sry i havent updated 4 so long! my computer had a virus and i couldnt get
on the Internet! but everythings fine now!! YAY!!
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"You girls ready to go yet?"
"Yeah, Malon will be out in a second," Saria answered. She walked up to the horse Link was riding and stroked her mane. "Oh, your horse is beautiful, Link! What's her name?"
"Epona," Link answered, beaming.
Malon came out from the stables riding one of her horses. "Hate to say it, Saria, but your horse appears to be feeling a little sick today. I don't advise you to go riding him all the way to the palace."
"Oh, dear!" exclaimed Saria. "Poor Sam! How ill is he? Do you think I should stay here with him?"
"Oh, I don't think that's quite necessary," Malon answered. "He'll be fine until we get back, you needn't worry. You can ride one of the other horses."
"Malon, you seem to forget that nearly all the other horses were given to the soldiers who are helping those poor countries; and all the rest never let me ride them unless it's an emergency. I'd better stay with Sam to comfort him."
"Oh, don't be ridiculous," Link said. "C'mon, get on behind you."
Saria stared at him dumbly for a moment. "Y-you mean--"
"He means to get on Epona behind him," Malon said loudly. She grinned and winked at her sister.
Smiling, Saria stepped onto Epona (she nearly slipped, because Epona was so much bigger than Sam; but she made a quick recovery). She steadied herself and then hesitated, wondering if she should put her arms around him or not.
"You'd better hold on tight," Link advised her. "Epona can ride pretty fast when she feels like it."
"Okay," Saria agreed, putting her arms around his waist and smiling happily to herself. "About how far away is the castle anyhow?"
"Not too far off on horseback," Link answered, kicking Epona's flanks and starting her off. "But it would take you a while if you were just on foot. Hey Malon, can you keep up?"
"Har, har," Malon said, driving her horse faster. "Just because Epona earned the title of the Fastest Horse o' Hyrule doesn't mean that Thorton can't match up!"
"What kind of name is Thorton, anyway?" Saria asked.
"Well, what kind of name is EPONA?!" Malon said back, finally drawing level with Link.
****
Zelda looked at the approaching horses from the stables. Her ears turned a pinkish color when she noticed Saria gripping Link as if her life depended on it. Gr. The princess turned away and walked up to her horse's pen.
"The stable's right over there," Link said, hopping off of Epona and then lifting Saria off. "C'mon."
"C'mon," Zelda said, tentatively approaching her horse, Dusk. "C'mon, just let me take you out for a minute."
Dusk stepped back in his pen as Zelda cautiously opened the door to it. His nonstrils flared and he let out a soft whinny.
"Don't be scared, you're okay," Zelda said in the same soft voice, stepping closer. "I don't want to hurt you, just calm down."
She reached out a hand to touch his mane as Link opened the door to the stable. In that split second, Dusk reared back on his hind legs, screeching horribly; and his hoof reached out and slammed into the Princess's jaw, sending her flying back into the wall of the stable behind her.
"Zel!" Link shouted, rushing towards her. She sat up, clutching her chin. "Goddesses, Zelda! Are you okay?!"
"I'll be fine," she answered, getting to her feet with Link's aid. "He didn't hit me full-force with that hoof, I managed to dodge it slightly. Ow--but my back's in a bit of pain from crashing into this wall here. Don't worry, I'll be fine."
"Woah, boy! Calm down!" Malon said, attempting to grab the reins that Zelda had already placed on him. "Good Goddesses, he's furious at something! What happened?!"
"Nothing, that's the problem!" Zelda said, grabbing Malon away from another of Dusk's flailing hooves. "I simply went up to touch his mane, and he went mad on me! Simply insane!"
She pretty much had to shout, because Dusk was making such a commotion in the background.
Saria's hand darted upward and she yanked on the horse's rein. "What's his name, it's very important!"
"Dusk!" Zelda and Link answered.
"C'mon, calm down, Dusk!" Saria said. "Malon, grab the other rein! That's it, yank down on it! Good!" Seizing the moment, Saria reached up with her free hand and threw it around Dusk's neck. She felt it throb beaneath her arm.
Dusk wheezed in complaint, trying to jerk his neck out of Saria's grasp, and bite her at the same time. It felt as if her arm might rip off at any moment.
"Stop, you'll choke him to death!" Link protested.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing!" Saria said. Two seconds later, Dusk was mute, and he collapsed to the dirty floor (shaking the place). Malon let go of the rein and it fell limply by his side.
