Of Royal Blood - The Legend Of Zelda

[x] So, what happened? Who would do that to you, and why?

Sheik doesn't respond for some time, but before you can ask her something else she says, "I think... they belonged to the Yiga tribe, but it's all a blur. One moment I was on my horse trying to find some shelter and the next my horse just... went limp with an arrow in its head."

The lump moves, and you can make out the outline of her head. She continued her voice barely above a whisper, "As it fell I just... acted on instinct I guess. Jumped off and started running, didn't know where I was going or look back. I...I supposed if I did I'd probably be dead, arrows kept flying through the air around me. I just kept running until I saw a cliff."

You see a hand run nervously through her hair, her voice becoming increasingly strained as she talked. "I thought if I climb down it I'd be safe. I-I could hide under a rock or dive into the water to be carried downstream." You could see both hands grabbing the sides of her head and you get up out of your seat. "Then my whole back hurt suddenly, I-I couldn't understand why at the time but it must have been the arrows... I don't... I don't remember it. I think I turned as I saw them in the tree's. Wearing that Yiga tribe symbol as a mask. They raised their bow and then.... I remember falling, m-my chest hurting and then.... nothing."

You couldn't see it but you knew her nails were digging into her temples, and the next thing Sheik said was steeped in disbelief. "They shot me... they shot me..."

You clasp Sheik's shoulder through the blanket. "It's alright, no one's going to hurt you here."

You don't expect her to shrug you off her however, as she suddenly shouts, "I'm fine!"

"I'm fine..." She repeats, much more quietly. "Sorry, I... thank you for your concern Link, I appreciate it. Is there anything else you wanted to ask me?"

You rub the back of your head, unsure of whether it'd be a good idea to ask if she was really fine. Either way, you do notice she didn't mention why the Yiga tribe attacked her, but you've got a fair idea what the reason is.

[x] Any acquaintances, friends? Anyone at all who would like to know you're alive?

"Eh? What do you mean?" She asks, sounding genuinely confused. "Like if I was traveling with someone? No, I was alone."

"Though Impa and Paya must be pretty worried...." She mutters to herself, sounding oddly remorseful.

"Impa and Paya?" Why does the name Impa sound vaguely familiar to you...

"Ah! They're um... family..." Sheik says quietly, her covered head sinking slightly. Whoever these two people were, they must mean a lot to her.

[x] What do you plan to do next? Once you recover, I mean?

"Give up hunting and go home..."

You actually recoil a bit from that, there was so much unexpected bitterness in that sentence you almost didn't notice she'd dropped the fake accent for now.

"What do you mean? Are you an adventurer?"

"I am a scholar and teacher," Sheik says with pride, sitting up straight. "Well... not officially recognized ones but that doesn't matter! What matters is I pursue knowledge, no matter the danger!! Just like Auntie Purah and Kora Droft!"

Kora Droft? Hold on, haven't you seen that name before? Somewhere fictional?

"But my first big dig never even got started..." Sheik says sullenly. "I thought... with the data fragment I had a lead to a Sheikah shrine that'd lead to others, even got directions for it."

The lump lies down, back to you. "All those directions did was get me lost, which means it was probably from..."

You grimace. The assassin was probably the one who gave her those directions. But wait, Sheikah shrine?

"I know where it is." You inform her.

Sheik shoots up, only quick reflexes catching the blanket.

"REALLY?!" She asks, and you swear you could see stars in her eyes.

"Uhm, yes but-"

"Yes yes yes yes YES!" She exclaims, practically bouncing on the spot. "Oh we need to go there now- No wait I need to prepare! How fast will this leg heal?! Oh I can already imagine the things we'll learn!! What if there's a garbage disposal oh I'm so excit-"

"Whoa whoa whoa!" You say, holding up your hands. She pauses, frozen in a state of pure joy. "That shrine is filled with monsters and you're in no condition to go anywhere."

It's... rather soul-crushing to watch Sheik deflate that quickly, like an Octorok that's been shot with an arrow.

"Oh..." She mumbles, and then she inexplicably brightens up. She looks at you with wide red eyes. "You're a warrior, right!? Those Bokoblin teeth and horns were all collected by you, right?! You can-!!"

"I'm not going into that place alone." You state rather firmly. She wasn't going to stay behind, was she?

She pouts, apparently finding the entire implied suggestions to be incredibly offensive. "I was going to say accompany me."

"Oh... Sorry." Something about this feels... different for some reason. "But it's still incredibly dangerous, what's more there's no way into the shrine proper. It's completely sealed."

She smiles under the bandages, holding up her Sheikah Slate. "But I have the key. Besides, I can look after myself."

You fold your hands over your chest. "You nearly died already, and I have no idea if you can hold your own in a fight. Have you ever even been in a fight before?"

She deflates slightly. "Well... no, but I-"

You sigh, shaking your head. "I'm sorry, but I can't let someone just throw themselves into a den of monsters."

She seems to bite her tongue, a look of pure frustration on her face. You rub the back of your head, looking away. You actually feel kinda bad, she seemed to really want to go there.

"There's treasure." She states, and you turn back around. Sheik was glancing at you with a sly look in her eyes, her lips curled into a smirk.

"What?"

"Rupees, gems. The Sheikah would use gemstones and rupees in their magic and craftmanship, using the shrines as storage space in times of need. Auntie sells them to fund her expeditions."

