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~Link~

  The weathered wooden floorboards of the Kakariko inn creaked slightly under Link’s weight as he shuffled along drowsily towards the kitchen. His striking cerulean eyes wrinkled up tightly as an eager beam of early morning sunlight danced across them through a window, causing him to groan in discomfort.

"Good morning, Link!" a chipper voice greeted.

Link looked up at a brightly grinning Luda, who stood in the kitchen placing a tray of biscuits in the wood-fired oven. He gave her a small smile in return.

"Good morning, Luda." He replied in a quiet tone, trying not to wake anyone else in the inn.

"Did you sleep well last night?" The young brunette asked politely as she cracked an egg open on a pan over the fireplace.

"Like a baby." Link lied. He hadn't slept well that night. In fact, he'd barely slept at all since he last saw you; but he wasn't going to tell Luda that, or anyone for that matter, not after what happened just a week before...

   flashback

     A cucco's rough crowing cracked the static morning ambiance that lay over Kakariko Village. Telma, who had already been laying awake in her bed for some time, was startled from her thoughts at the bird's cry. She sighed deeply before swinging her legs over the edge of the mattress and stretching her arms above her head, her joints crackling with her movements. Her eyes fell to the other side of the large cedar-framed bed she sat upon. It lay cold and vacant. She lingered as she thought of the life she could have had in this room; or at least the life she wished she could have had.

She slipped on her worn Gerudo sandals slowly, sleepily, before realizing she hadn't changed out of the night gown Renado had lent her the night before. Her work-worn hands ran over the soft material gently, its deep blue hue seemingly mirroring her mood. It had belonged to his wife. It must have. It felt almost inappropriate for her to be wearing it, and she had felt pretty uncomfortable accepting it, but Renado had insisted. She hadn't brought a change of clothes or anything else since she and the others had left Castle Town so hastily. She had offered to journey back to pack herself a travel bag, but Renado convinced her to stay. "It's a dangerous journey to make alone," he had said. He was going to Town anyway for the business of obtaining the scrolls, so he assured her he'd stop by her place and pick up some of her belongings.

Telma looked around for yesterday's clothes, which she was sure she had maturely left in a pile on the floor. She quickly found them folded neatly on a nearby chair. Renado, no doubt, had done that before he left for the castle.

"Always so thoughtful..." She murmured.

After changing into her dusty clothes, she took the night gown and folded it carefully, as Renado had done for her, and placed it on the end of the aging bed. Slowly she approached the mirror hanging above a sturdy looking dresser and sighed. Her deep emerald eyes were lacking their usual spark of livelihood, with sunken, drooping dark circles looming underneath them amidst the mild indications of wrinkles. Her hands messed with her auburn braids briefly before she turned to leave the master bedroom.

   A great yawn escaped from her lips as she meandered down the narrow hall, her sandals snapping against her heels with each step. As she approached Link's room, she noticed the door was standing open. Curious, she slowly peered in...

Empty. He must be up already.

  Dismissing the hero's vacant bedroom, she made her way downstairs to the kitchen carefully, trying not to trigger any of the boisterously creaky floor boards. The cloak of early morning darkness made it difficult for the woman to see much of anything in the kitchen. She fumbled about a bit in search of a match to light some candles, stubbing her toes in the process.

"Son of a blood-sucking - gah!" She cursed subduedly, her eyes screwing tightly shut in pain as she cradled her aching foot. "Where are those damned things?"

"Looking for these?"

  Telma jumped, startled. She whipped around to see a slightly disheveled Shad standing there with a box of matches in one hand and a burning lantern in the other, a soft smile adorning his lips.

"Good gravy boy, are you tryna' give me a heart attack?! Geez Louise!" She cried out in a shouted whisper, her heart pounding furiously from the adrenaline shock.

"O-Oh, I'm so sorry Telma! I didn't mean to scare you so badly..." He whispered sheepishly, his face turning red with embarrassment. Telma shook her head lightly before she accepted the matchbox from the timid man.

"No need to apologize boy. Just gave me a good start is all." She breathed heavily as she flicked a match across the rough surface of its case. A tiny flame sprung to life and illuminated her finely manicured fingers as she lit a well-used candle resting on the counter.

