Lost In Termina

by HylianWolfos94

Fifty years after the Moonfall, Termina had become a land of peace. However, a dark secret has been brewing amidst the shadows that lay hidden across the land... And now, even the Great Fairies' lives are at stake! But, when a Hyrulean deku girl thief gets pulled from her world and meets an outgoing Terminian deku boy, they may be Termina's only hope during this oncoming dark time.

14. A Smack to the Face

-
Chapter 14

A Smack To The Face.

Resting on a throne of victim's bones, the dragalfos leader leaned over, appearing to be sick. He looked down upon a few lizalfos weakly, snarling as he did. "What do you want...?"
"Sir, how're you feeling?" the lizard asked weakly.
"How do you think I'm feeling...? I wasted all my power to summon those nejiron! And yet, those brats are still kicking!" The Dragalfos slammed his weakened fist down. "Now I need another energy source, and I've still got those no good scrubs to deal with."
"Actually, your leadership. We found another energy source. I don't know why we never thought of this one before..."
The dragalfos seemed to perk up. He sat up slowly, eyes widening as he did. "Oh?"
The lizalfos gave a devilish grin. "And I think you'll be pleased with this one. Soon, your Fairy's Orb will be filled with new energy again. Since the Fairy is locking her power away from you, a mortal may be you next bet..."

Pamela's House

It was hours since Iris had woken up and found Jace was outside. Of course by now, Iris had moseyed back inside and out of the hot sun to relax in Pamela's house. She was currently down in the basement helping Pamela with work...
"Iris? Could you give me my notebook please?" Pamela asked as she read through one of her many books.
Iris twitched a leaf. "Notebook?" She gazed around and she stood on the tips of her feet to look over the table she stood next too. "You mean this blue book?"
Pamela nodded as she looked up briefly. Iris handed her the book upon the request.
One of her leaves twitched again when she heard the front door open and close upstairs, which was followed by a frustrated, "Stupid rock, of all the-..." She looked up the staircase when Jace came walking down.
"Hey uh, Ms. Pamela?" Jace asked.
She popped her head out of her book and looked to the boy. "Yes?"
Jace scratched the back of his head. "Do you have a sewing kit I could borrow?"
"I sure do! Give me a moment and I'll get that for you." Pamela put her book down soon after, being sure to put a bookmark in her place. Iris tilted her head and puzzled why Jace would ask for that? Pamela dug through some clutter on her work desk, before handing him a box.
"Thanks!" Jace kindly took the box before walking upstairs. And Iris- being nosey, followed while she asked, "What do you need that for?"
"My vest ripped on a rock. I've gotta fix it real quick... I shouldn't have been so reckless." Jace sat down on the couch as he replied. Iris looked over him and at the vest. The rip wasn't even big! If anything, if he wouldn't have been holding the tear, she wouldn't have noticed it.
"... It's not even that big, why worry?" Iris shrugged.
"Because, it's a tear, and tears grow." Jace responded.
Iris added, "It's just a vest, you could probably find a nicer one in Clocktown anyway."
Jace dug through the tangled threads. "No, this could never be replaced. It's not just some vest. My dad gave this to me."
"Oh." Iris quietly hummed as she rubbed her arm.
Jace looked up at Iris- as she, accidentally, was literally hanging over him and watching. "Um, Iris?"
"... Huh?" Iris responded.
"Could you, perhaps, move a little? You're in my light." Jace deemed her actions as cute, but he was intent on fixing the vest.
She jumped, realizing she was hovering. "Oh-uh- Yeah. Sorry." she moved before beginning to walk away entirely. This made Jace look up from where he sat, pondering as she walked away.
"I didn't say you had to leave." Jace smiled softly.
"... Oh, okay." Iris stopped and found herself hesitantly walking back and sitting down next to him and watching. She would've been lying if she said she didn't want to be around him. It seemed after all that's happened for the past few days, she enjoyed his company greatly- even if he did get on her nerves sometimes. Jace had noticed that after a while, she began to act differently around him as well. She wasn't pushing him away as much. He didn't want to say anything, though. He feared she would start doing it again. He rather enjoyed this new side of her.

