Note: I don't know whether I'll split this into two chapters or just keep it as one, but we'll be taking a trip to Lon Lon Ranch in this chapter and meeting Link's future equine friend!
The next few chapters will be adapting a bonus chapter from the manga, as it both takes place when Link was still a child, and takes place in the Lost Woods. Because in the narrative, Link would have no reason to go back to the Kokiri Forest, so I have to work around that to where he's forced to go back.
With that said, let us get on with the chapter!
Thank you for reading!
Lon Lon Ranch
The pathway the woman had taken Link was dark and narrow, winding along tight corridors that appeared to go on forever. Link could barely see, yet it seemed that the woman didn't need the light of Navi to see her way through the shadows. It was as if she were one with them. Then, finally, at long last, they arrived outside of the gates of Castle Town, a small space in the rock to the side of the moat opening to allow the boy, woman, and fairy to exit.
"Now," Impa began, pointing to the east. "In that direction, you will find Kakariiko Village," she told Link. "My birthplace and the main dwelling place for the people outside of Castle Town."
"Yes," Navi nodded. "A man named Ingo said that much of what was once here was destroyed in the war that took place."
"Indeed," Impa nodded. "I would advise you to go there," she said. "However," she continued. "I've become aware that the roads are dangerous to travel at night," the white-haired, fiery-eyed woman looked down at the green-clad boy she had led outside. "Especially for someone such as yourself."
Link gazed up at her curiously. How did she know about that? Just who was this woman? True, she said she was the attendant of the Princess, but he didn't think that'd mean she'd be so...mysterious.
"Thus, given the circumstances," Impa then led Link around the gate of the town near the Castle, spotting a raised rocky wall surrounding a section of land reserved for the residents living there. "I think it'd be best that you go there."
Link looked in the direction she gestured in, and spotted a wooden gate that sat before a small pathway up into the raised area of land. Just what was that place? True, he had noticed it during his first time through Hyrule Field, but he had been on his way to the Castle, so he couldn't stop to look around. Something Navi reminded him of constantly throughout the journey.
"That there is Lon Lon Ranch," Impa told the boy and his fairy. "The Castle's main supplier of goods, specifically meat and dairy products."
Meat? Yeah, that was what he had in Castle Town with Gris. He still didn't entirely understand what it was, or how it somehow came from animals, but it tasted good, so that was what mattered. But what was dairy?
"I met a girl sitting outside of the Castle gates who said her father was the owner," Impa explained. "She said she met you last night, meaning that you were up nearly all day yesterday, right?"
Link nodded. Why would she want to know that?
"So, she dragged you all around town without giving you a moment to rest," the white-haired, tan-skinned woman narrowed her eyes. She didn't appear angry, but rather annoyed. "Well, I already alerted her and her father that you'll be stopping by, as you are in clear need of somewhere to stay for the night," she then looked in the direction Kakariko resided. "It'll take you a few miles to get there, but you will eventually need to travel to that place," she told the boy. "There also lies the entrance to Death Mountain, the home of the Gorons."
Yes, the Gorons. Link had heard about them from Gris, and from what she said, they were people that were large and with tough skin. But still, why were they called rock people? How could a person be like a rock? Or a rock be like a person? Maybe if the rock was shaped like a person, maybe, but Link couldn't fathom what the other way around would look like.
"And, while I know you've received official word from the Princess herself," Impa continued. Then, she rolled her eyes. "She overestimates the power of her authority."
"Hm? How so?" Navi questioned.
"That letter may let others know you're here on her behalf," the woman clarified. "But she fails to understand that the King's word outranks hers," she said. "And he's told everyone to not indulge in what he calls her unnecessary worries."
"So, he doesn't believe her when she says that Ganondorf fellow wants to take over the country?" Navi asked.
"Unfortunately, no," Impa answered. "Even if she isn't going about it the best way, I believe it's unwise to ignore her words. Especially given the history of the daughters of the Royal Family," she then sighed. "The King, he is not necessarily a wise man, but he is a good man," she then turned her attention to Link. "Anyway, enough of that," she said. "You have places you need to be, as well as a journey to complete."
Link nodded. "R-Right."
Impa smiled. "Hm," she hummed, studying the boy in green. "True, I am not sure," she murmured. "But there is a possibility you could be."
"Could be what?" Navi questioned.