"Good Goddesses!" exclaimed Zelda, walking over to her horse. "What did you DO to him?!"
"No need for worry, your highness," Saria said, standing up and brushing herself off. "By putting a certain amount of pressure on his jugular, he's passed out--he'll be out for a couple hours. But no serious damage has been done to him whatsoever. When he wakes up, he won't remember any of what happened."
"All right, but that doesn't really help his condition at all, does it?" Zelda asked.
"Nope," Malon answered. "Your horse is a case, highness. Never seen anything like that. I mean, I know horses get angry and all that, but he should be a lot easier to calm him down....and I don't exactly like the way his eyes were rolling back into his head like that. Did you notice, highness?"
"Yes, I did," Zelda answered, shivering. "My mother used to always tell me to look into a horse's eyes to control him, but it's somewhat difficult when you don't have much of an eye to look into." She laughed a hollow laugh, giving the impression to her fellows that she was attempting to steady herself. "Nothing I've done has worked to calm him down."
"I'll have to give this some thought, Princess," Malon said after a silence. "I'm not sure what to do."
"I understand completely," Zelda said. "Won't you two stay for lunch, though? It would make me feel dreadful to have you two just come and go."
"If we wouldn't be in the way, we would love joining you two," Malon said.
"Of course you wouldn't be in the way," said Link. "Otherwise, the Princess would not have invited you."
The four of them laughed. 'I suppose Link was right,' Saria thought as they all trooped back towards the castle. 'The princess does look rather becoming when she smiles. And I wonder how often THAT is.'
Malon and Saria drifted a bit behind Link and Zelda, the former saying, "What do you think of the Princess, Saria?"
"I'm not sure," Saria answered, shrugging her shoulder. "She has a certain gravity around her, like she never smiles or laughs or anything. But she appears very strong, to have said she experienced no pain in that incident."
"That might've just been an image she was trying to keep," Malon said. "But she seems like a rather brave person, and also somewhat ni--"
"You two had better catch up," they heard Zelda say. "It's very easy to get lost in this place if you don't know your way around."
"Sure took me a while," Link laughed.
"That's because you're an exception," Zelda said, as they continued to walk (and Saria and Malon had caught up a bit). She patted his shoulder lightly. "It takes you a bit longer to contemplate things than other elves."
Link gasped mockingly. "Does the fair princess dare to insult the brave Hero?! What a scandal!"
"Oh, why, look," Zelda said rather loudly. "It's the dining room already."
****
It happened while they were in the middle of eating. A loud explosion was heard just as Saria was asking Zelda about the shrubberies in the garden. She stopped mid-sentence, and they all sped out of the castle as fast as they could.
"The stables!" Malon cried, once they had gotten outdoors. "It's been burnt down to a crisp!"
"Oh my Goddesses!" Zelda shouted. "It's Dusk! Someone's riding off with him--I'd recognize that prodigious horse of mine anywhere!"
"But how can he be concious?!" Saria asked in astonishment. "He was supposed to be out for two hours!"
"That's one strong horse you've got there, Princess," Malon said, clearly giving an understatement.
"Look, there are some of the horses over there, follow me!" Zelda said, running over to a pack of steeds who had managed to evacuate the burning stables.
Link leapt on top of Epona, and Malon quickly mounted Thorton. Zelda put her foot up over the saddle of Impa's horse, and motioned for Saria to take another. "Come on, we've got to follow him!"
Epona, being the fastest, neared Dusk first. Link reached for the Master Sword at his back and swiped out at the man riding the Princess's horse. Dusk retaliated by slamming into Epona full-force, nearly toppling her over.
But she wasn't going to be taken down that easily. She snapped back at Dusk, who eluded her and then snapped back even faster. The attack caught Epona by surprise, and she came to a sudden halt.
The man riding Dusk twisted around and shot an arrow towards Link. In order to avoid it, he quickly flipped off of Epona, only to realize shortly thereafter that he had no where to land.
"You showoff, get on my horse!" Zelda shouted to him, after Link landed on the ground a few yards in front of her. She reached out a hand, and he grabbed it hastily, pulling himself onto the horse behind her. "Malon, Saria!"
"He's getting away!" Malon shouted.
"I think you two had better get back to the ranch!" Zelda continued. "The horse Saria's riding looks like he's getting a bit weak, hurry!"
"C'mon, Saria!" Malon called to her, pulling sharply on the reins of her horse and turning him down a road. "We'll be back!"
The rider pulled out another arrow and shot it at Link and Zelda.
