5. Growing Pains

Mido had gotten followers.

"How the hell did Mido get followers!" Link demanded.

"For the last time I don't know!" Sheik cried. "I don't know the guy, and besides you said yourself he bullied people around in your hometown."

"But he's a jerk! Why do people listen to him!"

Sheik shrugged. "A lot of people find it easier to just obey people like him than to argue. I'm not sure why, but that's the way it is."

"Well that sucks!"

"Deal with it," Sheik snapped.

The boys were sitting in their room, waiting to be called for highway clean-up duty. Link had been ranting pretty much continuously since Mido had arrived almost a month ago, and Sheik had never seemed to be bothered by it until now.

Link looked at him oddly. "What's wrong Sheik?"

"Nothing's wrong," he almost growled.

"Are you sure? 'Cause you're acting like a little bitch."

Sheik glared at him. "Thanks." He shook his head and started for the door.

"Sheik..."

"What now?"

"Come on, tell me what's wrong."

Sheik's eyes flickered for a moment toward his bed. Then he shook his head and left without a word.

Link stared at the door for a moment, then got up and crossed to Sheik's bed. He checked under the pillow first; nothing. Then he ran his hand under Sheik's mattress. Aha! A book! Link took it out and looked at it.

It was a book from the tiny library in the east wing. The title read, Your Changing Body and You: A Young Teen's Guide to Puberty.

There was a bookmark in it, near the middle. Link opened to it and read.

Three sentences later Link dropped the books.

"Okay, ew," he said out loud. "Girls bleed every month? From their... Ew!" He quickly picked up the book and shoved it back under Sheik's mattress.

Link started to leave the room, it was almost time to go, but paused before opening the door. "But...why on earth would Sheik be reading about girl's puberty?" He looked back at the bed. "Well, I guess it's better than not knowing anything about girl's bodies. Sheik said himself he doesn't know anything about them. Come to think of it...neither do I."

Link shrugged and opened the door. I wonder if Sheik will let me borrow that book...

zzz

But Link couldn't bring himself to ask about it. He didn't want Sheik to know he'd violated his privacy like that, and besides, considering what the book was about...it was just embarrassing.

So he went to the library himself, though it was little more than a closet full of books, and found a couple on puberty. There were quite a few, and some pamphlets as well. It made sense, considering the ages of the boys, but it still struck Link as excessive.

Of course, by this time Sheik was back to normal. His uncharacteristic bitchiness had barely lasted a week, and now he was acting like nothing had happened.

Meanwhile, Link learned what the hell was going on with his body. It was a little startling, and a little hard to believe, but it explained a lot and all the books agreed.

It still didn't explain what was wrong with Sheik.

And then Link got to the chapters on girls, and beyond.

It was eye-opening, and the pictures were fascinating, but it all made sense now. Sheik was freaked out.

Hell, Link was freaked out. Menstruation, STDs, teen pregnancy...sex was scary.

But Link was starting to think it was worth it.

zzz

Sheik glanced nervously around the visiting room before going over and sitting next to Malon. "Thanks for coming on such short notice."

"It's no problem," she said. "What's up?"

"Well..." Sheik fidgeted nervously. "Can you get me something, and not ask why I need it?"

"No."

"How about getting me something and promising you won't tell anyone. Ever. On pain of...pain."

"Now that I can do. What is it you need?"

"Wait," Sheik cocked his head. "You don't have any problems smuggling stuff in to me?"

"Meh," Malon shrugged her shoulders. "I figure if you're asking me it must be something I can get my hands on easily, so it can't be that bad. And even if it was, I'd still do it."

Sheik couldn't help but stare at her. This was not the farm girl he'd thought he'd met. "Why?"

Again she shrugged. "Why not?"

"You have a point..."

"So what was it you needed?"

"Well... It's just... ibuprofen."

"Painkillers? You got pain Sheik?"

"Kinda." He rubbed his neck, not meeting her eyes. "Yeah, I got pain."

"You hurt yourself?"

"No..."

"Then is someone hurting you?"

"Not exactly..."

"Didn't you tell me you knew how to fight?"

"I do, I do, but... well..."

"What? Come on, you can tell me."

Sheik sighed. "The truth is...I think I'm losing my touch."

"What do you mean?"

"I- I've been teaching my friend Link to fight.Have I told you about him?"

"No."

"Well, he's a really great guy who got a bad deal out of life. You'll know him if you see him, he's the guy in the green hat. The good-looking guy in the green hat now I guess."

"Huh?"

"Never mind. Point is...Link's real good at fighting. Maybe as good as me."

"Maybe better than you?"

"I never said that," Sheik said quickly.

Malon laughed. "So you're sore, is that it?"

"Yeah..."

"Don't you have a way to get ibuprofen yourself? Like, from the infirmary or something?"

"We're not allowed to self-medicate and we have to give a reason for wanting that stuff."

"So just tell them you have a headache."

