Part Seven
Respite
The dust in the colossus smelled cleaner than that of the Shadow Temple, but was no less annoying. It settled over everything evenly without the damp cling of decay, but instead remained so dry that every movement sent small clouds to haze the air. After moving for the fourth time, Sheik called it a lost cause and gave up trying to avoid the trickles of dirt cascading from the ancient ceiling. After the twelfth he stopped brushing it from his wraps and uniform and resigned to polish his dirk a few more times while he waited.
At the twenty third he began to question his reasoning to sit on one of the top hidden ledges in a building clearly needing repair. Permitting himself a soft sigh, he looked down to the dirk and cloth in his hands. The remnants of blood had been cleaned away so long ago that they had turned brown in the fabric, but unless another enemy wished to spring from the stonework he had little else to occupy his time.
Actually, that wasn't true. Even without the equipment to access a good part of the temple or face its host, he still had preparations to go through. The last temple marked the beginning of a chain of events that in turn began the final battles, things he could not before think about lest he hope too strongly. A dozen critical steps to be completed rapid fire that he couldn't begin just yet because that would mean leaving this post. Below him lay the sealed entrance to the outside, and for some reason watching that darkened way eclipsed any reason to move. He gave the room below another glance, both unsurprised and disappointed by its vacancy.
"Are you trying to make a mirror of your blade?"
A mixture of training and utter disbelief kept high-strung reflexes in check at the familiar voice behind him. He turned his head slowly, eyes meeting a pleasant smile framed by a sunned, freckled face. After a long pause, he cleared his voice and nodded as formally as possible while sitting down. "Forgive me; I did not realize I was asleep."
The young woman chucked softly, seated on the edge of the ledge beside him as if it was the most natural thing in the world. There were no tracks in the dust around her, no visible way she could have entered the room without equipment or advanced acrobatics, not one smudge on the white of her outfit. "Perhaps you aren't, then. You seem like the kind who would be very aware of his own being." She smoothed out a crease in her dress and crossed her dangling ankles, toying with a red flower in her lap. "Do you like it? They only grow during the spring."
Sheik felt his eyebrows crease, opening his mouth and closing it once. His mind switched to automatic, eyes traveling to the flower she held for inspection. It was not a species he knew, the auburn color matching the woman's firey hair. He wondered if he would be more or less surprised had he recognized it. "…It is very nice."
The comment merited a nose wrinkle and a chiding glance. "You're only saying that because it follows proper conversation protocol, Sir Sheikah." But there was no heat in her words; she smiled and tucked the flower away behind her ear. "What are you waiting for?"
Somehow he couldn't think of a reason to be anything other than honest. "The Hero will arrive at the temple shortly, I wait for him." He gave the entrance another glance, ignoring the little voice in his head that noted he had been repeating that phrase for the past five hours. Realizing belatedly he had begun to clean his dirk again, he sheathed it as discretely as possible.
If his unexpected companion noticed, she pretended otherwise. Instead she nodded and folded her hands in her lap. "Yes, I suppose you do." The ends of her hair ruffled in an unfelt breeze as she watched something invisible across the chamber. Beneath his cowl, Sheik could almost believe he smelled the sea. "Children cannot wait long; they have not lived enough to learn how. Memories of years past keep the old ones company in these times. But although one remembers and one is without, they are both souls to be treasured." Her eyes traveled to him again, her serene hint of a smile never leaving. "But that wasn't the question I was asking." At his blank look she shrugged and stood, dusting off her spotless skirt. Sheik stood automatically with her.
The impossibility hovering in the air began prodding him harder. "My Lady-"
"Please don't lose your lyre, Sir Sheikah. I'd like to have accompaniment for a song or two if you find the time." She lifted a hand in a relaxed wave before a thunderous crash sounded from below. Sheik's head whipped around despite himself - someone had moved the block. A coil of tension he hadn't realized wrapped his chest loosened as he watched the dust stir around the doorway. After a moment he remembered himself and turned back.
There was only air. Where she had stood the dust remained even and unsettled with no prints, as if nothing had disturbed it in an age. He sighed softly and shook his head. "Who are you?"
"Hey, those worked out great! So, maybe we can sit down now, huh? Or have… a snack? Link?"
A faint blue light flickered from the doorway, getting steadily brighter. It was no surprise hearing Navi before seeing her, but Sheik's eyes narrowed at the thinly veiled desperation in the fairy's voice. He stepped back, letting the shadow of the temple pillars hide him out of habit while he watched. After a moment he could hear the familiar clank of metal equipment, finally followed by a green figure.
