Tears of the Fallen

~ Prologue ~

“No, this cannot be!” I screeched, tears pouring over my cheeks. I fell to my knees and pounded the ground, screaming ‘no.’ Link stepped forward and glared at the faint remains of the flames that had engulfed the only home we had ever known. He just stared angrily at the piles of ashes, cursing under his breath. I growled and snarled, almost unable to control my temper. A few survivors from the fire were scattered on the ground around us, gasping and crying and screaming. “Twenty-three.” I heard Link murmur above me. I stood and looked at him, confused. “What?”
“Twenty-three, including us, survived that fire. Twenty-three out of one hundred and six.” He said again, clearly figuring out the ratios in his mind. The anger and pure loathing I felt was completely overpowered by shock as I looked around. While some sat there, looking dumbfounded, others sat with large, bleeding wounds that seemed impossible to heal.
Then, off to the side, I noticed the large grouping of bodies that were thrown carelessly to the side, the bodies that had been collected by the Elite Force. Several of the children who were old enough to understand honored the dead the way they had known their whole lives.
I shifted uneasily and cringed slightly as the cold metal of the .44 caliber hand-gun touched the bare skin of my thigh. My jack-knife was tucked neatly in a hidden compartment in the sole of my boots. I marked where my weapons were as frequently as where the soldier’s weapons were. If, at some point, I would ever need to fight them, I would be prepared. I sighed and slowly trudged through the rain puddles that quickly refilled with fresh rain from the sky. I made my way over to the half-honored dead and instantly recognized my cousin’s silver bracelet. I couldn’t take anymore.
Bent completely on pure rage, I sprinted towards the nearest guard, leaped onto his back and dug my teeth into the back of his neck. My canines dug deep into the broken skin and found the strong pulse within the jugular.
The warmth of the blood that spilt all over my tasted sweet, as any result of revenge would. I pulled out my knife and shoved it into the open wound. The soldier cried out in pain as his knees buckled beneath him slightly. I slowly twisted the small blade in a circular motion, completely immersed in the hate that wanted him to be tortured.
Soon, I felt a strong tug on my shoulder that pulled my off of him. “Amari, pull yourself together! Revenge is not the way to go!” I heard Link shout; I caught the little trace in his tone that he somewhat approved of this. Still snarling, I broke lose and stomped onto the handle of the knife. The entire knife disappeared into the man’s back, the man whose eyes rolled back into his head as he collapsed to the ground.
Once I had regained my sanity, I suddenly became fearful that I would have to suffer the fate of my beloved parents. The guard pointed at me and pulled his finger sharply across his neck. Link gasped and stepped in front of me, curving his arms backwards around my in a shield-like formation. “Please! She did not mean it! Spare her!” he shouted, sincerely worried. I cowered slightly behind him, a low whimper escaping my lips.
The Elite Sergeant circled around us until he stood behind me. He leaned in close and whispered, “You got lucky, kid. Next time… you WILL lose your head.”
He pulled back and came around front once more. He sneered deviously as he shouted, “Long live KING Ganondorf!” His fellow soldiers soon echoed, “Long live King Ganondorf!”
They mounted themselves upon their horses and rode off, leaving us with the extremely traumatized children.
By that point, I was shaking. Shaking because of fear or hatred… that, I did not know. All that I did know was that if I could not take out my hatred out onto the person for whom it had formed, I would work my way up from there.

