sword on his back with his shield.
"Very well, then. Send the soldiers to look for Vaati at once!" Ordered the king. The soldiers all left to do just that. "Deep within Minish Woods, you will find a place called Deepwood Shrine. Once, humans and picori shared that shrine as a meeting place. I think it would be best if you started your search there." Explained the king.
Grandpa Smith walked up to Link. "Take this map with you." he said, handing Link a map he used for sword deliveries and a spare one. Nobody noticed in the seriousness of the situation, and Link quickly put them in his very over-stuffed bag. "If you get lost on your way to the forest, simply check your map. I've marked the location of the forest for you." Link now felt his grandpa's worry, like an ache which wouldn't go away. "Good luck, and be careful."
"I am counting on you, Link. Only you can break Vaati's curse and free Princess Zelda." Finished King Daltus. Link left the throne room by the main entrance and went through the corridor before leaving through the large entrance of the castle. He left the castle garden, and as he went through North Hyrule Field, he took out one of the maps from his bag, dislodging the other map because of how full the bag was, (what with the uneaten pack lunch, the broken sword and Link's spare pencil) and took a look at it to check that he was going the right way, before running past the group of carpenters fixing the stairs to Hyrule Town, blocking the way inside. He was really worried about Zelda, but he felt no anger towards Vaati. Instead, he found himself wondering about the purple sorcerer's side to the story... It was confusing, especially when he realised it wasn't even early evening yet.