A/N: Ahh! Hello everyone! Sorry for the delay in the next chapter. I've been a busy bee. ^^; School and work have been keeping me on my toes lately. Gosh thank you everyone for your amazing reviews last chapter. =D I am excited a few of you are interested in this story at least! =D I'll try to update a longer chapter next time. It's just that I felt this chapter ended at a good place. It is mostly dialogue, but it is setting up the story for future chapters. Please enjoy!

Beta read by: Soliloqui-chan

Locking up the Sun

By Sasurealian

Chapter Four

It was so quiet Link could hear the river in the castle's garden babbling outside his bedroom window. The Prince was unsure of the time, but he assumed it was well into the early hours of the morning. Goddesses, why couldn't he sleep?

Oh yea...

Because there was a certain Sheikah standing outside his bedroom as his 'guard dog'. Link sighed and rolled over onto his stomach, ignoring the hunger pains that growled in his belly. Since he hadn't been to sleep yet, his stomach began to believe it was time to eat again and the hunger pains he received were not helping him any, but it certainly wasn't his fault he was wide awake so his stomach was punishing the wrong person!

Truly Link didn't know who to blame. It was the Sheikah that started this whole mess between him and his father, and everyone else who got involved, but the more Link thought about it, the Sheikah hardly had a choice in the actions taken against him.

After Sheik swore his allegiance to him, Link didn't have much to say to him in return. It was slightly embarrassing. Especially after Sheik tried to attack him only a few days previously. Maybe the council had threatened him, or maybe they had caused the fear of the goddesses in him. Something told Link that Sheik wasn't scared of much, but then again everyone had a weakness right?

Link's stomach growled a most wicked complaint at him and Link groaned into his pillow, admitting defeat. He guessed it was inevitable, he was going to have to make a sneaky trip to the kitchen.

He slipped back on his evening robe (he usually detested sleeping in it since he easily became tangled with it in his sleep) and slid his feet into his slippers. Link mentally cursed each time the floor squeaked when he took a careful step, trying everything in his power to be quiet.

Suddenly his bedroom door flew open and a senbon was at the Prince's neck in an instant.

Needless to say, Link wasn't skilled at stealth.

"Woah woah! Careful! Aren't you supposed to be protecting me?"

Sheik grunted and relaxed, slipping the needle back into who-the-hell knew where and Link made a mental note to harass him later on where he kept his weapons in a getup that left little to the imagination. His exoskeleton hugged and curved to every part of his body, and now that Link was really looking (albeit it was dark) he noticed that the Sheikah was a bit taller than him and that even though Sheik was lithe, he had muscle and more importantly wasn't-err bad looking; not that he was looking or could see much of him for that matter. He wore a tabard with his emblem blazing across his chest and Link also noted that even through the dark, with only the reflection of the light from a lantern hanging in the corridor, his eyes glowed with the most intense color of red. He looked dangerous and delicate all at the same time.

"Your Highness, it's two AM in the morning, why are you not asleep?"

Link had to break himself from his drifting thoughts to realize Sheik had spoken. He shook his head and glanced around the room as if he hadn't noticed what time it was, "Uhh, I didn't realize the time I suppose." Link scratched the back of his head and flashed Sheik a goofy grin, "And I'm also famished."

Link nudged the Sheikah with a fluffy toe when he wouldn't move from the exit of his bedroom, "I am going to venture to the kitchen, I'll return to bed after that." Link side-stepped Sheik, no longer caring what his personal thoughts were on the matter.

"I am following behind you, Highness."

Link's brow twitched, "Please don't call me that. Just Link is fine."

Sheik continued after the Prince, grabbing a lantern from the wall and quickening his pace so he was in front of him, "Will Nüli suffice?"

Link had never heard of that word before and assumed it was Sheikah, "What does that mean?"

"Hmm…" Sheik placed a finger to where his mouth should be over his mask, " I suppose it would translate to something like 'one of higher power and majesty'."

"Oh goddesses, that's worse." Link frowned and slumped his shoulders forward, not liking how Sheik was adopting new names for him.

"Nüli it is."

Link glared into the back of Sheik's head, betting rubies that he was smirking under that mask of his.

Once they made it to the kitchen, Link made a beeline for the cupboards and threw them open scavenging for food, "Oh hey, we have the good stuff!" Link pulled out a bag of almonds and some apples that he assumed were stored away for snacks later on in the week. He eagerly bit into the green apple and hummed at the juicy taste.

"Mm, wan' some?" Link mumbled out messily while the Sheikah crossed him arms and stared confused at the Prince.

"I'm good, Nüli." Link growled warningly at Sheik, but he blinked innocently up at him while the Prince bit into his apple once more.

