Disclaimer: I do not own anything in the Zelda Franchise... I wish I did.
AU: Welp, that time has once again reared its head on me. This story got to the point where I have to change the rating or delete some of the parts I want to write about. As I hate to censor myself, I have no choice but to change it to a M-rated story.
I apologize to anyone that may get upset about this, but I really don't want to censor these bits out of the story. I hope you guys understand this, Thank you.
AU2: Also in a little note, I wanted to properly discribe La'Azul features. I know its kinda cheap and silly to do this in a note, but I really let the timming of this go on the story and every time it bugs me that she doesn't have a proper description of herself. So, here it go:
As many of her Zora brethen La'Azul has big round eyes, her they a pair of jet black pearls with a sparkling shine at their core. She is very tall, taller than the average Zora woman, but her body is very lean and delicate. Like most Zora she doesn't wear clothes, but she has more than a few colofor fins that stands out from her body like a piece of silk cloth which cover her most private parts; the most prominent of those fins are the pair on her waist that go down as far as her knees, but they are so light that they stand floating in the air most of the time.
The color of her skin is a very light shade of blue with dots and stripes of a darker blue color painting a beautiful pattern all over her body. And because of this she gained her name "La'Azul" (La Azul = The Blue or The Blue One).
That's it, sorry for rambling so much.
Chapter 22 - Is There Space for Love?
"Most of the times when someone scurries away from my clinic, they usually do a good job to refrain from returning for a very long time…" Doctor Rose's monotone voice sounded from within her hospital's tent, paired together with the pain-filled moans of a certain blond young man. "Last time I made my best to stitch your hide and give you a proper scare. And yet, here you are…"
With a sharp pull of a hand, a cold needle tread in Link's fair skin, a muffled scream echoed from the blond, who pressed both hands against his mouth to suppress his voice.
"D-Doctor, I promise you that I had no intention of coming back here." Link explained with a serious tone.
His reasoning caused the small woman to glare at him, her hand preparing with care to shove the needle back in.
"N-Not that I have something against you…" Cried Link with a panicked look, as the implication of his words dawned on him.
"You better not. Since I'm the one always patching your stupid self back into shape." The good doctor hissed back, her ministrations taking yet another muffled scream from her illustrious patient.
Luckily for Link when they arrived in the camp's hospital, doctor Rose was still there standing on duty. Not so lucky for him, there was no other patient in her ward and the peculiar medic was using this small reprise to enjoy herself with a glass of wine and one of her favorite books.
When he strode inside the tent with his friends behind him, Link felt as if he had made a mistake. Or at least he felt like that after the dangerous look the woman sent his way.
Tossing her book to the side and letting out a sigh, Rose just pointed Link to one of the beds and stood up to get closer to him.
Before Link could ask how did she know, doctor Rose grabbed his tunic by the lower end and pulled it up, revealing the nasty wound still moist at his side.
With just one nod, Rose ordered the other two to take a seat in the chairs close to the bed. And so, her work on the reckless young Hero began.
"I assume this botchery of a first-care is the work of that red-eyed brat, huh?" Rose asked with an affirmative question.
Link made no effort to answer her question, but Vahn was about to say something only to be silenced by the glare the angry medic sent his way as the young scholar made the smallest of sounds with his mouth.
"This wound…" She breathed out most like as a voiced thought. "I assume a broad-sword grazed your belly."
A low groan came from the blond, his back getting very stiff out of a sudden. "Yeah…" His eyes darted to the Master Sword resting on a table close by. "Something like that."
"Did you kill him?" Rose asked, her eyebrow slightly tilted and her green eyes rising to meet Link's.
His face twisted into a frown. "Why would you ask that?"
She shrugged and looked down at her ongoing work. "Most soldiers like to gloat about their scars. A sign that they lived and the other one died, or so they say."
"That's stupid… very stupid." Link glared down onto his hands, clenching them both in a rising temper. "And no. He isn't dead."
"Woah, someone managed to wound our brazen hero and draw breath still?" Doctor Rose commented with a low whistle. "Should we be scared of this goliath of a person?"
Link groaned again. For the little time he has shared with this woman, he knows she likes to get under people's skin with her words, and he also knows that he should just ignore it as her weird way of teasing him. But this topic is a living scar for him, a burning memory that will not so soon cool down.
