((This just in: Fangirlinggirlz does NOT own Legend of Zelda

I repeat: Fangirlinggirlz does NOT own, Legend of Zelda.))

Yup, Malon hated him.

If the fact that he'd made a mess of her kitchen wasn't enough, the pitiful begging he'd done had probably pushed her over the edge. He couldn't help himself though, every time he'd closed his eyes during the night, he'd thought of Talon yelling up at Malon as if she were no better than a housemaid. Despite the obvious interruption he'd been, she'd given him the best room in the house and had treated him like... well... like a king. He couldn't simply walk away without doing something as a thank you. Even if the extra treatment felt a little overdone.

But Cuccos?

Why was it things were never simple?

Every step he took towards the coop rose his anxiety a little more. He felt his muscles tensing as the building across the field came to full view. He hated cuccos. A rational fear, he told himself, because their bite hurt. When one blood thirsty monster bit you, thousands more followed and Link wasn't a fan of it. At all.

He shuddered as he approached the sleeping death machines. Reminding himself once more that he was very nearly a full grown man, and he needed to make it up to Malon somehow. It was a disheartening pattern he was finding when in the company of the redheaded. No matter how many things he did right, the girl had a terrible tendency to show up just as things began turning horribly wrong. It was a miracle she hadn't booted him for being a simple minded idiot yet. Though judging by his overly comfortable stay so far, he was beginning to suspect his title was the only thing keeping him from such a fate.

With this lovely thought in mind, Link climbed over the horse fence and walked into the large area where the Cuckoos stayed. It was a vast area. Most of it being open field's surrounded by the cutting cliffs around it. As a child, Link hadn't given it much thought, having been too self-absorbed in his own glory he'd assumed would be lurking just around the corner. But now he wondered if maybe they'd used explosives when carving out a place like this. The size and the smooth of the stones seemed too perfectly fit to have been made naturally.

Did Malon help build this place as child? Or had her parents built it before she was born? Maybe it was a place that had been handed down for generations? Why hadn't he ever thought of these questions before?

'Because you were too busy bragging her ears off as a child, you pompous self-absorbed idiot' His mind answered.

As if to accentuate on this fact, Link promptly tripped over a sleeping cucco. His boot struck the cucco's belly, the unexpected force making his nerves pull out a rather unmanly shriek from his lips as he toppled to the ground. The cucco, to his deep relief didn't seem to have minded the sudden kick to the belly. In fact, it almost look cheerful to see Link pressed against the dirt. A look Link would have felt offended at, if he wasn't so busy praising the fact that he'd kicked a cucco and had lived to tell the tale.

Singing silent praises and telling himself congrats for not doing that in front of Malon, Link stood up and began dusting himself off. All the while keeping a weary gaze on the cucco now clucking around in circles. A single white egg lay from it's sleeping place on the grass and Link felt more than a little triumph as he hefted his first prize in the air. The victory however, faded as he realized he'd completely forgotten to ask just how many eggs he was meant to grab. Not only that, but the only thing he could put the eggs in was his hat.

'Hat it is,' he thought, sullenly taking off the green floppy hat and placing the egg inside before finding a tree to lean it up against. No doubt the egg would stretch the soft fabric. But a stretched hat was better than sullying back empty handed to ask a very put out Malon if he could borrow a basket.

As for the eggs, he'd simply grab as many as he could find. The Cucco Lady in Kakariko Village had seemed extra happy when he'd showed up with one extra Cucco for her coop. Maybe Malon would be just as happy if he showed up with more than a dozen eggs. Or maybe she'd hack another ax at his throat. The way she'd pampered him last night, compared to her chewing him out this morning, he couldn't be sure.

Keeping an eye out for any more sleeping mines, Link carefully made his way to the back of the area, where a coop full of resting cuccos greeted him. There were a few who'd simply slumped outside of the coop, to which he decided he would nudge awake first. After a dozen or so stressing moments filled with kicking cuccos and holding his breath as he waited to see if they would attack, Link had proudly gathered a pile of about twelve eggs. After six, the hat had become too full to put the eggs in. So he'd simply laid the other half on the grass beside it. He'd figure out how to hold all the eggs when he was done getting all the eggs.

Keeping the easiest bunch (those in the coop) to wake on their own, Link began scouring the rest of the area. Finding the more hidden cuccos and nudging them awake. The hardest of them lay on a tiny cut a bit up one of the surrounding cliffs. To which he spent a good amount of time trying to figure out how best to climb up a virtually unclimbable smooth stone. After much struggle and lots of grunting, Link triumphantly stood atop the small jut. Tensely holding a flailing Cucco in his arms. Just as he was about to ride the Cucco down with the egg secured firmly in one hand, a voice called out and Link rather abruptly tripped.

His back slammed against the side of the wall, skidding painfully down the curve. Instincts curled him into a ball as he protected his treasured egg, teeth grounding as he felt skin sanding against stone. When he dared to peek an eye open, Malon's silhouette stood over him. The moon's light shining on her milky skin.

"Link, what are you doing?" If the cooking fiasco hadn't been enough, Malon looked about as confused as she had not an hour ago.

'I am never going to look like that Knight in Shining Armor aren't I?' He thought glumly, at least he wasn't trying for that place anymore. Forcing a sheepish look, he grinned and said in a hopeful voice, "...Getting eggs?"

"For how many?" She scoffed, eyeing the pile of three dozen eggs at the base of the tree. Link knew how much. He'd counted them five times. "Din, were you expecting to feed the royal army? Ingo could have collected the rest of it all in the evening."

