It took him forever, but Link was finally able to locate the area that leads back up to the throat of Jabu Jabu. Ruto was absolutely no help, pointing him in wrong directions loudly and leading him into gross saliva traps that secretly housed stingrays. Luckily Link still had some deku seeds for his slingshot, or he would have had to fight the rays in close quarters. After almost getting killed by octoroks, stingrays, and some stinging jelllyfish, Link climbs up the gummy slope while carrying Ruto in his arms. Once he reaches the top, he collapses.

"Uuuurrrrrgggg... Hyrule can spare five minutes, right?" Link sighs, his eyes feeling heavy.

Navi nudges against his head to make sure he doesn't fall asleep. "Come on, Link! We made it back out of the stomach, and now we just have to head to the back."

"The fairy is right. By now, the stone has made it past the stomach and to the intestine area." Ruto smiles and hugs her knees close to her chest. She never told anyone about her love for anatomy.

"Okay, I got this." Link takes a deep breath and gets to his feet, scooping up Ruto once again. "Should be just a straight shot back, right? It shouldn't be that bad."

Ruto was going to warn Link about the complexity of Jabu Jabu's intestine system, but she thought it would be more amusing to see his expression when he sees it for himself. She's glad she waited because his face is priceless. Link stares in disbelief at the complex maze of tunnels. Gulping, he takes the one furthest to the right.

Link unintentionally makes a method to stick to the right so he knows roughly where he is. By the time he finally makes it to a door, ten long minutes have passed, but there is one tiny problem. There is a netting around the door, which Link tries to move but it seems to be some sort of protective system for the body. "Hmm... how do we get past this?"

"Well, there is a flap over here that closes when you hold it down." Ruto jumps out of Link's hold and walks over to the wall. A blue tinted colored flap hangs down, and when she holds it up to the wall the netting goes away. "It's supposed to be for when food travels and pushes against the wall, then the net goes away and the doorway opens up."

"That is very complex for a fish." Link thinks out loud, but does not realize that he said something offensive until it's too late. He sees the looks on Ruto's face and dashes into the now open door before she can yell at him. "Phew, that was close."

He quickly realizes he should not have been so hasty. Link's chest tightens painfully, making him double over and press his small hands against his ribs to try and keep it from pulsing. Navi senses something is wrong, so she quickly manages to create a bubble and form it over Link's head, making herself fly into it as well. "What is this weird air?"

"It's definitely not air I'm supposed to breathe in. How long can you hold it for, Navi?" Link takes a deep breath, grateful for his new fresh real air he can breathe with.

"A minute at most..." Navi says worriedly with her arms held out at both sides. Link does not waste another second and looks around the room.

There are bubbles bouncing around everywhere, but Link notices when they hit the walls and floor they do not break. Instead, the walls become irritated and wiggle around as if the bubble's impact was hurting it. Not exactly understanding what is going on, Link draws his sword and attacks the bubbles so they pop. It does not take very long, and once the last bubble is popped by the edge of his sword, Navi breaks the one around his head. Link is surprised to see he can breathe normally. "I wonder what distrubed this part of the fish so much that caused it to create those poison bubbles."

"Maybe it's that glowing thing over there!" Navi points over to something red glowing in the corner of the room. Link hurries over, trying not to trip over the wobbling floor, and wrenches the object out from a small hole. When the object is freed, the walls of the room settle down as does the floor. "That thing must have been clogging up the wind pipes for the fish. That's why we couldn't breathe!"

"Oh, I get it!" Link smiles, understanding the explanation given by Navi. He holds the thing up in his hand and observes it. The object is weird looking, made with yellow wood and bent at the center like a stick snapped in half but just hanging on by a thread. However, Link thinks the object is supposed to look that way because of how sturdy it is. It has a red gem shaped like a diamond at the center where the bend is, and there are green wrappings around the wood right by the gem. "I wonder if Ruto knows what this is. We should go ask her."

Link heads out of the room, completely forgetting why he rushed into it in the first place. He is reminded of why when he exits, Ruto crossing her arms furiously. "HOW INCONSIDERATE! How dare you leave a princess behind! If you're a man, act like one. Take responsibility!"

