"With the blessings of the Goddesses, you are now joined as one. You may now kiss the bride.''
The crowd cheers as Cecily and her new husband kiss. Usually when a celebration happens the whole village shows up to congratulate or celebrate the happy event.
It has been a whole year after the tragedy. Both Cecily and her fiance waited till the time was right to get married, plus the young man wanted to wait before he got settled in. His new home was slightly bigger than his old home, but it had a extra bedroom for Allard, Cecily's brother. He thanked them, he didn't want to intrude on his cousins, who were expecting their fifth child.
They walked hand and hand down the aisle. They than turned around and invited the town to the reception. For hours they ate and danced, the musicians playing their instruments, the lute, villes and flutes making everyone dance and drink.
It was sunset when the party ended. Both Cecily and her new husband traveled to Hyrule Castle Town to celebrate their honeymoon. They were staying at the local inn. There they consummated their marriage. They loved the city anytime they visited, it was there that he bought Cecily her necklace. The last treasure he ever given her, not including their baby. As they were walking back to the inn, they ran into an mysterious man.
Diary, this man. He was odd. I didn't think he was dangerous, I still don't, but he made the townsfolk uneasy. Both Cecily and I were intrigued, he seemed interested in the Sheikah culture.
"Wow. Two Sheikahs. Must be my lucky day. Are you lovers?" Both Cecily and her husband were taken aback, he seemed pushy. Other than that huge grin on his face, he was polite and really nice. "I sell rare masks, but for you I can give you this." He hands them a beautiful white mask. "It's a Couples Mask. It represents true love. When I saw you two, I knew you were newly married. Am I right?" The couple nods. "I'm glad. I am glad to run into you two. Ahem, I am actually hiring. Would you two like to be my salesmen?"
Cecily speaks up.
"We are actually on our honeymoon. We don't really want to work."
"Oh, not this moment. But when you return home. I have a abundance of masks I need to get rid of. You will receive a commission on what you sell. If you are starting out your lives, you need money, am I right?"
Both of them nod. Winter was coming, and they needed to get supplies for the harsh winter months. Warm clothing, boots, blankets, firewood, salt, they also needed to get supplies for their home. Plus, prices increased during those months. He made a decent living, but with two people living with him, it wouldn't be enough. He and Cecily excused themselves for a minute.
"What do you think?" He saw Cecily hesitating.
"I don't know. He seems strange. I don't trust him." She says as he was trying to sell his masks unsuccessfully to the uninterested townsfolk.
"We need the money." He did. The Sage told him he wasn't needed at the moment, and his hours were being cut soon. The winter months were usually slow. Tourists and travelers heading up the mountains were few and far between. Both Cecily and him reluctantly agreed.
"Ah! Excellent! Excellent. Here you go, a list." They look it over. It had drawings, as well as prices for the masks. Some they recognized, Cecily and her siblings owned a few, but others were new. But one mask caught her eye. It had no price, but she recognized a Sheikah design.
"Why is The Mask of Truth on here? It is a representative of the Sheikah. It is blasphemous to sell it so casually." The Sheikah priests usually wore it during the holy holidays, they claim the masks looked inside people's hearts. Both Cecily and many of the children behaved whenever those masks were seen, they scared them to being good. As Cecily and him got older, they were no longer afraid, but was uneasy seeing them.
"Oh no! Don't worry about that! It will never be sold. It is given only to the worthy. You will each get one if you make good sales. I will hand you my address. I live in a small apartment in town, but whenever you sell a mask, I will pay you. Keep selling them, soon you can afford anything that you want, even a house in the town."
Both Cecily and I made our living selling those masks. We made good money, enough to leave town and live in luxury in Hyrule Castle Town. I wish I listened to him. We should have moved, the King's Guards were always hiring. That was my mistake. At least Allard was gone, he moved away when Cecily and I were discussing having a baby. Cecily, I hope you and Aldith are safe at Allard's. The King screens every citizen that moves into town, luckily the Sheikah are well respected. When was the last time I ate? Its been days. We are mostly ignored now. Good thing we have running water, but we need food. My cousin, he is weak. He won't last any longer without food and medicine.
The winter was cold. Very cold. Phew. Cecily was making some tea and stew for her husband and brother. Both were heading up Death Mountain. They were going to see the Goron leader to assist him with the construction for a new path on the top of the mountain. A fairy was rumored to live up there, and of it was true, she can heal many of the visitors that come up there. It was dangerous though, the mountain spits ups hot rocks on occasion. Even with heat tunics, it was very risky. But the mask selling business was slow. Everyone was too busy saving their money for the long winter. That is why many of the Hylians and Sheikah were hired by the Gorons for the winter.
