Before we start the new chapter, I want to inform you that the Midna and Ilia section of the previous chapter has been edited due to a flaw. It's nothing major but does affect some of the context. Take a look if you read chapter 5 before 16/02/2014 (Sunday). Thanks again to Icestar100 for bringing the issue to my attention.

Just as a warning, this chapter can be a bit confronting.

Chapter 6: A Desperate Plea

Midna's sword rang loudly as it deflected the incoming blade, the vibrations numbing her arm all the way to her shoulders. She countered with a double-handed cut to her opponent's midsection only for him to step back and let her attack pass him by. Her opponent lunged forward so and Midna swung her sword to parry. She believed she had knocked the attacker off balance but was surprised when his foot lashed out and kicked her in the stomach. Midna went reeling back and landed on the ground with a heavy thud.

"You know, you should go easy on me," she grumbled when her breath returned. Her body ached from the beating it had recently received.

"Sure. Just like you do for me," Link tutted with a broad grin. "I've still got dirt in my mouth from when you hit me with that concussion blast the other day."

Midna scoffed. "It's not my fault if you can't make a barrier quickly."

Link's looked at her steadily. "And it's not my fault if you let me kick you in the gut. If I don't go all out then you'll never learn how to defend yourself properly. So suck it up, princess." He offered a hand to the twili but only received a glare in response.

"He's right, Midna." Ilia said from the side, having watched the duel critically. The country girl rose from the rock she sat on and walked towards the couple. "You need to be used to dealing with fighting someone who's out to kill you, otherwise you'll panic and make it a lot easier for them." She helped Midna regain her footing and met the other woman's eye.

"You did really well with handling that last stab," Ilia praised. "One thing you could have done with Link's kick is use that flowing movement I showed you." The girl planted her feet wide, one foot forward with the other back like at opposite corners of a square. "Remember? Share your weight between both legs then shift it to the front leg when the attack comes." Ilia then twisted on the front foot so that she was now facing sideways. "Then you pivot to get off the line. Be sure to really drive your hips in to get out of the way quicker. Give it another try. Just do the kick one more time, Link."

Midna huffed but took the wide stance as instructed. Link spun and launched another sideways kick aimed right at her middle. Midna performed Ilia's body movement and was amazed at how the limb sped harmlessly past her. The move required minimal effort yet Midna was able to avoid a whole heap of pain. Perhaps her friends really knew what they were talking about.

Ilia grinned approvingly. "Good. Now you could've taken that a bit further with a counterattack like this. Link, kick me." The swordsman grimaced briefly but complied without protest. Ilia promptly dodged Link's attack and grabbed at his leg with one hand, holding him up. In one fluid motion, she drew one of her knives and stabbed downwards until the tip hovered mere millimetres above his thigh.

"See? I could have crippled Link just now and make him an easier opponent. In your case, you could hack his leg off if you want to." Ilia gave Midna an innocent smile that unnerved the twili. While Link kept his face neutral, Midna could see the sheer terror in his eyes. Ilia was a sweet person normally, but the number of different ways that she knew how to kill or incapacitate an armed enemy put her on the Twilight Princess' short list of people she should never irritate.

Ilia released Link with a gentle shove, leaving him sprawling on the ground while the girls laughed at his expense. He shot them an indignant glare and picked himself. As he and Midna prepared for another bout, he stopped and stared into the distance. "Hey guys, hold up."

Midna raised her brow. "What's the matter? Did you sprain yourself and now have to back out? Nice try, sweetheart, but you're not getting off that easy. I've got some payback to give."

He shook his head and pointed. His companions followed his gaze to a pillar of black smoke billowing in the distance. Midna first assumed that it was coming from a campfire, although there seemed to be too much smoke for that. The cloud was too dark, too thick for such a small source of flame. Whatever was burning, it was something larger than a few logs and kindling.

"Come on," Link said. "Let's check it out."

What they found was no campfire. A small area of the plains was enclosed by a wooden fence. Half-grown crops grew in various patches of dirt, some of which had been trampled or were currently burning. In the centre of the farm stood a one-story house engulfed in roaring flames. The scene alarmed Link, his eyes darting all around for any sign of survivors or whoever may have been responsible. The homestead was devoid of people, and any animals that might have lived there had run off earlier frightened by the inferno.

The roof cracked loudly and sank down on itself slightly. Something crashed inside the house and a high-pitched scream tore through the air. Link stiffened at the sound and drove Epona towards the burning structure. Leaping from the saddle a few meters away, the warrior broke into a run. He stopped just before the door and quickly assessed the situation. The entrance was still stable but was cut off by flames that rose as high as his waist. Another creak from the roof told Link that the person trapped inside didn't have much time before the house completely collapsed.

