Link TG fic part 29

One good side effect of having a complete mental breakdown was that Zelda was no longer angry at Link.  The other was that Link was going to get a makeover, her way.  Zelda went along too, Impa right behind her.  Dina and Nehsa were invited; Dina had to make the choice between homework now or homework later and naturally choose homework later.  So off the five went into Castle Town, first to the barber.

“Milady you want your hair removed?  All of it?”  The barber, a skinny aged man with a full mane of white hair himself, asked.

“Of course not all of it, just most of it.”

“But...”

“Start cutting and I’ll tell you when to stop.”  Soon Link’s hair was short, shorter than it was even when she was a boy. “Stop”

“Good, I was running out of hair to cut and was going to have to get the razor out...”  Link looked over her new hairstyle in a mirror and nodded.  it was very short, too short to get in the way or even be styled, but the barber had cut it in such a way it already had a style to it.

“I love it.” Link said, and handed the man double his asking price.  “Enjoy the tip.”

“Thank you Milady.”  He bowed to the princesses , and then busied himself with the till.

Next it was off to the most respected tailors in town, so respected that if they didn’t have two princesses with them it would have taken them months to get in.  Even now the barely got an hour.

“I want trousers and shirts.”  Link said simply.

“Milady you want...what?”  the man, dressed himself in a very nice suit which shimmered between black and silver.

“Trousers and shirts, and see if we can get them out of the same material your suits’ made of I like that color change.”

“Milady, trousers won’t fit you, as ladies and gentlemen have different shapes...”

“Then take my measurements and get started on them.”  The man dutifully took the measurements for trousers and got started showing shirts in Link’s size.  She purchased at least twenty shirts and eight trousers, all of which were higher class than Link’s small supply of men’s style clothing, and she left wearing a forest green shirt and blue trousers, with one of two black silver shimmering complementary jackets that came with an order of fifteen or more.

Link didn’t want to get jewelry too much but Zelda had seen the new brace she had and, after a demonstration of what it could do, said that a matching bracelet would look good and draw attention away from it.  Link agreed on the condition that Zelda pay for it.  The original brace was chrome colored with four red lights nearest the hand, which indicated how many people it was covering with additional shields.  In the middle was a square box, that by magic and trickery Link had no idea how it worked, displayed options, and words that could be selected by the ten numbered buttons below it.  For the bracelet they decided on silver, with rubies nearest the hand, and ten different colored stones behind those.  Mostly citrines and amethysts of different colors, but the center two were a lightly colored emerald and a purple sapphire.  It would be delivered in a week.

Weapons was the next stop, if for nothing else then just plain fun.  Link liked weapons, she used them, cared for them, and when it came down to it she would rather have more swords then clothes.  The fact that there was no way anyone could carry that many was the only thing stopping her.  The blacksmith’s shop was filled with all sorts of weapons and armor, and many apprentices running around working and crafting and making things fit for the people who ordered them.  It was there they met Rika and Quinn

“Your highnesses!”  Quinn said, holding a battle axe, half as a walking staff, half as a ready weapon.

“Oh, how nice of us to see you all here.”  Rika said, holding a Rel’qi, one point in the ground.

“We were just discussing our respective weapons and their styles, but perhaps you could tell us a bit of yours?”

“Certainly,” Zelda said, “I prefer the rapier, with its thin, precise strikes.”

“I’m learning how to use axes!” Dina said, jumping up and down.

“Swords…just swords.” Said Link, getting a reaction from Rika.

“Do you know many sword styles?” She asked.

“Self-taught with a broadsword, short sword, long sword.”

“A rapier is a type of sword too,” Zelda said, explaining to Link.

“Oh, then I need to learn to use it.  Where’s one?”  Link went looking around the store, as Zelda picked up a training rapier and called Link back.

“This is a rapier.”

“It looks small…”  Link took it from Zelda, and gave it some experimental swings.  “What’s the point?  You can’t even get any good slashes in with it.”

“The point, is stabbing,” Zelda took it back from Link, and gave several thrusts.  “You see, this will get though chainmail, it’s strong enough to pierce most kinds of solid armor too.  Combine it with an offhand dagger and you can block, deflect and pierce the guard of any who attack you.”

“Which is why I’m staying way back with the battle axe.”  Said Quinn, “Anyway, what are you here for?”

“Looking mostly,” Link said, looking around. “Nothing really stands out to me though.  I mean sure, I could get a dagger to keep on my person all the time, but I have throwing knifes that I could use for that.  I have a pretty good sword, and my shield doesn’t need replacing.”  Link looked around some more while Quinn entertained Dina’s ideas on axe work.  She saw nothing useful that she didn’t already have, nothing she wanted, and nothing more to do here.  She sighed, she should have known that there wouldn’t have been anything more here for her.

