Ha! I'll bet you guys weren't expecting to hear from me again. I should probably start making these chapters longer, but I figured I made you guys wait long enough. 16 reviews for two relatively short chapters! Honestly, I'm surprised, but not at all disappointed! :D

Disclaimer: I do not own the Legend of Zelda or any of it's characters. However, I do own Kaara, Derek, and Vahn. Beware the yaoi!

Chapter 3

I didn't pay much attention to the caravan when I first laid eyes on it. However, after being rescued and stuck in it for a few days, I had come to recognize it's beauty. The wooden construction was fairly large, more so than most. It was no house, but it did have all of the necessities. The wood was made from oak and the inside was shiny from some type of furnish. Overall, it had a very elegant appearance to it with it's ornate wooden carvings on the outside. A lush red carpet covered nearly the entire floor space in what was deemed as the sitting room, which was primarily used for relaxing. The three performers I had met seemed to be living fairly well, despite living their lives almost constantly on the road. The place was equipped with three small bedrooms, and even though they were more like closets than anything else, it was enough to live comfortably. A small space in the sitting room was used for food and water storage. In one corner there was also a cabinet for fire wood. It was nice, and if the circumstances were different, I could imagine myself enjoying it there very much.

We were fairly certain that we had managed to outsmart our persuers. We had no idea if they were still coming for us, though to be honest, I was fairly certain they were. I doubt they will ever stop looking for me, I thought miserably. However, we really needed to stop soon before we ran out of supplies. The caravan's stock of food and water were beginning to dwindle. The horses were exhausted and I was honestly surprised that they had the energy to keep going. We had no idea where we were or if we were even still in Hyrule. I felt horrible that I had gotten them into this mess, but no one seemed to say anything about it. Whether it was for my sake or for Link's, I did not know. When asked, Derek said he would have done the same and just nodded happily. The man was worse than Link in that regard. Grown men with exuberant personalities was something I'd have to get used to, I suppose. Vahn, in stark contrast, was silent the entire time. I could never really tell what he was thinking, though to be fair, I had only known him for a few days. Kaara didn't mind at all. In fact, she even seemed exstatic. Women, I thought to myself and scoffed. I'll need to tell her to back off if she tries anything.

"What was that?" Link asked me, amused. I turned to look at him and he raised one delicate eyebrow in inquiry.

"It was nothing," I said offhandedly, chuckling slightly. "Just thinking." Which brings me back to my other problem. This entire situation was my fault and I had no idea how I would make it up to them. It was the sole reason I never accepted aid from anyone. Hopefully, the soldiers wouldn't be able to remember their faces. It was fairly dark outside, after all.

"Link," I began seriously and he kept his gaze locked onto mine. "I must apologize... for this mess. I'll be leaving the second I get the chance."

"Don't Sheik," he stated firmly, his blue eyes burning with determination. "You have nothing to apologize for and you are staying with us." He makes it sound like I don't have a choice. I had to look away for a second. "Now... why were those men after you?"

"Honestly... I have no idea," I lied. He gave me a skeptical look, but didn't press the issue any further. I was thankful for that. Of course, I would need to tell him in the future, but I wanted to avoid it for as long as possible. "Listen, we should probably stop for supplies soon. The horses must be exhausted and I'm sure I'm not the only one to notice that your supplies are running out."

"You're right," he sighed and ran his fingers through messy blond hair. "We were worried the soldiers might catch up, but... I'm sure it's fine by now. Kaara!" He called out to her. "Let's stop soon!"

"Aye, Link!" She shouted.

We were in the middle of a dense stretch of forest when we finally decided that this was a good place to stop for food and water. The trees were massive and provided a lot of shade. We could hear the chirping of birds and the wind caressing the leaves on the trees and other plant life. The grass was a lush, healthy shade of green. If I wasn't so worried about getting caught, I'd probably stay and wonder the forest for awhile. It was beautiful, but we needed to leave as soon as possible. After stepping out of the caravan, Vahn released the horses and allowed them to graze on the grass nearby. It was early morning and we still had no idea where we were. Vahn spent a good half hour checking over the map, but to no avail. We were lost and would probably be so for awhile.

"Alright everyone," Link started happily, unusually chipper for someone whom fled from soldiers for three days. I raised an eyebrow at that. "Let's split into two groups. Sheik, how are you with a bow?"

"I'm more than decent with a bow, though I prefer my knives." I told him honestly.

"Excellent." Link exclaimed and clapped his hands together. He revealed an extra bow from his pack and handed it to me, along with some arrows. "Sheik, you're coming with me to search for food. Kaara, Derek... you two search for water." No one argued with him. Vahn stayed behind to guard the caravan and the horses.

We took a few minutes to gather all of the gear we would need and soon after, we left in the opposite direction Kaara and Derek headed in. I grasped my newly aquired bow and Link did the same, the both of us preparing an arrow in case we needed to act fast. I was sure we'd find something soon. Forests like these were filled with wild life.

"Sheik-" Link began happily, but I quickly interrupted.

"Link, we need to be quiet." I told him firmly.

"Fine," he grumbled, a childish pout present on his face. I almost felt bad. Almost.

It wasn't long before we spotted an elk with massive antlers at a small spring. The creature was large, obviously fully grown, and would provide us with meat for days with the proper preservatives. With a shiny brown coat, it was obviously a well fed and healthy animal. This will be a good kill. It didn't seem to notice us yet, but we still needed to act quickly before it decided to leave. I looked to Link and made a motion for us to surround the animal. He nodded and quietly made his way to the other side of the clearing. This left the elk between us, still unsuspecting of what was about to happen. I nodded once and Link took the first shot. The arrow hit the target with surprising accuracy and the poor thing shrieked, flailing wildly with an arrow sticking out of it's neck. My eyes widened. Who knew he was such a good shot, I thought, honestly surprised. By the look on Link's face and the slight glare, he didn't seem too happy about that.

