Love-Hate [COMPLETE]

Chapter Twenty-Four

"You can't die just yet, silly! You have to save Hyrule! Listen, as soon as I can, I'll help you and him out... I promise. I haven't fully awakened yet... But trust me, I'll be by your side soon. I hope my weak magic that I sent to you saved you... I love you, Zelda."

I gasped.

"Oh, Zelda!"

I felt him wrap his arms around me. He squeezed me tightly, showing no signs of letting go anytime soon.

Link...

I buried my face in his neck. "Link..." I breathed softly. "What happened...?"

"Has the girl awoken?"

I peeked out from Link's body. "Ilia?"

Ilia ran over to the bed I was laying on. "Oh, thank the goddesses! I'm so glad you're alright! I'll go let my father know!"

And with those words, she left.

"What happened...?" I asked warily, holding my head.

"The bridge snapped," Link reminded me. He sat across from me on the bed I laid on. I sat up. "Three monsters had cut the ropes, causing you to crash against the wall of the gorge. You broke your ankle, and the monsters also shot an arrow through your calf."

I looked down at my right leg. My ankle had been wrapped up entirely, and my calf was the same. I sniffed, wanting to cry. This couldn't be happening, I stopped myself from screaming.

"Something happened, though..." Link said softly, looking at my leg.

"What?" I asked.

"You see, there's no way you made it up to the other side without help..." Link began, pressing his hand against his mouth, leaning on his arm. "Someone must have helped you, because there was an arrow far below the top of the bridge. If the monster was able to pierce your calf easily, they must have been able to shoot you through your back. This means someone who possesses magic saved you..."

I looked around, my thoughts trailing off. I was in a small house with paintings and pictures everywhere. I stood up off of the bed, my legs shaking. Link shook his head quickly. "Wait, Zel-!"

Remembering what had happened, I fell to the ground, unable to stand. "Agh!" I cried out. Link caught me halfway through my fall. He slowly helped me back onto the bed. I didn't feel any pain at the moment, but I knew, as soon as I stood, the pain would come surging through my body once more.

I hit my right leg, softly at first, then harder. "No, no, no!" I felt like I was going to cry. I had promised myself not to cry, but this time I couldn't help it. I ruined the mission Link and I were on. We couldn't go looking for Link's weapon if I couldn't walk! "Why am I so weak?!" I screamed. "How? Why? Now we won't be able to save Hyrule, all because of my stupid actions!"

"Woah, slow down there, Zelda!" Link grabbed my hands, holding them away from my leg. I looked away from him, avoiding eye contact. I felt terrible. He gently squeezed my fists. "Listen to me! You aren't weak! You saved Colin's life! You were willing to throw your own life away to save a little boy you had just met!" He paused, smiling. Tears formed at his eyes. "If that's not strong, I don't know what is!"

I hiccuped. "But I was so scared, that I didn't m-move, I could have ran across the bridge before it fell but I was paralyzed in fear...!"