A/N: If you like this, please leave a review~! Thinking of leaving this site due to the very low levels of feedback compared to other sites. If you want me to stay here and keep posting then speak up.
I wrote this while feeling ill, so I apologise in advance if it doesn't flow the best.
Beta'd by RenegadeBladesman, whose service fees are very affordable XD
I post my writing progress on my profile, so check there if you want to see how much of the next chapter is done!
WARNING: Illness, nausea, fever
Chapter Thirteen: Heat, Hugs, and Home
Hamlik had been snoring for about two or three hours, leaving Lin the last one awake of their little band. She was tired and her eyes stung in that way they do when you've stayed up far past your bedtime. Lin did not want to sleep though, not with Link in their midst. He was so small, so squishy, so vulnerable. She'd already hurt him and was determined to let nothing else happen to her new friend.
Her ear fins twitched. There were little noises coming from Link, slipping past his lips as tiny, pained cries and whimpers. He was shifting around too, his left hand twitching spasmodically, fingers slightly curled like claws.
Lin moved closer, inching along for maximum stealth. When she was all but brushing against him, she noticed the shivers. Link's entire frame was wracked with them, making him quiver like a jellyfish having a fit. She gently placed a hand on his shoulder, but he didn't stir. She increased the pressure slightly and gave him a small shake.
Link curled up tighter.
She paused and stared thoughtfully at her hand. Lin did not remember the Hylian being quite so warm to the touch. Was the shivering a Hylian thing? Did it help generate heat to keep them warm while they slept? They were so different from Zora; it was hard to tell. Lin wanted to learn but who could teach her? Perhaps Link could tell her about Hylian anatomy so she could help him if ever he was in trouble and wounded again.
Her hand pressed against the bare skin of his cheek, and she almost recoiled at the sheer heat radiating off it. Any Zora that warm would be gravely ill and on the verge of death, if not having swum across the Final River already.
Lin bit her lip, her fangs not bothering her, and pondered on what to do.
Should she try to wake Link? Get a verbal confirmation that he was either okay or dying? He'd know what to do if he was ill, right? Maybe she should let him sleep, conserve his energy so he would wake up all better in the morning?
Lin sat there, fretting, waiting for a sign.
Link was truly starting to dislike the darkness. Yes, it had hidden him from various enemies countless times, but it also hid those same enemies from him. It was a double-edged sword that he was not wielding and had no control over. After a moment though he recognised this darkness. This darkness was okay, it was merely the back of his eyelids. He could feel sleep still weighing his body down.
Ugh, even his eyelids were weighted. He forced them open with far more effort than it should take, leaving him tired. He'd only been awake a few seconds, this was ridiculous. A rocky floor met his bleary gaze. Just off to the side he could see a bunch of scales, the colour immediately placing it as a Zora, and he remembered that he was in their cave.
His mind felt so slow and hazy, like a fog misting across a moor. A startled gasp made his eyes open all the way as he looked around.
Lin was leaning over him, looking both frightened and relieved. Wow, she sure was talented, managing to pull off two expressions at once. He tried to ask her what was wrong, but only a croak left his throat.
Had he swallowed a frog? It really hurt. He hadn't eaten any frogs for ages, and he didn't think it had hurt.
"ረጎክጕ?" Lin said, reaching out for his cheek.
She placed her hand on it and it felt so blessedly cool that he instantly leaned into it, seeking more. His eyes slid shut and he missed the worried look she now sported.
"ዘቿ'ነ ነፕጎረረ ዪቿልረረሃ ዘዐፕ," she whispered.
"ርልክ ሃዐሁ ዘቿልዪ ዘጎነ ጌዪቿልፕዘጎክኗ? ነዐሁክዕነ ረጎጕቿ ዘቿ ዘልነ ኗጎረረ ዪዐፕ," said Hamlik.
Lin gasped again, her other hand resting against his other cheek. Link groaned in contentment at the feeling. "ሠዘልፕ ዕዐ ሠቿ ዕዐ? ክዐፕ ቿሀቿክ ፕዘቿ ቿረዕቿዪነ ጕክዐሠ, ጎ ልነጕቿዕ ፕዘቿጠ ቿልዪረጎቿዪ."
Silence, or near to it, permeated the area. There was some low, distant chatter, but it sounded very muffled.
"ሠቿ ፕልጕቿ ዘጎጠ ፕዐ ዘጎነ ዐሠክ ጕጎክዕ. ፕዐ ፕዘቿ የዪጎክርቿነነ ክቿልዪ ፕዘቿ ርልነፕረቿ," Hamlik said decisively.
"ሠዘቿዪቿ ጎነ ፕዘልፕ?" Lin asked.
