Ch.5

The Cap of The Minish People

By: Cutegirlmayra(Please, please review and tell me what you think or give me advice concerning this story.)

As Link and Zelda headed back for Camp, Link kept his hat over his face, pulling it down and trying to figure out how the events of today lead to that result. He couldn't really look at Zelda, she was.. different, and he didn't know how to respond to it.

"My Link, your being so quiet. Is something wrong..?" Zelda leaned a little against Epona, smugly and charmingly speaking. She was obviously trying to get a good look at Link's face, but also seemed to be craving his attention.

"…N-Nothings wrong… were you.." he cleared his throat, this was childish! He tugged his hat back up and straightened it out. "Were you hurt during the fall? You seem fine but.." 'Only on the outside..' he thought to himself. He was holding Epona's reins in his left hand and was guiding her through the jungle, being the gentlemen and allowing Zelda to ride on her.

"Ohhh… someone's awfully concerned." She giggled, moving herself to fully show off her figure on the horse. "Will I have to award the gallant hero again for his loving concern..?" she was almost cooing her words out, sounding like a flirty village girl at the Milk Bar. Particularly the ones Link tried to avoid… he never did understand why they acted the way they did, but Malon had informed him that it wasn't for the right reasons. She described them as sirens looking for Sailors to lure into their untimely ends. "Link? Your awfully silent." she was completely laying across Epona's neck now, gently stroking her hair, making Epona twitch her head a lot. She didn't like the excessive touching.

"Your just.. Different.." he said quietly, not looking at her. Though, it was tempting, he knew it was inappropriate for him to be looking at her. She probably didn't know what she looked or sounded like anyway. Innocently guilty, as Link thought it to be.

She leaned up on the horse, seeming cutely offended, "Are you saying I'm acting like I hit my head or something? Just cause I gave you a hero's treat?" she lifted her hand as if to flip her hair back, but instead she slowly moved her fingers through it, tilting her head slightly and looking at Link from an angle.

"N-No.. but.. you never offered this.. reward before." he kept his eyes fixated on the path, but he took glimpses every so often. Only to make sure she was still on Epona that is…

Epona whacked Link in the head, as if telling him to quit it and get this girl off her back. Link just stroked her head to try and calm her but she was getting more irritated by the second. "Well, is the reward.. Not adequate for the hero of time?" she turned her head as if saddened by this, then looked back at him with half closed eyes. "Should I do something more next time?"

"Please stop, your agitating Epona." he finally said, but in reality he was getting creeped out by her. This wasn't the Zelda he knew.. something was wrong here. Zelda looked at him as he stopped Epona and moved in front of her, trying to keep her from bucking which he knew was about to happen. She seemed to be upset and suddenly fell off Epona with a, "Ah!" that seemed to be completely faked.

"Are you okay?" he quickly ran over to her, she smiled and nodded, but that was the last straw for Epona. She reared up and started to pound the ground loudly and fiercely. "Epona! Whoa, girl!" he quickly went to her. On the ground, Zelda had just barely touched a dagger's hilt, hidden under her back vest. When he moved away, however, she quickly let it go and waited for Link to redirect his attention to her again.

'..Link… Please… Run away.. get away from me…'

Within the fake Zelda's body, Navi cried under the restraints of multiple dark, sticky webs of some kind. They held her in place as her glow flickered, she cried when her accursed body had reached for the dagger, but thankful to Epona's outburst that he had been spared.

'…Link.. forgive me… forgive me… just live, please live!'

Link had finally settled down Epona. She still waved her massive head around side to side in frustration, her legs following the movements with a quick side step, But other then that she was fine. He looked back to Zelda after wiping some of the sweat from his forehead, due to the incredibly damp and humid air in the jungle. She smiled and coxed him over with a simple flicking gesture of her index finger. "I need help…" she chimed, presenting her hand to him. He made his way over and in confusion grabbed her hand. Helping her up, she purposefully pushed herself more forward and into him. "Oh! My, look how strong we are." she gently began to stroke his chest but he moved quickly away.