"I destroyed a dragon." Link said back, his blue eyes marred with a frown. "Took a breath of fire to the face and still here to tell the tale."
"Your point?" Rose asked with a furrowed brow. "Wasn't you the one that just said that gloating about this stuff is stupid?"
"My point is…" He began and then failed to explain his point. Biting softly on his lower lip, he drifted his eyes away. "Next time I'll get him." He then breathed out, almost trying to convince himself more than anyone present.
"Huzzah to that, brat. Don't take my words in the wrong way, if there is something out there that can get you down, please by all means get rid of it as best as you can. I don't even want to imagine what it can do to the rest of us." With one firm pull of a hand and then the snap of a scissor, the small red-haired woman pulled away, her green eyes appraising her work just to be sure. "There you go, another wound patched up and another scar for your collection later on."
Link took a glance at the trail of stitches on his skin and cringed. He then raised his head on time to see Rose tossing his tunic to him and he easily caught with one hand. "Thank you, doctor… I'll try to stay in one piece for now."
A loud snort escaped the woman, the cynic look she gave him was enough to make Link frown again. "Come on, kid. You are not only our little poster boy but also our spearhead in this war." Rubbing her temple with two fingers, Rose shook her head and waved at him. "You'll get roughed up out there, no two ways about it. Just try to stay alive to see the end of this, will you?"
"I will." Link replied with a grin, full sincerity in his blue eyes.
Letting out a small chuckle, Rose shook her head again at the blond young man and then turned to look at the other two. "Anyone else in need of my care?" She asked.
La'Azul quickly shook her head, the poor Zora already mentally scarred after witnessing the medical care Link just went under.
Vahn also didn't feel too eager to get touched, examined, or even looked at by the snarky woman.
"No, ma'am." They both replied together, the same scared tone carried in their voice.
Satisfied with her work, both in treating Link's wound and startling the other two, Doctor Rose calmly made her way back to her desk, taking her book back to her hand and even filling up her cup with her secret bottle of wine.
After redressing himself, Link walked over to the table where his sword is resting and took the weapon in his hands. Vahn and La'Azul got up to their feet, expecting the blond to guide them out of here, instead, he just plopped back into the bed he was sitting before.
"Are you okay?" Vahn asked. "Is the wound still hurting?"
Link shook his head slowly, his blond bangs swinging gracefully in the air. "It doesn't hurt anymore… well it does, but I can take it." Taking the Master Sword out of its sheath, he laid the weapon on his lap and ran the fingers of his right hand across it. His azure eyes are staring at the blade, but his gaze is a thousand miles away.
Vahn watched his friend with a worried frown. La'Azul also felt a little preoccupied with the blonde's sudden mood change, but she recognized the look in his eyes. She saw it before, but then those eyes were red and carried a heavy shadow under them.
"It's him, isn't it?" She asked, for the first time since Hylia Lake directed her words at Link. "You are thinking of the other you."
Vahn's eyes widened. Taking one hand to La'Azul's side, he gave her a few weird looks trying to speak without words.
Link didn't take his eyes away from his sword, but his mouth still moved. "How did you know?" He asked in a low voice.
The red-haired scholar tried to scramble a few words together to salvage this situation. "Aah, you see Link. When we were kinda lost earlier, we brought her up to speed in a few-"
"I saw it." La'Azul cut Vahn's wobbly explanation in the middle of it. "I was there in the temple. That fight with him, I watched from the dark."
Biting his lips Vahn just tossed his hands in the air. He was ready to say something again, but as the words danced on his tongue, Link raised his head and look at them. Or more precisely, at La'Azul.
"You saw it… huh. Then you know. Not Sheik or Vahn saw our fight, but if you saw it… you know how it went." Link frowned deeply, his right hand sliding down to the sword's handle. "What is your opinion? Was it close?"
La'Azul's features turned into a mixture of compassion and doubt. She didn't move her lips but with a simple shake of her head Link had his reply.
The blond growled and punched the mattress with his left fist, earning himself an annoyed grunt from doctor Rose. "How in the blazing hell is he so strong? That thing was like a mirror, but worse. It moved so fast; his blows almost tore my arms off. Not even a freaking dragon felt so overwhelming as he did. How can I beat that?"
