fleets: I Am Very Sleepy.


Chapter 7: An Obscured Conspiracy

When Sheik returned to the guest room, he found Vaati already awake, though still in his drawer bed. Although Sheik was still emotionally exhausted from his conversation with Impa earlier, a fleeting smile appeared on his face at the sight of the tiny sorcerer sprawled out on the folded shirts and staring up at the ceiling. Sheik had noticed, in the few times he'd had to wake Vaati from napping, that the sorcerer had a tendency to lie on his back and stare skyward when he was waking, like he was daring the goddesses to move him out of bed. Now that he was a Minish and his cheeks were naturally puffy like he was permanently pouting, Vaati couldn't help but look shamefully adorable as he lay with his tiny paws spread on either side of him.

"You were up early," he said as he rolled over onto his stomach and pulled himself up to look at Sheik from over the edge of the drawer. His bright, beady eyes watched the Sheikah carefully, noting how Sheik absentmindedly tugged at the edge of his scarf. Vaati sat up a little straighter when he realized that something was on Sheik's mind.

"I had to speak to Impa," Sheik said, walking over to the bed and sitting down on the edge. He sat, stiff and uncomfortable for a while, until he finally decided that he could relax and slowly stretched his legs straight. Normally, he didn't like to lay on a bed while in uniform because he didn't like to dirty the sheets with it, but today he couldn't be bothered.

Vaati blinked. It wasn't really like Sheik to relax like that in front of anyone, even to him, who he was pretty close to. Sheik, whether it was due to his training or his naturally careful character, almost always had a sharp gleam in his eye like he was alert for any unusual activity. Vaati would have suspected that something was very wrong if it weren't for the fact that Sheik looked almost relieved.

Like a weight had been lifted.

"Ah, princess duties start early, do they?" Vaati asked, attempting conversation and trying not to sound too curious.

"You could say that," Sheik said vaguely. He allowed himself to fall on the bed, the sheets soft and comfortable against his skin.

Vaati scowled irritably at the Sheikah's ambiguous response. He'd confronted Sheik before about his annoying habit of being unnecessarily vague at times, but he'd gotten nowhere with the conversation. From the way the corners of Sheik's eyes crinkled a little, like he was silently laughing at him, Vaati knew that Sheik was being vague on purpose right now.

Before Vaati could go into a squeaky tirade, Sheik explained with a smile hidden behind his scarf, "I'm stepping down from the throne for a while."

Vaati's scowl fell, and his eyes widened in surprise. He blinked a few times, wondering if he'd misheard. Of all the responses he'd been expecting, this was not one of them. "What? You can do that?" he asked.

"I've asked Impa to have Daphna take over. She'll be a… good Princess Zelda."

The Minish pulled himself up out of the dresser drawers and scampered up to the top. He was about to say something, but then bit his cheek when he realized that, being as tiny as he was at the moment, Sheik could simply turn his head the other way and easily ignore him. Muttering under his breath about the inconvenience of being small, Vaati slid down the dresser on to the floor and disappeared from Sheik's sight.

After a few minutes, he reappeared on the bed again after a long climb up the bed post, and he hopped indignantly onto Sheik's chest while looking mildly out of breath. "What's all this about, Sheik?" Vaati demanded, poking the other on the chin, "You can't just stop being the princess."

Just as Vaati had expected Sheik to do earlier, the blonde turned his head away to ignore the sorcerer's question.

However, it wasn't easy to ignore a critter, no matter how small, sitting just below your chin while they persistently attempted to grab one's attention. Vaati hopped down and walked around so that he was right in front of Sheik's nose. "And Impa just… let you do that?" he continued incredulously. "Impa is just letting you stop being the princess?"

Vaati had a hard time believing this, especially considering the number of times Sheik had been dragged back to the castle to fulfill his responsibilities as Hyrule's ruler by an aggravated Impa. And now Sheik was saying that the princess's protective guardian had approved of them leaving the throne after a single conversation in the morning?

Sheik sighed, giving in when he realized that Vaati wasn't going to let this one go until he got a satisfactory answer. "Princess Zelda will still exist. She's not a real person, Vaati," he said slowly, rolling his head away again but this time looking up at the ceiling instead. "She was more like a symbol than anything."