"Uh… do you need help getting back on, too?" he asked, moving this time more toward Epona and far away as possible from Zelda. This made her charming face turn into an aggressive and frustrated look, but it quickly faded.

"No, no. I'd rather walk with you." she moved closer to his side, making him tense up.

"As you wish." he moved to the other side of Epona.

"I'm sorry, but are you trying to avoid me like the plague?" she suddenly huffed out, stopping him and Epona from walking. Epona let out a very hostile sound that sounded annoyed, but Link stroked the side of her face and hushed her into unwanted tolerance.

"No, not at all. But you have to admit.. your being.. strange." he didn't look at her, he was officially scared of Zelda. All of his childhood worries about him being so close to her intensified in a sudden hour of the day. He was sure it was cured too, but not anymore. He fiddled to the side of Epona with her reins, looking down and away from her. She moved under Epona's neck but he moved swiftly over to her back end.

She followed, looking upset and a little betrayed. "I assure you I'm fine. But perhaps it is this.. Odd feeling." they were now playing an odd game that looked similar to two kids playing tag. Where on one end of Epona, Link was trying to make sure Zelda didn't get close to him. On the other, Zelda kept moving herself back and forth as Link did the same thing, making sure not to move in the direction where she'll meet with him. Zelda got tried of this game and put her hands on Epona's back, pushing up slightly to look over Epona and see Link. "I feel like.. I want to be with you always, Link.."

"Do you now?" he said, staying still until she moved again so he could dash in the opposite direction away from her. "Well,… I'm flattered but.." he chuckled, "This isn't how I thought it'd be like." he honestly said.

"What do you mean..?" she moved herself gracefully but with a flirtatious manner around Epona, stroking her as she made her way over to him. "Wouldn't you like to be with me too? Together like this?" she had cornered him up against a tree. As he moved back he suddenly collided with it and looked back at her in shook, what had happened to his Princess? And was it his fault!? Epona thumped her hoof on the ground, sensing Link's feeling of discomfort she was readying to do anything needed to help him. "Don't you want me too… be closer to you.. Like this?" she placed her hands on his chest.

"Aha…" he pushed himself more against the tree. Epona wasn't going to wait much longer, she showed signs of getting ready to just lash out, her patience thinning. "Z-Zelda.." he tried to look over her to Epona and tell her of the inclosing danger, but Zelda had other ideas…

She placed her hand on the side of his face and forced it back to her, "Don't you want another.. Kiss?" she moved her head closer to his, slowly lowering her other hand to the dagger in the back of her vest. Then she whispered,…

"I can love you, right? I can run my hands through your hair, I can touch you gently, I can even kiss you right now. That's what love is right? None of that mushy, gushy nonsense about the soul and the heart. Yes, I, Zelda, am the only one who can truly love you. And not some puny fairy right?"

Link's eyes grew wide, "Na-" but before he could say anything she drew up her dagger and was about to strike, but Epona launched herself at her and bashed her to the ground with a fierce bam. She looked back, her face shifted into that of a demon with no eyes but glowing black sockets of dark mist. Her whole appearance looked like a screaming undead woman as it dashed hauntingly back at Link. He drew his sword and slashed at her, moving mostly on instinct since his mind was completely paralyzed by what just occurred. The fake Zelda fell to the ground, her body oozing black globs that quickly sprang up and took the shape of a toothed mouth. Link stabbed it and it squealed in pain, disappearing into mist as the sword's power melted it off itself. Link bent next to Zelda, he turned her around to see a faint light coming from within her body, near where the heart should've been. "Navi….NAVI!?" he cried out, pulling her out of the strands of black string that held her in. But the body, leaping into life, tried to slash Link away, but Epona stomped on the head. It toppled over and Epona swayed her head around low to the ground.

"L..link…" Navi weakly said, Link pulled her out and placed her gently on the ground with both hands.

"Navi.. What's going on..?"

"Link.. A darker you found me.. He changed me into what I despised most.. He used my feeling of jealousy against me! … I'm so sorry… I'm just glad your alive.." she flitted her wings, which looked crumbled up.

