Happy Saturday everyone! Here is chapter 8! I hope you all like it. I've nearly finished writing this story... I only have about 2 chapters left to write (don't worry, I have lot's left to post!) so I've started thinking about my next project! Do I have any fans of Escaflowne amongst my followers? I've completed the plot points for a new story based on that show so if any of you are interested, stay tuned! I'll finish this story first, though and I may even write a sequel to this story at some point as well.

Anyway, let me know what you think of the story by leaving a like or review or even a PM. Feel free to share it with anyone you think might like it as well! Enjoy!

That morning, the three of them headed back to Gerudo Town for Zelda to collect her things and be on their way.

She washed up and came down to meet Urbosa. As the two of them walked to the gate to meet Link, Urbosa turned to her, "Don't forget what I said. Try to give the boy a chance. I think you may find you have judged him a bit harshly."

Zelda looked down, "Yes, Urbosa. I will… I will try."

Link waited for them in front of the guards and Zelda tried a weak smile. As usual, his expression didn't change and already she felt herself getting frustrated with him.

Once they were outside the gates, Zelda turned to her friend, "Urbosa… thank you. It has been so good to see you."

Urbosa leaned down to give her a hug, "It always is, Princess. Don't be a stranger." She turned to Link, "You two look after each other now. The Yiga clan has been more active lately."

Link nodded and Urbosa winked at him.

They turned and proceeded to walk towards the Kara Kara Bazaar. It was still early enough that they didn't need to worry about needing to cool off, but by the time they would reach the bazaar, the sun would be at it's zenith and some hydromelons would certainly help cool them off.

The pair walked along in silence and Zelda wracked her brain on topics to potentially break the ice today. She gave up after a few of her past attempts ran through her mind. It was like talking to a wall with Link. Why couldn't the hero have been someone a little more… charismatic?

Link stopped suddenly and Zelda looked up, "What's the matter?"

He drew his sword and Zelda looked around trying to spot what had him on edge. There was nothing she could see. In fact, she didn't even see any birds or lizards around. That certainly was strange but was it worth being this on edge?

"Run." He spoke so quietly she wasn't even sure he'd said anything. She looked at him, puzzled and was about to ask him why when he shoved her towards the bazaar, "RUN!"

She started running and looked back over her shoulder as five Yiga Clan members materialized around Link. One of them spotted her and yelled something so she turned back towards the bazaar and ran as fast as she could.

Her heart was pounding so hard she couldn't hear the footsteps behind her. She glanced over her shoulder and saw one of the Yiga chasing her. There was a rock just ahead of her and if she could reach it, she could put it between her and the Yiga while she tried to think of a better plan. Just as she approached, two more of them jumped out and blocked her path. She stopped and tried to change direction but the one that was behind her was too close. She stepped back and stumbled, falling backwards. The three of them approached slowly and she started backing up against the rock. The one that had chased her got to her first and lifted his vicious sickle above his head to strike her. She lifted her arms in defence and closed her eyes against the attack and letting out a scream as he began his slice but just then, metal clashed against metal and the blade never found her flesh.

She looked up in time to see the attacking Yiga fall. He was dead.

She looked the other way and saw Link standing between her and the other two Yiga, ready to take them on too. The look on his face was menacing and the other two attackers took a step back, clearly reconsidering their plan.

Link lifted his blade and the two Yiga looked at each other and vanished leaving only cards behind.

Zelda breathed a sigh of relief and tried to get her heart to slow. Finally, Link turned around and after one more survey of their surroundings, was satisfied that there would be no more attackers. He sheathed his sword and looked down at Zelda and offered her his hand. She took it without taking her eyes off his face and he lifted her easily to her feet. She stumbled, still shaking from the encounter but he caught her and steadied her.

"Are you all right?" He asked, concern etched into his face. That was the first time she had seen his expression change so much.

She nodded, not trusting her voice yet.

He nodded decisively, "We should go."

She nodded again and glanced back to where Link had been. Five Yiga Clan bodies lay in a circle where Link had been then the one that had tried to kill her lay beside her. His hand on the small of her back guided her towards the bazaar as he walked closely behind her and slightly to her side.

They stayed the night in the stable where they'd boarded the horses. It was safe enough there for them both to be able to get a good night of rest. The rest of the journey to the stable had been done in silence as usual but Zelda's mind raced. The events played through her mind on repeat and every time she tried to make sense of them, one thought came out above all the rest. He saved me. Without a thought to his own safety and despite how I've behaved since he became my appointed knight… he still saved my life.

