Disclaimer: I do not own the legend of Zelda game series or the characters.

Hello everyone! Thanks again for reading! Sorry it's been a bit of a hiatus, but I will get chapters up as often as I can! :) I am having so much fun writing this story and I hope you are enjoying it as the reader! Thanks for all of your reviews/favorites/follows, they make me very happy! :DDDDDD

Where we last left off, Sally and Link were knocked unconscious by shadow beasts and taken to the frozen lake in Snowpeak. Sally was tossed into the icy water and Link saved her, but will she survive the hypothermia? Read on to find out!

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Here is chapter 15!

Chapter 15: Fragility

For once in my life, I was ready to give up. I didn't know what else to do. I had failed in protecting Sally, and we'll end up dying out here. I closed my eyes briefly and then opened them again, turning my gaze to Sally. "If you can hear me, I…I'm so sorry…" She didn't budge. Tears started falling from my cheeks. "Please, say something!" I laid my hand on her side and shook her gently. "I beg of you! Say something! Tell me that you're okay!" She didn't even flinch. I used my palms to wipe the tears from my face, breathing jagged breaths. I felt so ashamed. If she dies, it won't be easy to forgive myself.

As I raised my head I saw a familiar face carrying a large reekfish. It was Yeto! When our eyes met he started running towards me. "Link! It is you!" He yelled. He bent his head. "You look like you in trouble!"

I slowly nodded. "More her than me." I patted Sally's back.

"I get you both inside house!" He shouted. He helped me stand and then slung Sally's body over his shoulder. He took a blanket out of a satchel slung over his other shoulder. "Use blanket to stay warm!"

"Okay." I said. I shivered as I wrapped the blanket around my body. We then began to walk to Snowpeak ruins. My feet were aching and I felt like I was over-exerting them because I was so cold, but I pressed on. I was really worried about Sally. I consider her my friend, and I'd never want any of my friends to go through suffering. I kept on looking over towards her as Yeto and I walked, trying to see if she flinched or something. Nothing matters to me right now except for protecting her. I made that promise to her father and to Marcus; I can't fail. I don't want her to be hurt, or worse, die.

"You care for lady, don't you?" He said as we walked.

"Yes." I replied. "She's my friend, and I don't know if she'll make it. She's just so cold and lifeless right now…"

"Don't worry. She be okay soon!" He grinned. "You see!"

We came up to the entrance of Snowpeak Ruins and went inside. When we came in Yeta was sitting on a couch. She stood up and stared at us, her mouth agape. "What happen, uh?" She looked at Yeto.

"Link and lady fall into water and now very cold." He said to her.

"Will you carry lady to bed, uh?" She instructed.

"Yes, Yeta." He responded. Yeto gave me some dry clothes to change into and took Sally to the bedroom. Yeta followed Yeto to the bedroom to tend to Sally. I changed clothes and went back out into the main room, sitting by the fireplace to keep warm. Yeto came out to join me. He and I were silent, sipping hot tea as we sat near the fire.

"Thank you for your help, Yeto." I said as I turned my face towards him.

"You bet!" He smiled.

Yeta came out a few minutes later. She turned to Yeto. "Lady will be warmer by fire, uh. Can Yeto help Yeta by getting lady?"

Yeto stood up from his chair. "Okay."

"I will grab bedding." She started walking back towards the bedroom.

Yeto came out a minute later with Sally wrapped in a blanket and in his arms. I moved so they could set up a place for her to lie by the fire. They set her down, making sure that a pillow was beneath her head. She didn't stir. They covered her in more blankets and then sat down near me. "She hopefully get warmer now." Yeta smiled. "She in dry clothes, but still so cold, uh…"

I looked at Yeta. "Will she be okay?"

She looked sad. "She so cold. She need to be warm, but she like ice, uh."

I looked down. I felt like this was my fault. If only I had made it over to her sooner…Then she wouldn't have been thrown in the water. I looked at her as she laid there sleeping peacefully. "Will she even wake up?" I thought to myself. I shook my head. "Get those depressing thoughts out of your mind, Link! Of course she will! Right…?" I looked back at Yeto and Yeta. "I'm going into the kitchen to get some more hot tea." They nodded and I walked away.

