Ch.28-I'm calling it dinner

So...Fanfic is being bitchy to me and being slow and mean and shit like that. :/

But anyway, enough about that...I updated! :D It's been like a month and a few days? Sorry, guys, got a little bit...out of this story for a bit and I was waiting patiently for more reviews for the previous chapter. *shrugs* I normally don't update with 2 of them, but whatever.

Anyway...ummm... :/ Yeah I think that's all I gotta say. :3

I don't own Zelda. ):

Please Read and Review. :)


The Haunted Wasteland was an extensive desert that reminded Impa of Lanaryu with the vast expanse of sand spreading out into the distance.

Poles with red flags attached to the top were seen in the background and the Sheikah supposed that they were there to help travelers through the wasteland; a constant wind was blowing, kicking up sand so that it was hard to see but one could still see several yards in front of them.

Zelda stopped at the entrance to the desert, staring at the small ditch in front of her; the ditch had sand sliding down the sides, a box halfway protruding from the ground in the middle.

"Oh, man, I forgot about this…" Zelda muttered, pulling out an arrow and tossing it into the shallow trench, watching as the shaft was quickly swallowed. "Link used the hover boots to get across…ugh, man, I'm stupid!"

Zelda slapped her forehead.

"I should have brought them or the longshot…now how am I gonna get across?"

Impa looked at the ditch, observing the space between where they stood and the other side, before she silently began to cross the gap.

Zelda glanced up, watching Impa traverse the gulch, with wide eyes.

"Wait, what are you—"

The Sheikah made it to the opposite side and gazed back at Zelda who scowled at her in frustration.

"That's great for you, but what about me?!"

Impa returned to where Zelda stood, looking at the Hylian calmly.

"Your Grace, I may have an idea as to how you may cross."

Zelda stared at the Sheikah skeptically, raising an eyebrow as she crossed her arms.

"Okay…"

"If your touch turns me corporeal, why should the opposite not be possible?"

Zelda appeared surprised by Impa's suggestion, her arms almost dropping to her side, briefly glancing at the gap beside her.

"You mean, it might be possible to turn me intangible?"

"Theoretically."

"You're not sure?"

"It would be my first time attempting such a thing," Impa said patiently, waiting for Zelda to make up her mind.

Zelda looked apprehensive, but she slowly nodded.

"Okay, let's try it."

Without asking, or waiting for Zelda's permission, the Sheikah grabbed her hand and began to lead Zelda cross the trench.

Zelda kept a strong grip on Impa's hand, staring at the shore on the opposite side so she wouldn't look down and panic.

"Okay, Your Grace," Impa murmured, looking at Zelda. "You can release my hand now."

"Oh," Zelda quickly let go of the Sheikah's hand, not realizing that they had already crossed.

"We should continue," Impa said, already starting to walk. "It gets cold in a desert during the night. It would be best to reach our destination before the sun sets."

"Right," Zelda nodded and followed after Impa, her hand still tingling slightly from the Sheikah's touch.


A sandstorm had decided to brew the moment they were almost halfway through the desert.

The poles with the flapping scraps of red cloth disappeared in the violently swirling sand and the two could barely see a foot in front of them.

"We have to find those poles again!" Zelda shouted over the howling wind, her arms in front of her face to try and keep the sand out of her eyes and mouth. "They'll lead us to a Poe that will take us to the spirit temple!"

"Why can we not just keep going straight?" Impa asked, the storm affecting even her. "If we try to maintain a straight path, we should reach the deepest part of the desert."

"If you don't find the Poe, you will be lost in the desert forever. It's called the 'Haunted' Wasteland for a reason!"

Impa looked around, trying to discern anything that looked like a marker.

She saw something faintly in the distance that appeared to be red.

"I found a marker, Your Grace!" the Sheikah pointed in the direction of the discovered marker. "We should go to it and stay put until the storm passes!"

Impa glanced beside her when she didn't hear Zelda's reply and looked around when she couldn't see the blonde beside her.

"Your Grace! Where are you?"

Impa took a few steps to either side, moving her arms out to the sides in an attempt to see if she could feel Zelda anywhere nearby.

"Zelda!"

The Sheikah gave up searching for Zelda, realizing if she got any further, she would risk getting even more lost.