He turned to Ilia and pulled out his gale boomerang; a white, feather-shaped item blessed with the power of the winds. "Take this and help put out the fire," he told her. The tone he bore was firm and authoritative.

The girl blinked at him. "What? How?" she stammered, her hands automatically taking the magical item.

"Focus on the flames and throw," Link answered. He turned to Midna, who nodded him in silent confirmation.

Link faced the house again and placed his hands out. Black energy shot forward from his fingertips and blanketed the fire in the doorway. It swallowed the orange tongues and extinguished them, depriving them of the oxygen they needed for fuel. Link rushed into the house and was met by a tremendous wave of heat. A normal man would have been deterred by the searing temperature but Link had fought through boiling volcanoes and scorching deserts. It would take more than this to stop him.

He searched around for the house's occupant but the smoke was too thick to see through. It filled his nose and mouth, burning his lungs and causing him to cough violently. His ears heard a mystical humming then the whoosh of a mighty gust. Wind blew powerfully all around Link, clearing the air and allowing him to breathe again. He turned and gave Ilia a nod of thanks then shouted above the fire's crackling.

"Hello?! Is anybody in here?!" No one replied but he did hear more coughing coming from one of the other rooms. He gestured to Ilia and she threw the boomerang hard. When the smoke dispersed, Link ran in and scanned all over. There under a fallen beam, he saw a small girl coughing and curled up in a ball with fear. Link extinguished more flames and crouched down to the frightened child. He saw that she was clutching desperately at a stuffed toy rabbit covered in as much soot as she was.

"It's okay," he told her reassuringly. "We're going to get you out of here." The girl only stared at him with wide, tear-streaked eyes, not making any movement. Above him the roof groaned low and deep as it began to collapse on top of them.

"Link!" he heard Midna scream. The twili shot a blast of magic at the falling timber, blowing it to pieces. Link created a shaded shield of magic around him and the girl, protecting them from the embers and debris. 'Can't make a barrier quickly, she says,' he grumbled mentally.

Link dispelled the barrier and reached for the child. Pulling her safely towards him, Link stood up and carried her out of the house. Midna and Ilia made a sweep for other survivors but met him outside without finding any. The three set to work to put out the rest of the blaze but when they had, all that remained was a blackened skeleton of the building. The roof gave one long final creak before the damaged support beams gave out.

As Ilia tried to comfort the weeping child, Link and Midna searched the house again. Most of the interior had been reduced to ash with nothing untouched by the disaster. Two bodies lay half-buried in what used to be the living room. Link determined the victims to be the girl's parents, which struck a chord in his heart. Blood on the man's jacket and lacerations on the woman's throat told him that it wasn't the fire that had killed them. These people had been murdered. Link trembled in fury. How someone could commit such a horrible act was beyond him.

He and Midna returned to Ilia. All she was able to get from the child was that her name was Ana and that she and her parents had lived on the farm together. Ana was still crying inconsolably in Ilia's arms. She squeezed her rabbit in a crushing embrace, her tears washing the filth away to reveal its normally cream color underneath. The girl herself had straight, shoulder-length brown hair dirty with ash and couldn't have been much older than four or five. That only served to build Link's rage further.

The swordsman looked around the field, eyes scouting the ground. Indentations in the earth took his interest and appeared to be footprints. Link saw prints of both men and horses, at least four sets of each. The tracks led away from the house in two different directions, one coming in and the other going out. and appeared fresh. Link analysed the evidence and attempted to piece together what had happened. His guess was that the riders came to house and killed Ana's parents but left the girl unharmed. Perhaps she hid from the men and escaped their notice. The killers then must have set the house alight to destroy all proof of the crime and rode off. There was only one thing Link felt he needed to know. He walked up to the little girl and knelt down.

"Ana..." he said, keeping his voice low and gentle, "some people came to your house earlier, is that right?" The child stared at him without speaking a word. Link repeated his question and she gave a tiny nod.

"Did you recognize them?" Ana shook her head then buried her face in Ilia's shirt, her body racking as she started crying again.

Link stood straight up and stormed off. As he passed by Midna, he reached out with his mind and plucked the shadow crystal from her inventory. The twili yelled out in surprise more than annoyance as Link grabbed the shard in his hand. He shifted into his wolf form and began sniffing at the mass of footprints. Just as he had assessed, there were eight individual scents; four men and their mounts. Three of the men had gone inside the house while one had stayed to keep lookout, he supposed. With a deep growl, Link followed the trail and raced away from the farm. Midna called his name yet the wolf failed to hear her.

