Disclaimer: The Legend of Zelda, its characters and locations are all property of Nintendo, I'm merely borrowing them. (Though Ayla, Kaiza, Anaruteir, Terra, Vorpheus and Dr. Kaura are mine)
Warning: This story contains slash, shounen-ai, yaoi, whatever you call two guys falling in love.
Soul Mates
Chapter 55
"I told you, it is of no importance," Sheik said for what felt like the thousandth time. They were less than halfway to the main camp, and already Link was growing restless and asking Sheik incessant and—as he had just said—irrelevant questions.
"But I want to know what your favourite colour is," Link moaned, doing his best to make Sheik turn his head and look at him, but failing. "I think it's important…"
Sheik gritted his teeth, summoning all his willpower to stop himself from falling into Link's trap. Nothing would feel better than glaring at the juvenile Hero right now, but doing so would confirm Link's victory. He shook his head to himself, trying to concentrate on the liberating feeling of his hair swishing back and forth.
"Sheeeeeeeeeiiiiiiiik," whined the Hero, undoubtedly making his lower lip quiver and doing his best impression of a doe-eyed waif. "loooooook at meeeeeeee…"
"No," the Sheikah replied, keeping his eyes firmly fixed on the path. It may have been a small, rarely used wildlife track, but recent activities, such as an army on the move, had widened it considerably, and a lot of trees had been chopped down to feed the many campfires, resulting in what could only be described as a highroad. Deep wheel tracks ran along each side of the road, and rain water had accumulated in them. Because of the water, the road had turned muddy, and their progress was slow as both Maladict and Epona kept slipping or losing their foothold.
Why exactly this was happening to a horse that seemed to be able to create its own plane to run on, Sheik didn't know. He supposed Epona was doing so in solidarity with Maladict, trying to comfort the stud by letting him know he was not alone. He didn't know if Link knew yet, but it was obvious to Sheik that the equines were quite fond of each other.
Epona snorted, and Link was suddenly right beside him as the muddy parts of the road grew more along the sides and left the middle rather dry. The Hero was grinning at him, which did not bode well at all.
"Guess what?" Link asked. Even his voice was smug.
"What?" said Sheik, only turning his head the slightest to watch the Hero, who did not seem to able to sit still in his saddle. He truly could not fathom how Link could still possess the amount of energy he did, especially after being admitted to the field hospital for what was basically exhaustion. He supposed it had something to do with the many bottles of red potion he had consumed in order to be released by Kaura.
"I know something you don't," said Link. He cocked his head to the side. "What do you think it is?"
"Obviously, I would not know, Hero," replied Sheik smoothly as he did his best to stare at Link with his unseeing left eye. "And, frankly, I do not think I want to know…"
Link's smile faded a little, and Sheik regretted saying and doing what he did momentarily. But then a new, fiendish and somehow chilling grin found its way to Link's lips. "You've noticed something?" he asked slowly, his usually bright, blue eyes darkening.
Oh dear, what now? thought Sheik, feeling slightly alarmed. "I have not, Hero. What is it?" he asked, indeed noticing that something was amiss. What exactly it could be was beyond him. Was it appearance? No, they had both already seen what had happened while they were apart, and…
Oh no!
"You haven't called me by my name lately," the Hero finished. "I think that clearly calls for punishment."
Clearing his throat, Sheik shifted uncomfortably in his saddle. "And…just what kind of punishment would that be—"
He never had a chance to finish as Link had suddenly launched himself out of his saddle, flying at Sheik, knocking the shadow warrior down. They both hit the ground with miscellaneous "oofs" and "ows". Unfortunately, they had been walking across a particularly wet patch, and the mud loudly squelched as the two did their best disentangle from each other…or, at least one of them did.
Sheik groaned in annoyance, feeling the dirty water and wet soil soaking and staining his exoskeleton and tabard. Worst of all, his hair, which had almost just been washed and dried for the first time since who knew when, was being brought back to the state it had been in ever since the Spirit Temple. Link's chuckling was the final drop.
"Link…" he said slowly, feeling his temper rising as his hand sank into what had looked like a patch of dry ground, "why did you do that?"
"As I said, punishment was due," said the Hero. Sheik couldn't see him from the position he was lying in, but he knew Link was enjoying the impromptu mud bath immensely. Link, a child of the forest, apparently did not mind the horrible feeling of one's body being dirtied in the very worst way. Suddenly, Sheik felt strong hands grabbing his shoulders. Then he was flipped onto his back, and Link was kissing him passionately.
And Sheik now understood why Link had done what he did. As much as he enjoyed the feeling of the Hero's lips on his and the warmth of his body covering Sheik's, he could not ignore the feeling of the wet mud at his back, further soaking and soiling his clothes and hair.
When they finally parted, Link grinned down at him. "See what I did there?" he asked, his eyes gazing at him in a way that Sheik could only think of as lustful.