Impa turned around and began to head toward the red flag she saw, hoping Zelda had discovered the same thing and had already gone to the marker.

As she neared the marker, Impa noticed that there was another one parallel to it as if marking the entrance to something.

She took another step forward and almost stumbled when her foot went lower than expected.

Frowning slightly, the Sheikah took another step forward, her other foot dropping even lower than the first.

Stairs.

Cautiously, Impa continued down the steps, which by the sound of her footsteps, were made of some sort of stone; she wasn't quite sure where the stairs lead or who would even build a structure in the middle of a desolate desert.

Faint light filtered through the small cracks in the rock ceiling and what appeared to be a window to the left was tightly boarded up.

It was small, probably only made to fit about twenty people. It looked like a bunker, something for travelers or possibly the Gerudo to stop by when they were tired.

Impa glanced around, but found no sign that Zelda, or anyone, had been in the bunker for several years.

Sitting down near a wall, Impa drew her legs to her chest and rested her chin on her knees as she wrapped her arms around her legs; she felt quite childish sitting in such a position, remembering that the last time she had sat like that had been shortly after Hylia had taken her in.


It had been a few months since the fire, but the now five-year-old Impa had forgotten almost all about it.

She sat in the middle of a clearing, watching several Hylian kids her age play with a ball.

She had, several minutes earlier, come over and politely ask them if she could play with them as well.

However, the children had all stared at her suspiciously the moment she approached and declined her request, saying that they didn't want to play with the demon-eyed girl.

"They're not demon eyes…" the Sheikah muttered, staring at the laughing kids moodily, tightening her grip around her legs. "They're not."

"What aren't?"

Impa looked up sharply with a gasp, noticing Hylia standing beside her.

"Your Grace!"

Hylia calmly waved a hand when the Sheikah made to stand, silently telling her to remain where she was.

She glanced over at the children who had stopped playing and were staring at the Goddess in awe.

"Please, continue."

A few of the kids looked at each other before they shrugged and the group resumed their activity.

Hylia gazed down at Impa, tilting her head slightly.

"Why are you not playing with them?"

"They don't wanna play with me," the Sheikah responded glumly. "They called me demon eyes…"

Hylia chuckled softly, "I think your eyes are beautiful."

Upon hearing that, Impa blushed in embarrassment and glanced off to the side.

"You're just saying that…"

Hylia knelt down beside Impa.

"Impa, do you know what that ruby gem signifies?"

The Sheikah slowly looked at the Goddess and shook her head.

"The gem symbolizes beauty, dignity, happiness, love, and passion. Your eyes, much like the gem, signify those. They are not the eyes of a demon or something bad; certainly, there are creatures with such eyes, but you are human. Don't let anyone tell you that you are not."

Impa thought about what Hylia said before she gradually smiled.

"Okay!"

The Goddess smiled gently in return.

"Now…" she stood up and held out her hand for the Sheikah to take. "Let's see about finding a game for just the two of us to play."


Impa looked up with a slight start, glancing around.

As she stood up, the Sheikah idly rubbed at her temple.

It appeared as if the daydream-like memories were becoming a habit.

Impa exited the underground structure, coming out into the calm, scorching desert; the sandstorm appeared to have ceased a while ago.

Following the now visible poles with red flags, Impa was lead to a platform where a strange floating creature waited.

The Sheikah suspected this creature, holding a lantern, must have been the Poe that Zelda mentioned.

The Poe began to float away and Impa followed after it, assuming that it would probably lead her to where Zelda was.


As soon as she had entered the area, the Poe had vanished with a strange chuckle.

At the far end of the desert was a temple with an oasis to the far west of it and another oasis even further back.

Was this the place that Zelda had wanted to visit?

Impa slowly began to walk forward, looking for the princess.

If so, where was she?

As she got closer to the temple, Impa noticed someone crouching by the oasis and gradually came closer to them.

"…Your Grace?"

Zelda glanced over her shoulder at the Sheikah and grinned.

"Oh, there you are! I was wondering where you disappeared to!"

"How did you—" Impa started, but Zelda interrupted her, holding something up for the Sheikah to see as she straightened.

"Look what I found! I think this is the last thing!"