"Link…" Vahn carefully moved closer, placing a comforting touch on his friend's left arm. "If you have to fight him again, then we will be there with you. All of us."
"Out of the question!" Link replied with a harsh growl. "I promised Sheik… I will try to rely on you guys. I'll try not to carry the weight of the world on my back, but not this. Not again. That monster is never coming close to any of you ever again."
Vahn sighed. He could try to rebuke Link's words, but once the blond gets in his stubborn moods there is nothing that can make him cooperate.
La'Azull, however, felt the need to push at least one more thing before letting this conversation end into an awkward silence. "Maybe he is not evil."
With a snap, Link's azure eyes darted to the Zora. The glare in his face made her recoil back in its intensity. "Huh?!" He grunted loudly. "How is that not evil? He tried to kill me and got damn near close to succeeding in it. He tried to hurt Sheik. His eyes were brimming with rage and evilness. You can't be seriously be thinking that thing is not evil!"
"I was there, remember?!" La'Azul raised her voice a little bit, growing unsure of why she is doing this but still clinging to this need for it. "He is angry, very angry. It's true. But maybe… he is not pure evil like you think he is. Maybe, he is just someone getting crushed under the weight of his negative emotions."
Link snorted, shaking his head fiercely. "Yeah, and Ganondorf is a charming Prince." His temper only worsened after hearing the word 'Prince' coming from his mouth, his thoughts going to the silver-haired clown he met earlier. "Look, La'Azul I don't know you and I don't know what you saw in that thing. But I once trusted someone that looked in pain. I tried to reach out and help a person that looked so distressed. My reward was a stab in the back."
"You helped me." She countered.
"And I would help again." Taking one hand to the back of his head, Link messed with his hair under his hat. "Look, never in my life, I've met an evil Zora or a Zora trying to hurt me. So, yeah, I had no reason to distrust you and I still don't. But I know evil when I see it, and that twisted copy of me, that's evil."
Holding her left arm with her right hand, La'Azul made a motion to continue her point, but Vahn glanced at her and gave a simple look, shaking his head ever so slightly. Letting out a sigh, the Zora accepted defeat and admitted that this is a moot point but also not something that Link would relent on.
And so, the large hospital tent got washed over by a loud deafening silence. The only small sounds hovering in the air are the sounds of pages turning or a cup raising and dropping down on a table.
Then the sound of steps came from outside, soon followed by cloth moving right in the entrance.
Sheik walked in with Princess Zelda right behind him. Both blonds noticed the heavy air around them and looked at the closest person to them. Doctor Rose shrugged off and pointed to the group a bit further in the back.
"Link!" Zelda called out with a happy cry, the regal Princess bouncing in her steps towards her friend. As she reached the bed, she threw herself onto the tall blond, giggling as he caught her in a quick hug. "It's so good to see you again. Did you grow taller?" She asked in a tease, giggling when Link just stared at her with a confused blush.
"Just FYI, I just put the stitches on him so if you don't want the brat to bleed out again, try to not tackle him too hard." Doctor Rose said from the back, not even taking her eyes away from her book while doing so.
Zelda rolled her eyes at the usual snark of her medic, but then her smile came back as she brought her attention to the other two people standing close to the bed. "Oh, you two must be Vahn and La'Azul. It's a pleasure to meet you, I am Zelda."
La'Azul gave a small bow in reply, saying in small words that the pleasure was all hers. But Vahn stared at the blond young woman as she had no head or something like that.
"Sheik…" Vahn whispered as he leaned closer to the approaching blond spy. "Am I supposed to call her Princess or Zelda? Won't I get in trouble for being too friendly with a royal?"
Sheik's best response was to shrug. Normally everyone is expected to call Zelda by her title and show only but the utmost respect toward her. But when she gets in her head to act casually towards someone, then to hell with protocol.
"Nonsense, Vahn," Zelda answered herself. "Sheik told me quite a bit about you, and as his surrogated older sister, any friend of his is a friend of mine." Detaching herself from Link's arms, Zelda presented her hand toward Vahn, the red-haired young man stared at her hand for a few seconds but then accepted the casual handshake.
"Well then, nice to meet ya, Zelda." He offered a grin to which the Princess smiled in return.
