(Karlminion: I hope that if you received my series of e-mails you weren't frightened. They were my only way to respond to your reviews. If you didn't get them yet, when you do, now you know. Don't worry, there aren't fifty billion or anything.)
Link held onto Sakina with a bit more than a friendly feeling as he played the ocarina again. He didn't want to admit to her that he felt strangely about her because he thought she might be angry. Sakina forced her skin not to tingle as his fingers gently brushed her flesh. Torn between loving him and loving him as a friend, her mind was battling. Of course, she thought, it's only natural to react like this. You haven't seen him seven blasted years. Your mind is bound to be over wracked with Nayru's Curse. She was disgusted with her own thoughts.
They arrived in the Sacred Meadow at a point facing the entrance to the Forest Temple. Link took out his hookshot, grabbed onto Sakina, and pulled them up into the Temple. Upon arriving, they were attacked by two howling Wolfos. Together, Link and Sakina killed the Wolfos, hearts hardly pounding from the effort.
"Pathetic," Sakina rolled her eyes and pushed open the door. "Oh great," she jumped slightly, "a spider, just what we need to give us a bit of nostalgia, huh?" She teased. She shot the spider with a well-placed arrow, but another soon followed. Before she could do a thing, Link had shot it with his hookshot.
"Sorry," he murmured as she stared in wonder at him.
"Why? That saved one of my arrows!" She joked. Inwardly, she couldn't believe that his reflexes were still so good. While she had practiced for seven years, he was easily keeping up with her while having only slept all that time. His muscles had grown as though he had exercised in his dreams.
Inside the central room were four candles. One green, one orange, one purple, and one blue. The room was overgrown with vines and had a very solemn air about it, but felt almost stale as though a dark something had breathed death into the place. Once they entered, staring in wonder at the elaborate Temple walls about them, the candles seemed to giggle.
What a silly thought.
But it wasn't. The flames took flight, changing into ghosts, or Poe's, and flying in opposite directions. Navi was berserk, flying around like a bat out of hell.
"The flames! They aren't supposed to leave! Oh no! Oh no! The Poe Sisters have stolen the flames! Oh no!" Navi was flashing spasmodically and it would have been comical if not for the situation.
"Round 'em up?" Sakina said, looking to Link.
"Yes, yes, yes! Get them! Kill them!" Navi screeched.
"Whoa," Link backed away from his frantic fairy. "What should we do? Stay together or split up to get the job done faster?"
Sakina wanted to say "stay with me!" But her mouth betrayed her heart and spoke. "You get the green and orange ones; I'll get the blue and orange ones."
"I thought I had orange."
"Right. I meant the blue and purple ones." Sakina said, shaking her head. Sakina turned to Navi. "I assume the candles will come back once the Poe Sisters have been throttled?"
"Yes, yes, yes!" Navi was already flying towards the door through which the orange one had escaped. "Move, Link, MOVE!"
"Wait a second, Navi." Sakina breathed deeply. "We'll come back here after both our Poe's have been killed. If we come back and one of the other's candles aren't lit, go and help?"
Link nodded, hard-pressed to speak.
"Well, merry meet and merry part." Sakina grabbed Link's forearm, as was Gerudo way to greet and say farewell to one another.
"Until we merry meet again?" Link tried.
"You've got it." Sakina grinned. With a fleeting glance in his direction, Sakina went to track down two very naughty Poe Sisters.
"Oh Forest-Girl!" The purple one teased. Her name was apparently Joelle, but Sakina refused to share her own name with this feisty little spirit. She remembered telling Beth, and that had been enough. Kina! Kina! Sa-Sa-KinAA! Beth had chanted while blowing raspberries in her direction. It was almost enough to make Sakina want to drop her name and get a new one.
"Won't you just die?" Sakina knocked an arrow and shot the portrait of Joelle. Joelle shrieked and reappeared outside of it.
"You've made me mad, Forest-Girl!"
"Likewise, Poe-Bitch."
"Gah!" Joelle flew at Sakina and knocked her over. Sakina dropped her bow and withdrew her sword as fast as lightning. Soon she had the sword rammed through Joelle's translucent belly. "No! NO!" She screamed and disappeared.
"And that takes care of you. You nutcase." Sakina growled, gathering her possessions and getting back to her feet. She toed Joelle's dress with a disgusted look on her face.
"Kina!" Link burst in. "Did you find the purple one?"
