Chapter IV Part II - The World Subsists on Lies ("Sick" - Evanescence [BWAHAHAAAA NEW ALBUM came out today :3])


Another dull, dreary morning. Bad feelings were in the poignant air. Everyone was quiet again. It was the sort of damp feeling no one wanted to deal with.

After heading out again, they only traveled for a little over an hour before they got to the village. They dismounted, hidden by the trees. Two houses and a layer of fuzzy, clean grass were visible. Meghan took a deep breath, knowing what to do but still nervous. They traveled along the edge of the village, just inside the forest, to Sierace's house. From the side of it, Meghan walked out of the trees.

She looked around, quite aware of Link and Zelda's eyes on her back. She walked, watching the house.

"Hello?" she heard from behind her, making her stop in her tracks. "Can I help you?" the voice continued, asking the general word in Hylian for "what's up, what are you doing, what's going on, what do I do" etc. It sounded sweet, soft, floating on the air. And the words reminded her of something from a long time ago.

She turned to face a blonde-haired lady, still young but clearly older than herself. "Oh, yes, I'm looking for someone named Sierace?" she said back. She quickly glanced at Link, far away and not visible to someone who wasn't looking for him. He nodded quickly at her.

The girl could detect the clear accent in her voice.

"That's me. Can I do anything for you?"

"I…I'm from Hyrule, and I came to speak to the Masitima family. I have news about their son, Erol."

"Oh my! You came all the way here?"

"…Yes."

"I suppose I should get them." She paused for a second. "I don't mean at all to sound untrustworthy, but how can I know that's really why you're here? If you do know Erol you'll know why I'm very suspicious lately, and that I always have been this way. Do you have a name?"

Meghan was dumbstruck for a second, her eyes wide open. She had a hard time understanding Sierace. She talked very quickly, in Hylian, her accent different from everyone's she knew. She dissected the words quickly as she could in her head. Do…you have…a name?

"Oh, yes, I'm sorry…my name is Meghan Black. I'm sorry. My Hylian is slow."

"Meghan Black? That sounds so familiar…well…I'll get his mother. Stay here, all right?"

"Yes, of course."

Sierace walked away slowly, cautiously. The distance she'd kept from Meghan and the words Meghan had thought she'd understood ("I'm suspicious lately, I have always been") reminded Meghan that Sierace was rather paranoid on a good day, so Meghan tried to act as non-threatening as possible. Sierace went inside the small house for a minute. Then the door opened back up and Sierace walked out with an older lady Meghan guessed to be in her late thirties or early forties.

"You know about my Erol?" she asked breathily, her eyes hopeful.

"Yes, I do. Erol's fine now. He got very sick when he came, but the doctors cured him. He's recovering and he'll be fine as soon as he's completely recovered. He'll come back soon. He really wants to come back."

"Oh! My boy! Are you sure he'll be fine?"

"Yes, I promise."

"That's such a long time to wait! Maybe I should…maybe I should go there to see him…"

What was with these Orda people and their reluctance to go to Hyrule? "It's a long journey," she reminded. "I assure you he's in good care."

"They're taking good care of my boy?" she asked, worried. She spoke the same quick, crisp way that Sierace did.

"Uhh…yeah…yeah."

It was obvious Meghan was foreign to Mrs. Masitima. Everything from the way Meghan dressed, to her voice and accent. But she still sounded motherly and worried, despite being wary.

"Are you tired? Hungry?" She turned to Sierace. "Sierace, she came all this way to tell us about Erol. Do you mind if I give her food to eat?" She turned back to Meghan. "Have you eaten yet today?" Back to Sierace. "Do you mind if she goes in?"

"No I don't, it's all right."

"I'm not hungry, I just ate. Thank you, anyway."

"But please. Where are you going after this? You came all this way, but for what? Just to say that?"

"Um…I came to help with the rebuilding and things."

"Please come sit down for a while, though. You do look quite tired, dear!"

It didn't seem at all like they were against them. Should she tell them about Link? She quickly glanced for a second. Maybe they couldn't hear what was happening…

"But…um…my—"

"Yeah, come on."

Meghan was ushered and followed Mrs. Masitima and walked beside Sierace. She looked over her shoulder at Link and Zelda, but couldn't tell what they were doing.

"Meghan…I know you from somewhere. I'm sure of it," Sierace said thoughtfully. "Where do you keep looking?"

