Hello lovelies! Sorry for the wait on this long chapter. As we speak, my little sister is currently in the hospital and other things have been preventing me from writing this chapter. But here it is now. Enjoy.

-WingedIceWolf

DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT own Legend Of Zelda!

I took my time in the shower, and after drying myself off and dressing, I went to check on the wounded Hylian who lied in my front room. For whatever reason, I feared that I would open my eyes and all this would disappear.

I had concluded that this Hylian was not the Hero of The Wild himself, but the shadow of the Hero. They both were symmetrical in appearance, yet their hues varied immensely. One had wild blue eyes and amber colored hair while the other had crimson red eyes and pearly white hair. Both wore the same clothing, which I am unsure of how the shadow obtained them, but it didn't really matter anyways.

I knelt beside the Hylian and brushed back his hair, his ear twitching once again as I felt for a fever. Sure enough, he was burning up badly, but also shivering a bit, which I believed was from blood loss. I knew that when the body lost too much blood, it resulted in several things. Fatigue, inability to keep body heat, daze, and the other two which were rather evident right now. Paleness and shortness of breath.

I stood after pulling the blankets more over him, getting him an ice pack for his fever. I went to the fridge and opened the freezer, pulling out an icepack and wrapping it in a soft cloth as to not give the shadow freezer burns before I placed it atop his head. Then I waited…

After a few minutes, nothing happened, so I sighed and went upstairs to check on my sister. Upstairs were four rooms including the bathroom, one being the guest room to the right where my sister currently resided, another being a room that I had yet to use, also to the right, and my master bedroom on the left. The last room was straight up the stairs, used for arts and crafts.

You may be wondering how I managed to afford such a cabin. Well, it was my father's uncle's summer cabin (I just call him Uncle Phil to help with the confusion). The cabin was far out from where he lived, so for whatever reason, he lent it to me, knowing I had known the cabin since I was five years of age. Phil was currently paying for the bills until I could get a job.

That proved to be difficult, but recently I obtained my bachelor's degree and was considering becoming a park ranger. I had yet to be interviewed, and that would seem like a more difficult matter now that I was dealing with a wounded shadow and a 17-year-old sister who was visiting for the summer…

I went to my sister's room and opened it just a crack. The lights were turned on and my sister sat in her bed on her fuzzy purple blanket, legs crossed in a crisscross fashion with a book opened in her palms. She looked up at me as I walked in and she set the book down on her desk next to a wolf lamp, a look of concern on her face.

"Did you get your coat?" she asked me, looking me over with her same hazel-green eyes.

"Yes," I lied, having forgotten completely about my coat. "But-"

She held up her hand and I quieted down. "Aoi, I heard something from downstairs…It sounded like screaming…What is going on?"

I froze and my face paled for a minute. She had heard the Hylian's cries of pain, but would she believe me? I tried to make up a quick excuse, being good at lying. The first thing that came to my mind was "movie".

"I was watching a movie, you know. I know it's a little late and all but I couldn't sleep for whatever reason," I lied again.

"What movie?" my sister asked, starting to catch onto my lie. She raised an eyebrow with her arms crossed in front of her, her shoulder length hair brushed from her face instead of normally in her eyes.

"An action movie."

"What action movie?"

"Why does it matter?

"Why do I get the feeling you aren't telling the truth?"

I sighed heavily, shaking my head. "Come downstairs…But keep quiet."

My sister smiled and stood, reaching up to whack me upside the head. I pouted to be silly and held where she hit, pretending to wince as she remarked, "I've lived with you for long enough to know when you're lying to me."

"Worth a try," I mumbled under my breath.

"Not worth it. Anyway, what is downstairs?" Marley asked, lowering her voice as she was told.

I motioned for her to follow, taking her hand and walking down the wooden steps silently, coming to the front room. I kept her eyes covered as we went and finally unshielded them, allowing her to get a look at the Hylian. Her eyes widened and she opened her mouth, but before she could so much as make a noise, my hand came over her lips.

"Remember what I said about being quiet?" I reminded her in a low whisper. She growled slightly and my hand came off her face.

"Who the heck is here and why?" she demanded, her voice lower than what it would have been.

I grabbed my sister by the shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "I am telling the absolute truth here, Marley…Remember how I got Breath Of The Wild not too long ago?"

"Yes, and it is an amazing game, but what does that have to do with anything?" she replied a little bitterly.

"Do you remember Link from Breath Of The Wild, or Wild as we call him?" I pushed.

"Yes, how could I forget? He's adorable!" she said with a grin on her face. Then the smile faded as I went on.

"I found a man collapsed in the woods when I went to get my coat. That," I began, motioning to the Hylian by the fire. "Is the man. He's extremely hurt and I was taking care of him. That's why you heard him screaming…"

Marley looked at me with wide eyes and stepped forward, but I grabbed her by the arm. She turned to me, saying, "You mean to tell me that you found Wild in the woods?"

"Not exactly him…I believe I have found his dark side…And he's real, Marley. All real."

Marley pulled away from me in disbelief. "That's not possible!"

"That's what I thought too. But look." I took her hand and led her to the shadow, having her kneel next to him as I took the ice from his head. Some of the color had returned to his face, which was a big relief, but unfortunately not much had returned.

"Oh my gosh," Marley breathed, covering her mouth with one hand. She marveled the man before her for several minutes, seemingly frozen. I could see in her eyes that she wanted to load me with questions, but refrained herself instead and went serious, breaking from her trance like state with a quiet voice. "How badly is he hurt?"

"Very badly," I replied grimly, pulling some of the blanket off the Hylian's shoulders to reveal the bandaging. Marley winced at the sight and looked up at me as I pulled the blankets back over his shoulders. "He's out cold and as still as a rock. For all I know, he could die tonight."