Hamlik shrugged. "ጎ ጕክዐሠ ፕዘቿ ሠልሃ."
Two other voices joined in, chiming their agreement, and expressing a wish to come along as well. Link could barely keep up with anything anyone was saying, so he simply let most of it wash over him. He was jolted out of his peaceful state by the hands on his cheeks tapping him. He opened his eyes to see Lin staring right at him.
"ረጎክጕ, ሠቿ ልዪቿ ፕልጕጎክኗ ሃዐሁ ፕዐ ሃዐሁዪ የዪጎክርቿነነ ልፕ ፕዘቿ ርልነፕረቿ, ዐጕልሃ?" she said firmly.
Princess? Castle? No, no, no! "Not safe," he mumbled.
"ርልክ ሃዐሁ ፕዪልሀቿረ ዐሀቿዪ ሠልፕቿዪ?" Hamlik asked.
The hero thought about that for a long moment, reaching for his pouch just as Lin was preparing to prod him awake again. With fingers that felt unaccountably clumsy, he grabbed the edge of his tiny, one-person raft and hefted it out of his magic bag, barely missing hitting Hamlik and Lin in the process.
"ፕዘልፕ ሠጎረረ ሠዐዪጕ!" Hamlik happily announced, taking the raft from Link's rather weak grip and striding off with it held easily above his head.
Link giggled softly at the sight. He didn't know why he found it entertaining, just that it was. He hoped Hamlik brought his raft back before he had to leave. He kind of needed it. Why in the name of Hyrule would a Zora need a raft in the first place?
Lin's hands vanished from his face, and he whined at the loss, making a feeble attempt to reach out. Something brushed over his ribs, and he giggled again, trying to arch away. Hands latched around his waist, and he wriggled like a worm, though the hold stayed firm. He was hoisted into the air and spun around before being hugged by Lin. His stomach rebelled at the motions, and he groaned and hiccupped against her shoulder, fighting back the waves of nausea that rolled through him.
Her hold only tightened, and he closed his eyes against the swaying view that tilted with every step she took. After a time, he could no longer hear any echoes. There was a gentle breeze that played with his hair and hat. They were outside the cave; Link didn't need his sight to be able to tell such a thing. He did need it to see where they currently were and where they were going, however.
He opened his eyes, squinting at the brightness of the sun-soaked outdoors. He could see a lovely view of the cave getting ever so slowly smaller and further away.
Oh, right, he was facing backwards.
"Where are we going?"
"ፕዐ ፕዘቿ ሠልፕቿዪ," Lin said.
"Why?" he asked in a childish tone.
"ሠቿ ልዪቿ ኗዐጎክኗ ፕዐ የሁረረ ሃዐሁ ዐክ ሃዐሁዪ ዪልቻፕ," she said.
"Oh, okay," he said acceptingly. At least he wouldn't be in the water, or under it.
Link had to admit that the hug felt nice. Lin was not as warm as Secret, or as plush, but she was just as gentle, and a lot easier for him to wrap his own arms around. He could barely get his arms around half of Secret's bulky frame, though it was not for lack of trying. When she leaned over and let go, he wished the hug could have lasted longer.
His feet took a moment to plant themselves flat, but he still wobbled precariously, his stomach making its protests known once again.
Lin held him steady, and he looked down to see wooden logs beneath his boots. Of course, the raft. It was bobbing up and down with the river's swirls and eddies. No wonder he couldn't stand straight, the ground was nowhere near steady. She pushed down on his shoulders, and he went down on his knees.
She nodded in satisfaction and Link mentally sighed in relief. It was much better now that he was leaning his weight on more than just his feet, even if his stomach was still complaining. He was tempted to lie down but he really didn't want to budge an inch. Between his nausea, the moving raft under him, and a curious lack of energy, Link was quite content to stay exactly where and how he was.
He only hoped the Zoras were taking him somewhere he could collect food.
The raft was pulled smoothly away from the bank. So smoothly, in fact, that Link had no idea the raft had moved until land was fifteen feet away. He blinked at it languidly and turned his focus to the ropes that were now attached to the front of his raft. Hamlik had them lashed around his shoulders, swimming easily through the water with the raft and its passenger in tow.
Link found the cruise quite nice. There were no traces left of the storm, just a sunny day, a few scattered clouds, and a pleasant breeze. It would be perfect if only his stomach would settle down. It pitched and rolled as if he were sailing on a stormy sea instead of floating along calmly. After a while he hugged his middle and hunched over, eyes half-lidded, no longer able to enjoy the scenery.
How far were they going? Link was no longer sure he even wanted food anymore, no matter what delicious thing he may find when they stopped. He didn't want to ask though, afraid that something other than words would leave his lips if he opened his mouth.