Once they were at the stable, she watched silently as Link talked to the stable owner and negotiated beds for them for the night. She had always thought his face was so hard and so stern.. had his stoic expression always been softer than she'd thought?

Once he handed over the rupees, he looked back at her and a soft smile graced his lips. She gave a small smile back before he listened to the rest of what the stable master had to say.

She looked over to the paddock where the horses were kept and spotted her white stallion and Link's red and white mare. Epona was it? Come to think of it, she didn't even know the name of her own horse. Did he have a name? She would have to find out when they got back to the castle.

She walked over to the fence and watched the horses as they calmly grazed, oblivious to the events from earlier.

Epona looked up and trotted over. She hadn't noticed Link approach and he smiled as he patted the horse's nose and offered her an apple. The mare happily munched down and nudged him as if asking for more. Her horse just looked up at her but stayed where he was. She looked sadly to him. She had always had trouble with her mount.

Link passed her an apple and she looked at it dubiously before picking it up and cautiously holding it out to her horse. The stallion eyed her for a moment before walking over and stretching his neck out to take the apple and trotting away again with his prize.

She sighed.

"You must take the time to soothe your mount. It's the only way they will know how you truly feel." Link said as he scratched Epona's forehead. He clearly knew what he was talking about so she looked back at her mount, determined to gain his trust one day. "Give it time. He'll come around." Link said softly.

They headed back to the fireplace where a cook pot was settled overtop. Link put a few of his own ingredients in and started to stir as the stew heated up. They sat in silence for a time. She wanted to say something to him but every time she tried to build up the courage, she could think of nothing to say. Before the stew was finished cooking, she found her bed in the stable. They didn't have a separate room like they did in an inn but it would do for the night. She took out a small book from her bag and started to write about the day's events. When she had finished writing, she found her eyes growing heavy.

In the morning, they had a breakfast of leftover stew. There wasn't much left which surprised Zelda since she had thought he'd made a rather large pot.

She had trouble trying to think of things to say again but she was determined to break the ice today and see if she might be able to scratch the surface of her silent knight.

She cleared her throat as they started packing up their things. He looked up at her expectantly but said nothing. Again, her courage evaded her and she shook her head.

The horses were saddled and waiting for them when he tied their belongings to the saddles then gave her a leg up. This time, she waited for him to get in the saddle before they started on their journey.

Once the stable was out of sight, an idea occurred to her. "Link…" He turned to her, "I'd like to go to the Spring of Courage before we head back to the castle." He nodded.

That was easier than she'd expected and they continued to ride in silence. It was noon before they stopped again and made use of a cooking pot near East Post Ruins along the river Hylia.

Link sat over the cook pot, stirring the hearty soup. Zelda had found an apple nearby and offered it to her horse. He was tied to a tree so he couldn't go very far. He took the apple eagerly though and allowed Zelda to give him a few pets on the cheek.

"Soup's ready." Link said as he searched through the bags for two bowls. Zelda came and sat down beside the fire and he passed her a bowl.

"Thank you, Link… it smells incredible!" She blew on the spoon to cool it down before taking a bite. It tasted just as good as it smelled.

She finished her bowl and handed it to Link. "Seconds?" He asked.

She shook her head, "No thank you, I'm quite stuffed."

He shrugged and filled up another bowl for himself.

She looked down. This was as good a chance as any, "Link…" He looked over at her but continued to dig into his soup. "I… I wanted to thank you. For saving me from the Yiga." He shrugged it off as though it was nothing. "… And… to apologize." This time he looked up at her. Was that surprise on his face? Was she truly so awful? "I have… been hard on you when you were only trying to do your duty. I have made it much harder than it needed to be and you didn't deserve that."

He looked at her for a moment, unsure of what to say. Ultimately, he either chose to say nothing or could think of nothing to say. Zelda decided to take the bull by the horns.

"I've been wondering… Why are you always so quiet?" She smiled softly hoping he would accept her olive branch.

He put his soup down and cleared his throat. It took him a moment to collect his words but Zelda waited patiently. Finally, he spoke softly, "With so much at stake and so many eyes constantly on me…" He paused, there was a sadness in his voice she hadn't expected to hear, "I have to stay strong and take on any burden. People would lose hope if they ever heard me complaining or if they thought I was afraid."

It was Zelda's turn to be silent as she took in what he said. I've judged him so harshly… and I was so wrong about him… She knew exactly how he felt. It was the same as she had felt her whole life only the same burden that tortured her, forced him to bottle up and stop expressing himself. Her heart went out to him.

