Sorry for the delay in updating, folks. I will update my story as much as I can but it will be kind of random, so for this, I apologize. So here's the next chapter.

Chapter two

I realized that having a girl who slipped past your defenses, both magical and physical, was a thing to be cautious about, and to take precautions about, but this was just downright ridiculous. I was trapped up in a dank, damp, empty, cold cell, staring at the grimy, gray wall in front of me. The door was iron, and there was a small slot at the top of it, with bars.

I had lost track of the time, and honestly, I wanted to die. I was really hungry right now. I felt my stomach was getting ready to start eating itself in an attempt for nourishment.

I practically jumped to my feet as there was rustling outside the door of my cell, rushing toward it and crying, "Let me out of here!"

Blue eyes appeared, along with a sweep of blond hair across the eyes. "If you'll be patient a moment, I will. You aren't in danger of dying, trust me." came Link's voice.

"Just let me out!" I added, disregarding him and still impatient.

Link gave a roll of his lightning-blue eyes, and unlocked the door, before opening it and saying, "I have someone I want you to meet, so you're out of there for now."

"I won't be back in there," I assured him dangerously, but he only lifted an eyebrow, his expression clearly reading, "Whatever you say."

I followed Link down the halls of the dungeon, examining the plain, grimy walls as we went. Torches were mounted to the walls, casting a dull orange glow over everything.

"So who am I meeting?" I asked Link as we made our way up a flight of stairs.

"Someone who we are hoping to train you." Link replied.

"Very specific." I said sarcastically, rolling my eyes. "How about a name?"

"I'll leave that to them." was all Link said.

Seriously, what was with the secrecy? Would the earth blow up if he gave me a name, or something?

Nevertheless, though, I followed him down the hall like an obedient little girl, until he led me up to a floor that was no longer filthy, but rather immaculate. The walls were white, made of stone, the floors black granite stone, polished though smooth from how worn down they were. Along the bottom of the wall were intricate drawings of the three goddesses, surrounding the Triforce. It was very artistic and amazing. I took the time to admire the drawings before Link cleared his throat pointedly to get me to move on.

Link led me through a door on the right, and within was a great room with racks full of weapons along the far wall, from axes to scimitars to swords to bows, and beyond. The floors were dirt, and the walls were simply dark oak wood. There were no windows, but only torches, which gave the room the same orange glow as in all the other rooms. The room was empty.

"All right . . ." My voice disturbed the silence of the room. "So who am I supposed to meet?"

"He'll be here in a moment." Link murmured, looking around, as if searching for the person in an empty room. I lifted an eyebrow. Couldn't Link see there wasn't anybody here?

"If you truly think that, you're as oblivious as you supposed him to be." said a voice, interrupting my thoughts, as well as answering them. I turned to the left, seeing a slender being emerge from the shadows that clung tightly to the walls, leaving little room to hide within.

The being, however, I recognized immediately from the descriptions I'd been given over time, because no one else would have matched. This was Sheik. His red eye met both of my violet orbs, and I flushed with embarrassment from the comment he'd made.

I said nothing. There wasn't really anything I could say, other than, "You wanted me to meet Sheik, Link? Why?"

"Because important matters have come to hand and we believe that you need to be informed," Sheik said simply, crossing his lean arms across his hard chest. His voice was deep, melodious, but deathly serious. "For the fact that you slipped into the castle so easily-- and I'm sure Zelda has already informed you of this-- that makes us realize that either our defenses weren't quite as effect as hoped, or that you possess a superior ability of stealth that could be useful." He went on. "A superior ability of stealth that compares to that of a Sheikah. My kind."

I absorbed this slowly. "Okay. So what, then?"

"So, it would be wise to train you in the ways of the Sheikah. Having two Sheikahs already at the kingdom's disposal is useful for collecting information and deadly for foes, but having three will add to the effect. Plus, you don't seem normal, anyway. It would be stupidity to release you back to your old life and not take advantage of this situation." Sheik explained quietly.

"Train me?" I demanded. "What if I don't want to be trained?"

"We were going to have Zelda talk to you about it first," Link interjected, "But Sheik insisted speaking to you about it, instead. He says that he believes he's more capable of convincing you." Link didn't seem convinced, himself, as he looked at Sheik expectantly.

Sheik's face showed no emotion other than a slight twitch of his visible eyebrow. "Your name is Melania, correct?" he looked back to me.