"Just...my horse. But he'll be fine there."

"Oh." Sierace gave her a quizzical look. "All right, then." She walked through the door into a small, cute house. The kitchen was to her left and a small sitting area in front of her. A little beyond the kitchen was a dinner table. Farther down was a hall. "Meghan!" Sierace said suddenly, again.

"Yes?" she said, thinking her name was being called. She was nervous in the house, away from the other two. Were they going to follow her?

"I know who you are!" she said. Meghan got nervous. Sierace's expression was unreadable. Was it a good thing? A bad thing? She knew Sierace knew who she was. Maybe, though, in the context of her randomly showing up, she'd been thrown off.

"Link's…" she said, sounding surprised with her own words.

"Oh—"

"I guess this means, though, that you're not…together with him, then, anymore?" she asked, in English.

"What?" She totally was…what was Sierace talking about? "No—"

"After learning what he did…" She shook her head. "I didn't believe it. I don't believe it still. But I would be so ashamed if it was true…and once I was so proud. You must know the truth though, being so close to him. Did he truly do the things we were told he did? Those horrible things? I can't believe it!"

Meghan was shocked. What was she talking about? Did this mean she was…

But didn't Sierace know who Meghan was? Wouldn't she be against Meghan, too, if she was controlled?

"You're not still…with him, are you?" Sierace asked again.

"Uh…" she said, shocked. What to say? She didn't expect this. She must have looked upset or something.

"Oh, dear, I realize it's recent. I shouldn't be so demanding. I'm terribly sorry! I would be still very upset."

"Yeah…no, it's all right…"

Sierace kept going. "Please know that whatever he did, it's all his fault! Don't regret the relationship, or feel sad about it ending…it was all his fault. Don't…you know, blame anyone else." She was shaky with her words. "And…I am still your friend, no matter what."

"No…I'm OK."

"Wow! Meghan Black. I'm so sorry for not recognizing you sooner. I should know from Link's descriptions. I just did not expect you to show up here. Oh, I am so sorry. I couldn't believe it when I heard it. Is it true?"

"What did you hear?"

"Well, I was told that everything he and Zelda did was a lie…while they were pretending to save Hyrule and defeat Ganon, they were really the causes of destruction. I found it terribly hard to believe, but the soldiers had convincing arguments, so much so that I started to believe this now. The evidence matches…the reason Hyrule has been normal for the past year was because King Luke was there to guide Zelda as queen."

"No, that's not true," Meghan said sternly. What was she to say? Was Sierace under control or what? She decided to play the middle ground. "While Link may have lied about some things, Ganon was evil and Ganon did ruin the country."

"Is that what he told you? But no one else was there when they defeated Ganon. How does anyone know?"

"I was there! Ganon tried to kill me. He nearly did. Ganon is evil. I have a scar to prove it."

Sierace was shocked, maybe thinking Meghan was with Zelda and Link. A scar?

"Listen, Link just told one too many lies. He's not evil. He never was. He was just…sucked up by the glory, I suppose." Meghan was making good lies off the top of her head, she thought. "He became conceited. He was telling things that weren't true. I got fed up with that. He really is a good person, in his heart…but…"

"Is that what happened?"

"Yes. I promise, his intentions were good to begin with, but then he started taking advantage of how everyone treated him…"

Sierace sighed softly. "You don't have to protect him like that. He's in your past now. Say whatever about him you feel. I still love him as though he were my very brother. Perhaps I shall pay him a visit to straighten him out."

Meghan nodded, and then shook her head. It wasn't easy, pretending to not be with him. She couldn't say hateful things about him. She couldn't let hurtful things be said. It was terrible even pretending that he was a head case, when everyone in the world (used to) knew he was the most modest person ever. She couldn't imagine a single conceited moment with Link.

"I just don't want him to be accused of something he really, really didn't do. They're terrible accusations…having a bad personality is one thing, but destroying a country is a completely different thing. That's why I left Hyrule…to get away from him, but mostly to get away from the things people were saying about him."

"All right." Sierace had a tone that was ending the conversation. Maybe she didn't want to say bad things about him either. There was silence. "So are you hungry? Thirsty?"

"No, I'm fine, thank you. I don't know, I should be getting back—"

"But you're alone! Just stay for a little while, please."

"Thank you. Just a few minutes, I suppose."

"Good!"