"Ho!" Link said, ducking to elude the arrows. "There were THREE of those! How did he do it?! I thought there was only one!"
"No time to concentrate on that!" Zelda said back. "He's got my horse, and he obviously doesn't think it's a problem to try and murder us!"
Saria and Malon flew down the path leading to their ranch. Saria jumped off her horse and ran towards the house.
"Where are you going?!" Malon asked her. "We need to go to the stables, not the house!"
"What we need are weapons!" Saria said, coming to a temporary stop. "Come on!"
Malon slowed down Thorton on the other side of the house, caught up to Saria and ran into the house. They headed for the first room they saw and opened the drawer with all the weapons inside it. Saria pulled a bow off the wall and gathered all her arrows. Malon grabbed a dagger and a bottle filled with toxic poison (like there was any other kind of poison). They turned to leave, but stopped when they saw someone blocking their exit.
A group of moblins, each holding something ominous and lethal slowly approached them.
"And where do you two plan on going with those?" one of them asked quietly. "No need to be frightened, girls. We noticed one of your horses was wounded, so we're just giving it a little help. But now we want you to help us."
"Get away, you moblins!" Saria screamed at them, firing an arrow towards them.
The head moblin held up his shield, and the arrow bounced off of it harmlessly. Then the moblin picked it up and threw it towards Saria, like a miniature spear. She gasped then ducked; and the arrow shattered an empty vase behind her.
The rest of the moblins lifted up arrows and shot them towards the two sisters. Malon and Saria leapt up, barely missing the arrows and the flying glass of objects they hit. Both were going in the same general direction: up.
Malon scaled a tall shelf of breaking objects, and Saria had made her way to the top of a tall chest of drawers. In a rather daring move, she leapt across the length of the room onto the shelf Malon was on.
The moblins shot in vain at her as she glided, their arrows crashing through a glass window on the ceiling.
"Thank you!" Malon said, jumping through the opening and onto the roof, Saria following. "You'll have to use that old bag of bones you got at the palace, Saria, if you want to get out of here alive!"
Thorton looked up at Malon from the ground, his head cocked towards the stable.
"About face!" Malon barked.
Instantly, Thorton turned around, and Malon leapt from the roof onto his back. She nearly slipped off, but regained her balance and rode off. "Saria, come on!"
Saria hesitated. Then she let out a mighty battle roar and flew towards the horse beneath her. As she had pretty much expected, the horse moved away at the last second, leaving Saria to crash onto the dirty ground.
"I heard a noise from out there!" one of the moblins said.
As quickly as she could, Saria mounted the horse and followed Malon back into the woods.
*****
"I can't believe we lost him!" Zelda mourned, back at the castle. "How did he just disappear like that?!"
"I don't know," Link said shrugging. "It was like one minute he was there, and the next he was gone. Hey, I hear horses--I think Malon and Saria must've come back! Let's go and see them."
Link and Zelda hurried out of the castle, and indeed saw Malon and Saria dismounting their horses and walking towards them.
"Saria, you've got an arrow in your boot!" Zelda said.
"I do?" Saria asked, looking down. She laughed and yanked it out. "I guess so."
"What happened?" Link asked, upon noticing that both of them were covered in sweat in and some cuts.
"When we got there, our whole house had been filled by moblins!" Malon answered. "Well actually, they kinda snuck up on us. We had gone inside to get some weapons, and then they came out of nowhere! So then they started shooting arrows at us, and we only escaped death by going up onto the roof."
"That's terrible!" Zelda said. "I'm so sorry; they're probably going to make a wreck of your home--and your stables, too! The two of you had better stay here for the next few days, unless you have a secret death wish, of course."
"You are too kind to keep us, milady," Malon said, bowing slightly. "There must be something we can do in return."
"Not at all!" Zelda said. "I'd be even worse than a moblin if I were to send you back to your home in its current stage, you must stay! Impa will help you with your rooms, come along with me. C'mon."
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Later that night, Link knocked on Zelda's door. "Come in," he heard her say. He gulped and then opened the door.
"I hope I'm not disturbing you or intruding, Princess," Link said, walking into the room and closing the door behind him.
"Of course not," Zelda said, standing up. "But this time I was prepared, in case it was you. Please notice the robe." She smiled, and Link laughed.
"I see. Very nice."
"Do you know if Malon and Saria are comfortable in their rooms? I do hope that Impa gave them the good ones."
"Yes, Saria's mouth dropped when she saw the interior of her room," Link chuckled. "I know that their gratitude is beyond words, your higness."