Vaati frowned, sitting back on his hind legs and holding in a breath. Although Vaati wasn't all that surprised about Sheik's attitude towards his 'Zelda' persona, it was the first time he'd admitted it out loud. Before the sorcerer knew Sheik very well, he might have asked why it wasn't 'Sheik' who wasn't the real person, but he knew better now. Zelda wasn't as alive as Sheik was, almost like she was a puppet with human skin over its frames. There was no blood rushing underneath, unlike for Sheik who always had that focused intensity in his red eyes of someone who skirted close enough to death that they knew what it was like to live.

Still, for Sheik to actually say out loud that Zelda "wasn't real" was unusual. Vaati had the impression that Sheik avoided talking about it because, deep down, he knew that he wasn't allowed to say such things, and yet the Sheikah had admitted it easily now, like he'd completely detached himself from Zelda.

There was something Sheik wasn't telling him. Something important. Something serious.

"Give it time, and Daphna will take her place in the minds of the people."

Vaati had been so lost in thought that he hadn't realized he'd been completely silent for the past several minutes. He looked up at Sheik, who was still watching the ceiling emotionlessly. The Minish's eyes narrowed slightly, and he grimaced. "This is about me, isn't it," he said flatly, his question coming out as a statement.

For a few seconds, Sheik was unresponsive and his expression remained unchanged. Then, a flicker of amusement crossed his face, and he teased, "It's always about you."

Vaati gave an aggravated eye roll, forcefully pulling his sneaking smile into a serious frown. He wasn't going to let Sheik deflect his question with sass. "Well, yes, but you know what I meant."

Sheik considered this for a while, as though mulling over what to tell Vaati. He couldn't tell the sorcerer what the conversation with Impa had really been about, but he supposed there was a way to give him some truth. "You're going to be with me for a while until we have a better idea what the Interlopers want," he said. It wasn't a lie, though it wasn't, of course, the main reason he had requested temporarily leaving his position.

"I don't need a babysitter," Vaati scoffed, puffing out his chest.

"Perhaps not, but I would prefer to have someone watching my back."

"Now you're just making fun of me," the sorcerer snapped at Sheik who was watching him with an amused expression.

The Sheikah fell into a tired silence, and Vaati watched him with a small frown as Sheik rested his eyes. Sheik was done explaining things to Vaati for now, and for all the sorcerer could tell, his explanation was true. It made sense to have the two of them stay together, in case the Interlopers came back to eliminate Vaati, a witness to their attack, or Zelda, their real target. They would be less likely to suspect Sheik as their true target, and it was reasonable for Vaati to stay with him since Sheik was one of the few people who knew what the talking mouse was.

It took a moment for Vaati to figure out just what it meant when Sheik said that they were going to stay together.

The shorter fur along his cheeks bristled, and he looked around the room wildly like a terrified rodent. They were going to be… sharing rooms? They were going to be sharing rooms.

He couldn't really identify why this bothered him - well, no, 'bothered' wasn't quite the right word to explain how he was feeling right now. He didn't mind, but the thought… startled him. Sheik was a private person, as was he, and for the Sheikah to easily suggest that the two of them live together was…

Well, all he could think of right now was the word 'startling' repeating itself in his head.

Sheik was one of the few people he truly respected, and in some ways looked up to, and that was saying a lot considering there had never really been anyone in his entire existence Vaati had regarded so highly. While he was still upset that the Sheikah had defeated him so handily in so many sparring sessions, even in those where he'd been allowed to use the full extent of his magic, he couldn't help but appreciate the other's skills. Back when he was still Fuu, Vaati remembered feeling admiration, even. Maybe he still admired him a little, though he'd never tell Sheik that to his face. The Sorcerer of Winds had been humiliated enough already.

Vaati mentally kicked himself, wondering why in Din his thoughts had to run off in that mushy direction. This situation wasn't a big deal; he'd had no problems before when he'd shared rooms with Shadow Link. Granted, he'd kept Shadow in a closet, but still. He was completely overreacting. This wasn't like him at all.

Vaati stole a glance towards Sheik, making sure the other hadn't noticed his sudden agitation. The last thing he needed right now was for Sheik to point out that he was looking extra fluffy.

To his surprise, the normally observant Sheik hadn't noticed Vaati's struggle at all. And was it just his imagination, or did Sheik look a little flustered, too, with his scarf pulled up over his face a little further than usual? The Sheikah's eyes were open again, like a bothersome thought had poked his lids awake.

