Link woke up back in the caves, this time near the entrance as he could see tendrils of natural light seeping in. He was alone. His bandages were fresh though, and a scrap of paper lay on top of his things. It seemed like Sheik was back to his disappearing acts. Link sighed and shuffled over to the note, his body protesting all the way.

I'm sorry. I wanted to stay but there are things I have to do, ones that won't wait no matter how much I want them too. See you at the next temple, I'll be waiting.

Link wanted to be mad. He wanted to feel angry at Sheik for leaving while he was asleep, for not saying goodbye properly, for never saying goodbye properly. Instead there was just a tiny, quiet pain that echoed, shyly, around the empty cavern that should contain all his feelings. He couldn't even pretend he was angry because he understood. This whole, ridiculous, shit storm of horror demanded so much from both of them. There was no time to rest, no time to stay and wait for your friend to wake up so you can say goodbye. No time to be with the one person who knew what it was like to live this life, the one person who understood.

Rage exploded in Link, suddenly the emptiness in him was bursting at the seams with fury so hot it burned blue. All of this, all of this catastrophe and all of the pain everyone felt, was because some cock-faced puke green fuck-biscuit thought he could tramp his giant mouldy arse into the scared realm and just take it. Link stood up, settling his pack over his shoulder, anger drowning out the left over aches and pains. Fuck Ganondorf, fuck him and everything he stood for. It was time to get back to work, time to end this, even if it killed him. And, if it did kill him, at least he would be free.

He spent some time walking across Hyrule, fighting off monsters and helping those that needed it. He'd started to recognise the light that came into people's eyes when they saw him. It was hope. The rumours of a hero in green were spreading and they were like water to a man dying of thirst. The people needed a hero, they needed him. Their need was a source of mixed feelings for Link. Helping them, bringing them hope, seeing that light in their eyes when he arrived made him happy, it made things more bearable. But the fact that they needed a hero at all hurt. Since his conversation with Sheik in the cave he'd found it easier to remind himself that it wasn't his fault, but the fear was always there.

He missed Sheik. He was a little ashamed of how much he missed the other boy, he was sure that before their time in the cave he'd hadn't been so afraid to go to sleep alone. He was pretty sure he didn't used to have so many nightmares too. They were always more or less the same. Nightmares of what happened under the lake and of what it would have been like to have been the one waiting. To have been the one that had gone into the temple thinking they were looking for a corpse. To have been the one to go into that room and actually find a corpse. It was becoming quite clear to him that what scared him more than anything, more than any of the things that could happen to him, were the things that could happen to Sheik. Equally alarmingly, though in a very different way, were the dreams he had in which Sheik was very much alive. There seemed to be things that Link's body wanted that his conscious mind didn't want to acknowledge.

It had been a week since he'd completed the Water Temple when he headed back to Kakariko so he could resupply and maybe spend a night sleeping in a proper bed. He knew that wouldn't happen when he saw the smoke. He ran the rest of the way to the village, and things were as bad as he feared they might have been. Kakariko was on fire. The villagers were evacuating, carrying their belongings away from the blaze. Link ran to the well, he had to try to stop the fire. As he turned the corner toward the well he was able to discern a figure through the smoke.

`Sheik?'

The figure turned round, eyes wide above a bright white new cowl.

`No! Link, run!'

The well exploded. Link threw himself to the ground, arms wrapped around his head. All he could hear was a high pitched whine and the smoke and stone dust made it almost impossible to see. He scrambled back to his feet, ready to fend off whatever had come out of the well. Something came out of the haze, flying toward him. Link's hand went to the grip of the Master Sword, and then immediately left it. He watched as Sheik's body emerged from the clouds of dust and collided heavily with the side of a building. Link's breathing was ragged, his heart and stomach had a contest to see which could plummet fastest. He stumbled a couple of steps towards the crumpled heap his friend had become, but before he could cover the distance something else came haring out of the dark. He tried to draw his sword but shock made his movements slow. As he fumbled with his weapon the thing descended. There was pain, and then there was darkness.

He came to with a headache. He was laying in what felt like a bed and, much to his head's disapproval, in a patch of light coming through a gap in the curtains. Link groaned as he rubbed his forehead.

`So, you're awake then.'

He turned his head toward the voice, hissing as movement made the ache worse. Sheik sat on the floor near the bed, a book settled in his lap. He looked worse than Link felt. He wasn't in his usual body suit, just a pair of loose cotton trousers instead. One arm was held in a sling across his bare chest which was covered in bruises and abrasions. Despite the state it was in seeing the naked expanse of chest made Link's face feel hot. Sheik's cowl and head wrap were gone, and his hair was pulled back into a small ponytail making his black eye startlingly obvious. Link sat up slowly, trying not to aggravate his brain any more.

`Are you . . . are you alright?'

It sounded kind of lame and as soon as he had said it Link wished he hadn't. Sheik started to chuckle but it quickly became a wince. There must have been broken ribs under those bruises.

`No. Not even close. I'm supposed to be resting in another room but I heard them say you were here and . . . and unconscious so I've been sneaking out to make sure I'd be here when you woke up.'

Neither of them commented on the silent `if you woke up', neither one wanted to acknowledge that it could have been a possibility. Sheik took a breath and carried on,

`I had to leave before you woke up last time so I figured that I'd make up for it now. I'm sorry.'

`It's okay. I know there are things you have to do.'

Link knew there were about a thousand other things he could say, things that would fill the growing silence, but none of those things wanted to present themselves for saying. He looked down at his lap, he felt awkward. He was very aware of Sheik's toplessness and unhelpful recollections of his dreams and nightmares kept drifting through his mind. His head hurt and he was frustrated by his inability to speak, concerned about Sheik's injuries and confused by his oddly strong desire to touch him. So many things were fighting for room in Link's battered brain that suddenly words sprang forth, unchecked.

`I missed you.'

Link's eyes widened, his conscious mind surprised by what his unconscious one had spewed out. It was true, he had missed Sheik, and he knew that, he had carried the loneliness around with him for the past week. Along with the fear for Sheik's safety and an aching desire to be reunited with him. He looked over to the other boy, searching for a reaction to his outburst. Slowly, the corners of Sheik's mouth turned up the small smile quickly became a grin.

'I missed you too.'

Link grinned back. Everything he'd been thinking about and worrying over was pushed aside and something else took their place. It was bright and happy and made out of all the things that Sheik had always made him feel, all the ease and safety and comfort and understanding and comradery from before, but more and mixed with new things that Link didn't have words for. He could feel himself looking at Sheik differently, and he knew it looked exactly the same as how Sheik looked at him.