You raise an eyebrow. "Why do you think I'd be interested in treasure?"

You struggle to hold in your laughter as her expression changes to one of pure shock. "What? B-but it's... why wouldn't you-" She sputters, you aren't sure if she was pinning her hopes on that or whether she viewed hunting for treasure a quintessential part of the adventurer-scholars experience.

You hold up a hand to cut her off. "Alright, alright. I'll go."

She brightens up immediately. "Thankyouthankyou-"

"On two conditions."

She immediately deflates.

"One," You say, raising a finger. "You need to be fully healed, I'm not letting you go anywhere with those injuries."

She looks relieved, "Of course, I'm not-"

"Second, you need to prove to me you can fight, or at least shoot a bow."

She looks at you for a second, and for a moment you think she's going to go back to sulking but instead, she just grins. "That all? Ha! You're looking at the best shot in Kakariko Village!"

"Kakariko...?"

"Forget you heard that. Eeeeeeeeeeeeeeeh, I'm actually going to go into a Sheikah Shrine!" She squeals, falling back holding her blankets up to her chin, voluminous blonde hair flowing out around her.

This girl-

A low growl reaches your ears. You recognize it immediately, it was the sound of a starving beast, one who'd be willing to devour anything they could sink their teeth in. There was nothing more dangerous, more cruel than the hunger in that creature's voice.

Sheik is beet red.

Shaking your head you gather up your bow and fishing pole. "I'll get something to eat. You good to be on your own for a bit?"

Sheik nods. "Ah, um yes. I think I'll be fine."

You nod, then leave your treehouse. For the second time today you make your way to the river, but not in the mood to leisurely fish you end up tying your fishing line to an arrow and wait patiently on the bank, staring down the shaft at the muddy waters surface, overflowing with rain water.

An almost imperceptible flash of movement and you release the string, rewarded a second later with a flurry of frenzied splashing. Drawing in the line you pull a Hylian Bass from the water, the arrow cleanly through its side. You quickly stab the fish in the head, killing it instantly. Pulling out a cloth you lay it out on the ground and quickly get to work filleting the fish. Once finished you toss what was left into the river, clean your knife off and wrap up the fillets.

On your way back you notice several Stamella mushrooms, and you stop to pick up the green mushrooms. Now with a decent bundle of incredients you make your way back to your Treehouse, taking the time to stop and fill up some waterskins you had hanged up next to the rain catcher.

When you finally step into your home you notice that Sheik had gotten dressed in the clothes you had set out for her and was braiding her long blonde hair, her Sheikah Slate set out on the pillow beside her.

She looks up as you enter, eying what you have. "Fish and... mushrooms?" She asks, resting her hand against her lips in a thoughtful pose. "Ah, Stamella Shrooms! They contain unique nutrients that when cooked and consumed gives a great boost of energy!"

You set the ingredients down on the table, pulling out the last of your salt, Hylian herbs and possibly the most expensive to obtain ingredient: Olive Oil. "Huh, not many people know that."

"I would be a terrible scholar if I didn't know such things." Sheik states with far too much pride.

You shake your head, setting out your pan and wooden plates. Drawing your dagger you get to cutting up the fillet, mushrooms and herbs before prepping the pan. Soon the treehouse is filled with the smell of olive oil and fish, and you can't help but feel excited to taste it, forcing yourself through sheer strength of will to not start drooling. You remember the last time you were in the village a merchant was shocked at how you were practically leaning over the counter for your vegetable stew, thinking you were starving while the locals just laughed at the misunderstanding.

Sheik seemed to have far more control over herself, seemingly completely ignoring the food. In fact, her gaze was completely on the dagger you were using, eyes wide and mouth slightly ajar in an expression of shock.

She doesn't say anything though, keeping silent until you hand Sheik her plate; Sliced pan-cooked bass with a side of mushrooms and herbs.

"Here, don't have any cutlery, " You say as you pass her a wooden skewer, "I know this isn't much, but it'll help you get your strength back."

She blinks, staring down at the food and to your relief looking really appreciative. "Thank you, but um... could I have another skewer?"

You raise an eyebrow but don't say anything, instead passing her one.

"Thank you." She says, before to your surprise she puts her hands together in front of her.

"I humbly give my thanks for this meal." Sheik intones, before to your surprise using the skewers as some sort of grasping instrument to pick up a piece of fish and put it in her mouth. Her eyes go wide as she chews for a moment before swallowing.

"This is... really good." She says, looking up at you. "Is this really just Bass- What?"

You're suddenly aware that you're staring at her. "Sorry, but... I've never seen skewers used that way. It's... new."

She tilts her head, an eyebrow raised as her face bore a puzzled expression. "You've never seen someone use chopsticks before?"

You shake your head, quickly popping a mushroom into your mouth and swallowing it. Hmm, could have done better. "Is that a Sheikah thing?"

"Ye- I mean I wouldn't know." Sheik says quickly after catching herself. Geez, she's really bad at this and she's doing the accent again.

As you were both starving the conversation quickly dies as you both dig in, the food vanishing in moments. As you both set your plates down someone speaks up...

[] Sheik asks why you have a Royal Dagger.
[] You ask about the Sheikah slate.
[] You both ask about the plan for tomorrow.
[] Write-in.