[] Stay still, just let the guards look the cart over and don't antagonize them. They aren't looking where the master sword is for now.
You feel yourself grinding your teeth as they go over the items in the back of the cart, your whole body prepared for you to leap up and fight your way out. The guards don't speak to any of you though, leaving you sitting as the suns heat hammers down on you all. Irene seems to be the worst off, her face red and covered in a sheen of sweat, you can see her gripping her dress tightly. Malon was keeping herself looking ahead, her face blank though the corners of her mouth twitched on occasion. A shaking calloused hand suddenly wrapped around your own, squeezing it tightly as if letting go would send its owner plummeting away. You didn't even look to see who it belonged too, shifting slightly to hide that sign of Malon's fear and anxiety away from the eyes of the guards, thankful that Irene suddenly scooted up closer to you and blocked it from view.
"SIR!" A voice suddenly calls out, making you all jump. As one you all whip around to see a guard holding up the powder horn Malon had bought.
The officer grins, walking over as the guard says "We should probably be careful rooting through, we've confirmed they did indeed buy powder and shot-"
"Ah, so planning to do some hunting eh?" The officer chuckles, sneering at Malon "And just what did you plan to hunt? I'm sure you're aware of the recent Imperial laws. My oh my, you're in quite a bit of trouble now my dear~"
You could almost feel Malon roll her eyes without even looking at her, "As much as your masters would like otherwise I still own most of the land from the Ranch to the Whistling Hill and in case you've forgotten the ranch holds the cattle
they want. Unless you're planning to station guards around them day and night to make sure a Chuchu doesn't devour them I need something to defend them."
The officer goes pale, as do all the soldiers who carefully place the powder back into the cart. Yet with a twitch of the eye the officer suddenly returns to his sneering expression and says "Well, we'll be keeping an eye on you. Imperial law is getting stricter, some who are...
lacking the necessary
qualities may find themselves no longer allowed to own property. You'll soon need to make certain considerations, you know which ones."
Malon suddenly glances over to you, before coldly asking with a glare, "May I leave now?"
The officer waves stepping back, and you quickly set the cart in motion. Passing the guards still pale and whispering about chuchus. The guard keeps sneering at the back of your heads.
Malon keeps looking ahead until finally out of earshot she slumps against the seat, resting her head against your shoulder as she clutches her chest, "Bwaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah my heart is racing, I was certain they'd notice that sword!"
"Chuchu's? They're seriously worried about Chuchu's? Do you guys get swarms of electric chuchu's here?" You ask, looking over to Malon who looks up to you with surprise before sighing again.
"Right, you guys are like... super awesome heroes. I don't even want to see what you all consider a challenge, right Irene?" Malon chuckles, leaning over to speak to the witch, "Irene?"
You look over to your blue-haired witch friend who's skin was extremely red and was wincing as she gently touched her nose, "I.
HATE. Being. Without. My. Hat." The witch hissed at both of you, "Ugh, we don't even have a single chillshroom or cold darner so can't brew anything..."
"Ah, so you lightdwellers are also harmed by the sun! Isn't it an awful disgusting thing? This is why the twilight is superior above all," A smug voice happily informed you all from somewhere behind you.
"I wonder how her majesty is doing..." Malon suddenly whimsically ponders aloud, resting her hand on her chin as she looks on ahead a small smile on her face. A smile that slowly becomes a look of fear as she suddenly whispers, "Oh gods I've had Princess Zelda and Princess Mipha doing hard farm work she never did before with no food and little water in the heat."
"Uh, has Paya ever been near a cow before?" Irene asks you.
You don't respond, instead pushing the cart to move forward just a little faster.
Thankfully when you arrived it turned out the girls were all sitting in the shade of a tree, drinking (or in Mipha's case pouring it on her head) water that was clear Mipha had summoned. Zelda had at some point thrown on one of your shirts, with the sleeves rolled up and tied her hair back in a ponytail, while Paya was wearing the dress that had been bought for her as a disguise though kept without the coverings that would hide her hair and tattoos. Mipha meanwhile was only wearing the disabled shock collar. Sif was at their feet, panting and looking very much like he really didn't want to move while Elora, Zelda's Sheikah Falcon, had her head tucked under her wing in the branches. Romani was beside them, seated on the ground head lolling back and forth seemingly unaware of anything. The three older girls were covered in dirt and sweat, exhaustion clear even as they all stood up and quickly made their way over to you as the cart pulled up to the ranch.
