In the unlikeliest of places
The cold night air stung my arms, and I rubbed them in an effort to stay warm, wishing for the thousandth time that I had thought to grab my jacket from the back of the couch. The docks were silent, the boats rocking and creaking, shadowy figures on the glassy water. The homeless men eyed me in interest, and I shivered under their gazes.
"Get lost." I snapped. The men glared at me, but disappeared into the shadows of the slums. I sighed and continued to walk, trying to calm my frayed nerves. Why were my nerves such a mess? My wedding was tomorrow.
Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I am getting married, and to none other than Sheik Shadows, my friend since we were mere toddlers. With his dirty blond hair, muscular body, and his red, mysterious eyes, he could've chosen any girl. But, apparently, he wanted me. So I obliged him.
"Hey, gorgeous, what'cha doin' out here alone at night?" A seductive voice asked me. I sighed.
"Leave me alone." I hissed.
"No can do, beautiful." Another voice answered. A pair of arms grabbed me around my waist, pinning my arms to my sides. I struggled against the man's grip, but to no avail. The second man tsked at me.
"Such a shame." He said. "And here we were going to bring you nicely."
"Bring me where? Who are you?" I demanded to know. Both men began to laugh.
"My dear, we are your kidnappers." The first chuckled behind me, holding a small cloth to my nose and mouth. I gagged as the smell of chloroform filled my nostrils.
In seconds, I was passed out.
~(EE*33)~
I opened my eyes wearily, thinking, "Today I'm getting married." I sat up in my bed, rubbing my eyes forcefully. Upon closer inspection, I realized that this wasn't my room. It wasn't Sheik's either. My heart leapt into my throat, and I began to panic.
"Well, it looks like Sleeping Beauty decided to wake up finally." An unfamiliar voice taunted. I whipped my head in the direction of the voice. A young man sat in a chair in the corner of the room, watching me intently with azure eyes. His red hair was messy, as if he had just gotten out of bed.
"W-who are you?" I asked tremulously. "Where am I?" The man began to chuckle, causing my face to turn red. "What's so funny?" I demanded to know.
"You are." He laughed, wiping tears of mirth from his eyes. "Oh, man, Marth and Ike never said you were gonna be a sassy one."
"Well, excuse me." I snapped.
"Ooh, a very sassy one!" He exclaimed, continuing to laugh. I slipped out of the covers and brought myself up to my full five-foot-five stature.
"I'll have you know-."
"Oh my God! You're a midget too!" At this point, the red-haired nameless man was howling with laughter. My cheeks burned, showing my embarrassment to the entire world. My lips tightened. I kicked out my leg in an effort to hit his shin, but he deflected my well-aimed kick with his hand so quickly, his hand was a mere blur.
"What…?" I breathed.
"Ah, ah, ah." He stated, wagging a finger in my direction. "Violence is not the answer, little missy." I threw him a contemptuous glare.
"First off, I am not little." I huffed. "Secondly, I would appreciate it if you would let me go. My wedding is today…"
"I know that." He stated, rolling his eyes. "You're supposed to be getting married to Sheik Shadows." My mouth gaped open in shock.
"H-how did you…?"
"Sheik goes back a long time with the gang." He smirked. I sighed irritatedly and sat back on the edge of the bed, crossing my arms over my chest.
"All right, fine. But I want to know why I was kidnapped." I demanded. The man scratched the back of his head.
"I'm not allowed to answer that question." He replied, standing up and stretching his tall frame before sauntering over to the door.
"Wait." I pleaded just as his hand grazed the doorknob. "Can you at least tell me your name?" He turned around and leaned against the door frame, smirking.
"Name's Roy. See ya' around, shorty." With a cocky grin, he slipped out of the room. It took me about five seconds before I realized what he had said.
"Hey! Come back here, you jerk!"
~(EE*33)~
I sat on my window-seat, gazing sadly out at the quiet world below.
"Sheik…" I sighed, resting my head in my hands dejectedly. "I'm such a failure."
"What'cha so glum about, shorty?" Roy's teasing voice sounded from the doorway. I jerked my head up, sending an angry glare at his face.
"That's none of your business, Roy." I growled. "And my name is Malon, not 'shorty', got it?"
"Whatever you say, shorty." A cocky grin lit his face. I sighed and leaned my head back against the window-frame. "Hey, shorty, is there somethin' wrong?" I gritted my teeth.
"No, there's nothing wrong." I lied through my clenched teeth.
"No lying here, shorty." Roy reprimanded. I sighed again.
"It's none of your business."
"Maybe so," He shrugged. "But I'm an extremely nosy person. So, what's buggin' ya'?" He leaned in close to my face. His breath mingled with mine, causing my heart to race. My face was hot, so I knew I was blushing a great deal at the moment.