"Just thinking aloud," Impa answered. "Go to the ranch, you shall find yourself a dwelling place for the night," she then gave Link a small pat on the back. "Go on, you can do it."
Link took a few steps forward, the place the woman had mentioned a short distance away. The sun was already in the middle of the blue sky able, partially covered by a few passing clouds. It was midday by now, and it would be dark in a few hours. True, it would take some time for the sun to go down, but Impa said that it'd take miles to get to Kakariko.
"H-Hey," Link began, turning around to face Impa. "How far away is...?" he trailed off, realizing that the white-haired woman had vanished from sight. The boy looked around with wide eyes, unsure of what had just happened. Where had she gone? She was here just seconds before!
"Well," Navi said, trying to process where Impa had gone as well. Still, despite the woman's ambiguity, she didn't seem like an enemy. She could perhaps be trusted. "Regardless, we know what'll happen if you're out at night," the fairy told her young charge. "So you might as well go to the ranch. Besides, didn't she say that Malon was waiting for you there?"
Yeah, that's right, Link thought. Granted, he was somewhat surprised at this turn of events, yet he was curious as to what this ranch was. Just what was a ranch anyway?
"That blasted owl has killed many of our darlings already," one of the two old figures leaning over the boiling cauldron grumbled, quite frustrated at the bird's efforts to thwart their efforts to spy on the boy. "Just how many Gueys have we gone through?"
"More than I would care to," the other old crone answered, the cooler of the two heads. "Yet he can't kill them all. Besides," she then smiled, a few of her remaining teeth poking out from in between her lips. "I'm sure our dear King will have something nice prepared for him later."
"Speaking of, how did the meeting with King Harkinian go?" the other old figure questioned, genuinely curious. After all, this entire operation hinged on whether or not their King could gain the trust of Hyrule's ruler.
"As far as what I know, the man doesn't suspect a thing," the figure's sibling answered. "His service in the civil war that took place has made him rather eager to establish good relations with his neighbors. Especially those belonging to the land that Hyrule managed to conquer."
"Only because forces from Labrynna allied themselves with the country," the more hotheaded of the two countered. "The Royal Family of that place have access to great machinery and advanced technology, even more than that of Hyrule," she said. "Places such as the supposed country to the south of the Lost Woods are said to have mastered the method of measuring time, or in Holodrum, where it's said an envoy of the Golden Goddesses maintains and controls the very seasons."
"Does not Labrynna have a similar individual as well?" the other figure asked. "One that is said to maintain the ages?"
"Yes, and the late Queen Ambrianna came from Labrynna," the second old crone added. "Even if she has some Hylian lineage. Despite the King's insistence that he married for love, the Nobles around him would've pushed for someone with the same blood as themselves to keep the Royal line as pure as possible."
"Pure, bah!" the other crone scoffed. "As if those pointy-eared snobs have any room to talk," they then trailed her long, bony fingers along the rims of their curved ears. "Do you ever miss them?" they questioned their sibling. "The connection to the Gods?"
"The Gods went against our prayers, so we must do without them," the other responded. "As for whether or not I regret our actions that resulted in this," they then ran their digits over their ears hidden behind snow-white, aging hair. "As well as cursing the entire race of our people to such a fate..." they paused, considering their sibling's question. "No," they finally answered. "Not if it finally means we're able to accomplish what we've been planning for centuries," they said with a smile. "Not if it means that our dear King will finally reclaim his place as ruler of this land, as well as possess the Power of Gold."
"And what of the boy and girl?"
The figure gave a small stir of the cauldron's boiling water. "What of them?" they questioned. "They will serve us in due time. Whether they mean to or not."
"What do you mean?" the other asked.
"The Princess may know of our intentions, but her word is no good. She is nothing more than a child playing a silly game in the eye of adults," the other sibling answered. "She will assist her little delivery boy, but in only so much. And I doubt his word would be good either."
"And what of the other girl? The girl from Castle Town?" the second figure inquired. "What role does she have?"
The figure watching the boy walking to the ranch didn't answer at first, pondering their sibling's words. "Truthfully, I am not sure," they said. "Yet regardless, she has two options: she will either aid the Princess's friend in his quest," they then grinned. "Or, she shall suffer the same fate as all those that we shall surprise when the time comes."
