Link stared down at the tattered paper in his hands. Again, he tried to decipher the scrawling runes scratched no doubt hastily into the skin. I miss you. Come back to the Ranch for a little while, and we can have so much fun. I've got some of our best ranch milk waiting, and, well… I need you. Come quickly!

Love, Malon.

At least, that was what he was told it said. For the eightieth time, Link tried to figure out how Mido had figured it out himself. Since when could he read? Link shifted his view to the sky, surveying the dark clouds that had begun to encroach upon the sunset mere minutes ago. They were coming up fast. Link would have to hurry to make it in time.

Again, he stared down at the paper, trying again to match words to symbols before rain and darkness made his already monolithic task impossible. He focused on each rune in turn, wondering which one meant 'I', which one meant 'you', which one meant 'a', and so on…

Eventually he came to the end, where he simply stared at a rune he finally recognized. How could he forget something he had learned to chase for so long, learned to fear its absence, learned to covet blindly? A picture of a heart adorned the bottom of the message, with a few runes following it before the message ended.

That doesn't say love… that says life, doesn't it? Health? Hearts remaining? Aggh, what does Mido know, anyway? Link crumpled up the message and tossed it leisurely behind him. A raindrop splashed onto his hair, where he had lowered his hood to see better. He hastily pulled it up now, obscuring his gold under the characteristic green cloth.

Link gauged again how far there was to go. He was still a ways from the ranch, and the rain wasn't making his prospects any better. He shivered, wishing he had worn more than his usual shorts and tunic. He was silently thankful for the traction-less slippers adorning his feet, which, although they slowed him considerably, still kept his feet quite warm.

Irritated at his pace, Link pushed on, trying to make it before he became soaking wet. Granted, his prospects were slim at best, but it would give him something to work toward as the rain drenched him.

The minutes dragged by with not a second of silence. The rain was at its most irritating today, as each drop tried to outdo the others in making Link's life miserable. One after another launched a kamikaze assault upon his face, in what he was sure was turning into hail, while others targeted the most receptive rocks and trees around to produce the most maddening sound ever. Now thoroughly drenched, Link wondered if he would go mad before he reached the ranch at all.

He blinked. The rain had suddenly stopped, but the noise persisted. Glancing up, he noticed that he was standing under the sign to the ranch. Hallelujah,Link prayed, thankful for the respite. His lethargic shuffling began with renewed purpose as he entered the ranch, hoping for a hot meal and some sleep at the least.

He knocked once at the massive oak door, and waited as the rain took every opportunity to stab him in the back. Link could swear that his tunic had become riddled with holes from the hits it was taking, but he didn't dare check and waste precious warmth. That, and he was fairly positive he wouldn't be able to tell the difference: his fingers were numb.

He knocked again. Suddenly, the door flew open in front of him, forcing him back a step in surprise. The assault from on high resumed. Talon stood in the doorway holding a pitchfork menacingly toward him. Link was so tired and cold, he would have relished a stabbing for the warmth the pitchfork would give him as it entered his body. Talon blinked, realizing who was at the door.

"'Ello there, it's Link!" Talon hastily lowered the pitchfork, abashed. "S'ry fur the 'fork, mate. By Nayru, y'look freezin, kid! C'mon in!" Talon stepped aside, encouraging Link with a solid thump to his back as he passed him. As Talon shut the door, Link rubbed his hands together; he almost thought he could feel his fingers. But when he brought them to his face, he found that it was just wishful thinking.

"Gosh boy, you dun shure diddit t'night! This storm t'aint movin past 'till t'morow! M'shure Malon wouldn't mind bunk'n witcha…" Talon paused, pensive. "Ya'know, since her room be the warmest un'all. She been worried sick boutcha, y'know!" Talon continued as he shuffled Link along up the stairs. Link shivered, numbly nodding to the words only, not quite listening to nor caring what they actually were.

Talon slammed on the door once they reached the top, struggling to be heard over the din of the pouring rain. "Malon! Malon, your friends'ere!"

The door flew open not a second later, and Link found himself suddenly enveloped by a warm, screaming pillow which proceeded to hungrily pilfer the contents of his lungs in a suffocating embrace. Talon, smiling, wordlessly left the two to their devices as Malon dragged a half-unconscious Link into her room and shut the door. Link didn't hear him flop onto the bale of hay downstairs as the sound of rain pervaded the room once more.

Finally, after his face went through several shades of blue, purple, and black, Malon released him onto the floor, tears of joy streaming down her face. Link pulled in a gasp of air what seemed every millisecond, desperate to stay conscious, while Malon continued her screams of joy. Finally, she began to calm herself.

"Link! You made it! Oh, I'm so happy you're here! Are you okay? You look like you're freezing!" Link waited for another thirty seconds of recovery from her suffocating grip, struggling all the while to remain conscious despite the frostbite and oxygen deprivation. Finally, once the room regained its color, he responded.

"I'm f-f-fine, M-m-m-ma-malon… J-j-j-ju-st c-c-co-co-cold…." Link sputtered, the frostbite now taking precedence over lack of air. Malon reached over and grabbed him again, thankfully in a less threatening manner, and threw him onto the bed, which, he was pleasantly surprised to discover, was quite warm. Malon sat down next to him, covering him up with blankets as she did so.

Link closed his eyes, savoring the warmth, while Malon reached underneath the bed for something. A minute passed before Link opened his eyes again, uncomfortable with the silence. Link found her proffering a bottle of milk, which he took gratefully, fervently praying to Din that it was warm.