She was made to sit at the table, and a cup of tea was soon before her. She drank it quickly, not wanting to dwell much longer. What were Link and Zelda thinking?

Sierace's gaze strayed to the front window, facing towards the forest. She kept looking back, like she saw something. Did she see Link or Zelda? No…they wouldn't be so—

"Goddesses!" Sierace said suddenly, standing and putting her hands on the table. Meghan turned to look at what she was talking about. "You stay here! I'll deal with this! What is this…did he follow you?"

Sierace had seen him. Meghan could too. Meghan groaned in her head. He couldn't have stayed hidden for ten more minutes? Damn boy…

Sierace was out of the door in seconds, and Meghan was close behind.

"Wait! Sierace! No, I have to tell you something!"

"What? You knew he was here?"

"Well…yes! Yes, but he's not bad! OK…I lied! He never ever did anything at all wrong! Let me explain!"

Meghan was struggling to keep up with Sierace's quick feet.

"Stop protecting him!" Sierace said gently, stopping so suddenly that Meghan nearly collided with her. "You can't help what he's done."

"No, I was only saying that so you wouldn't hate me! Listen, Sierace!"

They were halfway to Link and Zelda.

"Ganon took control of everyone's minds! He might have done it to you, too! He turned everyone against Link and Zelda, and me. He made everyone believe they were bad but they're not! I swear, I was just lying before because we needed some sort of ally! If you even only like me, at least we'd have someone! We came because we have to find Ganon and destroy him before he ruins Hyrule again! Luke is under his control! Please, believe me! Please! Link is not conceited. Link is not bad. I was lying."

Sierace was in some sort of quiet shock. What was the lie? Now nothing made sense to her. Her paranoia was flaring.

"Why are you not against them, then?" Sierace asked skeptically. It did seem weird that they three would be the only good ones.

"Because of something to do with Link's Triforce. It protected me, when I was near him. I swear, I'm telling the whole truth now. I'm terrible at lying. You knew I was lying before because I kept breaking eye contact when I was talking to you, right? And turning around? Believe me, please! We need you…"

"You did seem a bit hesitant before…and I don't know you to be untrustworthy."

"Please!" she begged.

Their eyes met, and Meghan's shone with earnest truth. Sierace sighed. She turned to Link.

"Come here!" she called across the distance, a bit sharply. Link readily did as told, silent. Zelda followed behind.

Sierace looked from Link and Zelda to Meghan.

"Tell me the story about why you are here. You." She spoke to Link in intensely rapid Hylian, in what Meghan was sure was Sierace's village's dialect.

And so Link repeated what Meghan had said, in normal Hylian. Sierace shook her head.

"Sierace, you're not controlled. I can feel it, I know it," Zelda told her in the foreign dialect.

"I'm not? Good, because I didn't think I was." Sierace sounded stern. "I was told about what you apparently did. It was hard to believe. I couldn't believe my own Link could do that. They just supplied a very intense argument. I'm glad to hear it wasn't true."

And so, it turned out the whole village wasn't under control, they were only told by the soldiers (who were controlled) who'd come to help rebuild. Because they were so far away, it was easier for the village people to believe without question. Sierace was terribly glad it wasn't the truth, once convinced.

Inside her home, Sierace gave Link a big hug, asking him if he was OK and everything, like a big sister. She looked at Zelda shyly. She hadn't seen her since they were children.

"Zelda," she said softly.

"It's been years," Zelda replied. "Sierace…"

"I'm sorry for all the trouble I put you and Impa through…"

"No, it's all my fault! Completely." Zelda took her hands.

"Zelda, you saved me."

Zelda shook her head, looking away. "No, it's wonderful to see you again, Sierace. I'm glad you're all right."

"Yes, Zelda."

They smiled at each other. Then Sierace turned her head and skipped to Meghan.

"Meghan! I need to get to know you better! When you come back from your journey, promise to visit me?"

"Yeah, I will!" She was scared now, though, of what Sierace thought she was. Would she forever think she was a liar now?

"I look forward to it!" Sierace said happily. "Sorry that we had such a strange first real meeting."

Meghan laughed. "Strange is my life."

They got everything they needed to from the village but were careful to avoid the soldiers. The horses were taken care of, and the three washed and changed and felt somewhat normal for the first time in days.

They had everything packed up, once again, and they stood outside with Sierace.

"Well, then, I suppose…"

"See you soon, Sierace," Link said. "Thank you so much for your help."