Grass flew under the hunter's paws in a blur. Tracking down the bandits wasn't difficult for Link's keen senses. After leaving the property, the group had moved in a straight line. Trampled grass marked out the path clearly so Link was able to concentrate on running, only pausing from time to time to check his bearings with his nose. He stumbled upon an abandoned campsite, possibly where the wolf's quarry had stopped for a break. A pile of horse droppings smelled fresh with flies already feasting in a thick swarm.

Another minute of running and Link could hear the beating of hooves. In one more, he could make out four horses moving side by side at a casual pace. Each animal was burdened with bloated saddlebags, some of which jingled with the sound of clinking coins. The men looked as though they were talking so the wolf pulled back to listen where his approach wouldn't be heard.

"We sure did a number on that farmer's place, eh Harris?" one of them said. Link's eyes narrowed.

"You bet. And we got a pretty good score too," the head of the group, apparently Harris, guffawed.

Another bandit scratched at his balding scalp. "Still got a feeling we missed something."

'You're right,' the wolf thought darkly. 'You did miss something; a little girl named Ana, whose family and home have both been taken away from her.'

Harris waved his hand dismissively. "We don't have enough space to carry anything else. Any more loot would just slow us down."

The fourth member of the group sounded more nervous. "Did we really have to kill them, but? I thought the plan was just to rob the couple and go."

"The guy had what was coming to him," the first speaker answered. "His fault for trying to be a hero. Plus that cow wouldn't stop screaming. Had to do something to shut her up. At least I wasn't the dimwit who torched the place." He looked his quivering comrade in accusation.

"Oh come on, I panicked okay? I was just trying to cover our tracks in case someone found out."

"Well someone's bound to find out now with that smoke signal you started," Harris growled. "Doesn't matter though, there's no one around for miles to see it so we should be safe." They all muttered in assertion except for the beast who was thinking of how wrong they were.

Link dashed from cover, making a beeline for the bald man at the rear of the group. Before any of the outlaws were aware of him, the wolf pounced at the rider's leg and dragged him screaming off of his horse. In quick succession, Link jumped at the fallen bandit's neck and snapped it with his teeth. The horses whinnied in fear and bucked, throwing the other men to the ground before galloping away. Only Harris remained in his saddle, skilfully holding on as he worked to calm his horse.

One of the bandits picked himself up and glared at the wolf with hatred. He drew the battered cudgel from his belt and swung it menacingly. "Right, I'll kill you for that, you filthy mutt!" Before the man could take a step forward, black spikes rose from Link's shadow and rushed towards his attacker, impaling him in multiple places and killing him instantly. The dark spears returned to the wolf's shadow as the last two criminals stared at him in shock and horror.

"Cripes, Harris!" the nervous one cried. "It's a demon hound, gods have mercy! It's here to kill us for what we did!"

Harris shot him a look then studied the strange animal. "I don't care if it's a demon or whatever," he said, hand going for his bow. "If it looks like a dog, it can die like a dog. Now go get it."

The lead bandit reached down and shoved his ally forward. The frightened man glanced back at his leader then rushed at Link, drawing a crude sword. The wolf dodged the slash then leaped at his enemy. Link's jaws tore out the bandit's throat, silencing him. With the metallic taste of warm blood in his mouth, Link turned to face his final opponent, who glowered down at him from his horse with a mix of hate, caution and awe. The outlaw aimed an arrow at the wolf and fired. The arrow sailed through the air with a hiss only to clatter off of the barrier Link raised at the last second.

The two glared at one another in a stalemate. The outlaw had another arrow notched but was unwilling to release it with the beast's strange protection in effect. Link growled in annoyance. With his foe sitting on top of a horse, the only practical way Link could attack would be to use magic, however that would mean lowering his shield in order to do so. That would leave him vulnerable to the man's arrow and at close range, dodging was out of the question. Already Link could feel the strain of maintaining the barrier. He didn't know how much longer he could hold it up.

"Link!" he heard someone shout. The wolf's head turned to find Midna galloping towards them on Epona. In his peripheral vision, he saw that the bandit had turned to the source of the noise as well. Link took advantage of the distraction and dropped his shield. Shadows leaped from his feet and punched through the man's chest, knocking him from his horse. The animal gave a terrified cry and dashed away from the predator, trampling over one of the other bodies on its way.

Midna finally caught up to him and dismounted Epona. She looked around at the bloodied corpses then to the wolf. "Link... Goddesses, what have you done?"