"I told you, it's none of your business."
"I won't leave you alone if you don't tell me." He grinned like a cheeky little child. I glared at him.
"If you don't leave me alone…" I threatened.
"You'll do what?" Roy taunted.
"I'll make sure that you never have children. Ever." I uttered lowly. He grimaced and backed up the slightest bit.
"All right, all right, I'll go." He said, backing up to the doorway. I hissed and bared my teeth at him like an animal until he got through the door. Sighing, I stared out the window once more at the sunset, admiring the beautiful oranges, reds, pinks, and the hint of purple, wishing for the thousandth time that Sheik was here by my side.
~(EE*33)~
"Malon…" A quiet voice beckoned me forward. I spun around, searching for some indication as to where I should go, but the village appeared deserted.
"Hello?" I called. "Where are you?"
"Over here…my daughter."
"Mother!" I cried happily, running in the direction of the first bit of movement I had seen in days. "Mother, I'm coming!"
"Good girl…"
I arrived at the entrance to one of the decrepit huts in the village. A woman with long red hair sat in a dilapidated rocking chair in front of the tiny fire, her back to me.
"Mother?" I called.
"Come closer, Malon…" I stepped forward in eager anticipation.
"Mother!" I cried happily as I went to face her…
…Only to see a wrinkled face, crawling with maggots and rotting. The stench was intolerable.
"Come to mother, child…" She beckoned, a malicious grin on her face.
"No…"
"What's wrong, dearie?" She asked me. "Come to mommy." She held out her arms, which were barely attached to her shoulders, so rotted were they.
"No…" I whispered. "You're not my mother!" I darted from the hut, tears blurring my vision.
"Come back…!"
"Malon!" Another voice called out to me. My head whipped around to search for it, my heart thumping happily.
"Sheik!" I cried. "Where are you?"
"I'm right here." His warm arms wrapped around me, his breath warming my neck. I sighed and turned in his arms, burying my face in his chest.
"Oh, Sheik, it was horrible!" I sobbed. "My mother was calling me, but when I went to her, she was all decayed and rotting!"
"Shh…" He rubbed my back soothingly. "It's all right now. I'm here." I looked up at him with tearful eyes. That intolerable smell hit me again. I gasped and pushed away in revulsion. Sheik grinned at me, his hollow eyes sockets filled with maggots, teeth rotting and missing.
"Get away from me!" I yelled.
"What's the matter, sweetheart? Is my face that horrifying?" He teased.
"Malon…"
"Malon…"
From all around me, decrepit bodies slowly appeared one by one, all familiar, all repulsive.
"Get away…" I whimpered as they cornered me in one of the huts. I sank to the ground, covering my ears with my hands.
"Join us…"
"Make it stop!" I screamed. "Get away from me!"
I awoke with a gasp. I clutched at my chest, where my heart was pounding wildly. I took deep breaths in an effort to calm myself, but it wasn't working. I began to sob, burying my face in my hands.
A strong pair of arms wrapped around me, enveloping me in the musky scent of pine that I had grown accustomed to the past couple of weeks. I turned and buried my head in his chest, not caring that I was getting the front of his shirt wet.
"Shh…Calm down. It was just a dream." He whispered soothingly in my ear. I continued to cry for what seemed like hours until, finally, I could cry no more. I sniffled, wiped my nose, and then looked up at Roy.
"I'm sorry." I apologized quietly. "You're right; it was just a dream." I looked back down in embarrassment. He gently cupped my chin in his fingers and tilted my face back up.
"It's not a problem." He murmured. His tender gaze raked over my facial features before coming to rest on my lips. I blushed heatedly, unconsciously licking said feature. He leaned forward until our faces were mere millimeters apart.
"Roy…"
"You're so beautiful." He told me huskily. Without hesitation, he pressed his lips to mine. At first, I did nothing, so shocked I was. After a few seconds, I responded hungrily, desperately craving any type of affection. My hands went up to grasp his ginger hair as his hands wrapped around my waist tightly.
"Thank you…" I whispered when we broke apart. He smiled tenderly at me, causing my heart to flip in my chest.
"Anytime." He gently let me go and laid my back down. "Now get some sleep, okay? I'll see you in the morning." He stood up and turned to go, but I grabbed his wrist.
"Please stay." I begged. "At least until I fall asleep." He sighed.
"All right." He replied, sitting on the edge of my bed. I smiled, turned on my side, and closed my eyes. Moments later, I felt Roy slip in next to me, draping an arm around my waist. I sighed contentedly and snuggled against him, falling asleep almost immediately.