"Navi.. I wanted to tell you… I've always thought of you fondly.. You're my dearest friend. Someone whose been with me since before I became the hero of time. No one, not even Zelda can replace you in my heart.. Please know that, not by my eyes.. But from my own words."

"Link.. Your talking… and saying my name.. I'm so glad.. So glad.." her light blinked slower.

"No.. Navi, no! stay with me Navi! Navi!" he held her tighter in his hands, bending his head down he began to weep. "NAVI!"

"Link…I love you…"

"NAVVVII!" he thought fast, he quickly pulled out his ocarina and began to clumsily play Uni's song. Though, he couldn't really hold a note very well, he was somehow able to pull it off. A gust of wind with many leaves moving through it appeared next to him, it spiraled and from it's center a shadowed figure that became Uni. She was smiling with her eyes closed until she opened them and gasped with a horrified expression at the dead body near her.

She tightened her grip on her flute, which was wooden and had different holes on top of it, however at the end was a single leaf that dangled slightly. "What have we… here?"

"PLAY YOUR FLUTE! HEAL HER!" Link screamed desperately.

"Link…there's nothing left to heal…" she quietly said, seeming to understand as she gestured to the fairy in his hands. "Look…" Link looked down, Navi's light was gone. He shook his head in disbelief.

"No.. No.. there's a way! There has to be a way!"

"Link.. I could try something.. But that thing will be revived if I give her life again.. And then I can't create another song with Navi's name in it. Each wish can only be repeated once and then the song can never be played again. I can't wish for Navi's evil to be rid of her if I already to wished for her to come back.." she was almost crying as well. Somehow, she knew what had happened, or slightly knew it seemed. But Link didn't focus on that right now, he was only focused on the fact that Navi could be revived.

"Please, I'm begging you…" Link pleaded, looking desperately up at her from his knees. Uni couldn't help but look at him with complete love and sympathy.

"Alright Link… but you have to figure out how to heal her darkened soul on your own then… all I can do is give you the chance." she took a breath and placed her mouth on the flute, holding the rest of it to the side. As the voice began to sound out through the flute, the little leaf on the end began to flow as if riding the wind.

"From the depths of grief has she left. Bring this creature of love to the light. Let it fight, let it live. For life~ do I~ give~"

Navi's light glowed once again, flickering slowly and then rapidly as if turning on an old light bulb. It sparked to life as Navi fluttered her wings softly. "Navi.." Link said gently.

A swarm of the oozes black strands and blobs grabbed hold of her, Link looked around surprised and tried to pull her out of it's hold. But they morphed into a monster's mouth again and snapped at him, thrusting Navi back into the destroyed dead body. It shifted it's features back into that of the beautiful Zelda, she awoke and started to crawl away, her eyes pleading Link not to kill her again. She hugged the tree next to her and tried her best to look as innocently scared and defenseless as possible. Link stood up and just watched her, anger and joy filled him and he didn't know what to do.

"You must heal her on your own now, Link."

"I know… but how..?"

The fake Zelda grabbed her dagger again, but didn't change from her appearance of helpless and frightened.

'Play the Song of Healing.'

Link looked around, "Did you say something..?" he looked to Uni, although he knew it wasn't her.

"No…why? Don't tell me your hearing voices already!" she exclaimed, covering her mouth with her hand. "It's happening that quickly eh..?"

"Wait.. You know about the voices..?" he looked at her with intrigued confusion, but right when he stopped looking at Dark Zelda she lunged and tried to strike him down. He quickly turned his attention back to her and grabbed her arm, swinging it down and away from him as he kicked the dagger out of her hands. He then had to swing her arm back around and push her to the ground again, something that was really hard for him since she looked exactly like Zelda. But now he could see that deep in her eyes, where the black pupil is, was ever slightly moving black mist that trailed along like a sun in her deep blue eyes.

'Play the Song of Healing. You know it, play it.'

Link did know the song, but he wasn't sure who was telling him to play it. However, remembering his journey in that strange other world, he picked up his ocarina and played the melody. Zelda's body begun to turn into vaporizing black mist. She screamed in agony as her form was slowly deteriorated and Navi floated like a small ball of light in it's center. Link put the ocarina away quickly and grabbed her. She cried in joy, happy to be free. As they reunited, however, Uni had disappeared into another mini tornado with dancing leafs as she vanished into thin air.

