FicWad

“Link, Sheik, what are you doing?”

Sheik was startled awake and felt the warmth of Link leave her side. He stood uneasily, and she looked up to see Tarran watching Link with a concerned eye. She stood as well and brushed herself off. Impa crouched by a fire, and Saphem still lay asleep.

“He was comforting me,” Sheik said in her most self-possessed voice. “Nothing happened between us if that’s what you’re wondering.”

Tarran blushed. “No–of–of course not.” He straightened and gave them a stern look. “I expect nothing less from you, Link.” He knelt to wake his wife, effectively bringing the conversation to an end.

Sheik turned to Link. “Thank you again for last night.” She went over to Impa and asked how to help.

The group shared a light breakfast and discussed what to do upon reaching the castle.

“There are many secret tunnels leading into the castle,” Impa said.

“What about the Master Sword?” Sheik asked.

“It’s in the Temple of Time,” Impa said. “I can get us in there, but we’ll have to be careful. It’s likely to be heavily guarded.

“We’ll have our weapons,” Tarran said, patting the sword by his side.

“Yes, but we mustn’t draw too much attention to ourselves,” Impa warned. “A stealthy approach is required.”



They continued talking as they cleaned up camp and headed out. Link wished he could change out of his pajamas, but all of their clothes burned up in the fire.

They stopped by the river to refill their waterskins. Tiny blue flowers grew everywhere along the riverbed. Link picked a bundle and shyly approached Sheik. She looked at him curiously. Hands trembling, he tucked the bundle of flowers behind her ear. She took his hand before he could pull away.

“Let’s get a move on, lovebirds,” Impa said, startling Link.

He snatched his hand back and went over to his parents. Mom smiled gently, but Dad appeared concerned.

“What do you know about this girl?” Dad asked in a heated whisper. “You only just met. Give it some time before you commit yourself.”

Mom gave Dad a playful shove. “He’s just a boy. Let him figure things out on his own.”

“I know her,” Link said, surprising them both. He went to Sheik’s side without an explanation. Almost defiantly, he laced his fingers with hers and smiled when she turned to him.

“What are you doing?” she hissed, but she didn’t pull away.

Link replied by raising her hand to his lips and kissing gently. Sheik blushed.

“Well, if that’s all you have to say…” she said and pulled him along.

They walked all day to get to the castle. The sun beat down on them, and the mud churned up from Ganondorf’s army turned to dust. Halfway there, they veered off the path to avoid being seen.

They didn’t talk much, and when they did, it was in pairs. Dad and Mom discussed with each other, and Impa spoke with Sheik. Link was left in the middle, minding his own business. That was fine with him.

To get into Castle Town, they used a secret underground tunnel. They made their way to the Temple of Time without running into any monsters or Gerudo.

Inside the temple, all was peaceful. Link forgot for a moment that there was an evil king on the throne of Hyrule. The sun streamed through the stained-glass windows, displaying vibrant patterns on the floor. The windows depicted legendary tales with stunning colors.

“The sword is in the central chamber,” Sheik said reverently. “We just need to follow the main hall, which is… where, exactly, Impa?”

“This way,” Impa said and took the lead.

But when they got to the main hall, they encountered bokoblins. The hall was filled with them. Impa pushed the others back before they were seen.

“What do we do?” Impa whispered. “This is the only way.”

Link pulled his sword out of its sheath, and Dad said, “We fight.”

Impa crossed her arms. “That’s a lot to fight.”

“They are so close together,” Dad said, “they won’t be able to fight back. We have a good chance of getting through.”

“Good point,” Impa said. “Okay. Let’s do this.”

The group readied their weapons and charged the bokoblins. Mom, having used all of her crossbow bolts already, stayed in the back of the group and fended off stragglers with her knife.

Dad was right. The bokoblins had no room to maneuver, so they were easily hewn down. Still, there were a lot of them, so the battle took a while.

Finally, the last bokoblin went down. Link’s first thought was for Sheik. He spun around to find her wiping her blades clean. She was fine, thank goodness. He quickly cleaned his sword and sheathed it, then wrapped her in a tight hug.

“What…?” Sheik said. She hugged him back. “I’m okay,” she murmured. “Let’s get the Master Sword.”

Impa led the way into the central chamber. Link held Sheik’s hand as they entered. All was clear, and Link took a good look at the three stained-glass windows at the far end of the room. One showed a boar-like demon in red. The one in the center illustrated Princess Zelda wearing blue. And the last one showcased a hero clad in green. His spine tingled at the sight.

Below the brilliant display, the Master Sword rested in a simple stone pedestal. The chamber was so large that the sword seemed tiny in comparison. But something large emanated from the sword. Link was drawn to it. His hand slipped from Sheik’s, and he walked up to the sword. He reached out to the sword but hesitated.

“Go on,” Sheik whispered.

Link grasped the hilt of the Master Sword and felt… something. He wasn’t quite sure what. Familiarity, maybe? Yeah. The Master Sword felt familiar in his grip. He pulled the sword out of its resting place and gave it an experimental twist. It was as if he had been using this particular sword all his life. This was his sword.

Mom clapped and jumped. “It’s true! You’re the Chosen Hero! I’m so proud of you, baby.”

Link took his old sword out of its sheath and put the Master Sword in its place. It fit perfectly.

“I knew it,” Sheik said quietly as she walked up to him. She took his hand, and he kissed hers. “Now, on to the real battle.”

“We should rest here,” Impa said. “I’ll take the first watch.”