KT – DA: Hello! I'm here! I'm actually here!

Roy: No… way…

Link: Great. Just great. You leave us alone for AGES, trying to figure out what happens next, and you come back all hyper. WHERE have you been?

KT – DA: I have been… um… at school?

Marth: Milady… surely you had some time in there that you could have been writing?

KT – DA: well… I had to save Hyrule! And beat Fire Emblem! Isn't that stuff important?

Link: It would have been, if you had actually saved Hyrule, and actually beaten Fire Emblem.

Roy: yeah, I know for a fact, you're still stuck on that one chapter in Fire Emblem.

KT – DA: okay, okay, I'm sorry. Look! I've got another chapter for you! Roy, do the stuff!

Roy: Kuroi Tenshi – Dark Angel does not own SSBM or any of its characters. She does own Sarah Holly. I think you know this by now.

Link: We want to thank all of you for hanging in there, and for all your reviews.

Marth: Can we have the chapter now, Milady?

KT – DA: Absolutely!

Getting Over Our Troubles – And He Worried So…

Sarah Holly opened her eyes slowly, and then shut them quickly against the harsh lights. She heard cloth rustling next to her, and turned her head towards the sound. Opening her eyes again, she saw Marth slumped in a chair next to her bed, asleep. Pushing the covers away, she pushed herself up onto her elbows.

"Marth?" Sarah called softly.
Marth snapped awake and looked at her. "Oh! Milady… Sarah, are you alright?"
Sarah swallowed. "I think so. What happened?"

"You fainted. I brought you up here. You've been asleep for a long time."

Sarah shivered, remembering her dreams. They weren't pleasant. "Marth? How… is Zelda alright?" Her voice was weak, a clear sign that tears were near.

Marth bit his lip. "I honestly don't know, Milady. I haven't been to see her since… since I brought you up here." Sarah was surprised to see his cheeks redden slightly.

"What? Why?"

Marth looked at her again. "I was worried about you. I should have gone to see Zelda, I know, but… but I couldn't leave you."

Sarah shifted uncomfortably under the covers. He had stayed with her this whole time? Hadn't he said she'd been asleep a long time? How long, she wondered.

"What did I say to you… down on the stage?" she asked hesitantly.

Marth didn't say anything for a moment, then he took a deep breath. "You said that it was all your fault, that you thought you had set the spheres wrong. You told me… that you were raped." Everything about him told Sarah that he was truly upset, from his eyes to his voice. She opened her mouth to reply, when a knock came on the door.

"Ah… who is it?" Sarah called.

"It's Roy. Can I come in?"

Sarah said yes, and Roy entered quietly. He nodded at Marth and sat down next to the bed.

"How are you doing? We all saw Marth carry you up here, but he was glaring daggers at anyone who even looked like they were coming close."

Sarah gave him a small smile. "I'm okay. I'm just a little tired, that's all. How is Zelda?"

Roy sighed. "She'll live; Dr. Mario has assured us multiple times. She's sleeping now. She won't be able to get up for a while, though. No more battles for her this tournament."

"What about Link?" Marth spoke up.

"He's in our room, just staring out the window. I just went in to visit him and told him about Zelda. He didn't respond." Roy said, his brow furrowed in worry. "I think someone needs to watch him for a while."

Sarah took a deep breath, and then lay back on the bed. She told herself that it wasn't her fault, but there was still a dark whisper in the back of her head telling her it was. "Thank you for telling us, Roy. I think you're right about Link."

Roy nodded. "I'm going back to talk to Master Hand again, and then I'll go to Link. You just rest here for a while." He looked at Marth as he moved to the door, but didn't say anything. Marth stared at the door for a while after it had closed behind his friend, then turned his gaze back to Sarah.

Sarah sighed lightly and closed her eyes.

"If you want me to leave, I will Milady," Marth's voice came quietly.

Sarah looked at him. "Oh, no I don't want you to leave. I'm just tired. I should really get up." She avoided actually looking into his eyes, almost afraid of what she would find there.

A sad smile appeared on Marth's lips. "I see. I will wait for you outside." He got up and left the room. Silence descended on Sarah, though she could hear Marth settle against the wall just outside. Taking another deep breath, she swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood. She changed out of her rumpled clothes quickly and brushed her hair into place.

Marth looked up as she stepped into the hallway and smiled at her. "I wasn't sure if you would come out or not," he said, relief evident in his voice. Sarah smiled back at him, and they went downstairs together.

The scene that met them was slight chaos. Everyone seemed to be running some urgent errand or other, shouting questions and commands back and forth over the noise. Samus, seeing Sarah and Marth, came over.

"Sarah, I'm glad you're up. Master Hand wants to talk to you. He's in his office, making calls and such."

Sarah nodded. "Alright. I'll see you later, then." She turned and started down the stairs. She heard Samus tell Marth to come help her with something, but ignored it.

Master Hand was indeed on the phone when Sarah entered his office. He waved at her to sit down as he completed the conversation and hung up.

"Are you feeling alright? Someone told me that you had fainted," he said.

Sarah nodded. "Yes, I did, but I'm much better now. Samus said you wanted to see me, so I came."

"Yes, yes. I wanted to know what you saw on the stage."

"A sphere was broken. It fell from the ring under the catwalk."

"Do you know how it happened?"

"I don't know. It looks like it just fell, but I didn't get a very good look at it. I thought at first that it was my fault, that I hadn't screwed it in tightly enough, but…"

"You're not sure." Master Hand put his elbows on his desk and propped his head on his hands. "I'm almost positive that this is not your fault. Somehow, I can tell that this wasn't a mechanical accident."

A look of surprise crossed Sarah's face. "You can? What do you mean?"

Master Hand sighed. "No one has seen Ganondorf all day."

Sarah gasped lightly. "You mean… you think HE did something…?"

"I have no proof, just a suspicion. After all, he DID call in sick today. Calling in sick does not make one guilty of vandalism, or attempted murder, however you want to look at it," Master Hand said.

Sarah thought she saw a look of disgust on her employer's face. "You want it to be him, don't you? You want proof."

Master Hand smiled. "You are a bright girl, Sarah. That is exactly what I want. I have been looking for an excuse to boot him out of the tournament for a long time, and this might be it. All I lack is the proof."

"So… you want me to…" Sarah thought out loud.

"Yes, that is where you come in. I want you to figure out how this happened. I don't really care if it turns out to be Ganon or not, but I do need to have an explanation for the press," Master Hand said.

Sarah bit her lip. "Okay. I think I can do that. I'll have to close off the stage, though. No more battles there until I've finished looking at everything." It might already be too late, she thought to herself. There had been plenty of time between when she and Marth had been down there and now for someone to go in and clean up any evidence. Still thinking about this, she bid Master Hand goodbye and headed back to the common room.

KT – DA: well, okay, it's not a great ending place, but it works.

Link: So… I'm in a state of catatonia? What's that all about?

Roy: I don't get the title.

KT – DA: You wouldn't.

Marth: Please review!