Now Vaati was sure he was going crazy. Maybe he didn't get enough sleep last night, and his head was going loopy. Stoic Sheik, being flustered at the same exact time as he was (and for no apparent reason)? It sounded stupid enough just thinking it.

Sheik had yet to tell him about the other side effect of sharing the Triforce.

"I don't like the idea of having someone watch after me," Vaati finally grumbled, crossing his arms over his chest and glaring at the spot between his feet with a sour expression. "I dislike being a burden."

At this, he heard a soft chuckle, and Sheik had his eyes closed once again. "And I dislike fancy dress parties," he said. "I am glad I have the opportunity to be me. Would you be my excuse to remain like this for a while?"

Feeling somewhat better that Sheik hadn't noticed his earlier agitation, Vaati allowed himself to relax a little. His usual cocky attitude returned, hiding whatever was left of his jumbled thoughts. He scoffed, shaking his head with a grin. "Don't tell me this," he waved his paws at his Minish-turned self, "was all an elaborate scheme to convince Impa to let you run away from your duties?"

There was another light chuckle, and a murmured "you got me," from Sheik.

"Well, I suppose I can deal with being a magical rat if I can help you. Just remember, you owe me."

They remained in comfortable silence for a while. After some time, however, Vaati noticed that there was something wrong with how still Sheik was. While Sheik often had a habit of blending in with the shadows, there was something about him this time that was different enough that caused the little Minish to lift his head, concerned.

Vaati took a few steps towards Sheik cautiously. However, he soon relaxed when he realized that nothing was wrong at all. Sheik remained lying on his back, one hand over his chest that was rising and falling in deep, slow breaths. His expression was tranquil, a rare expression on someone like him.

Sheik had passed out completely.

I guess he was tired, Vaati thought. It was the first time that he'd seen him with his guard down like this, though perhaps this was the first time that Vaati had seen him so exhausted.

Maybe Sheik did need someone watching his back after all.

XXXXXXXXXXXXX

Sheik had accidentally spent most of the day passed out on his bed, and he'd woken hungry and surprised that it was long past noon. He'd panicked a little, his mind going through all of the important duties he'd missed, until he remembered that he was no longer bound by his responsibilities. For the remaining daylight, he moved some of his belongings into the guest room while he and Vaati tried to figure out the best way to place furniture so the Minish could easily get from place to place without being stepped on. Bandages hung loosely down desks and drawers for Vaati to climb up and down on, and holes were carved in the corner of doors for him to go through. The sorcerer appeared embarrassed that they had to go through such trouble so that he could live a little more independently, but seemed grateful about the effort after they were done.

Aside from that, the day was, thankfully, uneventful.

Currently, Sheik was outside in the castle courtyard, hidden against the wall in the dark of the night. He had snuck outdoors by himself after Vaati had fallen asleep, as it was critical that the sorcerer not hear the conversation he needed to have. Though he disliked being so sneaky around the observant wind mage, he could not afford to have Vaati learn the truth about sharing the Triforce.

There was a mirror in Sheik's hands, and rather than casting his reflection back to him, it instead showed an image of a person on the other side. The mirror was a shard that had once been a part of the Dark Mirror, and Vaati had repurposed it so that they could use it to communicate with people in the Dark World. A nervous-looking young man in a purple bunny robe was chewing on his fingernails as Sheik explained what had happened to him and Vaati.

"That's terrible, Sheik. I'm not sure what to say…" Ravio fiddled with his dark hair, a deep black with a tinge of purple, as he thought about what Sheik had told him. The rabbit hood fell over his face as he did so, hiding his features that looked uncannily like Link's. He mulled over what Sheik had told him, while a small white bird with blue wings flew over and perched on his shoulder, concerned that its friend appeared so worried.

Ravio absentmindedly cooed "I'm okay, Sheerow," scratching the bird's head. Sheerow pecked at his cheek, still not convinced that everything was okay. The bird had been there during the first few days of Ravio's recovery from Dethl's nightmare induced trauma, and it was good at reading its human friend's subtle expressions. Before he had Sheerow with him, Ravio had trouble even talking to people with eye contact.

The Link lookalike tapped the bird lightly on his beak to stop the pecking, and turned his attention back to Sheik apologetically. "And you're sure that, you know, either you or Master Vaati is going to…" he trailed off, unable to finish the terrible sentence.

