Damn it. This was just meant to be a simple little job. Exterminating a pest. Now he knew why no one else had bothered to take it up. That thing he saw, that wasn’t just some pesky critter who wandered a bit too close. That was a monster with a cunning mind, it knew what it was doing. Which was all the more reason he was beginning to believe this was a set up. It’s a smart plan, burn down all the evidence and the body too. A natural disaster, who could have seen it coming? These things happen.
The sound of something barely registered over the roar of the fire. Certainly not enough to make him open his eyes and let them be victim to the thickening smoke. It’s hard enough to just lift his arm in vain attempts to keep from inhalation- something he had now given up on. He can’t move. What’s he supposed to do? Wait it out? Hope the fire didn’t come any closer? Yeah right. The sooner he can breathe the miasma in, maybe the sooner this will be over with-
A sudden feeling of weightlessness however was enough to earn his attention.
A choked gurgle was all he could manage in his surprise before falling into a fit of coughs. The chaos of it all distorted any sense of time, or distance, once again being caught off guard at the feeling of water against his skin, soothing the burns that had begun to develop along his leg. It took a moment for him to register what had just been said, senses overwhelmed with the heat and contrasting coolness of the lake.
“Uh, y-yeah, I think so.”
Questions can be left for later. Using the water to the best of his ability, even if any movement of his leg made him want to scream out in pain, he managed to swim haphazardly around and wrapped arms around the other in a shaky but stable hold.
“Okay, I think- I think we’re good. Fuck, that fire moves fast-”
He sure hoped the other man knew where to go from here.
But, it’s not like he had any choice but to trust in him.
Had time not been of the essence, Link would have been far gentler with the other man. His one leg was quite injured, and the Hylian didn’t doubt that it was causing him a considerable amount of pain. The stranger would be worse off if that fire caught up with them, however, and Link could make it up to the wounded man once they were safe.
The hero waited patiently for the redhead to hook his arms around his shoulders and it was only after the stranger confirmed that he was secure that Link pushed off, using his arms to pull the two of them through the water. He’d always been a strong swimmer, a fact for which the Hylian was thankful, in this case - supporting an additional body would have been impossible otherwise, and likely would have resulted in a watery grave for the both of them.
Link’s intended destination was an island nestled further out in the lake, where the fire would be unable to reach them. It was no short trip and even with his impressive strength, the hero felt his limbs beginning to tire from the effort that it took to carry both of them through the water. The chainmail that he wore beneath his tunic wasn’t exactly buoyant either. It was stubborn determination that kept him going, however, with the Hylian ignoring the few times that he accidentally swallowed water when he meant to take in air.
Reaching dry land was a relief, to say the least. Dragging them both up onto the small island’s shore, Link heard himself cough a few times and felt his muscles aching with exhaustion. They were safe though - as far out as they were, the fire wouldn’t reach them. They would have to wait until the blaze subsided, but…
Well, at least Link knew how to fish.
“Y-Y-Y-- Y-Y-Your l-l-leg-g-g,” he managed between gasps as he, carefully, allowed the stranger to slip from his back and onto the sand. Despite his own fatigue, his immediate concern was getting a look at the injury, though his hands paused above the leg in question, blue eyes lifting as if to ask the redhead permission to touch.
“Is it b-b-b-- b-b-brok-ken-n? M-M-Ma-- M-May I l-look-k-k at it-t-t?”
