Caranril: (blinks) Wow, I must be better than I thought. Dark B4 Dawn has converted T-bone (thanks for the review) from a MalonLink to a ZeldaLink fan. Suh-weeet!
Legolas: (throws confetti) Huzzah!
Caranril: Oooooookaaaaay...
Legolas: You have your fireworks, I have my confetti.
The Dark Before The Dawn - Chapter 13: A Little Sleight of Sheik
Link blinked at the dawning sun as it flickered through his eyelids. Sizzling meat reached his ears and nose, rousing him to complete wakefulness. Zelda's head remained on his chest, but now she was snoring slightly. Link smiled and brushed her hair from her forehead. She stirred, lifted her head, and smiled back.
"Good morning," Link whispered.
"'Morning," Zelda returned groggily. "What time is it?"
"About dawn," Link answered, sitting up slowly to allow Zelda's head time to adjust to different blood pressure. Link noticed that Mirwen was preparing the breakfast that he had smelled. He applied a little bit of water from the skins to his face, then made to help Mirwen.
"I can do it, Master," she refused.
That immediately set Link off that something was wrong.
"What's the matter?"
She paused for a moment to look at him, then continued. "Where's Sheik? And who's that woman?"
Link glanced at Zelda, who was tenderly touching her temple. "Um, well that's the Princess Zelda, and Sheik..."
Mirwen stopped and met his eyes.
Link thought quickly. "Sheik is scouting ahead. Yeah, see, he likes to be up at night, and he decided he'd go try to find the caverns while we slept to save some time."
Mirwen stared hard. "How did she get here?"
"Oh Zelda? She got here...last night, after you fell asleep. Epona went to pick her up from...Gerudo Valley. See her clothes?" Link gave her a casual smile.
Mirwen was about to go back to her work, but she stopped and looked back. "Was Sheik really stupid enough to go out there at night with all the dead about?"
Link nearly panicked, but his natural cool got the better of him. "There was a storm last night. Pretty violent one. The dead are always scarce after heavy storms. Plus, Sheik has...magic Shadow powers. He can make himself invisible. Yeah."
"Oh, okay." She seemed to believe him when he mentioned the magic, and Link had never been more relieved in his life (except for maybe when he escaped from Ruto's wedding plans). He didn't want to know what would happen if she found out Zelda was Sheik...
"Good morning, Mirwen," Zelda said cheerfully as she sat by the fire, munching on a heart-fruit.
Mirwen whipped around. "How do you know my name?"
Zelda glanced pass Mirwen at Link, who was shaking his head violently. "Link told me about you last night. He thought I might be able to help you with your powers, since I am a Sage."
Mirwen's eyes widened and she raced to Zelda's side, breakfast forgotten. "You're a...you're a real Sage?"
Zelda gave her a kind smile and told her of her powers, what she was guardian of, and what she hoped to accomplish with Mirwen.
"I'll tell you what, we'll train until Sheik comes back," Zelda promised. Link froze at this; he couldn't believe what she was saying. He turned around and gave her a wild look, but Zelda ignored him. Mirwen was ecstatic at this suggestion and eagerly finished her breakfast. Zelda advised her to take a short walk and clear her mind while she and Link packed the camping supplies to prepare for Sheik's return. Mirwen was gone in a brisk pace.
"Okay, spill," Link ordered as he helped Zelda pack.
"Spill what?" Zelda asked innocently.
"You know what! How can you train her until Sheik returns? "
"Oh that. I plan to train her until noon, by which time Sheik still will not have appeared, but Epona will have suddenly shown up, cue your music, to take me to Lon Lon Ranch, where Malon has implored me to help rebuild the Ranch with wards against the dead. I will ride off, then at a safe distance, turn west, change into Sheik, let Epona loose, and saunter back without a care in the world."
"When did you have time to think all this up?" Link asked in disbelief.
"Last night, while you were sleeping."
"When I was sleeping?"
"Yes. Your snoring woke me up, and I decided that I had better think up a plan about my being there or else Mirwen would have to know the truth."
"Why didn't you just change into Sheik?" Link asked.
"Because I-" Zelda stopped herself, then noticed Link's imploring gaze, and thought better of it. "Because I liked sleeping next to you, and as Sheik I wouldn't enjoy it like I would...in this...form."
