A/N: Moar thankies to alwaysingirl :3 No, this won't be a LinkxZelda fic. I don't think I'll do a pairing at all, really. I do really like the LinkxMidna pairings, so I can agree. LinkxZelda is WAY too overused (plus Midna is way hotter X3).

Chapter 6 - Shock

A cock crowed, signalling it was morning. Zelda had been staring up at the ceiling since she woke up, which was a good 10 minutes ago. She had tried to move out of the bed, but her legs ached, and her side burned when she stretched. So she just lay down, waiting for someone to enter. At least the ceiling wasn't boring to look at. An intricate pattern was indented on it, like the branches of a giant tree, before finally meeting at the centre in a blaze of crimson.

'Ah, you're awake,' came a voice from outside.

Zelda twisted her head toward the door (which at the moment was throbbing with a headache) to see a middle aged woman in an apron, broom in right hand.

'How are you feeling?'

Zelda felt she shouldn't tell the woman about her gripes, lest she fuss over her like a child.

'I'm... very well, thank you.'

'Sure? No aches or pains?'

'Yes,' Zelda lied through her scarf.

'Very good. One more thing. If you need something, ring that bell there,' she pointed to a small bell on the cabinet next to Zelda's bed, 'and someone will be with you shortly.'

'Yes, actually, there is something,' Zelda caught the woman before she left, ' where... where am I, exactly?'

'Welcome to our humble village of Kakariko,' the woman spread out her arms to emphasise the village's greatness, 'original home of the Sheikah, helpers to the royal family of Hyrule.'

Zelda stopped listening when she heard 'royal family'. She had been away for what seemed a lifetime. During that time, what had happened to her family back in Hyrule Castle?

'Do you know about what happened in Hyrule Castle?' she asked the woman.

'Ah, yes. Terrible news, wouldn't you agree?'

'Indeed. But what of the condition of the royal family? Do you know?'

'Sorry, that information hasn't reached us quite yet. But if you feel better, I can show you to someone who may know about that.'

Zelda nodded and smiled. 'I'll bear that in mind, thank you.'

The woman nodded back, and turned to leave, but Zelda stopped her again.

'Excuse me. What is your name, ma'am?'

The lady smirked and bowed dramatically. 'Daisy. Chief Nurse of the village.'

'Thank you very much,' Zelda smiled.

Daisy nodded for the final time, and left Zelda alone. It was then that Zelda turned and saw a huge mirror, and gasped at her appearance. Her face was cut many times, and her arm's bandages were covered in blood. Her right foot was bandaged, and that was also covered in blood. The bandages on her head were intact, and they were also caked with blood. Trying to remember how this happened, she came to a conclusion that when she had attacked the stalchild yesterday, the shattered bone pieces must have cut her as they flew outwards.

It was about now that she had said she had no pains. Perhaps Daisy would have had some potions which would have helped soothe the pain, but for the time being, the pain was so intense, she didn't think she could stand. And she really wanted to explore the village.

Her boredom seemed to overtake her senses, and she swung her legs over the sides of the bed, jumping onto the ground. Her legs almost gave away under her, and she grabbed the bed to steady herself. She tested her strength by letting go of the bed for a few seconds at a time, until she could stand for at least ten seconds. Now confident she could walk without falling, she limped through the door... almost knocking Daisy over in the process.

'Oh dear, I'm sorry,' she timidly whispered.

Daisy laughed. It was one of those really hearty laughs jolly people do all the time.

'Don't you worry none. Actually, I'm glad you're up and about, getting some exercise.' She paused and looked at the top of Zelda's head. 'You might want to change those bandages. They're looking really messy.'

She smiled and disappeared around a corner. Zelda did as suggested and took off her bandages, and grimaced in disgust at the state of them. The inside was much worse, the blood so dense it was starting to turn purple. From this, she could imagine what sate her hair was in.

'Daisy!' she called out.

'Yes, dear?' Daisy inquired, poking her head around the corner, 'Oh! Look at your hair!'

Zelda figured as much that her hair was messed up, but by Dasiy's reaction, she wondered if it had been a lot worse.

She limped (as fast as she could) back into her room. And screamed.

XxX

'My... my head...' Zelda whimpered as she patted her blood-stained scalp. Every touch, though slight, made her wince in pain.

'Don't touch, love. You'll make it worse,' Daisy said by her side.

She stopped, but still stared at her now somewhat deformed head.

Her hair was still covered with blood, but running through the middle toward her right ear, there was a huge cut. All the hair around it had been cut, so it stuck out against her usually blonde hair, pink strikingly noticeable over the hair colour.

'It's... it's okay. It'll grow back,' Daisy assured her, but there was a hint of skepticism in her voice.

Zelda shook her head vigorously, hoping this to be some horrible dream she could wake up from, tell her father about, and cry in his arms.

'Don't do that, pet! The wound is still fresh, so it could start bleeding again.' She gently pulled her arms back so she couldn't touch her head again.

Daisy's touch felt too real. It couldn't have been a dream.

She turned to Daisy suddenly. 'Bandages! I need fresh bandages, please!'

'Okay, okay!'

Daisy reached into a drawer in the bedside cabinet and took out a big roll of bandages. Zelda snatched them, unwound the entire roll, and wrapped the bandages around her head frantically, never wanting to see that horrid scar with her eyes again. She would cut off the circulation to her head if that's what it took.

'Are these waterproof?'

'I think so.'

'Is there anywhere I can wash?'

'Yes, there is a basin down the corridor.'

Zelda wasted no time in sprinting out of the room, the pain in her legs not bothering her as much now as it had been before. When she got to the basin, she didn't even check whether there was water in it, but instead just dunked her entire head in. Luckily, the basin was freshly prepared by Daisy in case Zelda wanted to wash up.

She scrubbed at her hair furiously, trying to get the blood out. It appeared now that a new hatred for stalchilds was born within her, and she scrubbed harder as she remembered the fateful encounter with the one which took away her beauty iin her eyes. After about five minutes of clawing at her hair, she leaned over the basin, breathing heavily. The water was dyed pink by the blood she had washed out, rippling slowly outwards.

It was at that moment that she vowed never to remove her bandages again.