Sakina looked towards a fallen garment suggestively.
"Oh." Link blushed. "I got back and there was still a flame missing."
"Well, I took care of it." Sakina said a bit huffily, rather embarrassed that Link had managed faster than she had. "Thanks for the thought, though. Where did you get that bow?" She noticed that Link was carrying a handsome, oak bow with intricate carvings.
"Found it in a chest." He grinned.
"And you can use it?" She cocked an eyebrow.
"Yeah." Link nodded. "Pretty well."
Sakina wished that she'd had his talents while living with the Gerudos.
When they re-entered the room, all of the candles had been relit. There was an odd mixture of eerie and pleasant feelings swirling about the room. An elevator in the center of the floor awaited their arrival. They boarded together, not questioning its purpose, hoping it might lead them to Saria. What they should have expected though, was of course, the biggest, nastiest thing they'd had to fight yet.
"Phantom Ganon," Navi whispered. Together, Link, Navi and Sakina stood in the center of the room, flying in Navi's case. Sakina watched a portrait with a horse running towards her. Behind her Link did the same. They shot simultaneously and destroyed the inhabitant. It happened again and again until the phantom popped out. Sakina saw he looked exactly like Ganondorf. Her brand began to burn as though it were fresh. She collapsed, screaming bloody murder, as the phantom cackled. The phantom shot green flame at Link, who deflected it with his sword, hitting instead the Phantom Ganon creature.
Sakina's eyelids were wet with tears as she scrunched them against the pain. Make it stop! MAKE IT STOP! Link! Link! Why didn't you save me?! Link, however, was soon at her side. The monster had been defeated. Her brand began to cool itself, and Link helped her up.
"I… I failed you," she looked down, half-expecting a punishment. "I am weak."
"Don't be stupid," Link said. "You helped me shoot him down. Your neck… it's all red…." He touched the brand with his warm fingers, yet it seemed to help nonetheless. "Your brand is going white again."
There was a singing sound in the room. A white light surrounded them and soon they were suspended in the Temple of Time. Colors danced about the chamber, which was black and full of mysterious shadows. A singing flowed through her soul, calming it, soothing it. Nothing would be the matter anymore.
"Saria," Sakina breathed. Saria floated above a green patch of light that matched her hair exactly. Her eyes were wide and sorrowful yet full of pride.
"I always knew you two were meant for great things," she spoke softly. "I add my powers, the Sage of Forest, to yours. Yes," she looked at Sakina's wide green eyes, "I am the Sage of the Forest." And she sent a green chip to Link's hand. He glowed momentarily in an eerie light that illuminated the august room. Slowly, he returned to normal. "Good luck to you both," she said quietly as they floated away without another word. They arrived to a silent Sacred Meadow and found that the growling monsters that they had earlier fought were gone. The Temple had been saved. And so had the Kokiris. Upon returning to the village, they found uncertain heads poking out of their homes to see the safety that now surrounded them back to normal.
"Is the Deku Tree back then?" Someone asked.
"Well, where's Saria?"
Link and Sakina were bodily and mentally exhausted and toddled back to Link's house.
"Just like old times," Sakina yawned.
"New old times." Link agreed. They collapsed in his hut, grateful for the break.
Sakina cracked her back. "I'll be back in a few minutes," she said, already descending the ladder again."
"Where are you going?"
"To the baths. I hurt and I'm smelly. Baths are therapeutic, you know."
And she slid to the ground. Link knew he should bathe too. Sighing, he followed the path to the bathing area. The Kokiri inhabitants had rules about when boys should go and when girls should go. No one bathed at night because it seemed to defeat the purpose of a bath. A bath was to smell good for yourself and others. At night, it just wore off and was rendered seemingly useless. What use was smell to a sleeping person anyway? Sakina knew that no one would be there right then and greatly appreciated that she would have some privacy, more than she usually had. She watched the slowly flowing waters and felt them healing her soul. First taking off her jewelry, she left only her Band of Innocence on and removed everything else, even taking out her braid.
Even though she was raised to be a paranoid Gerudo warrior, she didn't sense Link staring from behind a wall in marvel. He noticed everything about her, from behind, that is. He wondered why she left the anklet on when she took everything else off. Furthermore, he wondered if she'd get angry at him if she caught him. He stared in awe as she undid her braid. Her hair fell in waves around her body. She crouched down to test the water and then slipped in. Link fought the urge to dive in after her and stayed cautiously hidden in his niche. He turned away before she got out again and stared at the sky, waiting until he was sure she was dressed and came in behind her, just as she was wringing out her hair.
