Forevermore: Link X Reader X Dark Link P12

You made your way to the dining room, eyeing the few stalfos that darted about, bringing plates and platters to and from the kitchen.
How would it be possible to tell the difference between the skeletal people? They all looked the same to you: bones and armor. A better question: how would you be able to tell which stalfos were in the R.A.G. ? As if managing a rebellion army against Ganondorf in his own castle wasn't preposterous enough, now you had to keep tabs on who was on your side versus who would go running to Ganondorf with news of an uprising.

You gulped, your grip on the box of fairy dust tightening considerably.
If Ganondorf heard about this rebellion, you were sure that even Dark Link's fairy dust wouldn't save you. In fact, you wouldn't be surprised if he decides to cut off your head completely to mount in the main hall.
You grimaced.
Dark Link would get a kick out of that for sure.

You were jolted out of your thoughts when two cold finicky hands grappled at your arm, jerking you into a dark and secluded crevice just as you began to protest.
Before you could screech bloody murder, a pair of gritty fingers pinched your lips shut and a whispered "HUSHHHH" silenced you. You swatted the fingers away as your eyes adjusted to the dark, fixing themselves upon the stalfos with an apron from earlier.

"What?" You asked, a little louder than necessary. The stalfos cringed and shook his head rapidly, hastily jerking a bony thumb in the direction of another stalfos. You craned your neck to watch as the stalfos peered around, obviously suspicious of the loud and resounding "what?" you had screeched earlier. You kept yourself carefully hidden in the shadows of the dusty corner, making a note about how this stalfos had a large crack in it's skull was probably not friendly.
However, after a few moments of cautious searching, the stalfos shrugged and headed into the bustling dining room without a second glance backward.
You hear the stalfos with the apron sigh in relief, grumbling under his breath about "that damn sack-of-bones being too nosy."
Giving him an incredulous look, you prodded him in the shoulder.

"So," You began, more quietly than before, "What was it you needed, Mr. Apron?"

It was the stalfos' turn to give you a look.

"Commander, I do not wish to fussy, but that is not my name."

You stared at the stalfos for a moment, assessing his somber tone and austere expression. At this point in time, you began to wonder if stalfos even had a sense of humor.

You coughed awkwardly, the gaze of the stalfos still as serious as ever.

"Oh, it was a- it was a joke..." You explained, watching as his facial expression twisted into one of confusion.

"A joooke?" The stalfos dragged out the "o" in joke, tilting his head while doing so. "What's a joke?"

You had to bite the inside of your cheek to prevent your jaw from unhinging and hitting the floor. You understood that living under Ganondorf's care meant being secluded from the world, but to not know the meaning of "a joke" was flat out ridiculous.

"Uh-" You stumbled for words to explain what a joke was, "A joke is something that someone says that you think is funny."

"What is a funny?"

You were at a loss for words.

"Well, there's no such thing as 'a funny,' but something that is funny," You emphasized your last few words, "Makes someone happy or want to laugh."

The stalfos careened backward with a muted "Ohh."

"I see what you mean now, commander. Thank you for informing me of your frivolous practices-" you blanched at the unintentional jab "-I will be sure to tell the other R.A.G. members about this... Joke."

You gave a weak smile, still bewildered by the stalfos' paucity in information regarding happiness. "S-so, your name, if you please?"

The stalfos reeled back, as if he had been smacked in the face. "Oh yes! How could I forget to introduce myself? My name is Arastoo, pleasure to be of acquaintance."

"It certainly is an honor, Mr, Ara-stew." You feigned a curtsy and jokingly reached out to shake Arastoo's hand, only to find his hands preoccupied with a brown lump of... Something.

As if Arastoo had read your mind, he presented the bundle to you, bowing his head slightly.

"This is a sachel to place your box into," he gestured to the silver box you clutched in your hands, "After the events from earlier, I presumed it was a gift from the Shadow Warrior. If that truly is the case, you would not want Ganondorf to see it."

You nodded in agreement and took the burgundy satchel from Arastoo's bony hands, examining it as carefully as you could in the dark.
It was just like a normal satchel, but it donned silver buckles and hand-sown pockets that made it unique- You loved it.

You thanked Arastoo and put on the satchel, carefully sliding the box of fairy dust into the largest compartment; it was a perfect fit.

"Now, if I understand correctly, you wish to visit the Shadow Warrior, no?"

You nodded, patting the side of your satchel. "I know he's in the courtyard, but i'm just not sure how i'm going to grab my food and get out of the dining hall. I'm sure Ganondorf wants to have a nice, long chat with me after..." You trailed off, and Arastoo nodded in understanding.

"Yes, that is already well-accounted for. Commander, all you need to do is take your tray of food and leave as soon as you see the signal, yes?"