I nodded, though I was scowling. They can't honestly think I'm just going to say, 'Okay!' and let them train me. If he thinks he's going to 'convince' me he's got another thing coming. I'm not going to train under a person I don't know, much less work underneath someone once I'm trained. I don't work for anyone.

Feeling oddly as if Sheik could hear my thoughts, once more, I stiffened when he said quietly, "Undergoing this training shouldn't take away the sense of independence you have, Melainia. You should want to undergo this training, to work for the good of other people, to work for them and help them, to serve your country, which is Hyrule."

"What has Hyrule ever done for me?" I snarled. "I live out on the streets! If Hyrule cared, then I wouldn't be starving half the time! If Hyrule cared, I would have a family that cared about me! If Hyrule cared, I wouldn't have to steal to cloth myself! If Hyrule cared--" I cut off abruptly, because my head was beginning to pound from how angry I was. I raised a hand to massage my temples, letting out a deep breath. I noticed Link looked suddenly guilty and uncomfortable.

"I'll do whatever I can to help you, Melainia," Link promised me fiercely, laying his hand on my shoulder. It was only then that I remembered how altruistic Link was, how he would do anything for the sake of helping someone else. What I had just said must have really made him feel guilty.

"It doesn't matter," I said flatly, shrugging his hand off, indifferent to the rude manner in which I did it. "I don't need anyone. I never have. I never will."

"Try not to be melodramatic." Sheik said, his visible eye narrowing slightly. "There are people who have it much worse than you do. The least you can do is be grateful that we want to help you."

I flared up to retort, but when I glanced at Link I saw how sad his expression was, and somehow it stopped me. I sighed, settling back and letting out another long breath. "Well, it's great and all that you want to 'help' but I don't need your help. So you can find someone else to train. Because I don't need your training. I'm out of this place." I turned, heading for the door.

I gasped when warm, bandaged fingers wrapped around each of my wrists, stopping me. But the reason I gasped was because I felt a slight jolt that was unfamiliar to me, something I'd never felt before and didn't welcome now. I jerked away and whirled, to look into a single blazing ruby red eye.

"You can't leave. I'm afraid to tell you we won't allow it. The information you know is dangerous, because if enemies ever learned of my whereabouts they could capture me as they once did and force information from me." Sheik said quietly, but there was a dangerous glint in his eyes. "You aren't going anywhere."

My heart was pounding, but I wasn't sure if it was because a boy(no, man)was close to me or because I was scared. Either way, I refused to show either emotion. "You can just try and stop me." With those words, I smashed my knee right up between his legs.

Sheik gasped and his face went pale as he doubled over, and I turned back around, wrenching open the door and racing down the hall as fast as my legs would carry me. I headed straight for the staircase down the hall and to the right, knowing that would lead me down and somewhere on the main floor was an exit.

"Someone stop her!" I heard Sheik yelling as I ran away. I heard the heavy falls of boots behind me, and then the soft whisper of sound that had to be Sheik running. I let out a gasp as I moved out of the way of a chain suddenly zooming past my head with a puft sound, before the hook on the end of it embedded itself into the torch at the end of the hall.

A second later I was tackled, and I rolled across the floor in a tangle of limbs with the Hero of Time, managing to yell, "Get off me!"

"Just think about this, Melainia! Don't just run away!" Link pleaded, taking me by my shoulders and holding my eyes, his begging mine.

"No! Let go!" I shoved him away and scrambled to my feet, barely avoiding him as he made a grab for me. I continued my mad dash for the stairs.

"Oh, for the love of Nayru!" Sheik said angrily. A second later I heard a loud smack as something hit the floor, and a white flash appeared before my eyes. I nearly fell as I tried to stop as Sheik appeared right in front of me. I ran directly into his arms.

Except, his arms weren't embracing as they wrapped around me. For all his slender body, Sheik was not to be taken lightly. He was unbelievably strong for such a slender frame, holding me to his hard chest, his ruby eye flaming down into mine with his anger.

"You are truly going to wish you hadn't done that." he told me icily.

"What? Kicking you? Well, you'd better hope I don't away from you, because that's where my foot is going to go if I do!" I said, before I spat right in his face.

Oh, he was mad. No, not mad. Furious. No, not even furious. Enraged might be a better word. Nevertheless, he wiped away the spit with disgust before slamming me roughly up into the wall.