"Link!" She said in shock.
"Hey, Kina." He said, keeping his eyes on the water.
Staring at him skeptically, she started back to the house. "You just got here, right?"
"Yeah, I figured I needed a bath too."
"Okay, I'll see you inside then." She walked back to the hut but couldn't help noticing that he was blushing when he had come over. Sakina was sitting inside of the hut brushing out her hair as it dried wondering whether or not he had been spying on her. Link returned awhile later, looking exhausted and happy at the same time. Sakina started braiding her hair again. Link looked down to her ankles and saw the anklet again.
"Sakina, why do you wear that?" He pointed to the Band of Innocence. "I mean, it doesn't show unless you're not wearing boots."
"The Gerudos gave it to me. It's called a Band of Innocence." She said calmly. She looked up at Link with a smile in her eyes, guessing at the next question.
"Why is it called that?" He sat down across from her.
"Well… do you remember what I told you about Nayru's Love?" And she quickly explained about how it would keep her from pregnancy.
"So… you've never gotten pregnant?" He prompted, skirting around his more personal question.
"Nope," she put the hair-tie at the end of her braid and tossed it over her shoulder.
"Have you ever…?" He trailed off and looked at her suggestively.
"Ever?" She was sort of enjoying this game.
"Acted on Nayru's Love?" He asked finally.
She wanted to say yes, just to see what his reaction would be. Instead of responding at once, she had to think about what she was going to say. Finally, when Link looked amazedly into her eyes, obviously taking her silence as a "yes" she responded.
"No, never."
"Really?"
"Really." She cracked her back again. His face seemed to brighten somewhat. "Why does it matter?"
"No reason," Link lied. "Just curious, you know. I have been away for seven years."
"Oh, I remember." Sakina laughed, lying down. At last, she couldn't keep herself awake any longer and she fell deeply to sleep. Link, on the other hand, lying down next to her, was intrigued by the subtle curves of her body and kept himself from reaching out to touch them. Navi shot out of Link's back and starting whispering fiercely.
"Come with me, Link! Outside! Now!" Navi flew out of the house. Link pushed himself reluctantly up and followed his renegade fairy. "You!" The fairy flew right in Link's face, nearly bowling him over. "You can't afford this romance, kid!"
"What?" Link was astounded.
"Firstly, assuming Sakina would be dumb enough to take you, then you'd have all this lovey-dovey nonsense which you don't have time for!"
"I-."
"Secondly! Assuming, more correctly I'll wager, she notices your advances and says no!" Navi's voice was squeaking at an all time high. "Then you two will never get along again! And you need her help!"
"But-."
"Go to sleep." Navi disappeared again into Link's bag. Link threw his head back in irritation. When he got inside, he chucked his pack at the bed and lie down next to Sakina but curled up the other way instead of looking at her. The next morning they both arose simultaneously and set off to retrieve the Medallion of Fire.
Sakina sat behind Link as they rode Epona for Kakariko. They had stopped to check on Malon. Now she and her father were reunited and again owned the ranch. Mr. Ingo had begged to stay as stable-hand and had apologized most profusely to Malon for his maltreatment of her.
"Malon always had too much of a soft-spot in my opinion," Sakina said, shaking her head as they left. "But at least she's happy."
"Who's Micol?" Link asked again.
"The man she's probably going to marry." Sakina said, feeling jealousy at Link's continuing interest in the pretty red-head. She just wanted to snap at Link and say "look, I may have boring brown hair and weird green eyes, but I'm not bad-looking." She restrained herself from doing this, knowing she was being stupid.
On the way to Kakariko, Sakina saw a Poe pop out of the ground. She released a couple of arrows on it and destroyed it immediately.
"Nice shooting," Link commented.
"Thanks," she replied shiftily. They rode into Kakariko, past the dirty houses and downcast population and to the Death Mountain Trail. Link pointed up the trail.
"You know, they say that there's a great fairy up there," he explained. "We should go and see."
"You think?" Sakina quirked an eyebrow. "What the hell." Sakina shrugged. "Let's go for it."
Epona refused to climb the steep and narrow pathway, so they left Epona at the entrance to the Death Mountain Trail, giving her some food and water before going. Sakina told Link that they would soon need to refill on supplies; her bag was feeling unusually light.
