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+Gentle Rain+
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"How should we tell him?"
"Do we have to tell him at all?"
"Of course we do. He'll just find out anyway..."
"He really loves you..."
Zelda and Eseau lay in bed together, gently clasping each other. Zelda sighed and stirred a little. It was a dark, early winter night, cold and moonless, providing almost an omen that there would be many nights like these to come.
"It's not our fault," Eseau said finally. "We thought he was dead..."
"Don't worry. We'll get through it somehow."
"I hope so..."
Zelda gently pulled herself away from her partner, and rolled over on top of him. She stared into his eyes for a moment or two then brought her lips down to his...





"It's pretty challenging..."
"I'll try it anyways..."
"Alright. Get on the horse and get ready."
Malon watched as Link galloped around the corral, jumping over the numerous fences. With superb control, he quickly leaped each one, while conserving the horse's energy. As he neared a particularly tall fence, he started to stall a bit, then, with a sudden burst of speed, leaped over it perfectly.
Malon was impressed. At this point, he might just beat her record. He and Epona were a perfect team. This was strange, as Epona was such a wild horse, that it seemed almost impossible to tame her. It was clear that Link had skill on horseback to rival her own.
"Augg!"
Maybe not.
Malon walked over to Link and squatted down, gently nudging his shoulder. Link didn't respond. He was laying stomach down, with his arm bent in strange fashions... Malon nudged him again a bit harder, and he finally rolled over and opened his eyes.
"There's something different about you..."
Malon jumped back a bit in surprise... Link was catching on to her that quickly? Was it really that obvious that her life was completely miserable?
She looked at him for a moment before getting up and walking away.
"I think you should leave now," she said as she glanced behind her.
Link sat up looking stupefied.






Malon leaned out the window and held her arm out to the tree. All she had to do was reach just a little... bit... and it would be ready.
She couldn't believe the way she had acted in front of Link. Why should she pretend everything was all right? It wasn't. He disappears for two years, then comes back and expects to make perfect amends? He didn't even tell he where he went for God's sake! Malon gritted her teeth in anger as she... reached... there! She hung the rope. Now she just needed to tie the knot around the branch... there. She leaned back into the window and took a deep breath. She sat down on the bed, untied her bandana and took off her boots, then looped the other end of the rope around her neck.
She opened the window, and sat down on the windowpane. Then, she took a deep breath, then pushed herself off.
Malon gave a short scream as she fell, but she was cut short as the rope tightened.
Her eyes bugged out as she grabbed for her neck. She tugged at it, trying desperately to loosen it, immediately regretting what she did. A short groan escaped from her throat as her eyes winced in pain from the rope cutting into her. She kicked her legs around as tears dripped down her eyes... she couldn't breathe, and she could feel her head seeming to compress...
She desperately gasped for air... but to no avail... she didn't make a sound... she couldn't... her eyes slowly closed as she felt an odd chill pass over her... Her legs went limp, her grip on the rope around her neck weakened... and shoulders relaxed and slouched over...
But suddenly, she heard a loud snapping sound, and she could breath again, but she could feel herself falling... She gasped for air, and screamed as she smacked against the ground with a sickening crack.
She groaned in pain and tried to move her arm... she could, but it hurt, and she could only budge it a little bit. She looked to her right, and saw the tree branch she had been hanging from... She look up at the tree and realized that the branch had snapped under her weight...
Damnit! She was still alive, and now she had this on her record. What would her daddy think if he found out? But he wouldn't, she would simply keep to herself for a while and lick her wounds.
Malon slowly tried to pick herself up, and limped over to the door, leaning against the wall for support.





"Link, we've got a problem!"
Eseau, along with another guard, stood in Link's doorway.
"There's been a dead body found in the river."
Link leaned back in his chair, with his feet propped up on table, as usual. It was like his own little position, almost like a meditative state. He stared up at the ceiling.
"Any idea who it is?" he asked dully...
"Not... really," Eseau replied. "The lady that found him says that he lives in town, but she didn't know his name."
"What part of the river is he in?"
"Just outside the castle moat. The filter caught him."
"We've gotten him out, right?"
"I think so."
The third man finally said something.
"I heard that it's a real young guy. They say that he's got internal bleeding, you know, blood coming out of his mouth and nose... but there's not a wound anywhere on him."
"I guess it's worth a look."
Link got out of his chair and walked out the door, followed by Eseau and the guard.
"It sounds like he's been poisoned."
The guard ran up beside Link.
"Poisoned? As in somebody poisoned him?"
"Your fascinated by this, aren't you?" Link asked dully. The guard stopped in his tracks.
"Who is this guy anyways?"
Eseau shrugged.
"Dunno. He just started following me."
Another guard opened the castle gates for them, only giving a slight nod of acknowledgement. They continued up the trail, until finally crossing the drawbridge into Hyrule Castle.
The main entrance of the Castle was a long hallway, with large red draperies hanging from the stone walls. Guards stood everywhere, along with the occasional statue, as the hall continued into the shadows.
Link however, took a turn to the side and forcefully opened a heavy metal door, which squeaked loudly.
They were now in a dark room with a solitary table in the middle, and on it lay a young man, with short dark, hair, neatly framing his face. He wore normal peasant clothes, which were soaked and bloody. A single Zora holding a small bag stood hunched over him.
"What we've got here is a suicide," the Zora said, in a tone that might have sounded grim if it weren't for his thick Zora accent.
"We've identified him. His name is Felix. We spoke to some of his family and friends. They all said that he seemed happy enough. But there was one guy who mentioned his involvement with a woman named Malon."
Link raised an eyebrow in shock.
"I know this woman personally," Link said. "Should I question her?"
"No," the Zora said. "Since it was a suicide, there's no kind of investigation."
"Oh... alright then..."
There were a few moments of silence.
"Then if I'm not needed, I'm going home."
"Very well then."
Link looked around him and realized that both Eseau and the guard were gone. So, he started off for his home in the back alleys alone, carefully pondering what had happened that day.