FicWad

Sheik and Impa followed the path of destruction left by King Ganondorf’s army. The ground had been trampled until only mud remained. Any trees that got in their way were torn down or burned. For miles, they could see the smoke coming from the village they sought.

The sun was setting as they arrived. Twilight illuminated the remains of smoldering buildings. The flames had died out long ago, but smoke still penetrated the sky.

They searched several houses, but only found bodies. No one was left alive. The only spot of hope was that there weren’t enough bodies to account for the size of the village. That meant a good portion of the villagers escaped. The question now was, where did they flee?

“Impa, look.” Sheik came across a bokoblin's body slain by an arrow.

“There’s another,” Impa said, pointing.

They followed a trail of bokoblins killed by arrows or swords, which led to the edge of town. There, they found a whole battlefield that stank of rotting flesh.

“What happened here?” Impa wondered, holding her nose.

Sheik held her nose also. She looked around and caught sight of people at the tree line. They seemed unconscious. “There!” Without waiting for Impa, Sheik went to the three tied to the trees, carefully picking her way through the bodies of bokoblins. Impa followed but kept her eye out for danger.

The one on the right was a woman, and the one on the left was a man. They both had blond hair, and so did the one in the middle. All three wore pajamas in shades of green.

Sheik made it to the one in the middle and knelt beside him. She lifted his chin to get a better look. Soot covered his face except for tear tracks. Despite that, something about this boy her age made her heart flutter. She stared at him for a moment, trying to understand this thrill. Surely she wasn’t in love with him. Was she?

Shaking her head, Sheik felt for a pulse. He was alive, at least. She took her handkerchief, got it wet with water from her waterskin, and started wiping the soot away. The boy’s eyes twitched and flew open. Sheik stared into the most gorgeous blue eyes she had ever seen, and he stared back. Time stood still.

“This one’s alive,” Impa said, shattering the moment.

Sheik swallowed, her mouth suddenly dry. She sprang back, falling in the mud. The boy stared at her with his mouth hanging open.

“Um, this one, too,” Sheik said. To the boy, she asked, “What’s your name?”

A slow blush crawled up the boy’s face. His eyes darted away from hers, and his breathing quickened. She wondered what could make him so nervous when he muttered, “Link.”

Sheik gasped. That was the name of the heroes of legend! Could he be…? No, no time for thoughts of fancy. He might be using a fake name, just like her. She recovered quickly.

“Well, Link, I’m Sheik,” she said. “I’m here to help.” She moved behind the boy and examined the ropes binding him. His wrists were rubbed raw, and she winced in sympathy. She tried pulling at the ropes, but they wouldn’t budge.

“Tarran!” came a woman’s voice. Sheik looked around to see the woman Impa was checking on. “Is Tarran okay? Link! Are you okay?”

The boy nodded. So his name really was Link. Interesting. Sheik put the thoughts aside and went to the man. The noise had startled him awake. He looked up at Sheik with hopeful eyes that matched the boy’s.

“Have you come to rescue us?” the man, Tarran, asked.

“Yes,” Sheik said. She pulled out a knife and sawed at the man’s ropes.

“Oh, Tarran, Link!” the woman sobbed. Impa worked on her ropes.

“It’s alright, Saphem,” Tarran said gently. “We’ll be free soon.”

And he was. The rope finally broke, and he soothed his bloody wrists. Sheik moved on to Link.

“Do you have water?” Tarran asked, standing. When Saphem was freed, she hugged him tightly. Her wrists weren’t as badly damaged. “We’ve been stuck here for over a day.”

“Of course,” Impa said and handed over her waterskin. Tarran motioned for Saphem to take it first. She drank a small amount and gave it to Tarran.

By then, Sheik had cut through Link’s ropes. He gingerly touched his right wrist with his left hand. Sheik proffered her waterskin. Their hands touched, making her fingers tingle, but only for a second. Then he drank politely and returned the waterskin, careful not to touch Sheik again.

“Thank you,” Tarran said. “How did you find us?”

“We came to the village seeking survivors,” Impa said. “We followed a trail of bokoblin bodies. What happened here?”

Tarran’s face darkened. “King Ganondorf and his army happened. We were the only ones with enough courage to fight back.”

“Tell me,” Saphem said shakily, “did you find anyone else?”

“No, I’m sorry,” Impa said. “But know this: evidence suggests many fled the village and are still alive… somewhere.”

“Oh, good,” Saphem sighed.

“Do you know where they would have gone?” Impa asked.

“They could be anywhere,” Saphem said sadly.

“Then we fight alone,” Impa said. “That is, if you’re willing to join us?”

Tarran and Saphem held a silent conference, and then he nodded and said, “We would be honored.”



When Link first saw Sheik, she looked like a fairy bathed in glowing light. Her brilliant blue eyes drew him in, stole the breath from his lungs, and set his heart pounding. He had never seen anyone so beautiful, even though half her face was covered up. He couldn’t keep his eyes or mind off her during the conversation.

Now, she pulled him away from the adults to talk in private. She looked as nervous as he felt. He tried to keep from hyperventilating.

“This is going to sound strange,” Sheik said. Her voice was like music in Link’s ears. She wouldn’t meet his eye and instead looked at the ground between them.

Should he kiss her? That would be too forward, wouldn’t it? No, he couldn’t kiss her. Not yet. He should listen to what she had to say. She was taking forever to say it, though. And he thought he had problems with speaking. No, that wasn’t fair. She was just–

“I feel like I know you,” Sheik said, looking him in the eye just for a moment. “I don’t know how. I know this sounds crazy. We only just met, and yet…” She peeked up at him from under her eyelashes. “Please tell me I’m not the only one,” she finished in a near whisper.

Now, could he kiss her? No, he should say something. But what? Speaking was so hard, especially now!

“I feel it too,” Link managed. “There is something… deep in my soul.”

Sheik sighed and practically collapsed into his arms. Now, what was he supposed to do? His heart took over, and he lowered his lips to her forehead. She shivered in his arms. Wait, was she okay? Was she cold? It was getting cold now that the sun had gone down. He didn’t have a jacket to give her; he was still in his pajamas. He settled for holding her tighter.