Struggling up the pass, they heard a random mooing but ignored it, guessing it was some bizarre landscape feature and continued until….
"WATCH OUT!" Link grabbed Sakina and ducked under his shield. Flaming rocks were flying through the air like an unexpected hailstorm from hell. Crouching over Sakina, Link wondered what they could do. "We're going to have to run for it." He whispered.
"Why are you whispering?" She asked in aggravation. "Do you think the rocks will hear us and decide to roast us? But yeah, on the count of three." They jumped up and fled for the far wall. It was a steep rocky wall that they faced. As if the climb itself wasn't tedious enough, there had to be spiders and tektites to conquer. Once they reached the top, they looked down and marveled at their climb.
"I don't see a sign that says anything about a fairy." Sakina breathed.
"That rock… see how it juts out?" Link ran his hand along the rock's surface.
"Oh, so you're saying we should bomb it?" Sakina rubbed her hands together.
"Yes." Link grinned.
"Hope you're still loaded up, because I don't have any bombs."
"We're in luck," he pointed to a bombchu plant. "May I have the honor?"
"Charming." She laughed. "Go right ahead, Mr. Hero."
Once he pulled the bomb, it began to hiss. He dropped it by the rock and ran back to hide with Sakina. It exploded and rock debris flew everywhere. Cautiously, the duo lifted their heads and peaked to see what was left of their rock.
"Aha! A cave," Sakina cheered. "You really are brilliant."
"Thank you, fair maiden." He bowed. "Shall we?" He put out an arm, much to Sakina's surprise. She took it. After all, it's not every day that one is offered someone's arm.
"I think we shall," she smiled curiously at him. They marched into the cave. After what seemed an eternity of darkness, there was light. They emerged into it, feeling as though they had found some chamber of the gods. It was immaculate and sparkling. Water flowed from the walls and a central fountain. The walls and floors were blue and white, glowing in the light of the blue torches by the pool. Sakina stepped forward and saw on the floor, a golden Triforce symbol.
"Oh wonderful," she muttered. "My favorite sign. Link, get your ocarina out. It's time to play a lullaby."
Link nodded and played the tune. The room shook and the waters swirled. A great cackling echoed throughout the chamber as the water rose into a hill and out burst a woman with the largest breasts on the planet. Her hair was magenta, a color rarely seen in nature. She was more scantily dressed than a hot Gerudo warrior among her friends in the bath chamber. Her voluptuous form was hard to ignore. But, despite her frightful laughter, her face was really quite pleasant. Her eyes were warm and brown, to Sakina's shock.
"Link and Sakina!" Her voice boomed throughout the chamber. "I am the Great Fairy of Magic!" The torches flared momentarily at these words, as if verifying the fact. "I see you are both worn and weary from your travels. Allow me to give you healing and a gift." Her fingers aimed directly at Link and Sakina's chests. Soon, they were tingling with cold and a feeling that reminded Sakina strongly of Ganondorf's green shocks, only, not painful. "I give thee children, the gift of magic! Four tricks will I thee teach. First," she put a long, slender finger up. "and possibly most potent, is the sword charge. By willing your sword to have energy, it will become a magical weapon for a few moments, slaughtering all in its path. Second," she lifted another finger, "Din's Fire. The incantation is this luath teine, teth mor. Do not utter after me, children, for you cannot stop Din's flaming arms. Third, is Farore's Wind. Just as there are warp songs, there is a warp spell, but it only works inside of a temple. The incantation for that is iarr luath iongantas. Again, silence. And fourth is that of Nayru's Love. It gives the gift of a minute's immortality. Nothing can hurt you when Nayru gives thee her heart. That spell is umhal, dh'iarradh iochd. But beware the exhaustion that magic will bestow upon an unwary user."
"Thank you," Sakina finally spoke, thinking she would never remember those spells.
"Go, thou mustn't tarry. I send thee to the Gorons for help." She raised her hands and breathed out strange words and soon Sakina and Link were no longer in the Fairy's Temple. They arrived mere seconds later at the entrance to Goron City. A place that once rumbled with activity, the cavernous city was now as empty and silent as a barren plane. They were used to such painful surprises now, but didn't say a word as if in silent mourning. To Link's surprise, it was Sakina who grabbed onto his hand gently. Sakina felt all of nine-years-old again, but now Link was bigger and stronger than she, so she trusted him for protection. Without thinking about these thoughts, she walked slowly into the caves. Link squeezed her hand as they wandered over the dirty, barren pathways that had once been riddled with Gorons.