"Heeeeey! You guys all finish or just taking a break?" Malon called out happily, waving to them as they hurried over.
"Finished, thankfully Mipha's magic helped trivialize certain tasks," Zelda replied as she walked up.
"Magic?" Malon asks, cocking her head only to jump back as Mipha waved her hand and summoned a sphere of water the size of a horse that she lazily launched into the empty field. Malon gaped, "WOW I mean... that's... I... WOW you can just do that?! That's the coolest thing I've ever seen! Can you do stuff like that your majesty?!"
"Ehehe... I'm more uh... magic arrows kinda stuff..." Zelda replied with an awkward chuckle, scratching her chin.
"We uhm.... may have pushed most of it into a ditch Miss Malon..." Paya mumbles from behind Zelda.
"Uhm, Irene... you're looking quite... Red. Are those burns? Did you fight some fire chuchus?" Mipha asks with concern to the very red witch who was wincing as she got off the cart, "Do you need some healing?"
"Yes. Please. Thank you."
"Well, I'll go check on the animals, you guys mind making sure everythings packed away?" Malon asks as Mipha began casting her healing magic on Irene.
"I'll get started on dinner," You announce, moving to grab the food you had bought.
"You sure you don't need help?" Malon asks, as she seemed to look around and note that no one seemed to move to assist you, "I mean, I'll be fine with anything-"
++++++++++++++++
Malon let out a content sigh, one hand cupping her cheek as she lowered the wooden spoon back to the bowl, "It's
soooooo good~ Can you marry me so I can have food like this every day?~"
"Glad you enjoy it," You reply with a laugh as you rub the back of your head as Malon and others return to devouring it, occasionally Zelda stopping to help feed Romani, "It's really a simple dish."
"This is simple?!" Malon shouts through half a mouthful.
"We try to correct him, but it's no use," Irene says with a shrug and shake of her head.
Mipha chuckles, "One day we'll convince him how he accommodates for our different races and cultures with all his dishes is extraordinary, I'm sure of it."
"Oh I don't know about that, what's that saying?" You hear Midna say as a weight settles on your head, looking up you see her two crossed arms and red-yellow eyes staring down at you, "You can't teach an old dog new tricks?~"
"Anyways," You change the subject, pinching the bridge of your nose, "Did anything weird happen here while we were gone?"
Paya, Mipha and Zelda all shake their heads, answering with various variations of "No."
"Then we need to talk," You state grimly, moving to take a seat. Midna actually takes a seat as well, the teasing smirk she normally has replaced with a grim expression.
"Are we going to expect an attack?" Mipha asks, despite the darkness settling in her pupils contracted into silts, yellow eyes flashing in the candlelight as she made a quick glance to Romani, a flash of worry visible on her face.
Malon shakes her head, "No, at least I don't think so but I'm not a skilled adventurer like you guys."
"You're right, whatever is going on they don't seem to be gearing up to attack us, at least they don't seem to view us as a threat," You explain, "But there's something very strange. The merchants we ran into are all new, atleast within the last few months and all of them seem like they belong in Castletown then even being within Hyrule's breadbasket."
"They're friends of the Gorman brothers, I'm certain of it," Malon replies, hands balled into fists, "They brought in all their stooges to bleed us all dry."
"I'm afraid that doesn't explain everyone's behaviour, farm girl," Midna interjects, interlocking her fingers under her chin as she rested her elbows on the table, "Either they're exceptionally more popular with the local populace then this empire and they dislike any remnants of Zelda's old kingdom or they've somehow convinced the entire township to be against you until you do... something."
Malon perks up, "You mean like brainwashing?! Can you sense some evil magic!?"
Midna shakes her head, "Nothing other than a sense of unease, but the sun was high in the sky while we were in town. I'm only a shadow in such wretched light."
Malon looked dejected, before looking expectantly to the rest of your group, "Hey you all have super magic right? One of you could sense if something was up!"
Zelda looked away, and awkwardly mumbled, "I uhm... have no idea how my powers work..."
"All I have to work with is recovering from heat-stroke..." Irene mumbled to herself, thankfully no longer looking quite as sunburnt but didn't look all too pleased.
"You must understand Malon, all of us save Midna are very new to the ways we can use our magic," Mipha interrupted, her face apologetic, "If she didn't sense anything... I don't think any of us will."
"If there is anything, we'll be leaving in a week or two at most," You try to console the red-haired farm girl, who had inclined her head with an expression of worry, "I doubt the Gorman's will have time to make a move."