Link's eyes met hers, and she melted into the cobalt pools. Link found himself drowning in her own baby blues, and once again, he was irresistibly drawn to her. His hands touched her hair, a magnet to his fingers. She looked so much more beautiful in the daylight...
"Ahem!"
Link and Zelda jumped away from each other guiltily. Mirwen stood with a hand on her hip and a smirk on her face.
"Oh don't mind me, I'm just watching you pack," she said wryly. "Master," she added.
Link grabbed a chunk of leftover meat and hurled it at Mirwen, who giggled and ducked behind the tent.
Zelda flushed, but she kept her cool. "Ready to start?"
Mirwen was more than ready, and with that, Zelda set to teaching her controlling skills. Link would have liked to practice with his sword, since he hadn't gotten to use it yet, but he knew the camp needed to be disassembled before noon. Whistling the Elegy of Emptiness, Link set about tackling the tent.
Once Zelda got Mirwen to focus, manipulating nature's elements was a simple task. She had always used her powers when her emotions ran away, taking the element with it. Control and meditation were essential to her mastering her gifts.
Link listened to Zelda's professor-like instructions, realizing the truth in her words. His "gifts" ran more into physical talents of those of a Hero, but he also had a knack of solving improbable puzzles out of the jigsaw pieces of information he collected. His mind began wandering as he lay in the hot sun wearing only his leggings. The girls were just out of sight, and he finally had a moment's peace...
-
He was floating on his back, enjoying the calm waves that bobbed him up and down. Lake Hylia was such a nice place when tourist season was a long time away. The sun was toasty and the water just cool, as his necklace protected against drowning as well as cold. He could make a living out of floating on the surface, just floating...
His bobbing ceased as he floated ashore, reveling in the hot pebbles on his skin. He definitely needed these breaks more often...what had he been taking a break from in the first place? He couldn't for the life of him recall what he had been doing prior to falling asleep. No matter, for it obviously wasn't important enough for his sun-cooked brain to remember...
A shadow fell across his face. Link assumed it was Epona, telling him it was time to go wherever they were supposed go. He opened one eye, noting the humanoid silhouette against the sun. Blond locks fell into his eye, which abruptly closed in protest against the violation. He brushed them back, thinking they were his own, but noticed that his hair was being smoothed back by cool hands that felt wonderful on his hot forehead. Link kept his eyes closed and sighed. A womanly chuckle made him reopen an eye in surprise. The sun had moved just enough to reveal Zelda's tan face smiling down on him. Link smiled back and settled into the grass, letting her continue to braid his long blond hair...
-
"Ouch!" Link opened his eyes into the glaring sun. The pleasant feelings on his head were replaced by sharp yanks that took several strands with them. Link sat up quickly and faced his assailant, whose eyes glinted mischievously as she munched on his hair.
"Oh, Epona!" Link groaned, rubbing his sore scalp. He lightly smacked her nose in reprimand. His eyes widened as he recalled that he was supposed to summon Epona so that Zelda could ride away and return as Sheik.
"At least you're on top of things," he muttered as he led Epona back to the disassembled camp. Mirwen and Zelda were sitting cross-legged and seemed to still be in deep discussion. Link tried to sneak back, but jumped as Mirwen let out snort of laughter, which was immediately followed by Zelda's own chuckling. Mirwen pointed at him, and Zelda turned around, wiping the tears from her eyes.
"Oh, Link!" she exclaimed as she noticed him. "We were just...uh...discussing...uh..." She looked back at Mirwen, who only began laughing again.
"What?" Link asked crossly.
"You're...you're...sunburned!" Mirwen managed between gasps of laughter.
Link looked at his arms and chest quickly, then touched his skin. It stung with a burn. His anxious examination only caused them to laugh harder, if that was possible. In his exasperation, he held Epona's reins out to Zelda.
"Don't you have somewhere to be?" he said shortly, wincing as her realized that it came out harsher than he had intended. Zelda and Mirwen had stopped laughing and both stared at him blankly. Then Zelda noticed Epona.
"Oh...um, dear," she said, somewhat unconvincingly. "I f-forgot that I was supposed to ride to Lon Lon Ranch before dusk. Malon asked me to help rebuild the Ranch with spells that would protect it from the dead," she explained to Mirwen.
"Oh," Mirwen said disappointedly. "Do you really have to go?"