Blushing, the Sheikah nodded. "Sweet and sour?" he asked tentatively.
Link nodded. "Exactly. I know you like being kissed, but I know how much you hate mud…" He realised he did not need to explain and leant down again, continuing his assault on Sheik's mouth.
Oh, goddesses…why won't he stop? Sheik thought as Link's tongue finally gained entrance and started duelling with his own. Who was he kidding? He loved this…but the Hero had actually found a way to combine it with something he disliked so strongly that it cancelled out much of said enjoyment.
Stupid Link…
"This is your fault," said Sheik, his form shivering as yet another icy wind blew across them. Obviously, the Hero of Time had not considered the ramifications of getting his lover wet and cold, and he was wisely keeping his mouth shut, only saying something when agreeing with Sheik.
"Yeah, I know," replied Link remorsefully.
Maladict and Epona seemed to share a knowing look before they both snorted in what seemed to be laughter, as if sharing a joke about the follies of human lovers.
Sheik wasn't truly angry at Link. After all, he had been the one to break their agreement on first-name basis when talking to each other, but there were so many other ways to get one's point across without having to resort soaking your significant other in mud.
There had been something quite positive with the experience, though, and Sheik had noted this with surprise. He had not imagined it being Speil holding him down and kissing him this time. But this presented another problem, namely that of how the shadow would react to all this. Had Sheik fallen for both of them equally?
I'm in a bloody mess…
His mood lightened considerably when they spied the first of the tunnels that would lead them to the Sacred Forest Meadow. They were not far off, now, and they had gotten there rather quickly despite detours and…other things.
Link took the lead through the tunnels, which seemed to have been purposefully designed (by whom? The Kokiri? The Deku Tree?) to confuse whoever went through it. But that was not all. It felt like someone was watching them, waiting for them to take a single misstep and leap upon them.
I think I know who it is, Sheik thought and looked into the shadows, expecting to see a pair of glowing eyes at any second. Link must have noticed his suspicious looks, for he slowed Epona down for a bit and came closer.
"Horrible, isn't it?" he asked.
"Excuse me?" asked Sheik.
"The feeling of someone looking at you," explained Link. "The first time I went through here, when I was eleven, I almost got lost. I could've sworn that someone…or something, was going to reach out from the shadows and pull me in…"
So, it's not Speil, in other words, Sheik thought and looked at Link. "What happened?"
"Saria saved me," Link said, a gentle smile on his lips, a nostalgic look in his eyes. He was clearly remembering the events of seven years past. "I'm not sure if she did it on purpose…but she led me through the maze with her ocarina, playing her song." His smile fell slightly, and the Hero sighed. Sheik knew exactly why.
"You miss her," he said.
"Yeah," Link confirmed. "I've tried contacting her, but I can't get through to her…"
"Ganondorf has probably erected some sort of barrier in order to prevent the sages from influencing and helping you," Sheik said, frowning. If Ganondorf was powerful enough to block out the sages already, who knew how strong he would be by the time Link would confront him?
And Link doesn't have the Triforce piece…
"Just one more thing he'll have to pay for, then," said Link.
"Indeed," said Sheik.
"Halt! Friend or foe?" the guard shouted. Sheik saw Link roll his eyes, suggesting that the Hero had not been in many lively or friendly situations with border guards.
"Friend," the Sheikah announced.
The meadow had changed little. The only notable thing was that someone had managed to raise the steel bars again, preventing anyone from entering the maze beyond. A solitary guard stood before it, spear and shield raised in preparation for a fight should the two new arrivals prove to be the aforementioned foes.
"Prove it," the guard shouted.
"Not very clever, is he?" Link whispered, grinning at his companion.
The cowl hid his grin, so Sheik had to nod. "I'd say he's on the same level as you."
Link scowled, narrowing his eyes at Sheik. "Still angry about the mud, huh?"
"Not angry…simmering," Sheik corrected him and climbed out of Maladict's saddle, slowly approaching the guard, who was shivering in his armour. His helmet's visor prevented Sheik from seeing his face, but his voice had sounded quite young. Experienced soldiers or veterans were in short supply, apparently. He raised his hands in a non-threatening gesture. "Soldier, do you see who that is?" he asked and pointed at Link, who waved at the guard.
The guard was clearly not prepared for such a question, and made several false starts on utterances, letting out fragments of broken sentences and words. All the while, the heavily armoured soldier leaned forward, obviously having difficulties looking through the small slit of his helmet.
"Maybe you should try lifting the visor," said Sheik as kindly as he could while imitating lifting the face-protector with his hands.
"Uh…" the guard said, clearly conflicted. "I'm not really supposed to…"
Shaking his head, Sheik looked over to Link, motioning for the Hero to come over. Link dismounted and slowly led the horses over to the flustered guard. "Do you see now?" Sheik asked. Link seemed to be giving the guard an encouraging smile…or at least tried to.