"What are you doin' up so early anyway?" She asked as she shook out the match's flame, turning to face Shad. His dark, indigo eyes shyly flitted away from her intimidating gaze.

"Well, I..." he shuffled his feet a bit and fiddled with the lantern nervously.

"Well?" Telma questioned, raising an eyebrow.

"I was with Ashei. We were up most of the night." Telma's eyes widened and she looked quite taken aback.

"I didn't realize you two were, uh... I figured you to be the kind of gentleman who waits until marriage before ya'll... seal the deal. Also, Ashei's room is right next to poor Luda's bedroom, and the walls here are pretty thin.. Although, I suppose it's a bit too late for me to be telling you this now-"

  Shad's face grew bright red and his innocent cobalt eyes grew to the size of saucers as he began blabbering almost incoherently.

"A-A-A-A-A-A-h, n-n-no T-Telma, you m-misunderstood me!!! I-It wasn't like that at all! Our rooms are n-next to each other you see, and I woke up hearing some strange sounds coming from her room! I went and knocked on her door, but she didn't reply, so I-I went in and she was curled up on the bed crying; I just comforted her and and we talked and stuff..." he trailed off meekly, the poor young man shrinking back.

"What do you mean by 'stuff'?" Telma asked, an impish grin beginning to grow across her face. Even in the dim candlelight, Shad's cheeks were obviously burning.

"W-We... We might've kissed a bit, but that's it, I swear! What kind of guy would I be to take advantage of her when she was so vulnerable?"

Telma's plump face twisted a bit. "And kissing her isn't taking advantage of her?"

"She kissed me actually, and I didn't push the situation any further than that..." His demeanor relaxed a little and his lips turned up into a soft smile. "I never thought in a million years she would ever have feelings for me, too..." he mumbled under his breath.

  Telma smiled at the gentle young man, noticing how content he looked. The pair stood there in the inn's kitchen for a moment, letting the light mood linger in the air as long as it could.

"Would you care for a cup of tea?" Telma asked after a while, clearing her throat.

"Love some." Shad replied softly, nodding appreciatively.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

  Soon the kettle was whistling wildly and Telma poured its steaming contents into two rustic teacups she'd pulled from the cupboard. "Thanks for making this, Telma." Shad smiled as the red-head handed him his drink. He took a deep breath, taking in the sweet, herbal aroma of the green tea.

"Sure thing, sugar!" She grinned back at him, taking a gulp from her own cup. "By the way, have you seen Link this morning?"

  Shad paused for a moment before replying, "No, I can't say that I have. Why do you ask?" He wondered, spooning some honey into his cup from a nearby jar. Telma furrowed her brows at this.

"Well, I saw he wasn't in his room when I passed by it on my way downstairs. I just kinda thought he'd be down here eatin' some biscuits or somethin'."

"Hmm." Shad hummed, "That is odd. He's probably just using the latrine or taking a bath in the spring." He guessed, taking a cautious sip of his tea. "With all that's going on, I can't imagine he'd sleep well anyway."

"I suppose. Maybe he took a walk to clear his mind or somethin'." Telma nodded. The two sat in silence after that, simply sipping on their warm drinks lazily. The rhythmic ticking of a clock was the only sound made throughout the entire inn.

Soon the pair had finished their tea and Shad offered to wash their dishes. She made no objections; she hated doing the dishes. She remained seated while the skinny brunette man rinsed out their cups, absent-mindedly thrumming her glossy red nails on the sturdy wooden table. Glancing out the window, she saw that sunlight was finally beginning to spread across the humble desert village.

Still no sign of Link... The fiery red-head's earthy green hues narrowed in thought.

"Well?" Shad asked expectantly, sounding a little uneasy.

"Huh?"

"The question I asked... about Ashei and me? What do you think?"

  She stared at him, looking like a deer in the headlights. She stuttered and tripped over herself trying to get some kind of response out, racking her subconscious for some kind of clue about what he had asked her. Shad waited in awkward silence.

"You.. weren't listening, were you?" His spirit visibly deflated.

Telma hesitated before shaking her head, embarrassed.

"I'm sorry, Shad. My mind's just stuck on Link. I can't shake this feelin' that somethin's not quite right."

