CHAPTER NINE
Hey guys! I'm so sorry for the super long delay, but now it's time for chapter niiiiiine!
I'd like to say thank you to everyone who has followed, favorited, and/or reviewed so far. I was pretty bored a few weeks ago, so I decided to look back on the reviews for Wanted Dead or Alive, and I couldn't help but smile and laugh while reading them! All of my readers are epic.
Alrighty, enough of me talking your ears off.
Here's chapter nine, everyone!
Link slightly shifted in the bed he laid in with a groan, before his eyes shot open with a start. He nearly gasped in pain, however, when he felt his stomach muscles stretch uncomfortably.
The knight then threw the blankets off of his body and his eyes widened as he scanned the bandages covering his wounds. They were very well done, professional almost.
"... What happened to me?" Link asked himself, searching his memories for the previous night's events.
He looked in a mirror that was across the room, and saw that he had a bandage wrapped around his head. "Oh, yeah," Link muttered before gently pulling the wrap off. "A pack of Wolfos attacked me." Then he stopped his actions as a thought occured in his mind.
"Wait... if I was unconscious last night, then who did this? It couldn't have been Navi…?"
He shook his head and picked up his green tunic, which after having a closer look at, had been sewed together in multiple areas. It also smelled fresh with spring water and herbs. He'd have to ask Navi about it later, he decided.
After getting dressed, Link look around the room curiously. It was the Inn he and Navi had taken shelter at the day before.
"How did I even get here?"
Navi stared at the clouds passing by while she waited outside the Inn for her companion. She sighed as she began to think back to last night, and what Sheik had said to her...
"What are we doing, Sheik?" Navi asked when they stood in the doorway of the Inn. The fairy glanced around Kakariko, wondering where the villagers were. 'Of course. Everyone's sleeping,' She reminded herself. 'It's half past midnight.'
Sheik pulled a key out from one of her pockets and unlocked the front door, slinking in quietly.
"We're going to let Link rest," Sheik whispered, grabbing another key behind the counter and opening a empty room's door. After laying the injured knight down on the bed, she walked out quickly with Navi following.
"Now what?"
"Link is a clever and curious man, therefore, we need someone to tell him what's what."
"Oh, but…? Why don't you just tell him you rescued him?"
Navi waited for the Sheikah's response, but received only silence as they continued walking towards a tall yellow house. Sheik knocked on the door with just enough force to wake the homeowner, but not enough to wake any neighbors.
A sleepy Anju answered the door and asked what they needed. Sheik then informed her on what had happened to the knight that had arrived earlier that day.
"Oh my!" Anju gasped, covering her mouth with her hand. "Is he alright?!"
"Yes, he's fine, but he needs somewhere to rest. I took him to the Inn, and I have already left rupees on the front desk for the room."
"Oh no, dear! You don't have to-"
"I insist, Miss Anju."
After some convincing, the woman finally agreed to take the money and went to the Inn to check on the injured knight while the women sat outside to wait.
"Umm, Sheik?" Navi asked meekly.
"Hmm."
"Why can't you just tell Link that it was you?"
No response.
Navi looked up at Sheik questionly, and noticed that her crimson eyes held uncertainty as if she hadn't known the reason herself. "Well, I… he..." Sheik closed her eyes and frowned (Navi could tell by the way her eyebrows furrowed together). Clearing her throat, she answered, "He doesn't need to know."
An uncomfortable silence enveloped the two as they sat there awkwardly.
Several minutes passed before the Sheikah stood and began to walk towards the forest again. "Hey! Where are you going?" Navi called, using her wings to fly into the air. "Home," was Sheik's simple reply.
"But you can't ye-"
"And why is that, blue one?" Sheik turned around, staring at the fairy's surprised face.
Navi hadn't expected that question, although she should have, and was left with nothing else to say. She couldn't possibly tell her that she and her partner had planned on taking her in for thievery. It would be just plain stupid to tell someone to stay with them so they could haul them off to jail.
Sheik took the silence as her leave and spun on her heel, walking into the dense greenery without even bidding farewell to the blue fairy.
Navi fluttered into the room that Anju and Link were in, listening to their conversation quietly while sitting down at Link's feet.
