Giants of Hyrule

Chapter 6

          Link gently placed her down on his bedroll, it's so big and soft. He shifted so that he was kneeling.

"Have you ever had boar meat before?" Link asked curiously,

He took the now thoroughly cooked pigs off the spit and onto a massive plate that seemed to be woven with tree leaves and twine.

"No...I never had any meat at all for a very long time." Hope replies,

But as she looks at the dish in front of her, her mouth watered so much that drool went under her chin, the smell alone filled her tummy, but she really would love to taste it.

Link smiled softly and cut up some smaller portions for Hope, serving them on a large tree leaf.

"Oh, and here," he spoke, grabbing an apple and a few peaches and placing them on the leaf with the meat. "You could use some fresh fruit. And I've got some water you can have as well."

He opened the flask on his hip and poured some fresh, cool, clean water into the cap and set it down next to her meal. Link then said,

"Don't worry, there's plenty for the both of us. And if you want seconds, just say so."

He then sat beside her and began to eat.

Link's such a friendly gentle giant, it's been so long since Hope was treated with such kindness.

She's still surprised to hear that Dark Link is an evil version of Mr. Link, she's wrapping her head around how this works.

The way Link ate was far different compared to Dark Link. He took smaller bites and ate slowly and carefully, not like a ravenous, greedy beast like his darker lookalike. He also drank with quieter, gentler gulps.

It's surreal that someone who looks and sounds exactly like that horrible Dark Link, would be this nice and considerate.

Hope is so excited of this "feast" in front of her, she immediately began digging in and even buried her face into the food.

She ate the whole plate and drank all the water super quickly. Hope made a huge messy face and dirtied her dress with the sticky fruit juice.

She then got on her little feet and lift the leaf up to Link with both hands and said bounce excitedly,

"I want some more!"

Link's ears perked up when he heard her voice and he looked down at her. Her energy and excitement made him laugh joyfully as he found her behavior quite funny.

"Okay okay. Settle down there, little tiger," he chuckled, grabbing a little more of each. "Just don't give yourself a bellyache."

Hope smiled bigly when seconds came, it's still so very weird demanding something to someone who looks just like Dark Link, he would crush her if she protests even a little, but this is not Dark Link at all, it's Mr. Link, the very kind giant.

Link gave her some space again so that he wasn't hovering right over her.

Although, the way she ate worried him inside. How much had Dark Link starved her and her mother? He couldn't understand how anyone could treat someone so helpless so terribly. It made him sick. It made him angry. But he never showed it to Hope. He didn't want to frighten her or make her worry.

All Link cared about was ensuring that she was fed, safe and happy.

Link glanced at his little friend and handed her another big leaf for a napkin.