From there the group's mood transformed into a light and easygoing atmosphere. Zelda got all of their attention to herself, masterfully dragging everybody into the conversation without trampling over anyone's voice.
Entranced by the Princess' eagerness they shared stories and laughs together; with Link frowning here and there when Zelda and Vahn paired together to tease the tall blond mercilessly.
After a point, even the ever quiet and shy La'azul began to open up a bit, indulging Vahn's curiosity and discussing with Zelda the situation of her home and her people. As they went on and on in their private meeting, Doctor Rose excused herself from the clinic, complaining about the loud brats ruining her alone time.
"To think that you are General's Val son, it feels so surreal," Zelda said looking at Vahn. "I love the man as if he was my second father, but he can be so overbearing at times."
"Don't I know about it?" Vahn cried exasperated, both hands flying in the air. "Papa is loyal and caring. But when something gets in that thick head of his… there is no stopping him."
"He misses you," Zelda said with a soft voice. "General Val for so many years has been our solid foundation. Not once he has faltered in his duty to protect us. But sometimes, on the rare occasion when the troops manages to get him to share a drink, he would always tell us stories about his son. And how proud he was of his little soldier in the making."
Vahn sighed deeply, practically shrinking on his seat. "I love papa, I love him so much. But I'm not a soldier. I'll never be. I like to study history. To discover new things that were lost in time, to weave magic with runes and symbols. Papa never accepted that."
Leaning forward Zelda took Vahn's hands onto her own. Looking directly onto his emerald green eyes, the Princess smiled with tender care. "He is a hardhead and stubborn old man, but don't give up on him just yet. Talk with him, explain properly how you feel. And if even then he gives you trouble, call me and I will smack some sense at the back of his head."
Picturing a precious Princess marching to the lumbering man that is his father and her smacking him at the back of the head was too much for Vahn to handle. Still holding to her hands, the small scholar broke down on a fit of laughter, tears appearing on the corner of his eyes.
"Thank you, Zelda." He said softly after the giddiness left his belly. "I will… I will talk with Papa. And if he insists on being an oaf, then I will get to watch you smack him on the back of the head."
"Oh, and I will, don't you worry." The Princess giggled together with her new friend, feeling a deep connection with the petite young man already.
Her eyes then went to the two quietest of the group. Sheik is being his serious self on the corner, mostly watching their interactions with a small smile tugging at his mask. But the always talkative Link is strangely quiet, and with one look to his eyes, Zelda understood why.
Those big azure eyes are staring at Sheik, watching with intent, sometimes glancing away as if scared of getting caught but quickly going back to the Sheikah's form.
"Vahn, La'Azul. Would you care to have tea with me?" Zelda offered with a pleading smile. "Or perhaps we can arrange to have dinner, it's almost time, isn't it?"
With comedic timing, Vahn's belly growled loudly in response to the offer. The brown-skinned boy blushed slightly in embarrassment but with a little smile, he nodded his head at her. La'Azul who is proving herself very observant in her ways, noticed the moment Zelda glanced at Link and understood the meaning behind such an invite. With a silent nod, she also accepted the invitation, getting up from her seat as Vahn and Zelda did the same.
"We are not invited then?" Sheik asked with a fake hurt in his voice. "Since you met more interesting people, the two of us are old news, huh?"
Zelda threw a look at her brother, shaking her head softly. "You, little brother will never be old news to me. But you are as dense as a mule sometimes." One nod back was enough to guide Sheik's eyes to Link.
A soft 'Ohh' escaped his lips as his gaze landed on the pleading look on Link's face. Then a warm line of red crossed the Sheikah's cheek behind his face mask.
Between giggles and teasing glances, Zelda and her new best friend walked out, side by side, with an apologetic La'Azul bowing her head before following the other two out to the exit.
"Maybe introducing those two was a big mistake." Link chirped in surly, his cheek still warm with a pinkish-red tint.
While sharing a bit of Link's sentiment, Sheik just chuckled at the comment with a small shake of his head. Slowly pushing his back away from the soft wall of the tent, Sheik walked closer to the bed and took a seat close to Link.
Feeling the closeness of their body, Link shyly leaned to the left, nudging their shoulders together. "I behaved good today, right?"
Sheik quirked an eyebrow. Slowly raising one hand to his face, he pulled out his face mask down once again. "You did, did you?"