So, on they went. Hamlik pulled, Lin swam around and popped up here and there, checking on him, the other two playfully swimming about, while Link slowly slumped further and further until he all but melted into a puddle of miserable Hylian, finally laying down on the raft. His arms were still around his middle, which was not the most comfortable position, but he didn't have the energy to shift.
The sun rose higher in the sky until it was directly overhead, beaming down bright rays to the land below, warming everything up after the biting cold of the storm during the night. It helped to evaporate some of the water laying around, collected in various spots, that the rain left behind.
Link felt cold. He knew the sun was shining, he could see it. But he couldn't feel it. It was like he was back on the muddy path of last night, trudging along in the stinging rain and freezing wind. His mind hummed at him that something wasn't right with that, but he couldn't muster up the energy to care as he curled up further, shivering lightly.
Time was an abstract concept that he lost all meaning of as his world shrunk down to the raft, the sound of the water going by, the splashes and random comments by the Zoras, and the feeling of cold and nausea that plagued him. He barely noticed when the sunlight became more yellow and orange, slanted so that it cast long shadows from one side, and then gained an edge of peach, pink, red, and indigo.
Lin breached right beside the raft, barely missing him with the resultant spray. She eyed him appraisingly. "ዘዐሠ ጠሁርዘ ቻሁዪፕዘቿዪ?"
"ልጌዐሁፕ ክጎኗዘፕቻልረረ!" Hamlik called out.
"ዘጎነ ነጕጎክ ረዐዐጕነ ረጎጕቿ ነሁክ-ቻልዕቿዕ ሁክዕቿዪጌቿረረሃ ነርልረቿነ," she said in that distinct, fussy, mother hen way that all females seemed innately capable of.
Various gurgles, growls and bubbling, burbling noises came from Hamlik's general vicinity. Link idly wondered if Hamlik was cursing a blue streak and was equally grateful and disappointed that he couldn't understand any of it. He was sure the Zoras had unique phrases as the only water-dwelling species and he wanted to hear some Zora sayings, polite or not.
The air grew colder as the light went lower, the shadows stretching longer as if seeking for something forever out of reach. The sunlight became dimmer and dimmer, the warm colours being leached away by the encroaching darkness.
Link was tired of shivering, but his body stubbornly kept it up, sapping more energy. His shivers increased a little as tiny twinkling stars began to appear in the sky, its dark canvas taking over more and more of the horizon until the last dregs of sunlight were blanketed. Still the raft was pulled onward.
The raft came to a stop not long after the only light source became the moon and stars. Link took no notice, his mind drifting along like the raft, somewhere between asleep and awake. The distorted words of the Zoras hit his ears but quickly blended into the background.
"ክዐሠ ሠዘልፕ?" asked one.
"ጎ ዕዐክ'ፕ ፕዘጎክጕ ዘቿ ርልክ ሠልጎፕ ልክዐፕዘቿዪ ክጎኗዘፕ," Lin said, clutching the side of the raft and reaching out, her hand leaving damp patches on his cheeks and forehead. She frowned heavily at the sheer heat his skin was still radiating.
"ዕዐ ፕዘቿ ዘሃረጎልክነ ርዐጠቿ ዘቿዪቿ ልፕ ክጎኗዘፕ?" asked the other.
Hamlik huffed out an irritated gurgling noise that was halfway to a growl. "ክዐ, ዐክረሃ ዕሁዪጎክኗ ፕዘቿ ዕልሃ," he said as he glared in the direction Princess Zelda and her knights always came from.
"ጎ ሠጎረረ ፕልጕቿ ዘጎጠ ፕዐ ፕዘቿ ርልነፕረቿ," said Lin decisively. "ሠዘጎርዘ ሠልሃ?"
Hamlik's fins swept back in agitation. "ክዐፕ ነልቻቿ. ክዐፕ ልረረ ዘሃረጎልክነ ልዪቿ ክጎርቿ," he ground out.
Lin shook her head. "ጌሁፕ ጎቻ ጎ ልጠ ሠጎፕዘ ረጎክጕ, ነሁዪቿረሃ ፕዘቿሃ ሠዐክ'ፕ ልፕፕልርጕ?"
A shrug was Hamlik's reply until he sighed. "ጎ'ጠ ርዐጠጎክኗ ፕዐዐ. ሃዐሁ ፕሠዐ ኗሁልዪዕ ረጎክጕ'ነ ዪልቻፕ!" he ordered, pointing a claw at the other two.
One grumbled about being left out of the fun stuff while the other simply saluted in a mock playful manner.
