A/N: I put a WTF-bomb in here. Or, at least, that'll be your reaction, methinks. ;)

Blame RawkHawk2.0. It's partially his fault. :3

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War's Hold

Chapter Seven

"Shh…" Ruto attempted to run her hand through Epona's silken mane. "C'mon, be a good girl…" She flinched backwards as Epona reared and bolted, leaving the Zoran princess to take off after it, fist raised. "Oi! Get back here!"

Malon , sitting on a bench, merely laughed. "You're doing it wrong." With that, she sang a short song; Epona stopped dead in her tracks and raced towards the farm girl, who patted her gently.

Ruto tilted her head, then tried to imitate Malon. The tune didn't sound near as good, but it had the desired effect, and Ruto was allowed to place a hand on the horse's neck.

"You see?" Malon smiled. "That's how you do it. Now you can call her any time."

Ruto nodded. "Okay. Now what?"

"Well, get on, silly!"

"Um…okay…" Ruto grasped the saddle horn and, with some assistance from Malon, managed to clamber ungracefully to the top.

"There you go!" Malon's smile widened as she leapt up easily behind Ruto. "Okay, I'll take you through the steps."

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"You did well, Ruto. You're a quick learner!" Malon complimented when Ruto finally dismounted near sunset. "Anyways, I think you should stay the night here." Noticing Ruto begin to protest, she added, "You can leave first thing in the morning."

Ruto sighed. "Yeah…I suppose so."

Malon turned and began walking towards the house. "Would you like something to eat?"

"Huh…? Oh, yeah, sure!" Ruto beamed, then fell into step beside Malon. "I've been feeling really hungry lately…"

Malon chuckled quietly. "I'm not surprised. You're eating for two people, you know."

"What?" Ruto turned to Malon, a puzzled expression on her face. "That doesn't make any sense…"

Malon shook her head, grinning slightly. "You'll find out soon enough."

"Tell me now, please." Ruto frowned.

"After dinner," Malon assured her. "After dinner, I'll tell you."

o~o0o~o

"Oh no. Nonono." Ruto put her head in her hands. "This isn't good."

Malon placed a hand on Ruto's shoulders. "Hey, think of it this way. Now you'll always have a part of Link."

"But I don't want a part of Link," Ruto replied, tears forming at the edge of her vision. "If this ever happened, I w-wanted L-L-Link to be there t-too…"

Malon wrapped Ruto in an embrace. "Go ahead and cry," she whispered soothingly.

Ruto buried her face in Malon's shoulders, now sobbing. "I m-miss h-h-him so m-much…" She took a breath and began another round of weeping. "It isn't fair."

"Nothing is fair these days." Malon sighed.

"I know…" Ruto gave Malon a watery smile and wiped the tears away from her eyes. "Thank you. I k-know we've just met and all, but you're a great friend."

Malon return the smile. "I owe you my life."

"Actually, if you want to thank someone, you should thank Dark. He's the one who left the blue potion there."

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Ruto adjusted the saddlebag filled with preserves, milk, and a red potion, then turned to give Malon a hug. "Thank you so much…you have no idea what this means to me…"

Malon kissed Ruto's cheek. "No problem!" She stepped back as Ruto swung herself up onto Epona's back, walking the horse towards the field, waving.

Malon raised a fist, calling, "Ruto! You get out there and win the war, okay? For Hyrule! For Link!"

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The Zoran princess drew Epona to a halt, then dismounted. "Now, where is it…" She cocked her head, gaze falling on a patch of hacked up undergrowth. "Overkill…"

With that, she began to coax Epona through the path. Grabbing a hold of the reins, she continued walking, deciding against mounting the horse; they weren't too far from the entrance to the hole.

With nothing to occupy her sight but trees, Ruto's mind began to wander. I can't believe it…I'm carrying Link's child… Link's child! The thought sent a shiver of thrill up Ruto's back. "Dear Din…" She took a deep breath.

Epona's whinny brought her back to reality. Smacking her forehead, she groaned in frustration. "Epona won't go into something like that…" She racked her brain for a possible solution; she snapped her fingers as an idea came to her. "Of course! The song!" Giving Epona a final pat, she slid down the hole. Here we go again…

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"No way…it couldn't be…Ruto!" Saria waved as a familiar figure cut its way through the trees.

"Saria!" Ruto walked up to her friend, smiling. "How is everything?"

Saria's smile faded. "Well…Zelda's injured…"

"Oh? What happened?"

Saria furrowed her brow. "She broke her arm pretty badly, and I think the wound on her chest is infected…"

Ruto rifled through the bag she'd taken off Epona until she'd come up with a potion. "Will this help?"

Saria smiled exuberantly. "Oh yes! That's just what we need! Come on!" With that, she ran off, Ruto trailing behind.

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Ruto barely recognized the unkempt figure lying on a cot in the medical tent, long, messy, blonde hair running down her shoulders, breathing labored. Her blue Sheikah uniform was ripped in several places, and a wild, feral look had replaced the wise, regal one.

"Sheik! I mean…Zelda!" Ruto colored slightly at the mistake. "Are you alright?"

"R-Ruto?" Zelda wheezed. "Is…is that you?"

Ruto smiled slightly. "In the flesh."

Zelda put her good hand on her head. "So you have come…well, in answer to your question, no, I am not fine."

Ruto laughed humorlessly. "So I have noticed." Taking the rag Saria handed to her, she dribbled a bit of red potion on it, then gave it to Zelda. "Put that on the gash on your chest," she advised. "And drink the rest of the potion."

Zelda nodded; she drank the medicine, her relief obvious. "Thank you."

Ruto shrugged. "No problem."

"No, it means a great deal to me." Zelda smiled, color flooding her face.

Ruto shrugged. "Well, we have to learn to rely on each other if we're going to win this war."

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A/N: Link is a bad, bad boy. Shame on him. (And yes, I do know that Zoras lay eggs. Dun judge meh! D:) Anyways, betcha didn't see THAT one comin'! Though…I think it will come back to haunt me in a later chapter, and I'll spend the rest of the story thinking, "stupid move was stupid…"

Meh. Interpret the Malon and Ruto scenes however you want. For me, it's another campaign to get people to see that yes, the bachelorettes of Zelda CAN get along!

Review cookies for: Sky Chain Lilyana, Gejen, and RawkHawk2.0. Enjoy them.

Give reviews plz. :3