After all, Sheik had just told him that he and his old master was essentially living on borrowed time, and one or the other might die soon if they didn't figure out a way to somehow fix things. Unfortunately, it was incredibly vague as to what needed fixing. According to Sheik, he'd broken a cardinal rule in magic by reviving the dead, and there was something about splitting his Triforce in half that was going to be the untimely death of either one of them. Ravio wasn't entirely sure what Sheik was talking about since he wasn't as versed in magic, but the Sheikah sounded extremely certain that he and Vaati had death hanging over them. He sounded afraid, and Ravio rarely saw Sheik afraid.

He didn't understand the details, but he understood that things were horrible.

"I was hoping you might be able to learn something from the Dark World about anything that might be able to help my situation," Sheik said, avoiding Ravio's question, "Maybe Lorule might know something Hyrule doesn't. I admit I'm a little desperate for a solution."

"Well I don't know, but I can see if Princess Hilda might know anything," Ravio replied carefully, like he was afraid to impart false hope.

It was a good enough response for Sheik, however, who'd been hoping that Ravio would be able to talk to the princess of the kingdom in the other world. Ravio had once told him about a kingdom similar to Hyrule in the Dark World, called Lorule, and that it even had a princess who was like the mirror to Zelda. From what little Sheik had heard about the princess from Ravio, he understood that she was a skilled sorceress, perhaps with a power not unlike the Triforce. If there was anyone who might know how to help them, it was Princess Hilda.

"I'll see what I can do," Ravio said, though he didn't sound very certain of himself. "I'm getting worried about Princess Hilda, though, after hearing about those two attackers you ran into. You're sure that they were from the Dark World?"

"We suspect it," Sheik nodded.

Ravio bit his lip, causing Sheero to hop on top of his head worriedly. "I don't understand how that's possible, but…," he paused, a concerning thought coming to him as he thought about what Sheik had told him. He absentmindedly tugged on the floppy blue scarf wrapped around his neck and his eyes became hidden when the rabbit hood fell deeper over his face.

"What is it?" Sheik asked, holding the mirror closer to the torchlight above his head to get a better view of Ravio. The other boy seemed reluctant to answer, as though he didn't want to cause unnecessary worry regarding information he wasn't confident about. Regardless, he eventually folded under Sheik's insistent gaze.

"Well, it's just that the princess was recently telling me how she suspected something sinister going on, and she wanted me and Shadow to be careful," Ravio admitted, and he bit his lip when he noticed Sheik's expression tense. "That's why Shadow's not with me right now; Hilda sent him to investigate something in the Ice Ruins. I can't help but think that somehow, all of this," he waved his hands towards Sheik, "is related."

Sheik withdrew into his thoughts, mulling over this new information with a troubled frown. He agreed with Ravio that it was too much of a coincidence that Princess Hilda's concerns of a sinister plot would occur just when two Interlopers attacked Hyrule Castle. Considering how one of them had been in possession of an artifact that was powerful enough to easily take down Vaati, it wasn't much of a stretch to think that the people from the Dark World had somehow figured out a way to travel between the two worlds.

Sheik doubted that the Interlopers were up to any good, and he needed to figure out what they were after quickly. Irritation flashed across his face when he recalled how he'd allowed one of them to escape. He could still remember that sneer in the other's deep crimson eyes, an amused glint shining from behind dark bangs that fell over their sun touched skin. He'd etched as much of that face into his memory so that he would be sure to recognize it the next time they met. He wasn't going to let them escape again.

"… Sheik?"

Sheik suddenly looked up when Ravio brought him back to attention. He hadn't noticed that his expression had taken on a glare, causing the other to look at him with worry. Sheik shook his glare away, remembering that he was still in a conversation with Ravio.

Ravio opened his mouth to say something, and then hesitated nervously. He took a deep breath, lowering Sheerow from his head and placing the bird back onto his shoulder. For a second it looked as though he weren't going to say anything, but he got over his nerves and found the courage to ask something he'd been worried about since Sheik had first told him about his dilemma with Vaati. "Are you… are you ever going to tell Master Vaati about, you know…?"

Sheik sighed heavily. He should have been used to this question by now, considering how many times he'd gone over the same one himself, but his heart fell heavy every time he had to pick an answer. "I can't tell him," he repeated what he'd told Impa the night before.

"But don't you think he'll want to know?"

Of course he'll want to know, Sheik thought bitterly. Instead, he said tersely, "Ravio. You can't tell him about this."