"Yes, I'm afraid so." Zelda gave her a hug. "But we'll see each other before the end."
"We'd better," Mirwen added, returning the hug.
Link handed Zelda the reins, who held back laughter at his one-sided sunburn as she mounted Epona. He touched Zelda's leg to hold her a moment.
"Be careful," he said quietly.
"I'll be fine, Link," Zelda said matter-of-factly. "I'm not going very far."
"Of course," Link said uneasily. "You'd better go."
"Good bye, Mirwen!" Zelda called as she spurred Epona and rode east.
"Good bye, Link!" Link muttered. "I love you? Marry me? Can I roast your heart over a fire?"
"What?" Mirwen asked.
"Nothing," he answered clearly. "We should, uh, be ready for Sheik to return. I can't imagine he'd be out so long."
"I hope nothing's happened to him," Mirwen said worriedly.
"Oh he's fine," Link assured her.
Five hours later, Link wasn't sure that was the case. He had expected Zelda to return in, like, half an hour, and here it was dragging into sunset. Mirwen had been nervous before, but now Link was nearly frantic. Had he suspected they would be waiting so late, he would have reset the camp for another night, but it was too late to build sufficient protection against the dead. They would have to defend themselves with fire from Beleguial. Perhaps the biggest reason he didn't set up camp was because that would mean that something had happened to Zelda. And that fear was greater than that of the dead.
Mirwen's grim expression reflected Link's as he built a perimeter of debris around them. Their supplies would be safe, for the dead had no interest in things that didn't hold life. He made the area small enough to defend easily, but large enough to move around. He waited until the sun sank behind the horizon and left a starless darkness, then he drew Beleguial and pressed the red gem. He touched the flaming tip to a point in the circle of debris, the magical fire spreading in each direction. The circle was complete, and Link prayed to the goddesses with all his might that the dead would think the flames were those of a campsite and avoid the area.
No sooner had these thoughts crossed his mind when red glowing eyes appeared in the distance and steadily drew closer. Link swallowed hard and stood back to back with Mirwen. He handed her his quiver and bow.
"Have you fought them before?" Mirwen whispered with a dry, raspy voice.
"Yes."
"D-did you do okay? I mean, you obviously survived."
"Well..." Link hesitated. "We -Sheik and I- were in a lot of trouble, and I was overwhelmed and lost consciousness. Sheik sent me to Kakariko Village on Epona, and I came back in the morning to find him barely alive. Of course, that time I didn't have a sword, a magical one at that. Nor did I have an uncontrollable sorceress by my side." Link grinned, lifting their moods slightly. Mirwen returned his smile. A howl shook them both awake, and the several other howls that answered sent the adrenalin pumping.
The charging dead stopped short of the circle of fire, glaring through the flames at the life that stared right back. They could recognize the life of this one, one who had escaped them before but wouldn't again. The other was new and had a strange feel of life in it, but it was just as desirable.
Link felt slightly sick from the perverted magic keeping the rotten bones together. He wasn't sure if Mirwen was affected, but when she doubled over and threw up, he knew she could feel the magic too.
"Okay?"
Mirwen nodded and stood erect, watching for any dead who might be hungry enough to brave the flames. The fire would last for a long time, but the dead's patience wouldn't.
An eternity passed while some dead sat or lied down in feigned relaxation, while others paced. Link had extinguished Beleguial's flames and was squatting and using his sword as a balance. Mirwen sat down and had closed her eyes in meditation. If they could just wait until dawn...
Link shot up and charged his sword as a particularly large dead being howled and leapt through the flames. The fire grabbed at the body hungrily, leaving the dead with hardly any flesh to support it. Link swung and shattered the brittle bones. That had been easy, but that one dare caused several others to charge all at once. While the flames ate several of them, even more made it through hardly scathed. Link fought these, slicing left and right, drawing attention away from Mirwen, who was firing at the dead outside the circle. The arrows passed through the wall of fire and lit patches where they landed, whether on grass or the occasional dead.
Link hacked away almost gleefully, relishing the feeling of the strong sword in his hands. When the breaching dead had been disposed, he checked on Mirwen. She had abandoned the bow and had resorted to her powers. She sent arrow-shaped flames at the dead, most of them striking their targets. They seemed to be doing okay...
Several of the dead grinned evilly and slipped into the earth. Link grabbed Mirwen's arm.