The other was silent, unsure of their sibling's assessment. "What about the Spiritual Stones?" they then asked. "Has our King set forth a plan to seek them out? After all," they bit their lip. "That boy has the Stone of the Forest."
"Don't concern yourself with that. Everything will fall into place, whether our King intends for it to or not." the other figure answered.
"How is that?"
"Well, for one thing, even if our dearest Ganondorf has learned diplomacy, he is not one to be denied what he wants," the shadowy shape in the small room hidden away from the sun stated. "And, given how notoriously proud and stubborn the Gorons are, I doubt they'll part with their beloved treasure so easily."
"So, what are you suggesting?"
The old crone smiled. "I'm saying that the Gorons and Zoras may not be receptive to a large, towering, intimidating specimen our darling boy has grown up to be," their large eyes centered on the reflection of the boy in green. "But surely they'd think nothing of a young, innocent child."
Hyrule Field
"Well, here we are," Navi said, having finally reached the entrance with Link. "Lon Lon Ranch."
Link looked at the sign situated by the entrance, studying the characters written on the wood. Just what did it say? He couldn't understand this language.
"You can worry about your ABCs later," Navi told him. "Right now, we need to take that lady's advice and find someplace to stay before dark."
The boy and his fairy stood before the wooden gate, the narrow pathway lined with rock faces concealed the actual ranch from view. As far as Link knew, he was going in blind. It was then he remembered he didn't even know what a ranch was! Still, if it was where that red-haired girl lived, then it must've been an all-right place. Perhaps he'd be able to see more of those large, four-legged animals he had seen pulling Ingo and Talon's carts.
He still had no idea what they were called.
Going up the raised pathway, Link soon entered an area that was between two buildings, both constructed of wood, but both rather different. One was painted white with a red, titled roof and beams of wood lining the outer walls. The other structure appeared to be primarily constructed rather plainly, the wooden boards holding the place together unpainted and exposed to the elements outside. Link continued until he came across a far more open space, a wide field before him. And, unlike the larger buildings he had just paced, there was only a small, white tower with a red roof and a wooden bench with an overhead built in to shield whoever was sitting from the sunlight.
The land in itself was grassy, yet it bore little flora outside of that, the trees present possessing thin trunks and branches, much unlike those of the Lost Woods, or even the larger field outside of the borders of the ranch. Several patches of earth held no grass at all as if the ground had been trampled so many times, nothing was allowed to grow there. Still, despite being different from both the Kokiri Forest and Castle Town, Link found himself more at ease in this place compared to the settlement he had just visited. There weren't as many people, and the area was far more spacious. But, even if he didn't see any people, this open space was far from unoccupied.
"Whoa, boy! Whoa!"
Navi turned to the side, yelping at what she saw. "Watch out!" she shouted, gaining Link's attention and alerting him of the danger.
The danger in question was a massive shape with four legs charging directly for the far smaller boy in green, the figure atop the beast swerving it out of the way just in time before it could crash into the boy caught unawares. As it rode off further away, both Link and Navi could better tell what the creature looked like, and they realized that they were the same ones they had seen before. Although, for Link, those that were pure white or black had yet to be seen. After a few moments, the creature's rider got it to slow down, its hooves trotting along the ground at a slower pace until it was worked down to a walking speed. Then, the rider seemed to notice the boy they had nearly run into and immediately gasped in shock.
"Oh, it's you!" Malon called out, taking a moment to dismount from the tall quadruped animal and go over to Link. "The Fairy Boy!" she then looked him over. "Sorry about that, Shelly's just been a bit skittish lately. Did you hurt yourself?"
Link shook his head, he was tougher than that. At least, he had to make it look like that in front of a girl. But wait a moment, he thought. "Shelly?" he asked.
"Yeah, one of our mares," Malon explained. "She's one of the younger ones, so she needs to be trained into being a working horse."
"Horse?" Link asked.
"Yeah, a horse," the red-haired girl told the boy. "Have you never seen a horse before?" Link shook his head. "Then...you've never been to a ranch at all?"
Link shook his head again. Usually, whenever he didn't know something, Navi would either explain it or lecture him about how he should've known already. Malon, however, appeared excited to hear the news that he knew next to nothing about this place.
"Wow," she then grabbed Link's hand. "Then allow me to give you a grand tour!" she said, smiling. But then paused. "If you, well, don't mind me being the one leading you around."