~ Chapter One ~

Breathing hard, I sprinted towards the tower of boxes. I turned on my heel and pressed my back up against the wood. I pulled the gun close to my face so that I could see what I was doing. I swiftly pulled out the barrel and began reloading it. Once it was full, I popped the barrel back into its place. I whipped around the corner and released a flurry of bullets at the Elite Guards. Several of them fell to their doom from the rooftops while other collapsed to the ground below. The remaining soldiers dodged and came running at me. Once they were only a few feet away from me, I kicked the piles, causing the boxes to topple over them.
Cursing under my breath, I turned and ran around the corner. I shoved my shoulder up against the metal door of the house on that side. The door swung open easily and I quickly stepped through, pulled the door closed behind me, and leaned up against it, panting. Link notice my entry immediately and stood. Sweat poured down the side of my face as I gasped.
A large, sinister grin came across my face and I laughed. “They’re after me, Link. The Elite Guard. Are you ready to rumble?” He stared at me, completely expressionless. He walked over to the tall closet shoved in the corner of the room. He pulled out a long-range sniper rifle and tossed it to me. I caught it in one hand and grinned. “Ooh. Looks like I get a new toy today.”
Link chuckled and armed himself with two automatic pistols. “Please, Amari. Don’t break this one.” He pleaded. I smirked and laid the middle of the nozzle on my shoulder. “Well… I’m not making any promises.” I mused, laughing.
We stepped out of the room and sidled to the edge of the house.
Link and I have had to live our lives like this ever since we were little. Coincidentally, we both lost our parents at a really young age. We only knew their names. We were raised in the same orphanage, along with Mara and Serenity. Serenity was Link’s little sister and Mara was my cousin. For poor orphans, we thought that we had it good. But, when I was seven, Ganondorf escaped from the Sacred Realm once again and disposed of the Royal Family. Ganon was, from then on, considered our country’s “patriarch.” None of the Family members remained after he took the throne.
Even though he was King, he never had too much use of the castle. As our country’s technology advanced, he ordered that the castle’s main use be a university. So, now we have the University of Hyrule. Six years later, he commanded his troops to burn down the orphanage. There were 106 orphaned children living in there when the troops burned it down. Afterwards, only twenty-three remained.
Link, who was fifteen at the time, and I took the remaining children under our wing and took care of them until they found foster parents. Soon, no one else was left. Mara had died in the fire, along with several others. Serenity was sold into slavery two days before then. Link and I, with no where else to turn to, lived on the streets until five years later, when we came across an abandoned warehouse.
The warehouse was filled with weapons, ammunitions and bullet-proof vests. Well, we both assumed that we were old enough to fight and loaded ourselves with weapons. We stashed the weapons in the basement of the old potion shop in the city of Cardania. When the owner caught us stashing, she simply took us in. When the old hag passed away, we took over the shop. No one ever came there, anyway.
We had just started messing around with the Elite Guard, Ganon’s strongest troops. We would destroy all of their weapon storage rooms, confuse them until they separated, and vandalize their homes. But, we were never caught. No one ever knew that we were the ones causing all of the trouble. We weren’t officially considered refugees until the day that a stranger came to town.
We carefully inched around the corner, just enough to see the plaza. The Guards were running around frantically, looking around for me. I smiled to myself, finding their confusion amusing. I kept low to the ground and scurried over to the wall of a nearby pavilion. I slowly poked the nozzle around the corner. I zoomed in on my target: the Elite Guard farthest from me.
I looked at Link; he nodded, signaling for me to pull the trigger. Once I did, I pulled the gun to my side and hid it from plain sight. The bullet hit dead on and the soldier cried out in pain before he fell to his demise. The soldiers who had previously been scuttling around flocked around this fresh body.
I heard the captain shout, “What happened!?” I hid around the corner again and, while closing my eyes, formed my hand into a fist and pulled it down slowly in a victorious manner. I looked over at Link, who rolled his eyes and leaped up to the roof; I did the same on my side. We both crouched low to the roof and crawled to the edge to watch the mayhem.
I watched, hoping that I would get another chance to take one down. Unfortunately, at the very moment, a tall man came from around the corner, also armed with a gun. I cursed silently, scolding the foolish man in my mind. The captain pointed at the man, who started to run away. Several troops began to run towards him. The captain held back, but still armed himself.
I flexed my muscles, preparing to stand. I heard Link whisper a sharp “no” to me. I looked at him. “Why not!? I came here to fight some guards! Not play camouflage!” I whispered back, sharper the he did.
“I don’t care! You can fight them off while you’re protecting that man.”
“Oh, great! Now it’s a cavalry rescue! What’s next, a group hug!?”
He sighed, shook his head and slid down the roof until he reached the cobblestone plaza. I rolled my eyes and followed behind. Before he could take a step, I caught his ear and whispered, “You owe me for this. Next time, I am NOT going to play the ‘good cop’ card.” I smiled jokingly, loosening up the tight, intense atmosphere. Link smiled back, trying hard not laugh.
All playfulness aside, we held our weapons out in front of ourselves and slowly sidled to the edge of the building where we had last seen the man. I peeked around the corner and saw the man backed up against a wall. I switched places with Link and pulled the rifle’s carrying strap over my head. I reached into my pocket and pulled out one of my flash grenades. Using my teeth pull out the seal, I threw the grenade blindly around the corner. I heard the loud explosion, followed by randomized shouts. “Go!” Link shouted. We both stepped out from behind the building and fired openly into the translucent cloud of flash powder.
A few thuds and screams of agony called out from behind the quickly fading smoke screen, muffled slightly by amount of flash.
Once my rifle was out of bullets, I threw it aside and pulled out my twin pistols, wasting no firing time. I advanced on the remaining soldiers while Link went to help the man.
I fired heartlessly at them, not allowing guilt or anger distract me. By this point, I was able to control my emotions almost as well as Link could.
Link led the limping man back to the old shop while I continued to hold off the soldiers. Before Link had led the man around the corner, I was already behind them. “I guess you could say that I’ve had my fun for the day.” I said casually, keeping my face as expressionless as possible. Link rolled his eyes, but did not stop. Before I could ay a hand on the doorknob, I heard a low click behind me.
I instantly pulled out my recently reloaded pistols and aimed for the figure that emerged from the shadows behind us. The captain held his ground, not lowering his rifle. “Tch. You again? Hadn’t you had enough?” I snarled, narrowing my eyes.
The Elite Guard’s captain recognized me at once. He was unable to keep the shock from showing up on his face. He shook it off and replaced his finger back onto the trigger. I smirked. “So, I’m guessing by that look on your face, you remember me, too? Aw, how sweet. Unfortunately for you…” I inched forward slightly, signaling that I would not be moving anytime soon. “I’m not a helpless child anymore.” I pulled back on the triggers simultaneously. The guard’s shoulder lurched backwards, as if it had been pushed back. Blood seeped through his sleeves and poured onto his shirt. The guard charged forward at me, firing at my chest. I slipped my weapons back into their holster and helped Link get the man inside.
Once they were both in the shop, I told Link to get some medicinal fluids to use when bandaging him up. I never listened for a reply. Instead, I leaped into the air and landed behind the soldier. I pulled out my knife and lunged, the piercing through the skin of his back. As more blood poured from the wound, I removed the blade and easily slipped it back into its secret place. The river of blood that flowed from his shoulder joined in with the one from his back. His eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed to his knees.
I looked down upon this man and spat, “It would have never worked out between us, love. It wasn’t meant to be.” I stepped over him, deliberately smashing the heel of my boot into his nose.
I calmly entered the old shop and found Link searching frantically around the house while the man sat on the couch, bleeding everywhere. Link didn’t look up when he said, “Amari, where did you put the First Aid kit? I can’t find it anywhere!” He dug around in the drawers of our gun cabinet. I sighed and walked over to the counter that represented our kitchen, grabbing the corner of one of the cabinet doors. He looked up at me just in time to see me open the cabinet. Inside, there was a white, metal container with a large red cross on it. “It’s right here. Where you left it last night. Remember?” I mused, rolling my eyes at how forgetful he would be sometimes. He sighed, but made no further comment. He carried the case, opened it up, and pull out a large wad of rolled up gauze. He was just about to wrap it around the open wound, when he stopped and began to reach back inside the first aid kit. “Forget something… again?” I asked, dangling the bottle of medicinal alcohol before him. He gave out a sharp sigh and snatched it out of my hand.
The man just sat there, staring at us in some foreign form of awe. I shivered, his admiration annoying me. I decided to clear up the awkward atmosphere by saying, “So, what brings you to Cardania?” The man shook his head as if he were awakening from a trance. “Huh? Oh, yes, of course. I suppose I should properly introduce myself. I am Reno Shohamaru. I am a scholar from the University of Hyrule. I am here in this town because I have heard tell that a new Legendary Hero has been born into this city, followed by the next Princess of Destiny. The legends state that the two will be found together.
“I am very hopeful that I will find these two such beings. And, I am eternally grateful that you rescued me-“
“Against my will.” I mumbled, glaring at Link.
“- from those guards. They saw that I was armed and thought that I had taken down one of their own. I very much would like to thank you in a proper manner.” We remained in a dead silence for a few moments. “So, you’re from the University? Are you one of those stupid cronies of Ol’ Ganon’s? If so, get out!” I yelled, putting strong emphasis on the word ‘old.’
Reno simply sighed and shook his head. “I came to this town looking for the Hero and the Princess, true enough, but only for a way out of this treacherous rule.”
“Huh!” I gasped, throwing my hands into the air. “Welcome to our world!” Shaking my head I went to our make-shift kitchen and pulled out a small protein bar. Snacking on that, I sat down on the counter and tucked my knees into my chest. Reno stared at me, a small trace of confusion in his eyes. I raised my protein bar as if to say ‘cheers.’
“This is how we live every day. Fighting bad guys, taking hostages and refugees, hiding away from the war that continues to rage on every single day of our entire lives… this is normal for us!” I laughed hysterically and took another bite out of the bar. I threw it across the room and landed neatly into the trash bin.
“But, your movements are so graceful! So perfect and inhuman! How do you do it?” Reno asked incredulously. I laughed again and said, “Well, years of practice, for one. We need to be so extremely agile in order to get away quickly without being noticed. The rest is just… magic.” I smiled devilishly, causing him to shudder. I laughed again, amused by his frightful appearance.
Link rolled his eyes and turned towards me. “Oh, give it a rest, Amari! This guy has been through enough as it is!” He turned back to Reno and smiled in a friendly way, finally finished treating the wounds. “Don’t mind her. She finds joy in scaring children and ruining other people’s lives.” Reno chuckled quietly, as if he were trying to hide it from me.