There was a silence between them, a loud silence. Both knew that the other was thinking of the events that had happened that very day. It was clearly etched on their faces.
"I know you're feeling distraught," Link whispered, taking her face in his hands and then stepping back. "And I know you've already got an immense load on your shoulders, so please just ask me whenever you need help."
"Link," Zelda said, taking a step towards him and hugging him tightly. "I know I can always depend on you; you're the best friend I've got in the world. My only friend, really. Well, except for Impa, of course."
"It's an honor to be of service to you," Link said, embracing her back and being overwhelmed by the silken texture of her golden hair. He could get lost in it....but then Zelda walked out of his arms and backed up to her bed.
"You needn't always be so formal around me, Link," Zelda whispered, her eyes inviting him to step closer. As he did so, the Princess noticed for the first time the way that his soft, golden bangs fell into his crystalline eyes, the way he walked when his sword did not weigh him down. So desirable....
Zelda looked away instantly, her face reddening, shocked at herself for looking at him in such a way. He was only a friend, a companion.
'Yeah, right,' said a little voice in her head.
She wanted to feel his hands on her face again. They made her feel so protected and safe, like she didn't have to worry about anything in the world anymore. But she couldn't just ask him straight out to touch her again. The Princess looked up into Link's eyes, as if conveying the message to him telepathically.
Zelda twitched as she felt her robe slide off of her shoulders, until it was in a heap on the floor. Though scantily clad, she felt no need to cover herself, as Link had been the one to take off her robe.
"Link...."
But she was stopped after that, for Link had taken the moment to put his arms around her and move his lips onto her upper neck. His kisses began to travel upwards as she fell back onto the bed, Link nearly right on top of her.
Her hands reached out and found his face, and she gently lifted them until he was facing her directly. Link moved up until he was level with her, and then Zelda unexpectedly rolled on top of him and slid her tongue inside his mouth.
So it was a daring first move. But Goddesses, did it feel good!
She was safe; safe from any harm that could ever come to her, now that Link was holding onto her. He was fencing her in from all the dangers in the world, and she didn't ever want him to leave her side.
The moist tenderness of his tongue was intoxicating with all its pleasures, and Zelda felt her breathing get harder and harder, and her body getting hotter and hotter.
Finally, the two pulled away from each other, their lips quivering from wanting to feel the other's touch again. Their arms were still tightly holding onto each other; and Zelda didn't know how it had happened, but she was suddenly underneath him again.
"Goddesses," Zelda said in the quietest of whispers. "Link, I--I...." She didn't know what to say. She was breathless--literally.
Link quickly sat up. "I'm sorry, Princess, that was extremely ill- mannered of me."
"Don't be ridiculous," Zelda said, putting an arm around him and leaning her head on his shoulder. "You did nothing ill-mannered, in my opinion, nothing whatsoever. Besides, I also...." She again found herself not knowing how to finish a sentence.
"It was still rude of me," Link said, blushing.
"Link, stop," Zelda murmured. "You're the only one I've ever wanted. Ever since we first became friends all those years ago. But I didn't know until just few minutes ago how much I really--love you." She leaned towards him and kissed him one last, short time. "But I don't see how we can-- IMPA!!"
"How we can Impa?" Link repeated in confusion.
"No, no, the footsteps!" Zelda said, hurriedly putting her robe back on. "Don't you hear them? It's Impa, she's coming to check up on me! Uh, quick! Go stand over there!"
Impa knocked on the door and opened it to see Zelda sitting with her legs crossed on the bed, and Link standing in the corner staring at a bookshelf. Her eyes squinted. "All right. What's going on in here?"
"Nothing," Zelda answered innocently. "Why do you have that suspicious tone in your voice, Impa?"
"Don't you give me that look of innocence," Impa said, still not convinced. "Why are you up here, Link?"
"Uh, her highness asked me to tell her how the two ladies liked their rooms once they were settled."
"Was it necessary to meet in her room?"
"I suppose not, Impa," Link said. "But I thought it rather unfair to ask a lady to climb up and down those stairs twice in such a short amount of time. I did it only out of consideration for the Princess."
"So nice of you," Zelda said, beaming.
Impa's eyes narrowed again. She looked at the two of them, her arms crossed. "Okay then. But from now on, Link, please allow me to supply her highness with the information she desires."
"Very well," Link said.
"Come with me, now, lad."
"Good night, your highness," Link said, exiting the room and bowing.
"Good night."