Lin climbed onto the bank and Hamlik held the raft steady as she bent down and scooped up the little ball of Hylian misery in the middle of it. He made a small noise of agitation as he was moved, fidgeting restlessly until she got him settled in her arms, then he curled up again, snuggling into the cool feeling of her damp scales, and fell back into a doze.
The snuggling made her feel awkward and a bit embarrassed, but she'd give Link a pass seeing as he was currently not in his right mind. Not that it felt bad at all, quite the opposite! But she was a Zora, and he was a Hylian, and the others were watching.
She cleared her throat quietly. "ረቿልዕ ፕዘቿ ሠልሃ."
Hamlik climbed out of the water and gave the surrounding area a dubious look before squaring his shoulders, fins pinned back, and marching off in the direction he'd always seen the Hylians come from. He gave a snort when he saw Lin following him faithfully and kept his eyes open for the large building called a castle that Link had once described to him.
Link's eyes slid partly open as the gentle bobbing motion of the raft was replaced with a rougher sway that went distinctly from side to side. His queasy stomach protested the new pace and movements, turning further with every sway. It was empty as he hadn't eaten a single thing all day, but that fact did not stop it from threatening to expel whatever contents it held with each lurch from left to right and vice versa.
He gave a pitiful moan. Lin murmured an apology and held him a touch tighter, trying to smooth out her gait.
It wasn't easy. Zoras were built for the water, and over the centuries their arms had grown longer while their legs grew stumpier, making walking on land a less than graceful affair. If it came down to a matter of speed versus comfort, then Lin would go for speed no matter how bad she might feel about it.
They'd been travelling for only a few short hours when lights appeared. The closer they got, the quicker they noticed there were multiple lights, coming from different places around a very large Hylian made structure. The lights were predominantly a yellow colour, with orange mixed in, and flickered oddly. Nothing like the cool, steady light of their own luminescent coral.
They guessed it was fire, both having seen campfires and torches before, not to mention the resemblance to their own fireballs they could spit. But it was still unsettling to watch. Hamlik slowed down and waved for Lin to do the same. They approached cautiously.
"Who's there?" called a voice.
"ዘቿረረዐ!" Hamlik called back.
"What the-?" the voice said, startled.
A few subtle clanking noises followed, a knight holding a torch emerging from somewhere near the castle's entrance. He raised the torch and took in the sight of the castle's visitors, one hand immediately going for the sword hilt at his hip.
"ሠልጎፕ!" Lin cried, scuttling forward. "ሠቿ ዘልሀቿ ረጎክጕ. የረቿልነቿ ዘቿረየ ዘጎጠ," she said as slowly and clearly as she could.
The knight cocked his head at her words, no sign of comprehension on his face, though his eyes widened as they finally fell on the green and brown clad figure in her arms. "Link?" he asked incredulously.
"ሃቿነ!" Lin said, nodding vigorously.
He took a step towards her then seemed to think better of it. "Lay him down, then step back. I'll bring him inside. The princess has been waiting for him."
Lin and Hamlik shared a glance and he shrugged at her. Biting her lip, Lin carefully placed the hero down and stepped back. Both of them retreated a dozen more steps and watched as the knight left the torch behind and approached Link.
The knight let out a gasp the moment he felt the boy's skin and he hastily picked him up. "Thank you for bringing him here," he said very awkwardly. Without waiting for a reply, he turned and raced into the castle with his cargo.
"ጌሃቿ, ረጎክጕ," said Lin sadly, one hand raised in a wave.
A/N: Bit of a filler chapter, sorry. But it was necessary and now things can pick up speed! Also, Link is back in the castle! Yay!
I based the idea of the 'Final River' off the River Styx, which one must traverse to cross from the land of the living to reach the land of the dead in Greek mythology. Just without a ferryman or a fee lol
I had thoughts of having Eustace be the guard to find them. But that scenario ended with much murder and one less hero, which kind of defeats the purpose. So, enter random knight #1.
Zora translations:
Link?
He's still really hot
Can you hear his breathing? Sounds like he has Gill Rot
What do we do? Not even the elders know, I asked them earlier
We take him to his own kind. To the princess near the castle
Where is that?
I know the way
Link, we are taking you to your princess at the castle, okay?
Can you travel over water?
That will work!
To the water
We are going to pull you on your raft
How much further?
About nightfall!
His skin looks like sun-faded underbelly scales
Now what?
I don't think he can wait another night
Do the Hylians come here at night?
No, only during the day
I will take him to the castle - Which way?
Not safe. Not all Hylians are nice
But if I am with Link, surely they won't attack?
I'm coming too. You two guard Link's raft!
Lead the way
Hello!
Wait! - We have Link. Please help him
Yes!
Bye, Link