“Link, apparently, likes to ruin my fun. That’s why I have a low social life. That, and being on every wanted poster in Hyrule. The only reason why I’m ‘wanted’ is because I’m so hot. Everybody loves me.” I sighed, folding my arms behind my head. Both Link and Reno laughed this time. I laughed as well, just to lighten up the mood. “So, you want out of Ganon’s rule as much we do? The only way that we work our way up to the great, monkey-faced brute is by taking out his resources. So far, our plan has worked and he is pretty ticked off. What have you been doing, looking for your little Hero and Princess?” I mused, finding myself sincerely interested in Reno’s tale. His smile disappeared and he sat up, clearing his throat.
“Well, as you now know, there are other places in Hyrule that are working against Ganondorf. I have heard tell that there are a few members of the Elite Guard that are starting to have their doubts. My team members and I are archeologists. We have been studying Ancient Hyrule for over fifteen years! And, so far, all of the information that we have found speaks of a Hero who is supposedly reborn into another form each time that Ganondorf escapes from the Sacred Realm.
“At one point, we came across the ruins of an old temple in Old CastleTown. We asked around in several cities, such as New CastleTown, Rauru, even in the old village of Kakariko! So far… nothing. So, my team members and I split up. I came to Cardania to see if anyone had known about this old temple, but I had just walked in when the soldier was shot in the head from afar. So, the rest is history and, here we are.
“Seeing as you now know of my motives, I must ask you… have you ever heard of the ‘Temple of Time?’”
My usually emotionless tactics betrayed me at the moment that he said the name of that temple. The Temple of Time… his words bounced around aimlessly in mind, moving so it could avoid being forgotten. Even though the name had a strong effect on me, I removed my shocked look before he noticed.
I shook my head and said, “Doesn’t ring a bell. How about you, Link? Anything?” I turned to him. He stood and shook his head. “Sorry. I’ve got nothing.” Link bent over and grabbed the handle of the first aid kit. He walked over to the cabinet in which it belonged and placed it inside. Right as the cabinet door shut, we heard loud pounding from the door. I tensed my muscles, sensing that this pounding came from someone who was not a friend to us.
I snarled and laid a hand on my pistols, still in their holsters attached to my thighs. “I don’t know who they are, but they must hold some sort of threat to us.” I sneered, baring my teeth in a wolf-like fashion. Reno watched the scene from the couch, now covered in blood from his wounded stomach.
Link also kept a hand on his weapon and opened the door. Standing outside were two solemn-faced Elite Guards. I spread my legs shoulder-length apart, my muscle coiling as I prepared to pounce. “May we come in?” The taller one of the two asked. The taller one had short, black hair that stopped just below her shoulders and black eyes as dark as the night itself, which confused my eyes greatly. She was dressed in the normal Guard attire, armored torso, brown boots, brown arm warmers and a rifle strapped over her back as well as a magazine of rifle ammunition. The other was only a few centimeters shorter with long brown hair that fell straight to her waist. Her bright sky-blue eyes sparkled with an uncontrollable amount of hyperness that longed to break free. She looks so young… how could she be in the army? I asked myself, not changing my position.
“What do you want?” Link asked, not holding back his hostile tone. “Who are you?”
“I am Kagome Shikamaru. I am the last remaining Sheikah from my tribe.” The taller one said. She motioned towards the younger one. “This is Chika Ainomu. Her ancestor was the Sage of Light, Rauru.” Chika nodded and piped in, “We no longer enjoy serving Ganondorf and wish that you would let us join you.”
I stepped forward and stole the door from Link’s grasp. “You should have thought of that before you decided to ruin our lives!” I prepared to slam the door in their faces, but Kagome caught the door and shoved back open. “Please! I implore you! Our lives have been ruined just as much as yours have!”
That was the last straw. I completely lost my cool. I narrowed my eyes and shoved my finger into her stomach. “Ruined!? Do you have any idea of what your army has done to me!? I have lost EVERYTHING because of you! My parents, my whole family, my friends, the only home I’ve ever known! I have to live in a war everyday because of you! I have to dream of better times in my life and wake up thinking about how I can never have that because of you! Over all, you are the reason why my life is such a wreck!!!” I ranted, screaming each word at the top of my lungs. I leaned in until my lips were only a few inches from her ear. “You think your life has been ruined? You need a reality check.” I pulled away and made my way to the stairway that lead to the basement, the place that I went whenever I needed to.
Link sighed and followed behind me. “No, Link! I just need to be alone right now!” I shouted, closing the door behind me. I heard him sigh, followed by several footsteps heading up the stairs.
Once I was sure that no one could hear me, I buried my face in my hands and began to cry. I leaned up against the cold stone walls and slowly slipped until I found myself sitting on the ground, my shoulders shaking as I sobbed.
I never liked talking about my past with anyone, much less crying over it. I rarely even talked to Link about it. I just felt that it should be something to forget. But, every time that someone would say that their life is as terrible as mine or worse than mine, I would just lose it and go on ranting about my troubling life.
I sat there in the dark cellar and continued to cry, ashamed of my tears and embarrassed by my short-fused anger. Then, the door swung open slowly and Link stood in the doorway. Even though his face was facing the shadows, I could tell that he held that look of pity on his face. I pivoted around until my back was facing him. “Please, don’t look at me like that. I hate it when people look at me like that.” I whispered, feeling incapable of speaking loudly.
Link came over to me, closing the door behind him, and looked down at me, trying to keep eye contact. I couldn’t help but look into those beautiful blue eyes of his; they captivated me intensely, never letting me go. I stood, wiping away the remaining tears from my eyes. One last tear slid from my eyes once I was standing straight and, before I could wipe it away, Link cupped his hand around my cheek and used his thumb to rub it into my skin. I stared into his eyes, completely mesmerized by his face.
He leaned a little closer to me, close enough that I could feel every single intake of breath he had. The feeling that I was tied to him for all of time felt as old as time itself. It felt as though I had always felt like we belonged together, but I wasn’t quite sure.
I was reassured of this fact as our lips met. This sweet, warm sensation tingled throughout my body, relaxing the muscles that I hadn’t realized I had tensed. My foot lifted off of the ground slightly and my hand moved up from his chest until the hung uselessly over his shoulders. I twirled my fingers throughout his hair and continuously breathed in his sweet, honey-dew scent.
The moment seemed to last forever, hanging onto time by a single thread that threatened to break and leave us suspended in the air forever.
But, when the time slowed down, it immediately sped up and we were standing before each other, looking the opposite way of each other. I blushed and sighed, living once more in the moment that had passed us by. I saw out of the corner of my eye that Link was looking at me. I turned to him, smiling. He smiled back as if to say, “I am never going to leave you.”
I nodded, still smiling. “Okay. I’ll hold you to that. Thank you.” I replied to his silent statement. We both headed back to the stairs and returned to the room, hand in hand.
Kagome and Chika sat on the couch looking up at us. As soon as we saw Kagome’s eyes flicker towards our linked hands, we pulled apart.
“So… what’s this all about? You say that you want to… ‘join us?’ Why should we trust you?” I said, narrowing my eyes at them. Chika shuddered and looked at Kagome, who stood and strode over to me. I saw Link’s hand ball up into a fist as she came closer to me. “I have seen you fight off the soldiers. When I joined the army, it was seven years ago. I am now 23-years-old. So, having seven years of experience in fighting, I would have thought that I had seen it all. I now question the extent of my own abilities after seeing you fight.
“You are extremely skilled in agility, group combat, one-on-one face-offs, stealth and healing. Normally, I would say, ‘Well, I’ve seen better,’ in those kinds of situations, but… you have opened my eyes. I will probably never have this opportunity again, so I must ask you again… would you mind if we stayed here with you two? We would like to be trained to fight as well as the both of you.”
“That may never be possible, but, we would like to have at least tried to learn from the best.” Chika piped in, a pleading look in her eyes.
I stared at the both of them, trying to hide my shock. "Well, I don't really know. I mean, hiding run-away Elite Guards in our house seems a little risky." I turned to Link, waiting for his answer. "Well, I don't have any problem with it. I think it would be great having more people supporting the cause." he replied, smiling kindly at them. I ignored their giggling and blushing at him and turned to Reno, who was watching us intently. "Well? What about you?" I said, a hint of annoyance in my tone.He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't really think that I have much of a say in this event. It is, indeed, up to you, Amari."I groaned, not up to the fact of my decision being the final decision. I sighed and folded my arms behind my neck, saying, "What the heck? I need somebody new to toss around, anyway. I'm sick of practicing on a sandbag." The girls smiled and high-fived one another.Link gave me a quick thumbs-up in approval and Reno nodded. "But..." I added. The girls stopped and looked at me, confused. I pointed at them and smiled devilishly, making Chika shudder once again. "We have to lay down some ground rules.
"Rule number one: You do what I say or what Link says. You do that, you'll get through fine. Rule number two: whenever I make you train individually or against one another, don't complain or moan and groan or anything like that. Suck it up and fight. Rule number three and the most important rule: give it you all. Push yourself until you can't be pushed any further. If you do that, you can do anything." I paused and sat down on the kitchen counter once again."We'll commence your training tomorrow. For now, go to the back room. You'll find two unused cots. It's all that we have, but, it works well enough. That room will be yours until I say, got it?" The girls nodded and bowed respectfully, making me feel important. "Of course, Sensei Amari. See you in the morning." they said in unison. They stood up straight and raced to the back room.
I hopped down and walked over to Link, who stared at me in a teasing way. "'Sensei Amari'? And you approve of that...?" he asked, just trying to ruin my fun. I laid a hand on his shoulder and said, “Of course I do! It has a nice ring to it.” I laughed, amused by my own joke. Link chuckled as well, but stopped to smile and stare into my eyes. I smiled back, not wanting to leave him. He laid his head on my hand and kissed it gently. I blushed and smiled even wider. “…goodnight, Amari. I love you.” he whispered, pulling away from me as he headed towards his room. I blushed an even brighter red and my stomach fluttered inside of me. I placed a hand on my cheek and giggled, saying, “Yeah. I love you, too, Link,” even though he could not hear me. I looked over my shoulder to see if Reno was still watching.
His head was buried inside of the pillow and he snored louder than a great grizzly bear. I laughed quietly and tip-toed to my room, closing the door behind me. I plopped onto my bed and pulled a pillow under my head. As my eyes began to droop closed, I remembered that one moment down in the cellar…and smiled myself to sleep.

