Chapter 4: When Sapphire Eyes Open
A soft groan, followed a by a weak cough. Water is offered to my dry lips and I gratefully accept, feeling relieved as the cool liquid soothes the scratchiness in my throat. Once I have quenched my thirst, I cautiously open my eyes. Smears of color greet me, a welcome change from the endless black from before.
I try to remember what has happened, but it seems as though everything is just out of my mind's reach...
I flinch as a hand touches my forehead. I hear voices, but they are only murmurs to my ears. "Wh...where am I...?" I ask, my voice nothing more than a strained whisper.
"...you...castle...rest..." I struggle to understand more than that, but my weary mind does not let me. My eyes close again, and though I fight to remain above the inky blackness creeping into my thoughts, it manages to pull me into the dark oblivion of sleep.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
I watch as clear water flows from the bucket in my grasp and pours into the wooden trough. Ginger nudges my back impatiently. A quiet giggle escapes my throat, and I reach up to stroke her silken nose.
"There, I'm done." I step back and smile as she quenches her thirst, her soft brown eyes looking at me. "You're welcome girl." Slowly my footsteps take me from the stable, and out into the bright, mid-afternoon sun. It feels so warm on my skin... my eyes shut gently as I enjoy the feel of the wind on my face.
"Malon!" My father's voice calls from the corral. He sounds...anxious...worried. My eyes open, and I rush toward his call, curious but dreadful at the same time. As I pass the barn, I see him standing near the corral gate, speaking to a royal guard. Disbelief is apparent in his aged eyes.
"Father? What is it?" I ask, trying to keep the fear from my voice as I approach.
"This gentleman needs to speak with ya'. He has news from the castle that ya' might want to know about." I turned to the guard.
"The Princess Zelda has sent for you," he spoke hesitantly, keeping his eyes upon the ground.
"What has happened...?"
"The Hero of Time...attempted to take his own life..."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Come on, Ginger! Hurry!" I urge my horse on as we approach the castle. She quickens her pace, seeming to sense my need. I had to get to him...to my knight...
To Link...
We soon reach the doorway to the fortress. I dismount before Ginger has even come to a complete stop and ran inside. A guard greets me.
"Can I help you, miss?"
"Link! Where is he?!" I can feel tears standing in my eyes.
"Follow me." He turns and stars down a hall, our hurried footsteps echoing off the stonewalls. My mind races...I think of things that make my blood run cold. What if he dies, and I'm not there? What if this is somehow my fault...if I could've stopped him had I showed a little more concern? Finally he stops and opens a door, showing me into a small room, filled with people. My eyes widen in concern as they fall upon Link's pale figure.
"Link..."
He stirs, and I watch as his cloudy blue eyes open. He looks around a moment and slowly sits up, his muscles tense with unease. No body in the room speaks, almost as though we're afraid. His sapphire eyes pause on me, and I find I can't control myself anymore. Before either of us knew what had happened, I am with him, embracing him as my tears fell. I had almost lost my knight...the one who'd made my life so much better. But he would be okay now...I would make sure he would be okay.
After awhile I realize he wasn't returning the embrace. Slowly I became aware of feeling angry. After all the worry and fear I had suffered, he couldn't even reassure me by hugging back? I know he must have had reasons for trying to take his own life, but now he was being selfish. I pull back, frowning slightly.
WHACK! His head turned a little to the side from the force of my slap. I surprised myself with my own harshness. Slowly he looks back at me, and I notice something in his eyes that I hadn't before.
Confusion...
"Link...?" I ask worriedly. He looks around, and over his shoulder as though trying to decide whom I was speaking to. After a moment, he turns back to me.
"Who...who are you...?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Author's Note:
Ha ha! Cliffhanger! Well...sort of.
I'm alive! ^^; Sorry about the wait, I need to start writing stuff down so I remember where I'm going with these things. I hope it wasn't too short...it was only two pages and I tried to lengthen it out a bit, but I'm really bad when it comes to pace. Thanks for the reviews; they really do help keep me motivated.
Speaking of which, in response to the reviews:
I'm sorry if the past few chapters seemed weak... I'm really good with the highly depressing, angst-y stuff, especially from Link's POV. I'm not used to writing from the Sages' view, though... ::sighs:: Don't worry, now that Link's awake I can do more with him.
This little twist may liven things up a bit...
Well, that's all for now. Until we meet under the stars' light again, farewell and good luck.