"Watch out! They're going to try through the ground!"
A moment later, the earth erupted with dead, several landing outside the circle while the rest rose within. Link used his feet, fists, and sword in a circular fashion, knocking one down, stabbing another, bashing the skull of this one, and finally cutting them all down. One of the dead who had missed the goal tried again, but, unfortunately for it, breached through right under the perimeter of fire.
Link kept fighting, ignoring the angry howls that protested their resistance. He didn't even hear Mirwen calling his name until she grasped his shoulder.
"Link! Look!"
Link followed her finger to the breach in the circle. The dead being had been fried, but it had provided an entrance within through the fire. The dead were now pouring through the gap, many being crushed onto the flames, the multiple bones extinguishing more of the perimeter. Mirwen tried to fix the circle, but all the fire would do was burn the dead. She panicked, losing all control. In fact, she even caused the existing flames to shrink significantly. The overeager dead took advantage of the foot-high flames and leapt through to join the mass swarming Link. He cried out as they reached his legs and clawed his back. Every swing was followed by claw that had managed to sneak through. His grey tunic was quickly shredding down the same path as his black one. Link's hand instinctively grasped at the gash that had appeared on his arm. The dead took the moment to reach past the motionless sword and attack more efficiently. Link succumbed to their vicious strikes.
Mirwen, fighting her own, smaller band of dead, heard his grunt of pain and turned to see him fall.
"No!" she cried out in fear and rage. The dying flames suddenly erupted from the crumbling debris. They burned on their own, fueled by Mirwen's fury. They converged on the mound of dead beating Link. The fire was so hot it melted the bones into ash. The dead she had been fighting fell victim to the angry flames as well, and those that hadn't been fighting at the moment fled a safe distance away.
As the blood rage faded from her eyes, Mirwen realized that Link might have been hurt by her rampaging flames. She panted, trying to keep from sobbing loudly, as she spread the ashes of the mound. She gasped in relief as Link's blond head shook ash from it.
"Oh, Din, you're alive!" She threw her arms around him. Link cried out as his wounds were rubbed with ash.
"I'm sorry!" Mirwen backed off, but she stared at Link in disbelief. "I'm so glad you're okay, because by all rights, you should be in the same state as these guys." She gestured to the ashes.
"I sure felt the heat, but it didn't hurt me for some reason." Link stood shakily. His sweating face was completely glued with ash. "Come on, we've got to stay alive."
Mirwen nodded. Link wiped Beleguial clean on the sleeve of his tunic, the only part untainted by ash. His injured body protested lifting the sword anymore, but he forced it to. They had to survive. Link waited for the dead to attack again, but they seemed rather distracted. They were running around, panicked, furious, but Link couldn't see what was causing the fuss. Several went flying for no apparent reason, and several were permanently silenced. The rest were too frustrated to attack either the invisible force or the blue flames dancing on Link's sword. The fire gem had apparently run out of magic power, and Link would have to obtain a bottle of magic to refill it.
Hyrule Field was strangely quiet, the only sound a nearly-inaudible hum coming from Beleguial. Link didn't know how to fight what he couldn't see, particularly if he didn't have the Eye of Truth to help him out. He could sense something... He jumped as Beleguial's flames died. The hair on the back of his neck rose and he felt breath on his ear. He dropped the sword and grabbed hold of a firm body behind him. He whipped around and threw his arms around the invisible body to tackle it to the ground. The invisible being flipped Link over and pressed a knee on his chest, not enough to crush his lungs but it kept him still. His wrists were pinned to the ground. Link's heart beat quickly, because he didn't know of this meant death or...
His eyes widened as a familiar chuckle came from the invisible being. A male voice chanted a few words, and Sheik materialized on top of him.
"Oh! You should have seen your face when I beat you!" Sheik guffawed.
Link turned red and bucked his hips to send the cackling Sheik to the ground.
"That wasn't funny," Link protested indignantly.
"Oh yes it was!" Sheik managed to say. "What's even funnier is you were looking right at my face and you couldn't see me! It's just...it's just..." He lost all words and continued to laugh hysterically.
"Are you done?" Link asked a few moments later.
"Yeah," Sheik said, wiping his eyes.
"Okay, now here's what isn't funny." Link pulled off his tattered tunic to reveal an unsightly amount of claw marks on his chest, back, and arms.