Link gazed at Navi, unsure of what Malon meant. Why would he mind if she was the one showing him around?
"You mean, you don't care?" Malon asked. "I mean," she then brushed some of her red hair out of her face. "You think I'm trustworthy?"
Link was still confused. Why wouldn't she be? Regardless, he answered her question with a nod.
"Well, ok, great!" Malon said, her worry disappearing and being replaced with a pleased grin. "Well, as you can see, this is the pasture, where the animals go out and roam around," she explained. "Although, I've got to take a trip to the barn."
The barn? What was a barn, Link wondered.
"It's where we keep the animals at night," the redhead told the boy and fairy. "Although, it's still midday," she said. "But it's near another feeding time, so I've got to go to give her milk."
"Give...who?" Link questioned.
"Do you sometimes just have problems talking?" Malon questioned. "I mean, I don't care," she explained. "I mean, you might speak a little weird, but you're not stupid."
"N-No," Link shook his head. "I...I'm not." Even if she didn't mean it as an insult as Midio would've, Link needed to assert to Malon that he was no such thing as stupid. He wasn't going to have his intelligence insulted.
"Well, good," Malon told him. "Because, on the ranch, the best skill you have is your sense of hearing," she said, leading him to the wooden building he had passed before. "Especially since animals don't speak our language either, so you have to listen to them carefully."
The wooden door was shut behind them, Malon having led Link to the barn. The interior was very sparse and had no paint on the walls, yet Link found it gave the place a rustic feel, almost living off bare essentials. Plus, the unpainted wood that held up the building reminded him of his treehouse back in the Kokiri Forest.
The Kokiri Forest...he couldn't help but wonder how things were going back at home, even if it technically wasn't his home anymore. He could stay in the Lost Woods with Saria, yet it still pained him that he probably wouldn't be welcome back in the community. And Saria, just how was she doing? Was she doing all right? With the Great Deku Tree gone, she said she would take care of things, but how could that be?
Despite his questions, Link wished that he could see her. Perhaps after his quest was done and he delivered the Stones to the Princess, he could visit her.
"Hello? You there?" Malon's voice brought Link back to his current reality, images of the dense woodland he had known all his life were replaced with the wooden walls of the barn. "Wow, you're right," the girl told Navi. "He DOES space out."
"All the more reason for me to be here," the fairy responded. Link huffed. "Anyway, this is where you keep the rest of your animals?"
"Yes," Malon answered with a nod. "We let the cows out in the pasture, yet when we need to milk them, we keep them inside," Link appeared confused. "You don't know what a cow is either?" Even if he was making himself look rather foolish, Link answered honestly with a nod of the head, albeit sheepishly. "So, you guys don't have milk in the forest?"
Link hated to ask, but he had to know. "W-what's...milk?"
"Wow," Malon said. "You've got a lot to learn if you're going to be traveling around Hyrule," she then smiled. "Luckily, I'm just the person to show you!" she then pulled Link to one of the holding areas for a four-legged animal with dark hooves, a white coat with large, black patches, a large, pink nose, floppy ears, and a ring piercing its nose. The creature appeared calm and content, lazily munching on some fodder. "This is Bessie, our oldest cow," Malon told the boy. "Cows give milk, which can be drunk by both us and other animals."
So, milk came from cows the same way apples came from trees? All right, he believed he was getting the hang of this, Link thought. This animal, this "cow" appeared more heavyweight than the more agile horses outside, a long tail wisping back and forth from behind its rump, but it didn't seem bothered by either Link or the girl's presence.
"Hey, you!" suddenly, a male voice called out, its owner approaching the two children. "Just what are you doing here?" Link looked up and saw the same man that had given him a ride to Castle Town on his first night in Hyrule Field, the taller figure sporting a large mustache and pink trousers with a green shirt and brown shoes.
"I met him in Castle Town, Mr. Ingo," Malon told the farmhand sporting a pitchfork. "I invited him to the ranch because he helped me find dad."
"Who had fallen asleep on the job," Ingo added. "Again."
Malon rolled her eyes. "Yes," she then looked at Link. "That's why I'm giving Fairy Boy a grand tour of the place. He's never seen horses or cows before."