Stomping out the relieved sigh that was for some reason creeping up in his lungs at seeing Link in one piece, he analyzed the hero's stance. Sagging shoulders, heavy, shuffling steps, head low even as it scanned the room. One gauntleted hand was held protectively to his chest, cradled from too much movement. Sheik frowned, brushing his bangs from his face to better watch as Navi continued to ramble.
"I'm sure he's fine Link, honest! And then he can give you a fancy lecture for being careless and all that as soon as he gets here! I mean, we aren't even sure that he would... um..."
Her words trailed off as Link crouched down, using his left hand to touch a stain on the floor. Sheik winced as he recognized the patch of wolfos blood from earlier. He had disposed of the bodies to the blowing sands, but blood was harder to clean in a desert. Although why a little stain was so concerning to the hero was... confusing. Certainly he had seen much worse before. Navi cleared her faltered voice and continued.
"Well all right maybe he did, but it's too much to be Sheik's blood so that means he's fine!"
"He was hurt before he came in Navi. He still did it." The weary tone and strain in Link's voice had Sheik taken farther aback even before he processed the words. He was exhausted, that much was clear. A good day and a half had passed since their last meeting, time enough for the hero to return to the Temple of Time and his childhood. He would have traveled to the desert, navigated the temple, faced whatever monsters inside met him, and searched until he found the artifact that enabled him to enter. A long, hard fight even if taken slow.
He certainly couldn't have... no.
"Link?" The little ball of light far below drifted down, resting carefully on the hero's still outstretched hand. "I know you're worried. But you're... you're kind of scaring me, okay? Can you sit for just a second and I'll look around the room? I can do the high parts and I'll be right back, and it'll be faster anyway." Link ceased his examining of the floor and lifted his head, although it was impossible to see his expression from the angle. Navi's tone turned quiet, and Sheik leaned forward despite the uselessness of the action. "Just for a little bit, okay? Please?"
There was a moment of silent staring before Link let his head drop. "You're right Navi, I'm sorry. Go ahead, I'll wait here."
The blue light hopped into the air, shining brighter. "And sit down?"
"…And sit down." Sheik could hear the rueful smile in the weary voice and felt his lips quirk faintly in response.
"And maybe drink a little something, and-"
"Navi."
"Okay, okay, I'm going." She swirled once around his head and then began to drift up in an outward spiral, scanning the room. True to his word, Link dropped from his crouch to sit in one graceless movement, not bothering to move from his spot on the floor. Sheik wondered when his innards would stop twisting in painful knots at the sight. He quietly stepped to the edge of his platform, waiting for Navi to take notice in her trek about the enormous room.
On cue, he saw her flight falter just slightly, then pick up as if normal. She began to circle even higher, in the upper sections hidden from Link's view. Finally she orbited to the ceiling, swinging wide until making it to the ledge. Sheik stepped back and Navi joined him after a quick check down, drifting by his shoulder to murmur.
"I… talk to him. You've gotta, Sheik. He figured out you were going in first again and I tried so hard and," Her whole body drooped in midair, her normal chipper bobs subdued to a simple hover. "Let him know you're okay?"
Not trusting his voice while his mouth tasted so strongly of guilt, Sheik simply nodded. The fairy nodded a little in return and then floated off in her continued 'checking' of the room. As her light faded from view he took a slow breath and leapt from his perch to a nearby pillar, to another ledge, to a broken wall, and finally the floor. Each impact made a soft tap that echoed in the chamber - an unspoken signal of his presence. When he finally reached the floor and straightened, he was met with a piercing blue gaze ten yards away.
At this distance Link looked worse than before. He had not moved from the hard stone, his bangs hanging in his eyes to make the shadows below them even more prominent. Even the glint of his silver gauntlets had been dulled with dust and dirt, his right hand still cradled against his tunic. "Hero..."
"Are you hurt?" Link's question came out rushed, as if escaping against his wishes. He looked away quickly, brushing the hair out of his eyes and looking more like a lost child than a legendary warrior. Something deeper than reason coaxed Sheik to move, nudged his feet to walk slowly forward.
"I am not the one we should be concerned with, Hero. But I am unhurt." His voice too appeared to be guided by some invisible source, dropping to a mild, almost gentle tone. When he reached the sitting figure he paused, uncertain. Link turned back, tired eyes searching for the truth in the statement before glinting with an unbidden smile of relief. It was what Sheik needed to go against all he knew and hold out his hand in an offer. "I was however, just preparing for a short rest in your absence. Should you be obliging, I would hear of your success while I do."