~LinkSage
A soft groan, followed a by a weak cough. Water is offered to my dry lips and I gratefully accept, feeling relieved as the cool liquid soothes the scratchiness in my throat. Once I have quenched my thirst, I cautiously open my eyes. Smears of color greet me, a welcome change from the endless black from before.
I try to remember what has happened, but it seems as though everything is just out of my mind's reach...
I flinch as a hand touches my forehead. I hear voices, but they are only murmurs to my ears. "Wh...where am I...?" I ask, my voice nothing more than a strained whisper.
"...you...castle...rest..." I struggle to understand more than that, but my weary mind does not let me. My eyes close again, and though I fight to remain above the inky blackness creeping into my thoughts, it manages to pull me into the dark oblivion of sleep.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
I watch as clear water flows from the bucket in my grasp and pours into the wooden trough. Ginger nudges my back impatiently. A quiet giggle escapes my throat, and I reach up to stroke her silken nose.
"There, I'm done." I step back and smile as she quenches her thirst, her soft brown eyes looking at me. "You're welcome girl." Slowly my footsteps take me from the stable, and out into the bright, mid-afternoon sun. It feels so warm on my skin... my eyes shut gently as I enjoy the feel of the wind on my face.
"Malon!" My father's voice calls from the corral. He sounds...anxious...worried. My eyes open, and I rush toward his call, curious but dreadful at the same time. As I pass the barn, I see him standing near the corral gate, speaking to a royal guard. Disbelief is apparent in his aged eyes.
"Father? What is it?" I ask, trying to keep the fear from my voice as I approach.
"This gentleman needs to speak with ya'. He has news from the castle that ya' might want to know about." I turned to the guard.
"The Princess Zelda has sent for you," he spoke hesitantly, keeping his eyes upon the ground.
"What has happened...?"
"The Hero of Time...attempted to take his own life..."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Come on, Ginger! Hurry!" I urge my horse on as we approach the castle. She quickens her pace, seeming to sense my need. I had to get to him...to my knight...
To Link...
We soon reach the doorway to the fortress. I dismount before Ginger has even come to a complete stop and ran inside. A guard greets me.
"Can I help you, miss?"
"Link! Where is he?!" I can feel tears standing in my eyes.
"Follow me." He turns and stars down a hall, our hurried footsteps echoing off the stonewalls. My mind races...I think of things that make my blood run cold. What if he dies, and I'm not there? What if this is somehow my fault...if I could've stopped him had I showed a little more concern? Finally he stops and opens a door, showing me into a small room, filled with people. My eyes widen in concern as they fall upon Link's pale figure.
"Link..."
He stirs, and I watch as his cloudy blue eyes open. He looks around a moment and slowly sits up, his muscles tense with unease. No body in the room speaks, almost as though we're afraid. His sapphire eyes pause on me, and I find I can't control myself anymore. Before either of us knew what had happened, I am with him, embracing him as my tears fell. I had almost lost my knight...the one who'd made my life so much better. But he would be okay now...I would make sure he would be okay.
After awhile I realize he wasn't returning the embrace. Slowly I became aware of feeling angry. After all the worry and fear I had suffered, he couldn't even reassure me by hugging back? I know he must have had reasons for trying to take his own life, but now he was being selfish. I pull back, frowning slightly.
WHACK! His head turned a little to the side from the force of my slap. I surprised myself with my own harshness. Slowly he looks back at me, and I notice something in his eyes that I hadn't before.
Confusion...
"Link...?" I ask worriedly. He looks around, and over his shoulder as though trying to decide whom I was speaking to. After a moment, he turns back to me.
"Who...who are you...?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Author's Note:
Ha ha! Cliffhanger! Well...sort of.
I'm alive! ^^; Sorry about the wait, I need to start writing stuff down so I remember where I'm going with these things. I hope it wasn't too short...it was only two pages and I tried to lengthen it out a bit, but I'm really bad when it comes to pace. Thanks for the reviews; they really do help keep me motivated.
Speaking of which, in response to the reviews:
I'm sorry if the past few chapters seemed weak... I'm really good with the highly depressing, angst-y stuff, especially from Link's POV. I'm not used to writing from the Sages' view, though... ::sighs:: Don't worry, now that Link's awake I can do more with him.
This little twist may liven things up a bit...
Well, that's all for now. Until we meet under the stars' light again, farewell and good luck.
~LinkSage