"Yes."

"Nice meeting you, finally," Meghan said. She and Link had meant to go to visit her, together, but Sierace had been away, acting as correspondent for Zelda in Freshia, a small country far away from Hyrule.

"Yes, it was!"

"And it was a pleasure seeing you, again," Zelda said.

"Yes."

They got into an awkward stage in the conversation.

"Oh…so I wish you all the fortune in the world. I know you will prevail. You are all so strong." She looked at the three of them across from her,

"Thank you," Link said.

"Please, any time you need anything, I'm always here!"

"We appreciate it a lot!"

"Well, then…I guess I'll see you soon!"

"Good bye, Sierace!"

The three mounted their horses, waving to Sierace. They rode around the village to avoid other people, continuing on their journey.


Later that day, when the sun was getting ready to set, Zelda slowed her horse. She looked to Link, then through the forest.

"Do you feel it?"

"Only slightly, but yeah," he responded.

"He's near. Not very near, but near enough," she told Meghan. Meghan nodded, knowing. "We shouldn't go much closer. There's no doubt he'll feel us too."

"We'll go until we find somewhere to set up a camp," Link said.

"Yes."

They continued along slowly, Zelda's stomach flipping at the thought of the evil that was Ganon. Although entirely true, it was hard to believe he was here, not too far away. She couldn't help the disgust she felt.

They came up in a nice clearing, the dirt floor big enough for them to use. "There's water nearby," Zelda said. They could all hear the running of water to their right. They all dismounted once again. In the far end of the clearing, there was a nice patch of grass that they led the horses to.

Somehow, Zelda had fit the material for a tent inside one of her bags. From plenty of practice, she had a tent put up in a matter of minutes using branches from trees around them. They stood back and admired her work for a second. Then they all brought everything inside.

They made their beds around the tent, Meghan and Link's next to each other because that was the way they could best utilize the room. Zelda's was perpendicular to theirs at their heads. On the side, there was just a small amount of space where they stored everything else. It was tall enough for Meghan to stand in, but Lnk had to crouch a bit.

"Let's go find the water," Meghan said when they were finished.

"Yeah," Link agreed.

"All right," Zelda said. They followed their ears through the forest, creating their own path by marking the trees. Soon, they could see a bubbling body of water, pure and clean. There was a waterfall to their right. It was lined with large boulders. Meghan wasn't sure if it was large enough to be considered a river, but too large to be a stream. They named it a stream anyway, though. Meghan ran to the small waterfall, shoving her hand under to test the temperature of the water.

"It's so nice!"

She'd expected it to be cold, like the weather of late, but it wasn't. It was beautiful, fresh water.

"It's so pretty!"

"Yes, it's beautiful!" Zelda agreed. Link threw in a rock for kicks.

"It's pretty deep, too." But they could see straight to the bottom.

"We can use it for a lot of things," Zelda said.

"Bathtub!" Meghan said.

They laughed. They knew her need to clean often. It was a human habit. Humans had to take baths often or they'd grow smelly or otherwise icky, apparently. So wasn't the case with Hylians as they didn't produce particularly smelly sweat (the composition may not have been too different, but perhaps the bacteria here did not cause a stench), but Meghan couldn't help but feel dirty if she didn't bathe nearly every day. A sixteen-year habit was terribly hard to break.

It was nearly dark, then, so they started back to their camp area. They made a fire near the entrance to their tent. The night was growing cold. They ate some warm food, but no one was too hungry. Tomorrow they'd start everything all over again. Another adventure, but for what? There were no sages to awaken, no stones to collect. All they were doing was finding Ganon, destroying him. They didn't know how simple or hard it would be. Would they find him in one shot? Or would they be searching for him? Had he set evil monsters about? Why was he all the way out here, anyway?

Could they kill him? Could they lock him away without the help of the sages? Zelda wasn't even sure if she could reverse the mind control, even if just on one sage. They'd have to use their cunning and courage to defeat him, more than ever.

They would prevail. They had to. They had no choice.

It was now very cold away from the fire. Inside, they buried themselves in their blankets. Meghan wanted so madly to lean over, just a bit, to pull in his warmth, but then what about Zelda? She had to be cold as well…

But Zelda wasn't nearly as cold. She settled into a warm position, and fell asleep by imagining Luke beside her. It was all she could do for her aching heart. Link realized Zelda was asleep, secretly glad that he didn't have to bear that aching with her. He looked over in the darkness, trying to see Meghan, but he couldn't. He moved his hand to find her, bumping her shoulder.