"An Ancient Flower…" Impa said softly as she gazed at the plant while Zelda also admired it. "How did it survive this long?"

"I dunno, but isn't it pretty?" Zelda carefully placed the Ancient Flower in the pouch Nabooru had given her to hold food and a small water flask. "But wait…if I remember correctly…"

Zelda looked around.

"There's supposed to be this other desert creature that's also survived…"

Impa also glanced around, not quite sure what exactly Zelda was talking about.

She paused when she spotted a creature nearby, idly walking in no particular direction.

It was old, its normally red exoskeleton a pale pink and the upright, antennae-like appendages drooping with age, but the Sheikah still recognized the large arthropod creature.

An Ampilus.

Impa was about to tell Zelda they needed to get to the temple before the blonde noticed the Ampilus, but just as she was about to open her mouth, Zelda shouted, "Hey, look, I think I found it!"

The Ampilus's gold eyes turned toward them, antennae pricking up slightly, before it withdrew into its shell and began whirling toward the duo, electricity sparking.

Zelda stopped for a moment, not quite sure how to react to the Ampilus's choice of attack.

Impa pushed Zelda toward the temple.

"Temple, now. Go!"

Zelda wasted no time in running toward the temple, Impa beside her.

"What is that thing?" Zelda asked.

"An Ampilus, a creature from my time," the Sheikah explained calmly. "I had heard they could live for eons, much like a Moldarach, but I never suspected this long…"

"Well, that's great!" Zelda said breathlessly, still somehow remaining sarcastic. "But how do we kill it?! It's like a rolling electric ball of doom!"

"Yes, they can produce electricity internally…" the Sheikah murmured, mentally struggling to remember the Ampilus's weakness.

She had never killed one herself as she had avoided them when she had been with Her Grace.

However, she had observed the Hero kill a few, through trial and error (and sometimes running away like a coward especially during the first few times he had faced them).

"A shield…or something hard. If it rams into something sturdy, it will become dazed long enough to dispose of it."

"Hmm…" Zelda glanced round and her eyes landed on the area beside the temple's entrance. "Ohh…"

Impa skidded to a halt when Zelda abruptly split from her side, heading toward the temple's right side.

"Your Grace, where are you going?!"

Zelda just grinned as she slipped the bow off her shoulder, holding it by her side as she flipped up the cap she had made for the quiver to prevent the arrows from falling out if she flipped over.

As she neared the wall, Zelda jumped up and, using her momentum, darted up the wall as high as she could.

When the Ampilus crashed into the wall seconds later, getting thrown back slightly from the collision, Zelda flipped over the desert monster and landed a few feet behind it.

Impa stared at Zelda in mild surprise, the princess also appearing amazed at what she had just accomplished.

"Ha!" Zelda suddenly pointed at the sky. "Told ya I could do it, Sheik! You owe me 100 rupees!"

The Sheikah relaxed slightly, shaking her head a bit at Zelda's performance, before glancing at the Ampilus.

"Your Grace!" she warned when she noticed the Ampilus was gradually beginning to shake itself out of its stupor.

"Oh, right," Zelda opened the quiver and went to the Ampilus's side, rapidly firing two arrows into the creature's skull.

The Ampilus squealed and fell limp, but just to make sure it was dead, Zelda shot it with another arrow.

As Impa came closer to Zelda, the blonde cautiously poked the lifeless Ampilus with the tip of her bow.

Zelda glanced at Impa with a grin.

"Guess who just got dinner."


So, are we all agreed that Ampilus shall now be dubbed 'Rolling Electric Balls of Doom'? :3 Cause I am.

Also, I am quite enjoying my mental image of kid Impa. xD

Sorry about the errors, yada yada yada you all know the drill :3

Anyway...let's get to the two reviews, shall we? :3

GhiraLinkLover4Ever: Poker is fun, huh? But so is Blackjack. I suppose I could have done that huh? :/ But Poker is slightly easier and more fun xD Yeah the honorary Gerudo initiation thing will not end as well as you think xD

Pablojcd: Why thank you xD I always love to see new reviewers! :D Oh, yeah, you'll see that near the end. xD It might be as hilarious as you are imaging it, but it might not. xD Haven't decided yet. *evil grin*

Anyway...please Read and Review. :3