~ Chapter Two ~

Reno sat up on the couch, still hugging the pillow. He wiped the sweat from his brow and walked over to the stairway that he was sure wasn’t there earlier. He dropped the pillow at the foot of the stairs and cautiously began to climb them.
He soon found himself on the slightly peaked rooftop of a rather large house. He checked his watch and realized that he had been climbing those stairs for over thirty minutes.
He sighed and sat down on a ledge, letting his feet dangle over the rushing water beneath him. He looked up at the moon and marveled at its beauty. “This is a really great place, isn’t it?” he heard a voice call out. He jumped and almost fell over the ledge and into the water. “This is a really great place to just gaze up at the moon, think about your day and forget it again. Don’t you think?” I asked, looking over at him.
I was sitting on the opposite ledge from him. He clutched the spot of his chest over his heart and said, “Miss Amari! You almost gave me a heart attack! I could have-“
“I lied to you.” He paused, not quite sure what I meant by that. “What do you mean by that?”
“When you asked me if I knew about that Temple of Time…” I closed my eyes, a hurt expression coming across my face. “I lied to you. I have heard of it before, but only in a dream.
“In the dream, I’m standing in this large room with a huge staircase. The entire room is made out of ivory marble, by my guess. I ran down the stairs and came in this room. It had a sort of pedestal with a sword in it. I tried to touch it, but it burnt me.
“There were six stained-glass windows all around me, each one with a certain person in it. Suddenly, I’m surrounded by this brilliant light and all of the people come out at me from the windows. In front of me, there is a man who calls himself Rauru.
“Naming them all, starting from the little girl next to him is Saria, Darunia, Ruto, Impa and Nabooru. Then, Rauru says, ‘Do not be afraid, Miss Amari. We are not here to hurt you.’
“By this point, I am utterly confused. So, I ask him, ‘How do you know my name?’ ‘It doesn’t matter how I know you’re name. What matters is that you are in grave danger.’ So, when he says that, I immediately start to freak out, as any normal person would. Then, Nabooru says, ‘There is no need to lose your head, Amari. After all, in another life, you were my student. You’ll be fine.’”
I paused to evaluate Reno’s expression. He scratched his chin and watched me intently. “I am curious about this dream. Please, continue.”
I nodded and started up again. “So, then they all explained to me that they were these ‘Ancient Sages’ and that I needed to find them again. So, I asked them where we were. Rauru told me that… they were waiting for me in the Temple of Time, in a place ‘where even time stands still.’ What do you think it means? Should I go?” I asked, worried and excited all at once.
He remained silent for a few moments, then stood. “Pack anything you can. Wake up Link and tell him to do so as well. I’ll leave a note for Kagome and Chika.”
I stared at him, confused. “Why are we packing?”
“Why, my dear, we are going to the Temple of Time. I would love to meet this Rauru of yours.” He replied, heading back down the stairs. I continued to stare after him, but eventually stood and ran back to my room. I pulled my old suitcase out from under my bed and opened it. I pulled open my closet door and threw anything that I thought I might need on this trip into the bag.
“So, answer me this. Where exactly is it that you’re going?” I heard a voice asked for my doorway. I simply continued packing and said, “I’m not going alone, Link. You and Reno are coming, too. Road trip, I guess.” Link sat down on my bed and watched me with curiosity such as one might find with a cat who is watching a mouse scurry around its cage in fear.
“A road trip, huh? Sounds exciting. Where are we going?”
“Link. We are NOT going to Italy. Get over it.”
I saw him slam his hand onto the bed, obviously disappointed. I stood and looked him directly in the eye. I lightly touched his nose and said, “Now, go to your room. Don’t come out until you’re packed. But, leave enough room for weapons.” I picked up my bag and went into the living room. Opening up the gun cabinet, I pulled out three sniper rifles, four pistols, two ammunition magazines and seven twelve-packs of flash and plasma grenades. I closed the lid, zipped up my bag and placed it the door. Strange enough, a bag was already there. I sighed, stood up straight and said, “Link, I said pack everything you needed, not part of it.”
I turned towards the hallway. He was standing there, leaning against the wall. He was dressed casually; he wore his pair of jeans with the ripped knees, a t-shirt with the official Black Mesa seal on it that he got at the last convention. He had two rifles strapped across his back in an ‘x’ formation. I frowned and said, “Shouldn’t you have packed those in your bag?” He shrugged and replied, “I would have, but I would have run out of room for the rest of my guns.”

**NEW FAN FICTION--- Tears of the Fallen**

Okay, so, my newest fan fiction that I have created is going to be called Tears of the Fallen. I think that the idea, as well as the title, is great! Alright, here we go!



Amari and Link have grown up homeless and without parents on the harsh streets of Cardania, a thriving city built over Kokiri Forest. Although times are tough in the glorious land of Modern Hyrule, Amari and Link still make it through. Taken into an orphanage, the two work together to take care of the younger children.

Until one day, King Ganondorf orders that the orphanage should be burned down, along with anyone who is inside of it at the time. So, now having no home and losing their only siblings they've ever known, Link and Amari help the remaining children find good homes. However, they themselves are not taken. They soon come across an abandoned warehouse, stocked with weapons and bullet-proof vests. They stash these new items in the basement of the old potion shop, whose owner takes them in until she passes away.

Amari, now 18, and Link, now 20, torture and fool with the Elite Guard, Ganondorf's strongest army. They plan to destroy everything and everyone Ganondorf owns, which they do. The only thing that is stopping them now... is a strange man named Reno. He claims to have come to Cardania from the University of Hyrule, which used to be Hyrule Castle, in search of the new Hero of Time and Princess of Destiny.

However, when he mentions the Temple of Time, which he and his archeologist team find hidden underground, our young heroine takes a major blow. Unable to react, she lies and says that she had never heard of it before.

In this ever-changing love story, our heroes come across ancient temples and sages, dreams that turn out to be memories, a lost heritage and several gunfights. While the bullets fly and the affection soars, what will they encounter? Who may they encounter? Will Amari figure out the secrets of her past? Will Link ever discover why he feels so strongly towards Amari? Who is Reno? Why do these memories lead them to places old and new? And, just who is Miira?