She breathed in surprise, and then took his hand in her own. It was so warm.

She put his hand to her face, and he felt the iciness of it. He pulled her in close to himself, under his own blanket. She shivered one last time, then found her way into a comfortable position next to him. She felt good thoughts wash over her, and warm enough then, she fell asleep.

He stayed awake, unofficially taking watch over the girls.


The sunlight shining between the cracks of the tent delicately woke up Zelda, dreams beautifully playing in her head. When she realized they were not real, her heart weighed down with such longing that she could barely take it. She had to forget about it, it was the only way she could stop the terrible pain.

When she sat up and looked over at Link and Meghan, she was surprised. Not because she found them warmly snuggled together, together and in love. She was surprised because nothing went through her. No pangs of envy, or of longing, or of sadness. For the first time in days, she finally put into words her feelings about everything. This would all be over soon, and Luke would be fine. It was only a matter of time before she would be back with him. Her own selfishness was separating Link and Meghan, and she could see it.

So quietly that even Link's light sleep wasn't interrupted, Zelda hopped out of the tent out into the open air, slightly chilled. She didn't mind it, though, as she went off to the stream to wash up. She felt awake and real.

The water was colder than yesterday. It matched the air around. She decided to go in and pulled off her extra layers. She only meant to be in for a few minutes, so she didn't worry about anyone finding her there.

Even though the water was cold, it didn't bother Zelda. Her body glowed with the magic she spread around herself, the beginnings of fire in her skin warming the stream. It made the water around her steam and float away. She stared to the blue sky, deceivingly clear. Birds chirped. But she didn't feel unhappy because of Luke anymore.

Of course, now she felt the inevitability of meeting with Ganon again, and that wasn't pleasant. The Triforce of Power's presence licked at her insides. She could feel him, like the air around her. It was the sort of thing she could forget, like breathing constantly, like Link's Triforce of Courage, but once she remembered, it was easy to feel.


He woke up, suddenly aware that he was awake. There had been something in his dream so disturbing it woke him, but he couldn't remember what. The feeling lingered, though. And he hadn't meant to fall asleep, but he was beginning to realize that his body wasn't the same as it had been last year. He required sleep and nourishment now...which was less than ideal.

He didn't want to move too much, as Meghan was still sleeping tucked beside him, but he turned his head up to see Zelda. She wasn't there, and then he started wondered where she was. And then he realized she'd probably seen them together. What if she'd gotten upset?

"Megs…" he said softly, touching her face with his free hand. Her head was rested on his other arm, using it as a pillow. He played with her hair until she woke up suddenly. He smiled when she turned to see his face.

"Good morning," he said, almost cheerfully. She mumbled a "morning" tiredly and sat up, slightly still off in dreamland. He got up too.

"Zelda went somewhere. I don't know where. I think we should find her."

"Oh. Yeah." She yawned and lay back down.

"Megs," he said again, trying to wake her.

"Oh," she said again, sitting up. He couldn't help but laugh at her.

They were both still in normal clothes, so they didn't bother changing yet. They put on their swords and shoes and went out into the open air, which was colder than inside the tent.

"She's somewhere that way," he said, indicating in the direction of the stream, off in the forest.

"Oh. I know where she is. I'll go find her."

"You?"

"Yeah." She started walking, backwards in the direction of the forest. "You know, stream? Girl?"

"Oh," he said quickly. "…But I don't know if you should go by yourself…" Then he suddenly said, "Well, just, not all the way!" he said in an embarrassed manner.

She laughed. "No, sweetie, I have Soe. I'll be fine. It's not that far. And then I'll be with Zelda. I can even take Navi with me! She can fly back to you if I need you." Navi zipped over to Meghan, landing on her head as she laughed. "Honestly, imagine you were Luke in this situation. Get it? Bye!"

She turned and ran off into the trees. He watched her carefully until she disappeared from sight. She had a point, but he really didn't want her running off by herself.

Meghan dodged trees, hoping she was going the correct way. She followed the sound of the waterfall and their marks on the trees. Navi was chattering too much to ask for a second opinion. She could hear it more and more clearly, until she saw the water before her, a blonde head bobbing in it.

As soon as her footsteps were in hearing distance, Zelda's head turned her way. She recognized Meghan quickly and relaxed.