Skits seemed to be enjoying the break from their travel. He was asleep on the arm of the couch, puffed up.
"I didn't know you could sew." Iris crossed her arms.
Jace laughed, "Eh, I'm not perfect… It'll probably turn out horrible, haha..."
"... Looks okay to me so far." Iris commented.
Jace shrugged. "Could be better." He paused. "Speaking of being better! How're you feeling since your fall yesterday?"
Iris twitched a leaf. "Huh? Oh, much better now. Thanks to you for saving my sorry behind."
Jace's face flushed at her comment. "Your voice still sounds a little wheezy, though."
"Yeah, but I've got my energy back. I'm surprised how fast I got back up on my feet!" Iris smirked.
Jace chuckled. He tied the thread together as he finished. "Now presenting my sloppy sewing."
Iris couldn't help but notice that it was a bit sloppy, though it was thanks to him pointing it out. But Iris couldn't have done better herself. "It's not that bad."
Jace sighed and he placed the vest back on. He was still a little bummed that his father's vest had been ripped.
"You going back out to dig?" Iris asked.
"Eh, no. I couldn't find anything. And there's nothing to do out there except watch redeads and gibdos bump into each other." Him saying that made Iris laugh. She pictured it, and it was a funny image!
"You really don't like to stay in one place for long, do you?" Iris asked.
Jace responded after some thought. "No, not really. I'm so used to being on the move constantly."
"That makes sense." Iris nodded.
Jace found himself growing silent as he looked around the room, before spotting his sword leaning against the wall. An idea suddenly struck him. "Hey... Wanna train again?"
"Wha-? You can't train right now... Not with your condition." Iris raised an eyebrow.
Jace laughed, "I can't even feel the cut anymore." He sort of lied. "You said you were feeling okay too, so why not? Unless you're chicken you'll lose to me...?"
"Oh don't start this." Iris rolled her eyes. "I just refuse to listen to you when you start complaining 'My side hurts...'..."
The blond deku boy simply smirked. "I don't complain."
"Sure you don't." Came her sarcastic response. Iris found herself glancing at her sword soon after.
"You're not going to get any better unless you train, Iris." Jace added.
Iris knew that was true, but she hated it when he was right. "You're not afraid of me letting go of the sword?"
He did dread the chances, but he had faith in her. "Not really."

"... C'mon, pleeeeaaaase?" He joked around as he leaned in on his 'Please'. He leaned his face into hers, which was much too close for her comfort.
Iris snarled a little as she leaned back. "Move your face before I put my fist there." she then pressed her hand to his his face and pushed him away. She added once he was a comfortable distance from her. "Fine! You're on! But don't you go on whining when I beat your tail!"
His eyes widened at her challenging reply. What was THIS he was seeing? "I could say the same about you." he offered a cocky expression before smirking his typical smirk.
Iris walked downstairs and called, "We're going outside to train, just in case you're wondering where we are."
Pamela laughed. "Okay."
Iris grabbed her sword after running across the room for it. "Alright lover-boy... Let's go so I can show you how a real butt-kicking happens."
He gave an audible, "OOoohhh!" whilst he nabbed his sword from next to the wall. He followed her outside, excited to see where this side of her will lead them… She seems to be getting a bit more comfortable.

Skits gave an "Oh crap, I better make sure they don't get in trouble" expression and followed them outside.
Iris pulled the new-looking sword out of its scabbard. She had to admit, it was light, but was easier to hold onto than the old ones she used back at Jace's place.
"Careful, these are newer and sharper. So handle with care." Jace warned. Iris offered a nod to acknowledge his words, and he added on- "So, are you ready?"
Iris nodded again "Yeah."
"Okay, be ready to block, we'll work on that first."