Unfortunately, it was at this moment that the creature seemed to notice Link and promptly charged towards him. Shit. I followed the elk with my bow, but before I could do anything, the creature rammed into him. He was unable to dodge and I really hoped I imagined that sickening crack when the animal struck his chest. Link screamed, holding desperately onto elk's antlers. Not again, I thought in a panic. It's happening again.

"Sheik!" He screamed, bringing me out of my haze. I let loose an arrow into the creature's side, hopefully piercing a lung. Link still held on. Acting quickly, I dropped the bow and removed a few knifes from my boots. I dashed towards the animal and leapt onto it's back, stabbing it in the throat multiple times before it finally died. By the time it was over, Link and I were covered in blood.

"Fuck..." He whispered, eyes wide. He was sitting on the ground and holding his chest in obvious pain.

"Are you okay?" I asked him, genuinely concerned.

"Yeah... I think so. Nothing is broken." I guess I imagined it. I wrapped my arms around him and helped him to his feet.

"Can you stand on your own?" I was pretty sure even I wouldn't be able to stand after something like that.

"Yeah..." He said, and I let go of him.

"Well, Link," I began, glancing at him worriedly. "How do you suggest we get this elk back to the caravan?" It was far too large to carry.

"I think we're going to have to drag it." He sighed. "Sorry," Link muttered to the creature, before limping towards it and proceeding to do exactly that. I could tell he was still a bit shaken. "I think I may need some help..."

"I figured as much,"I told him. "You're hurt."

It took us two hours to drag the creature back to the caravan with me doing most of the work. We decided to tell Kaara and Derek about the spring if they hadn't found any water by the time we got back, but they had yet to arrive. I found that strange. The two performers should have been back by now, with or without water. We still had some in the caravan, and could afford to wait at least another day before we would need some more.

"Link," I stated. "I think we should look for Kaara and Derek." It was the least I could do. If they ran into any trouble, I would help them.

"You might be right," he agreed. "Let's go."

We headed off in the direction we had seen the two leave in. There was still plenty of daylight left, so I didn't think it would be too difficult to track them down. Link was trying to hide it, but I could tell he was still in pain. Maybe I should have made him wait at camp. I probably could have done it on my own. Their footprints could be clearly seen in the dirt and it was obvious they weren't trying to cover their tracks. The disturbed plant life was also evident of that. It didn't take us long to find them, and in a rather compromising position with Kaara on top of Derek. I quickly averted my eyes. They didn't immediately notice we were there.

"Uh...wow." Link blatantly stared, scratching the back of his head, while I began to head back. Link quickly followed after me.

"Wait! It's not what it looks like!" Kaara called after us. I guess they finally noticed us.

"Clearly," I mumbled, a corner of my lips curving upwards in a smirk. Maybe I won't have to worry about her after all. Link laughed.

"I didn't see that coming," he told me, still chuckling, and we took our time walking back. I couldn't help but think how nice it was to be with Link like this.

The sun was beginning to set by the time we all made it back to the caravan to eat. We told Kaara and Derek where to find the spring we saw the elk at, and it didn't take long for them to come back with water. Kaara brought us our clean clothes and Link placed them in his room. She offered to clean them in the spring after noticing how bloody we were. I was currently wearing one of Link's animal skin outfits. My cowl still covered my face. Vahn had started a small camp fire and was busy cooking the meat. Link and I sat down on a log nearby. I was feeling very hungry by this point, having gone without any food all day. However, before I could begin to eat, Link turned to me with a determined look on his face. I couldn't help but sigh. What now?

"Sheik... I've ignored it for the past few days, but if you're going to travel with us, you are going to remove that cowl." He stated firmly, far from jubilant and disturbingly serious. Where did that come from?

"I'm not comfortable with that," I told him stubbornly, but after a few minutes of his unrelenting stare, I eventually gave in. "I have a feeling I won't be winning this argument. Fine, I will remove the cowl," and I did just that, turning away to shove the cowl angrily into one of my pockets. My carelessness got him hurt, so if he wanted to see my face, I guess I'd let him.

"Wow..." I turned to see Link staring, unashamed, at my face.

"Is there something wrong?" I asked him, my annoyance clearly evident in my tone of voice.

"No, not at all," and he smiled.

I know, I know. Nearly seven months without an update is no excuse. My lap top got brutally murdered (well, it was an accident) by a friend of mine. I lost everything I wrote after chapter two, and I guess it kind of killed my desire to write this story. However, I am back now and I am currently working on chapter 4! The fire dancing will be back at some point, as the story is somewhat centered around that. If anyone gets confused by any of it, please let me know. I'm going to try and describe the moves themselves, rather than any specific trick names.

If anyone doesn't know what poi are, they're basically balls attached to cords that are swung around the body in a form of dance. It originates from the Maori people of New Zealand, but has (within the last 10-15 years) quickly spread around the world with the help of the internet. They did not use fire. That's more modern poi spinning, which involves not only fire, but also glow sticks and LED lights. Of course, there's also poi that do not use any form of light source. Fire poi are chains with Kevlar wicks on the ends. Fuel is poured over the wicks, which are then lit on fire and danced with. Also, if anyone is interested in possibly learning, send me a message! I can give tips, and some discount codes for various websites that sell props. It would also support me, as I get bonuses for referring people to the websites.

By the way, I'm not really sure how I feel about this chapter. It almost feels kind of forced to me, but maybe I'm just imagining it. Please offer any input if you feel it is needed.

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed it! :)