After Edd and Ruto's dizzy spell wore off, the group soon made their way down another path in their search for Ruto's missing item.
"So your Highness, where to next?" Eddy asked sarcastically. The four boys waited for her to pick a path, but got silence instead. They looked to see Ruto resting her head on Edd's back, a sad look on her face. "What's with you all of a sudden?" Eddy asked.
"Princess Ruto?" said Link, wondering why she wouldn't respond. She just stared off into space before Edd hopped in place, shaking her out of her thoughts.
"Huh?" she finally asked while looking at the four of them. "Oh, right. Carry on." she responded half-heartedly.
"Is something wrong?" Edd inquired.
"I'm...fine." she sighed before closing her eyes and laying her head back down on Edd's neck.
"Maybe she's tired? Or hungry?" Ed suggested before digging through his jacket and pulling out a moldy sandwich.
"No! Um...she's not hungry!" Edd answered for Ruto, not wanting to see the poor girl get poisoned. Ed frowned for a moment before eating the sandwich, which made the others cringe in disgust.
"Blegh!" Eddy remarked with his tongue sticking out.
"How does he eat that and not throw up?" Navi asked before gagging, trying her best not to vomit herself.
"Can we just get going?" asked Ruto with another sigh.
"She's right. Let's go before Ed eats something else!" said Link before he and the others walked down a path and into a room, where it immediately sealed itself shut behind them.
"What is that thing?!" Eddy yelled when he saw a blue tentacle hanging from the ceiling. "Is that what you guys fought?!"
"That's correct!" Edd answered with a gulp before they all hugged the wall. "If we get too close, it'll defend itself by swinging at us." he explained before gently easing Ruto onto the ground and taking out his boomerang. "Anyone care to distract it for me?"
"I'll do it!" Ed volunteered before running towards the tentacle with his arms held out, causing the tentacle to swing at him. He grabbed it just as it made contact and held firm, keeping the creature from swinging and recoiling. "I GOT IT DOUBLE D!" he yelled, which earned a nod from Edd before he threw the boomerang at it. It cut a bit into the tentacle before returning to Edd, who threw it again and again until it cut right through the Parasitic Tentacle. It made a horrid sound as it fell to pieces on top of Ed, smothering him in guts once more.
"Nice job you two!" Link smiled while clapping, congratulating them on their teamwork.
"Taught 'em everything I know!" Eddy bragged, causing Navi to roll her eyes.
"Well, that's one less monster we have to worry about." Edd stated before turning to Ruto, who was looking around the room from where she sat.
"Darn...nothing." she said before she curled into a ball and rested her head on her knees. Edd motioned for his friends to look at Ruto before they all gathered around her.
"What are you doing?" Eddy asked.
"I want my stone back!" she replied in a forced angry tone.
"Do you mean a Spiritual Stone?" Ed asked, surprising the others who hadn't thought of that.
"Yeah. That one." Ruto answered before glaring up at them. "No, you can't have it! So don't bother asking!" she snapped.
"That might be difficult." said Link in an apologetic voice.
"I knew it," Ruto growled as her glare hardened at them. "You three don't care if I live or die! You only wanted the Spiritual Stone of Water my people posess, right?!"
"Now that you mention it," Eddy said with a thoughtful look, earning an elbow in the ribs from Link. "What?"
"Well forget it! You can just end up as fish food for all I care!" Ruto ranted. "First that creepy Ganondorf, now you four dorks!"
"Dorks?" Ed asked while Link glared at her.
"Princess Ruto, please let us explain!" said Edd while holding his hands up defensively.
"NO! I don't want to hear it! I'm not giving-"
"SHUT UP, WILL YA?!" Eddy bellowed, his voice shaking the entire room they were in and knocking Ruto onto her back. Everyone stared at Eddy as he began shouting back at Ruto. "IF YOU'D SHUT YER YAP FOR FIVE FREAKING SECONDS, YOU BE ABLE TO HEAR THAT WE'VE BEEN COLLECTING THE SPIRITUAL STONES TO STOP A CRAZY MAN FROM DESTROYING THE WORLD!" He finished and began to breathe again after his rant, leaving everyone to stare at him before Ruto sat up, crossed her arms and turned away with a pout.