Iris was surprised when he sent in a swing. Not a hard or fast one, but she wasn't expecting to start so quick. She reacted by colliding her blade to his and knocking it away. Jace jumped back and swung again from another direction. she blocked again sloppily- though it still worked, so that was good enough for her.
Jace was wary of his wound and honestly didn't want Iris scolding him for doing something reckless, so he held back the urge to move and jump a lot. He swung from over head and caught Iris by surprise. She only flinched and closed her eyes, gripping and lowering her sword in fear. She looked up, and saw he'd stopped far above her before moving away.
"And you're now dead." Jace grunted. "You can't flinch like that, it'll get you killed in a fight. Foes wont stop till their weapons have tasted your blood. My dad told me that exact same thing, and it's very true."
"I know." Iris responded with her leaves lowered...
Jace continued and repositioned himself. "Clear your mind of everything, and stay focused on your foe."
'It's not very hard for me to stay focused on you…' her thoughts rang as she blushed a slight. She then held the sword out, copying Jace as she did. "I'll try."
Jace threw in a low swing, of which Iris sloppily used her sword to counter-attack. Jace smirked at this boldness of hers. They both were standing, holding their blades at the collided position, pushing each other. Iris looked as if she'd won by the look on her face and she was actually pushing Jace back! This show of strength took him by surprise and he realized he couldn't go as easy on her as he planned for this. Jace threw his blade up when she was distracted, and threw her sword out of her hand. Jace caught it. "Stay focused babe!" he teased.
"Don't call me babe!" She snatched the sword out of his hand when he offered it back.
Jace came from the side of her with another swing. Iris reacted with a pretty smooth block, and she shoved the blade away.
"Hey Iris?"
"What?" Iris responded as she blocked another.
Jace thrusted the blade forward enough for her to block. "Um… I'm sorry for all I had said yesterday… What did you think I was saying?"
"Huh?" Iris thought for a moment, and seemed confused.
Jace pulled his hand back. "Y'know, our fight yesterday..."
"That you were insinuating that I wasn't good with a sword and that you couldn't trust me." Iris cut her eyes as she blocked another that was aimed above her.
"I never said you weren't good... You're doing excellent for a beginner." Jace easily blocked one swing she sent.
Iris grunted, "Eh- Yeah? Then explain!"
"You being good enough to fight on your own... I mean- You're very good, but I would never let you take on a dragalfos alone. You've got a lot to learn, I don't want you getting hurt. But don't get me wrong, you're good, and so far, you're showing really great potential."
"Well… Thank you…" she felt a bit bad for having started that fight yesterday...
Jace responded. "Nah, I should've chosen my words right."

Jace swung again. Iris crouched down and dodged the light swing. Iris hardly even used her sword for his attacks now and mainly just dodged by moving out of the way, of which she was doing a pretty fancy job with. Iris focused on the blade in his hand, before he sent a fairly quicker swing at her. Out of reflex, she gave an unexpected backflip out of his way. She landed firmly on her feet as her leaves bounced with her landing. This caught him off guard and he found himself staring wide eyed, before his form melted a little from it's stern position. '... Like an angel.'
"Where're you hiding those wings?" He joked. "Even I can't believe how quick you've gained your strength back. And I still can't get over the fact that you can pull off a backflip."

"There's a lot I can do that you're not aware of." she smirked and glanced at him from the side of her eye.
Jace looked her over as he crossed his arms and leaned on the sword with his elbow. "Yeah? Like what?"
"I have a knack for taking things without people knowing." Iris replied before she winked.
Jace seemed to tilt his head when she winked. She raised her hand to show off the familiar orange ponytail she held onto and shook it. The confused blond boy turned quickly, and reached back to feel that his feather grass leaves were down. He turned to face her again, with his eyes cut and his eye brow lifted. "... How'd you do that? When did you do that!?"
"And you were telling me to focus on the enemy...?" Iris laughed, ignoring his question.
"But... How did you-?" Jace asked again.
Iris laughed, "Just comes naturally."
The boy stood up straight, before giving an amused smirk. "Can I have it back now?"
Iris seemed to stare at the ponytail in thought, before glancing at him. "... Nah. I think I'll hang onto it."
"Oh really now?" Jace could now see where she got her Hyrule nickname, Trickster-Deku. Now he was sure of it, this is her true side showing.
The autumn leaved deku girl put the ponytail around her wrist. "You've been giving me lessons. I think it's time I gave you one."
"You're going to give me lessons?" Jace laughed.
Iris nodded. "You're good on your feet, but it seems you always rely on a weapon in most situations." To Jace, getting a lesson from her just seemed off. "So... If you want this ponytail back, you'll have to get it back yourself. And by that, I mean without throwing any attacks at all and without the need of your sword."
"I'll accept that challenge." He chuckled. "This'll be easy." Just like that, he ran toward her, but was shocked when she'd moved out of his way so quickly.