“Excuse me…” said a man wearing a blacksmith’s apron, he had long black hair that looked greasy, dull brown eyes and a long puckering scar that ran from one cheek to the other across his nose.  “You look like you’re looking for something special.”

“Hm?”  Link asked, looking over the tiny man, he was barely taller than her and thin, as he had no muscle on him.

“I’m not sure, but I’m almost certain I can help you find something.”  He said, leading her to the back room, and to the most beautiful long sword Link had seen yet.  Blood red handle and hilt with a silver and gold blade, mixed perfectly without merging, and a black and red scabbard, similarly mixed.  In a box made of cherry wood and black metal.  “Don’t touch until you buy.”

“It looks nice…how much?”

“Five hundred.”

She looked in her wallet, she had four hundred left. “I don’t know, I think all I’m gonna do is put it on the wall.”

“It will look really nice on that wall…”

“The wall’s blue though, and at five hundred I can’t get anything else to match it.”

“Fine, you’re a nice lady, I can let it go for…four fifty.”

“But that gives me only fifty to get stuff to match it.”

“How much you really got?”  He asked with a knowing glance

“Four hundred.”

“Tell you what I’m gonna do for you, I’m gonna let you walk out of here with this sword for four hundred, in exchange you’re gonna do a little work for me modeling some armor for me.  Once a week, noon to six for six months.”  Link considered this, on one hand it was a very nice looking sword, on the other she’d have to do modeling.  Then she realized it was modeling for armor and how revealing could that get.

“Deal.”  They shook on it, and the man boxed up the sword for Link, she put it in her pack, and before she realized it, the five ladies were back on the street, leaving the blacksmith behind them.

                Zelda, Link and Dina were in Link’s room, looking over Link’s purchases.  Mostly they were looking over the sword.

“Pretty…” Dina said, reaching forward to touch the blade.

“Don’t touch,” Zelda stopped her.  “It’s sharp and will cut you.”

“Which is why you only touch the handle…”  Link took the sword out and hefted it, “nice balance.”

“It’s got writing on the other side.”  Zelda inspected the blade, “Beastblood, must be its name.  Sounds familiar though.”

“Can I hold it?”  Dina asked, and Link let her touch the handle. “Swords and axes are a lot different aren’t they?”

“Yep, and watch your hand, it’s OW” Dina pulled the blade towards her, cutting Link’s hand and her arm as the sword flew out of both their grips.

“Sorry…”  Dina said, hugging her arm.

“Don’t pull with swords, they cut like that!”  Link yelled, and then looked at her hand.  The cut wasn’t bad but it hurt.

“Well, I hope you both learned your lessons about playing with sharp things today.”  Zelda took the sword and put it back in its box.

“Yes Zelda…”  Dina said as though she’d heard this before.

“Yeah, don’t let the eight year old use them.”  Link said, and Dina looked at her with a look of severe loathing.

“Anyway, Dina: homework now.”  Zelda ordered, and Dina sulked off to work on arithmetic.

“And what are you going to do for the rest of the day?” Link asked.

“I’m going to see if I can find Beastblood in the archives, it really sounds like I read about it before.”  Zelda left too, leaving Link to her own devices.

“Hm…I think I’m going to take another bath…”

  
      Link was really getting used to baths.  Hot water was definitely for more than just tea, and was a lot nicer to be in than chilly Lake Hylia.  She hadn’t been too sure about soap, after all everyone needed a healthy layer of dirt on them, but it gave her skin and hair such a nice clean feeling she found herself using it every time she came for a bath.

“Hey Anell!”  Link heard Dina call out, and opened her eyes to see Dina entering the baths.

“Don’t you have homework?”  Link asked, as Nehsa fell in behind Dina, carrying her towel.

“That was ages ago! How long have you been in here?”  Link stared at her hands, they were wrinkled up.  Dina came over to look.  “Yeah, you’ve been in here a while, so while you’re here would you do me a favor?”

“What?”

“Scrub my back?  I’ll get yours for you!”  Link shrugged.

“Alright.” Dina got in while Link prepared the washcloth.  “So...learn much arithmetic?”

“Not really, it’s really just practicing what I already know...I wish they would give me a challenge.”

“Come on, it must be easy then for you.”

“Well yeah, but there’s only so many times I can solve for X when X equals Y plus nine divided by four, and it lets me pick what Y is!”  Link had no idea what she was talking about, but knew Zelda would know.  Link picked up on the one thing she understood.

“You’d prefer they just give you what Y is?”

“Well yeah, that would make it harder, or at the very least give me something new to do.”  Dina sighed, then continued her rant and Link just let her continue long into the bath...