Apothecary

Chapter 13

"Hiiii~!" The eccentric man greeted us quite cheerily, seemingly unfazed by the fact that two people had just crash-landed onto his balcony. From a cannon.

I was starting to figure out that Hyrule proper was a strange place.

"Welcome to Falbi's Flight by Fowl! Were you two looking to go on a Cucco-powered flight around Lake Hylia? You will LOVE it!"

"Er, no, actually." Link interrupted his spiel.

"Aww, really? How sad for you..." He actually looked sad for a moment. But it was quickly gone, leaving me to wonder if it had ever happened at all. "Well, if you change your mind, come back anytime, partners!" He waved us off as cheerfully as he had greeted us. We thanked him and then hastily got out of there.

***

"What was that about?"

"What was that about?"

"Falbi and Fyer are...strange ones," Link answered as he shut the door behind us, and I just shook my head. Somehow that seemed like an understatement. We walked up the wooden stairs and up the main road until we came to the small fork that lead back to Hyrule Field, one leg leading to the bridge of Hylia. Link took the opportunity to use the horse grass growing there to call for Epona.

"The rental horse we left is probably long gone," he said as he climbed into the saddle."You'll have to ride with me. Is that okay with you?" he asked after a moment, still trying to be polite.

"...what other choice do I have?"

"Good point. Climb on."

Link moved forward on the saddle, and I, trying not to focus too much on how close he was, climbed up as best I could behind him. Then he guided Epona towards the path away from the bridge of Hylia, and we set off at a full gallop.

We rode into southern Hyrule Field, batting away Kargoroks as we went. Link made a brief stop by what we in Castle Town affectionately referred to as the Ordona bridge. It was a simple wooden structure, but its main point of interest was that it was built over a shallow pond. Link stopped at the bridge in order for Epona to take a drink, as she had had none all day. It was also for us to take a little rest after the the turbulence of today's events. Free of the weight of both of us, the horse tossed her head relievedly, and trotted over to the water to take a long drink. While Epona settled herself, Link took out the map, moving to the shoreline as he did so, and began to plot our next course. Meanwhile, I elected to use this time to begin the first of my promised letters to Eliza. No doubt she'd be dying to know what happened during my first day of adventure.

Dear Eliza,

The trip has been going well so far. I can't say that I know what to fully expect yet, seeing as in our first day we have traversed almost all of Zora's River, and toured some of Lake Hylia. I was introduced to the king of the Zora himself!

I also jumped off of a waterfall. And was shot out of a cannon.

So there's that.

I paused in writing, and being unsure of how to continue, let my mind wander. Eliza really was my best friend. Sometimes she did let her words wander a little too much, and she was a little over the top when she found out about the wolf thing, but the fact remained that she was the first friend I made when I first came to Castle Town.

When I first came to Castle Town I was tired, I was hungry, and I was in no position to even beg anyone's charity.

I had run halfway across Hyrule Field, fleeing the invasion, stopping only to rest. I had no place to stay, and had no idea when my next meal would be. I was at my wit's end and nearing the end of South Road when I saw her.