Find out, in: Tears of the Fallen

Seven Minutes in Heaven--- Twilight Princess Style: Amari

This is a story version of the popular 'who will you get? Pick an item' game/quiz from Quizilla.com. The guidelines have been followed, so, no, you do not get to pick who you/I get. Please enjoy the story!
- Amari
Author

Staring across the room at everyone who sat in the circle, I nervously twiddled my fingers. I began to sweat, blushing at the thoughts of who I would get. Oh, God! What if I get Coro? Ew! He creeps me out! But… what if I get… no way! I would never put up with it. But, what about- My thoughts were cut short as Nabooru thrust the basket towards me. Inside were five items, each item representing one of the five boys in the circle. I turned around, throwing a nervous glance at my sister and friends. Miss Anju smiled reassuringly while Chika and Kagome laughed. My sister, Zelda, gave me a thumbs-up and a thought.
Go for the gold, Amari! You can do it! She cried happily. I nodded, turning back to Nabooru. “Come on, already! Just pick one! It’s not it’s gonna kill you!” she mused, apparently annoyed.
Swallowing hard, I closed my eyes and reached into the basket.
Only a few moments later, I pulled out a leaf from a tree. What the heck does that mean? I thought to myself. I leaned in a took in a large whiff of it. It smelled like the trees of Ordon. I still wondered who this article could belong to.
Nabooru helped me to my feet and lead me to the other room. “Okay, just wait in here. I’ll be right back.” she said, closing the door. As I sat in the dark room, alone, I began to think of my options. I could have chosen Link, Coro, Shad, Fado, or Shinbo, one of the Hylian guards.
Even more intensely afraid of who I might have chosen, I snatched a piece of my hair and started to braid it. Not too soon afterward, the door swung gradually open. I winced, releasing the strands of hair. I squinted my eyes, trying to see who I had chosen.
It’s no use. The room is too dark for me to see. I sighed, patting the spot beside me on the couch. The mysterious guest sat carefully beside me. I held on tightly to the leaf.
We sat there in an awkward silence for a few moments. Okay, so, it’s a leaf. That leaves me with… Link, Coro and Fado. Those aren’t bad options, other than Coro.
After losing myself within my train of thought I turned towards the shadowy figure. “Okay, so… we only have seven minutes in here, so…yeah.” I closed my eyes, waiting for skin contact.
Soon, I felt a tender grasp of my face, making me moan involuntarily. The feeling was extraordinary, the shocking sensation that pulsed through me. I opened my eyes in time to catch a glimpse of who I had chosen. I smiled as I soon met the lips of the sapphire-eyed guest. As the sweet, familiar honey-dew scent filled my lungs once again, I knew instantly who I had chosen.
Way sooner than I had imagined, the door swung open, allowing light into the room once again. Stunned, we both pulled away. “All right, you two. Time’s up! Get out!” Nabooru teased. She stepped away from the door to allow our passage out. I stood up and began to exited the room. I stopped as I realized that a hand had pulled me back by the wrist. I turned around, meeting the deep, sapphire eyes of the one that held me. The hand slipped easily down from my wrist to my hand. I flushed a deep crimson hue, smiling.
But, soon, he released my hand. He turned towards the door but didn’t move. “We don’t want to give the others any ideas.” The velvet-soft voice whispered, making me swoon at its beauty. I nodded and walked out, with him following close behind.
“Well, seeing as Amari was our last contestant, this ‘Seven Minutes in Heaven’ session has come to a close You can all go home, now!” Nabooru exclaimed, pushing everyone out the door.
As I headed towards Aria, I turned and saw Link getting ready to mount Epona.
Before he turned and rode away, he waved. I blushed and waved back. Never had I felt that way towards anyone… until now.
****************************
“When I saw you pull out that leaf, I was so scared! I thought you would have to be stuck with Coro or something!” Zelda said, her fore finger pecking at the controller. “I know! Me, too. I was so nervous!” I exclaimed, slamming down on the X button.
On the screen, my character leaped into the air and came down on Zelda’s in a Sword Plunge. “Yeah! High score!” I shouted, throwing my arms into the air. Zelda sighed and crossed her legs, her jeans flopping limply around her legs. “But…” her voice trailed off.
Setting the Xbox controller down, I turned towards her. “When I saw Link stand up and walk into the room, I got really excited. First, because I knew you had a crush on him for, like, forever. Second, because no one had picked him. I am really glad you got him.” She laid a hand on my shoulder, heating up my icy skin.
I blushed and turned away, smiling to myself. She smirked and leaned closer, as if she were pressing for details. “So… how was it?” she mused, grinning broadly. My cheeks flushed an even brighter red, embarrassed by how my sister was so interested in this. “It was…” I started, pausing to swallow. She leaned in closer, sincerely interested.
I sighed and stared out the window at the gently falling rain. After the short pause, I turned back to her and said, “…it was nice. I really enjoyed it.”
She grinned and leaned back facing the television screen once again. “Now, how about a rematch. You cheated last time.” She picked up her game controller, never turning to meet my gaze. I smiled fiercely and picked up my controller, as well
“You’re on!”
*****************************
I sighed, gazing up at the stars. Next to me, the peaceful waters of Zora’s Domain swirled and played around my ankles and the Mother and Child rocks. I continued to stare up at the brightest star that twinkled merrily in the clear sky. Nothing could make this night better. Nothing, but…
“Amari? Is that you?” I heard a surprised voice call out from behind me. My fiery waves bounced wildly as I turned to meet the sapphire gaze of Link. We remained silent as he stared into my bright, sage-green eyes. I blushed and was the first to turn away. My feet crossed over each other under the water.
Link chuckled and looked up at the sky. “Wow.” He breathed.
“The stars look so beautiful tonight. This is great spot to just get away from it all.”
I nodded and followed his gaze back to the bright star. After a few more silent moments, I broke it by saying, “I know she is up there.” Link looked at me, confused. “Who is up there?” he asked.
I sighed and turned towards him. “My mother. I came here to talk to her. Unfortunately, I can never hear her voice telling me ‘It’s alright, Amari. You’ll pull through somehow. After all, you are my daughter.’” After telling him that, I began to tear up. My heart sank as I thought of my dear mother. A single tear slid out of the corner of my eye and began to roll down my cheek. Link caught the tear on his finger, as if to tell me to calm down.
His sapphire gaze held me there once again, stunning me. His finger tucked itself into his fist, which he loosened. His hands cupped my face, which made it harder to look away. As if the both of us were drawn to each other, we slowly leaned in closer to each other. We came so close that our noses almost touched. His hot, honey-dew breath rolled down my face and neck. I, involuntarily, moaned as he soon closed the distance between us.
As soon as our lips met, I knew that it was meant to be. I knew that Link was the one that I was destined to be with for the rest of my life. It wasn’t the first time I had thought that, either.
Fate, serendipity, attraction… whatever you wanted to call it, it was here and here to stay. As soon as our lips parted, I let out a long breath that I hadn’t realized I was holding. Our faces stayed close enough that we could hear the other’s heart racing. I flushed an incredibly deep scarlet, deeper and brighter than my hair.
“Wow, umm…” I breathed, feeling incredibly at ease near him.
“Yeah. Wow.” He replied, just as speechless as I was.
I giggled, my face lighting up a bright red color. I smiled to myself and played with my hair once again. He is so cute! I am so glad that I am here with him and no one else.
I released my hair and laid my hand next to me. When my fingers landed upon warmth, I blushed even deeper. In accurate unison, we both took in a quick glance of our hands and looked at each other.
I dipped my head and looked at him through my eyelashes. He smiled sweetly as he wrapped his hand around mine. The bright moonlight above us illuminated his blue eyes, making them shine brightly. I scooted closer to him and, while laying my head on his shoulder, let out a contented sigh.
He continued to smile as his hand moved from my hand to my shoulder. As his hand pressed down on my shoulder to pull me closer, he leaned close to me and kissed my forehead gingerly. I closed my eyes and my lips parted slightly. As he pulled his face away, I shifted my position to look up at him. “Link?” I asked, laying a hand on his knee. He looked down at me and I could tell that he was smiling on the inside.
I turned away from him and looked up at the stars. “You won’t ever leave me… will you?” My voice cracked slightly on the word ‘leave.’ He didn’t answer immediately, however I had a strong hunch of what his answer could be. He laid his cheek atop of my head. “Of course not, love. I promise to never leave you alone, ever.”
That was all that I needed to hear. I nestled deeper into his chest and sighed. My joy and contentment overflowed within me and forced tears from my eyes. I smiled and wiped the tears away. We continued to sit there, smiling to ourselves and we watched the stars flickered excitedly throughout the sky. After a few moments, I broke our romantic silence by saying, “Link… thanks.”
As our hearts and our imaginations soared through the night sky, we both joined together in one more kiss. This sweet, slow sensation made me feel as if I could do anything, as long as he was mine and I was his……
~ Fin ~

~ Amari's Story ~

(Please note: I am in no way affiliated or involved with Nintendo.)
(This story is completely fan-made.)