"Where did they go?" Link breathed.
Sakina shook her head in disbelief. Below them was a noise of something moving, rolling, and shifting about in a most frenzied manner. It appeared to be a younger Goron, rolling furiously around as if to let of steam. They ran down to that level and watched it spin by.
Link called out to it. Its rolling stopped and the small Goron looked up at them.
"What do you want?" He asked squeakily.
"Where have all the Gorons gone?" Link asked.
"Volvagia… he's got 'em. Ganondorf's gonna kill 'em all!" The younger Goron's lips trembled, reminding Sakina of herself.
"We're here to help," Sakina said softly, crouching to eye-level. "Where is Volvagia?"
"Oh, it doesn't matter. You can't do anything without a fire tunic anyway. Who are you?" He sniffled. "Why do you care?"
"My name is Link and this is my friend Sakina."
"Oh!" The little Goron drew himself up proudly. "I am Link too! Darunia, my father, named me after you! I'll help you!" Standing, Link tottered over to a loose stone and picked it up, revealing a dirty red tunic. "Here!" Hylian Link took it gratefully. "It'll make you resistant to heat. But… I only have one."
"That's okay," Sakina cut in smoothly. "I've got one of my own." She remembered the outfit in her bag.
"I'll take you to the Fire Caves after you change." The little Goron Link smiled. Link took his own tunic off right there and Sakina was nearly entranced by his skin. Disgusted with herself, she wandered off to change in private, returning in red and without any jewelry. The Fire Caves were hot, with or without the tunics. Link the Goron led them to a secret passageway behind a statue in Darunia's chambers. He told them where to go and wished them luck, saying he was too young to go in there; Darunia had made him promise to wait behind.
"Seems fair," Sakina shrugged. Sweat was trickling down her face and back before they even reached the Fire Temple. They wandered around the steep rocky ground, standing precariously above the lava that filled the empty holes below.
"A bridge," Link indicated. "We'll have to hookshot over." Sakina put her arm around Link's shoulders and allowed herself to be carted to the bridge. Once they were there, the heat rising from the lava surrounded them in a misty cloud that caused even more perspiration.
Fwish!
"Kina, Link," Sheik had returned, still completely dressed. Sakina didn't know how Sheik could stand the heat in that thing. "Another warp song for your convenience." Sheik taught them the Bolero of Fire on her portable harp thing. Then she left without another word, eyes wincing with pain.
"Hope she's okay," Link said concernedly.
"Yeah, me too." Sakina frowned. "Okay, I'm dripping like a damned waterfall. I suggest we move quickly."
The Temple was surprisingly cooler, but still warmer than it was worth. Sakina longed to rinse her body in cleansing cool waters that weren't sweat. Link's hair was matted back with his own perspiration. The Temple wasn't as impressive as that of the Forest, but perhaps it was the emanating heat that turned them off of it.
"Link? Sakina?" A deep voice echoed across the room to them.
"Big Brother!" Sakina and Link chimed. They hopped across from rock to rock, avoiding the great pool of steaming lava, to meet Darunia on his square.
"I had hoped you would come." There was a hard glint in the large Goron's eye. "My people are trapped in that room yonder," Darunia pointed, "and in here is Volvagia, who I must fight. Will you free my people?"
"I will," Sakina agreed. Darunia's face seemed to soften in relief.
"I have heard about your challenges, Sakina," he spoke softly. "If I had faith in anyone, it would be you," he took her arm firmly in his grasp. She reciprocated and nodded at him.
"I will stay here and help you fight Volvagia," Link said bravely.
"Thank you, Brother," Darunia bowed his head. "Do you think you can free my people?"
"Yes," Sakina said with a set determination. "I will find them and they will go free. You have my word."
"That word means the world to me." Big Brother acknowledged. Together, Link and Darunia disappeared into the chamber holding Volvagia. Sakina turned away on her own and wandered off to seek the Gorons.
They weren't difficult to find. She had barely searched for ten minutes when she heard the familiar groaning of distressed Gorons. It took all of her will-power to get her to run forward. She didn't want to move in this blistering heat.