"Look at the sword," said Sheik.
"Uh…"
"Sheik, I don't think—"
"Quiet, Hero."
Something seemed to snap to attention in the guard's brain, for he suddenly straightened up, his unseen eyes seemingly focused on the green-clad Link. "D-did you say…Hero?" he asked, directing the question at Sheik without looking at the Sheikah.
"Why yes, yes I did," said Sheik, rolling his eyes.
"The H-Hero of T-Time?"
"The very same."
"Here?"
"Yes."
The guard stared at Link for a few seconds. Then he pivoted around on the heel of his boot and shouted. The armour gave his voice a metallic clang. "Open the gate!"
They had not been able to see it from the entrance, but small bridges had been constructed on top of the maze, allowing easy navigation of it. The maze itself had been turned into one large barrack, housing all the soldiers, civilians and other personnel. Ladders had been raised all over the maze in order to provide access to the "roof"-area of the maze, where blacksmiths and medics had established their workshops.
"Is it just me, or has this place gotten bigger?" asked Link as they walked across the maze. The guards on the other side of the gate had immediately recognised Link and given them passage. They had been forced to leave Epona and Maladict behind, though, for there was simply no room for two horses inside the maze.
"It would seem so," replied Sheik. The bridges were really just ladders lying across the gaps, which provided a good view of the huddled masses below. The men and women hardly seemed fazed by this new residence, but that might have been explained by the widened gap between the walls. "I am willing to guess that the Deku Sprout has something to do with it."
It was true. It wasn't just that the maze itself was bigger. The entire meadow seemed to have grown now that they were seeing it form higher up. The staircase leading to the Forest Temple were at least a mile away, leaving Sheik to wonder just how many people were in the maze. And they were all looking up at Link as they passed over them. News of the Hero of Time's arrival was spreading like wildfire. But none of them spoke or called up to Link. They just stared at him in awe…or was it disappointment? Silent wonder?
"Good old Sprout," said Link, not noticing the people below them, apparently.
"Technically, he is young by definition as a sprout," said Sheik. "I don't think he would appreciate being called old."
"Eh, whatever he is, he's good."
"Agreed."
They crossed the gap above one of the small pools of water, which Sheik guessed were the source of drinking water for the surprisingly large amount of people housed in the meadow. Link suddenly stopped mid-step, his foot hovering right above a rather steep fall over a boiling cauldron of some sort. Sheik prepared himself to grab the Hero's hand and pull him back so he wouldn't be scolded by some poor people's cooking pot, but Link actually stepped back on his own.
"Hey…if the camp is up at the temple…" It was almost possible to see the cogs and wheels grinding in the Hero's head. "How come we rode here?"
"Because I thought it would be better for us to have a little time alone with each other," said Sheik and continued walking. It was a blatant lie. The thought of teleporting to the main camp had not even occurred to him. He had slipped up yet again. But the excuse seemed sound enough.
"Oh," the Hero said. And then he grinned and ran to catch up with his companion. "You're still pissed about the mud, aren't you?"
"Mind your language, Link," Sheik said. "And yes. Thanks to you, I look like I have just crawled out of a swamp."
"Well, there's a pond right here—"
"Don't get any ideas!"
To be continued…
Ah, incompetent guards. They breed like rabbits, I tells ya. It's a good thing there are people like Sheik in the world, eh? And we never got to know his favourite colour, either…
Review replies:
Lone Keaton – And now they're off the road again. But it wasn't much of a road to begin with, though. To be honest, I really think Link should stick with red, blue or green. Pink really isn't his colour, hee!
Aeri – Illegitimate child? Huh, for some reason, I'm disappointed in S.A. for being a straightie…oh well. It wasn't much of a grand voyage, though…merely a stroll through the woods, really. But now that they're back in the main camp, things should start rolling any second now.
Yuffie – Sheik threw a dagger at me. Yeah. It's stuck in the wall right above my head. Temperamental Sheikah are scary… Hehe, a tennis match for the fate of Hyrule, that'd be something to see. Who would be Ganon's partner if they played doubles?
Spiritual Stone – Well, more of a rest chapter this time as well, I'm sorry to say. But hey, a storm is approaching…
Lost Poe – Thanks :D. Zelda's reaction will be…interesting, to say the least.
Lady Linwe – Link's a lazy ass, so I too thought it was good to see him out of bed. You have no idea how good it makes me feel to know that I inspire you two write…I'm all warm inside now :). As for Demi…I kind of feel like twisting her head off for doing that…but I guess she has her reasons :(
Foolish Chimera – Hee, thanks! Can't have too much Sheik-angst without some lovin' between the two as well, right? :D
Thanks for the reviews, everyone! Please leave one if you like the story!