"Maybe we should look around for him then, put your mind at ease." The Oocca scholar suggested after deliberating for a moment.

  Telma nodded in agreement. After putting the teacups back into the cupboards, Shad held the front door open politely for the bartender. The early morning air seemed heavy and thick, almost humid. She immediately began to fan herself with a manicured hand.

"Woo-eee! I don't think I've ever felt such a muggy morning in the desert in all my life!" Telma exclaimed.

"I know," Shad agreed, "This is down right bizarre. It's way too early for it to be this hot..." A bead of sweat began to make its way down his pale temple.

"Hmm.. Oh well, nothing we can do about it." Telma quickly shrugged it off. "Let's get a move on. You go check the latrine and I'll head on up to the hot springs."

"A-Are you sure about that, Telma?" Shad stuttered. "Don't you realize that if he is up there, he's going to be... naked?"

"Oh, indeed I do, Shad!" The woman giggled eagerly, her lips curling up into a mischievous grin before she turned on her heels towards the hot springs. "Oh, don't worry, you silly boy, I'm just hoping to see some steamy abs~!"

Shad watched her walk away with a disturbed expression on his boyish face.

"Wow, Telma's... Telma's kind of creepy..." he mumbled to himself as he turned to find the outhouse.

  Big, billowy clouds masked parts of the vibrant morning sky, which glowed a brilliant, warm array of pinks and oranges and yellows. Telma, who was admiring the beautiful display, began to pant heavily as she trudged up the steep path to the springs.

"Lordy, if that boy ain't up here..." she muttered breathlessly as she neared the top. She swiped an abundance of sweat from her forehead as she peered into the unusually thick steam that rose from the pools.

"Link? Are you up here, Link?" Telma scooted closer and closer to the water's edge. No response was made. Telma groaned loudly and stomped her foot, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"No abs for poor old Telma." She grumbled to herself, pouting.

"TELMA! Get down here, quickly!" Shad shouted frantically from below. Telma's bright green eyes snapped down to see Shad kneeling by the town spring.

She quickly rushed back down into the canyon and gasped as she neared the spring, not because of the sprint, but because of the sight that lay before her; there on the eroded canyon floor lay a shivering Link, eyes bloodshot and skin as pallid as a corpse. Shad pulled his shaking body up into a sitting position and gripped him by the shoulders.

"Link, are you alright? What happened?" asked Telma as she crouched down next to the shaking hero and placed her hands on his freezing cheeks.

"There's nothing I can do. It's all my fault. She's gone. It's all my fault." Barely coherent mumbles passed through Link's pale blue lips.

"What are you talking about, boy? It's not your fault, it's not! None of us could have known..." Telma insisted gently, taking hold of his cold, clammy hands.

"I think he's delirious... We'd better get him inside soon before he gets any worse." Shad worried.

Telma nodded, slipping an arm underneath Link's and hoisted his weak body up to lead the crumbling hero back to the inn.

  end flashback

"Link?" Luda's voice broke the hero from his thoughts.

"Hmm?" Luda shifted in her shoes for a moment, hesitating.

"Do you mind if I ask you something? About __f/n__?"

Link was a bit taken aback, and his chest stung with the mention of your name.

"Of course not, Luda. What would you like to know?" He answered slowly, eyeing her warily.

"Well I was just wondering, since I've never met her... Well.. What is she like?" She asked carefully, glancing cautiously his way. He looked a little surprised.

"I-I.. Well... She's just.." He stammered inarticulately, struggling to find the right words. "She's just... one of the most remarkable people I've ever known." A smile tugged at the corners of his lips as happy memories of the two of you played through his mind. "She's thoughtful and generous, funny and intelligent; She's got this gorgeous (__length__) (__color__) hair, these great, big, beautiful (__color__) eyes you can just get lost in - and her smile..." His heart ached with the thought of you, and the thought of never seeing you again; the bittersweet feelings were clear upon his features as Luda listened to him intently. "I mean, to some people she may seem pretty ordinary, but to me she's absolutely... remarkable." The hero concluded, meeting the deep brown eyes of the Kakariko girl with his cerulean gaze. She smiled gently at him.

"Link?" Luda's gaze fell from Link's, falling instead towards the flames of the fireplace, looking somewhat bashful.