"I-I'm sorry," Link lowers his head and sighs, crossing his arms behind his back in shame. "I'm just nervous about everything because Princesses Zelda and Reyna put me on this quest to get the three Spiritual Stones. I don't know what I'm doing, or if I'm going to succeed. All I know is they're counting on me..." Link takes a deep breath and looks Ruto in her eyes. "Sorry, I haven't told anyone that. It's just really stressful."

Link smiles and closes his eyes, and Ruto frowns just a bit. She knows the feeling; she runs away a lot from her father because she doesn't want to take the throne. She talks about responsibility as if she knows it herself, but she doesn't want it. It's very hard to think about the future and have all of this put on your shoulders when you're a kid. Ruto wipes her eyes quickly and embraces Link in a tight hug. Surprised, Link widens his eyes before hugging her back. "I... have a confession to make. I allowed Jabu Jabu to eat me because I wanted to be free from my dad. I don't want to be queen someday. I guess it would be easier if my mom was... but I have to learn it on my own."

Link breaks the hugs and puts an arm around Ruto's shoulders. "What if I helped you? You know, after all this is over."

Ruto doesn't think Link understands what he just offered, and blushes while looking away from him. "U-uh, yeah sure. Whatever." She puts a hand on her hip and looks around for anything to change the subject. "Hey, what's that you found?"

"Oh, I don't know. It was stuck in a pipe back in that room," Link explains and hands Ruto the device.

After examining it for a moment, Ruto beams and says, "Link, this is the legendary Boomerang of the Zora! It's a weapon that if you throw it, it will come right back to you. We Zora can use our fins as boomerangs when we get old enough, but a weapon was crafted as a symbol for those Zoras who have trouble with their fins. I can not believe Jabu Jabu ate it!"

"Is it alright if Link uses it? Since it's a legendary weapon of your people and all," Navi asks politely, hoping the answer is yes.

Thankfully, Ruto keeps her smile and hands the weapon back to Link. "Of course. You're saving me after all, so I think you deserve it."

The two continue walking through the intestine and come across another door. When they open it, jellyfish the size of Link float down from the ceiling. Ruto screams and ducks as a red... thing comes down and attempts to grab her. It's like a very long uvula hanging from the ceiling. As Ruto ducks, it grabs Link instead. "Woah!"

"Link!" Ruto yells and sees the boomerang that slipped out of Link's hand as he was snatched. Link screams, trying to free his arms to get his sword but his arms are trapped to his side. The tendril brings him up to the ceiling, ready to crush him, when it suddenly detaches from the ceiling and Link falls to the floor.

"Ow..."

"Oh my Jabu, are you okay?!" Ruto catches the boomerang as it comes back to her, and she runs over to a dazed Link. She laughs, feeling the rush of adrenaline flowing through her scales. "That was quite the fall."

"Y-yeah, I'm okay." Link smiles and stands up, which is followed by a fall. "Just a bit dizzy."

"That thing must have been a parasite. I learned about them in class - they latch onto the insides of fish and steal all the food they eat," Ruto informs, smiling from her knowledge. It quickly turns into a frown, however, when she keeps thinking about it. "On the downside, there are two more branches of the parasite we need to destroy."

"Two more? Well, there's only one thing we can do, then. I bet this parasite took your stone," Link points out, which makes Ruto's eyes widen.

"You're right. We haven't a moment to lose!" Ruto seems to forget about her telling Link to carry her for the rest of the trip because she grabs Link's wrist and runs along the tunnel, practically dragging him behind her.

In no time, they come across another branch of the intestine. Navi gasps and says, "Hey, this was blocked off by a red wall before. You think defeating that parasite arm got rid of it?"

"I'm guessing the next one is blue." Link points to the wall to their left and sure enough, it is blocked off by a blue pulsing wall separate from the intestine.

The three enter the door to their right and come face to face with the blue arm of the parasite. Link reaches for his sword, but Ruto pushes the boomerang into his chest. "No, use this! Don't worry, after you throw it, it will always come back. You have to practice."

"Alright." Link sighs and takes the item. Not really trusting himself to throw it correctly, he holds the boomerang behind his head and aims it at the blue parasite arm. He throws it with everything he has, even hitting a few jellyfish along the way. The blue arm detaches from the ceiling and crumbles to the floor. Link is about to celebrate with a victory jump, but the boomerang comes back around and hits him in the head. "AH!"