"Hello!" Zelda called, happily. This wasn't false happiness, this was real.

"Hey, Zelda," Meghan said. Zelda was shoulder-deep in water.

"No Link…?" Zelda asked quizzically. She hadn't felt him coming any closer, so she didn't get worried when Meghan popped up, but she was a bit surprised.

"Nope, I told him to stay there."

"Oh," Zelda laughed. "I'm just getting out."

"Oh," Meghan said. She turned her head, pretending to be occupied with the waterfall. "It's so pretty."

"Yes, indeed," Zelda said. Meghan heard the sounds of her getting out of the water. Meghan could see from the corner of her eye that Zelda had some clothes on. She turned her head. The wet clothes clung to Zelda's frame, delicate and slight. She was so tiny, but so strong. Meghan loved her own body, and she was proportionate herself now thanks to Link's work outs, but Zelda made her feel huge. Tall.

A towel materialized around Zelda, one that Meghan had packed. Meghan went to sit on one of the huge, flat rocks that lined the stream.

"Zelda…" Meghan started.

"Yes?" she asked, drying her loose, blonde hair. Meghan didn't usually see it down, and it was long and perfect too.

"I'm sorry…about this morning?"

Zelda paused, thinking. "What about this morning? You didn't do anything that I can recall…you were sleeping as I left."

"No, I probably made you feel…I don't know, sad or something. Because…Link…" She tried to phrase it in a manner that wouldn't be weird sounding.

"Oh, it was a cold night last night," Zelda mused, smiling. "Why would I be sad?" she asked quixotically.

"Because…" But she couldn't finish because she didn't want to bring up Luke.

"Oh, dear, listen," Zelda said, going to sit next to Meghan. She put her hand on Meghan's arm. "This morning I realized what I was doing. And I should really apologize instead. I have been acting so…so much like it was the end of the world, but it is not. I realized that you and Link are…not connecting so much because of me."

Meghan remembered the horrible night two nights ago.

"Because of me, you two are…more distant, and I can see it. I feel it from Link. You are worried I'll get sad if you even touch him, aren't you? Maybe you think I will get jealous, or something along those lines…"

"No, but—"

"But," Zelda said, "I do not want you two to stay away. Act exactly like you've ever acted in front of me. I promise, this morning I realized I'm being entirely selfish."

"But no, we can't." She looked at Zelda with sincere eyes. "We really can't make you feel bad."

"Don't worry about me. I'm all right. And Luke is all right, too. I'll be back with him soon enough. I just have to be patient. Sometimes we have to wait a while for the things we want. This is what I realized this morning."

"Zelda…" Meghan said, trying to make her understand. She had to do those things for Zelda.

"Meghan," Zelda said, forthright.

Meghan smiled. "OK."

"Good! So, did you want to go in the water? It is very cold, but it felt nice."

"I don't know…" Meghan liked to be clean, but didn't like being cold to be clean.

"Maybe later, then?" She winked and laughed.

"OK, later. I think…Link was all paranoid again when I went to find you, so I think I shouldn't leave him in suspense." Then she laughed. "Or maybe I should!" She briefly wondered if paranoia ran in the family, but realized the thought was probably bad somehow.

Zelda laughed too.

"He's always so uptight. Really, I want him to calm down, even though I know it's not easy for him, or any of us. He wasn't like this last year. He's grown so uptight."

"Yes, but he has his reasons. I am sure the small incident with Ganon during the last battle hasn't left his mind," she pointed out. "He's afraid that will happen again. And now, I am sure it would be so much harder on him than ever, since you've grown so close. You're the only person he has left to protect."

"I know. I know that's what he's doing, I know he wants me to be OK, but I can take care of myself to some degree! I mean…I know I'm not good with anything, like magic and stuff, but…"

"No, you're not, and I agree. But you've learned more about the way of the sword, yes? I am sure, even, that Link knows that perfectly well. You love him, though, correct?"

Meghan nodded.

"And you don't want him to be hurt either, do you?"

"No, never! But that's the difference. I know where to draw the line. A walk through the forest isn't going to kill me. If he said he was going out to face Ganon by himself, of course I'd say there was no way in hell."

"He's only being cautious. No one knows what misfortune might befall an innocent walk." She paused thoughtfully, and then sighed. "These are, once again, dangerous times, to us three. It is best we stay cautious. That is all he wants."