"So-" Link swallowed down the apple bite and cleared his throat, "Now that we're alone and all, I had some things I wanted to discuss." Sheik questionably stared at the Prince who - now that he thought about it, was a huge dork and hardly was what a Prince would appear to be. Sure he was charming, if you got past his awkwardness. He had what many would call an angelic face. His eyes were like deep crystals that never ended and his hair was creamy and blond with skin to compliment it. Sheik could understand why many people outside the castle took a liking to the boy. Although for Sheik there was something more that caught his eye.

"About what, Nüli?"

Link hopped up onto the island in the kitchen and crossed his legs taking another bite out of his fruit, "Oh nothing much...except the fact that you lied to me me about why you were arrested!" Sheik let out a breath that he didn't know he was holding and moved to lean against the counter, "Nüli I apologize greatly, but I cannot regret my decision."

"Why not!" Link gawked and threw his finished apple core in a waste basket located in a corner.

Sheik wasn't sure how to respond. He made sure to avoid eye contact with the Prince and tried to think of an excuse to get him out of this difficult situation. More than anything he wished that Link would have forgotten about the lies he told when he was locked away in the dungeon. He knew it wasn't the time to tell the truth to Link and if he was to tell him, could

Link handle it? Sheik was unsure. He still didn't know the Prince well enough to judge his decision.

"I need to know, Sheik. Everything is so confusing right now." Even though Link's voice was softer, Sheik was still unsure if he should tell him anything. Prince or not, he didn't seem like the type to hold secrets.

"You're not prepared for this burden, Nüli."

"It's Link! Stop calling me that stupid Sheikah name!" Link jumped from the island top and stormed up towards Sheik who easily gazed him down with an eerie look to match his, "I can handle anything."

"Can you?" Asked Sheik with a neutral expression, not blinking or looking away from the intense glare Link gave him.

"I might not appear like a hero who can save the day, but I have a lot of something that no one else has." Sheik waited for the Prince to continue without speaking a word.

"I have courage! That isn't something found easily these days." Link turned on his heels and deeply sighed as he went into the icebox to pull out a jar of milk. He set it on the island and popped the lid off with a grunt before turning back towards the Sheikah and taking a big gulp and wiping his milk mustache away.

Sheik couldn't help but wonder what he had gotten himself into. "Nüli, I will tell you, but you can't say a word to anyone. Not the King, not the guards, and not your sister." Linked nodded swiftly with worry laced in his eyes. He wondered why Sheik was trying so desperately to keep this a secret. "If you do tell anyone then you won't ever see me again. I will become a far off memory."

"Okay I understand. Keep everything between us, now come on, tell me."

Sheik swore to himself, praying to the goddesses that he wasn't making a huge mistake, "I know the man who is seeking to overthrow the King and also murder his heir."

Sheik watched as Link's eyes filled with horror. The depth of pain flickered in his irises and Sheik wondered if he should stop. He thought that he should get out now before it was too late. Maybe it was already too late.

"I have to tell-"

"NO!" Sheik stepped forward and pressed Link back into the island squeezing his shoulders tightly, "You mustn't! You're senseless if you say a word to anyone about this!"

Link wasn't expecting that and immediately tried to struggle out of the Sheikah's grasp who didn't let up. "Listen." Sheik said quietly, "You are unaware of the dangers of this man, but I'm not! That is why I am here and that is why I lied to you." Sheik sighed heavily and adjusted the mask around his face so he could see the Prince clearly, "I was planning on escaping that first night. Truthfully I didn't give a whäkata about you or the King, but-"

"But what?"

"Normally I would attack someone like you mercilessly, but you showed me a kindness that I haven't seen since my whaeä and mütua."

"Uh.."

"Sorry, I am referring to my parents. I also struggle with language when I'm upset." Link nodded and relaxed as Sheik backed off of him and returned to where he had been against the counter, "I...haven't seen anyone like you in Hyrule for too many years and when you came to my aide, I felt a speckle of hope. I lied to you because I knew if I told you the truth, you would have run to your father blabbering everything I just told you."

Link scoffed, "Hey, give me a little credit! I'm not that dense!" Sheik wasn't too sure about it yet.

As far as Sheik knew, he had gone and made a crucial mistake, which was trust someone. That wouldn't have been so bad, except he hardly knew the wheaten haired boy in front of him and without much of a choice he had become his personal guard dog. The whole thing was beginning to give Sheik a heart attack and he contemplated going back to the gallows. It would have been the better way to go rather than being tossed into the prisons for lying. Technically, Sheik thought, he never lied to anyone (except Link) about what happened that night. He was just withholding information.

"I knew if I kept the truth from you I would have a chance. Your father decided my fate the moment I stumbled into his presence." Link knew Sheik wasn't kidding either. His father was ruthless and especially so when it came to the Sheikah.