"Yeah?"

"What's it like to be in love?"

  Link's heart faltered, his face fell. "Well, you know, Luda... It takes two people to be in love." His jaw grew tense as he thought about it. "And me and __f/n__... Well, I never really told her how I felt. So I can't really say what it's like to be in love... but I imagine it must be the greatest feeling in the world." Link declared earnestly but woefully, raising his eyes back to her's.

  Luda smiled, softly, reassuringly, as she removed the eggs from the pan and slid them over on a plate to Link. The boy was brought back from his self-pity, and glanced down at the plate, confused.

"Isn't this food yours, Luda?"

"You take it - I can make more easily. Besides, you'll need your strength for when you rescue __f/n__." She encouraged with the same gentle smile, cracking another egg.

"Yes..." Link nodded, an idea sparking in his mind as he stared down at his breakfast. "Yes, you're right."

~Reader~

  The door of Dark’s secluded forest cabin groaned ever so slightly as you both made your way in from the chilly night. Rubbing your hands together to regain their warmth, you scampered over to the dwindling fire to absorb some of its fading heat. You eyed the cloak that was still draped across your shoulders, not sure what to do with it.

"I'm taking this back." Dark muttered, roughly snatching the cloak from your body and tossing it in the general direction of a closet. Noticing the bed of coals dwindling in the fireplace, he tossed a couple of old logs on them, sparks flying up in brilliance before settling into oblivion upon the brick hearth. You stood there kind of awkwardly as he prodded at the growing flames silently, still wary of the mysterious boy.

"So, uh.. Anything on the menu for dinner tonight?" you asked cautiously, breaking the silence. He smirked slightly, cocking an eyebrow.

"Is food all you think about?" he asked, turning to look at you.

  You shrugged and crossed your arms, your eyes quickly fleeing from his intimidating ruby gaze. "I kind of need it to live, so yeah, I'd say I think about food pretty regularly."

Dark chuckled, giving you a small but eerily familiar smile.
"Yeah, I could whip something up, I guess." He shrugged, approaching odd looking box in the 'kitchen'. When he opened it, a burst of cold air rushed out. He reached into the strange vessel and pulled out a bag full of various mushrooms.

"What in the world is that?" You asked, appalled, approaching the contraption with curiosity and caution.

  Dark smirked at you as he chopped up the mushrooms on the counter. "You like it? It's an invention of mine. I call it a "frigid box". It keeps food and ingredients cold so they last longer." Pride welled up in his chest when he saw the look of amazement upon your face, a feeling which was quickly replaced by frustration at his weakness towards you.

"How's it work? Magic?" You asked as you pulled the door open carefully and felt that blast of chilliness again.

"No, stupid, I'm not a wizard. I just combine a few potions in this compartment in the back," he scoffed as if it should be obvious, pointing to rear of the 'frigid box', "and they react together and become really cold, which keeps the food in the front box cold as well." He tossed the chopped mushrooms into a pan, added a of slice butter, and set it on top of the fire.

"Well sorry I'm not a genius like you, butthead." You retorted sarcastically, mocking him with a screwy face to his back as he stirred the pan of mushrooms. You were caught off guard as he began to chortle goofily, quirking his head to look back at you.

"Did you just call me a butthead? What are you, 5?" he laughed almost light-heartedly. For a moment, his eyes seemed to lose their fearsome qualities, replaced by warmth and joviality; his smile was no longer menacing but charming; his face was not bitter, but was inviting. Your heart began to flutter faintly in your chest looking at this strange, brooding man, who was still essentially a stranger to you.

'What is happening right now?' You worried to yourself, slightly frightened by your body's rogue reactions. '__f/n__, you barely know this guy. You still don't even know how he found you in the castle, or why he saved you, why he's "protecting" you from Zant.' You reminded yourself mentally. 'For all you know, he could be a psychopath.. he does seem to have rather rapid mood swings...'

"Okay, dinner is served, butthead." Dark snickered childishly as he set down two plates of sauteed mushrooms on his neglected old dining table. Your heart ached once again at that familiar smile.