Link promptly nodded; his blue eyes still locked to the back of his gloved hands sitting on his laps. "Like you asked I tried to keep myself from touching you in public… even if I wanted to."
The red-eyed blond glanced at Link with a sorry glint in his eyes, but Link missed it as his eyes are still averted from the blond next to him. "Link…"
"It's okay. I get it. We don't need to be mushy around each other all the time." Link sighed and finally brought his big blue eyes to Sheik's. "I just… wanted to touch you again."
"Well… we are alone right now." Sheik said simply, his lips parting in a small smile.
This invitation was enough to push Link onto Sheik. He didn't jump hungrily at the Sheikah, as the spy had anticipated.
It began slowly, Link just sliding closer to Sheik, grazing a soft touch with his hand along the other blonde's arm. His blue eyes then traveled to the beautiful face that is almost always covered behind a mask, his right hand followed his gaze, tracing an exploring touch around the edges and curves of Sheik's features.
To Sheik every one of these sensations feels outlandish, unknown, but so good. Each time the warmth of Link's skin touches his face, the young Sheikah leans over, greedily trying to experiment all of it to the fullest, closing his eyes to make his tact senses even higher.
"Sheik…" Link called in a plea.
Sheik opened his eyes and saw Link looking at him, a need flaring in his eyes but also the hesitation in the lines of his frown.
A weird mixture of regret and joy flared in the Sheikah's chest. He knows that the always confident Link is so afraid of moving forward because of him, but this also shows how much Link respects his desires, his words.
And so, to translate his own need of contact, Sheik leaned closer and pressed a soft and chaste kiss on the other blonde's lips.
"Link…" Sheik moaned softly as their lips parted away. "It's okay… you can touch me."
Those innocent blue eyes glowed with a different light. Without changing anything about him, those words were enough to unlock another side of Link. He stood taller in his posture; his features looking so handsome and not childish anymore.
Wrapping one strong arm around Sheik's back, Link pulled the other blond closer, pressing a hungrier kiss on those soft tender lips. Quickly his tongue pressed against the small opening of the Sheikah's mouth, which quickly gave space for it to explore his mouth fully.
Their kiss only deepened, a mess of wet and hot. Their breath grazing each other's faces, hands moving in a slow exploration of each other. One of Link's hands went high enough to unmake the elaborate turban resting on Sheik's head, releasing a cascade of gold hair down his back.
When the lack of air became bothersome enough, they finally parted away with one last sound of their lips touching.
Smiling contently with their exchange, Link laid his head against Sheik's chest, adoring the sounds of hastened heartbeats.
"I think… I think I truly understand what Vahn told me that day." Link breathed out softly, chuckling to himself.
Wearing a smile of his own, Sheik looked down at Link's hair. "About what?" He asked mildly curious if Vahn had tainted Link with one of his perverted thoughts.
"When everything else seems so small and unimportant compared to that one person, that's when you know what love is." Link replied quietly, lifting his head to look back at Sheik. "I know now. Because that's how I feel with you. I… I love you, Sheik."
Red startled eyes widened with quite a shock. Sheik stood still with a slack jaw as Link just watched him silently.
Feeling that he may have broken his lover, Link rubbed a soft caress on the blonde's cheek. This made Sheik blink and tilt his head slightly to the right.
"Link…" Sheik sighed faintly. "How do you say such significant things so easily?"
Link gave him a bright smile, planting a quick kiss on Sheik's lips again. "Because it's true. No one should've to hide the truth away. That's why I don't do it."
The blond Sheikah almost melted away in the other boy's arms. He leaned over and pressed his face against the side of Link's neck, hiding the flaming blush on his cheeks. "You're so silly sometimes…" His fingers clawed at the back of Link's tunic, his chest pressing tightly against Link's broader and muscular form. "I… I love you too."
A loud joyful laughter echoed inside the silent clinic; Link's overjoy erupted from his chest in the form of his voice. Feeling the sting of tears on his eyes, he blinked them away and hugged his lover even tighter, pressing small but tender kissed all over Sheik's neck and cheek.
Pulling back just enough to properly face Link, Sheik pulled him in and initiated another kiss.
This time they lost themselves to the sensations and feelings, accepting nothing more in their lives at the moment.