He twisted around -Keeping wound still in mind and continued trying to grab the ponytail. Iris ducked, moved, leaned- everything she did only caused him to swipe air.
"I feel like an idiot doing this." Jace admitted.
"You look like an idiot the way your doing it." Iris responded with a laugh. "You don't even know what you're doing."
Jace grunted when he thought he had it. "Of course I don't, I've never had to do this before."
"You don't know when you will be put in this situation in the future, though. Think about it; Some enemy will swipe your sword, and you'll need to get it back while avoiding being attacked or being noticed." Iris added.
He jumped forward and tried swiping his hand towards it, of which Iris simply rose her arm and caused him to miss again.

A victorious smile captivated Jace's face when he finally grabbed her wrist, but she only shook her head and waved the other wrist. "Wrong one." She'd switched them sometime when he was trying to catch it before. He groaned in frustration, before jumping to grab her other wrist. A joyous laugh escaped her when she jumped out of his reach. "You need to try harder."
Jace smirked and laughed, before he finally threw his reach one more time. Jace finally had it, but due to a mistake, Iris jumped back just when Jace had pulled the ponytail, her not even knowing he had ahold of it. This action cause them both to topple over, Iris landing over him.
"Oof!" Jace released his breath heavily, feeling a sting in his side.
Iris gasped before lifting herself to her hands and knees as she looked over him. "I'm so sorry, are you okay!?"
Jace held his side with one hand and grunted, "I'm good."
Iris continued to look over him. "Are you sure? Maybe we should just sit back and take a break? I knew it wasn't a good idea to come out here and train, with you and your side, I-"

Iris went on as Skits flew over to check up on them. He landed on her head. This action, however, caused her head to lower from Skits' weight and pushed their snouts together completely. Their leaves both bristled in unison and a chill ran over them.
Iris stared wide eyed and was a little dazed from the action. Such a rushed feeling swept over her so quickly, it made it hard for her to really be able to catch up and realize what just happened- Or why she was suddenly kissing Jace! Jace, on the other hand, had a look on his face that clearly showed he was shocked. His eyes were wide and they stared into each other's dumbfounded eyes, not knowing that Skits was the one to make her do that. His heart pounded so hard, he'd have thought it'd have pounded straight out of his chest. His mind raced so fast, he couldn't even catch a thought to think. All he knew was that it felt so heavenly and perfect. The stinging in his side was now completely unnoticed by him. The only thing he could feel were his swirling emotions, feeling as if the world around them had stopped to stare. She was pretty much kissing him!

Iris didn't take long to come to reality, and slowly moved away from the touch of his snout to hers. Her eyes were wide and she stammered lowly. Skits still sat atop her head and he threw his face into his wing, feeling stupid.
Jace only blinked and stared, taking deep breaths to make up for the time he'd spent holding his breath. Incoherent words escaped him.
The dumbstruck deku girl rose her hand to move her leaves out of her face. Her face had gone red of embarrassment, as did Jace's.
Skits flew off with a look that said "Iris is gonna kill me!"

Iris looked down, as his ponytail was still around her wrist. Actually, both their hands were in it. She pulled away shyly and the ponytail remained around her wrist, as her once shy and nervous self returned. His hand slipped out of the ponytail, but he just stared.
He stumbled dumbly to his feet silently as he watched her walk away, before sighing. 'Why did it have to end...?' He thought.
Iris stopped a ways off. She glared at Skits- who was hiding in a tree.
"What do you think you were doing!?" She called, still blushing.
Skits lowered his body in an "I don't know..." manner.
Jace shook off his happy-dreamy feelings to notice she didn't sound thrilled at all, and wondered why she was yelling at Skits. "H-hey... Why're you yelling at him?"
Iris froze at his voice, before looking as if she was shocked. She had no idea how to talk to Jace as of now. She refused to even look at him! He face ran hotter than before and she hunkered into her shoulders. She gulped. "I-We-... I didn't mean too kiss you!" Iris suddenly blurted. She looked down, feeling as dumb as possible for even saying kiss.