His answer prompted a raised eyebrow, but only for a moment before Link chuckled and shook his head. "Yeah, sure." He reached out with his left hand and clasped Sheik's firmly, letting the other help him back to his feet.
Not wanting to have the hero walk far while he was uncertain of his state, Sheik settled on a small alcove against a nearby wall. He reached for Link's elbow and gave it a soft pull to show the direction before walking over, but stopped when the other did not follow. "Hero?"
He glanced back to Link, who shook his head from where he has staring at his sleeve with a far-off look. "Nothing, sorry." Sheik shrugged mentally, letting it pass but filing it away.
With a nod, he continued over to the wall and waited for Link to join him before sitting. It wasn't much, but the protruding stonework served as a suitable bench. Link carefully removed his shield with his good arm before sitting a few feet away and leaning back against the wall with a soft sigh. Sheik watched his movements, trying to figure out what could be wrong that would not have been fixed already. Certainly a cut to his hand would have been bandaged with potion and ignored after healing, not favored like this. "I see you acquired new gauntlets."
"Hmm?" Blue eyes cracked open from where they had drifted closed. "Oh, yeah." He held one out for inspection, the silver glinting with hidden magic. "Nabooru helped me out getting them. I manage to steal a lot of precious ancient artifacts without getting in trouble, actually." He paused at some unpleasant memory, and then smiled sadly. "Well, not the usual kind of trouble anyway."
Sheik nodded, realizing belatedly that Link had most likely witnessed the cause of Nabooru's sudden disappearance seven years ago if they were thinking of the same Gerudo. He winced, deciding to force the subject elsewhere. "And what kind of trouble did your hand run into?"
A sheepish chuckle answered him as Link looked down, rubbing the back of his neck with his good hand. "I was wondering when you'd get to that one. It's not life threatening, at least."
Red eyes met the pause unblinking. "But?"
Link sighed, stance drooping. "I... can't straighten it myself."
It took a bare moment for Sheik to understand the meaning, his eyes widening. He shook his head quickly to clear away the shocked horror of the realization, silently thanking Impa for forcing him to learn how to treat his own wounds. Carefully, he slid across the bench until there was a bare foot between them and held out his hand. "May I? I will only touch your palm."
The hero took a slow breath and met Sheik's gaze, searching for a few moments before his arm slowly uncurled. He placed his hand gingerly in the bandaged palm, leaving the fingers to extend in the air. With great willpower Sheik tore himself from those blue eyes and looked down, examining. Even through the leather, he could tell the index finger had bent in an angle it should never go. He kept his voice controlled, speaking softly. "This looks like the second segment. I can straighten it and heal it after it is set, but the gauntlet will have to come off for me to do so."
"And enchanted gloves means only one way to remove them?" The hand in his was shaking faintly; Sheik resisted the urge to hold it closer and nodded.
"I am afraid so Hero. Taking potion now would heal the bone incorrectly. May I?" He waited for Link to nod and close his eyes before taking a level breath. "Then bite down on my shoulder."
Link's eyes snapped back open, hand pulling back in shock. "W-what?"
Silently cursing the heat in his cheeks, Sheik shifted to face the hero fully as he kept his voice steady. "I would ask for you to face me and bite my right shoulder. It will keep you from jerking away while I work, as well as provide a distraction and hinder your left arm from interfering." He took a slow breath and continued. "My clothing will keep you from causing me damage, and I assure you it will not break my concentration." He paused, reaching again for Link's wrist in what he hoped was an unthreatening manner. "If the idea is too… unsettling we may find another way, but to my knowledge this is the easiest."
He watched the inner battle of emotions flicker across Link's paled face as the hero turned partially, then stopped and weakly tried to pull back from the loose grip on his wrist. "I… it was my fault in the first place, you shouldn't get hurt…"
"Hero." Sheik let his voice firm just enough to reclaim attention before softening it once more. "You won't hurt me; you are the one in the worse. And if I recall I owe you a favor." He spoke carefully and slow, at the end smiling through his mask, although the muted gesture would be barely visible with his face covered. From the surprised look given him, it was seen anyway.