~(EE*33)~
"Roy! You idiot!" The air filled with curses, waking me up. I sat up quickly when I heard someone slam into the wall. One of the men that had brought me here, the one named Ike, was pining Roy to the wall, while the other one, Marth, began to beat him mercilessly.
"Stop!" I demanded, tears filling my eyes. "Leave him alone!"
"Stay outta it, missy." Marth snarled, hitting Roy with more force. A light groan escaped Roy's lips as the air left him, causing him to slump against Ike's hands.
"Stop, you'll kill him!" I beseeched, throwing myself in front of him.
"Malon…get out of the way…" Roy wheezed as he gasped for air.
"No!" I snapped. "I will not sit still and watch you get beaten up when I can do something about it." Marth and Ike exchanged glances before they burst into laughter.
"Ah, man, you just had to pick the feisty one, eh, Roy?" Ike chortled.
"Shut up." Roy hissed. I pursed my lips, debating on whether or not I should kick them where it counted.
"Whatever, it's no fun anymore." Marth grumbled. "Let him go, Ike." Ike let go of Roy, and I barely caught him before he sank to the floor. The twosome of destruction left the room, leaving me to take care of Roy's bruised and battered body.
"I'm sorry…you had…to see that…" Roy managed to say. I gently wiped his face with a wet cloth from the bathroom.
"I've seen worse." I answered.
"I've…got…to get…you outta here…" He struggled to sit up. "Tonight… I'll get you…outta here…"
"Are you sure…?"
"I'm positive." He affirmed in a stronger voice. "I'm going…to get you outta here. I promise."
~(EE*33)~
"Don't make a sound." Roy cautioned as he slipped out of the window on our makeshift rope made up of bed-sheets tied together. He landed on the ground with a soft thud!
"All right, come down." I heard him whisper. I gulped before I gripped the rope and shimmied down the side of the house. I let go a few feet above the ground, and Roy caught me soundlessly in his arms.
"Thanks."
"No problem." He smiled. "Now let's go." He grabbed my hand and gently began to lead me through the complexity of my prison's grounds. We had almost reached the gate when I stepped on a twig, producing a loud snap! The guards on the top of the gate turned in our direction, searching for possible intruders. Roy motioned for me to be still, and I complied. After a few minutes, they turned back to their jobs.
"Sorry." I mouthed. He smiled reassuringly at me before we headed for a hole in the iron-link fence. Roy gently hoisted me up, and I slipped over the fence with ease. Just as Roy was about to get over, a voice called out, "Escapees!"
"Uh-oh." Roy said. "Run."
"You don't have to tell me twice." Taking his hand, we ran into the night, sticking to the shadows so we would stay hidden.
After about half an hour of ducking into alleys and hiding in the shadows, we finally reached Sheik's house. But, instead of an overwhelming surge of joy, I felt only a pang of sadness.
"Well, I guess…this is where I say goodbye." Roy echoed my thoughts.
"Don't go." I begged. "I'll explain it all to Sheik." I gripped his hand tightly in mine. He sighed in defeat.
"Fine." Gleefully, I knocked on the door. After a few moments, the door opened, and Sheik stood in a robe and a pair of baggy pants.
"M-Malon?" He stammered.
"Yeah, it's me." I nodded.
"And me, Roy." The red-haired man I had grown to love added cheerfully. Sheik stared at him in shock.
"…Roy?" He cried. "What're you doing here, you delinquent punk?" He grabbed Roy around the shoulders and gave him a man-hug.
"Just returning a favor." Roy shrugged. "Oh, by the way, I kind of stole her heart. Is that okay?" There was silence for a moment.
"…Yeah, it's okay." Sheik broke out into a large grin. I breathed out a sigh of relief.
"Thanks, buddy." Roy said. "You just made me a happy man." He turned to me and swept me up into his arms.
"Roy! Put me down!" I cried through my laughter.
"Nope." He grinned that cheeky grin that he knew I loved. "I ain't never lettin' you go. Ever."
"Oh, whatever." I teased, leaning down and kissing him gently on the cheek.
~(EE*33)~
*Sheik's POV*
"Oh, whatever." Malon teased as she leaned down, kissing Roy the cheek gently. I smiled. My plan had succeeded.
Love had been found in the unlikeliest of places, after all.
And that, ladies and gents, was the official first ginger-shipping story! Thanks to ClarinetOverlord (aka Claro) for co-founding this type of –shipping and being my inspiration for this story!
Also thanks to all my faithful reviewers on my other stories (which, if you haven't checked them out yet, I advise that you do).
Arigatou for clicking on this story! Please Read and Review!
(I own nothing)
-HeroofTwilightsgf