Jace blinked. Now he was confused. "What do you mean?" He asked with a smirk.
"Skits- he landed on my head, and I- well, he-. While I was checking on you when we fell." Iris lowered her leaves.
The blond deku boy suddenly shook his head, trying to understand what she just said. "Okay. Skits landed on your head, and pushed your head down?"
Iris seemed to stare out from under her leaves, and nodded. Jace only laughed. "Don't be mad at him. He didn't mean too."
Iris sighed. Jace added smugly, "Plus, I know you enjoyed it~!" That comment earned him a hard whack on the back of the head from Iris. His sensitive leaves made this painful! Though he laughed shortly after his exclamation.
"NO! I didn't!" Iris responded in a shout. It was convincing! But truth be told. She did like it... She'd just felt so stupid admitting it, even to herself.
Jace crossed his arms after rubbing his head where she'd hit him. "So, do you even like me?" Just to give her a hard time.
"No!" 'Wait. What did he mean by that? What kind of like was he implying?' "Yes-er no!... I like you as a friend. I-I don't LIKE like you..."
Jace only shook his head and laughed. "Chill out. I'm only messing with you."
Iris stood in a pose that clearly showed she was angry, but she held back the urge to complain and just groaned. She soon said, "Well. About that-uh. What happened before, It meant nothing. So don't be looking forward to another!"

"That's disappointing. Whatever, just once was enough to make me the happiest guy alive." Jace replied.
Iris rolled her eyes. "Training's over. I'm going back in, it's too hot out here anyway." Iris made up the excuse and she grabbed her sword.
"You don't mind taking my rucksack and sword in with you, do you?" Jace asked.
"You're staying out here?" Iris asked. Jace simply nodded.

"... Sure. What the hey." Iris picked up the blade a ways off and put it back in the scabbard and grabbed his rucksack. She soon headed for the door on Pamela's house, grudgingly motioning Skits to follow.
Jace stifled a laugh, as he said "Iris...?"
She turned back to him with a cold glance. He put his hand to his snout and blew her a teasing kiss "Mwa." This caused Iris to grab his ponytail off her wrist and throw it at his face frustratedly.
"Thank you for giving me my ponytail back, finally." He added.
She turned back to the door with a flushed face and slammed the door when she walked in.
He stood in place for a moment, before jumping, completely forgetting about his side-... Again. "WHOOoo!!" He stared at the sky. "Did I have a near-death experience!? Because for a brief moment there, I thought I saw an angel in the heavens! I was kissed by an angel! And it was wonderfu- No! It was PERFECT~!" Jace went on as he paced each step toward the cave he was working in earlier.

Iris stood behind the door, staring into space. After she stared for a long while with glared-eyes, her expression softened after she thought on it… But… What made her think on it in the first place? "That was... Sweet." She muttered finally, feeling relieved to admit it.
Skits rolled his eyes as he flew off with a look on his face that said "Glad I did ya' a favor..."
Iris' eyes widened when she saw Pamela in the kitchen ahead with her back turned. Pamela asked. "How'd training go?"
"Wonderful..." Iris responded, feeling shaky and stupefied.
"Where's Jace at, is he not coming in?" Pamela added in question.
Iris shook her head No. "Uh- No. He's staying out for now..."
"That's too bad. Do you need me to get you anything? You look shaken up."
Iris nodded Yes. "So-some water would be nice..."
"Okay." Pamela replied.

