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“What in Ganon has got those crazy cuccos so riled up?” A pair of thick purple boots thundered past my head.

I turned in the fetal position and glared at Guru-Guru. His tatty clothes were covered in a filthy, white gloop — a present from his would-be assassins.  “That would be your fault would it not?”

“Shut up,” he groaned. “Everything’s spinning.”

I sat up with a chuckle. “So, I gather this is the shop you were telling me about?”

A woman flicked two silver braids over her broad shoulders. “Akisin Daiku, the proprietor,” she said, before rapping on the windows. “Get out of here birdies, or you can meet my mallet.”

“Oh.” I bowed. “Ronri Okane, Ma’am.”

It was difficult not to stare, I had never seen a woman wearing breeches before. A wide belt swung from her hips with tools in every pocket. I recognized a hammer and a chisel from Mr Muryō’s workbench but there were others that were a complete mystery. I peeled off my cloak in disgust and began folding it. “Pardon me for asking, but are you a carpenter by trade?”

“You cheeky thing, I’m far more than that. With my creations, I take wood and breathe new life into it. I hate destruction in this world… dark forces at work you see.”

“There is?” I staggered to my feet, engulfed in her bulky shadow, magnified goggled eyes pinning me down.

“You can feel it too, can’t you? Civil unrest? The power-driven greed of men? War?”

When I listened to Akisin, my shoes no longer pinched my toes and I forgot about the angry cuccos outside. It felt like I was being uprooted, torn from the earth that grounded me.

“I’m just messing with yer.” She started to laugh, but it sounded hollow. “I am a carpenter that wishes to bring happiness to as many people as I can.”

“Bring happiness?”

“Oh yes, it is the only thing we can do after all.”

“Sorry?” I shook my head. “I only came to retrieve my stolen wallet.”

Immediately Guru-Guru scowled. Snitch he seemed to say, although in fairness it was the truth. How could I say otherwise?

Akisin smacked him across the back of the head. “Is this true?”

“You ask after you beat me?” Guru-Guru wriggled away, but she caught him by the ear and twisted. “Oww, what the heck! Alright, alright, I took the rupees — it was a joke.”

“A fine joke that is, stealing from others.” She tossed the wallet back. “I thought I’d taught you better than that.”

“But he’s good with money, Akisin, and you’re… not. I know you’ve been forgetting things; hiding from the postman — ripping up letters.” He escaped her grasp and picked up a small box from the shelf. “You haven’t ordered wood from Mutoh in ages. Hardly anyone comes here anymore.”

The elderly woman watched as Guru-Guru turned the silver handle. A sweet tingling tune filled the air. “I’m a bit behind is all,” she grumbled.

“If we don’t do something soon, the bailiffs will come.” He slammed the box down. “They’ll take everything away.”

“Pft. It won’t come to that.”

“Like heck it won’t.” The music box went flying, popping open like a pinata with bolts and small screws skittering across the floor.

Akisin smirked. “Ha, good luck putting that back together.”

Maybe I should just go. I gulped and backed towards the door. Mr Muryō will be concerned and I really must stop tempting fate and pay a visit to the bank. But fate had other ideas as I nearly tripped over something on the floor. Huh?

I looked down at a tomato red face. It was well carved and showed off a buck toothed grin, deep black eyebrows and a triangular nose.

“Now where did you come from?” I asked the mask but it remained silent of course. I glanced back at Akisin, who currently held Guru-Guru in a headlock.

My fingers brushed across the soft material inside, painstakingly hand-stitched with care and precision. I stroked the glossy paint work, which was perfect. Its eyes rolled up to the ceiling as if it could care less about what I thought, even so, I smiled at its goofy confidence.

I gave a quick scan of the shop floor and spotted another mask on the far wall; yellow this time with a crooked beak and blue band across the eyes. It looked like a bird bandit, ready to jump out on the highway demanding gold and jewels. Entranced, I made my way towards it and was rewarded with a miscellany of masks. There was row upon row, a cast of characters that scared and thrilled me at the same time. I drank in the maidens, fish men, dragons and scarecrows. In many ways, I wished they were alive and could share their stories. A single empty nail indicated the home of Mr Bucktooth and I placed him back gently.

Around the corner were more masks but these rather unnerved me; for their faces were contorted in pain, painted tears running their chins.  Who would want to buy a mask like that? I wondered, unable to look away.

“How do you like my masks then?”

“I’ve never seen anything so marvelous, Ms Daiku.” I admitted.  “Did you make all of these?”

She nodded. “Most, others are trades from over the years.”

“Could you teach me how to make masks?”

Akisin and Guru-Guru exchanged glances.

“I have a friend back home who adores them. She made me a mask for my birthday and if I could send her one, it would make her really happy. You see, when you wear a mask, you can be whoever you want to be.”

She perched on the table and took off her goggles. “Alright, say I teach you, what do I get in return?”