"I just don't understand, why all
THIS," Malon asks, gesturing all around her, "Just to get me to hand myself and the Ranch over to them?"
"Didn't that officer imply you could lose the ranch by some Imperial law?" You ask, "By qualities, were they implying...?"
"Almost definitely, just cause I'm a girl I could lose the ranch..." Malon spat out, lifting her arm as though to send her bowl flying before she lets out a calming breath, "And you know... they might view you being here as a threat to that."
"B-but... can L-link do something for you though?" Paya quietly asks, making you start as you never expected the shy Sheikah girl to respond. Nor did you expect her to ask that question with such a... sad look on her face as she stared at the table, holding her hand over her heart. Zelda too was strangely avoiding looking at you, while Irene just looked uncomfortable with where the conversation had gone. Mipha and Midna though were watching the proceedings with a curious look, Midna towards Paya and Mipha towards Malon, though you could see in Mipha's eyes she was debating within herself whether to be reassuring or to watch over the situation.
Malon looks over to you with half-lidded eyes and there was something in the expression you couldn't read before she looked back to Paya and said, "No. Even if we faked it I wouldn't doubt it would immediately come out Link's the son of a royal guard or just missing the paperwork. Even if we went through the motions it'd just hurt you guys in the long run, and I couldn't live with that."
"Oh, o-oh Miss Malon..."
Malon then laughed, "Pffthaha... Just had the thought, everyone would think me and Linkle-!" Then she snapped her fingers as she bolted to her feet, "LINKLE! THAT'S IT!"
All of you jumped, with Paya asking "L-Linkle?"
"Yeah!" Malon responded with a nod, "You can pretend to be her long lost brother! No one would suspect a thing! You have similar hair, your names are similar, it's PERFECT!"
You cock your head to the side, "I mean, I don't know my family so she might be a relative."
Malon waved her hand, "Nah, her families from Akkala. Her grandmother had a list of family going back generations but no one in the village has seen it," Malon then winks at you, "Trust me, anyone who knew Linkle would not be suspicious of an unmentioned family member showing up, and besides we're related on my mother's side, that should ward off some suspicion as to why Link's here."
"And if Linkle shows up?" Irene asks, folding her arms over her chest, "We got a plan to get you out, but your relative is gods knows where and we might be putting her in danger, and why didn't you mention you're related?"
Malon shakes her head, "Trust me, you aren't and we didn't even know until her grandmother told us. It never mattered, at least till now. I'm going to leave a note anyways in a place only we know, so even if we cover our tracks it'll be there for her."
"You did say she's skilled right? People here were frightened of Chuchu's but you said she's fought Bokoblin tribes?" You ask Malon, to which she nods.
"Yep! I'd love to see her again, but like I said before she could be anywhere. Once we're out of here we're probably going to be more likely to find her," Malon explains, "I know it sounds ludicrous but Linkle... well she's a lot like you guys."
"If I pretend we're related and she's really that similar to us that might help cover up us slipping up and doing something extraordinary," You ponder aloud, rubbing your chin, "I think this is a good plan."
Zelda grins, as Paya enthusiastically nods beside her, "Yeah, us crazy people tend to group up together so we're all good with that. This is a great plan Malon!"
"She left to get help, if you say it makes sense for us to show up without her... well I guess I have nothing to complain about," Irene grins and gives a thumbs up.
"There is the matter that my presence stands out," Mipha states, putting a damper on the mood before she reaches up to rub the collar, "But I suppose this gives enough of a reason for a lack of contact. I'll try to be convincing."
"Well, I could always whisper advice to you from the shadows," Midna responds with a smirk as she floats up and rests her elbow on your shoulder, supporting her chin with her hand, "I've gotten quite the amount of practice with my mutt here ordering an obedient servant around. I'm sure we can make it convincing~"
"Then it's settled," You say, and there was a chorus of cheers and agreements and for once in a long while peals of laughter resounded across the Lon Lon Ranch.
But with dinner, in the end, you were all left with evening chores and the girls scattered across the ranch. With not much direction you were left to your own devices to choose who needed help. Of course with everyone's job equally important it ultimately boiled down to who you wanted to talk to before bed.
So who would you speak to? Choose two, they'll be together.
[] Malon
[] Midna
[] Mipha
[] Zelda
[] Irene
[] Paya
++++++++++++++++++
GM Note: Warframe's nightwave event sucks down so much time, anyone familiar with it knows that it's the worst thing that forces you to do stupid pointless resource-draining busywork if you want actual rewards. Also not used to the new SV layout at all, but you guys need an update.