"You have a limited number of options, Melainia," he hissed, and his voice was so menacing and fierce that it made my heart pound with fear. "You can either go with the training and save yourself a world of pain, or you can try to leave this castle and die. The way I see it, it would be a little easier to do the former."

"Go to hell!" I told him, struggling against his arms.

"That's where you'll soon be if you don't comply!" he snarled.

"What is going on here?" the voice was female, melodious, and sounded angry. It was Zelda. Her cerulean blue eyes were furious.

"I told you to speak with her, Sheik, not abuse her!" Zelda said angrily.

"Zelda, you have no idea--" Link started, in Sheik's defense.

"I find it quite impossible to convince this idiot girl at the moment," Sheik replied simply, coolly. "If you find yourself more capable, than by all means, attempt yourself. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother lecturing me until you are aware of how impossible this task is rapidly becoming."

"I'm right here," I said, annoyed.

They ignored me. Zelda pursed her lips at Sheik, before turning to me. "Melainia, why don't you want to be trained?" she asked me gently. The way she acted almost like a mother-figure both irritated me and made me uncomfortable. I wasn't used to people being nice.

"I don't want to work for someone who's never done anything for me." I said stubbornly.

At Zelda's confused look, Sheik explained, "Apparently Melainia has always had to be independent in life, and she feels she will lose her independence by undergoing training for a country that she believes has never worked for her own good." His voice sounded as if he had never been angry, for it was once more composed, impassive. He had released me, by this point, but he didn't move away, just in case I decided to run once more. Which I was considering.

"Don't you see, Melainia, you wouldn't lose your independence," Zelda assured me, once more in that motherly tone. "You would still be free to leave anytime you wanted, to come and go unless you were doing something for us. And once the evil that is now rising is gone, you could even leave permanently, if you wished." she encouraged.

I glared at her. "I don't want to be trained. I said no."

Zelda bit her lower lip a little nervously. "Well, maybe we could let you leave . . ."

Sheik turned toward her sharply. "Leave? Are you daft? We can't let her leave, after the information she has."

"Sheik's right," Link agreed. "I don't want to kill her just because she tries to leave, but I don't want to let her go, either. It's too dangerous."

"Kill her? Who tried to kill her?" Zelda demanded, growing angry.

The three of them were at it, now, arguing, so I took that time to slowly edge away, looking toward the window not even five feet away. I waited until all three of them were so distracted by arguing that they didn't even notice me anymore. I moved quickly toward the window, opening it, and looking down at the ground below. It was about ten or eleven feet. I considered. Escaping, even with a broken limb, was worth it.

I quickly jumped from the window, ignoring the sudden, "Link, stop her!" from Sheik and Zelda combined.

I let out a cry of pain as I landed hard on my elbow, feeling a sudden crack in my arm. Tears of pain came to my eyes as fiery agony lanced up and down my arm to my shoulder and to the tips of my fingers. I felt tears running down my face, and my vision blurred, even as I stumbled to my feet, cradling my broken arm and racing across the lawns of the castle, ignoring the shouts of the guards. I could hear the many footsteps behind me, but I ignored them all, concentrating on running out the open gates and down toward Hyrule Castle Town.

Once within the town, I made my way quickly through the crowd, shoving people out of the way, weaving through the bustling market, ignoring the calls of people trying to help me, and shopkeepers trying to get me to buy something. I headed straight for the Temple of Time, because that seemed the only sanctuary at the moment for me.

As I burst through the Temple doors, I practically collapsed on the red carpet in front of the entrance, sobbing freely now from the pain in my arm. It throbbed terribly, and it was twisted at a weird angle. I'd definitely broken it.

The black and white checkered floors were cold as I dragged myself across them, to go lean up against the white stone wall. I pressed my arm to the cold of the wall, which was only slightly soothing to my throbbing arm. I rested my forehead against the stone, trying to concentrate on anything besides the pain. All I could do was hope that they didn't come after me into the Temple.

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Luckily, they never seemed to come into the Temple. I wasn't sure how long I laid there on the stone floor, the pain in my arm reduced to a dull ache. It had ceased over the hours to be so painful, or I'd just gotten used to it and could ignore the intense pain, now.

I was so tired, and so hungry and weak, but I didn't want to get up and risk going outside and being found. After all, I could think it was far past the time I'd ran away but it could actually only be thirty minutes passed since I'd run from the castle. There was no certain way to tell.

I closed my eyes, welcoming the soothing darkness, feeling the peace of the Temple settle over me, calming me. I sighed, trying to relax and sleep.

