Two horses raced down the dirt path, the men riding them laughing as the wind whipped past their ears. The larger black horse, O'Chungus, huffed as its rider spurred it forward.
"C'mon Link! Is that the best she can do? We're practically to the village, and you've been eating my dust the whole time!" Ganondorf taunted.
The smaller Hylian huffed and spurred his ride further. Epona was a farm hand horse, not a race horse. But still, Din be damned if they would let Ganondorf and O'Chungus win this race. Link ran off the beaten dirt road, through the foliage where he couldn't be seen. Ganondorf called out to him, claiming he was going the wrong way. Still, Link knew this road and all of its shortcuts well. A twist here, a turn there, mind the sizable creek, and it would spit him out right at the front gates of Kakariko Village.
In a matter of minutes, Link and Epona emerged from the forest area in front of Ganondorf and took the lead. He had only a few short minutes to reclaim the front before they made it to the finish line; the gates to Kakariko Village.
O'Chungus's hooves boomed against the now cobblestone roadway. It only took a dash from the larger horse to be neck and neck with Epona. In the near distance, Sheikan guards bellowed for the two to stop. Merchants coming and going from the popular village ducked out of their way desperately before O'Chungus barreled through their carts and Epona stampeded through any of their surviving goods. Only feet from the gate, the two riders were laughing excitedly, oblivious to the havoc they were creating.
Their enjoyment turned into horror as the village leader marched to the gates entrance with several soldiers flanking her. She stood straight and ridged with arms crossed, steel in her eyes.
Link and Ganondorf both pulled harshly on the reigns, desperate to stop before running over the leader. The horses reared in protest, coming to a violent halt. Epona huffed in her face. She sighed and pat the horses nose gently to sooth it.
"Prince Ganondorf! If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were intending to stomp this village into the ground with that steed of yours!" She scolded. Ganondorf winced. Her scoldings were some of the worst.
"Apologies, Lady Impa." He tried to keep the regal tongue in her presence.
"And Link! Don't you know better than to rampage through our orchards? You grew up on a farm, surly you know where you steer your horse!" She continued.
Link also winced. She was right; he was born and raised in Oredon, a small farming village, a little further northwest of Gerudo Desert. He mostly felt guilty for pushing Epona so hard.
"Honestly, how many times will I be catching you causing trouble in my village! This is a peaceful settlement, your highness, and we will tolerate none of this brutish behavior!" Impa lectured.
Ganondorf's face twisted into one of disgruntledness. Why target him? He never meant to cause harm! He and Link just... got a little carried away.
Before he could spit out a retort, Impa beckoned some guards with a wave of her hand and spoke again.
"You know what happens now. Off your horses! You've caused enough trouble today." She ordered.
Angrily, Ganondorf slid off his horses back. Link followed his action, giving Epona one last pat. A small group of guards led the horses to a stable to be cared for while the others escorted Link and Ganondorf to the jail cells. The lead officer shook his head once he saw the two enter.
"Really! How many times are you going to find ways to enter the village escorted like this?" The elder man huffed. "What did you do now?"
"We were racing." Ganondorf scratched the back of his neck.
We didn't mean to cause trouble! Honest! Link frantically signed with his hands. All guards knew the Hyrulian Hand Language.
"Well, here you are anyway. Guards, you know where to put them." He instructed.
The cells were the same as they had always been. Musky and moldy, bars that somehow hadn't coroaded into nothingness, and straw beds on the ground with a thin sheet for a blanket. Link and Ganondorf were always across from each other, cells 15 and 16, at the further end of the hall.
Link sighed as he sat down on his straw "cot". Impa never gives us a break. He signed.
"You said it. It's like she wants an excuse to punish us!" Ganondorf grumbled.
The cells never changed, although their occupants did. Every time the boys got caught and escorted into the cell for an accidental crime, the new faces of prisoners scrambled away from the large Gerudo man. Faces of terror mixed with disgust and anger glared at him. Relax! He used to think, This isn't going to cause a war! Din knows how many times I've been thrown in jail at home!
Links quick hand motions caught his attention again.
What do you think our punishment will be this time?
"Dunno." Ganondorf shrugged. "Probably some community service. I could see farming or animal tending. You remember the last time we did that? Didn't one of the hogs send you flying into one of their troughs?"
No, you bribed him to! Link signed, I'm good with animals, they don't want to hurt me.
"You tell yourself that little guy, we all know what happened." Ganondorf chuckled as Link crossed his arms and huffed.
They continued their conversation, though to the other prisoners, it looked pretty one-sided. By now, they were used to the odd looks from the prisoners of primarily petty crimes.
In fairness, it was an odd sight; a large male Gerudo and a small, mute, stick of a Hylian throwing playful insults and sharing stories across the hallway as if they were having dinner at a bar rather than being held captive in a jailcell.
The two conversed the afternoon away until the moon began to rise. The jail master called "lights out!" And the rest of the cell mates began to turn in for the night.
"Not you two." The gruff man knocked on the bars to Ganondofs and Links cells. "Lady Impa has decided on a punishment for you. I recommend you bring your warmest clothes for this one."
They looked at each other, and once their cells were unlocked, marched out of the cells. Being escorted by guards, they were brought to the opposite edge of the village, where there waited Epona and O'Chungus, Impa, and one other Sheikah and their horse. Upon seeing the two, they shook their head.
Hi Sheik! Link signed enthusiastically.
"Sav'orr Sheik. Care for a late night stroll?" Ganondorf joked.
"You're taking this entirely too lightheartedly." Impa scolded. "You will be accompanying Sheik to the peak of Mount Lynaru for a session of clarity meditation. I pray this teaches you something about tranquility."
YOU ARE READING
Less Than Evil
FanfictionThe legend of the hero had been told countless times, passed down repeatedly through generations. From the hero of wilds, to the hero of twilight, to the hero of time, back to the very beginning; the hero of sky. Perhaps there was a pattern. After l...