"But what's the signal-"

"You'll know once you see it! Just don't be intimidated."

With that, Arastoo shoved you out of the small corner you had been occupying. His muscle-less arms were a lot stronger than you had anticipated, and his shove left you bathing in a bright onslaught of lights.
Suddenly feeling very exposed, you turned your head to Arastoo and sent him an alarmed look. To this, Arastoo curtly gestured to the dining room, his face seemed to say Just get in there already!

You began a mechanical walk toward the dining hall, trying to act as naturally as possible.
Thankfully, even with your strangely robotic movements, no one in the room even seemed to notice your presence other than a few stalfos in the center of the room who acknowledged you with a small dip of their heads. You recognized two of them from earlier; they had been with Arastoo.

Your thoughts were drowned out once your eyes met with beady ones, the owner of them glaring at you but offering a menacing smile at the same time.
You felt shivers crawl down your spine.
So that's who Dark Link got it from.

You continued your robotic stride until you reached the table at which Ganondorf sat, his greedy eyes still trained on your face.

"Hello there, little woman."

You felt the hairs on the back of your neck prick with either fear or disgust- maybe both.

You sat down without a word, though you didn't dare take your eyes off of him for a second. Just like Dark Link, Ganondorf kept his own personal sword on his person at all times- and it was still coated with blood, just like it had been last time you saw it.

Ganondorf already had his array of sublime cuisine set out in front of him and by the looks of it, he was almost halfway done.
You had to bite your tongue to prevent calling him a voracious swine.

The corners of the Dark Lord's mouth curled up sickeningly, and with a drag in his tone, he asked "How did you enjoy your stay in seclusion?"

You felt your fingernails dig into your palm as you tried (with much difficulty) to control your mouth.

"My stay was rather enjoyable. A breeze picked up here and there, but it reminded me of Kokiri Forest." You watched with glee as his smile began to curdle. A tray of steaming hot food was placed in front of you; it included two fresh loaves of seasoned bread and a diverse choice of sliced meats and chopped fruit. You suddenly remembered the food that Dark Link had brought up for you as a request from Ganondorf while you were rotting away in the attic, and decided to spite the Dark Lord even more.

"By the way, that cuisine was delicious." You dared yourself to look at Ganondorf with as much venom as you spoke to him with, but you were confused to find him staring at your tray with a hint of befuddlement.

"Little woman, you have not eaten yet."

You nearly choked holding back a snort. "I wasn't talking about-" You halted.
There was no way Ganondorf would forget about sending you such a precious meal.

To be reasonable, there was no reason to send you a meal at all.

If you had really wished to live, you would have succumbed to the strange bowl of glop the stalfos had presented you with before your food supply was cut off. But if Ganondorf didn't order for you to be fed with such benevolence, then that meant Dark Link-

Your body grew rigid. You slowly trailed your eyes up to meet the Dark Lord's, and it seemed like he had figured it out too- though he didn't seem incensed, like you thought he would be. In fact, a smug little smile sat on his lips. His hands braided together and were tucked under his chin, but the terseness with which he sat gave away his emotion as well: surprised and a tad irritated.

Suddenly, a single anguished and melodramatic cry pierced the thick air, followed by a clatter of chairs on the hardwood floor. A stalfos (whom you recognized to be the stalfos with a pan) fell to the floor after taking an over-dramatized spin, crashing onto the floor and pulling the tablecloth - along with everything else on it- onto the floor.
Then another cry sounded out, from the opposite side of the room, the crashing of fine china and a bony body rung in your ears and left you bewildered.
Soon, screams and crashes were heard from every possible direction in the dining room, and you realized with wide eyes that this was the distraction the R.A.G. had planned with Arastoo.

Which meant that-

You sucked in a sharp breath of air. In the dining room lined with hundreds of tables, there were what seemed like an endless ocean of stalfos- just enough to build an army.

Your army.

Ganondorf stood up from his chair with a frown on his face, his shoulders squared and his nose flaring. The moment he turned in the opposite direction to face one of the more miserable screams, you grabbed your tray and bolted for the door.

As you were running your eye caught on several stalfos, including the one with a crack in it's head, who were not gagging and falling onto the floor.
They simply beheld the situation with bewilderment in their eyes, confused as to what the other stalfos were doing.

When you escaped the catastrophe that was the dining room, you threw a quick glance into the crevice that you had been hiding in with Arastoo before, and found that he was gone.

Probably making a fool out of himself in the dining hall, too. You thought with a small, victorious smile.

With that, you urged your legs to run faster while carrying the tray of jumbling food, the satchel at your side bounced with every thundering step you took toward the center of the castle: The courtyard.