A/N-
Really not feelin' this chapter. Or the next. But I'll post 'em. 'Cause I'm nice.
Sheik sat against a wall, his thin body reed-straight. Unsure of whether to slow or quicken his breathing, he felt nauseous. A rush of blood pressed against his eyes and his heart beat steady in his throat.
As a Sheikah, both honest and unafraid, Sheik would not disprove his fear of heights.
His pride, however, had withheld this from Link.
"That wasn't so bad," Link adjusted his hat, an only showing of his and Sheik's crossing between spaces.
"Speak for yourself." Sheik held his head in his hands, rubbing the meaty heel of his palm against his temples. Not able to be reliant on his own equilibrium, he had yet to determine the motionlessness of the ground beneath himself.
"Do you want to know what?" Link asked.
"Not particularly." Sheik said.
"I'm hungry." very sure of his own body's workings and their tells, Link affirmed.
"How is that possible?" feeling as if his own stomach had shrivelled, like it had released acid and other juices into the cavities and canals where lived his necessary organs and tissues, Sheik blanched.
"Well, uh, I have the hearty metabolism of a growing boy?" Link wasn't sure what the other boy hadn't understood, if anything.
"That's not what I meant," reluctant, Sheik stood "but not now. Later"
Together, Midna afloat not far behind, the two boys walked and entered the first of many unexplored rooms.
Link felt, suddenly, very appreciative of his few meetings with Ooccoo. Hers was a surprising race, their technologies far surpassing anything he had come across, in Hyrule. The temple's interior was, Link thought, more aesthetically pleasing than the exterior. Built of clean lines and polished stone, it was saddening that such a place had become overrun with malign beasts.
But he had learned, upon meeting Midna and taking Hyrule's fate upon his shoulders, that beauty was nothing but temporary.
Continuing, each new area was more well executed than the last, Oocca patrolling the perimeters of their sacred home.
And for no less than an hour, Link had made to catch an Oocca. He feigned and forced the thing into a corner until it could do nothing but allow itself to fear Link and whatever were his purposes.
"That might be bordering on cruelty, Link."
Link held the small animal above his head. Though much less feathered than a cucoo, Link figured they were aerodynamically similar. 'Bird' was synonymous to 'flight,' regardless of the impossibilities.
"You'll learn, Sheik. In Temples, he does what he wants. Convincing him otherwise is a waste of time. If he wants to terrorize those things, whatever. Let him. It isn't the worst he's done."
Sheik shrugged, watching as Link leaped further and landed softer than gravity would have allowed, otherwise.
"Of course, how would you know? You've never helped a Hero, not really. You're just a watcher. You're nothing but a bit of poetry and a pretty song." Midna laughed.
Sheik didn't challenge her honesty.
xxxxxxxx
An Oocca was an acceptable alternative to the hookshot, Sheik had decided. Gladly, if made to choose, he would not reconsider his bias towards Link's weaponry.
"No more, not until I eat. I don't care. If I can't stop then this place doesn't get cleansed. That means, Midna," like a child would, pouting, Link sat "no mirror."
The three had crossed many bridges and opened many doors. Link had pocketed many keys and Midna had succeeded in locating the temple compass. The map, however, had proven itself more elusive and without it they had purpose but no direction. No knowing of where or why or how. They were, essentially, blind.
"Seriously, Link," Midna said. She shook the compass, her magical energies disrupting the thing's functions. It spun, wildly, from west to south. North to east.
"No, Midna, it's fine. Let him. We'll be behind, a bit, but it'll keep him quiet." Sheik took the instrument from Midna, enjoying how very lost she had seemingly become..
"I guess you're right. Fine, I'm going to look for keys or that stupid map. You two are on your own." with a quick blink, her body becoming the shadow of all things, Midna had gone.
Sheik looked at Link, hopeful.
"Hey, what do you want?" the Hylian had sat himself beneath an inviting tree. It offered adequate cover from the winds that blew, every so often, and it's long limbs seemed to stretch to cover the sun.
A safe distance from Link, Sheik sat, also.
"Will you share?" his stomach having settled some, Sheik realized his own hunger.
"I could," Sheik's was not a difficult request, Link knew. Feeding someone as petite as the Sheikah would not likely exhaust his own supplies but he hadn't anticipated having to share. He and Sheik each had their own likes and dislikes.
For a short while, no one spoke. They watched their own feet and watched as clouds, high and puff, curlicue into fantastically unreal shapes.
But, mostly, they watched each other.
For either to try and say differently would prove false.
"And?" Sheik pressed.
"I've only got those funny little oranges. Midna stole a whole bunch, she likes the smell."
"Oh."
For a brief moment, a strange disappointment had settled. One that had very little to do with empty bellies and a want of substantial foods.
"But," Link had taken Sheik's hand in his own "wait. I'm sure we could find something edible, around here."
A/N-
Oh, Link. What a silly boy you are.