Yeto's POV

While Link was gone Yeta and I spoke in hushed tones. "He so worried about lady." Yeta said with sadness.

"Yeah. She be okay soon, right?" I asked her.

"I don't know…" She sighed. "She stay cold like this too long, she can die…"

"Hmmm…that would be sad…" I frowned.

"She not moving either, which scares Yeta." She looked at the lady with melancholy. "She need lots of warmth, but how?"

I thought to myself for a moment. "I have idea, Yeta!"

"What, uhhh?" She questioned.

I began to whisper in her ear. When I finished, she nodded, and Link came back into the room minutes later.

Link's POV

I sat back down on the couch and started to slowly sip my tea because of how hot it was. It was getting late when I finally looked at my communication orb. It was 9:30pm. "Look at time!" Yeto exclaimed. "We go to bed now."

Yeta yawned. "You want bedding, Link?"

"Yes, please." I said.

"Okay. Yeta will be right back." She walked into the hall and came back with some blankets and a pillow. She gave me the pillow and blankets.

"Thanks." I said.

"You are welcome, uh." She began to walk away. She then looked like she had remembered something. She turned around to face me. "Lady is very cold. I am worried about her…"

I felt like I couldn't speak. "B-but…" I stuttered. "The fire and covers will keep her warm, right? S-she'll pull through?"

"I don't think fire and blankets enough…She so very cold…" She looked down at the ground. "She need lots of warmth."

"What should we do?" I asked her.

"I have idea." She replied. I nodded. She took a breath and looked around, seeming like she didn't know how to tell me this. She looked me straight in the eye. "You hold lady?"

I blushed. "Wait…what? This is no time for jokes." I replied. "Did I just hear what I thought I did?"

"No joke." She said seriously. "If Link want lady to live, she need warmth. Hold her."

My blush became more intense. "WHAT?! Why me?"

"You only one that can." She said calmly.

"Why can't you?" I protested.

"I am lady too, I not good for that." She responded with a shake of her head.

"Why can't Yeto?!" I shouted.

"Yeto married!" Yeto yelled from down the hall. I slapped myself in the face. "Why should I be the one to hold her?! Do they know how awkward this is!?"

Yeta pointed at me. "You not married, you man, and you human. It not be so awkward if you hold lady."

"Not awkward for you!" I wanted to scream. "Surely there must be some other way." I said while I stood up. "I'll get her some more blankets."

"It won't be enough for lady." She said. "It won't hurt Link to hold lady, she not bite, does she?"

"I don't think so…" I answered, feeling unsure of myself after her violent episode with the frying pan...

"Then it okay?" She smiled.

"Wait, huh? No!" I shouted again.

"Goodnight." She closed the door that connects the main room to the hallway.

I sighed and got up to go to the linen closet in the hall. I stopped and kneeled by Sally. I felt her forehead. "Man, she still feels so cold…" I stood up again to head towards the linen closet, but before I could turn my eyes away from her she shivered violently. "Maybe Yeta's right…" I hesitated. "What do I do? I want to save her from dying from the cold, but I don't think that I necessarily have to hold her to do so. Plus, it will be so uncomfortable if I hold her!" I huffed out of frustration. "Link, what's going to keep her warmer? One extra blanket over her or body heat?" I gulped. I took my pillow and put it next to her and sat near her. I lay down and lifted her blanket enough to get under. "Don't kill me, Sally…" I thought to myself as I wrapped my arms around her. I could now tell just how cold she was. I knew that I needed to keep holding her in hopes that she'll get better. A couple of hours later she still hadn't made any noise and hadn't moved at all. My only hint that she was still alive was the faint and shallow breaths that she took as she slept. Another hour later she was beginning to feel a little bit warmer, but she still didn't move. I fell asleep until around 2am when I heard her mumble. My eyes shot open and searched her face to see if she was awake. She was still asleep. I watched her as her brows knitted together. She exhaled and moved closer to me. "Um, Sally? What are you do—" She nuzzled her face into my chest and brought her arms in front of her so they could get warmer. After she was comfortable she continued to sleep. I was blushing madly at this point. "Yes, she is definitely asleep! If she were awake right now she'd probably punch me in the face!" I gently felt her cheek. "Good, she is getting warmer." She didn't move. Her lips parted as she breathed through her mouth and her eyes scrunched up while she moaned. She must be having a bad dream. She shivered again.