Ruto can not stop laughing at the sight, clutching her stomach and pointing at Link. "I told you it will always come back!"

"Yeah, yeah, okay. One more." Link rubs his head but smiles, glad to see that Ruto is getting some joy out of this.

They exit the room and the blue wall is gone, so they are able to push onward. Link, Ruto, and Navi approach the last room and enter without hesitation. This time, the arm is green with about twenty jellyfish surrounding it. More confident this time, Link raises the boomerang and throws it at the parasite. It hits about five jellyfish and loses its momentum, coming back to Link. The parasite lowers itself and swings at them, but Ruto and Link dodge by rolling to opposite sides. Link quickly brings the boomerang back up and throws it, this time hitting the parasite. Like what happened to the other two, this one breaks off the ceiling and dies, the jellyfish fleeing.

"Hey, I'm becoming a natural at this thing!" Link says as he catches the boomerang easily. He holds it high above his head for dramatic effect, making Ruto giggle.

"Not bad for a Hylian." Ruto smirks before putting her hand on her chin. "So, all we have to do now is go back to the stomach. The parasite shouldn't be blocking any pathways so we have free access to Jabu Jabu's digestive system.

"Wait... you mean..." Link's eyes widen as Ruto leads him back to the main room where he first met her. He stares at one of the sinkholes and shakes his head. "Do we really have to go back down there?! It took forever to climb up!"

"Unfortunately, we do. Now that we fixed Jabu Jabu's parasite problem, his stomach should be working again. We have to find the stone before he digests it." Ruto's voice has a little bit of worry laced into it. She really doesn't want to lose her mother's stone.

"How do you know so much about fish insides, Ruto?" Link's question takes her by surprise. Mouth agape, she looks down at her feet in shame and huffs.

"I wanted to be a doctor, but my father says I have to focus all my duties on being the next queen." Ruto sighs and becomes confused at herself. She's never told anyone about her secret, but she's glad she did.

"Maybe you can be the first doctor queen," Link suggests before he jumps down the sinkhole. Ruto takes a moment to follow him, thinking about what he said. Could she possibly do that? Uphold her duties as queen while also tending to the sick? With a new nervousness, she jumps downward, thinking of how she will ask her father that question.

Once she lands, her and Link walk down a long tunnel together. It makes them think about the intestine, except this pathway is straight, lacking twists and corners. At the end of the hallway, they come across a door which they have to work together to push open. When they get to the other side, Link almost falls over because of Ruto's scream. "THERE! There it is! You see that blue and gold stone?!"

The room is round with a small platform raised up in the middle. On the center of the platform, Link sees a gold stone with three small, blue gems encased inside it. One on the top, and two on the bottom to make the corners of a triangle. It looks exactly like it fits in with the other two Spiritual Stones he has collected so far.

Before he can do anything, Ruto sprints over to the stone and holds it up to her face. "I can't believe I found my mother's stone! I was so surprised when Lord Jabu Jabu swallowed it. I am so happy he didn't have time to digest it! Okay, you can take me home now."

Link sighs, wondering why Ruto gets the stone instead of him. He decides he needs to explain to her that he needs it dearly so he can help the Princesses of Hyrule. When he steps closer to the platform, the floor of the room shakes and the platform turns into a parasite arm. It raises Ruto up and she screams, "Eeeeek! What is this? An octopus!?"

The arm lowers itself before Link can get his boomerang out, but instead of Ruto being there a giant Octorok is on it instead. It does not hesitate before chasing Link. "Ahhh! I'm starting to think the parasite isn't completely defeated!"

"It must have taken Ruto so it can eat her! We have to defeat this thing and save her from the parasite!" Navi flies above the battle as Link runs away. He ends up running in a circle due to the layout of the room so he can stay as far away from the monster as possible.

"How do I defeat it, Navi?" Link takes his sword out, ready to attack it if it gets too close.

The water fairy looks around and quickly observes the Octorok. "There seems to be a green gem on its back. Maybe that is its weak point!"

"There is no way I'm getting to the back of it. This thing is too fast!" Link slashes his sword at it, but it has no effect on the Octorok. He gulps and goes back to running.

"Maybe you can't get close to it then. Maybe..." Navo tries to think of a quick strategy, knowing Link can't hold out against this monster for much longer. "Wait, Link! Use the boomerang! It curves around when you throw it."