"Lunch is ready. Come eat."
"Cecily, this is delicious. What is in here?"
"Deer. Remember, Barten and I went hunting last week? We bought enough carcasses to share with the village, it was a good haul." Allard says while eating. "Cecily and Isoda took some of the meat and made jerky out of it."
"It is for you. Luckily we had enough salt. Unfortunately it looks like we ran out, I have to head to Hyrule Castle Town to get some. As well as tea."
"Be careful Cecily. It may be winter, but the snow wolves are usually out right now, as well as the keese."
"Don't worry, I won't be alone, the others are traveling with us, we figure to bring our sleds, we are also bringing back materials for the windmill."
"The jerky will keep our bellies full while working. Especially if monsters attack. Cecily, can you do me a favor?"
"What is it Allard?"
"Deliver this letter for me. It is for the Gallery Games. They are holding a lottery."
"The lottery! How much?"
"Five thousand rupees." Cecily and her husband gasp. Usually the lottery was only a grand. That money can be useful. They needed to fix the roof. Plus insulate the house. Cecily and her husband each put in ten rupees.
"If we win, we'll split the prize. I will help pay for expenses, but I need to store money for my own place." Allard says pocketing the money.
"Of course. Are you applying to the King's guards?" Cecily's husband asked. He liked Allard, he and him were good friends. He had no siblings, Allard was like a brother.
"Maybe. But there is always construction work that needs to be done. I was actually hoping to study to be a priest at the Temple."
The Temple! Both Cecily and her husband look at each other in excitement. The place was the most sacred in Hyrule. Many people come far and wide to give gifts and pray to the Goddesses. It was rumored that it was a doorway to the Sacred Realm. No one been beyond Its doors. If Allard works as a priest, he'll be close to divinity.
Once their lunch was done, all three clean up. A while later Cecily left with Isoda to do her shopping. Both Allard and his brother in law go over to the guard's cousin Darwyn's. Darwyn was already waiting when they walk up.
"It's about time! I been waiting for over an hour! What took you so long?" Darwyn says with a smile. He was glad to see his cousin, they hadn't seen much of him since he started working with the Sage.
"Sorry. We just finished making lunch. You ready?"
Darwyn swings his satchel over his back.
"You know it! Oh, I hope you don't mind, Barten is coming along."
The guard groans. Ever since he and Cecily married, Barten was even more cold. He always gave him snide remarks and refused to help him with simple tasks whenever they were working together.
"Come on! Its been over a year. Barten is dating the magic shop owner's daughter now. Him and Roesia are close, he's a lot happier these days."
"I guess." He never thought Roesia would date Barten. Roesia always looked down on the Skulltula family, called them entitled snobs.
"Here he comes! Hey Barten!"
Allard watches as his brother in law pretends to be friendly. He gave him a reluctant wave with Barten giving him a wave back. He can tell he was jealous of Barten's and Darwyn's friendship. It was always him and Darwyn that were close growing up. But he could tell Barten was a lot happier. Guess him and Roesia were a lot closer than he thought.
"Hey everyone! I got everything, including some potions for the trip ahead. Roesia was kind enough to give me extras, she said potions were expensive in Goron City."
"Really? That's so generous. Tell Roesia thank you." His rival says with reluctance. Barten just nods at him back.
"Death Mountain is not called Death Mountain for a reason. These potions will help us with the trip ahead. Oh, before I forget. My family has accounts with the shop owners. If you need anything, just put it on my family's account. You can pay us back anytime, that way you don't have to go back and forth to the village."
"Really? That will help. But it can take us some time to pay it back. We'll try not to abuse it." Allard says. "Okay. Let's go. I see everyone leaving."
The trip up the mountain was uneventful. We defeated the monsters that we came across, and by sunset we reached the City. We then settled in the inn. There we met with the leader of the Gorons.
"Welcome. Sheikah, Hylians. Welcome to our fair city." He paused as the visitors clap. "Thank you. We need to open a path to the top of the mountain. Hopefully you all have fire tunics. If there is any that don't have them, we can supply you with some. Anything you need, we have it all. It will be deducted from your pay, but don't worry, it will come with a fair discount. Work begins immediately. We also recommended you carry shields. The rocks that rain down are hot. Luckily, it doesn't happen often, our Guardian, Volvagia is a gentle god. She will make sure that everyone is safe. Your work begins immediately. Those that stay in the city, you can help us with opening the cave to the Dodongos home. A large boulder has once again blocked the entrance. Once we get inside, we need to harvest our crop, the bomb flowers. Let us begin."