This story is the sequel to The Final Legend, the story of Twilight Princess told in the perspective of our new heroine, Amari. Amari’s Story is told in Amari’s point of view. It starts out precisely after Ganondorf’s death. It tells the true story of Link and Amari’s love for each other and the hardships they’ve been through. Caramelldansen! ^-^
---- Amari, author



~ Prologue ~


Twilight began to fall slowly around us. The cool, night air brushed gently over my cheeks; a cold chill ran down my spine. Something was wrong. It didn’t feel right. My voice cracked as the end of the bridge slipped out of my lips. “It was only a midnight’s dream.” As I continued to sing my song, I broke into a cold sweat. I ignored it and moved on to the last line of the song. “Remember me, always.” As the last words parted my lips, I saw him. I saw him staggering on the horizon. Nabooru finished her guitar solo and followed my gaze.
My heart stopped as he came into view, for then I noticed what he was covered in. Blood. Gallons of blood, it seemed, swamped his face and clothes. The fear that I had suppressed for so long started to build itself up again, filling my entire essence. Instantly feeling nauseous, I swooned slightly.
Then, acting purely on instinct, I bolted towards him. Nabooru reached for my shoulder to pull me back; when she missed, she held her hand in the air. “Amari, wait!” The audience, one by one, turned to face me. I didn’t care who all saw me.
Tears streaming from my eyes, I continued to run towards him. My ears laid flat on my head as I ran. It’s not true... please, don’t let it be true! Just as I reached him, he collapsed into my arms. My tears splashed onto his cheeks continuously; he slowly opened his eyes. It seemed that his were moist as well.
He looked away, refusing to keep eye contact with me. “I am sorry. I hoped that you wouldn’t have to see me like this, Amari. I am a foolish man.” I shook my head, placing my hand on his cheek. He felt as cold as--- I couldn’t think about it. I focused on clearing my dry throat to answer him. “No, you are not. But... what happened to you?”
He managed croak an attempt at a laugh. “I went to do as I promised. To avenge your sister’s death for you.” I gasped, remembering the letter he had left me previously. “No...” was all that I could say. What had I done? I had cried about Zelda’s death for weeks until it had forced Link to do this. This was entirely my fault.
Tears began to flow faster now. First, Ganon had killed my father. Then, my older sister is murdered... now this? I couldn’t bear it anymore.
Ignoring the blood that now covered us both, I pulled him closer to me. “No! I will not let you die! Don’t leave me!” I shouted, my voice cracking slightly. I felt cold hands grasp my face. I shivered, shocked by the sudden cold.
I looked into his once brilliant blue eyes, now daunted with a hint of gray. “I am so proud of you. You have over come-“ he winced in pain as I hugged him tighter. “You have over come many obstacles, with and without me. I am sure that you will be fine. You and Hikari, both.”
His hands slowly began to slide off of my face. I desperately tried to keep him here, alive... with me. His eyes shifted from a bluish-gray into pure gray. Instantly, his eyelids began to droop.
“Amari... I’m sorry. I must leave you now. Give my love to our daughter.”
Still shaking my head, I held his head in my hands. “No... no! You can’t! I won’t let you!” I sobbed. He was so cold... so light in my hands. I couldn’t take it. “Link... p-please...” I swallowed back all that I wanted to say as his hand fell to his side. His head dropped from my gaze. At that moment, I heard a low “I love you... always.” part from his lips, followed by a short gust of air. My eyes widened as I shook his lifeless body, which flopped around uselessly. Tail twitching in agony, I threw my head back and let out a bellowing, “NO!!!!!!”
I couldn’t believe it. He was actually gone from me... never to return. I felt horrified... defeated, even. I hung my head, allowing a few more sobs burst from me. I felt a soft hand land on my shoulder. “Amari...” I heard Anju’s sweet, innocent voice say. I inclined my head to see every Twilit Angels member standing over me. I heard thunder rumble in the background.
Roxas stepped forward and kneeled down beside me. Usually the quiet one, he said, “I am so sorry.”
Caught off-guard by his sudden speech, I laughed. I patted his shoulder, showing a weak attempt at smiling. “Thanks, Roxas. I owe you one.” Grinning nervously, he stood and returned to the rest off the group. My tears began to slow to a stop.
I couldn’t believe it. The Hero of Time... was dead. What’s more... by my fault. My heart was broken, my soul was crushed. My poor, little Hikari... how could I ever tell her that her father was... dead? She would be heart-broken! What more could possible happen? What more could go wrong?