"Thanks." You replied tentatively, sitting down at the table slowly, carefully. Reminiscent of Link, Dark chowed down on his meal enthusiastically. 'Hmm... That's probably where these "feelings" are coming from. Dark looks almost identical to Link, so I'm probably just misplacing my affection on him... or something..' You relaxed a little at this thought and started at the meal yourself.

"So what were you doing outside?"

"Hmm?" You looked up at Dark with a mouth full of mushrooms.

"When I got back earlier, you were outside. What were you doing?"

"Oh, that." You paused, pushing a particularly tough mushroom around your plate with your dull fork. "I.. I had to use the outhouse. I was afraid of the stalhounds you told me about, but I had been holding it for a really long time, and I just couldn't wait any longer for you to get back." You explained, a little embarrassed. Dark looked relieved by this response.

"I'm sorry I made you wait so long." Dark apologized as he added some to his dish. "Honestly, you're probably safe from any monsters as long as you stay right around the cabin." He explained before stuffing his mouth some more.

"I didn't know you even knew that word - I'm impressed." You smirked at the shadowy boy as he finished up the last of his dinner.

"What word?" he asked, cocking a thick ebony brow crowning a deep crimson eye.

"Sorry." You took a sip of water from your glass, eyeing him jokingly.

"For what?"

"What? No, I wasn't saying that I'm sorry, I was telling you what -" Dark smirked back at you.
"Oh, good grief. You must think you're so clever, don't you? Are you proud of yourself?" You laughed as you got the stupid joke.

"Yes, I am. I am a genius, anyway - unlike you, butthead." Dark imitated in a jokingly snooty tone as he rose to wash your now empty dishes.

   You didn't know why - maybe it was the fact that this was one of the brightest moods you'd been in since the incident - but you began to laugh so hard at Dark's silliness that you snorted. You actually snorted. Your hands flew to cover your mouth, absolutely appalled by the sound that just escaped your body. Then there was only silence, and Dark slowly turned around from the washbasin to face you. Your eyes met for one second, two seconds, three, before he began chortling loudly. You tried to hold back a humored grin lest you snort once again, but soon you began chuckling right along with him. Once your sides began to hurt, the laughter died down and you handed him your glass from the table.

  Smiles still resting on your reddened faces, you both fell into a warm albeit slightly awkward silence as Dark finished washing the dishes, setting them aside to dry off. You found yourself staring at his profile, taking in the details of his face. You tried to find one thing different about him from Link besides his complexion, eyes, and hair, but you were failing. They were utterly identical. Soon, Dark, caught you eyeing him, trapping your eyes in that stunning scarlet gaze.

"Can I help you?"

"Oh, I, uh - yeah, no, I'm fine, totally." You coughed out awkwardly before regaining your composure. You took a deep breath in before speaking again. "I just wanted to say thank you for dinner and all. And for lending me your cloak earlier - that was very kind of you." You smiled gently before hurrying over to the couch before you embarrassed yourself any further. Dark jerked back to face the sink so you wouldn't see his burning red cheeks.

  As you settled down on the couch you looked down at yourself and realized you'd been wearing the same clothes for way too long. Not only that, but it had been, what, a week now since you last bathed? A quick whiff of your underarm confirmed it - you reeked.

"Hey, Dark?" You questioned a little uneasily.

"Y-Yeah?" He replied whipping around to face you again.

"Would it be alright if I maybe took a bath tonight - if it's no trouble, that is?" He blinked a few times, mouth agape before shaking his head and replying.

"Yeah, sure, whatever. Follow me." He showed you to an odd closet sequestered in the back of his hut that was tiled like a bathroom, but had no tub. You glanced around, puzzled, and saw what appeared to be a drain in the floor and some sort of spout and handle on the wall.

"This is another one of my gadgets. I call it a standing tub." He announced rather proudly. He reached into the 'standing tub' and turned the handle, so that steaming water began pouring out of the wall spout.

"Wow! This is.. incredible. Maybe you really are a genius!" You breathed, letting your hand run under the pleasantly warm water. "It's like a spring rain shower." You grinned, turning to Dark.

After admiring your stunning smile for a moment, Dark coughed and said "Well, I'll leave you to it then."

"Dark, wait." You stopped him in the doorway. "Do you maybe have some clothes that I could possibly wear to sleep? Mine are... well, you can smell them." You chuckled.

