The next morning saw Link resting in Fado's field, enjoying the breeze in his hair and the clear blues of the sky above him. He drew in a deep breath, then exhaled. 'Today's the day. I 'get' to leave the only home I've ever known to bring a present to the royal family.. whom I've never even met.' He closed his eyes, taking in the other sensations of the farm. 'I never thought I'd miss the farm, but.. I kind of don't want to leave, now.' Some distance away, a goat bleated, and Link smirked. 'Even these lazy goats. I think I'll miss them too.'
"Hey! Link!" Fado's voice snapped Link out of his thoughts, and he opened his eyes to see the man running towards him from the open barn. He smirked to himself as he rose to his feet. 'Yep. I'm probably going to miss Fado having me help him with the goats. Even if he keeps forgetting to pay me.' Eventually Fado came to a stop next to Link, somewhat tired and out of breath.
"So, almost time for you to get goin', huh, Link?" Link nodded. 'Unfortunately, yeah.'
"So how's about we finish up early today, bud?" Taking a look around the farm, Link took count of how many goats were standing around. 'Fado, did you get more goats again, right before I'm supposed to leave? How are you supposed to handle all of them by yourself?' He chuckled to himself before looking back at Fado and nodding. Then he turned and picked a reed from the ground and played the short melody on it. Epona obediently came galloping over, for which Link was sure to give her plenty of pats and gentle scratches. 'Who's my good girl, who's going to help me on my errand to Hyrule, yes you are, yes you are.' He smiled as Epona leaned into the attention.
As soon as Link had hopped into the saddle, Fado nodded.
"OK, then! Let's get started!"
To Link's relief, all but six of the goats were quick to file into the barn once he started ushering them in. Even of those six, though, eventually they all meandered into the barn. Fado cheered as Link and Epona trotted over to him.
"Hoo, boy, but y'all can herd! That was faster than usual!" Link blinked in surprise. 'Even with the extra goats? I guess the new ones are nicer than your usual stock.' Fado grinned.
"Well, that about wraps 'er up for today, so how's about y'all head on over to the mayor's place?" Link nodded, and Fado waved as Link and Epona galloped away towards the main section of Ordon.
Ilia was standing nearby her father's house, and she visibly perked up when she saw Link riding Epona down from the farm. Link saw her look towards the house, perhaps calling for Bo. Then she ran towards Link and Epona as Bo stepped out from the house. Ilia smiled up at Link, who returned the smile as she asked him questions about what he thought of the journey he was about to make.
"Oh, done herdin' for the day, Link?" Link nodded.
"Well, nice work." Link hopped down from Epona's saddle to talk with Bo about the journey, and about where the gift for the royal family was.
"The royal gift Rusl told you about is ready, so you should get ready for your trip to Hyrule Castle. Now, the royal family requested this gift specifically, so it's real special." Link was impressed. 'The Hyrule royal family, asking for a gift from Ordon Village? Does that happen often?'
"It'd be… bad… if the representative of Ordon were to be late for such an occasion, you get me, lad?" Link nodded. 'I don't plan to be late, Bo. Isn't that why I'm leaving now?' The two continued talking, until suddenly Ilia's adoring words for Epona became concerned.
"Wait… What's this?" Link and Bo immediately turned around, worried that something had happened to Epona while they had their backs turned. Ilia was worriedly looking at Epona's legs.
"What's happened? She's injured, isn't she?" Link blinked and winced. 'She shouldn't be, she wasn't anywhere near anything that could have injured her.' Ilia's tone became sharp and harsh.
"Link! How could you! You were pushing Epona too hard again! I bet you hurt her leg jumping fences, didn't you!" Link recoiled at Ilia's sudden shift in tone. 'Whoa, Ilia, calm down, Epona's not even hurt, jumping over a couple of fences couldn't have possibly hurt her.' Bo awkwardly reached out to Ilia to calm her down.
"Now, now, Ilia. There's no need to get so hot with him…" Ilia turned to Bo and loudly snapped at him, causing even Bo to jump back in surprise.
"FATHER!" Ilia huffed angrily.
"How can you be so easy on him? You're the MAYOR! You should start acting like one!" Link winced. 'Ilia, don't you think that's a bit harsh?' He saw Bo hang his head defeatedly, and sighed.