Working his way on Sheik like a professional, Link kept the blonde's attention firmly with their kiss, letting his lips and tongue mesmerize the Skeikah out of his rational thoughts. Then his hands moved from the spy's thighs to his waist, his fingers snaking their way beneath the tight vest, sinking themselves into the warmth of Sheik's skin.
With a whimper, Sheik opened his eyes for what felt like an eternity, and only then did he notice the ceiling staring back at him. Slightly confused, he glanced down and saw that he is resting with his back on the mattress, his upper clothing almost gone and Link terrorizing his belly with an assault of kisses.
He felt as Link touched and licked his skin, one hand working its way to a nub on his chest. A hiss of pleasure escaped him as Link pinched it softly, then moved upwards to kiss the aching flesh better.
"L-Link." Sheik cried when Link rubbed their private areas together. His eyes grew a little bigger when he felt the hardness and length of the other blond against his.
Pressing one finger to the Sheikah's lips, Link shushed him with a grin and made a trail of kisses down Sheik's pale lean abdomen.
Letting out a little yelp when his lover carefully pulled down his pants, Sheik raised his head just to see Link admiring the sight of his member. When Link looked up and smiled, Sheik had to hide his face behind his hands to cover his utter embarrassment.
Before Sheik could protest for anything an electric wave crossed his entire body, a stroke of Link's tongue trailing the form of the blond spy's member.
A mischievous giggle escaped the blue-eyed blond, this making Sheik peeks from within his fingers.
"It tastes a bit funny." Link said with a throwaway comment, quickly giving another try to the treat on his hand. "But I like it."
And Sheik's face was back into hiding, the poor Sheikah wanting nothing more but to bury his head into the mattress, but feeling too good to move from his spot.
Link continued with his ministrations, slowly scaling in his methods. Not long after his lips pressed against the tip, using his tongue to guide Sheik's length into his mouth.
"W-Waait… ah… Liiink…" Sheik wriggled all around, his right hand snatching a handful of Link's blond hair, tackling the silly green hat down to the floor.
Loving every sound and reaction coming from his lover, Link only pressed on with his action. Kissing, licking, going up and down at a slow and teasing pace. Everything driving Sheik to the edge of his sanity, his toes curling in a spasm.
With a muffled cry, Sheik felt his body explode in a wave of pleasure, his release spilling inside Link's mouth.
Surprised by the outcome of his teasing, Link coughed a bit, feeling a weird taste in his mouth, a slick liquid playing in his tongue.
Sinking further in the mattress, Sheik released a long sigh of satisfaction. With a glow in his eyes, he glanced at Link and gasped when he saw the blond wiping the corner of his mouth.
"Oh, Link. I-I'm so sorry…" He sat up, worriedly fessing up at Link's state.
Link shrugged, wiping the last bit stuck out from at the corner of his lips and just deciding to swallow the little bit inside his mouth. He then made a face and grinned. "A bit odd, but not that bad."
Staring at Link with a surprised look, Sheik could only shake his head and smile. Leaning closer to his boyfriend, the red-eyed blond pressed a grateful and content kiss on Link's lush lips, tasting the slightly bitter taste of his release.
The couple snuggled together, laughing in their small little world.
And as Sheik moved his hand across the back of Link's head, the young Hero buckled forward, letting out a harsh cry of pain.
"Link? W-What's wrong?" Sheik pulled Link closer, growing worried at the sudden distress afflicting his loved one.
"H-Hurts…. Spirits this huuuurts." Link curved up, resting his head against his knees. At the back of his right hand, the golden light of the Triforce came to light, sizzling with jolts of energy.
Then with a louder cry of pain, Link tossed himself back, laying on his back, and forced Sheik's to lay down at his side with the suddenness of his movements.
"Link?" Sheik called out, rubbing a comforting touch on Link's arm.
"What… what was that?" Link sat up again, rubbing one hand fervently against his chest. "It felt like someone had stabbed me in the chest."
Looking to the side he locked his gaze onto Sheik's red eyes, both lost in confusion, they just embraced each other, trying to make sense of is happening with Link.
Midnight has fallen on Hyrule. The powerful glow of moonlight illuminates the desolate fields, the full moon still standing among the stars, mercifully keeping company to those plagued by solitude.
