Hyrule's Light

Gift in the Steeple

This chapter was revised as of 4/20/2020

Morning came with a light trill of song that came from the tiny birds who rested on the twigs of trees. The bright, welcoming sunlight shone through the rotting log walls, waking Link. Link opened his eyes as slow as a grizzly after hibernation, yawning as he sat up. His hair was a rat's nest. He could feel it. But he didn't care. Even with dirt and dust covering him from sleeping on the ground, he never felt better. The only thing that would've made that night better was sleeping out of the shack and under the stars.

Slowly standing, Link looked over to the bed to find Zelda still asleep. She was facing him, her mouth slightly open while the rest of her face appeared completely relaxed and peaceful. Link couldn't help but smile as he walked out of the shack, taking a deep breath of the crisp morning breeze. Nothing as refreshing as the smell of a new day. He thought to himself as he walked over to the cooking pot. He bent down to look underneath, spotting burnt-out logs and sticks.

With a rumbling stomach, Link set out to find firewood. He figured he would try his best with cooking. Besides, what was a morning without breakfast?

The fire had started just as he had planned it to. The process of building the fire had come naturally to him as if his brain had willingly stepped in to help without him telling it to. He had found water in the old man's hut, (which was now boiling in the pot,) along with the mushrooms that were on the counter and a chunk of rock salt.

He had just barely added in the salt when Zelda walked out of the shack, rubbing an eye as she looked at him with a glazed-over gaze. "Mushrooms for breakfast?" She asked, her words slightly slurred from drowsiness.

Link nodded.

Zelda came to sit next to Link on the log that sat in front of the pot, as Link scraped at the tree branch he had picked up yesterday with a rock, sharpening it to a fine point.

"How's it coming? Is it almost done? Zelda inquired, leaning forward slightly to peer at the boiling breakfast.

Again, Link nodded. "Almost."

A couple of minutes later Link deemed the mushrooms worthy, and he stabbed one with the stick, passing it to Zelda. Leaning down, he picked up another sharpened stick and stabbed the other mushroom, holding it high into the air to cool. In reality he had no idea what he was doing, but he trusted his instincts.

"The old man told us to meet him in the ruins at dawn," Zelda said, regarding the mushroom with a wrinkled nose, "I looked at the map on the Sheikah Slate, and it said that that temple is called the Temple of Time." She stood, still glaring at the mushroom with distaste. "We should go now." She said, finally looking away from the mushroom and down at Link.

"What about breakfast?" Link asked, gesturing at his mushroom. It's not that easy to boil a mushroom and make it taste good with just a stick and a chunk of salt.

"We can eat on the way there," Zelda answered, sounding a little exasperated.

Link sighed. He really didn't want to go seek out the old man, but he told himself he had no choice. They needed information, and the man had said he had a "gift" for them.

Link stood, taking a bite from the mushroom. It wasn't revolting, but then again it wasn't tasty. But, it would last them till they found the old man. Zelda had taken a bite of her own from the mushroom, and she was showing obvious dislike. Apparently, she was not a huge fan of shrooms.

It took a while for them to reach the so-called Temple of Time, but they had finally made it to the first of the steps. They had discarded their sticks long ago, having finished their mushrooms in seconds. Even though it wasn't as good as it could've been, they had still been hungry.