Forged in Malice

Chapter 3

It takes him about four hours to get to the outskirts of the quiet Kakariko Village, feeling his nerves stand on end as his wings were beginning to feel uncomfortable under the hylian tunic, probably due to the large strap around his chest that doubles as armor. It certainly kept his wings pinned down against his back and he was thankful that the matching cloak he wore was able to hide the strange shape underneath the tunic well enough. The Sheikah villagers are nice enough to just wave and say hello as he dismounts his horse in front of Impa's home. They know that Link is not the type for small talk, but he does end up noticing one of the younger villagers staring at him out of the corner of his eye.

It was Lasli, if he remembered her name correctly, the young woman that was usually outside of the clothing shop to try and draw in new customers. Link knew that she was rather nice, probably aspiring to be a seamstress herself since she was working under Claree, but they hardly talked after the night he fought with one of the Yiga blademasters. So why was she staring at him? Did she notice the horns he was trying to hide under the hood? Or perhaps that the outline of his wings were noticeable under the tunic? When he turned his head to get a better look of her expression, she quickly looked away, her face a light pink color as she attempted to draw in a couple of merchants into the small shop.

That was rather...odd, but Link just shook his head slightly as he finally tied the reins of his horse to the fencing surrounding the large home and made his way up the stairs. With a deep breath, he opened the double doors to see the princess discussing something with the Sheikah elder, Impa, over tea. The smell of herbal tea managed to calm his nerves slightly as he walked further within the main room and gave a small bow towards Zelda, she was still royalty despite the state her kingdom was in, and he was still her faithful knight.

"Link, I did not expect to see you for another month." Princess Zelda spoke first, standing up from the cushion she was sitting on moments ago. "Did something happen while you were out there?" She asks. Of course the Princess would pick up on his nervousness, even when Link was well at keeping his own emotions under control. Without a word, he simply nods as he grabs the slate that rests on his hip. The screen remains dark and lifeless until he passes it onto Zelda, to which it immediately responds to her presence. Link's eyes widen as he stares at the slate, wondering why it wouldn't work for him if it wasn't broken.

"The..." Link clears his throat, not used to speaking but trying to use his voice more often. "The slate wouldn't work for me after...an incident with the Yiga." He starts, knowing something felt off about his voice. Sure it was usually rough from more than a century of disuse, but there was a strange tone in his voice that he couldn't place. Maybe it was part of his transformation, or he could be coming down with something, maybe even a combination of the two but it didn't seem like Zelda noticed the shift.

"While I'm glad to know that you are in one piece", which wasn't completely true, "I'm surprised to hear that the Sheikah slate stopped functioning for you." Zelda replies, her focus on the ancient tablet as her brows knit in confusion. "Purah and I even made sure that it was calibrated properly before you embarked on your adventure...could you tell me what happened with the Yiga? Perhaps something happened in your encounter with them caused the slate to malfunction."

Link nods and simply signs. "Could we go somewhere more private? I don't want people to worry about what happened to me." He wants as few people to know about the incident and his subsequent change. When he asks this, Zelda cocks her head to the side, her confused expression becoming more obvious.

"Oh...of course, Link. Why don't we discuss it by the fairy fountain?" The princess suggests, the area deemed by the villagers too sacred to disturb. When Link nods, she turns back to Impa. "I am afraid I will have to finish that tea with you some other time. Do give Paya my sincerest apologies for wasting such a lovely blend of tea." Zelda says. Impa doesn't seem bothered at all by their little meeting being interrupted.

"Go on, even my old eyes can tell that Link is about to burst out of his own skin from whatever he has to say." Impa waves the two off. Hearing this, the Hylian Champion turns his head away from the elder, his ears downturned and twitch slightly with embarrassment under the hood of his cloak. At least Princess Zelda was kind enough to say her goodbye, not that it was necessary since she was currently living in Impa's home, and follow Link out the door and up the winding path that leads to the large and ornate fairy fountain. Hopefully Cotera wouldn't mind the company, even if they don't step into the fairy circle of blue nightshade that the much smaller fairies flutter around.

"Alright, Link. What has been plaguing you to want to talk about this without Impa?" Zelda asks as a worried expression spreads on her face. "Of all people, she should be informed about anything concerning the Yiga Clan."

Link expected her to question his choice for privacy, so he tried to explain it to her only for his voice to fail him. With a frustrated huff at his limitations, he starts signing instead. "Because what happened should have killed me, Princess. I don't need people trying to take care of me when..." Link pauses, trying to figure out how he should phrase his next words, when Zelda throws her arms around his neck as she forces a rather tight hug on him. He tenses up slightly so that the princess didn't cause them to fall back from her nearly throwing herself at him, his hands finding a respectful home at her waist.

"Link, you may be Hylia's champion, but accepting help from others is not a sign of weakness." She says, clearly misinterpreting what he was trying to say. Link bites at the inside of his cheek, not wanting to project his anger towards her when she was just trying to be a good friend. When Zelda starts pulling away from him, he could see her expression shift to one of shock as her eyes lock onto the top of his head. The princess reels away from him by a few steps and he knew what had happened. His hood had fallen to reveal the pair of horns, starting from the back of his head and curling over towards the front, only hovering slightly above his skull.

Link was left with his hands in the air where Zelda was once standing, unsure for a moment on how he should continue the conversation. "As I was saying..." He signs slowly, making sure she can understand him. "I didn't want people seeing me like this, after a Yiga member snuck up on me when I had encountered some left over malice. I didn't react fast enough before they pushed me into the mass and this is the result after spending Hylia knows how long in it."

The princess continued to stare at him like he had just sprouted a second head, so he resumed signing. "The horns aren't the only change. I got a pair of keese wings on my back and a tail..." Link pauses again as his face starts to burn with embarrassment. "I also may have lost a...specific 'sword' in the process." He hopes he wouldn't have to go into detail about it but it seems that was what confuses her the most.

"What do you mean you...actually, never mind. All the other stuff is more important than losing a weapon you found." She says, clearly missing his metaphor but at least she wasn't questioning it. "I'm honestly surprised that you were able to survive such a traumatic experience... We should have Purah examine you when we get the chance. Perhaps it could shed some light as to...well...why you were able to live through that ordeal and how else the malice affected you. At the very least we can recalibrate the slate again so it can respond to you once more."

The mention of Purah made Link's muscles tense and his jaw clenched, not quite similar to when he faced the gross and malice-covered Calamity Ganon, but it's a familiar sense of dread that his mind is unable to remember. "I...guess you're right." He says after a moment, willing his body to relax as pure exhaustion finally settles into his bones. Princess Zelda wasn't horrified by his appearance, so most of his friends and allies shouldn't be too deterred by the new features.

"Link, I think it would be wise if you rested for a while. There's no rush in dispatching the various monsters and malice, Hyrule will still require several years before the castle will stand tall once again." Zelda suggests, gently taking his hand and guiding him back towards the village. Link could only nod numbly; he would never turn down a soft, warm bed if one was ever offered.

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