~ Chapter One: The Twilit Angels ~


“So... do you really think that Hyrule can be rebuilt?” Link looked over his shoulder at Zelda. The sun beat down on the back of our necks. My auburn tail swished impatiently, my ears flickering in all directions. Sweat rolled down the side of my face in large beads. It was a nearly normal summer day in Hyrule.
Link, Zelda and I all stood on a cliff overlooking Hyrule Field, watching the people of Castle Town cheer over the death of Ganondorf, the Evil King.
His reign of terror over Hyrule seemed almost like a fairy-tale, told long ago to scare little children. Ganon, who had been brought down nearly five hours ago, had taken control of the Twilight in order to take over Hyrule. In the end, it turned out to be his demise.
Death Mountain had nearly crumbled from the weight of the dark power, known as the Fused Shadow, which had taken over their patriarch, Darbus. The Zora’s Domain had been frozen solid, blocking all of the water supply for Hyrule’s inhabitants.
All of Hyrule had been under siege; every creature had been exiled from their own homes, forced to either serve him or die.
I shuddered at the thought. Link pulled me closer to him; the warmth of his body calmed me.
Zelda nodded, turning to him and me. “Yes. It certainly possible, now. It will take a while, of course. But... yes, I don’t see why not.” I noticed a small smile tug at the side of her mouth.
“Thanks to both of your heroic efforts, we have been rescued from Ganon’s grasp.” She laid a hand on my shoulder. I looked into her eyes. “Amari... my dear, younger sister...” she frowned slightly. “I am so sorry. I should have never put you through such danger. I was careless! I should have never-“ I put a finger to her lips, silencing her momentarily.
“It’s okay. You were only think of what was best for me. Had you not made Mother send me away to Ordon, I...” I hesitated, trying to find a nicer way to say it. “I probably would have been killed. I thank you, sister. No matter how swelled your head may get!” I winked playfully, giggling. Both Zelda and Link laughed.
Then, I noticed something out of the corner of my eye. It was Malon, sprinting at full-speed towards us. Once she got close enough, though, she continued to run until she collided with Zelda. Gasping out a laugh, she threw her arms around her waist. “I am so happy for you!” she squealed.
We all exchanged a questioning look, occasionally throwing a glance her way. Her smile faded as she realized that we were confused. Zelda broke the silence. “Malon, what are you talking about? What are you happy about?”
Malon frowned, placing her hands on her hips. “I mean, you’re going to be officially crowned queen tomorrow! What did you think I meant?” Instantly, I saw happiness flicker in Zelda’s eyes. She kept a straight face, hiding her almost-visible smile.
“I thought that I wasn’t supposed to be crowned until my birthday. Why so soon?” Malon’s coy frown shifted into a look of sympathy. I immediately felt a sickening feeling in the pit of my stomach. “W-well... the guards, they...” her voice broke off. Sighing, she tried again. “They found your father’s will. Turns out, it was his idea.”
I felt my heart skip a beat. I felt like I was falling, like the earth was collapsing all around me. My knees felt like jelly; they wobbled around uncontrollably. Sensing that I might fall over, I clutched at Link’s tunic; my sweaty palms began to slip from their firm grasp. Link understood what was happening and held me tighter, his warmth once again calming me.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Zelda tense and ball her hands into fists. I got the feeling that she was trying to hold back the painful memories. Her golden curls quivered slightly, moved by the small breeze. I inhaled deeply, allowing the sweet, honey-dew flavored air of Hyrule Field fill my lungs.
My poor father... he had been murdered by one of the Gerudo guards during Ganon’s mutiny. He was discovered by my dying mother, carrying me in her arms. Zelda, who had been two at the time, and I had been raised by Impa; Impa was our attendant and a descendant of the ancient Shiekah tribe. When my mother and father died, she sent me away to protect me from Ganon. Azuna, the second-in-command to Mayor Bo of Ordon, found me and took me in as her own.
The day that I found her, dead... I forced those memories out of my head. They were too painful to think of.
Zelda took in a deep breath, forcing her lips open. “I see. Very well. If that is, indeed, father’s wish...” She nodded. Malon’s smile instantly returned. “Okay, then! Let’s get you dressed up!”
She turned to me and Link. “Aren’t you guys coming?”
I looked at Link, not sure how to answer. He smiled his usual sweet smile and shook his head. “I’m sorry, Malon. We have other things to do. We’re really busy.”
Malon frowned at him, narrowing her eyes. “And just who is...” Her voice trailed off. A look of realization spread across her face as her eyes darted from me to him.
By this point, I was very confused. I glared at her, hoping to push out some sort of answer. The only answer that I received was another coy smile and a twinkling pair of eyes. “Oh. Okay, then. You two have fun!” she mused, pulling Zelda towards Hyrule Castle.
Zelda glanced nervously over her shoulder at me. I gave her a quick thumbs-up and motioned for her to follow. She sighed and turned to Malon. “So, what exactly what will I be wearing?” she asked. That was the last I heard before the two disappeared into the setting sun.
“So...” I started, looking up at Link. He glanced down at me. “What exactly are we ‘really busy’ for, hm?” He blushed, scratching the back of his neck. “W-well, I thought that, maybe, ummmm... we c-could, you know...” he stopped, staring into my eyes.
I knew exactly what he was asking. “You mean, like a... date?” I asked. He nodded slowly, blushing even redder now than before.
“Well, I can understand if... if you don’t want to.” He stuttered, seeming disappointed now.
I shushed him, placing my finger on his lips. “I heard that there will be an excellent sun set tonight. We can get a good view from that ridge in the Zora’s Domain. Okay?” He stared dreamily at me, nodding slower still.
I giggled, grinning. Placing his hand on my cheek, he took a step closer to me. “Amari.” Was all that he said, even though I knew that he had more to say. The next thing I knew, he held me in a tight embrace. I felt like I had just been embraced by an angel. His sweet scent filled my lungs as I inhaled, causing me to sigh as I exhaled. I gently nudged his chest with my head, refusing to hide my feline instincts. The moment I felt a purr coming on, I slowly pulled myself away. No way! I’m not going all out! Caught off-guard by my sudden movement, Link released me.
I felt ashamed, like he thought that I had rejected him. Hiding all negative emotions, I perked up and playfully backed away.
“Okay, so, Zora’s Domain, right? Be there by late afternoon. I’ll be waiting.” Grinning, I blew him a kiss and dashed towards Hyrule Castle. I heard a loving sigh come from behind me and I stopped dead in my tracks. Exaggerating more than needed, I cupped my hands around my mouth and shouted to him, “Link! I love you!” I waved, adding more playfulness to lighten him up. Once I saw his exhilarated smile, I turned back to Hyrule Castle, laughing to myself. I had never felt so in love in my life.

Fan Fiction Info--- ***NEW FAN FICTION COMING***

Well, the title is correct!!! I am coming out with a new fan fiction called Amari's Story!!!
It has characters from The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess, Ocarina of Time, and Majora's Mask. It also has some lines from lyrics to songs that I created myself(which will be in italics or cursive, which ever I so choose). For more information, please read the following paragraph.

****WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!!!****


As we find out in The Final Legend, Amari (the heroine of the story, next to Zelda) is head-over-heels in love with Link. Well, Amari's Story takes place during the aftermath of Ganon's death. Hyrule is repairing itself, Zelda is crowned queen, and Amari starts a band called The Twilit Angels. After some consideration, Link joins the band, along with Nabooru (the Spirit Sage from Ocarina of Time), Anju (the inn-keeper from Majora's Mask), Malon (the ranch-girl from Ocarina of Time), and Roxas (number XIII from Kingdom Hearts 2). I know, Roxas is out of place, but, I didn't want any Zoras in my band! Anyway, the band now consitis of Link (lead guitarist), Amari (lead singer), Nabooru (bass guitarist), Anju (synthesizer/pianist), Roxas (drummer), and Malon (back-up singer). This story pretty much shows how much Link and Amari really love each other. Somewhere in the middle of the story, Zelda is murdered by a "shadow-like duplicate of Link." Both Link and Amari (who turns out to be Zelda's younger sister) are appalled. Amari, forced into depression, continuously postpones concerts in order to "get over" her older sister's death. Link, who tries and fails to cheer-up Amari, sets off to avenge Zelda for her; he leaves a note explaining everything. At the end of the letter, he writes, "P.S, I want you to play in my place at the concert tomorrow. Please... do it for me. I know you are upset, but... just this once. I love you always." Not wanting to let him down, she agrees to his request. Which, in fact, brings us to the prologue. Towards the end of their concert, Amari sees a silhouette shaped like Link off in the distance, staggering. Is it really him? Or is it a trick? Find out in... Amari's Story.


(Please note: I am in no way whatsoever affiliated or involved with Nintendo or anyone else! This story is completely fan-made.)

P.S, I will tell you that Amari and Link have a daughter together (no, you do not hear what they do to get her! Ew!). They name her Hikari (I think it means "light" or something; I find it to be a fitting name for the child of the Hero of Time).

Zelda Update--- Possible Series Edition???

I was exploring a new Zelda fansite I came across a few months ago when I came across an interesting subject that was discussed. Apparently, Eiji Aonuma and a man who referred to hismeslf as "Kyle" were interviewed for more information on a rumored Project Deluge. This is what they said:

>Kyle: I would first like to thank you for allowing us to visit you here. I understand your team has been very preoccupied with preparing for your trip next month. We feel pretty honored to speak with you about this so early before E3.

>Eiji Aonuma: [laughs] I admit it is rare that share information this early, but I convinced Iwata-san that your writers were trustworthy enough to keep our conversation here confidential until Project Deluge is announced at the expo.

>Kyle: In that case, I can assure you the interview here will remain secret until July.

>Aonuma: Good. Should we discuss the game then?

>Kyle: Actually, I would appreciate if you could clarify the nature of the game. As in, what specifically do you have planned to reveal soon?

>Aonuma: That’s a good start. Well Project Deluge is obviously not going to be the retail title. We have been speculating as to whether we should even call this a “Legend of Zelda” game at all. As for subtitles, Valley of the Deluge seems the most favored so far. Or Valley of the Flood as it will probably translate. It is a Wii title and is currently estimated to release around late 2009 at the earliest.

>Kyle: That’s a long time.

