A/N: I was going to update last weekend, but I wanted to make some plotchanges… Anyway,I hope you like this chapter. R/R!
It seemed to be silent again. Link perked up and listened closely, and the noise came again. He walked in its direction, and soon the sounds took the form of sobbing. He stopped walking when he saw her. She was sitting on a tree stump, face buried in her hands, and as he watched, her muffled crying faded. It was clear why he hadn't noticed her before. She was coated in soot, looking much like a chimney sweep, and could have easily blended in with the ground.
The only thing Link had moved was his gaze. When he looked back up at her, he found two startling green eyes staring back at him, through the darkness that surrounded them. Link knew that this girl was harmless, but still he didn't loosen his grip on his sword.
"Link?" she spoke timidly. She stood and stumbled towards him.
"…Why, Link?" Her voice trembled. Then an insane glintshone in her eye. "Why!" She repeated, desperately, "Why was I spared?" she was tearing up again, but seemed to be trying not to cry. Link took a step back.
"Who are you?" He said, confused. She came closer.
"Who am I? Who am I?" She gave a sort of mad laugh, and then flung herself on him, crying again. Link wavered, almost losing his balance, and tried to find a way out of this awkward situation. I an attempt to calm her,he smoothedhis hand over her head, wiping off some soot and revealing green hair. He froze.
"Saria?" There was no answer. She had passed out on his shoulder. Under her weight he feltthe pain returning. He knew he needed to get some potions, but he wouldn't make it into town on foot. He hoisted Saria over his shoulder and began walking out of the forest, to Lon Lon Ranch. He was going to get Epona.
When Link finally arrived at the ranch he spotted Malon sitting on the fence outside the stables. As he approached, still carrying an unconscious Saria, Malon turned her head and saw them. She jumped off the fence and smiled excitedly as she ran to meet them.
"Link!" she hugged him and he winced, "How are you?" She took a step back and suddenly realized how terrible he looked.
"Oh my goodness, what happened to you?" She helped him lift Saria off of him and instead of waiting for an answer, led him inside her living quarters. There she laid Saria onher bed and told Link to sit in the chair.
"Let me clean up those wounds..." She said, getting out bandages and other such things. They didn't have potions like the ones you could buy in the town marketplace, but that didn't stop Malon. She refused to let him go until he was rested. So Link sat there, watching helplessly as she cleaned and bandaged his wounds. He didn't tell her what had happened to him, simply because he didn't feel up to talking, and thankfully, she didn't ask him anymore questions.
"All right,"she said when she was done,"I think Saria's waking up, I'm going to get her to take a bath to wash that soot off. If you'd like you may go and see Epona." He liked the idea and stood up immediately.
"Thanks," he said shortly. She smiled kindly and watched him walk out of the room.
Link stood with Epona in the field and groomed her coat witha brush. This calmed him effectively, but after a while he wanted to ride the horse around the ranch for a bit. He brought his hand up to Epona's saddle, but instead of climbing up he just stared. The mark of the triforce had left his hand. He blinked a few times, and then remembered what he had done to the triforce. It was gone. A smile played across his lips. He mounted Epona and tugged on the reins, sending her into a joyful gallop across the field.It was hard for him toexplain how he felt, but at that moment, for the first time in years, he was...free...
A/N: Alright, as of now, I am not sure what the ultimate pairing will be, but that doesn't matter, does it?If you like the plot and the writing please do keep reading, and whatever the pairing is, try to be open minded.I read stories with pairings that I hate all the time, and usually I find them to be a lot more interesting then pairings I "believe in".Review please! I'll update soon!