"That's a great idea!" Link puts his sword away and quickly takes out the boomerang. Hanging onto his braveness, he stops running and faces the monster while aiming the boomerang to the side. When he throws it, the boomerang makes a left turn and goes behind the Octorok, hitting it in the back. Its whole body seizes up and turns blue. "Woah, I think that stunned it."

"Hurry and attack its back with your sword!" Navi instructs. Link nods and takes out his sword once again before running behind the giant octopus and slashing at its weak point. The cephalopod screeches and blows bubbles out of its nose, poisoning the air around them before it vanishes in black smoke.

Link takes a breath of relief and falls on his back onto the platform. Before he can say anything to his fairy partner, the parasite arm drops down from the sky and snatches him. Link yells in surprise and tries to wiggle free, but the arm wraps itself around his body multiple times and carries him up into the air. Navi flies up, trying to think of anything she can do to help him, but Link manages to free one of his arms and stab the parasite with his sword. It thrashes around, throwing him to the wall and retreating up into the ceiling. Link takes a shaky breath before standing up. "That was scary."

"Indeed." Navi wipes her eyes as tears start to form. That was a real scare for her as well. She wasn't sure if Link was going to be able to get out of that, and she was just flying there, helpless. She wraps one arm around her chest and bites her lower lip. "Link, there's something I have to tell y-"

The fairy is cut off by a scream coming from the door straight ahead. The two look at each other and hurry to it, bursting to the other side. Ruto is there on the ceiling inside of what looks like a clear pod. But, that is not what makes Link shiver. In the center of the huge, circular room is a tall, puffy pink thing with many parasite arms branching off of it, three of them connecting it to the ceiling. Ruto gasps when she sees Link and yells, "Watch out, Link! It's an electric parasite known as a Barinade!"

Right as she finishes her sentence, one of the tendrils of the parasite unravels and lunges at Link. The boy dodges just in time, but the arm is so close that his skin feels a bit staticed. The entire monster must be electrified, he thinks to himself. How is he supposed to defeat this thing if he can't touch it? Link's thoughts are cut off yet again by Ruto's screams.

He looks up and sees the three arms attached to the ceiling are electrifying, zapping Ruto's pod. Out of instinct, Link grabs his boomerang and throws it, making the three thin arms detach from the ceiling and stop the flow of electricity. Right as he catches the item, Barinade grows a bit taller and five electric jellyfish detach from the core of its body. Link takes a step back. "Eww..."

"Watch out!" Navi gasps, but she's too late once again. A jellyfish managed to float high in the air and swoop down behind Link, catching him off guard. It wraps its many threads around him, making his whole body tense with shock. The other jellyfish take that as their opportunity to come over as well and wrap around him, intensifying the electricity delivered to his body.

"Fairy, you have to get those things off him. Hylian bodies can't handle the strength of a jellyfish's nematocysts!" Ruto covers her mouth as she hears Link scream in pain, watching in horror as he falls to the ground.

"What can I do?! I'm no good, I can't even protect Link. I started all of this, I'm the reason he has to put himself in danger from the beginning!" Navi starts to hyperventilate, placing her hands on her chest with wide eyes.

"I don't care if you're blaming yourself right now! If you don't do something, Link is going to die!" Ruto yells, frustrated at the fairy.

Navi can't take her eyes off the twitching child, staring terrified as his eyes roll to the back of his head. Thinking of the only thing she can do, Navi summons a huge drop of water and throws it at Link and the jellys. It makes a huge splash, covering the jellyfish and making them loosen their threads from around Link. Ruto gasps in delight this time and says joyfully, "Of course! Water and electricity don't mix. Keep going!"

Not letting up, Navi does as Ruto says and douses Link with more water, spraying the jellyfish off of him. Link's muscles are still spazzing out of control, but he is able to lift himself to his feet and draw his sword, seeing that Barinade is stunned. He leaps forward and plunges the sword into the parasite, tearing it open. Green slime pours out and onto the ground, surrounding Link's feet. He doesn't get a chance to look at it for long before he falls on his back, still twitching.

The pod encasing Ruto cracks and breaks, making her fall to the ground with a yelp. She groans and quickly gets to her feet, sprinting over to Link and helping him up. "You did good, hero."