"Should've said so in the first place." she huffed before Link approached her.
"We won't steal it from you," he said, making her turn one eye towards him. "And we'll return it immediately when we're done with it. I promise." he finished with a smile. Ruto turned her head up to him before looking at the Eds.
"You all promise?" she asked with narrowed eyes.
"I promise that I shall not steal the Spiritual Stone of Water from your posession." Edd promised with his right hand on his heart, and his left hand held up.
"Ed will not take what is not his!" Ed answered with a smile. Everyone turned to Eddy, who had his arms crossed with a raised eyebrow.
"Eddy!" Edd, Link, and Navi said warningly while glaring at him, making him growl.
"Fine! I won't steal your stuff!" he said. "But we still need that dumb stone in the end." he added lastly.
"Alright," Ruto agreed before holding her arms out towards Edd. "Let's go." Edd nodded before hoisting her onto his back, then joined the others as they all walked out of the room and down the path of the last room available.
"The blue slimy thing is gone now!" Ed stated.
"Seems that we were right in thinking that they're connected to the Parasitic Tentacles." Edd remarked as they walked down the path and into the room. "Oh dear!" he whispered as they looked inside the room. There was a green Parasitic Tentacle hanging from the ceiling, surrounded by Biri.
"Jellyfish!" said Ed.
"Way to state the obvious Lumpy." Eddy replied sarcastically.
"First we clear out the Biri," said Link as he took out a Deku Stick. "Then we deal with that tentacle."
"Right!" the Eds agreed before Edd sat Ruto down next to the wall, then pulled out his boomerang. Link and the Eds quickly defeated all the Biri before turning their attention towards the tentacle, where Edd began to throw it at the creature while Ed and Link served as distractions.
"One more time ought to finish it." Edd stated as he aimed at the weak spot.
"KYAAA!" Everyone turned towards Ruto, who was scooting on the ground away from a Biri.
"PRINCESS!" they all shouted before Edd reacted and chucked the boomerang at the Biri, killing it before it could touch her.
THWACK!
Edd was sent flying through the air before slamming against the wall. He had just caught the boomerang on it's return before the tentacle attack, smacking him right in the face.
"DOUBLE D!" everyone shouted in fear.
"YOU WILL PAY FOR HURTING ED'S FRIEND!" Ed roared in rage as he grabbed the tentacle and forcibly ripped it from the ceiling, where he then proceeded to slam it repeatedly against the ground before it turned into mush. He then ran over to Edd, where everyone else had gathered.
"Get up Sockhead!" Eddy yelled in panic.
"DOUBLE D!" Ed bawled while shaking his friend, hoping he'd wake up.
"Stop shaking him like that!" Link snapped as he got Ed to put him down. They were all beginning to panic before Edd opened his eyes.
"Double D?" said Ruto catiously when she noticed him staring at them. The others all looked down at him as he groaned and rubbed his head.
"That was quite painful." he moaned before smiling up at them. "Then again, I've survived being thrashed by Sarah before."
"DOUBLE D!" everyone shouted, a mixture of joy and relief in their voices, with Edd assuring them that he was fine.
"Let's continue," he said as he knelt down, his back to Ruto. "We have a Spiritual Stone of Water to find for you, right?" Ruto just stared at his back before smiling and holding on.
"Right." she said before Edd hoisted her up again.
"One little problem. This was the last path." Navi informed them.
"Hey, she's right. Where do we go now?" Eddy asked.
"That tentacle had to be connected to something else. But where?" Link thought out loud. The group closed their eyes and thought for a few moments before Ruto's eyes lit up.
"I remember! It was back when I first met all of you!" she said.
"That's right! There was indeed a strange creature of the same color back in the same room!" Edd stated.
"Let's go and find the slimy!" Ed grinned before running out of the room laughing.
"Does he do that a lot?" Ruto asked.
"Yeah/Yes/Yep!" they said. Ruto only giggled as they walked out of the room, hoping to find Ed before he ended up somewhere bad.
"Princess," Edd quietly whispered to Ruto. "You don't have to hold on so tight."
"I know." she said, her smile still on her face. The group fought off any monsters that had returned before arriving inside the room.