The work was hot and dirty. Even in winter it was hot. I must have lost weight while working, luckily Cecily's jerky kept us going. We stayed there for the next two months. We were allowed to go home for the holidays, but before we left to celebrate the winter harvest back in the village, I met with the Chief's daughter, the Goron Wymarc.
"Hello."
Everyone working said hello back to the Goron princess.
"Thank you for helping us. Take a break. I have a tent down the hill. I have tea and lunch ready for everyone." The workers were grateful, they were hungry. At first they were worried they would be fed rocks, knowing the Goron's appetites. Luckily, they knew how everyone else ate, and fed them accordingly.
The sounds of laughter was heard throughout the tent. Wymarc was a good host, she told jokes and was generous with her helpings of food and drink.
"Don't thank me. Thank our guardian, the great Volvagia. She guards this mountain from evil."
The young guard was intrigued. He heard of Volvagia, she was one of the guardians of Hyrule's temples. Unlike the Hylians, who worshipped only the Goddesses, the Sheikah respected other tribes beliefs. They never seen Volvagia, but according to his great great grandfather, he said he seen the dragon as a young boy. He described Volvagia as magnificent. She was worshipped by the Goron tribes. Other than being made out of fire and stone, she never hurt anyone or anything. She stayed inside the Fire Temple guarding it, as well as the mountain from evil.
"Volvagia, why doesn't she come out? Last time she was seen was centuries ago."
"Because she only come out only to mate. She already laid her eggs, various Goron regions need their own guardians. Her child is still in the egg, her mate is watching over it. The Gorons down south are already getting ready to celebrate the birth."
"Why so long." Barten asked. "If Volvagia lays her eggs, why doesn't the eggs hatch afterwards?" Everyone else was wondering the same thing.
"Goron pregnancies take decades to be pregnant. For Fire Dragons, their offspring needs time to grow. Sometimes many centuries. They need to sleep in hot places to make sure their children are okay. Most don't survive due to predators and weather conditions. The ones that do, are watched over carefully by the Gorons. They are the only ones that can protect the mountain from evil. I heard of the name the Goron leader picked out, they are calling the child Valoo."
Once lunch was done, we went back to work. Before we left, Wymarc showed Barten, Allard, Darwyn and myself their treasures. My goodness they are beautiful. Especially the Goron Ruby.
"Wow. This is beautiful." Barten was in awe. His family had many treasures, but none compared to what Wymarc was showing them.
The ruby was magnificent. It wasn't just a ordinary stone, it was also was radiating great power. They all felt stronger in its presence. Her other treasure was just as amazing, it was a hammer.
"That ruby was passed on from generation to generation. It it rumored to be created by the Goddess Din. Goddess of Fire. We keep it here in the mountain to guard it from evil. I have to return it, Volvagia is the rightful owner." The Guardians guard their treasures, except for the Zora. Their stone, the Sapphire was kept by the Zora Royalty.
"What about this hammer?" Allard asks. He used to be a stone masoner, a hammer like this would be useful.
"That hammer isn't just a ordinary hammer. We use it to fight evil. It was forged by a great smith, a Hylian presented it to the Gorons as a gift."
All four men admire the hammer. Barten asks to lift it. When Wymarc agreed, they tried not to laugh when Barten had trouble lifting it. Then everyone tried. Holy, it was way more heavier than it looked.
"Why is this so heavy? I carried hammers bigger than this." Allard complained. They all nodded.
"Because that is meant to fight evil. I have to return the Megaton Hammer. My father, he is overprotective of his belongings." Once they hear the horn, they all knew it was time to go to bed. That horn was the Goron clock. It rang every few hours. Since it was after dark, they had to go to bed. They were heading home early in the morning.
Wymarc was a great woman. She would have been a great leader. Unfortunately her belongings were found scattered in the Fire Temple by her father. He was understandably upset. At the time we didn't know how she died. When the Goron leader found out she was eaten, he was determined to find out how. The truth was a mystery. But before I can get to that, I have to talk about Robyn's sister. Remember how she was "cured?" The cure was worse than death.
Both Link and Navi remembered fighting the dragon, Volvagia. A gentle guardian? What happened? Darunia's son Link told them about the hero. Was Wymarc's father the hero of legend? Oh great. More monsters. Link took the diary and put it in his tunic. He had to head to the surface anyways, he needed more supplies.
*The ghost just watches the Hylian and fairy walk out after defeating the monsters. He hoped he succeeded in his quest, he needed to free the spirits out of this place.*