Blind
Chapter Four
Sheik lounged on his bed, a cat curled around his side when he heard a knock on his door. He shifted slowly, sleepily calling out "It's unlocked."
Taking this as an invitation to enter, Link carefully turned the knob and let himself in. For an early evening, the room was dark, the curtains drawn and no candles lit. What little light that came in from the hallways showed him that there were very neat and wide paths around everything in the first room, which had a simple table and chairs, with a couch for lounging with pillows bunched to one side. At the far end of the room was a large bed, where Sheik had seemingly been having a nap.
"Good evening, I-"
"You're not Zelda!" Sheik sat up suddenly, upsetting the cat from it's comfortable spot. The feline growled her discomfort before slipping down and under the bed. Fumbling with his white cloth on the small table that was beside his bed, Sheik demanded "What in the Goddesses names are you doing here?" He quickly secured the cloth around his eyes as he awaited the General's answer.
Hastily, Link shut the door and stepped a little further into the spacious room. "I wanted to apologize for what I had said earlier to you earlier. It was rather rude of me. Having come from a tiring week, I didn't mean to be so... mean to you."
Sheik seemed to be either giving Link tome to finish, or he himself was thinking rather hard about what he wanted to say. "That is," Sheik finally said, "You didn't mean to be so mean against someone like me."
Link set his jaw as he forcefully said "No. I truly didn't mean to be so mean to you. I came from a difficult situation which at the time had yet to be fixed. I think my choice of words could have been different, but I still would have snapped at you even if I had known you to be blind."
"Oh," was the simple response from Sheik, who had yet to leave the bed.
"Yes, 'oh,' and here I am coming to make my apology, with my words and with a nice dinner and conversation, and you insult me," Link said, crossing his arms over his chest and gave a little huff.
"Well then, accept my sincerest apology, and let us be done with the matter," Sheik offered. "I didn't understand your , we have had forgiveness and conversation so far -- where is the dinner?"
"It is coming," Link promised, where he turned at the knock on the door. "Ah, and here we are. I had them send something from the kitchens."
"Well yeah, where else is food supposed to come from? Anyways, what did you have them bring?" Sheik asked as Link headed for the door.
"I asked them to make it a surprise," Link said, opening the door to find a pair of maids from the kitchen. "Thank you, ladies, but if you'll let me take that, and-"
"Oh, you do not have enough hands for what Lady Zelda had had us bring for you, but here, hold the wine please," a cheerful woman with dark curled hair placed a cool bottle into Link's hands and then helped her counterpart carry the platter she had been balancing. "Save the tarts for last, they've only just been baked," she explaimed excitedly as they moved past the General.
"Lady Zelda also said you should meet with her late in the afternoon, and not feel bad if you must miss your meeting. Breakfast is also to be brought up tomorrow, so when would you like it, my lords?" She asked as they set the platter onto the table.
"Uh..." Link turned his head as he felt a ghost of breath across the back of his neck. Nearly dropping the wine with a start, he just realised how close Sheik was to him. Recovering quickly, he glared at the smirk that graced Sheik's lips.
Still smirking, Sheik said "I take my breakfast early, just as the sun rises."
Link made a gesture as if to say to the pair 'And there you go.' The maids gave each other weird looks, but cheerfully nodded to them and finished setting everything up before exiting the room. When the door was closing, Link turned around and actually did drop the bottle when he came unexpectedly did come face-to-face with Sheik again.
Grasping the bottle's neck just before it hit the ground, Sheik said "Lady Zelda?"
"She, uh, she wanted to make sure we weren't having a hard feeling's about-" Link threw his hands up into the air as Sheik turned away, his shoulders shaking in laughter. "Alright, fine! She believes the rumor you started."
"As does everyone else, it seems," Sheik mused as he ran fingers over the glass covers.
"And whats that supposed to mean?" Link asked as he watched.
"Perhaps nothing, anyways, the dinner's getting cold."
Link slowly came forward, following the Termina Sheikah, who was now dressed in a light robe he had not remembered seeing Sheik in earlier. It was tied loosely, giving no hint as to the build of Link's host.
"You're still going to have dinner with me?"
"I don't plan to shun Lady Zelda's generous hospitality," Sheik said, placing the bottle on the table. "You will need to see to this," he continued, patting the bottle's neck as he reached for a chair. Finding one close to him, he said down. "I have horrible luck with the hazardous corks flying everywhere and breaking things. Or hitting one of the cats."