"Oh please, don't hurt us!" The Gorons were all crammed together in a wide cell. There were at least fifty of them in there. The heat must have been unbearable.
"I'm here to help," Sakina whispered. She looked at the lock on the door. "Damn, if only I had a key or something…." She looked around, not expecting to find anything. "Bombchu Flowers," she noticed with relief. But that would hurt the Gorons.
"Who are you?" One closest to the door asked.
"My name is Sakina," she said, thinking deeply, hoping that at least Link was succeeding.
There was a general murmuring of recognition.
"We thank you for returning to us in our most dire need," another spoke, confident in her skills. "How can we help?"
Sakina remembered the Great Fairy of Magic. "Well, it's worth a shot." She looked back up to the Gorons. "Can you guys cram back as far as possible? I don't know what sort of affect this will have."
The Gorons curled up against one another.
"Thanks." Ripping her sword out of its sheath, she focused on the magic that welled inside of her. The sword began to glow and hum, crackling with power. Bringing it up over her head, she made a silent prayer to Din for help, and then she whipped it through the air and rammed it through the padlock.
Her arms jarred painfully and she cried out not-so-much in pain as in surprise. The padlock split clean in two and fell to the floor. The door swung open as fifty Gorons peeped up to see what was happening.
"Oh, Sakina! Thank you, thank you!" A female Goron cried joyously. Sakina pressed against a wall as the Gorons ran out, thanking her excitedly as they rolled and jogged away. Finally, there was one Goron left. In his arms was a large threatening hammer.
"Sakina," he spoke respectfully, "I found this in the back of the cage. It is called the Megaton Hammer. A Goron who defeated Volvagia once before used this weapon to aid him. Supposedly it was the only way to defeat him. Use it, won't you?" The Goron handed the heavy weapon to Sakina, who held it in awe.
"Thank you,"
The Goron nodded and rolled off to catch up to his companions. Sakina stared at the hammer for a bit.
This might be useful.
"Link!" She jumped into action and practically flew across the chamber. Leaping into the air, she realized what the Goron had said. "Supposedly it was the only way to defeat him." Landing hard on her feet, she barely paused for breath, instead ripping the door open and running into Volvagia's lair.
There was no sign of Darunia. Sakina cautiously crept into the room. Before her crouched a great dragon, seemingly sniffing something eagerly. Sakina soon saw Link's limp form crumpled on the ground. Not knowing what else to do, Sakina ran over and slammed the hammer into the dragon's back.
"You bastard!" She shouted. Volvagia shot screeching into the air and flew down a hole. Sakina knew she hadn't won, but had to check on Link. "Link," she breathed. "Link!" She shook his shoulder. He moaned. "Okay, you had better not die, because if you do…."
Volvagia burst out of a hole and breathed flames at Sakina, missing by mere inches. Sakina ran forward and slammed the hammer down again, knocking the dragon silly and back into the hole.
I think I like this thing.
"Come out, you stinking coward!" She screamed at the dragon. "Come on! Fight me! FIGHT ME!" Her hands squeezed the hammer still more tightly. She paced the room, watching for any sign of movement. Behind her, a spurt of flame shot up. She whipped around to face it and saw nothing, but behind her Volvagia emerged and lashed out with his talons. Sakina cried out as her back began to bleed. She hit the dragon fiercely, summoning her pain to her aid. The dragon collapsed outside the hole. Sakina hit it again and again and again until it sank back down, not yet dead. "Die, come on!" She shouted irritably. "You big…" she breathed in hard, "red, RETARD!"
The dragon flew out from behind her, lashing her again with his tail. Volvagia soared through the air, shooting flames at her. Blood spattered behind her, mingling with her sweat. Volvagia knocked rocks from the ceiling, hoping to hit her. Sakina may have been exhausted, but she was up for a game of avoid the falling rocks of doom.
"You wanna play hard-to-get?" Sakina growled. "Well, I'm good at that." She pulled out her bow and grabbed an arrow. As Volvagia swooped overhead, Sakina took her chance and lodged an arrow square in Volvagia's middle. Volvagia fell, slithering pitifully on the ground, hissing flames at Sakina. Raising her hammer one last time, Sakina brought it down on the dragon's head, killing him finally. Screeching, the dragon writhed until it moved no more. Sakina ran over to Link, who was just regaining consciousness.
"Sakina!" He mumbled, trying to sit up. "Darunia disappeared…."