He was not, in fact trying to feed the royal army. He was, however, trying very hard to keep her from skewering him to bits. Sadly, it seemed the answer to his previous questions was actually less eggs and not more.

Just laugh at him. How he missed being able to make people laugh. Why was it everyone seemed to be too afraid to laugh at him anymore? Impa's silence, and now Malon's obvious blank look. It was as if they'd both imagined up this unbreakable, unkillable, flawless god in him, and seeing him do anything wrong made them disappointed. Not a very comforting thought. Especially from someone he was trying to apologize to.

At this rate, she was going to boot him out title and all. Why wouldn't she laugh?

"Um... yes." Link answered, deciding to take the humor route. Even if she wasn't going to find any reason to laugh through this, he ought to be allowed at least to save some of his dignity. Even if that saving meant flouncing like a peacock. "I've decided cooking is my one true calling in life, and so, must bring the freshest eggs around Hyrule to share with the leaders of our world. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day after all."

"You were going to bring them... eggs." Malon didn't sound convinced, her eyes narrowing and suddenly Link severely missed their childhood. She had been much more willing to laugh back then.

"Of course." He mirrored her own blank face. Because he'd never seen a facial expression so void of emotions as hers looked right then and he needed some lessons. "Nabooru, the Gerudo Chief eats eggs religiously." he fibbed.

"Uh-huh." Slowly, so subtly he nearly missed it, Malon quirked an eyebrow, "And does the Chief of Thieves also enjoy dirt?"

Dirt? Why was she talking about- oh. He crossed his arms, attempting to appear as casual as he could laying in his place on the ground. "Madly. Nabooru adores dirt. So much she makes every Gerudo go roll in the fields during their morning routines. I'll show you when we go meet her."

"We?" He couldn't stop the smug smile from spreading across his face as that startlingly good poker face of hers broke into a look of surprise. "As in... you and me?"

"Yup." Link smirked, trying to ignore the prickling feeling of her curiosity scrutinizing him. "We should be there in about a half week's time. It's not too far of a ride from the ranch. Who knows, maybe she'll even let you join in the routine."

"I'm... what?" Malon asked deeply.

Why was she starting to look pale? Hadn't this been the same person who'd so adamantly told him only last night she would be going with him? He cocked his head to the side, back to uncertain. This girl. Hadn't he known her all his life? Why couldn't he ever seem to figure her out? "Talon and I talked... and... we agreed you ought to come with me?" Should he apologize for that?

Something bordering on the line of terror flashed through her eyes. But was gone before Link could truly make sure he hadn't imagined the whole thing. Pushing himself up to a sitting position, he eyed her carefully. A bit of guilty hope beginning to blossom in his chest. "I mean... if you don't want to go, I could always-"

"No. I'll go." Malon stated, her jaw tight as she placed an uncomfortably blue eyed stare on him. It dropped to the ground after a few moments. "When will we be leaving?"

"After Talon and Ingo wake." Link answered examining her carefully for any and all reactions. Yet she had already gone back to that poker face of hers.

With a stiff nod, Malon turned back to the pile of eggs. "I'll go make some eggs and get ready. Thank you Link."

Link jumped to his feet, ignoring the dull ache in his back and barely pausing to dust himself off as he rushed to her side. "I can help bring the eggs back." He offered.

To his amazement, she flashed him a small smile. An actual, genuine smile before bending down to pick up his pile of nutrition. "It's alright, I've got it."

He watched helplessly as she held out some of her long skirt to place the dozens of eggs. Carefully picking his hat and emptying it's contents before holding it out to him. He blushed, grabbing the now stretched hat and placing it back on his head. Well. At least her need to do everything by herself hadn't changed. He studied her stoned still face. Talon was right. She had changed. Rather drastically. The Malon he'd known as a child would have never swung a hatchet so easily the way she had this morning. Nor would she have managed to sneak around the house silently enough to keep someone as well-trained as Link from detecting her.

The beatings must've gotten to her more than he'd realized. Immediately he kicked himself for not having seen it sooner. Even the first months after turning into an adult, he'd been such a foolish, vain, dim-witted idiot with eyes only for a castle and some fame. Anger flamed in his chest harder than he'd ever felt. If only he'd whooped Ingo harder. What had he done to Malon? Link only knew the one, precious sentence she had told him months ago. Huddled in the barn, pale and painfully skinny.

He still shuddered at the lifelessness in her sunken eyes as her trembling fingers held the pitchfork. The tremors in her voice as she stared holes into the floorboards. And the one, single sentence spoken barely above a whisper.

'Ingo threatens to beat the horses, so I take the beatings for them.'

Din, what kind of monster broke a girl to the point she spoke a sentence like that with nothing?

He watched as Malon slipped back to the main house. Too frozen in his own thoughts to keep with her pace.

"What happened to you Malon?" He breathed.

((Aight! Next chapter is down! Even sooner than my old schedule demanded! I'm not sure how long I'll be able to keep this up, (depends on how much my back keeps swaying with it's energy), as soon I'll be doing a lot more other things and preparing for... ya know... life. However I'm happy to say I do plan to try to keep up as long as I can. If we're lucky, maybe I'll actually be able to resume writing this every sunday (A painfully optimistic approach).

To you all who've left amazing reviews and for liking and following this story, I think I'll end up saying this every time I leave an authors note. YOU GUYS ARE AMAZING! THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR YOUR INPUT YOU ANGELS!

To all those who haven't done that, or are too shy to speak up, THANK YOU FOR READING THIS! You're views are just as appreciated!

Don't stop being the amazing you's you all were meant to be! (HAPPY HALLOWEEN!)

- A Fangirling Girl