"You poor thing…" Bo and Link shared a look, the two likely both thinking similarly of Ilia's behavior. 'Epona's not even hurt. I bet she's doing this because she doesn't want me to leave.' Suddenly the sound of hoofsteps brought the two's attention to Ilia bringing Epona away from them.
"It'll be all right, Epona. I'll take you to the forest spring right now. Once we soothe you in the spirit's spring, you'll feel better in no time!" Bo and Link could only watch in shock. 'She's really committed to the act, isn't she.' Bo was the first to move.
"W-Wait! Ilia!" His daughter paid him no mind as she brought Epona further and further away from Link and Bo. Bo sighed.
"Why, without Epona… The gift won't get delivered in time!" Link nodded, beginning to be somewhat exasperated. Bo sighed.
"Oh, this won't do…" Defeatedly, Bo walked some steps back to his house and sighed again.
"What's a father to do… There's no way you'll be able to deliver our town's gift without Epona…" Link nodded again. 'I'll probably have to talk with her about it. Again. And reassure her that I will be coming back. Again.' Suddenly Fado's voice echoed down from the farm.
"WHOOOOOOOAAA! A GOAT GOT LOOSE!" Link sighed. 'Hylia's sakes, Fado, I haven't even left yet and you're already having trouble keeping your goats under control.' He and Bo looked up towards the farm. "IT'S HEADIN' FOR TOWN! SOMEBODY STOP IT!" Link braced himself in the path and easily caught the goat by its horns, throwing it to the ground to stop its panicked charge. Bo sighed again.
"Sorry to always be putin' you through this, Link." Link shrugged. 'Technically helping Fado with these goats is part of my job now.'
"Well… You'd better get goin' and figure out what you're gonna do about Epona. Maybe you can head up to where Ilia is and see if she won't give Epona back." Link nodded, and without another moment's hesitation he ran up the path towards his house.
Colin was nervously pacing by the fences near Link, Beth stood by the ladder up to Link's house, and Talo and Malo stood in front of the path to the spring. Link sighed. 'Ilia has something to do with this, doesn't she.' He walked over to Colin.
"... Link, are you going to see Ilia?" Link nodded. Colin sighed, looking towards Talo and Malo.
"Maybe it's just me… but those guys don't normally let people through…" Link sighed. 'Yeah, I had a feeling.' Colin looked back at Link.
"Um, Link, you think… You think we can go to see Ilia together?" Link shrugged and nodded. 'Sure, I guess. Shouldn't be any harm in it.' The two walked together towards Talo and Malo.
"Hey, we've been waiting for you, y'know, Link." Link raised an eyebrow. 'Is that so.'
"Yesterday was sooooo much fun! Yeah, chasing that monkey was great!" Link scoffed. 'Interesting, that's not how I remember yesterday going.'
"I was just telling Malo here about how we wanted to show it to him, but we let it go instead!" Link snorted. 'Yeah no, you were curled up in that cage with her. I think you were even crying, Talo.' Malo scoffed.
"Oh, YOU didn't get caught, Talo?" Link smirked, and then paused. 'I'm agreeing with Malo. What's the world coming to…' Talo seemed not to notice Malo, instead turning to glare at Colin.
"Oh! Colin! Way to spoil everything by telling your dad. Nice job." Link frowned. 'Alright Talo that's enough. If I hadn't been there to see you running off, Colin telling Rusl would've been the only way you would've been saved from those monsters. Malo huffed, a mixture of boredom and disappointment.
"Yeah, thanks a lot! We got scolded by our dad something awful. I thought it was never gonna end…" Link shrugged. 'Sounds like Jaggle, yeah. How many times did he warn all of us that the forest wasn't safe?'
"I bet you're trying to go see Ilia, aren't you? Well, there's no way I'm gonna let you pass!" Link sighed and rolled his eyes. 'What do you want this time, kid.'
"Oh, hey, neat! Link! Lemme borrow that wooden sword!" Link scoffed and shook his head. 'Absolutely not! In case you forgot, Talo, you're the reason this sword had to be repaired in the first place.'
"If I'd had that wooden sword yesterday, I could've handled it all alone, definitely!" Link rolled his eyes. 'I believe those blue and purple monsters would beg to differ. And that monkey friend of yours too, while we're at it.'
"C'mon! Let me borrow that wooden sword right now!" Link shook his head again, and Talo whined in response.
"What?! Why not? It's OK! Just lemme borrow it!" Link once again shook his head. 'It's not okay, because it's mine and I said no.' He scoffed. 'Spoiled brat, this one is.'