"Are you afraid?" She asked finally. She wouldn't blame him if he was. Honestly, she was terrified. He chose not to answer and she didn't push him. After a few moments of silence, she spoke again, "We are more similar than I imagined, you and I. This is a burden we share and my hope is that… that we no longer have to keep it bottled up. Even if we only share our thoughts with each other, I hope that we can depend upon each other to see it through."

He was staring into the fire and as she finished speaking, he looked at her again, "I would like that." He said softly.

She smiled and waited for him to finish his second bowl… then a third bowl. She picked up the two bowls and laughed as he leaned back rubbing his belly, "My, if I didn't know better, I'd think you hadn't seen food in a month."

He chuckled – the first time she had ever seen him break his constant neutral expression in such a fashion, "I've always been able to eat a lot."

"I'll have to remember that and bring extra provisions next time!" She giggled as she walked down to the river to rinse the bowls.

She didn't notice when the birds stopped chirping but she dropped both the bowls in the river with a start when an arrow stuck in the ground inches away from her hands.

"LINK!" She cried out as she spotted the piglike creatures on horseback across the river.

She started running back to the camp and the thundering of hooves was her only alert before Link came charging out of the bushes on Epona, Zelda's steed being led behind. He passed her the reigns while he pulled out his bow and took out the nearest one as it was preparing to fire another arrow.

She quickly mounted up and kept behind Link. She moved just in time as another arrow stuck in the ground where she had been standing.

He took out the other archer with an arrow of his own and three more bokoblins with clubs started riding behind them.

"Run if you need to. I'll find you." He said as he drew the Master Sword.

Zelda nodded as they came across the bridge towards her. He blocked the way off the bridge to buy her some time. Just then, the one at the back blew a horn that carried far, alerting other monsters in the area of the attack.

"Damn…" Link cursed and swung his sword as the lead one was about to reach him. He sliced it from neck to armpit and it fell with a sickening thud to the ground. It's mount took off immediately.

Zelda saw more approaching from behind them, "Link…"

He had taken out the second one by the time she looked back and with a final swing, took out the next one. "Go! Across the bridge! Keep going and don't look back!"

She didn't wait for further instruction and spurred her steed over the fallen bokoblins and raced across the bridge. She disobeyed his command and looked back once as she reached the other side of the river and saw an army of them emerging from the trees. Some were on horseback, others were archers shooting from the trees at Link. He swung his sword and blocked an arrow that would have flown true.

She hesitated but he called after her, "GO! I'll be fine!" So she did. She galloped as fast as she could. Every time she tried to turn towards the castle, she was blocked by more of the piglike monsters on horseback. She was forced to go further North and was nearly all the way to Death Mountain when she finally found a spot to hide. Her poor horse was foaming at the mouth and sweating, ribs heaving under her legs by the time she stopped. She waited to let the horse catch his breath and reached down to pat his neck appreciatively.

After a few minutes, his breathing slowed back to normal and she no longer heard the thundering of hooves out searching for her. She peeked out from behind the outcrop they were hiding behind and didn't see any of the monsters anywhere. She looked back at the horse, "What do you think… should we wait here for Link or find somewhere better in case they come searching for us?"

The horse huffed at her and started walking towards her only stopping when she was positioned to mount up. She hopped on and they proceeded cautiously through the woods, looking for a good place to settle down and wait. She stopped to listen for any sign of approaching monsters every so often, only continuing when she was certain it was still safe.

Link managed to hold off most of them, using the bridge as a funnel to keep the number of enemies he fought at once to a minimum and picked off the archers in between waves of attacks.

Eventually, there were few enough that he felt like he could start after Zelda. Epona reared up as he turned her and galloped down the path after the Princess. He was slowed a few times as the horseback bokoblins caught up with him but he managed to take them out. Soon he was able to gallop full steam ahead.

He spotted hoof prints in the path a few times that showed him the direction they had traveled and he followed them until he found a rocky outcrop where they had stopped temporarily.

From there, he didn't find any hint of her until he spotted her horse at Woodland Stable. My god… she ran all the way here? The poor horse looked ragged. Fortunately, one of the stable hands had grabbed the horse and was taking care of him.

"Where did the horse come from?" Link demanded of the stable hand who pointed toward Death Mountain. He looked up towards where she pointed and spotted Zelda climbing the cliff face. She was up fairly high but there were a number of monsters not far behind. He spurred Epona after her and when he reached the cliff face, he stood in the saddle and jumped up as far as he could on the cliff and started climbing. A few other monsters raced up to him and Epona roared, rearing up. He glanced over his shoulder at them. The mare's ears were pinned back as she beat the three bokoblins down with her hooves. She grabbed one with her teeth and whipped it into the cliff before stomping it to death. Atta girl!

