Disclaimer: Me no own Zelda.

A/N: Woo! Been a while huh? Remember that warning I had from the last chapter? Well I lied.

Chapter 3

The young Hylian hero tethered his trusted mare by the shady establishment, patting her mane and nose; anything to stall for when he would have to enter the building. He sighed; when Epona grew impatient with his constant pettings and pushed his hand away, he knew it was probably time to get a move on.

The blond knight pushed the door open and stepped inside of the familiar heavily perfumed square parlor. There were only two other patrons waiting to be serviced and neither even looked up when he entered. Even so, Link kept his hood on, casting shadows over his famous features.

The slimy owner entered the room and immediately recognized Link, despite dressing incognito, and made his way over. Link grimaced. "Ah! Welcome back sir! I see my dear Ruby has you hooked hmm? Would you like another go at her?" Laris inquired, rubbing his hands together.

Link squirmed uncomfortably at his terminology and gathered up from the depths of his soul the courage to respond in kind. "Y-yes…I would like to….see her again…if I could…" He gulped, hoping he had sounded convincing.

Laris smirked. "I shall prepare a room for you." He rushed off, first sending two girls for the earlier patrons and then headed into a room to set it up for the hero.

Link couldn't believe what he was doing. 'What am I going to do once I'm in the room alone with her? I…couldn't sleep with her…I'd be too nervous and she's so young and I want my first time to be with a woman I love and-'

The hero's blabbering thoughts were cut off as the proprietor returned and ushered him eagerly into the room he had prepared. Link was practically pushed into the room with the young girl that had captivated him with those large sullen crimson eyes and the door was shut firmly behind him.

Link winced, wondering how he had gotten himself into such a mess. Ruby sat on the mat in the center of the room with her back to him. The blond hero cleared his throat, as a gesture to get her attention, but also because he was a nervous wreck; he was surprised his palms weren't dripping sweat onto the floor.

Ruby slowly twisted her neck to glance back at him. He watched her, noting with a small amount of satisfaction that she recognized him. Link stared blushingly as her long golden tresses cascaded over her bare pale shoulder. He found himself creeping towards her and was finally aware of his actions when he sat down behind her.

When he had gotten close, the young concubine faced away from him, her breathing also growing quicker. Her heart was pounding in her tiny chest. He was back. What if this time he wasn't going to leave her untouched? What if this time he planned to claim her?

"I…I haven't been able to…stop thinking about you since I left last night…" Link began, all too aware of how his statement could be taken the wrong way and cause her to fear him even more than he could tell she already did.

He noticed her stiffening and he continued on to get his point across to her. "And I couldn't get over how your eyes were so filled with sadness…different from the other…harlots." Link cringed at the word, hating it more and more every time he even thought about it.

"My…friend told me to stop worrying about you, that you're no different from the others, but I think you are. And I…I don't believe you belong here!" The last statement the young blond had blurted out without really thinking about it first, but once it was out, there was no taking it back.

Ruby whirled around, staring at him with wide, surprised eyes. She didn't speak, but Link could tell she was taken quite off guard. He scratched the back of his head, unsure of what to do now. Every sensitive hair on his body stood on end when he was suddenly aware of her crawling towards him in an innocently seductive manner.

She moved her head very close to his, her face scrunched up into a childlike expression. "You would…set me free?" she asked softly, the first sentence Link had heard her utter.

The semi-aroused young man's eyes fell upon her full pink lips as she spoke, unable to tear his eyes away. He felt ashamed and elated at the same time, a horrible combination in his opinion. "I…um…" he blubbered, his brain a bowl of mush.

She pulled away, looking dejectedly to the side. "Forgive me…it was foolish of me to be hopeful of such a thing. I am worth nothing more than trash. I am not worth freeing."

Link's eyes widened and he felt a tug on his heartstrings. It wasn't just her words that had hit him hard, it was the way she said it; as if it was complete and utter truth, like she wholly believed the statement to be fact. Link shook his head. He was not going to have her saying such things about herself in his presence!

He grasped her arm firmly, but not so tight as to hurt her. "No! You are not trash. Everyone is worth something. You are worth freeing!" He was pleased to see her taken aback by his reply. He wanted her to believe that he was someone she could trust.

Link stood to his feet, surveying the room. In a bout of recklessness, he strode over to the window and forced it open, glancing out to see if there was anyone out on the street. Seeing the coast was clear, he motioned to the young girl. "Come! I'm going to get you out of here!"

She didn't argue, and as she had next to no belongings, she hurried to his side completely prepared to escape. It wasn't until Link had climbed out of the window and felt the light weight of Ruby in his arms as he caught her, that he realized what a foolish mistake he was making. But as he stared into her large eyes, filled with excitement and anxiety, his hero instincts took over, leaving no room for argument.

This girl needed to be saved, and he was the one who was going to save her.

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Pathetically short, I know, but I wanted to get something out to you since I haven't in awhile. As always reviews are greatly appreciated.

-LunaRyuu