"Yeah, whatever, I'll leave something by the door for you to wear. There's soap and a towel and crap in here you can use. Might need a lot though - you smell worse than a bokoblin." He replied in a forcefully apathetic tone, before zipping around the corner to avoid the thought of you undressing.

  You'd be offended, but he wasn't wrong. Your nose curled as you caught wind of your week-old musk. You abandoned your clothes on the floor and quickly hopped into the warmth of Dark's "standing tub".

Once you were all clean, you wrapped a rough black towel around yourself and peeked carefully out of the tiny bathroom's door to find a carefully folded black tunic sitting just outside. You snatched it up and shut the door as fast as you could. You pulled the tunic on over your head and snickered at what your saw in the mirror. The shirt was huge on you - it was just a couple inches shy of your knees. That was all well and good though, you decided, since he hadn't given you any pants to go along with it. You supposed you'd have to deal with wearing dirty underwear for now.

After wrapping your hair up in the towel to dry and gathering up your dirty clothes, you ventured back out into the now darkened house, the only light available coming from the dying coals in the hearth. You shuffled along until you reached what looked like the shape of the couch and plopped down onto something that did NOT feel like a couch.

"AAAH! What the-" a very bewildered and sleepy sounding voice cried out from beneath you.

"Oh my goodness, Dark, I'm so sorry! I thought you'd be in the bed! Are you okay?" You yell-whispered, launching up from the seat, your heart slamming against your chest in shock.

"Ugh, yeah, no thanks to you." he grumbled grouchily. "The couch is... more comfortable than the bed, so you can keep the bed, butthead. Now leave me alone." He mumbled, flipping himself over and covering his head with a pillow. He fell back asleep quickly, you could tell, since he started snoring lightly not long afterwards.

You shuffled quietly over to the bed and lay down on top of the covers - it was a little too warm for a blanket right now. You found yourself staring into the dancing embers in the fireplace across the room. They were so beautiful and mesmerizing. They reminded you of Dark's smoldering eyes.

'What's wrong with me?!' You thought to yourself. 'I love Link, and Link only. I've been in love with him for as long as I can remember. This has to be the result of some kind of Stockholm Syndrome or something...' You turned your mind back to Link, your heart aching painfully. You wondered what he was doing right now. You couldn't help but wonder if you would ever see him again, or if you were bound to the Twilight Realm for the rest of your days. You sighed heavily, turning over to face the wall. 'I never got to tell him how I feel... Maybe that was for the best, you thought. You wouldn't have been able to bare it if he rejected you. And even if he had accepted your feelings, you couldn't imagine putting him through the pain of losing someone he was in love with. You closed your eyes. 'But he did try to kiss me... Maybe, just maybe, he has feelings for me too...'

You just felt as though you were drifting off when the door of the cabin was SLAMMED down. You leaped up from the bed, your __e/c__ eyes shooting wide open in terror. You felt your blood go cold as a looming figure in a familiar gleaming helmet sauntered through the now bare doorway.

"DARK, HELP!" you screamed at the top your lungs, trying to wake the sleeping warrior, but to no avail. The figure's helmet opened to reveal that sickly blue flesh and glowing yellow eyes

"Dark is dead, love" Zant cackled as he approached you slowly, a maniacal grin stretched across his face. You looked over to couch, which was now illuminated by the moonlight streaming in through the doorway and saw a sword had been plunged into Dark's chest, his lustrous eyes now cold and lifeless. You began to hyperventilate as you backed yourself into a corner.

"Oh don't be afraid now, my queen. Once I take you back to our castle, all will be well once more. Then we can finally celebrate our marriage... properly." He gave a nasty, slimy smile as he lay a large, chilly hand on your shoulder."

  You sneered at his doltish face, jerking your shoulder out of his grasp. "You will never touch me that way, you vile, perverted monster. Link is going to find me and he is going to save me, and then he's going to slaughter you where you stand."

"Ooh hoo hoo! Sassy today, are we?" Zant jeered. "However, I really don't believe Link shall be coming for you anytime soon, my love. No, he's quite preoccupied at the moment, ohohohoho!!" He snatched your wrist up in his freezing hand and held on as if his life depended on it as he continued to titter psychotically, dragging you over to the window as you punched and kicked and screamed with all your might.