Hours had soon passed. Since then, Iris did everything she could to try and forget what happened. She was afraid Jace would probably hang that over her head for the rest of the journey.
Iris was downstairs with Pamela as of now while she worked on one of her researches. Iris soon looked up and twitched a leaf when she heard a sudden faint noise outside. It sounded almost like a crash.
"What is it, Iris?"
"... I heard something..." Iris looked at Skits, and he shrugged. "I'll be back." Iris finished, looking back at Pamela while the deku girl headed upstairs. She peeked her head up. "Jace, are you inside?" No one was here. Everything suddenly grew quiet. Jace sure had been out for a long time... Iris really couldn't help but get the urge to check on him. She opened the front door and went to walk behind the house to face the cave Jace was examining before. "Jace, are you still... Here...?" She came to stop when she caught sight of the many fallen redeads and gibdos. She wasn't really sure if they could be killed, though, since technically, they were already dead. The ground looked as if a battle had taken place. She didn't hesitate to run inside the cave. "Jace!?"

Iris stopped when she saw the four dead dragalfos warriors on the cave floor. Iris froze in fear. Terror filled her thoughts as she noticed Jace was missing, and she knew he'd been the one to take down the dragalfos. Not many people knew about their head's weak spots. Iris knew they'd been killed this way because they had no outside injuries. She found herself falling into panic as she ran through the cave hoping maybe he was still here "Jace!? Jace!?" She looked behind every rock, nook, and cranny. It just happened, the dragalfos were just killed. Iris suddenly froze when she spotted the familiar tan animal pelt vest that belonged to Jace. It was stabbed into the wall of the cave by a large dagger with a note attached. It was just low enough for Iris to rip the dagger out- which took both hands thanks to its size.

The note slowly glided to her feet, and she shakily bent down to pick it up.

... "PAMELA!"
Pamela dropped a book she was holding as she jumped to look at the staircase, looking over the terrified deku scrub girl that stared back at her. Iris ran to her and handed her the note.
Pamela had no idea what this was about till she read the note. She remembered that Jace had explained some things to her last night involving the dragalfos. She was bent down so Iris could see.
"I don't understand..." Iris grumbled.
Pamela shook her head. "I know, this is terrible!"
"No, I really don't understand... I can't read Terminian..." Iris added.
"It says 'We've got the boy. If you want to see the boy alive once more, come get him at Ikana Castle. We'll be waiting. We wont wait long, so you better hurry, or it's death. Signed, Dragalfos Commander, Golin."
Iris about fell to her knees from shock. If this was true, she had to go up there. But what if it was a trap...? Why would they even do this...?
"For the love of Nayru, what am I going to do!? They'll pound me into the ground if I go! But I can't leave him there!" Iris began to spaz out. "I don't even know where Ikana Castle is! How do I get there!?" Iris asked Pamela.
Pamela tried calming Iris down. "Hold on, it's okay. When I brought you to my house, did you see the large stone gates at the far edge of the Canyon?"
"Yes! What about them!?" Iris replied frantically.
"Those are the gates to Ikana Castle, but y-"
"THANK YOU!" Iris high tailed it up stairs with Skits following.
Pamela stood, before giving chase. "Hold on! Let me finish! Iris!"

Ikana Castle

"YOU WORTHLESS NO GOOD UNDERLING!" An armored dragalfos yelled, grabbing a lizalfos by the neck and slamming him forcefully to the wall. "You screwed up the entire plan!"
The lizalfos gasped before staring wide eyed at the angry snarling dragalfos. "B-b-but sir! We couldn't find the girl..."
"That's why you look! Tear all of the village down if you have too!"
"Y-yes sir-!"
"NOT NOW! It's too late..."
Another cowering lizalfos, unable of full speech, gulped.
The one slammed to the wall added. "But I left a note, she's probably on her way right now... Then we will have her."
"And she'll be expecting an attack, and you even wrote the note out in my name! Why would the enemy leave a note indicating it was probably a trap!? And besides, the girl's the coward... She'd probably be too afraid to come up here... I'll need to go get her myself." He growled before throwing the lizalfos down back-first against the wall. "Never leave an unintelligent underling lizalfos to do a commanding dragalfos' work... The plan was we kidnap the girl, the boy comes, we kill the boy, and take the girl to the master."
"But why not just use the boy...? I'm sure it wont effect anything." The lizalfos asked.
"Because, we were specifically ordered to get the girl."
The poor-speeched lizalfos added in question. "And... Why we kill boy and not just leave him in dungeon? Or kill him when we found him? Or even just take girl and not worry about boy?"