"Go on, drink it! You'll feel better." Malon persuaded, as Link paused for a second. Link uncorked the bottle, fumbling for a few seconds as he struggled before taking a hearty gulp.

It was definitely warm. A tingling sensation traveled down his body through his limbs, chasing away the cold. The bottle almost immediately stopped shaking from his shivering. "Feel better?" Malon asked, and he nodded, taking another sip. Malon smiled, and cuddled up next to him on the bed, adding her warmth to his own. The air began to lose its chill. Link glanced over to the fireplace, only to find the light from the fire throwing strange shapes onto the walls.

Link took another sip, allowing the buzz to spread further through his body. The bottle began to shake again, for some reason. He couldn't see why – he felt positively warm now. Especially his right side…

Link looked down to find Malon curled against him contentedly. He couldn't help but see what little she was dressed in – she must have slipped into her sleeping clothes some time. Link averted his gaze, trying to act as if he hadn't seen what they both knew he had just seen.

Malon hugged him tighter, resting her head onto his chest. His face began to heat up as it dawned upon him where he was. There was no escape, though, without extricating himself from Malon's death grip, in which he was powerless to move.

A second later, he pondered whether he really wanted to escape. After all, he had never been this close to Malon before. Dimly, he wondered whether or not he ever would again.

"I love you, Link…" Even the rain muted to listen now. Link heard every word. He froze. Things were getting a bit out of hand. He nervously gulped down the rest of the bottle, and set it down next to the bed. The room stopped spinning. The warm sensation intensified, until it filled his entire body and mind. Link could feel his face begin to burn, feel each throb of Malon's heartbeat as it raced faster and faster. Looking down, he found the bulge between his legs growing more pronounced. It was too late to even wonder what was going on.

Malon heaved a sigh, and Link felt her breath mist across his chest. He looked down to find her staring up at him. The look in her eyes was mesmerizing. Link thought back to her note…

I need you…

I want you…

Come quickly!

Malon reached down, ever so slowly, as she trailed down the front of his tunic, and began to undo the straps one by one. Link couldn't, wouldn't move. Each breath against his chest intensified his heartbeat, until it throbbed like a caged animal begging for release. Finally, Malon undid the final strap, and pulled his tunic through his arms. He was bare-chested now, and she lay her head again upon it. He knew she could hear his heart race.

Again, her hands moved, and undid the straps of his shorts. As she slid them down, Link gulped as they passed his throbbing member. If it was pronounced before, it was most certainly fully erect now, and Link saw Malon staring at it with longing.

With sudden, lightning fast movements, she was on top of him, her lips pressing up against his, her tongue invading every crevasse inside his mouth. Her hands trailed over his entire body, and he lost control of his lower half as she gently coaxed the head of his cock. The room began to spin rapidly in a nauseating whirl, so Link simply half closed his eyes, concentrating upon Malon's face as she lay on top of him.

Every breath he took came from her lungs, every swallow came with her essence attached. Link couldn't get enough of her. Dimly, he felt himself exploring her body just as she caressed his. He wondered when he had started. Malon lifted herself above him suddenly, her lips never leaving his, and poised herself above his member which was throbbing uncontrollably. Link felt burning drops dribble onto the head as she hesitated for a moment, breathing in deeply from his lungs, before slamming her lower half onto his body.

Link gasped as he felt his body enter hers, somehow, his eyes opening wide with shock and ecstasy. Any self control he had left was destroyed in that instant. His heart raced as his legs pumped up and down, devoid of timing and rhythm, and he felt her body slide up and down his shaft which was growing more accustomed to her inner walls with each passing thrust.

Their lips came apart, both for the same reason: to moan, and breathe in as much as they could while their bodies each had the run of the other's. More time became devoting to moaning by the second.

"Link…" Malon gasped in a whisper that only furthered his drive to have her.

"Malon…" Link moaned back, not even trying to hold himself back as he thrust harder and harder, throwing restraint to the wind. Dazed, he began to notice the sweat pouring off of his body, and feel the same everywhere Link touched on Malon. Conscious thought had taken a literal backseat to blind lust, as he blindly slid in and out of her body. Their moans should have woken the entirety of Hyrule Castle, but somehow the rain was louder still. Suddenly, Link gasped as something tightened somewhere within his groin. Instinctively, he knew what was coming.

"Malon, I'm… I'm gunna… I'm gunna…" Link tried to gasp. Malon replied by stopping his words with her lips, as she renewed their kiss with vigor. She screamed into his mouth.

"Yes LINK! Cum into me! Fill me right up! Fill me, fairy boy!" Who was he to refuse a lady? He released everything into her, felt his hot seed gush from his still throbbing member, shuddering as more and more shot into her. Malon's eyes rolled up into her head in pure ecstasy as she continued to ride him. Link shuddered violently, unable to handle the suddenly overwhelming pressure seizing his head from the contact.

Somehow, he came again, simultaneously feeling a burning hot fluid spill out onto his groin. The pair continued to gasp, savoring the sensation, as each slowed in their movements.

Malon stopped first, collapsing entirely onto him. Link stopped, his phallus limp, before falling into a drunken coma for the night. The clamor of raindrops passed slowly into the dark abyss.

"Not bad, fairy boy…" Malon breathed to an unconscious Link, smiling as she did so. The milk had done its work.