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a/n:
hope u liked!! i AM GOING TO UPDATE MORE AFTER THIS!! YAY!!
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"You girls ready to go yet?"
"Yeah, Malon will be out in a second," Saria answered. She walked up to the horse Link was riding and stroked her mane. "Oh, your horse is beautiful, Link! What's her name?"
"Epona," Link answered, beaming.
Malon came out from the stables riding one of her horses. "Hate to say it, Saria, but your horse appears to be feeling a little sick today. I don't advise you to go riding him all the way to the palace."
"Oh, dear!" exclaimed Saria. "Poor Sam! How ill is he? Do you think I should stay here with him?"
"Oh, I don't think that's quite necessary," Malon answered. "He'll be fine until we get back, you needn't worry. You can ride one of the other horses."
"Malon, you seem to forget that nearly all the other horses were given to the soldiers who are helping those poor countries; and all the rest never let me ride them unless it's an emergency. I'd better stay with Sam to comfort him."
"Oh, don't be ridiculous," Link said. "C'mon, get on behind you."
Saria stared at him dumbly for a moment. "Y-you mean--"
"He means to get on Epona behind him," Malon said loudly. She grinned and winked at her sister.
Smiling, Saria stepped onto Epona (she nearly slipped, because Epona was so much bigger than Sam; but she made a quick recovery). She steadied herself and then hesitated, wondering if she should put her arms around him or not.
"You'd better hold on tight," Link advised her. "Epona can ride pretty fast when she feels like it."
"Okay," Saria agreed, putting her arms around his waist and smiling happily to herself. "About how far away is the castle anyhow?"
"Not too far off on horseback," Link answered, kicking Epona's flanks and starting her off. "But it would take you a while if you were just on foot. Hey Malon, can you keep up?"
"Har, har," Malon said, driving her horse faster. "Just because Epona earned the title of the Fastest Horse o' Hyrule doesn't mean that Thorton can't match up!"
"What kind of name is Thorton, anyway?" Saria asked.
"Well, what kind of name is EPONA?!" Malon said back, finally drawing level with Link.
****
Zelda looked at the approaching horses from the stables. Her ears turned a pinkish color when she noticed Saria gripping Link as if her life depended on it. Gr. The princess turned away and walked up to her horse's pen.
"The stable's right over there," Link said, hopping off of Epona and then lifting Saria off. "C'mon."
"C'mon," Zelda said, tentatively approaching her horse, Dusk. "C'mon, just let me take you out for a minute."
Dusk stepped back in his pen as Zelda cautiously opened the door to it. His nonstrils flared and he let out a soft whinny.
"Don't be scared, you're okay," Zelda said in the same soft voice, stepping closer. "I don't want to hurt you, just calm down."
She reached out a hand to touch his mane as Link opened the door to the stable. In that split second, Dusk reared back on his hind legs, screeching horribly; and his hoof reached out and slammed into the Princess's jaw, sending her flying back into the wall of the stable behind her.
"Zel!" Link shouted, rushing towards her. She sat up, clutching her chin. "Goddesses, Zelda! Are you okay?!"
"I'll be fine," she answered, getting to her feet with Link's aid. "He didn't hit me full-force with that hoof, I managed to dodge it slightly. Ow--but my back's in a bit of pain from crashing into this wall here. Don't worry, I'll be fine."
"Woah, boy! Calm down!" Malon said, attempting to grab the reins that Zelda had already placed on him. "Good Goddesses, he's furious at something! What happened?!"
"Nothing, that's the problem!" Zelda said, grabbing Malon away from another of Dusk's flailing hooves. "I simply went up to touch his mane, and he went mad on me! Simply insane!"
She pretty much had to shout, because Dusk was making such a commotion in the background.
Saria's hand darted upward and she yanked on the horse's rein. "What's his name, it's very important!"
"Dusk!" Zelda and Link answered.
"C'mon, calm down, Dusk!" Saria said. "Malon, grab the other rein! That's it, yank down on it! Good!" Seizing the moment, Saria reached up with her free hand and threw it around Dusk's neck. She felt it throb beaneath her arm.
Dusk wheezed in complaint, trying to jerk his neck out of Saria's grasp, and bite her at the same time. It felt as if her arm might rip off at any moment.
"Stop, you'll choke him to death!" Link protested.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing!" Saria said. Two seconds later, Dusk was mute, and he collapsed to the dirty floor (shaking the place). Malon let go of the rein and it fell limply by his side.
"Good Goddesses!" exclaimed Zelda, walking over to her horse. "What did you DO to him?!"