"And I nearly burned him to death," Mirwen added.
"And why couldn't you come back in broad daylight?" Link put his hands on his hips and stared at Sheik with ice-cold eyes. Sheik shrugged.
"I can only become invisible in the dark, or near-dark, I guess."
"So?"
"And..." Sheik's ruby eyes twinkled excitedly. "I found it."
"Found what?"
"The entrance to the caverns."
Link's eyes widened, every retort flying from his mind. "How far?"
"About four leagues away," Sheik said excitedly. "We could make it just after dawn."
Link lifted a brow. "Do you really think we should travel at night?"
Sheik shrugged. "Sure. The dead are scared off when something creeps them out. Storms, invisible Sheikah, bad hair days..."
Link reached for his hair, immediately getting the emphasis on that last item. He noticed that his bandana was gone, and his hair had this awful texture to it as a result from being smothered by ash. "So?" he said casually. "I'm not trying to impress anyone."
"Oh, I know better..." Sheik said loud enough for only Link to hear. Link ignored this comment, pulled his shredded tunic back on, and slung his pack over his shoulder. The canvas tent had miraculously fit into Zelda's pack (or Sheik's, as was the case) and the leftover meat had plenty of room in Link's bag. Zelda had charmed the meat so that it wouldn't neither spoil nor make a smelly mess in his bag. Link had often wondered what other sorts of charms and spells Zelda was capable of, or even Sheik for that matter, but he had also decided it best to leave magic to the Sages. And Mirwen; she wasn't half bad.
Mirwen immediately attached herself to Sheik, reprimanding him for his late arrival yet ensuring that he knew she was happy to see him. Link couldn't blame her. If Zelda had done that, he would have been furious, but he would have also talked her to death to make up for the time thought lost. But since Zelda wasn't there..
Link strode next to Sheik. "You said you were coming right back." He chose his words carefully. Mirwen still needn't know about Sheik's true identity.
"I lied."
"I thought Sheikah were supposed to tell the truth. I thought you were bound to it by some ancient creed made by the royal family."
"Okay, so I didn't lie. I exaggerated."
Link shook his head. "Sometimes, I don't know whether to kiss you or beat you..."
Sheik stiffened at this comment, and Link realized his mistake, but Mirwen hadn't seemed to notice. She was probably figuring Link meant a brotherly kiss, not a romantic one. Either that or she was fine with them being a couple, which wasn't likely what with the way she was holding on the Sheik's arm.
"Don't you mean 'be beaten'? Because from what I recall, I've always won."
"Rematch?" Link suggested.
Sheik looked tempted to accept the challenge, but he noticed that the sun was already peeping through the hills behind them.
"Where did the time go?" he muttered.
Link silently agreed, for if Sheik's calculations had been correct and they reached the caverns around dawn, the carefree dispositions would have to be severed once again, and there was a chance this time that they wouldn't return.
> > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > >
Caranril: Now they're gonna get in real trouble! Dead bodies were nothin' compared to what they've gotta face up against!
Legolas: Here we go again. You always hint at stuff in the future. Stop it or you'll end up ruining the story.
Caranril: I want them to sweat it, believe it or not. It adds to the angst of the story. That's what my favourite fanfic authors do.
Legolas: Start your own trend.
Caranril: I am. It's this story.
Legolas: Hey, Spider-man's your hero. You should write a fic about him.
Caranril: Um, no. Because I don't know enough about him in the comic books to write a decent story. I don't really like Toby Macguire, but Spider-man...
Legolas: They're the same person.
Caranril: No they're not! Mr. Macguire was simply the one with the honour to play the superhero.
Legolas: You've got to be kidding me!
Caranril: Besides, if they were the same person, then that means that you and Orlando Bloom are the same person, and that means that gasps YOU are Orlando!
Legolas: No I'm-ugh!
Caranril: (hugs Legolas tightly) I'm your biggest fan!
Legolas: I'm an Elf! I'm not a star! Help!
Caranril: I'm just kidding. I'm not that obsessive about him.
Legolas: (straightens tunic) Could have fooled me.
Caranril: I only have one poster of him.
Legolas: Ha! And you have two plus a standee of ME! Not to mention two of the three of your movie boards have ME on them! Who's superior? Ha!
Caranril: (mutters) Same person... :p
Legolas: We'll get to the bottom of this...please review!