"I still don't understand why you would lie to me. If you had told me sooner then maybe I could have kept you from the gallows. Goodness gracious Sheik, they had a noose around your neck!"

'And thank goodness for that' was what Sheik wanted to say, but he knew Link wasn't comprehending a lick of it. "I think you're missing the point…". Sheik grabbed the empty jar of milk and placed it in the recycle bin for the milk man - or lady - to retrieve the next morning, "If I hadn't been in a dire situation and about to lose my life, your father would have taken me for a fool. He wanted me dead and the only reason he would question my actions or words was if I was presented in front of Hyrule for all to witness. My admission changed everything and as the King of Hyrule he had to listen to what I had to say, especially if it threatened his life and the life of his son. I had a noose around my neck with nothing more to lose. Why would I choose then to tell the truth? It could only mean I wasn't lying." Sheik felt like he hadn't said that many words in his entire life and yet he just spewed them out in the span of a minute.

"You're not a masochist are you?"

Sheik face palmed so hard his eyes watered due to the impact his nose took, "Godesses no, I-"

"I'm just teasing. I just think your whole confession is loony. You must have thought too hard about it all in the cellar because I could have helped you avoid the whole mess if you would have told me the truth earlier."

"Uh huh." Sheik trailed off, looking down and letting silence fill the void between them. "If you're done here Nüli, I think it would be best that you returned to bed for the night. It's going to be daylight soon."

Link yawned at the sound of the word bed and stretched his arms with a groan, "As much as I would like to harass you about answers, I think you're right. I think I could sleep for a change."

Sheik sighed in relief and picked up the lantern leading the Prince back down the corridor to his room. He kept quiet and let his gaze fall onto all the paintings that decorated the walls. Sheik imagined that they had been with the Royal Family for decades and in many of them, the paint seemed to fade.

"Have you ever thought about the cruelty of fate that is bestowed upon someone?"

"Huh?" Sheik broke his wandering thoughts and stared at the Prince who was standing in front of his bedroom door with his hand wrapped around the knob.

"I mean to say that everyone on this damned planet is faced with fate that they can not control."

Sheik sighed and latched the lantern up on its hinges on the wall. The light illuminated the hall allowing the Sheikah to see Link's grim expression clearly, "I think that's a matter of opinion. Also…your tired brain is making up nonsense."

Link shook his head slowly and let his eyes flutter closed yawning.

"You need to rest, your Highness."

The Prince opened the door and stepped into the dimly lit room where a single candle provided little light from his nightstand.

"When will you sleep?"

Sheik stood outside Link's room watching his back as his spoke, "I will rest in the late morning, but I should be awake after your breakfast so don't worry about by absence for very long."

Link snorted, "I've lived this long without a personal guard, I'm rather capable of taking care of myself."

"I don't doubt that, Highness, but this is my job now so how about you let me do it." The Sheikah replied disapprovingly, wishing with everything in his power to simply have the Hylian Prince sleep.

Sheik was already trained for nights like these, in fact he liked the darkness more than the light and found himself more at peace when the sun went down. He didn't find himself needing to rest yet and what really worried him was someone waking to their exchange of words and getting into a frenzy. Sheik sighed heavily.

"Just one more question and I promise to shut up and sleep." Link turned to face Sheik and nervously bit his lower lip, "Why did you decide to do this? I am the son of the man that started this war? I-.." Link stammered and let his gaze fall anywhere but on the Sheikah, "I just don't understand why you're doing this. You could still run away!" Link thought that perhaps he would whenever he wasn't looking. 'There has to be a gain'. Link wondered what his motives truly could be.

"I know what you're thinking and I don't blame you, but the simple truth of the matter is that you remind me of…someone. A friend I once knew." Sheik furrowed his brows adjusting his cowl, "But that was a long time ago. This is just something I must do now."

Link stepped forward to say something else, but the Sheikah cut him off, "Now if you'll excuse me, it's time for you to sleep Nüli."

The door was closed on Link's face and the Prince turned around to stare into the single glowing candle, suddenly feeling exhausted. He wanted to think about everything Sheik just said, but it would have been hard for him to make sense of anything when his vision began to sway. How long had it been since he slept peacefully? The last few days had been a mess and he was a growing Prince who needed as much sleep as would be given. He missed the days where he slept in until the sun was already up and peered through the curtains.

Blue eyes and blond hair was all that was seen through the quilts that wrapped around his body. He mind went back to Sheik and all he had said and Link quietly nuzzled into his pillow, deciding that Sheik was telling the truth. Those eyes were hard to dismiss after all.

Sleep took over the Prince and he dreamed of things that he was sure to forget the following morning.

A/N: Thank you everyone for reading. =D As always please review and let me know what you think! =D