"Look, we're never gonna let you leave here until you tell us we can borrow it, Link!" Link's frown deepened. 'So that's the game you're going to play, is it? Being nasty to Colin and then trying to make demands like that?' When Link was visibly unimpressed with Talo's amateur attempt at coercion, Talo again turned towards Colin.
"If you wanna get past here, Colin, you'd better start talking, fast. Make Link let us borrow that sword." Link's frown, for just a moment, became a full scowl. 'Talo, you have some nerve for someone who ran off into the forest and nearly got himself killed by being reckless.' Even Malo seemed less than pleased with Talo at this point.
"Sheesh, you ARE my brother, Talo… but that's pretty low…" Link found himself in agreement with Malo for a second time that day. Talo however, was woefully oblivious to the reactions his behavior was getting, and turned back to plead with Link.
"Come on, be a pal, Link! I'll take real good care of it, so lemme borrow your wooden sword!" Link scoffed and shook his head. 'The answer is still no, Talo.' Talo was clearly not expecting Link to still say no.
"What?! Why not? Aw, I thought for sure you were gonna let me borrow it!" Link huffed. 'What exactly made you think that, from the past several minutes of me telling you no?' Talo again turned to Colin.
"Colin! Start asking him to lemme borrow it, will ya?" For a second time, Link felt his frown turn into a scowl, at Talo trying to bully Colin into getting what he wanted. Colin looked down, not wanting to say anything to either of the two boys.
"I still don't understand that logic…"
"I'll be real careful when I use it, so c'mon! Lemme borrow your wooden sword!" Link shook his head for a third time. 'The answer. Is still. No.'
"Gee, I thought for sure you'd lemme borrow it this time. Well, I guess neither of us is going anywhere." Link scoffed. 'If you're going to be like that, Talo, I suppose we'll have to see what Mayor Bo and Jaggle have to say about your behavior, now won't we?' With Colin close behind him, Link began walking back down to the village to speak with Mayor Bo, and perhaps Jaggle if he could find him.
Bo was still in front of his house, dejectedly pacing back and forth. When he saw Link, the mayor looked up hopefully for a second, only to see that Epona was not with him.
"Link, can't you find a way to get her to give back Epona?" Link huffed, unsure of how to explain the situation to Bo. Colin seemed to notice, thankfully.
"Um.. Mayor Bo.." The mayor turned to Colin, a curious expression on his face.
"Yes, Colin? Is something the matter?" Colin nodded, looking down.
"Talo and Malo.. they won't let us get to Ilia unless Link gives them his sword…" Link nodded. Bo blinked.
"Well, son, if that's all, then why don't you just give them your sword?" Link huffed indignantly, frowning.
"Talo.. Talo broke Link's sword, the last time he had it." Link nodded.
"Let alone yesterday," he added, his voice once again a hoarse whisper. Bo adopted a frown to match Link's own.
"Hm.. I understand your concerns, Link. But this is important. This is a gift that the royal family requested from Ordon Village, and you can't make it to Hyrule Castle in time without Epona." Bo sighed and closed his eyes. "I think you should allow Talo to have the sword. If he breaks it, I'll personally see to it that he makes you a new one." Bo opened his eyes, looking directly into Link's. "Does that sound fair to you, Link?" The authoritative tone was one Bo didn't use often, but Link recognized it well enough to know there was no arguing with him. He sighed and hung his head, before nodding. 'Yes, sir.'
"Good. Now, go and talk to Ilia. We haven't much time to lose!" Defeated, Link walked with Colin back up the path to his house.
"Colin! Start asking him to lemme borrow it, will ya?" Colin winced, his eyes once again focusing on the ground at his feet.
"Mayor Bo.. said he has to let you have the sword." Talo's eyes lit up and he grinned up at Link expectantly. Link frowned as he looked down at Talo, then cleared his throat.
"He also said that you are to make a new one, should you break this one." Talo and even Malo took a step back at hearing Link's voice. After some moments, Talo nodded.
"OK.. I promise, I'll be real careful when I use it." Link sighed, and reluctantly handed the sword to Talo, who gazed at the sword in awe before cheering excitedly.
"With this thing… I'll show 'em!" Link frowned. 'You had better be careful this time Talo.' Talo ran off to practice using the sword with the scarecrow, with Malo quickly trailing behind him.