There was a long, agonizing pause before the hero slowly shifted again to face him, then leaned forward, crowding Sheik's line of sight. He could feel the warmth of breath against his neck as Link hesitated, then the gentle pressure of teeth on his shoulder. His heartbeat jumped unexpectedly at the sensation, little jolts shooting down his spine from the point of contact. Taking a slow breath to steady himself, he found Link's scent and warmth taking up the air. Then again, perhaps this would be more difficult than he thought.
He gave himself a mental smack for that thought and forced himself to look down, concentrating on the task in his hand. There was no easy way to remove the glove, but hopefully the leather was loose enough to slide off with minimal pain. He shifted his grip and lifted his other hand, gently pulling the gauntlet at the tip of the pinky until it moved a centimeter. He repeated the process with the thumb, then the ring and middle to leave the index for last. Link's teeth tightened a fraction on his shoulder as he tensed, but Sheik knew hesitating would only worsen the process. As the glove began to slide off Link's free arm wrapped behind his back, gripping one blue clad hip on automatic. The process was thankfully short and without snags, and one long second later the silver gauntlet hit the floor. "Breathe, Hero. Are you all right?"
The hand on Sheik's hip squeezed faintly, shaky breaths beginning again in his ear. Link's bare finger was a swollen shade of purple, making an array of curses bounce merrily through the Sheikah's head as he reached down to search through his own boot. He emerged with a small vial of green potion which he set in his lap. "Take a deep breath and let it out slowly." Link obeyed, his muscles relaxing on automatic.
Before the hero was granted a chance to think about it Sheik had gripped his hand in a vice and used his free hand to force the bone straight. He felt the slight grind and pop a fraction of a moment before Link's teeth clamped down on his shoulder harder than he had believed possible. He bit his own lip and ignored it, as well as the hand bruising his hip and the muffled scream in his ear as he snatched up the vial of potion. Breaking the seal, he emptied the liquid over the straightened finger and spread it across the skin, letting the substance numb and heal. With fast, practiced movements he unraveled the potion-damp bandage from his own hand and began wrapping Link's, using the hero's middle finger as a makeshift splint and binding the two together.
It was when he finished that he noticed the broken whimper Link made into his neck as ragged breath began in his ear again, the death grip on his shoulder slowly loosening. He let the hero take his time releasing him, but to his surprise instead of pulling away Link merely buried his face deeper and let more of his weight relax. Uncertain of what to do with his hands or any other part of himself, he carefully set Link's hand down in the green-clad lap. "Hero? Are you still with us?" After a pause he reached up, resting his hand on the top of the other's warm back.
Their was a tight sound of affirmative in his neck that made Sheik wince. The chest against his took a deep, shuddering breath and finally sighed, slumping against him even farther. "Yeah, I'm here. Thanks."
Having no training in how to handle this situation, Sheik decided to ignore everything that was currently happening. He looked out across the temple, considering counting the tiles in the floor. "…You should take at least some additional potion to aid healing, Hero."
The blonde surrounding him made a muffled noise of disapproval. "Hate potion. Tastes nasty."
There was no arguing with that statement; it was a well known fact that potion was as much a punishment as a help. "Yes, it does." Leaning around to reach Link's pack without jostling him, Sheik fished out the bottle and uncorked it. He held it in the air beside the hero's nose until the other was forced to look over and glare at it. With a heavy sigh and a dramatic effort Link untangled himself and sat up on his own, scooting back to accept the bottle with his good hand. Blue eyes stared forlornly at the thick substance for a moment before closing tightly for Link to throw his head back and down a gulp as quickly as possible.
The absolutely disgusted grimace on his face when he resurfaced made Sheik bite back a smile, offering the water pouch to cover it. Link snatched it, draining every drop in an apparent attempt to cleanse his mouth before wiping his face on his sleeve. "Ugh."
Sheik reached over, pulling the arm back before Link could forgetfully use his bandaged hand as a rag when he ran out of shirt. "You'll need to keep your hand still long enough for the magic to take effect." He set the hero's arm down gently and reached behind his tabard. "Have you eaten?"
"Not unless you count faceplanting in sand a few times."
They both looked up to find Navi drifting down from the ceiling to rest on Link's shoulder. Unperturbed by the mumbled 'second time didn't count', she flipped to lie on her belly and shrug at Sheik. "It's why Malon stuffs you guys when you go over, I think." She took a half second to glance down at Link's hand, wings fluttering as she took in the bandage, then Sheik's lack of one. "Oh, so that's what all the bandages are for? That makes a lotta sense, one for everything!"