"Th... than... k you." Link manages to breathe out a thanks, but his lungs still feel like they're pulsing. "Navi..." The fairy looks sorrowfully over at Link who takes a very deep breath to try and calm his excited nerves down. Finally, he settles his breathing and says, "I don't blame you for anything that's happened. You have helped me out so much, you don't even know. No matter what you did, it can't have been solely your fault."

Navi lands on the floor, avoiding the green muck, and droops her wings. Might as well tell him now before he finds out on his own. "You know the laws of Kokiri Forest, Link. You know how no one is able to enter unless they're guided by a fairy." Link nods, unsure of where this is going, and she continues, "The evil man from the desert was able to enter because of me. I was flying around outside, right by the entrance of the forest, when he snatched me and used me to enter Kokiri Forest. Then, he casted a curse on the Great Deku Tree and you got involved in everything. I don't know why the Great Deku Tree made me, of all fairies, your partner. All I've done is make a complete mess of everything. Because of me you have to go on this dangerous journey."

Ruto sits down and crosses her legs, smiling. "I agree with Link on this one. It sounds like this isn't your fault at all. You were just in the wrong place at the wrong time. This is all the desert man's fault. Plus, if Link never started this 'dangerous' journey, then I would have been eaten by that parasite."

"And Kaiden would still be trapped under Death Mountain rocks, along with Peyton inside of Dodongo's Cavern." Link adds onto what Ruto is saying, sitting down as well and trying to make Navi feel better. "See? You didn't start this. You've technically saved all these people's lives."

Mouth agape, Navi looks from Link to Ruto and eventually smiles at them. "You're right! I can't look at this negatively. Thank you both for believing in me!"

"No problem, Navi." Link scoops up the fairy and places her on his shoulder. He turns to Ruto and says, "So... about that stone-"

"Here." Ruto holds the Spiritual Stone out with both hands. She sees how surprised Link is, so she explains, "I know it's the Spiritual Stone of Water and that you've been collecting the other three. You mentioned the Princesses of Hyrule earlier, along with talks of the Gorons and forest dwellers. I know you need this for something important."

Link stares at the stone being offered to him before staring at Ruto with an even more confused expression. "But, it's so important to you. I can't-"

"You can and you will!" Ruto shoves the stone in his hands and crosses her arms. "You've helped me so much, it's the least I can do. I'm supposed to give it to the man I chose to be my husband, but unless you're willing... ugh you just take it, okay?!"

"Alright..." Link sighs and puts the stone in his pocket along with the other two. "I'll come visit you after I give these to the princesses. I'll even bring some friends along who I think you'll like."

"That sounds nice." Ruto smiles slightly and stands up, brushing some slime off her legs. "But whenever you do, don't tell my father I gave that to you."

"Yeah, I wouldn't worry about that. My lips are sealed." Link laughs and starts to walk to the exit with Ruto next to him. When they leave the room, they do not see the parasite behind them twitch and its tendrils becoming electrified once more.

It takes them a while to get back to the mouth of the fish, but once they do Link says his goodbye to the princess and heads off to Hyrule Field. He strategically takes a shortcut, deciding to ride along the current of the river to quickly make it back to the main area of the field.

Once he gets there, Link runs into a familiar face. Literally. "Peyton?! What are you doing here?"

The girl stands up from being knocked over and helps Link up as well. She breathes rapidly, trying to find her words to tell Link what happened. "I came as soon as I could. I thought you were still with the Zoras, so I decided to come and find you. Valerie says something is happening at the castle because her parents' shop was closed down! We have to hurry and give the Stones to Zelda and Reyna."

Link nods, not needing more of an explanation to understand this is an emergency. It does not take them long to reach the moat that separates Hyrule Field from the Market. The problem is, the drawbridge is up. Link puts his hand on his chest in worry. "P-Peyton, why is the drawbridge up?"

"Valerie! She's trapped in there, Link! We have to save her." Peyton feels like she's about to start crying, and she runs her fingers through her ponytail. "We should find Naomi, Carol, and Malon. They can help us-"

Peyton was about to continue her suggestion, but the sound of chains clank against the wind and a loud booming sound is heard in the sky. Raindrops sprinkle down, coating the two children's skin in cold water. Goosebumps form on their arms, making them step toward each other with a shiver. They both watch as the drawbridge slowly falls to the ground and a horse's neighing alerts them to step aside.