In its ever-watchful presence, the moon witnesses the speeding form racing across the road. The gallops of a distressed horse thunder across the plains, raising dust and grass in its hurried rush.
Soon enough, the large silhouette passed by the tall tree lines leading to Lake Hylia, then the reins pulled up and made the horse neigh and stop, raising both frontal legs in the air.
"Shhs… It's… It's okay now… We made… We escaped." The man said in a soothing voice, tapping the horse with care, calming its agitated nerves.
Seeing the poor animal calm down and just shake his large head with a lower neigh, the man felt the strength of his arms fade and his body slid to the side.
With a loud thud, he fell hard on the ground, screaming when his back made a loud crack with the impact.
Cursing and coughing softly, he pulled himself with effort close to a large tree to push and rest his back against.
To his surprise, the horse didn't race away from him the moment he fell. Instead, the loyal animal stepped closer and pressed its head against his arm.
"It's okay, girl… I won't… die from this." He said with a weak voice, his hand pressing against one of the many cuts and gashes on his dark grey tunic, the warm and wet sensation of blood flooding his hand. "Fuck… maybe I should keep away from trouble." He chuckled and quickly cried out in pain again.
Pressing his hand even firmer against his worst wound, Link hissed and looked at Epona just watching him writhe in pain.
"Thank you…" He said softly, raising one hand to press against Epona's long face. "Without you, I would have died in there."
Epona neighed louder, shaking her head once again, and then she laid down close to him, nibbling slowly on the taller grass.
"Well… at least now they'll know to fear my face… heh… heheh-Gaahh. Fuck." Pulling himself up, he leaned properly against the tree, wincing at another wave of pain.
Looking down at the shining spot at the back of his right hand, Link sighed and laughed. "Yeah… I won't die from this. You wouldn't let me, would you?" He hissed at the Triforce, and as if responding to him, the symbol flared with sparks, sending another jolt of pain across his body. "T-Though as much."
From within the darkness of these woods, an owl hooted away to the night. This sound almost masks away the subtle and soft shift in the wind. Even still, Link's heard it despite how quiet it was.
His red eyes glanced to the darkest corner behind the trees up ahead, his chest for the first time this day ached with a happy twitch, but as he narrowed his eyes the feeling faded away.
"A bummer…" He said aloud. "For a moment… I thought he had come for me." His head went left and right, the glimmer of tears appearing at the corner of his eyes before getting harshly blinked away. "As if, right?"
Nothing. Not a whisper came as a reply. Something that amused Link quite a bit. Perhaps the Sheikah hiding in the shadows thinks she is well hidden, but he can see her very well.
"You know, a conversation isn't a conversation when only one part speaks. It becomes a monologue.," He tried to get a reaction from the stoic woman but got nothing from her. "Oh, you looking at these?" He pointed to the gashes all over his tunic and body. "Yeah, got them from the little spat I had with one of Ganondorf's Legions."
This was enough to make the Sheikah step out from the shadows, her piercing glare ever vigilant over Link's battered form. "You faced the Black Legion?" Impa, at last, let her voice ring through the night's air, her expression still a blank.
"Faced?" Link chuckled, then winced painfully. "No, no… I destroyed them. Not a clean job, mind you." He once again pointed toward his state, an amused grin on his lips. "But as the name suggests, there is no end to the bastards. When I finished with one battalion, two others appeared at the gates of Lon Lon Ranch. Epona here saved my skin, without her… I would be a goner."
Impa analyzed every bit of his person. Tapping the cold handle of a dagger hidden within her apparel, the cold-faced Sheikah tried to decide what best way to execute her mission. However, the more she watches the young man wince and shiver in pain, the more her steel-hardened resolve began to crack for maybe the first time in her life.
Those eyes are red scarlet like blood, they carry a disturbing shadow beneath them, the promise of wrath and fire to those who wronged him. Even so, that pain-laced face is very much that of the naïve young hero she just left behind in their camp.
Feeling her fingers twitch closer to the dagger, Impa stepped forward, enough for Link to regard her with a curious gaze.
"Before I do this, I would like to know why?" She asked in a neutral, veiled tone.
Link snorted, giving a small shrug. "Why what? Not feeling very eloquent today?"
She glared at him, her entire hand now resting on the dagger. "Why do you fight? What is your goal at the end of all this?"