Link took in the scene around him and felt his blood run cold. In his rage, the wolf relished the moment as he ended the lives of the four murderers. Now as the fog in his mind cleared, Link only felt hollow. He thought he was serving justice yet he had only brought more death. Midna placed her hand on the wolf and extracted the shadow crystal from his body.

"I'm sorry," Link whispered, hanging his head shamefully. "They killed them. They killed the kid's parents. I was just so angry... I just couldn't let them get away with what they did."

"They deserved what they got, but this isn't right, Link" Midna said quietly. "I might not know as much about fighting than you but I know there's a difference between killing justly and murdering someone. This isn't like you."

"I know. I'm so sorry." Midna looked at him with sorrow. It was plain to her that something from the farmhouse had struck him at a personal level. The twili pulled her love into her arms and comforted him.

"It's okay, Link," Midna said. She kissed him on the head. "I understand." The two of them stood there for longer than either of them could tell. Finally, Link broke the embrace and turned to his handiwork. He inspected each of the bandits and stored away their weapons and valuables. Since their owners had no more use for them, Link figured they may as well sell the items to get some more money.

On their way back to the farm, luck shone on them as they happened upon one of the bandits' lost horses, a black-coated draught. The animal was still distressed and evaded the couple as they approached, but eventually Link's persistence allowed him to calm the horse enough to tie him to the back of Epona's saddle. The horse's bags held an amount of travelling supplies as well as a few extra blankets. One bag contained bronze and silver coins in addition to a handful of gold pieces. It wasn't the currency that Link was accustomed too but money was money. When they reunited with Ilia they found Ana sleeping in her arms, supposedly worn out from her ordeal. Ilia looked towards her companions as they approached and glared dangerously in Link's direction.

"Where the hell did you run off to?" she hissed so as not to wake the girl. "You're very lucky that Ana wasn't looking when you transformed. Do you really think that after what she's just been through she needs to be scared out of her wits by a wild animal? What in Din's name were you thinking?"

Link averted his gaze, instead staring at a trampled stalk of wheat. "I went after the bandits and killed them."

Ilia studied his expression for a moment and sighed heavily. She looked down at Ana again. "At least she can rest easier now. Poor thing."

Link, Midna and Ilia spent the next few days visiting the nearby villages, searching for anyone who knew of any relatives Ana had left. A few people they spoke to told them that the family had moved over from a place which none knew the name of and kept mostly to their own. With no leads as to where Ana's family lived, Link felt a sense of hopelessness and worried for the girl's future.

The child had completely shut down after the fire. She refused to talk and getting her to eat was a challenge. All she ever did was clutch at her toy rabbit as though it was life itself. The deaths of her parents consumed her always even as she slept, judging by the fits the girl often experienced at night. Link could see a bit of himself in Ana. At a young age, he too had lost both his parents tragically. More than once he had tried to remember their faces but all he ever saw in his mind was Rusl and Uli, who had taken him in and raised him as their own. The couple had become his new mother and father, and after all these years it still felt alien to think that they were not actually related. But Ana... Who could possibly take care of her as Rusl and Uli had him?

"I'll look after her," Ilia announced as she watched Ana sleep. Link snapped out of his thoughts at the sudden statement. He had been staring out into the night through the window of the room they rented at an inn, trying to think of a solution to their immediate issue.

"Ilia, are you sure about this?" Midna said, concerned. "You have no idea what you're signing up for. The three of us are at a loss as to what we're going to do with ourselves, let alone a little girl."

Ilia looked at her reproachfully. "Where else is she going to go? We can't find anyone who knows her, and we can't just leave her on her own."

The twili threw up her hands in a defensive gesture. "I'm not saying we should abandon the kid. I'm just saying this is a decision that we need to consider carefully. If it turns out we can't handle it, we could do her more harm than good."

Link watched Ana as she grimaced from another nightmare. Her rabbit had been washed clean and now suffered the crushing hold inflicted by its tormented owner. Given how uncertain their circumstances were, raising an orphaned child they knew nothing about sounded irresponsible. However, there was no way he could just leave her with some person he didn't know, believe that they would look after her properly and walk away.

"Midna has a point, but so does Ilia. We can't just leave Ana, not now. We'll take her with us until we can work something out. I'm sure between the three of us we can manage."

Midna looked at him for a moment then with a sigh, she nodded. A small, sad smile appeared on Ilia's lips as she brushed a lock of brown hair out of Ana's face. "Don't worry, Ana," she whispered. "I promise I'll keep you safe."

Yeah... First chapter in this story that's all mine and this is what I do.