"YOU'RE WRONG, ZANT! LINK IS COMING FOR ME, AND WHEN HE DOES, HE'LL KILL YOU!" You snarled, clawing at the demon's arm with your free hand.

"Now, now, my delicate forest flower, if you don't believe me, just look out and see what I see." he pointed to the window with his pale, bony blue finger. Reluctantly, you glanced through the glass and gasped. There you saw Link's hut in Ordon Village. Suddenly, Link and Ilia came stumbling in, Ilia straddling Link around the waist. Link pushed Ilia up against the wall and slammed his lips forcefully against her's, his hands wandering around her body until they found the hem of her blouse. He snaked a hand up to her chest before panting "I love you," sultrily in her ear.

"What about __f/n__? She's only been gone for a week." Ilia whispered, stopping Link's touch. He scoffed.

"That ugly little orphan? Tch, I couldn't care less about her, babe. And now that she's gone, there's no one in the way of this." He grinned darkly as leaned down began biting and sucking at Ilia's neck lustily. He struggled to take her shirt off for a moment before simply ripping it open to reveal her chest, making her laugh as he carried her off to his bedroom.

"Enough!" You screamed, tears streaming down your face. "This isn't real, this isn't real, this isn't real!" You sobbed to yourself, feeling yourself grow weak in Zant's grip.

"Oh, but I'm afraid it is, my sparkling gem! All too real! Oohohohoho!" Zant cackled.

"No, Zant. You're a LIAR!"

"Scream all you want, __f/n__, it won't change the truth. Link never has and never will love you. He will not rescue you, and no matter how far you run, I will find you." Suddenly, you saw something stirring out of the corner of your eye.

"Dark! DARK! Help me, Dark! Help!" You cried out, struggling against Zant's grip. "HELP ME!"

~Dark~

"It's okay, __f/n__, I'm here, I'm right here." Dark murmured. Your eyes flew wide open, and you were panting. A pair of ruby eyes were gazing into yours with worry.

"Dark." You breathed out, throwing yourself into his arms. "Thank the heavens you're alive." His arms wrapped tightly around you without hesitation as you gripped onto him with all your might. You instinctively buried your face in the crook of his neck, breathing in his scent as your tried to slow your racing heartbeat.

"Shhh... It's okay, you're okay. It was just a dream." Dark comforted you softly, running a battle-worn hand across your back soothingly.

"I thought Zant had killed you. He told me you were dead. He told me Link forgot about me.." The thought of Link touching her that way made your skin crawl and brought tears to your eyes.

  Dark half-chuckled at you, holding you closer. "No way he could forget you. You're, uh... You're pretty memorable." His lips were pulled down at the reminder of Link. He jeered at himself mentally - here he was, a champion of the shadows, jealous of an inferior man, and awake in the middle of the night to comfort a crying girl that he found himself irreversibly in lo - no, he wouldn't say it. How could he... L-word anybody?

The brooding warrior forgot his anger, though, when he felt your breathing slowing as he held you safely against his muscular body. After a few minutes, he gently pulled you away from himself, keeping his hands resting on your shoulders, and looked into your eyes.

"Are you okay now, __f/n__?" He asked you softly. You nodded at him, but he thought he saw doubt and fear in your eyes. "Are you absolutely sure about that?" He asked again. You hesitated a moment, before finally shaking your head. Dark thought for a moment.

"I guess I could stay here until you fall asleep again or something, if that would make you feel better."

"Oh, thank you so much, Dark." You sighed, wrapping your arms around him once again. His cheeks grew hot, and his chest felt .. warm. Was this happiness? His hand rose to massage the scar beneath his tunic. It usually ached painfully, but now it felt as if it was barely even there. What was happening to him? Whatever it was, it was scaring him.

"Yeah, yeah, okay. Just lay down already. The sooner you fall asleep, the sooner I can get back to the couch." He mumbled, pulling away from you suddenly and sitting on the hardwood floor with his legs crossed. You lay down for a few minutes quietly before raising your voice again, making Dark jump.

"Can you just get up here? I'm... I'm still scared."