"It's so cold, Marcus…" She whispered in her sleep. "Why is it so cold?"

I felt so bad for her. She's having dreams about Marcus as if he's still alive, when she knows deep inside that he's never coming back. She really did love him very much, and she still thinks about him often. How powerful a love like that must be; to easily transcend the barrier between life and death? This may sound like a cliché, but their relationship is like a real-life story of Romeo and Juliet…sharing the tragedy of love that's torn apart by death. How lost and unsure she must feel…of her worth or sense of being, perhaps? Maybe I would feel the same way had I lost Ilia to death or someone else precious to me? The only difference is…I have never felt love…

"…I wish…" She said softly. I looked at her. "…I wish I could be with you, wherever you are…" Tears started falling down her cheeks. Seeing her cry still made me sad. "…I know this is bad to say, Marcus…but I sometimes wish I could die in my sleep…I…I don't know how to live without you…" The tears fell down her cheeks more frequently now. "…Why did you have to leave me, Marcus?" She was now sobbing in her sleep, her face buried in her pillow. She was sobbing so much that her breathing sounded as if she were gasping for air. I didn't know what to do. I watched her for another minute, and then I laid my hand on her shoulder. She slowly opened her eyes and stared at her pillow for a second. Slowly, but surely her head turned towards the source of the hand. When her eyes met mine they widened and she began to scream. "What the heck is going on here?!" She shouted as sat up and backed away from me, her arms flailing around as she looked accusingly at me.

"It isn't what it looks like!" I yelled as I began to back further away from her.

"Tell me what justifies you holding me!" She hollered.

"…Um…uh…" I stuttered. "Easy! Ummm…" I scratched my head. "Link…just start digging your grave now; you know she's going to murder you!"

"Answer me!" She screeched.

"Did you not know that you could have died from Hypothermia!?" I yelled at her.

Her look softened into confusion. "W-what?"

"After those monsters knocked us both unconscious they took us to the frozen lake in Snowpeak. The one that was carrying you threw you into the lake." I explained. Her jaw dropped. "I dove in and took you out of the lake, but you were deathly cold. I know it's awkward, and trust me; I didn't want to do it, but it was the only way to save your life."

She opened her mouth, but no words came out. She closed it again and then took a deep breath. "Then what was the deal with you putting your hand on my shoulder?!"

"To comfort you; you were crying very loudly in your sleep." I said plainly.

"Oh…" She looked around the room in silence.

Suddenly the door burst open. It was Yeto, carrying a metal rod. "Where's fire?!" He looked around frantically.

Sally screamed again upon seeing Yeto. "W-w-w-w-wh-what is that?!"

"Just your resident yeti!" I snickered.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!" She shrieked, falling back onto her pillow while kicking her feet, expertly kicking me in the face. "It's all just a bad dream, Sally; just a bad dream!" She began to laugh hysterically into her pillow.

"Thanks for breaking my face…" I muttered angrily while rubbing my face.

She shot up into a sitting position, her face ghostly white. "We're going to die! It's going to kill us!" She laughed nervously.

I slapped myself in the face. "I think you're going nuts…"

"I'm going to be eaten! I'll be made into a stew!" She looked at me with fright. "Can you kill me so I don't have to feel myself being boiled?"

"'They're coming to take you away, haha!'" I chuckled.

Yeto looked at us with confusion.

"Quit making fun of me!" Sally yelled.

I slapped her face. "Snap out of it!"

"Hey!" She slapped me in the face. I slapped her, she slapped me, I slapped her, and she slapped me…we were slap-happy…or perhaps we were just trying to take our frustrations out on one another…? She looked at me. "Why aren't you scared?"

I rolled my eyes. "There's no need to be…" I smiled. "Trust me; I know this yeti very well." Sally looked at Yeto with uncertainty. "Yeto, meet Sally." I gestured towards Sally with my hands. "Sally, meet Yeto." I gestured towards Yeto.

"Nice to meet you, Sally!" Yeto smiled.

"Uh, right…" Sally still looked scared and unsure and thus, I came to the conclusion that there would be no convincing her.

Yay! She's okay! :DDDD What'll happen next? Read on to find out!