"Yeah…"

"Maybe we should go back. He'll be waiting!" She smiled and stood; putting on the other layers of clothing she'd taken off.

They skipped off through the forest, talking incessantly, the sun warming them more and more. As they came through the trees, Meg could see that Link had been waiting intently.

"Hey!" Meghan called. He sighed with relief.

"Hey," he said back to her. She was perfectly fine, and Zelda was at her side, wet.

"Good morning, Link," Zelda said delicately, flashing a gleeful smile.

"Good morning," he said skeptically, unsure why she was so gleeful. He looked at Meghan, thinking she must have done something to get Zelda so cheerful. (But she hadn't.)

"So, are you ready?" Zelda asked, distracting his attention back to her. Her face was more serious now. They both knew what she was talking about.

"Yeah," Link said. "Probably as ready as I'll get."

Meghan nodded in agreement with him. She fingered Soe nervously. Would she finally have to use her? What if they found Ganon today? The thought made her stomach turn. Could she face him? Link was probably going to not let her come, somehow, but that made her just as uneasy. If something happened to him, no one would be there to take care of him. Where were they even going? She wanted to ask, but it seemed like they knew exactly what they were doing. Did they? She never heard them say anything to one another even to confirm they were thinking the same thing.

So Link gathered all his weapons. Zelda changed into Sheik, an easier form to fight in. Meghan actually didn't do anything cool, but she needed a sentence.

As Link was readying himself, he glanced at Meghan several times. He wanted so badly to just leave her behind, safely away from the evil, but he couldn't just leave her here. She was a sitting duck in this forest, alone. He wished he could leave her and Zelda, but Zelda probably wouldn't stand for it either, and if he was going to face Ganon, he would need her magic. He was torn, but he knew that the only time he could actively and efficiently protect Meghan was when she was by his side. He and Zelda had one protective trick up their sleeves, anyway.

"Zelda, do you have the armor?" he asked quietly, but Meghan clearly heard.

"What armor?" she asked curiously, assuming it was for Zelda. Sheik nodded, a pile of shiny, clanging metal appeared in her arms. Link sighed.

"I was able to retrieve these from the soldiers' headquarters. I am sorry if they don't fit quite correctly; I attempted to find the smallest sizes I could in such a quick visit." Link pulled a bulbous piece of armor from the top, and from seeing the guards, Meghan assumed it would cover the torso. As he held it up, there was a reluctant grimace on his face as her looked at her, and she figured the meaning of all this.

Maybe she should quit being hurt about the fact that they put no faith in her. It probably only made sense. And she couldn't well protest ten seconds before they were about to go on their journey. She looked at Sheik, knowing from observing her Sheikah accouterments that she herself worn some protection. There were guards on her arms and legs and stiff, impenetrable material (like Link's gauntlets) at her torso. So it probably wouldn't make sense for Meghan to not have any. Not this time.

But Link didn't wear anything!

"All right guys, then help me suit up," she said, trying to be facetious, holding her arms out. Link showed a small smile in relief. "What's this contraption?"

Sheik set some indeterminable things on the ground, and held up a hauberk, which might have been too large. Link was concerned it might hinder her movement if she needed to get away, or fight, even. But her back would be exposed even with the other armor, so it was necessary. She was wearing a long-sleeved shirt, so they were able to just slip it on over that.

"Why don't you ever wear armor, Link? You really should," she said as Sheik was helping her.

He seemed to blush a bit. "I was...supposed to." When Meghan gave him a questioning look, he continued. "When I woke up in the Sacred Realm, Rauru had presented me with some armor." Sheik laughed, while Meghan was still confused. "Mail, plates like these, but I...decided that it was too restrictive." He tilted his head to the side and shrugged. "So I got rid of everything except the shield."

"He was not lauded for his bravery, for that," Sheik said as she stepped back and allowed Link to put the torso plate to Meghan's chest. Of course, it didn't fit like Sheik's, so Meghan thought she must have looked rather bulky at that point. She held the plate in place as Link fastened it in the back for her. It turned out to be a rather good fit. There were shoulder plates made of not metal but brown material just like Sheik's pieces, and even her very own gauntlets. Link decided to leave the plates off her legs, so her ability to run was not affected.