"That's an interesting question. Why not just kill me when you found me? Or just worry about 'the girl' and leave me?" Jace added, tied to a poll. He found their mishap rather funny. "You know how cliche that is?" Jace paused, before he changed his voice to sound more girly. "Oh help me, I've been captured Jace! Oh-Wait no! Don't come save me, it's a trap, they'll kill you, AH!"
The dragalfos glared coldly, cutting its eyes in an unamused manner.
"Half y'alls brains must be mush, because I'd be expecting that before I even got to the gates... I think your little underlings made things more original to be honest, so they did you a favor."
The lizalfos grinned, before cowering at their commander's threatening glare. The commander looked back at Jace. "Don't get smart with me."
"I don't have to get smart. I'm already smart. You're just dumb. You probably couldn't find your way out of an empty cardboard box with its lid open."
The dragalfos slammed his fist at the wall next to Jace. "You've got quite a mouth for someone who could be snapped like a twig."
"Actually, It's a snout... But thank you." Jace smirked smugly, rather enjoying his time toying with the beast.
"While you're here throwing your insults, the girl's probably ditching you." The dragalfos smirked, flashing his disgusting yellowed and faded teeth.
Jace seemed to take on a serious and distressed look, before it quickly dropped to a laugh and smile. "I doubt it."
"Eh...?"
"She's not as cowardly as you think. I've seen what she could do, and quite honestly, she could kick your tail with her hands behind her back."
"Oh really? Last I heard, she hid in your shadow constantly." The dragalfos gave a roaring guffaw.
Jace chuckled, "Just you wait. She's probably busting through the gates right now."

Ikana Castle's Gates

Iris looked up at the large stone gates. They'd not been moved for ages. "I've lost already Skits."
Skits seemed to look around for an opening on the gate.

"Iris, hold up. I meant to tell you, the gates haven't been opened in a very long time." Pamela caught up with Iris.
"I can see that." Iris responded.
Pamela added, "It's hidden, but there's a hole in the wall somewhere around here." Pamela began to walk along the wall. "It used to be big, but there was an earthquake a few years ago. I'm not sure if it's still he- Oh! Found it!" Pamela grabbed some rocks and began moving them. Most of them were jammed together pretty tightly. "Ugh. Could you fit through there?"
Iris examined the hole, before gulping and nodding.
"I wish I could come and help you, I don't want to leave a deku scrub to face those giant monsters..." Pamela replied worriedly.
"N-nah. I'll be fine. I just need to stay h-hidden." Iris looked through the rocks and into the dark tunnel.
"On the other side is the Castle Yard. You be careful in there Iris. I've not been in there in a long time, but the dead still walks within these Castle walls."
Iris wished she hadn't mentioned it. "I'll do my best."
"Don't forget this. I'm sure Jace'll need it when you find him." Pamela handed Iris Jace's sword and scabbard. She had no choice but to wear both. It was rather heavy, but she dealt with it. Upon preparing, she then turned and crawled through the hole.
"Please come back safe." Pamela added.
Iris shuttered, and Skits flew through with her. She soon found herself stepping slowly through the tunnel till she reached the bright Castle Yard. Out front was a large torn and cracked walk way to the castle door way, of which on each side stood two large pillers. The castle was in ruins. It looked deserted so far, but this was where she was told to come. "Skits? Remember when I jumped off the side of the Dragalfos Fortress in Snowhead, and I told you to slap me next time I decide to do something crazy like that...? This was one of those moments."
Skits looked up as if responding with "You have a reason this time."
"Put on your brave face little buddy, we're going in..." Her tone made her sound ready, but in all honesty, every molecule was screaming for her to turn back. But her heart told her otherwise. She figured it was about time she listened to her heart.

To Be Continued...