Marley nodded sadly, a grave expression on her face. "Should we call an ambulance?"

I shook my head and Marley frowned. "It would raise too much suspicion. We have to hope and pray he makes it through the night."

"Would you rather he be discovered and questioned or that he's in pain and dies?" Marley demanded to know.

"He won't die easily, trust me. He's strong," I reassured her. There was silence between us for several seconds, excluding the rain and the croaking frogs, and Marley looked down at the Hylian lying at her feet. She reached out and touched his shoulder softly, causing a wince to cross his face.

"Poor thing," Marley said quietly, retracting her hand. "Did you give him any pain medicine?"

"Couldn't find any," I replied grimly. "We'll have to take watches just in case he wakes in the night or becomes weaker."

Marley nodded and stared down at the Hylian. She just couldn't take her eyes off him for whatever reason, probably out of disbelief and curiosity, but I couldn't really blame her. After a while of awkwardly staring at him, she carefully pulled him closer to her and stroked his head. Strangely, he didn't move from her or wake. He seemed relaxed and secure.

So, that's how the night went on. The thunder continued to roar and the rain continued to fall and both of us rarely slept, in fear of the shadow passing on. When morning finally rolled around, the shadow had not woken, but it was evident he was awfully sore. With just the lightest touch, he groaned in pain.

It eventually came time to eat breakfast as warm rays of sunlight streamed through the trees and casted its light upon our deck, so I went to Marley and tapped her shoulder. She looked up at me as I spoke softly, "What do you want for breakfast?"

"I'm not hungry," Marley muttered, her hand on the Hylian's head.

"Please?" I asked. "You can't watch out for him if you're starving yourself."

Marley mumbled under her breath, hand falling from its place on his head and rose to her feet reluctantly. She sat at the large marble counter as I prepared breakfast. I pulled out butter, a spatula, pancake batter, syrup, plates and utensils. I got the stove unit going and placed the flat pan on it, spreading butter on the pan before I prepared the batter and poured it onto the pan. After preparing several pancakes, I heard Marley leave the counter and go back to the shadow.

I sighed to myself and took the plate of pancakes to the counter, hearing Marley speak quietly. Words like It's going to be alright, You're safe now, and If you need to rest, please do so. I glanced over to see the shadow looking up at my sister, his crimson eyes glassed over. "He's awake!" Marley chimed happily, her gaze flicking to me.

I set everything down after turning the unit off, rushing to Marley. She was right, the shadow was conscious, but barely. His stunning eyes were cracked open, full of pain and confusion. I don't think he really had the strength to fully understand or contemplate the situation, so I tried to speak softly to him.

"You are in good hands," I began calmly. "Please be careful, you're badly hurt. Would you like to eat?"

The Hylian's gaze met mine for a couple seconds, and then dropped, eyelids falling shut. To me, it was clear he was exhausted and in need of rest, so I stood and allowed him to rest. I managed to pry Marley away from him, getting her to eat.

The next couple of days dragged on, and it was practically the same throughout each day, except the Hylian did not wake. Marley and I would take turns watching him, helping with redressing his wounds, and doing our best to get the blood out of his clothes. Marley and I somehow managed to get him to eat while unconscious, but there wasn't much more we could do.

My sister and I were sitting on the couch one morning, talking softly when the Hylian woke, trying to prop himself up on his elbows. Almost immediately, he stifled a cry of pain. I dropped down beside him, knowing he probably did not fully trust us, but wanting to help him.

While finally conscious, he looked at me with a stern gaze, one that could make any creature freeze in its tracks. But his eyes also carried pain. I instinctively retreated a few steps back, as he attempted to draw his sword, but his hand tightened around air. Shocked, the Hylian looked at his bandaging, pausing and looking up at me.

"Where am I?" he asked quietly, voice young and smooth despite the tone of pain hidden in it, his ears perked back. I believed he was confused, and possibly afraid.

Before I could say a word, my sister piped up. "Aoi, my sister, found you collapsed in the woods when she went to retrieve her coat she had left. She brought you back and stitched you up, did her best. According to her and what I've seen, you were gravely wounded. And you're still recovering, so take it easy."

The Hylian paused, staring at his surroundings before he came to meet my eyes. "Why did you help me?"

"I'm not one to let others suffer, despite who they are or what they've done," I answered. "I wouldn't just leave you to die knowing I could help you."

Again, there was a pause before the shadow rose to his feet, drawing in a sharp breath and clutching at his chest, stumbling but steadying himself against the wall. What you could see of his skin was pretty badly scarred. Marley tried to help him, but he refused her aid, heading toward the exit door.

"You shouldn't leave yet, you're still hurt!" I cried, trying to stop him. His hand went around the hilt of his sword, lifting it and turning the doorknob. Suddenly, he froze and dropped his blade, it clattering to the floor.

I rushed to catch him as he cried out in pain as if a blade had found its way to his heart. The Hylian collapsed into my arms, clutching onto his chest and gasping for breath. His young face immediately became wrought with pain, breath hitching.

Marley came to his side, eyes widening. I saw from the horror in her face that something was terribly wrong, and not long after did I feel his warm blood coat my hands, right from the center of his chest. Marley began to untie the bandaging around the wound while I applied pressure, but the shadow could not draw in breath. When we finally reached his chest, we were met with a gaping wound that had blood pouring from it, dark veins pulsing around the wound. His skin surrounding the wound was dark and transitioned to his normal skin color, like a wound poisoned with darkness.

"He can't breathe," Marley says worriedly, watching the shadow's chest. "Is he going to die…?"

Right now, I didn't want to answer that question as the Hylian grew weaker and cries of agony filled the air, but I couldn't lie to her.

"I don't know…I don't understand what's happening."

Cliffs! Muahahaha!