"Where's the slimy thing?" Ed asked while looking around.
"If memory serves, it was right around," Edd started before walking towards a sinkhole in the ground. "Here."
"Looks like we've gotta drop down again." said Link while they all surrounded the hole.
"Ladies first." Eddy smiled while bowing to Ruto and gesturing his hands towards the hole.
"Eddy, she has a sprained ankle! You want her to break something this time?" Edd snapped.
"If she's as hard headed as Sarah, we can drop her on that and not have to worry." Eddy replied.
"Someone push him for me." Ruto ordered with a scowl.
"With pleasure!" giggled Navi before she flew into the back of his head, knocking him forward into the hole.
"You okay Eddy?" Ed yelled after sticking his head through the hole.
"Send that firefly and fish brat down here! I'll show you all how okay I am!" Eddy fumed in anger.
"He's alright." Link smirked, having heard Eddy's yelling through the fleshy floor.
"I agree, but now we have a situation. How can we ensure Princess Ruto won't injure herself going down?" Edd asked.
"Hmm. I think I have an idea." said Link while holding up the sleeve of Ed's jacket.
-Moments later-
"Is everyone ready?" Link asked. The boys had all gone down and were now standing directly beneath the hole above, each of them holding a part of Ed's jacket and stretching it out a bit.
"Ready!" Edd nodded.
"Ready!" Ed yelled.
"Yeah, whatever." Eddy replied in a low voice.
"Remember Eddy. She drops off the jacket, you drop out of Jabu-Jabu." Link stated, nothing in his voice indicating that he was joking.
"I won't drop the dumb fish girl!" Eddy growled.
"Okay Navi!" Link yelled above him, telling Navi to go up through the hole.
"They're ready! Jump!" she told Ruto, who nodded before falling forward, into the hole, out the other end, and safely on the stretched jacket.
"What do you know? We caught a fish in a-GOAF!" Eddy groaned when Ruto shot her good ankle between his legs.
"I'm sorry. Were you saying something?" Ruto asked with an innocent smile while Edd lifted her onto his back again.
"I...will...get you...for this!" Eddy squeeked out in pain, his hands between his legs.
"Let's go." Ruto ordered with a smile, which turned into an evil, toothy grin when her face was away from Eddy. "Hehehehe."
"She'll pay for this. I swear, she'll PAY for this!" Eddy grunted in pain as he waddled after them. The group entered yet another room before Ruto's eyes lit up.
"AHH! THERE IT IS!" she yelled ecstatically when she saw something sitting in the middle of the room on a raised platform. Sitting in the middle were three blue sapphires separated by a lovely golden casing. "MY MOTHER'S STONE! QUICK! GET ME UP THERE!" she yelled while Edd danced around, trying not to drop the happy Zora.
"Okay." said Ed before he grabbed Edd by the shirt and shorts, then threw them up to the platform. Edd then walked her over before she flung herself off his back and dove for the Spiritual Stone of Water.
"I've finally got it back! I thought I'd never see it again!" she cried while hugging it close to her body.
"Dames and jewelry." Eddy muttered in annoyance.
"It's beautiful." said Edd.
"Is it? It's been handed down through my family for generations. After Jabu-Jabu swallowed me one day while I was feeding him, I dropped it during the trip inside. Thanks to all of you, I've finally found it again!" Ruto happily explained. "Now, let's get out of here." she said.
"I couldn't agree-" Edd started to say before the platform began to shift under them. "More?"
"IT'S A TRAP! RUN!" Link yelled before the platform quickly ascended into the ceiling, taking Edd and Ruto with it.
"DOUBLE D!" Ed and Eddy yelled.
"PRINCESS RUTO!" Navi and Link yelled. They looked up at the spiky platform in worry, then in horror when they heard a mixture of muffled screams and fighting going on. They feared the worst when the noise suddenly stopped and the platfrom descended, bringing a giant shell wearing Bigocto with it, with a pair of purple shorts and red socks kicking and flailing out of it's mouth.
"DOUBLE D!"
A/N: This is taking a bit longer than the others. I hope no one minds. Also, please leave a review. I really wish to know your opinions.