"No need for worry, your highness," Saria said, standing up and brushing herself off. "By putting a certain amount of pressure on his jugular, he's passed out--he'll be out for a couple hours. But no serious damage has been done to him whatsoever. When he wakes up, he won't remember any of what happened."
"All right, but that doesn't really help his condition at all, does it?" Zelda asked.
"Nope," Malon answered. "Your horse is a case, highness. Never seen anything like that. I mean, I know horses get angry and all that, but he should be a lot easier to calm him down....and I don't exactly like the way his eyes were rolling back into his head like that. Did you notice, highness?"
"Yes, I did," Zelda answered, shivering. "My mother used to always tell me to look into a horse's eyes to control him, but it's somewhat difficult when you don't have much of an eye to look into." She laughed a hollow laugh, giving the impression to her fellows that she was attempting to steady herself. "Nothing I've done has worked to calm him down."
"I'll have to give this some thought, Princess," Malon said after a silence. "I'm not sure what to do."
"I understand completely," Zelda said. "Won't you two stay for lunch, though? It would make me feel dreadful to have you two just come and go."
"If we wouldn't be in the way, we would love joining you two," Malon said.
"Of course you wouldn't be in the way," said Link. "Otherwise, the Princess would not have invited you."
The four of them laughed. 'I suppose Link was right,' Saria thought as they all trooped back towards the castle. 'The princess does look rather becoming when she smiles. And I wonder how often THAT is.'
Malon and Saria drifted a bit behind Link and Zelda, the former saying, "What do you think of the Princess, Saria?"
"I'm not sure," Saria answered, shrugging her shoulder. "She has a certain gravity around her, like she never smiles or laughs or anything. But she appears very strong, to have said she experienced no pain in that incident."
"That might've just been an image she was trying to keep," Malon said. "But she seems like a rather brave person, and also somewhat ni--"
"You two had better catch up," they heard Zelda say. "It's very easy to get lost in this place if you don't know your way around."
"Sure took me a while," Link laughed.
"That's because you're an exception," Zelda said, as they continued to walk (and Saria and Malon had caught up a bit). She patted his shoulder lightly. "It takes you a bit longer to contemplate things than other elves."
Link gasped mockingly. "Does the fair princess dare to insult the brave Hero?! What a scandal!"
"Oh, why, look," Zelda said rather loudly. "It's the dining room already."
****
It happened while they were in the middle of eating. A loud explosion was heard just as Saria was asking Zelda about the shrubberies in the garden. She stopped mid-sentence, and they all sped out of the castle as fast as they could.
"The stables!" Malon cried, once they had gotten outdoors. "It's been burnt down to a crisp!"
"Oh my Goddesses!" Zelda shouted. "It's Dusk! Someone's riding off with him--I'd recognize that prodigious horse of mine anywhere!"
"But how can he be concious?!" Saria asked in astonishment. "He was supposed to be out for two hours!"
"That's one strong horse you've got there, Princess," Malon said, clearly giving an understatement.
"Look, there are some of the horses over there, follow me!" Zelda said, running over to a pack of steeds who had managed to evacuate the burning stables.
Link leapt on top of Epona, and Malon quickly mounted Thorton. Zelda put her foot up over the saddle of Impa's horse, and motioned for Saria to take another. "Come on, we've got to follow him!"
Epona, being the fastest, neared Dusk first. Link reached for the Master Sword at his back and swiped out at the man riding the Princess's horse. Dusk retaliated by slamming into Epona full-force, nearly toppling her over.
But she wasn't going to be taken down that easily. She snapped back at Dusk, who eluded her and then snapped back even faster. The attack caught Epona by surprise, and she came to a sudden halt.
The man riding Dusk twisted around and shot an arrow towards Link. In order to avoid it, he quickly flipped off of Epona, only to realize shortly thereafter that he had no where to land.
"You showoff, get on my horse!" Zelda shouted to him, after Link landed on the ground a few yards in front of her. She reached out a hand, and he grabbed it hastily, pulling himself onto the horse behind her. "Malon, Saria!"
"He's getting away!" Malon shouted.
"I think you two had better get back to the ranch!" Zelda continued. "The horse Saria's riding looks like he's getting a bit weak, hurry!"
"C'mon, Saria!" Malon called to her, pulling sharply on the reins of her horse and turning him down a road. "We'll be back!"
The rider pulled out another arrow and shot it at Link and Zelda.
"Ho!" Link said, ducking to elude the arrows. "There were THREE of those! How did he do it?! I thought there was only one!"