"Ain't I the Goddesses' little puppet?" He growled back. "My job is to fight and destroy that lizard-eyed bastard. So why do I fight? To complete that task. Am I doing a good job at it? Well, look at this and you tell me." With one last groan, he cast a glare to the side, feeling the heat of his wounds all over again.
"And Link?" She asked, this time with a little more emotion in her words.
"You're looking at him." Link said defiantly.
"You and I know that this is not the truth."
"Then what in the blazing hells is the truth, huh?!" Link shouted angrily at her, ignoring completely the shock of pain running across his body. "You weren't there with the others when they tried to keep me in that place, but I know what you are, Sage… If someone can tell me what I am it is one of you, then go ahead, tell me."
Impa offered no response for him, her features however shifted a bit inside her face mask.
"This is ridiculous… I… I tried to get my life back." Link began to crack in his resolve and voice. "I tried to destroy that inferior imposter and reclaim what is mine. But… is that even possible? Impa, can I even be Link again?" He directed his red eyes to her, for the first time wearing a vulnerable look in his features. "Look at me. I can't even buy some food without losing myself in a killing spree. There is this urge inside of me… this thing that keeps pushing me into the darkness… Impa… what is wrong with me?"
Slowly Impa's hand drifted away from her dagger. Instead, her right hand moved to her face and pulled off her mask, revealing her stern but graceful features. "If you are asking yourself that, then you are not that far gone. The first step to retaining yourself is to accommodate the abyss without letting it suck you into its darkness. To fight against this urge is not an easy task, but a virtuous one. Because only the one within the reach of evil can fend off its shadow from the world."
All the spunk and fight dissipated from Link, his head hanging low, burying his face onto his curled legs. "It's so hard… I don't know If I can do it."
"Sheik…" Impa said, catching every bit of Link's attention. "What is the relation between you two?"
Raising his head to look directly into her eyes, Link frowned but still replied. "I love him."
Impa frowned, but she didn't say anything at the first moment. After breathing out and clearing her face of any emotion she said back. "Then hold on to this feeling. Not for the hope of a return of his, but to save yourself from your own nature. That is… all that I will say."
Closing her eyes and fixing her mask back in place, Impa turned away from the battered young man, cursing herself for her weakness.
However, before she could disappear within the shadows Link called out to her.
"Impa… can you… can you give this to Sheik?" He asked truthfully, reaching out for something within his tunic, Link pulled out a shining small object.
After turning around and studying him for a moment, Impa walked closer and stopped when her eyes landed on the object. "The Ocarina of Time?" She asked in utter confusion.
A playful grin flashed on his lips. "The one and only. A certain buffoon didn't notice it dropping after our fight. I don't know the songs… well, I know two of them, but I don't plan on returning to either of those places. So, I have no use for it. Can you give this to Sheik for me?"
"Why him?" She asked.
"Because if I treat this as doing a favor for my other self, then I would rather choke with mud than give it back." Pushing his arm forward, Link presented the Ocarina for her and Impa grabbed it with a swift movement of her left hand.
"I will deliver it to him… don't worry, I won't present it to the Hero." Impa offered with a cold small nod and Link groaned at the title of his counterpart.
"Wait." Link said softly. "Does Sheik know what happens when we clear the Temple in Kakariko?'
Impa went stiff. She had already turned away from Link, and so he couldn't see the pained look flashing in her eyes.
"That is very cruel, Impa. He deserves to know. If he finds out after the fact, it will destroy him."
The stoic Sheikah took a long breath and gave a sideways glance toward Link. His face is the picture of sincerity, even those burdened eyes of his are glowing with sympathy on them. "Goodnight… Link."
And with the drop of a Deku Nut, Impa disappeared in a small flash of light, the sudden commotion making Epona neigh loudly and jump away from her resting spot.
Pushing his back against the tree once again, Link sighed deeply, another flash of pain making him wince. His scarlet eyes drifted up to the shining moon up in the sky. "You Sages are a bunch of cruel people…" With that voiced thought, Link's world faded into black.
Sliding ungracefully to the side, Link fell face-first into the grass, his consciousness giving away after the constant pain assaulting his senses.
Epona, after trying to nudge him a few times, quickly gave up and just laid down close to his body, sharing warmth and keeping the exhausted blond protected from the harsh winds of a cold night.