"Well, fine then," Ingo said with a dismissive huff. "Just be sure to do your chores and don't let him cause any trouble," he then went off to take care of the other cows in the barn, all the while grumbling to himself. "That lazy bum, Talon. Why do I do most of the work around here? It might as well be MY ranch!" he went out of the barn, leaving the two children alone. He had to tend to the cuccos. "I, Ingo, should be the one in charge around here. Not some guy who sleeps the day away!"
Back within the walls of the barn, Malon approached Bessie and entered the stall, kneeling beside the bovine and grabbing a nearby bucket. "What are you...doing?" Link questioned, watching as what looked like white liquid shoot out from a pink sac resting on the underside of the cow.
"This is how you get the milk from cows," Malon explained, continuing the process with Bessie, steadily filling the bucket up. "They produce milk every day, and it can get painful for them if they aren't relieved," she continued her work, watching as the milk rose in the bucket. "Unfortunately, Bessie doesn't produce as much milk as she used to, but she can give just enough for me."
"For you?" Navi questioned.
"Yes," Malon answered, finishing her task. Exiting the stall, she came out with a bucket partially full of freshly squeezed milk. "The other cows give milk that we sell to the Castle and in Kakariko Village," she then led Link over to a stall at the end of the barn. "But dad and Mr. Ingo have allowed me to use Bessie to feed our smallest resident."
Smallest resident? Link peered into the stall and found he couldn't see anything inside. Navi fluttered in through the open space above the gate, and searched around, her senses detecting a form of life underneath a small pile of hay in the northeastern corner. Flying closer, she spied a large, blue eye open from beneath the yellow, dry fibers. With a small shake of the head, the hay was dislodged and the tiny creature that had been hiding stood up, realizing that it was feeding time once again.
What was that? Link leaned in closer, the four-legged animal slowly making its way toward the blonde boy, steps wobbly and unsteady. Just what was this thing?
"She's a filly," Malon answered. "A baby horse," she then reached out to stroke the small horse's snout. "Her name is Epona."
Unlike the sandy-brown coats of those outside, this little equine bore a coat of bright mahogany and a mane and snout, along with ankles of white. Her eyes were a deep blue, but large and innocent, signifying that she was still quite young. She gazed at Link curiously, blinking and lightly twitching her red ears.
"Go on, you can pet her." Malon urged the boy.
Link reached out to touch the filly, but his hand went onto the horse's nose, a digit accidentally poking into the nostril. The baby horse blew air out and stumbled back, falling on another pile of hay in the opposite corner of the room. A high-pitched yelp was heard and Epona neighed in fright, the smaller body she had landed on jolting her up from her place. Then, to everyone's shock, the concealed lump in the hay spit out fire, the flaming stream just barely missing the beams of Epona's enclosure, as well as the ceiling and walls, the range of the blast not reaching by mere inches.
"What the?!" Navi cried out, hiding underneath Link's hat to shield herself from the heat she felt from the fire.
"What's going on here?" a voice called out, Malon and Link whirling around to see both Ingo and Talon entering the barn. "We heard a noise, what happened?"
Caught off guard by the fact her father was awake, Malon quickly went to work trying to cover herself. "Oh, it's, uh, nothing. Epona just sneezed."
"That's it?" Ingo questioned. "That's some sneeze if it got you both to scream like a couple of girls."
"I am not a girl!" Link protested, but Navi whispered for him to be quiet and let Malon do all the talking.
"Yeah, it was super scary!" the redhead told the taller of the two bearded men. "But at least it means her lungs are healthy! To do a sneeze like that would take a lot of air, right?"
Ingo then went over and peered into the stall, Malon panicking as he did so. Whatever had caused that fire was in there, and it was most definitely NOT Epona. His critical eyes searched, yet, from what he could find, there was nothing but a red filly inside. "Well, ok," the pink and green-dressed man said. "But keep it down next time!" he then turned to leave. "Those blasted cuccos will attack you at a moment's notice."
Talon followed, but not before bidding his daughter some parting words. "Truth is, I just woke up," he then shrugged. "Maybe I was just imagining it," He then left. "Well, I'll leave you to it. Make sure Epona drinks it all!"
"Will do!" With his departure, Malon went into the stall with the bucket of milk and sat down, bringing Epona down with her. "Come on in," she told Link. "I probably owe you an explanation as for what that...fire was," she said. "Which it is. It's real fire."
Real fire? Well, Link certainly didn't think it was "fake" fire, yet he still had no idea as to what could've produced it.