"No time to concentrate on that!" Zelda said back. "He's got my horse, and he obviously doesn't think it's a problem to try and murder us!"
Saria and Malon flew down the path leading to their ranch. Saria jumped off her horse and ran towards the house.
"Where are you going?!" Malon asked her. "We need to go to the stables, not the house!"
"What we need are weapons!" Saria said, coming to a temporary stop. "Come on!"
Malon slowed down Thorton on the other side of the house, caught up to Saria and ran into the house. They headed for the first room they saw and opened the drawer with all the weapons inside it. Saria pulled a bow off the wall and gathered all her arrows. Malon grabbed a dagger and a bottle filled with toxic poison (like there was any other kind of poison). They turned to leave, but stopped when they saw someone blocking their exit.
A group of moblins, each holding something ominous and lethal slowly approached them.
"And where do you two plan on going with those?" one of them asked quietly. "No need to be frightened, girls. We noticed one of your horses was wounded, so we're just giving it a little help. But now we want you to help us."
"Get away, you moblins!" Saria screamed at them, firing an arrow towards them.
The head moblin held up his shield, and the arrow bounced off of it harmlessly. Then the moblin picked it up and threw it towards Saria, like a miniature spear. She gasped then ducked; and the arrow shattered an empty vase behind her.
The rest of the moblins lifted up arrows and shot them towards the two sisters. Malon and Saria leapt up, barely missing the arrows and the flying glass of objects they hit. Both were going in the same general direction: up.
Malon scaled a tall shelf of breaking objects, and Saria had made her way to the top of a tall chest of drawers. In a rather daring move, she leapt across the length of the room onto the shelf Malon was on.
The moblins shot in vain at her as she glided, their arrows crashing through a glass window on the ceiling.
"Thank you!" Malon said, jumping through the opening and onto the roof, Saria following. "You'll have to use that old bag of bones you got at the palace, Saria, if you want to get out of here alive!"
Thorton looked up at Malon from the ground, his head cocked towards the stable.
"About face!" Malon barked.
Instantly, Thorton turned around, and Malon leapt from the roof onto his back. She nearly slipped off, but regained her balance and rode off. "Saria, come on!"
Saria hesitated. Then she let out a mighty battle roar and flew towards the horse beneath her. As she had pretty much expected, the horse moved away at the last second, leaving Saria to crash onto the dirty ground.
"I heard a noise from out there!" one of the moblins said.
As quickly as she could, Saria mounted the horse and followed Malon back into the woods.
*****
"I can't believe we lost him!" Zelda mourned, back at the castle. "How did he just disappear like that?!"
"I don't know," Link said shrugging. "It was like one minute he was there, and the next he was gone. Hey, I hear horses--I think Malon and Saria must've come back! Let's go and see them."
Link and Zelda hurried out of the castle, and indeed saw Malon and Saria dismounting their horses and walking towards them.
"Saria, you've got an arrow in your boot!" Zelda said.
"I do?" Saria asked, looking down. She laughed and yanked it out. "I guess so."
"What happened?" Link asked, upon noticing that both of them were covered in sweat in and some cuts.
"When we got there, our whole house had been filled by moblins!" Malon answered. "Well actually, they kinda snuck up on us. We had gone inside to get some weapons, and then they came out of nowhere! So then they started shooting arrows at us, and we only escaped death by going up onto the roof."
"That's terrible!" Zelda said. "I'm so sorry; they're probably going to make a wreck of your home--and your stables, too! The two of you had better stay here for the next few days, unless you have a secret death wish, of course."
"You are too kind to keep us, milady," Malon said, bowing slightly. "There must be something we can do in return."
"Not at all!" Zelda said. "I'd be even worse than a moblin if I were to send you back to your home in its current stage, you must stay! Impa will help you with your rooms, come along with me. C'mon."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Later that night, Link knocked on Zelda's door. "Come in," he heard her say. He gulped and then opened the door.
"I hope I'm not disturbing you or intruding, Princess," Link said, walking into the room and closing the door behind him.
"Of course not," Zelda said, standing up. "But this time I was prepared, in case it was you. Please notice the robe." She smiled, and Link laughed.
"I see. Very nice."
"Do you know if Malon and Saria are comfortable in their rooms? I do hope that Impa gave them the good ones."
"Yes, Saria's mouth dropped when she saw the interior of her room," Link chuckled. "I know that their gratitude is beyond words, your higness."