He climbed as fast as he could, taking a leap here and there to try to catch up. After a few moments, he was right behind the lowest one and grabbed its ankle. The bokoblin lost its grip in its surprise and fell to its death down the cliff face. It wailed as it fell and the other three bokoblins looked back and spotted Link. Two of them stopped and drew their weapons and waited for him to catch up. The other one continued climbing after Zelda. This had given her a bit more of a lead, however.

Link looked around and spotted a ledge nearby. He started climbing towards it and reached it before the bokoblins could get to him. He drew his bow and took the two of them out quickly. He then aimed his bow at the third and released. The arrow flew true and the monster fell. Link then continued up the cliff after Zelda. He was right behind her when they reached the top and Zelda gasped as she peeked over. Link looked up a moment later and saw what made her panic. Three lynels awaited them on top of the cliff. The first one had already seen them as well.

Link climbed the rest of the way up and drew his bow just in time to shoot the beast in the face.

It didn't do significant harm to it as he didn't get it right in the eye but it was enough to give the beast pause. He used this moment to leap onto its back and slash away with the Master Sword. It roared and bucked, nearly throwing him but he was able to drive the sword deep into the lynel's spine and it collapsed under Link. He leaped down from the dying beast just as the second one charged up.

Link hadn't been quite ready for this one and it hit him in the gut with his club. Link went flying and hit the cliff face, sliding down. He groaned as he started to stand and saw the beast charging toward him again. This time, he threw the Master Sword and it spun vertically piercing the beast's forehead. It continued to charge but fell just before it reached Link.

He stepped on the lynel's face and pulled the sword out. One left and it had just spotted him. But not only that, about ten more bokoblins mounted the hill and raced towards him.

"Zelda, how are you with a bow?" He said, taking his bow off his back and readying it to fire in the Lynel's face.

"What?" She asked, alarmed. He fired the arrow and the arrow stuck in the lynel's eye. He then tossed the bow to her and his quiver while he raced towards the lynel to finish it off while it was stunned.

She knocked an arrow and took aim at the approaching bokoblins.

Link did a jump attack and stabbed the lynel in the belly. It doubled over and grabbed its guts and Link took the opportunity to slice across its throat. Seconds later, it fell and Link was able to turn to face the approaching bokoblins. Already, he saw a couple with arrows sticking out of them and he charged forward to face them. After a quick spin attack, there were only three left. An arrow took down another one of them and Link was careful to line the other two up so they couldn't both attack him at once. He launched in as the bokoblin lifted its club and left itself wide open so he sliced horizontally and the monster fell in two pieces to the ground. The final one was right behind the first and managed to make some space by swinging the club. Link jumped back and felt it graze his head. The lack of impact knocked the monster off balance and Link kicked it to the ground where he then buried his sword in its heart.

When he pulled the sword free, he stumbled and fell backwards into a sitting position, exhausted. Zelda ran up to him and dropped the bow nearby. "Link! Are you alright? You're bleeding!"

She examined the cut on his head where the club had just missed him. His body ached from both exhaustion and the bruises he'd gained from the second lynel.

She leaned back, "That cut doesn't look too bad actually. You're fine for now." She frowned down at him with concern etched into her expression, "But you know, there's a fine line between courage and recklessness. As brave as you are, that does not make you immortal." She chided before surveying the battle field. A hint of fear snuck into her voice, "It seems that, not only is the frequency of these types of attacks on the rise… but the scale of beasts we are facing is intensifying as well." She looked down, "I fear that – I fear that this is an omen which portends to the return of Calamity Ganon." She stood up and wiped the dust off of herself and steeled her tone of voice. "And, if that's the case, I'm ready to expect the worst. We'll need to make preparations as soon as possible."

Link pulled himself to his feet and followed her as she started to walk back down the mountain to find their horses.

As they got down the mountain, Link stumbled. The force of the blow from the lynel had done some damage. Zelda noticed and rushed toward him, "Link! Are you…" she put herself under his arm so he could lean on her while he walked and he winced as she touched his ribs.

"I don't think we're going to make it to the Spring of Courage on this trip, Princess…" He said through clenched jaws.

She nodded, "We will head back to the castle at once."

They walked like this to the stable where they found both of their horses safely kept. Zelda helped Link down into a chair and spoke to the stable master.

"I need you to send a messenger to the castle." She wrote a quick note and handed it to him. "Please make sure this gets into Impa's hands." She also passed him a small bag of rupees. "Make haste."