"Look, I'll tell you, I will. But only after dinner, as I can't let him come out at night."
Wait a minute, what? Let who come out at night? Was this someone the one who had breathed fire?
"Please, just don't look," Malon begged. "He's kinda shy and doesn't like to be seen. That's why I've been keeping him in here," she explained. "Just please, wait until after dinner before I show him to you," she then eyed the boy curiously when he looked confused. "You ARE staying, right?"
Staying? Link pondered this proposal. Indeed, Impa had told him that he probably needed to find someplace to stay for the night, and Malon had also offered him food, so there was no reason to say no. He nodded, this answer seemingly pleasing the red-haired girl.
"Great! Now, do you mind giving me a hand?" the boy in green entered, watching as Malon grabbed what appeared to be a hollowed-out cow horn. She put the end of the horn in Epona's mouth, a hole carved to allow for an exit, and then turned to Link. "Seeing as you're here, could you pour some of the milk in for me?" Malon asked Link. "I'd do it myself, but she's been getting a little antsy on me lately, so I need to hold her while she feeds."
Feeds? Oh right, Link thought. Cow's milk could be drunk by other animals. If that was the case, then how did it taste? He'd question that later, for now, he obeyed Malon's request and poured the white liquid into the hollowed-out horn, the freshly squeezed dairy running down the inner section of the horn and to the filly's toothless mouth. The young horse eagerly drank up the milk coming her way, Malon holding the horn steady to keep any from leaking out.
"If I may," Navi questioned, emerging from Link's hat. "Why does she have to drink a cow's milk? Don't horses produce milk for their children?"
"They do," Malon answered. "But Catherine was a young mare when she had Epona," the red-haired girl explained.
"C-Catherine?" Link asked.
"A mare, a girl horse, that we had at the ranch," Malon told the boy from the forest. "Epona was the first foal she had, so she was a new mother. Unfortunately," she then paused. "She didn't have enough milk to give her baby, and she passed on a few days after giving birth."
A horse died? Better yet, a baby's mother died. Link looked down at the red horse in sympathy. Still, despite his desire to reach out and touch the horse, Epona didn't seem that receptive to his presence. She seemed to tolerate him more than anything else.
"Epona's just not used to anyone outside of me, dad, and Mr. Ingo," Malon told Link. "Give her time, I think she'll like you."
Ok, Link thought. Still, he has somewhat disheartened because the foal didn't take too kindly to him.
"Hey, I forgot to ask you," Malon said, still feeding Epona. "On your way, did you get to meet the Princess? Like, truthfully?"
Link nodded and presented the envelope the well-dressed girl had given him. "It's officially signed by her as well," Navi added. "Although, neither Link nor I understand the language."
"You don't know how to read Hylian?" Malon questioned. "How do you find your way in the forest without signs?"
"The Kokiri have signs, sure," Navi explained. "Their numbering system is just...a little different. They use individual lines of five to mark the amounts they have or want of certain products."
"So, you grew up with what was an entirely different language," Malon observed. "And yet, you still speak Hylian. Well, at least when you do occasionally talk," she then noticed Link appear uncertain. "Which is fine, if you don't want to," she said. "You might not speak a lot, but you're pretty easy to figure out."
Was he? Link turned to Navi to get her input. "Let's just say in the heat of things, you have a very expressive face."
As if demonstrate, Link's cheeks flushed in embarrassment. His eyes then fell on the pile of hay that was previously disturbed by Epona. The one that had blasted out a stream of fire.
"I'll show you later. I have to feed him too, but after we have our dinner," Malon told Link. "Please, just be patient. I can't afford to let him be seen."
Link continued to stare at the hay pile, tempted to go over and uncover whatever was hiding for himself. Nonetheless, he relented and stayed back, if not just because Malon was there with him. And besides, he had proven he could keep a secret with Gris, right?
Gris...
"Anyway, what is this envelope for exactly?" Malon asked, momentarily setting the hollowed-out horn down, as it was now empty of milk, Epona having drunk all of it. She took the red paper sealed with the royal crest on a seal of wax, examining it. "It just looks like an ordinary letter to me."
"She said that it'll help us get to wherever we need to go," Navi told Malon. "Just show them that we're here on behalf of the Princess, and they'll let us by."