There was a silence between them, a loud silence. Both knew that the other was thinking of the events that had happened that very day. It was clearly etched on their faces.
"I know you're feeling distraught," Link whispered, taking her face in his hands and then stepping back. "And I know you've already got an immense load on your shoulders, so please just ask me whenever you need help."
"Link," Zelda said, taking a step towards him and hugging him tightly. "I know I can always depend on you; you're the best friend I've got in the world. My only friend, really. Well, except for Impa, of course."
"It's an honor to be of service to you," Link said, embracing her back and being overwhelmed by the silken texture of her golden hair. He could get lost in it....but then Zelda walked out of his arms and backed up to her bed.
"You needn't always be so formal around me, Link," Zelda whispered, her eyes inviting him to step closer. As he did so, the Princess noticed for the first time the way that his soft, golden bangs fell into his crystalline eyes, the way he walked when his sword did not weigh him down. So desirable....
Zelda looked away instantly, her face reddening, shocked at herself for looking at him in such a way. He was only a friend, a companion.
'Yeah, right,' said a little voice in her head.
She wanted to feel his hands on her face again. They made her feel so protected and safe, like she didn't have to worry about anything in the world anymore. But she couldn't just ask him straight out to touch her again. The Princess looked up into Link's eyes, as if conveying the message to him telepathically.
Zelda twitched as she felt her robe slide off of her shoulders, until it was in a heap on the floor. Though scantily clad, she felt no need to cover herself, as Link had been the one to take off her robe.
"Link...."
But she was stopped after that, for Link had taken the moment to put his arms around her and move his lips onto her upper neck. His kisses began to travel upwards as she fell back onto the bed, Link nearly right on top of her.
Her hands reached out and found his face, and she gently lifted them until he was facing her directly. Link moved up until he was level with her, and then Zelda unexpectedly rolled on top of him and slid her tongue inside his mouth.
So it was a daring first move. But Goddesses, did it feel good!
She was safe; safe from any harm that could ever come to her, now that Link was holding onto her. He was fencing her in from all the dangers in the world, and she didn't ever want him to leave her side.
The moist tenderness of his tongue was intoxicating with all its pleasures, and Zelda felt her breathing get harder and harder, and her body getting hotter and hotter.
Finally, the two pulled away from each other, their lips quivering from wanting to feel the other's touch again. Their arms were still tightly holding onto each other; and Zelda didn't know how it had happened, but she was suddenly underneath him again.
"Goddesses," Zelda said in the quietest of whispers. "Link, I--I...." She didn't know what to say. She was breathless--literally.
Link quickly sat up. "I'm sorry, Princess, that was extremely ill- mannered of me."
"Don't be ridiculous," Zelda said, putting an arm around him and leaning her head on his shoulder. "You did nothing ill-mannered, in my opinion, nothing whatsoever. Besides, I also...." She again found herself not knowing how to finish a sentence.
"It was still rude of me," Link said, blushing.
"Link, stop," Zelda murmured. "You're the only one I've ever wanted. Ever since we first became friends all those years ago. But I didn't know until just few minutes ago how much I really--love you." She leaned towards him and kissed him one last, short time. "But I don't see how we can-- IMPA!!"
"How we can Impa?" Link repeated in confusion.
"No, no, the footsteps!" Zelda said, hurriedly putting her robe back on. "Don't you hear them? It's Impa, she's coming to check up on me! Uh, quick! Go stand over there!"
Impa knocked on the door and opened it to see Zelda sitting with her legs crossed on the bed, and Link standing in the corner staring at a bookshelf. Her eyes squinted. "All right. What's going on in here?"
"Nothing," Zelda answered innocently. "Why do you have that suspicious tone in your voice, Impa?"
"Don't you give me that look of innocence," Impa said, still not convinced. "Why are you up here, Link?"
"Uh, her highness asked me to tell her how the two ladies liked their rooms once they were settled."
"Was it necessary to meet in her room?"
"I suppose not, Impa," Link said. "But I thought it rather unfair to ask a lady to climb up and down those stairs twice in such a short amount of time. I did it only out of consideration for the Princess."
"So nice of you," Zelda said, beaming.
Impa's eyes narrowed again. She looked at the two of them, her arms crossed. "Okay then. But from now on, Link, please allow me to supply her highness with the information she desires."
"Very well," Link said.
"Come with me, now, lad."
"Good night, your highness," Link said, exiting the room and bowing.
"Good night."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
a/n:
hope u liked!! i AM GOING TO UPDATE MORE AFTER THIS!! YAY!!