"How do I look?" she asked as she swung her arms around, testing her ability to move. She was a bit restricted and it all felt heavy, but it wasn't awful. They gave her a nod, then beckoned to the horses. They got on and Sheik led the way though another part of the forest they hadn't been. Meghan shifted to make herself comfortable in the saddle with the armor, since the piece covering her torso tended to dig into her legs if she slouched.

"Um…Link?" she asked timidly, quietly.

"Yeah?" he asked, turning to face her with his perfect countenance.

"So…where…exactly…what…where are we going…to?"

"What?" he asked, not hearing what she'd said.

"Where…exactly are we, like, going? I mean, do you know, you know…"

"Well, somewhat," he said with half a smile at her ramblings. "We're just following the Triforce. We're getting closer to him. Just going in that general direction."

"Oh…OK…" She followed along quietly.

A little bit later, Sheik spoke.

"I can feel something ahead. It reeks of him," she said in her now-androgynous voice.

"Me too," Link agreed.

They proceeded cautiously from there, and then stopped the horses and continued on foot, leaving them in a safe place.

They soon came to a strangely clear place, with extraordinarily green grass. There were large, tan mushrooms spotted around the area. In the middle, there was the strangest, small, colorful cottage. Its roof was red, and its exterior walls bright sunshine yellow. The windows were conveniently curtained, so they couldn't see inside.

It looked like something out of a cartoon. What was this house? Were they supposed to go inside? But what was inside?

Link started cautiously forward, avoiding the oversized mushrooms. Meghan followed closely behind, her hands gripping his right arm. Sheik kneeled down next to a mushroom and observed it. She took out one of her twin elbow blades, her main weapon, and chopped down a mushroom with one. It fell upside down onto the grass, smoldering slightly where it was slashed. Nothing else happened.

"These mushrooms are really very strange," she said, looking up at Link and Meghan. They nodded in agreement.

"Maybe we should go inside," Meghan said, pointing to the door.

"But what is it? I don't know if we should go inside," Sheik said.

"Maybe Ganon lives there."

"Please don't say that," Link said quietly. "It's far too disturbing." He walked toward the door, and Meghan briefly pictured Ganon standing inside, a colorful apron on, pulling cookies out of an oven. Yes. Disturbing. To say the least.

"Sorry, I was just kidding."

The three moved forward more. Sheik did a quick check around the perimeter. There was nothing but more mushrooms.

At the front door, they all hesitated. Then Link pulled out his sword and put his hand on the doorknob. Meghan slid out Soe. He opened the door, carefully, looking around inside. With his other hand, he held Meghan back so she wouldn't go in too far.

Then the door was open enough for them all to see inside. It was no more fancy than it looked from outside. There were three beds around the walls, a table in the middle, and a fireplace in the corner.

"OK…" Meghan said, confused. They were all confused. This was clearly where Link and Zelda sensed Ganon, but there was nothing here. There was a fire in the fireplace, so someone had been there not too long ago.

"Look," Sheik said, moving inside to the fireplace. "They're burning the mushrooms!"

When they moved forward, they started to smell the pungent odor of the burning fungus. It made them dizzy. "Oh man…" Meghan said, teetering. The smell was overpowering. She put her hand to her head, trying to stabilize herself. The world was turning sideways, and she lost balance and fell on her butt before Link could catch her. He knelt next to her, also growing weak himself.

"I don't feel well…" Meghan said woozily. A second later, she slumped forward, then Link onto her.

Sheik stood helpless and confused.

"Meghan! Link!" she yelled, trying in every way to rouse them, even her magic. They wouldn't move. They were breathing deeply, as though in impervious sleeps.

She looked around and deduced that it must have been in the air, because she had a covering over her nose and mouth. She had nothing to do but try to douse the fire and move the two.

Her back was faced to the door as she extinguished the flames.

She didn't notice when someone else had entered the room until they seized her body from behind, holding her head so she couldn't turn or anything. She struggled fully against the strength, but the body behind her was strong and sturdy. It made no sounds and she couldn't turn to see who it even was.

The arms reached to her mouth during her struggling and tore the covering from her mouth. She couldn't reach her mouth to put it back. She held her breath, still struggling and flailing, taking only shallow breaths when needed. But she couldn't help that she needed more air, and with every breath, she grew weaker and more tired. The room starting spinning around her and morphing into weird shapes. She went limp, and was dropped on top of Link and Meghan. Her last thought was of the identity of her attacker.

She was far too familiar.


Thank you for reading. :)