"Something like that." It was hard to not notice the private little smile on Link's face at the fairy's words, but Sheik did his best while unwrapping the remainder of the dried meat and fruit Malon had forced on him. He took a small piece and set the rest between them, waiting for Link to follow suit before looking back to Navi. However, instead of the continued mix of questions he was expecting, the little fairy seemed to realize something, reaching up to tug on a lock of Link's blond hair before pointedly flipping around to face away from both of them. Sheik blinked, watching as Link smiled and rolled his eyes, turning his head to keep Navi in his view and offer her a bit of fruit.
It was only when he briefly looked away and pulled down his mask long enough to take a bite that he realized the two of them were giving him privacy while he ate. A small smile crept to his face, spreading when Navi made a sweeping gesture of intense interest at the cracks in the far corner. Link nodded knowingly, waving his piece of apple at the corner in agreement before popping it in his mouth. "So what fun filled adventure are you off on now that we're taking your spot?"
"Don't talk with you mouth full, sloppy. Sorry Sheik., I didn't teach him that." Navi seemed oblivious to the food muffling her own words as she chewed.
"I'm sure you didn't." Finished, Sheik pulled up his mask and leaned back against the wall. "Lon Lon and Kakariko need to be checked, although under Miss Malon and Lady Impa's watch I doubt I will be needed. The majority of my time will be preparing for the last sage to be awakened and preparing the trigger to unleash the final magics in the Temple of Time."
Link lost interest in the far corner, turning back to raise an eyebrow at Sheik. "Final magics?"
Sheik shook his head, looking carefully at the empty bundle as he put it away. "Nothing of real importance, it will be done in time for your return. The battle ahead will be much more pressing at that point."
When he glanced back up Link was giving him an odd look, but after a moment the hero shook his head and smiled it away. "So you're going all around Hyrule in the time I navigate one building? Deku nuts must be handy." He leaned his unoccupied shoulder against the wall, settling into a more comfortable position.
The change of subject caught him off guard, but was certainly welcome. Sheik shrugged. "As long as the spells don't go awry, in which they become more life-threatening." He realized then that Navi had stopped contributing to the conversation. Leaning around for a better view, he realized that the little fairy had fallen asleep draped across Link's shoulder, one arm dangling down his tunic front.
Link followed his gaze and smiled softly at the sight, lowering his voice. "Yeah, I figured. How do you get from here to there without ending up in a lava pit, exactly?" His eyes were starting to droop farther as well, and he paused to yawn.
Sheik also dropped to a soft murmur, unconsciously re-wrapping his thumb as he worked on how to explain. "Once the magic is unleashed it will carry you in any direction until it is depleted without the right focus. One must know their destination, feel it with their soul and senses as a tangible thing and force it to become true." He shook his head helplessly. "That is the best I can phrase it, I am afraid."
"Mmm, makes sense though." Link's eyes had drifted closed, his voice a soft mumble.
His next words were too low for Sheik to understand, and he leaned in closer. "What did you say, Hero?"
One blue eye cracked open a fragment, looking into his own. "We never talked about it."
"Oh." The statement was familiar, but for several seconds Sheik could not place its value. His eyes narrowed as he searched his mind for the memory, and then widened not a second after, a tingling spreading across his nose. Oh.
During the pause Link's other eye had opened, his face growing more concerned. "Sheik-"
"I suppose," He overrode whatever hesitant statement the hero was about to make, letting their eyes meet evenly, "That we will be forced to speak again to cover that subject." He let Link search his gaze, feeling wretched but refusing to let it show.
Eventually fatigue won out and Link nodded, closing his eyes with a hint of a smile. "That sounds nice."
Sheik looked away, something in him ripping in two. "It does." Silently, he picked up the empty water pouches. "I am going to refill your water outside; this room is secure." Link hummed softly in reply and the Sheikah stole silently from the room.
When he returned Link had already entered a deep slumber, breathing slow and even. He set the water down and looked over the hero's hunched position, hesitating before bending down and lifting Link's legs onto the bench. He nudged the sleeping Navi with one finger as he had seen before, smiling when she crawled into his hand without ever opening her eyes. His free arm wrapped around Link's back, coaxing him away from the wall to lie back instead. Link mumbled something unintelligible but complied, although Sheik had to remove himself quickly to stop the hero from using his injured hand as a pillow.
Satisfied, he eased Navi from his hand and onto the green clad chest, then stepped back. For a few moments he merely took in the peace of the scene, but soon the guilt became too much and he turned away. "Next time." The whisper came without his consent or notice as he walked again from the temple.
And may he never know it is the last.
