𝐊𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐈𝐍 𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐀𝐑𝐌𝐎𝐑- a zelink fanfic

grey

(Ignore the fact that she has long hair in the art lol but I wanted to put the haircut there as a sign of character change, especially before she protects and saves Link. I thought it made a very dynamic duo, the Attacker and the Protector, ya know? Zelda realized she was more of the protecc type rather than the attacc like Link :) Also, this one gets a wee bit dark, but only a little so if you don't like that I'm really sorry! I would normally say skip to the next chapter but that would cause MAJOR plot holes)

Zelda had leaped up when she heard Link scream out in pain, and had jumped in front of him to protect him. 

Link opened his eyes, surprised to feel no pain at all. But soon, he felt a strange pain in his heart, watching Zelda's blood gush out of her arm. Link swallowed a hoarse lump in his throat and slashed the Bokoblin as it turned into a cloud of dust. Zelda looked at Link, clutching her bloodied arm. She removed her hand and looked at it. It was covered in blood. Her emerald eyes turned a lifeless grey and she smiled.

"Link..." She whispered, before beginning to fall. Link ran to her and caught her, bridal carrying the unconscious princess. He felt a tear drip down his cheek as he looked at the princess, arms limp and head hanging back. He used his panic and heartache to think of a logical solution. He turned to the horrified Teba and Sidon in the tent, who were frozen with shock and fear. Link gave them orders with a shaky voice.

"The Bokoblins know we're here. Take these-" Link ran behind the tent, grabbed two Traveler's Swords, and tossed them to the two new Champions. "I know you're not as experienced as I am, but I'll be back soon and they should be easy to handle." Link said, gulping. He spoke to himself. "Come on... Gerudo Town is closest. Get a hold of yourself." Link said, running over to his horse, placing Zelda on it, and sitting behind her, one hand clutching her torso and the other the horse's reins, leaving behind a terrified and very confused Teba and Sidon. Epona neighed, knowing there was trouble as she began to gallop, using every last bit of her stamina to get help for Zelda.

It was only 10 minutes, with the skilled steering of Link and extraordinary speed of Epona, the journey from the outside of the Great Plateau to Gerudo Town was a breeze. Link had used the blanket he had made for Zelda back at Rito Village to wrapped her wound up tight. Zelda was going in and out of consciousness. Surprisingly, she didn't feel much pain in her arm, just a lot of aching and everything was spinning. Her eyelids fluttered and she felt Link's pounding heartbeat up against her. His breathing was uneven, his blue eyes shining. Although her memory and consciousness were spotty, she would get small fragments of what was happening around her. 

She heard Epona neigh and lay down, as the heat was getting to be too much for her. Link shook his head and begged Epona to keep moving. "Epona, please!" Epona shook her head. She had tried her hardest, but could not go on. Link gave in and picked Zelda up bridal style, telling Epona to get back to the camp. Link had a mile left. 

He dragged on, teeth clenched and forcing himself to keep moving. He grunted in the extreme heat, his throat parched and his face and hair drenched in sweat. He let out a small whimper, and Zelda felt her heart shatter. Zelda opened her eyes and Link forced a smile. "Heyyy, Zel! You're gonna be okay, okay? Just don't close your eyes! No, Zel please-!" Link sniffed as he begged Zelda to keep her eyes open, one hand on her cheek. Tears silently rolled down his cheeks, only yards away from the gate of Gerudo Town. Suddenly, a firey cloud started to appear in front of Link, and Zelda heard cackling. Link's heartbeat grew faster and his breathing quickened. "No, no, please! Not now! No!" Link cried as a Yiga Blademaster appeared in front of him. Link ran as fast as he could and placed Zelda behind a rock, only a yard from the gate. "If I get hurt, crawl to help, okay?! Forget about me. I lo-" Link was cut off as the Blademaster grabbed his shirt from behind and swung him around to face him. Link nearly growled in anger.