"So, let me get this straight…" Link scratched his head, still trying to process the new information given to him.
Anju smiled at his confusion with sympathy, "A friend of mine told me that you were in trouble, so I ran to get Mutoh for help. He and his workers came and fought the rest of the dogs off of you before bringing you here for me to patch you up." After re-explaining the situation, the redheaded woman held up a bottle with red liquid. "These injuries should heal nicely if you drink this Red Potion every now and then."
Link mumbled a weary "Thank you", but was too distracted to notice Anju's smile slightly droop a bit. Navi did, however, but she uttered nothing of it.
Said fairy remained hushed beside her companion, mulling over Anju's cover-up story. It was actually quite believable, yet Navi could tell that Link didn't ask any further questions only because was still exhausted.
"If you need anything," Anju spoke quietly, walking to the door. "I'm just in the other room, alright?" With Link's nod, she smiled and closed the door behind her.
Navi placed her chin on her hand as she still thought over everything that had happened. "Maybe Sheik's not as bad as I thought…" She frowned. "No, she's a thief, and who knows what else she's done... but then..." Navi looked over at the sleeping young man.
"Why did she save him?"
The next morning, Link woke to find that Navi was flying aimlessly around the room, looking like she was deep in her thoughts.
"Hey, Navi, did you even sleep last night?" Link stood and stretched, grimacing somewhat at the soreness of across his chest and neck.
"Hmm?" Navi looked up and blinked for a moment before answering, "Oh! Yes, a bit." Link stared with a blank expression at those words. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Your sentences are usually never that brief."
"What, do I have to talk a lot to seem normal?!" Navi sputtered. A blonde eyebrow rose in question, "...Are you okay, Navi?"
"Um, duh! W-why wouldn't I be?!"
Link squinted his eyes in suspicion before shaking his head as he pulled his tunic on. "We're going back to the forest, Navi," He said, grabbing his sword and shield that leaned against the doorframe. "What! You need to rest more! Why so soon?" Navi asked, but she had a feeling that she already knew.
Link narrowed his blue eyes as he grasped the door handle, remembering the last words he heard before blacking out the night before…
"Princess Zelda was right about you, Link."
"I'm gonna find Sheik," Link gritted out and abruptly shut the door behind him.
"Yep, I sure did!" Mutoh exclaimed when Link asked him about what had happened with the wolfos. "My employees an' I ran into the forest to where Anju said you were being attacked an' showed those mutts a thing or two! Ain't that right, men?" The lounging employees nodded awkwardly.
"Hmm… Well, thank you, Mutoh," Link murmured.
"No problem, Kid!"
Link turned on his heel and stalked towards the the damp woods, anger residing in his sky blue eyes when he remembered his goal.
"Link!" Navi called. "Are you seriously going to go find Sheik? Again?!"
Link sighed in annoyance, "Of course I am. What do you think? I have to bring her in anyways, so why not ask a few questions while I'm at it?"
Navi gulped and followed behind her companion silently. "I don't like where this is going…" She thought nervously.
A sigh echoed off of tall oak trees as a shadowy figure rose from their position under the trees shade.
"I still can't believe this is happening…" Sheik whispered to no one in particular.
Standing now, the Sheikah walked down the dirt path and glanced at her surroundings while deep in thought.
"I wonder how things will continue from now on. For whatever reason, Link is back now… Ganondorf is hunting me down… the people depend on me for help…"
Sheik sighed once more, "What else could happen now? Who knows anymore?"
Then suddenly, the woman's back was slammed against the rough bark of a nearby tree, causing her to gasp at the unexpected action and grab the hand that had wrapped itself around her neck.
Her red eyes flicked up to the face of her attacker and faltered at the stormy blue eyes glaring into her soul.
"... Crap."
OHMIGOSH, WHY DOES THIS CHAPTER SEEM SO SHORT?!
Okay, I tried to keep it going longer, but it kind of has to stop here for the next chapter! I hope you're not too disappointed at the length, but instead happy that there will now be a Chapter Ten!
CHAPTER TEN, YOU GUYS!
Phew, alrighty, now that's all out of my system…
I love hearing your opinions on this story, so don't be afraid to leave a review for me to look back at and smile.
Thank you in advance!