"Ugh, fine, if that's what you want, your highness." He groaned, sounding irritated as usual. Irritated, though he may have sounded, he quite eagerly hopped into the bed, the sweet aroma of your freshly cleaned hair bringing a small smile to his lips. Although he had tried to give you as much space as possible in the small bed, your hands were still brushing against each other. Tentatively, he clasped your small hand in his, rubbing his thumb against your fingers. 'Oh, gods, what's happening to me?' Dark wondered to himself as you squeezed his hand appreciatively.

"Thank you, Dark. For everything." You whispered one last time. Dark listened to your slow, calm breathing to keep his mind off the confusing emotions that were warring in his mind. He couldn't keep himself separate from the sap, Link. Now he couldn't tell what were truly his own feelings and what were Link's. He looked over your resting form, watching the rhythmic rise and fall of your chest, and couldn't help but feel as if he was actually growing feelings for you, not just feeling the residual effects of... the incident. He couldn't tell.

'Who am I? Who am I?.. Who am I?..... Who.. am.. I?............ Who........ am................I?

              ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Dark's eye's opened slowly, squinting uncomfortably. It was light out now.

'The couch sure feels a lot more comfortable today.' He thought to himself, before burrowing his face back into the crook of your neck. Wait, what?

  Dark's eyes sprang open again, never-minding the daylight. His heart skipped a beat - he had accidentally fallen asleep in bed with you. You'd invited him into bed, but it definitely wasn't an invitation to stay there all night - was it? Cautiously, he looked up at your peaceful face.

'Still asleep. Good.. Din, how can she possibly be so goddamn cute?!' You looked so calm, so still. Your hair was messy and tousled from sleep. "Gah, I need to get to the couch." Dark whispered quietly. Warily, he tried to lift himself from the bed. 'Oh no.' Now he saw it - and felt it. The two of you were intertwined with each other like a French braid. 'How the hell did this even happen?!' He began to sweat nervously as he wondered how he could possibly get out of this. You had a leg thrown across his hips, and rather tightly if he did say so himself, one arm across his shoulders, the other beneath his neck, and his hand was on...

'her ASS??!?' Now he was really sweating, and his face was surely a fluorescent red by now. It took everything in his power to keep himself from giving it a good squeeze. Slowly, oh so slowly, he lifted his hand, all the while watching you to make sure he didn't wake you. Next, he went for your leg, slipping it ever so gently off of him. Then he somehow untangled himself from your arms. When you didn't wake up, he let go of a breath he didn't know he'd been holding and finally slipped off the bed.

   He began to tiptoe his way over to couch, siphoning his inner Sheikah, trying to be as stealthy as possibly when he heard you moan. "Link.."

His heart sank and his stomach churned. He was remembering his place now. He wasn't the hero, he wasn't the one who got the girl - he was nothing but a roadblock. He was about to storm out of the house to deal with his anger when he heard another moan. "Dark... Oh, Dark..." Slightly aghast, he stared at you as you began to stir around in the bed. There was a sharp inhale, then you sat up slowly and stretched, the collar of the large tunic slipping off one your shoulders. A rosy blush bloomed all the way to the tips of Dark's pointed ears as you glanced around, looking sleepy and irresistibly adorable.

"Good morning, Dark." You mumbled sleepily.

"G-good morning, __f/n__." He stuttered as you swung your legs over the edge of the bed, revealing your smooth, (__skin tone__) legs. "Did you, uh, have anymore nightmares last night?"

You smiled at him, making his stomach do back flips. "Nope. I actually was just having a pretty good one before I woke up." You chuckled shuffling into the kitchen.

"What about?" Dark asked, his blush growing deeper, coming closer to confirming his suspicions.

"O-oh, umm.. Well, I don't really remember what it was about exactly, I just remember that it was a good one." You chuckled nervously before bending over to look for some fruit in the frigid box. Dark's eyes nearly bugged out of his head as the bottom of your bum was made just visible.

"O-Okay, I know what we're doing today." He announced abruptly.

"Oh, yeah? What's that?" You asked, turning around and taking a big bite out of a green apple.

"We're gonna buy you some new clothes." He answered, clumsily excusing himself from the room.

"Uh... Okay?" You laughed, not sure what was going on, but who were you to turn down a free shopping trip?