As if on cue, a silver tabby cat leaned up against Link's right leg and let out a soft, pretty pur. "How many cats do you have?" Link asked, reaching for the bottle and picking up a corkscrew.
"Two," Sheik said as he leaned over the table and breathed in deeply. "That I know of anyways, but sometimes I think they bring home strays. Is there a dish over there with chicken in it?" he asked, waving his right hand above the table.
"To the left a bit," Link said, who could see the contents through the glass covers. "Now your hand is over the cover."
"Thank you," Sheik said, lifting the cover and expirementally poking a finger into the dish to see what was inside -- chunks of chicken simmered in ginger and various other spices, and served over brown rice. "Stellar's the troublemaker who likes to pretend she's cute. Charisma's the fat one," he fished out a piece of chicken, shook off the rice and popped it into his mouth.
"The... Oh, the cats," Link said as he nodded. He managed to remove the cork without injuring anyone, or anything, and poured Sheik a glass before pouring himself one. "Would you like to fix you a plate?" Link asked, but Sheik just shook his head, making Link watch the tumble of wavy, marigold blonde hair.
"I eat very little now days, besides, my hands are very clean if thats what you're wondering." Sheik licked the two fingers he had picked the chicken out and held his hand up. "See?"
Link couldn't help but laugh before saying "What is that? Some trick you learned from your cats? Lick your fingers clean?"
Sheik shrugged and began to walk his fingers across the table until he came across his glass of wine. "I thought it was funny," he sipped from the glass and continued saying "I would eat 'civilly', but quite often my food runs around my plate and torment me by hiding. It's quite frustrating actually.
"I don't mind, really," Link said as he sat down. It was when he reached for a utensil is when he realised there had been none brought. "Well, I guess if you can do it then so can I." He lifted the cover off one bowl of steaming veggies, all of them cut into fairly large chunks. "I guess Lady Zelda is used to your eating habits."
"She puts up with it; stopped inviting me to formal dinners a long time ago. At least she lets me eat up here instead of behind the stables now days." When Sheik heard Link stop eating, he added "That was a joke."
"Why do you keep putting yourself down?" Link asked as he searched Sheik's face for the answer.
Drinking from his glass that he now supported with both hands, he said "It usually puts others at ease around me."
"I don't like it," Link decided. An uncomfortable silence filled the gap between the two males until Charisma came in, swaggering with a discontent meow that he hadn't been invited to dinner. The large cat sauntered over to the table and flopped down by it on the floor.
"Am I correct when I assume you met with the Princess earlier?" Sheik's voice was humorless and he now concentrated in drinking his wine rather then eating.
Link wiped his fingers clean with a napkin and threw it onto the table. "Yes, we met earlier. I needed to tell her about what was happening in the forests; we came across some Gerudo's, who wanted to come into the valley and gather what povisions they are lacking in. They are having trouble with crops and the hunting game is scarce, so Lady Zelda said to give them what they asked for."
"Am I also correct when I assume my name came up?"
With a sigh, Link leaned back in his chair and said "Sheik. I don't know whats happened between you and my men, but whatever it was, why would you not come to me about it rather then form some fanciful story about us being togather?"
"I didn't," Sheik said, defending himself as he grabbed for the wine bottle. "Whatever tales they're telling each other, those soldiers and smiths, lords and ladies, the fishers, the stables hands and the housewives. I only meant to tease your shoulders and only said 'And what if we are.' Or something like that. I never meant to harm or make a fool of you. I'm sorry," Sheik said, toying with the stem of his glass before taking a sip. "They insulted mem my dignity, whats left of it anyways. I was like them once," Sheik said, swirling the contents of his glass around before turning his head in the general direction of where Link sat. "Young, brave, strong, and able to fight, traind to defend. They mocked that; I ignored them best to my abilities, but there is a point when one goes too far."
"And they did just that," Link said quietly.
"Yes, they did."
Link carefully chose his next words, considering all of Sheik's words. "How would you like to continue this charade we have going?"
"To what end?" Sheik asked before taking another sip of his wine.
"To whatever end it comes to, I guess. To teach those brat's a lesson, and if they are the soldiers I think they, the soldiers of the city, they have long had this coming to them. They only seem to fear me, but if they thought we're lovers, maybe that'll make them fear you. Think of it," Link said as he leaned forward. "The power you could have over them." Link smiled to himself as he relaxed further into the chair. "Not to mention I'll have the biggest laugh, watching them trip over each other to stay on your good side. What do you say, Sheik? Are you up to the game?"
Raising his glass, Sheik said "To whatever end it comes to, I'm game."
And they drank to those words.