"We would have found you right away had we ever suspected you would enter into a sacred Temple for refuge."

I jumped at the sudden voice, opening my eyes and lifting up, whimpering as the movement jolted my arm and sent a sharp stab of pain up the broken member.

"That was extremely stupid, jumping from the window like that and just hoping you'd escape so easily. You're lucky you didn't break your neck, or your leg." Sheik added quietly, crouching down in front of me and tenderly taking my arm, examining it.

It hurt. A lot. "Stop it. Don't touch me." I tried to sound furious but all I could manage was a feeble protest, because it hurt to bad to be angry at this moment. I didn't dare pull away; I was afraid of how much it would hurt if I did.

Sheik, as expected, ignored me. "I was once like you. Striving to be independent, determined to prove myself and show the world that I didn't need anybody nor anything," he said, still quiet, as he continued to examine my arm. "I was a fool."

His ruby eye flickered up to mine, and his gaze was intense. "Everyone needs assistance at sometime in their life, Melainia. You are young and naïve so it is only natural that your heart strives for the sense of independence you've had all your life. You've taken care of yourself; you haven't ever seemed to need anyone. What I'm telling you is that you will now. Evil is rapidly growing, strengthening, and soon we will all have to stick together and face it. If you are not with us, you are against us. Do you understand what I am saying? Not a one of us can defeat this by ourselves, let alone a sixteen-year-old girl."

I said nothing. I knew he was right, and I hated it. "That doesn't mean I need to be trained." I said through clenched teeth, refusing to look at him, because I was humiliated he was right and I couldn't deny that fact.

"Oh, but it does. Don't you see, Melainia? If I train you in the ways of my people, you will wield a power and stealth that you could use against our enemies, that you could use for your benefit in life. If you aren't trained, you are vulnerable and therefore susceptible to danger and eventually, death. You need more than just instincts for survival; you need training. You need a defense. Without it, you may not live past sixteen years." his voice was soft, urgent, now, but still deathly serious.

I considered his words, not wanting to accept them, but once more knowing he was right and hating it. "You don't know how to give up, do you?" I muttered, glaring at him.
To my surprise, he gave a low chuckle. The sound was rich and sent a slight shiver up my spine, one I didn't understand. "Of course not. If I did, then I wouldn't be where I am today. Now, why don't we put your arm in a cast and use it as a reminder for your stupidity?"

"I never agreed to being trained." I muttered, though I really didn't have any reason to fight, now.

"Of course you didn't. But you're going to, anyway." Sheik replied simply, unperturbed. "Let this lesson be your first; never jump from windows. And I don't think you need elaboration as to why."

"No, I do." I said sweetly. "Enlighten me."

"Keep talking like that and I will." he warned me, even as he reached into a pouch on his side and began to withdraw bandages from it.

"Ooh, scary."
Sheik just chose to ignore me after that, beginning to wrap my arm up in bandages as he straightened it. I cried out from the pain, but he only murmured soothing nonsense as tears began to run down my face again. It was a very painful process, and it never seemed to end.

"Now, it will take sometime to heal, so don't get it wet and don't move it much if you can help it." Sheik said once he formed a sort of sling across my neck, holding my arm tucked to my body. He glanced up into my eyes, and I was surprised to see his gaze soften, before he reached up and gently brushed the last few tears from my face with his thumb in a gentle caress. It would have been a fatherly gesture in normal circumstances, but the way that it made my skin tingle made me feel like it was something . . . different. Though I didn't know what.

"Next time you're going to brutalize my arm give me a warning," I muttered, and Sheik lifted his visible eyebrow, though he said nothing.

"I'm going to take you back to the castle now, made sure you're nourished, and then you're going to get some sleep. Your lessons will start in the morning." he said, his voice once more impassive as he straightened, stretching his slender form, slightly. I blushed as I realized I was staring at the flexing of his muscles as he did this and he caught me, eyeing me a bit strangely.

Sheik leaned down and scooped me up rather easily into his arms, murmuring, "Besides, I don't trust you'd follow me obediently if I asked. In fact, I don't trust you at all."

"You have a good reason not to." I said simply, not bothering to hide the fact that I would indeed run, should he let me go.

Sheik snorted, but said nothing else.

Yeah, I know, kind of crappy chapter, but I have a ton of homework so I don't have time to make an awesome chapter right this second. But I will try to update as soon as I can, and the next one will be better, I promise!