"Hold still, you moron," she said gently, trying not to cry with relief.
"He just came so fast… kept fighting but wouldn't die…." Link breathed heavily.
"He's dead now. Don't worry. I'll keep you safe," Sakina held Link's head. "In my arms."
There was a singing noise and they were surrounded again in white light.
Drip, drop.
They were in the same chamber of the sages that they had met Saria in naught but a day ago. Colors filtered around them, sighing, breathing as though they themselves lived in the darkness.
"Big Brother," Sakina sighed. "I should have known."
"Yes, I am Sage of Fire." He boomed. "You were brave, saving my people and destroying Volvagia. You two truly are family. I add my powers to you." Link was lifted into upright form and glowed momentarily red before collapsing back into Sakina's arms. "I will send you to my chambers for the night." Darunia added. "Sister, Brother…."
Link and Sakina found themselves in one of Darunia's antechambers. It seemed it was a room made for sleeping. The floor was lined wall to wall with squashy carpet and pillows.
"Link," Sakina set him gently on the floor. "How are you feeling?"
"I'm a little dizzy," he admitted, "but I think I'm all right."
Sakina stroked his hair. "Where are you injured?"
He smiled goofily. "Everywhere."
"Take your shirt off." She demanded. Link stared at her in wonder, but complied. "Just bruises, it looks like. Hold still." She took out her healing salve and tended to each of Link's wounds. What had caused him to faint was the large swelling on his forehead. Apparently he hadn't avoided all of the rocks. She put the lotion gently on the lump until it disappeared. All the while, Link focused on her eyes as they concernedly surveyed his face.
"Thank you,"
"No problem." She stood, recapping the lotion. Her hair was a sweaty mess and she knew it. She felt extremely self-conscious, not only because she felt disgusting but because she had wanted to kiss Link. "I… I think I'm going to go and bathe." She turned to go.
"But you're wounded too." Link stood quickly.
"Hah, so I am." Sakina blushed. "Forgot about that."
"You forgot? You got scratched badly."
Sakina nodded. "I should wash the wounds though, before I put the healing solvent on them." That was something that Naoll had taught her once after scraping her knee. "You rest awhile; I'll be back in a moment."
"No, I'll get cleaned too," Link said.
Sakina's eyes widened.
"There's another washroom," he finished, smiling wryly at her expression. She laughed and went to get cleaned up. There was a basin shaped like a bonfire that filled with water from an outside source. Shampoos and soaps lined the wall. Her scratches stung furiously in the water and soap. Soon she stopped soaking them for pain. Little strings of blood floated around through the water and in the soap suds. After she got out of the bath, she toweled herself carefully, trying not to aggravate the stinging slices on her back. They weren't too deep. She combed her hair quickly and found that not only were the snares easier to contend with, but that her hair was dry faster too. Must be the magic, she thought to herself. I could get used to this. After cleaning her red tunic, she changed back into it and emerged bootless to find Link sitting shirtless, staring blankly at his hands. He looked up at her.
"Hi," he said unnecessarily. Sakina pulled her hair over one shoulder; she hadn't bothered to braid it yet. It would be nice to sleep with it down for once. "Wound time," he stood and uncapped the bottle. He walked behind her and she looked down to keep her hair out of the way while he worked. His fingers worked wonders over her sore back, closing the gaping wounds as they went. She felt more relaxed. His fingers lingered on her upper-back and she felt her hair bristle and her skin tingle. She turned to face him quickly. Their faces were mere inches apart. Sakina could feel Link's breath on her face, warm and reassuring. Bringing her hand up slowly, she brought it to his cheek and leaned carefully in to press her lips against his. She pulled away a second later, ashamed, but Link brought his hands to her shoulders and swooped back in. They held onto one another tightly, both feeling warm in ways that fire couldn't cause.
(A/N: Yeah, I think you all know what happens after this, at least you have a vague idea. I, being the hormone-crazed teenager that I am, know exactly what happened, but that is a secret between my PC and me. And whoever happens to read it. Almost forgot the rating of this story. Am I naughty? Or are they naughty? I blame them, because I hate blaming myself for things. Okay, warning to all: the story will get a bit off track again. The fairy scene in here was for convenience, besides, those fairies are flat-out frightening. I don't like 'em. There's going to be some changes later on, for you die-hards who think the story should be exact. Clears throat My character, my story mutilations. Hoo-hah!)