Dark Link dropped Zelda's motionless body in front of the crystal ball with Ganon's silhouette in it and Shard's shocked but happy face. "Well done! Good man, guess there was no need to doubt your abilities." Shard happily said, walking up to Zelda and bending down. "Uh… you didn't.. you know.. Kill her.. Did you?" he moved her head towards him, since Dark Link had dropped her on her belly. He bent down to put his ear near her mouth, breath. "Ah, never mind. She seems alive." he concluded and was about to pick her up.

Dark Link kicked his hand away, "The princess was to be left in my care, if I recall correctly." he stated very coldly, eyeing Shard as he slowly got up and stared at Dark Link, questioningly.

"How rude. She's mine you know."

"Where's your proof of that? The goddesses bind peoples souls together, not your words."

The two of them stared down each other with a type of rivalry in there glares, but Ganon cut the moment short. "We will entrust her with your care again, Shadow. But only because you were able to retrieve her once again. Don't let her escape under your watch again… or I'll let Shard have his way with her."

Shard smiled, "And what.. Do you mean by that? Oh, Dark lord?" he humorously said, knowing Ganon didn't mean it like that but still rubbing it in Shadow Link's face.

"I haven't been called Shadow Link in decades. Just prefer to me as Dark Link." he said this harshly, then picked Zelda up over his shoulder and began to walk away. He stopped a moment in mid-stride and spoke back to Shard. "Oh, and she won't escape again. She may in fact be entitled to you, but I will get her first." his last threat made Shard twitch a bit. He let out a laugh and disappeared into the shadowy mist of dark power beneath his feet.

"I don't like that!" Shard said, whining as he threw his hands up and faced Ganon again, "Why let him have her!? She's mine!"

"You two fools are forgetting her importance to my revival. I care not who takes her, I just want her power." the crystal ball began to grow more metallic in color, as Ganon's spirit seemed to be leaving for a moment to rest.

"W-wait! Your not really just gonna let him take her like that are you!? She's mine! Mine, mine, mine! I'm going to steal her from him and I hope you don't mind!" he said angrily, worrying that Dark Link might actually do something before he does to her. He stomped out of the room while Ganon let out a frustrated sigh. He was tried of hearing the two fight over her, he secretly hoped they kill each other after the ceremony and that he could just kill off Zelda and be done with it all.

As Zelda awoke, she slowly opened her eyes, but there was no light. She thought maybe her eyes were still closed, but blinked and knew they weren't. She slowly moved herself up, feeling underneath her a cushion of some kind and started to feel around in the dark. She felt no chains on her, but in every direction she crawled to since you really couldn't stand in this room, there was a wall with no windows, doors, nothing. She tried to find out where her air was coming from but realized she might not have much left. She banged on the soft matted ground, grunting. No way out.

"Better than a prison though, right?" a voice said from the shadows. She recognized it immediately and held her ground, looking around but finding it useless so she tried to hear more than see.

"It's still a prison, just wider bars." she spoke back, though you could hear how much strength she tried showing through her voice. It wasn't fooling him though..

"You still try to act so tough in the face of danger, don't you? Knowing there's no hope in it what so ever. However, prey was never fun unless it struggled to survive."

"I am no prey!"

"Then what are you, Princess? All your life your tucked away in your little castle, kept far from predator's eyes so that you may have a chance to live life. Isn't that more of prison though? To be trapped in one spot your entire life for a people that barely know you?"

"Shut up, it's my destiny. That doesn't mean I'm-!"

"Your right, it's your destiny to be prey, as it is mine to be a predator." he slowly made his way across the bed like terrain to her, he grabbed her from behind and as she struggled he laughed. "See? Your just to weak to get along on your own. That's why you need a hero."

"Let me go!" she kicked and even bit him, he released her and held his hand that she had bit, crying out in pain.

"…Hehahaha… not again.. I'll never let you go again… not to Shard, not to Ganon,… and especially not to him."