"It doesn't really work like that..." He rubbed his neck again. "If I ask for it as often as I think I'll have to I doubt they'll believe me about the headaches... Or they might call a doctor, which would be worse."

"Should I bring some tomorrow?"

Sheik grinned. "You're the best Bonanza."

zzz

Picking up trash on the side of the highway, although the only way the boys ever got out of the correctional facility, was not fun. There was no opportunity to fake sword fight with the pokey sticky things, and they didn't get tp choose who they cleaned near. That was how Link wound up next to Mido.

"What are you doing here anyway?" Link hissed at him as soon as the guard watching them moved down the road.

"Serving my time," Mido said smugly. "I burned a building down."

"You what!"

"No one respects me."

"Well, duh! You're a little cockroach!"

"Oh, you say that now. But three years ago I had you under my thumb just like everyone else. You may have gotten taller, but inside you're just the same loser Hylian you always were."

Link gritted his teeth and squeezed his stick.

"What's the matter?" Mido grinned. "Haven't you got anything to say?"

"I hate your guts," Link growled, "but I would still rather put up with whatever you have to offer then get thrown in solitary." What he didn't say was that he was already straddling a thin line between staying where he was and getting moved to a different room. He didn't want to be taken away from Sheik. Somehow, over the last few years, Sheik had become very important to him, and he didn't even want to imagine life without him. And one more step out of line, and he would have to do more than just imagine...

"Pussy," Mido said.

"Since when do you even know that word?" Link rolled his eyes.

"Since..." Mido trailed off; he couldn't turn that into an insult. "What do you care?"

"Just curious. How did you find out you could leave the forest anyway?"

"Saria left."

"But Saria's like...Saria."

"So? She's still a Kokiri, not like you."

Link growled in the back of his throat. "You know the worst part of this Mido?"

"The bowel-loosening fear?"

"I'm bigger, stronger, and smarter than you. I could take you no problem now. And yet, if I do, I'll be the one to get in trouble."

"You big bully," Mido sniffled and did a reasonable impression of a scared little kid.

Link snorted. "No one will fall for that. You're a Kokiri. You're like three hundred."

"Closer to four actually." Mido grinned. "That's what makes this so cool. Everybody knows Kokiri never leave the forest, so no one came close to suspecting I wasn't a kid. Being in juvie is way better than being in jail. Especially for only six years. And you know something Link?" He inched closer and whispered conspiratorally. "I am going to make your life a living hell."

Link growled and raised his stick in the air.

Mido's eyes widened.

Link swung.

And stopped suddenly.

"Bad idea Link," Sheik said calmly. He pulled the stick from Link's hand and held it away from him. "I don't really want a new roommate, so try not to let the runt get to you. Now," he handed the stick back to Link, "I need to get back to my place before someone notices I'm gone." He stepped back and melted into the shadows.

"Woah," Mido said, staring at the last place Sheik had been.

"Yeah, he does that sometimes. You never really get used to it." Link turned away and stabbed a cigarette butt.

"I'm not going to forget that Link," Mido said ominously. "You really think you can take me out?"

"Yes," Link clenched his stick again. "But I won't. I'm better than that. I'm better than you."

"You are not better than me. I am way better than you. I have always been better than you."

"You're wrong. About that, and about me. Now stop talking before I ram this stick so far up your ass it'll pierce your tongue."

Mido opened his mouth to reply, but the supervisor came back just in time. They spent the rest of the afternoon in sullen silence.

zzz

"Andthen when we got back all his little toadies surrounded him and he started saying this stuff, completely idiotic stuff, but they were all sniggering and pointing at me... I really hate that guy."

The boyswere hanging out in their room again, Link pacing agitatedly.

Shiek sniggered.

"Not you too!"

"No, not you Link," Sheik laughed out loud. "It's just...can you imagine Mido in a normal environment? Like, like, middle school?"

Link laughed too. "He'd never make it!"

Sheik got down on his knees in front of Link and shook a fist at him. "Gimme your lunch money!"

"...I'm like, two feet taller than you."

"...Yeah, whatever, fine. I'll let it slide this time!"

Both boys laughed.

"To be fair though," Link said after a moment. "Neither of us has ever been to middle school either."

"Well, yeah, but...but... We've seen it on TV at least."

"And he hasn't?"

"Mmm..."

Link sighed and turned his face up toward the ceiling, closing his eyes.

The door opened.

For just a moment, the scene was frozen. Sheik on his knees in front of Link, who had his back to the door. Mikau, staring in shock from the doorway at what he thought he was looking at.

Then Sheik looked around Link's hip at the Zora boy. "Uh, hi Mikau."

Mikau backed away slowly from the door, then turned tail and ran.

"Um, Sheik. What just happened?"

"You know Link," Sheik sighed and got to his feet, "You really don't want to know. Now if you'll excuse me I have to chase down Mikau." He started toward the door. "Oh, and if I were you I would start praying that he knows how to keep his mouth shut."

Link blinked. He looked down at the spot where Sheik had been kneeling. "Oh...hell..."