New Horizons - A Skyward Sword Aftermath Story

Chapter 33 - Strangest Sidekick

After what must've been forever, Groose finally started to awaken. Just as he regained consciousness, he was met with the worst headache he ever had in his life. His leg throbbed where he had been hit, and was incredibly tender to touch.
From his blurred vision, he could make out that a window was in front of him, the golden daylight shining down on him.

All of a sudden, a dark figure appeared before him, casting a shadow on him. A few moments later, his vision cleared. Something was in front of his face.

With a pained grunt, he propped himself up on his elbows.
"Ugh... Where am... I?"
Blinking, he realised what the strange object was in front of him. It was a freshly-sharpened arrow, hardly more than two inches away from his face. And at the other end was a masked figure with a large bow, the string fully extended and ready to fire.
"AHHHHHHHHHHH!" Groose screamed, covering his face cowardly. "PLEASE! DON'T KILL ME!"

The mysterious figure took half a step back, and relaxed her grip on the bow.
"Oh, so you DO speak the same language! You just can't read!"
"Excuse me?!"
The other pointed to the window.
"The signs?! The millions of signs I have outside that CLEARLY state 'DO NOT ENTER'?"

The boy furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to focus his poor vision. This person was much smaller than he had initially thought. They were garbed in all black, and a large hood with a long cape trailing down their back. They had dark, golden skin, and atop their head sat the most ridiculous spiked red hair he had ever seen: half slicked into a vertical ponytail, half down and curling outwards past their shoulders, sparing a shaggy side bang that draped down the right side of their face. Their serious amber eyes were bright like a glowing flame.

"...I did see those signs."
"Oh, so then you're just stupid."
"Hey! I had no other choice, okay! I got lost in the sandstorm and-"
"And now you're here bothering me instead."
"I NEARLY DIED OUT THERE!" Screeched the other. "DO YA NOT CARE ABOUT THAT?!"
The stranger pulled away her arrow and began fiddling with it's tip.
"Not particularly, no."

Groose scoffed in disbelief. Just as he sat up to get ready to leave, the masked figure suddenly readied her bow once again.
"You move any further and I'll put one right in-between your eyes!"
"Alright! Alright!" He cried, holding his hands up. "Just please lower that thing!"
Hesitantly, the other obliged.
"I'm lookin' for my friends. We got parted in the sandstorm and I was wonderin' if ya may have seen them. Pretty blonde girl, slightly taller guy, stupid hair, dressed entirely in green, kind of looks like a hydromelon?"
"You're one to talk about stupid hair..." mumbled the stranger. Groose went to argue back, considering it was ironic for them to comment. However, this person was crazy, and more worringly, armed. He huffed instead.

"Listen," he started. From the tone in his voice and his fearful eyes, it was obvious that he was desperate.
"I hate to cause ya any trouble, but my friends are out there in that storm. If I go back out there, I'll be meat for the keese. I just really need ya help to find them, and then I'll be out of ya way, forever."
The stranger blinked, completely unbothered.
"If they got lost out there, they're probably already dead."
"They won't be."
"How can you be so sure? My people are some of the best warriors the world has ever seen, and some of them still have yet to return. It's been months."
Groose looked down.
"They're just... different."
There was a brief pause.
"Why should I help you?" Spat the other.
"Because... I-I'll do anythin' ya want!"

The masked person rested their bow and arrow against the wall next to them, and gestured for Groose to get up. Upon standing, he was actually surprised by how little the other was. With the tall hair included, their height barely made it to the boy's shoulder. He observed the contrast between their extremely petite frame and tiny waist, and their well-defined muscles, especially the abs. It actually made him feel a tiny bit envious.