*     *      *      *      *

It took a slog of six months for my answer. Not through words you understand, but actions. For the first time, I was grateful for my father’s training, even though nothing could have prepared me for this ordeal. An untamed monster of paperwork had concealed a store operating at a loss for quite a while. There were scattered receipts for purchases, and invoices from the suppliers that had never been paid. I had hoped for help from Guru-Guru, but the boy was far too engrossed in composing new songs. He was quite talented, (if extremely loud at times) but he couldn’t tell me how many music boxes he had made or sold. I battled with bills, dueled with debt and fenced with the diabolical shambles of Akisin’s finances. My victory had earned me bed and board and a new business it seemed, as I became the store’s youngest investor.

But my quest for answers about the incident in Swift Violet Woods had not gone so well. Trying to engage any of the townsfolk in a conversation about magic, had led to a clipped ear and hisses of witchcraft, or old wives’ tales with no substance to them at all. In the library, there were entries describing elemental magic such as fire and water but nothing about gold and purple sparks or dark orbs for that matter. In my desperation, I had been forced to obtain information by rather unorthodox means.

So here I was, an ear strained at the bedroom wall for Akisin’s growling snores. I wasn’t disappointed, and navigated the squeaky floor boards along the corridor. Sneaking out the kitchen, I pulled up my hood and took a precautionary sweep of the alleyway. All was going exactly to plan.

“What are you up to now?”

By Farore! I swallowed a scream as my heart beat spiked. Then a familiar snigger came from behind me and I bit out, “For goodness sake. Stop spying on me, Guru-Guru.”

“Says you, eaves dropping at tavern windows, naughty, naughty.”

I sighed. Trying to keep anything from my new acquaintance was like trying to stop autumnal leaves from falling. “Ah, you saw me.”

“Of course, so where are we going?”

We are not going anywhere; you are far too young to be out this late.”

“Not like you’re an adult, Okane, there’s only two years between us.”

I do keep forgetting, perhaps it’s because father always spoke to me as such. Shivering, I pulled my cloak more tightly around me. I should give the boy more credit really, he knows far more about Castle Town than I do. Still, he might be more of a hindrance than a help.

“No, it might be dangerous,” I said firmly.

He began to sing. ““Go around, go around, I can make a louder sound. Akisin will hear, then she will appear! Go around, go around, I can make a -”

Quickly, I clamped both hands over his troublesome mouth. “Shush, alright you can come. Honestly, you would test the patience of Nayru herself.”  With little choice, I headed out with my unexpected companion in tow.

We managed to slip by two guards patrolling the main square and jogged along the path towards Hyrule Castle. The symphony of night played: the gentle burble of water, chirping crickets and calls of nocturnal birds, but I couldn’t enjoy the tranquility. My thoughts raced as I spied another guard stationed at the gatehouse and backtracked to a safe distance.

“Are you sure about this? Cause I’ve heard some weird stuff about Great Fairies,” Guru – Guru whispered, re-wrapping his scarf for the fifth time. “They can turn you into animals, that’s why there’s so many dogs in the square at night.”

“Poe stories and nonsense, I have to know the truth.” I tugged hard at the vines on the cliff face and they stayed true. I was glad of the full moon, climbing was hard enough at the best of times but in the dark, one misstep could spell disaster. “Is he still there?”

“Calm down. Yeah, he’s still there, where else would he be?”

“Right… good, best get on with it then.” My hands shook as I leaned against the leaves, reaching upwards and fumbling for a decent hold. At times my feet became tangled and I nearly lost a shoe. Some of the vines snapped giving me a jolt and I froze, half expecting to plummet. When I finally reached the ledge, I crawled flat on my stomach and spotted more guards below, their hazy lanterns bobbing as they made their rounds. I’m not breaking into the castle grounds per se, I only want to reach the far side.

But a siege of dreadful doubt began to creep in. “What if the punishment for trespass is beheading?” I gasped.

Guru- Guru blew on his palms and rubbed them together. “What’s this, you lost your nerve already? Geez, the King isn’t a blood thirsty maniac, Okane. Be a night in the jailers at worst, we’re kids remember?” He watched me for a while as I sucked in some deep breaths. “Well, if you feel that bad maybe we should call it quits. Be a shame to disappoint your girlfriend though, I bet she’d be well impressed if you met a Grand Fairy.”

“Guru-Guru,” I warned.

He ignored me, securing a thick rope around my waist. “Come on, you’ve got this far. What was the gossip at the tavern again?”

“They said the hole is too small for an adult to crawl through.” I tried to ignore the mounted stone eagle; in the shadows of flickering torches its talons looked ready to rip me apart. “They believe that is where the Great Fairy lives.”

“So, I lower you down and you make a break for it, right?”

Or break my neck. I thought nervously, shuffling my bottom to the edge. I could hear puffs and grunts from above as my body lurched steadily down. The ground greeted me sooner than expected and I wrestled with Guru-Guru’s knot. Upon my release, I focused on the cliff face ahead of me. It was time for some answers.

 

Alison Brunyee is an Editor for Zelda Dungeon. She likes reading manga and collecting Japanese wind chimes. Her favorite Zelda game is Ocarina of Time.

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