Ravio's face fell to a frown. He looked up to Sheik, and as such he often listened to what the Sheikah asked of him. However, Ravio wasn't entirely convinced that Sheik was making the right judgment this time, and he struggled a to say what was on his mind. While he was glad that Sheik had been able to save Master Vaati from death, he wasn't happy about what it had cost to do so. He understood Sheik's point of view of not wanting to tell Master Vaati, but likewise he could see why it was wrong to keep it a secret.

A person deserved to know when their friend was in danger.

"He's going to be mad if he finds out you kept this from him," Ravio mumbled under his breath. And now that he knew about it, he, too, was an accomplice in keeping secrets. He could already feel the weight of its burden pushing down on his shoulders.

"There are worse things to deal with," Sheik replied curtly, not willing to debate this any further. He knew more than anyone that Vaati deserved the truth: he didn't need anyone else telling him that keeping Vaati in the dark was wrong. Sheik pushed himself off of the wall that he'd been leaning against, and began to walk back towards the castle. "Let me know when you find anything that might help us."

Ravio's disappointed figure with his sagging shoulders and shadowed eyes disappeared as the mirror's connection faded. Sheik tucked the mirror away into a small bag hanging from his hips, and he made his way back to his room. As he stalked past the night watch and walked through the castle doors, he couldn't help but wonder about the sinister plot that the princess in the other world had been worried about. The banished Interlopers, the Dark World, the masked man, Princess Hilda's concern, and the attack on Vaati that had been meant for him… Sheik knew that there was a story tying all of this together, though he couldn't put a finger on what it was yet.

His tired eyes moved towards the Triforce on his hand, glowing more faintly than usual now that its power was shared. As if there weren't enough things to worry about already.


fleets: I was going to keep going but the sections became longer than I thought they would, so I'm going to stop here for now. I don't have much else to say, since not a whole lot happened. Ah well.

AquilaMage: I agree with you there D:
The premise of this story is probably one of the sadder ones I've written. I'm not sure if I what I would do if I were in Sheik's position: either telling the truth or keeping the death thing a secret... boy that's a tough call.

Lunamew: feels-train has taken a brief break stop before we continue towards the wreck :P Although the main focus is Vaati and Sheik in this story, Impa is the one I feel really bad for since she's watching it all happen and can't really do anything about it...
I said this before and I'll say it again: I love that idea and I'm saying that's exactly what happened :3

Serpent Tailed Angel: Let it be known that I am not afraid to off characters in a story :P
I do believe in giving people a fair amount of warning if it's going to be REALLY bad, as in if the genre isn't very angsty then it can't be too bad yeah? yeah? (cough)
I'll have bandaids for everyone before all of this is over :3

Ai Star: Well I save the main document, but I usually write all of the reviewer responses and comments in one sitting. It's not too bad, unless I'm trying to submit this at 3am and I really want to get it over with and go to sleep D:

Sheik knows he should tell Vaati, but at the same time he's afraid of what Vaati would do if he does... it's a tough situation to be in and I don't know if there's really a right answer :(

Arridu: It's not too bad since it's been almost half a year since the Dethl trouble occurred, and Daphna has been filling in for Zelda quite often during that time (so much so that, as Impa said, she might as well be the real deal). You're right that the name was inspired by King Daphnes from WW though ;)
As for your other question, I think it might get clearer once we get to later chapters but Lorule is a small part of the Dark World (kind of like how the 'Light World' has different kingdoms like Hyrule, Holodrum, Labrynna, etc.). Regarding the Twili, all I can say right now is that there is no 'Twilight Kingdom' in this story as it is currently. I don't want to talk much more about this yet, since I'm worried I might accidentally spoil something :)

icfehr: Yeah that chapter was necessary (I think...?) because I needed to show why Sheik was going to be Sheik and not Zelda for a good chunk of this story. I hope it wasn't too boring D: 'fillers' usually are... yikes. Hahaha you've got me though! I figured people would like a brief break to catch a breath before the plot really starts to move forward. :)
Vaati's thoughts on his mini form will come eventually!

Vesperupus: I hope this chapter was nicer on the feels haha. You can expect that conversation to be a disaster... yeahhhh Vaati's not gonna be happy.
If Impa didn't have white hair already she would have gone all grey right there. Impa's going through a lot, too, but she has to be strong because she's the only parental figure to those two crazy kids :(