The stable master looked at the bag of rupees and shook his head and passed it back to her. "Service to our princess and the hero does not require payment at this stable." With that, he took the note and spoke to one of the stable hands. The boy nodded and readied himself to head out. He left at a gallop.

Zelda walked over to Link, "Impa will meet us on the way. Can you ride?"

Link nodded and stood with a wince. Zelda helped him up and asked for their horses. The stable hand shook his head, "No can do, Princess. They can't go anywhere in this state. You rode 'em too hard."

She looked at the two haggard horses and reluctantly had to agree. "Give me two other horses then." The boy nodded and went to ready them. She helped Link back inside and gently lay him down on one of the beds.

"I'll be ok…" Link said softly.

Zelda shook her head, "You need rest. I have never seen anyone fight like that before. You saved my life yet again… The favours I owe you are adding up quickly." She smirked.

Link chuckled and winced, holding his ribs.

"Let me see." She said and pulled his tunic up. Had she not been so focused on his wounds, she might have blushed at what lay beneath his tunic. He was certainly in excellent shape! When she got to his ribs, a nasty bruise was forming over them. She touched the skin gently.

"Your hands are warm…" he whispered closing his eyes.

She pulled her hand away, realizing how intimately she was touching him. "I'm sorry, I should have asked…"

"It's all right." He reached up and took her hand, "I never asked if you were ok."

Her breath hitched as he touched her hand and she looked up to his face. His blue eyes filled with concern. Even in this condition, he was still more concerned about her than he was about himself. "I – I'm ok."

"Say, you're a pretty good shot with a bow." He smirked and she blushed, looking away to try to hide her reaction. He let go of her hand but the feeling of his rough hand holding hers stayed with her.

They stayed like that in silence until the stable hand came over and informed them that the horses were ready.

She helped Link up and again, helped him walk out to the horses. Getting him onto the horse was a bit of a challenge but he gritted his teeth and climbed up. Zelda climbed up after he was safely in the saddle and the two of them rode off towards the castle.

After a time of riding in silence, she noticed something was off with Link. He started to slump over. "Link? LINK!" She leaped from the saddle as he started to fall. Somehow, she reached him in time to break the fall. He landed on top of her and he moaned in pain.

"Link! What's wrong? What do I do?" Zelda was panicked as she rolled him onto his back. His eyes were closed and his breathing was erratic. "Link! Please say something!" She shook his shoulders lightly to try to get a response from him and he winced.

"Zelda…" She leaned closer to him, "Cut it out, would ya?"

She stopped shaking him and frowned. She looked up for some inspiration of what to do. Just then, the sound of hooves approaching quickly caught her attention as she spotted a white haired woman in Sheikah clothing approaching. "Impa!"

She dismounted before her horse came to a full stop and she examined him. "What happened? Did he get run over by a stampede?"

Zelda laughed, partially to keep from crying, "Almost. A lynel…"

Impa nodded, "I think his ribs are broken and he seems to have taken a good hit to the head. We need to get him back to the castle."

Zelda helped Impa get him upright and into the saddle. "You'll have to ride behind him to keep him from falling again." Impa said and helped her onto the horse.

Zelda put her arms around the hero and held onto the horn on the saddle. Impa mounted her horse and took the reigns of theirs and started leading them quickly but at a smooth gait back to the castle.

Once there, they were met by several other Sheikah who helped carry Link to the infirmary.

Zelda watched after them unsure if she should follow. Purah assured her she would come grab her once she could come see him.

Even with that knowledge, however, she found she couldn't leave the door outside where he was being treated. Quite awhile went by before Purah poked her head out and seemed surprised to see Zelda still waiting there.

"Link will be fine. Snap!" She said with a grin. "He is sleeping right now but you can come see him if you're quiet."

Zelda nodded and followed the Sheikah woman into the room. Link lay on a bed. His tunic lay on the floor beside the bed and his ribs were bandaged with some herbs to help accelerate the healing. She picked up the tunic and folded it, placing it on the table beside the bed. Purah brought a chair over and Zelda sat down in it facing her knight.

Tentatively, she reached out and took his hand in her's. "Link…" she breathed. He was sleeping soundly and didn't seem to be in any more pain. She was relieved but her heart went into her throat when she thought about what he had done for her. First the Yiga then all those bokoblins and moblins and then the lynels and more bokoblins… He had done all of that for her. She may be the princess and he might be her appointed knight but his actions had gone beyond his duty. He had done that for her.

She stayed with him until her eyelids grew heavy and she fell asleep in the chair beside his bed.