"Sounds a little too easy," Malon said. "Still, she IS the Princess," she then handed the envelope back to Link, who put it back in his sack. "So, what was she like?"
Link shrugged. "She was...ok."
Suffice it to say, the redhead was shocked. "Ok?" she asked. "Ok? Um, you managed to meet the Princess. Not even that, A Princess! The first Princess in Hyrule for a hundred years! And all you have to say is that she's ok?"
Link was puzzled. Was he supposed to think something else about her? From what he saw, she didn't look any different than him or Malon. She was no different than the other kids he had seen in Castle Town. "Guess so," he said.
"Well...ok, if you say so," Malon said, petting Epona. "Although, I'd personally love to have the opportunity to meet her, if just once. Just to say I did it," she then turned back to Link. "Hey, there was that other girl you were with, right?" she asked. "Gris, wasn't it? From Labrynna?"
Yes, that's right, Link thought. He had nearly forgotten. Shocking, considering that, up until Malon's questions regarding the princess, the other girl had been on his mind ever since leaving the Castle.
"What happened to her?" Malon questioned. "Wasn't she the one that took you to the Castle?"
"Yes, that's right," Navi answered. "She told us she was friends with the Princess, so she'd show us to her," she then crossed her arms. "We had to sneak through the garden and we nearly got caught, but she technically did keep her word."
Malon then noticed the look on Link's face. "What's that all about?" she asked. "You thinking about her?"
Link sputtered, being drawn out of his thoughts and shaking his head vehemently. "Oooh," Navi then said, joining in on the teasing. "I think someone's lying."
"Am not!" Link protested, folding his arms as he turned away to hide his beet-red face.
"But you do want to see her again, right?" Malon asked.
Well...he wouldn't deny that. True, she had been a little pushy, but for the most part, Link found he enjoyed his time with her. True, he hadn't known her as long as Saria, yet, given time, it was possible that they could've become friends.
"Hey, since you've got official proof you know the Princess, maybe you can ask the guards or anyone if they've seen her. If she works for the Royal Family, she either lives in Castle Town or Kakariko Village, so you're bound to see her again sometime in the future."
Link pondered this. "You...think so?"
"Yeah, we're going there tomorrow to deliver milk, as we've already made our delivery to the Castle," Malon told Link, then rising from her sitting place where she was stroking Epona. "Want to come?"
Link thought about the girl's proposal. True, he would need to go there eventually, and it was close to Death Mountain, the place he needed to head to next. After a short few moments, Link nodded in response.
"Ok, that's great!" Malon said. "But, if you're going to stay the night," she then exited the stall, holding it open for Link to come out as well. "You're helping me prepare for dinner."
Her blue eyes opened, yet she once again found herself alone in the Sacred Meadow, save for her fairy, Compa. Still, despite seeing that there was nothing to fear, Saria couldn't help but be troubled.
Ever since Link's departure, she found herself unable to settle down. True, the departure of her friend was a heavy blow, but she knew it had to be done, not just for the sake of herself and the other Kokiri, but for the world outside the forest as well. Still, it didn't make it any easier to go through it. But ever since then, Saria found herself wondering if she was in any particular danger. The Lost Woods had been steadily getting more twisted and maze-like, the Kokiri girl sometimes having a difficult time remembering where she had gone. Thankfully, she had studied this place well enough to know it like the back of her hand. Regardless, she worried for any hapless soul who would perhaps stumble his way into the trees, only to be swallowed by the dense brush, never to return.
Saria herself had never seen it, yet she took the Great Deku Tree's warnings about the area to heart, especially when it came to Link's safety. For, indeed, while he reigned over much, Saria knew something that the others didn't, not even Link himself.
Soon, she feared, the territory of the Forest Guardian would be taken by a force far fouler in nature. A force that had been waiting for this very moment. Saria couldn't have been sure, but she suspected that, whatever it was, it was making its move. And without the Great Deku Tree, no one would be able to stop it.
Note: We continue with Lon Lon Ranch in the next part, as well as get to see what Malon has been hiding in the barn with Epona. It's also what she was hiding from Link and Gris back at the Castle.
Also, it's very unlikely, but it is possible to wean an orphan foal on cow milk, even if they won't get as many nutrients.
With that said, thank you for reading, and giving your input, and I hope to hear from you later!
PS-Catherine is the name of Link's horse in Valiant Comics.