"Link." He looked at his side, at Colin smiling sheepishly up at him.
"Thanks… Those guys are always teasing me…" Link nodded. 'Talo especially…' Colin turned to look at Talo and Malo.
"What's so fun about swinging something like that around, anyways? I hate it… It's scary…" Link sighed, gently placing a reassuring hand on Colin's shoulder. 'It might be scary, but it's even scarier to have no way of defending yourself if something goes wrong.' Colin smiled up at Link.
"But when I grow up, I'm gonna be just like you, Link! I don't want to learn about swords or anything, but could you teach me how to ride a horse sometime?" Link smiled and nodded. 'Of course, Colin. I'd be happy to.'
"Can you?! You have to promise!" Link laughed and nodded again. 'I promise.' With a wide grin on his face, Colin ran off towards the spring. Link sighed. 'At least he's feeling better now.' Then he frowned. 'Now then.. Time to have a nice little chat with Ilia.'
Link, truth be told, wasn't surprised to see that Ilia had closed the gates in front of the spring. 'She really doesn't want me leaving, does she.' Then he noticed Colin standing nearby the gate, watching Ilia blissfully washing Epona's shoulder. He cleared his throat, loud enough for Colin to hear, but quiet enough that Ilia wouldn't. Colin turned around.
"Link!" At the sound of Colin's voice, Ilia sharply turned around as well, her expression now angry.
"If you came to take Epona back, you can FORGET it! Why don't you think about what you've done for a change! I won't open the gate until you change your attitude!" Link huffed indignantly. 'What I've done is saved Talo's life and been asked to deliver a gift to the royal family. How about you think about what you've done: stolen my horse. Again.' With that Ilia turned back to washing Epona's shoulder, her movements now quicker and angry.
"Ilia, you don't know what happened yesterday…" Colin turned around again to look at Link.
"Listen, I don't know if she'll listen to me, but let me try to explain about Talo and the monkey, OK?" Link nodded. 'Do what you can, I'll figure out a way to get in.' Colin pointed off towards the side of the spring. "You crawl in here through the back tunnel while I do, Link." Link blinked in surprise. 'I didn't know there was a back tunnel. That's good to know, I suppose.' He nodded again and walked to find the tunnel Colin had pointed to.
To his surprise, it was pretty easy to see when he walked away from the spring. He could even see a green Rupee sitting in the tunnel. 'I wonder if that might be Colin's? Maybe I can give them to him once I get Epona back.' He carefully knelt into the tunnel, and began shuffling along through it. The tunnel was fairly well-lit thanks to several gaps above his head. In no time, Link found himself in the spring. He stood up, dusting himself off, and looked towards Ilia, Colin, and Epona.
"I had no idea… I hadn't heard the details about Talo's capture…" Ilia hesitated. "But, Colin…" For several moments, the two spoke in hushed whispers that Link couldn't hear. He slowly drew closer to the three, until suddenly Ilia noticed him at the same time Epona did. Panicked, Ilia ran to try and stand between Link and Epona, but Epona whinied and Ilia stepped back.
"So you still prefer your master over me, huh, Epona?" Link huffed. 'Of course she does. I've had her since she was a foal, and I've taken care of her since about as long.' Ilia glanced at Link, a wistful smile on her face. "Don't worry about her, Link. Fortunately, it looks like the injury isn't too serious. You two can go on together." Link smirked. 'That about confirms that the 'injury' was just you not wanting me to leave.' Ilia closed her eyes. "But, Link…" She opened her eyes, looking up at Epona. "Can you at least promise me this?" Link raised an eyebrow. "No matter what happens on your journey, don't try to do anything… out of your league. Please." With a smile, she turned to face Link.
"Just come home safely." Link shrugged. 'I doubt there's anything that dangerous between here and Hyrule. I'm just running an errand for Bo.' But, to humor her, he smiled and nodded.
Suddenly, Epona whinied in fear and turned to face the gate that blocked the spring. To Link's surprise, he heard hoofsteps - large, unsettling hoofsteps, galloping straight at the spring. All at once, a boar crashed through the gate and charged directly at the four. Epona reared up in terror, and Ilia and Colin ran to try and flee, as Link found himself momentarily frozen in place from the shock. An arrow flew from somewhere and struck Ilia, and she fell into the spring. Link moved to run to her, but suddenly something struck him from behind, and his vision went dark.