>Aonuma: [laughs] We spend at least two years on each console installment of the franchise and usually much more than that. There was a huge gap between Ocarina of Time and A Link to the Past as well as a sizable gap between Majora’s Mask and The Wind Waker. We intend to refine the game a great deal before 2009 though, so visuals won’t do it much justice.
*********

Also, there will be a few changes to the plot of the story. Here is what they said about that:

>Kyle: Now before we begin discussing the game mechanics and art style of Project Deluge, I am interested in hearing about what you want to illicit from this game. What aspects do you want to focus on?

>Aonuma: That’s a very good question. There are a few critical aspects of Deluge that I want to address. The first is a greater sense of psychological peril. Miyamoto and I have disagreed a great deal on the importance of storytelling in games. He argues for simplicity and straightforwardness and I have long believed that stories in games can be as powerful as in books if done well. So I want to assert that the game will have a much more complicated story in the sense that our hero is no longer mute.

>Kyle: Because he isn’t Link, right?

>Aonuma: I see you’ve already heard.

>Kyle: Rumors mostly.

>Aonuma: Mario will have to fix that leaky pipe one of these days. [laughs]

>Kyle: [laughs] I hope not. Nintendo is secret enough as it is. Go on though, I’m interested in what else you intend to emphasize with Deluge.

>Aonuma: I can’t divulge too much without compromising my agreement with Iwata-san, but I can tell you that because the hero is not Link this time, there is much more flexibility in terms of storytelling. I want to stress the craziness of the hero. Because this hero is not Link, but he thinks he is Link. You remember the opening of Wind Waker, correct? Where it spoke of how Link never came to slay Ganon?

>Kyle: One of the best openings I’ve ever seen actually.

>Aonuma: I’m glad. I think it was one of the best parts of the game. Well you’ll recall that Link never came and the gods essentially flooded Hyrule to destroy Ganon. So in this Hyrule. In this Hyrule I’m creating, no Hero of Time has surfaced yet and the entire land is crumbling as Ganon reaps more and more power. The races are hopeless at this point. Basically, all of Hyrule is in chaos. But this boy deludes himself into thinking that he is the Hero of Time. And of course, as the story progresses he will begin looking more and more like Link. Physically he’s different though, with black hair and more defined musculature and such. He’s obsessed of course, and wears a green tunic as Link did, forges a sword and shield similar in appearance to Link’s, and actually begins confronting Ganon’s followers. This works well considering Ganon is much more of a lunatic this time around. He’s basically gone mad and the game’s cinematics will sometimes jump to him and show this madness overpower him over the course of the game.

>Kyle: So the main character is insane? I like this idea.

>Aonuma: That’s a good way of putting it I suppose. He is insane, yes. But he’s good. He’s altruistic and a kind-spirited warrior. He has more layers of emotion than Link because he speaks in the game. He also has a pretty disturbing backstory. It’s not as dark as it sounds though.
********

So, basically, it follows the storyline, but in a different place. And, technically, the main character is not Link at all. "Link" is portrayed as this boy, who happens to be Link's age, and he goes insane due to recent events. Then, he claims to be the next Link and trys to defeat Ganon before Hyrule floods out.
I don't know about you, but, this seems to be too out of place to be real. I mean, this game is supposed to explain what happened before Wind Waker and it is placed after Twilight Princess.
It is completely out of place. Not only that, but Aonuma mentioned that this game will be steampunk-based. Here is what they said:


>Aonuma: Now I’ve heard many fans tell me that they’re interested in a steampunk-influenced Zelda, even though the series has always maintained a very medieval foundation. I thought about this shortly after completing [Wind Waker], and I started compiling ideas in my head and eventually relayed them to Miyamoto-san, who seemed surprisingly pleased with the idea of a more progressive Hylian history. We had a meeting halfway through development of Twilight Princess and agreed to set aside an entire portfolio of ideas for a more industrialized Hyrule. We figured that if Hyrule has enough time to develop its kingdom, it would eventually discover the steam engine and gunpowder and such. Well gunpowder was there to begin with. We’ve had cannons in Zelda, so I suppose you could say that Zelda was always really in a kind of medieval-steampunk limbo.

>Kyle: What exactly do you have planned for this kind of transition? I mean, do you actually want guns in the Zelda universe, or is that just wishful thinking on my part?

>Aonuma: Muskets, certainly. They wouldn’t be the kind that you’re familiar with though, and all items we create in the universe will retain their respective fantasy styles. So for instance, you can expect a deku musket that fires gunpowder-filled deku nuts. It sounds a bit obscene, but when you see the concept art and visuals in July, you’ll realize how well it all merges with the world. I don’t want to spoil too much, but we intend to have a railroad system in Hyrule. It’s actually something I’ve wanted to implement since Majora’s Mask, but we’ve never had a large enough world, you know?

>Kyle: That could be incredible.
********

I have to disagree with "Kyle." I myself do not like the idea of guns and trains in a horse-riding, magic-based setting. The changes in the setting are slightly encouraged in my part, but nothing more.


>Kyle: How big is the world going to be?

>Aonuma: My third point. I think Wind Waker had it right, but it needed to approach travel with more variety. Sailing was a very polarizing aspect of the game, and I think we need to look at the sheer number of possible modes of transportation. Of course our hero in Deluge will have a horse—a black one actually, with these ethereal white spots that illuminate in the dark; I think it’s quite interesting and captures the otherworldly tone I’m looking for in the game. But yes, he has a horse and access to a train, as well as an unusual method of flight. I’ll talk about all of this at E3 and I don’t want to spoil much, but I want to emphasize that this game will be breathtakingly massive. Not just in scale, but in the amount of sidequests and secret items and even mini-dungeons we’re trying to implement. It’s the largest Zelda so far in terms of land. We want realism and consistency in the world, such as believable rivers and brooks and water effects. Especially water effects. [laughs]

>Kyle: Amazing. Do you have any concept art I can look at, or is that too much to ask?

>Aonuma: Not this time, I’m afraid. You’ll see it soon enough though. I’m even a little stunned at what my co-workers have created, and that’s saying something since I worked with them on so many amazing games. I’ve always wanted to surpass A Link to the Past and I think I might with this. Who knows?
********
Anyway, I think this supposed "New Zelda" is just a big hoax. I'm not saying that I'm going against it or that I'm waiting for it. I'm just saying I will wait for more information. What do you think about this Project Deluge? I also found out that the American version translates into Valley of the Flood. What is your opinion? Please leave your answer in your post.

Random Rambling 5- Left or Right?

~ The Age-Long question: which is better, left-handed or right-handed? ~

Apparently, I am not the only one who is curious about this. Is there truly one that is better than the other? Or is it just an annoying question to bother the normal folk around us? In my opinion, niether one is truly more important, more special or better than the other. Some people theorize that whatever hand you write with, that is the side of your brain you use the most. Right-handed people use more creative thoughts than scientific or mathematical. And vice versa for left-handed people. I, honestly, don't believe that at all. What are your thoughts on this subject? Please leave your answer in your comment.

Random Rambling 4- Kaepora Gaebora

~ Kaepora Gaebora- Rauru reincarnated or Internet hoax? ~

Most of us, I hope, have heard of Kaepora Gaebora, the talking owl that follows you when you are Young Link, and Rauru, the Light Sage. So, what if Kaepora and Rauru were the same person? What if, in the future, Rauru was reincarnated into Kaepora? I was randomly exploring other Zelda fansites when I came across this strange anomaly. I was utterly surprised, so I decided to look into it. When I was playing Ocarina of Time, I noticed that whenever you were near Rauru or just spoke to him, Kaepora doesn't appear. So, when I was on the site that I found the anomaly on (click on title), I looked through the Ocarina of Time oddities again. I am still baffled. What is your opinion?

Random Rambling 3- Who is Zelda's Nobody?

~ Namine is Kairi's Nobody... is Midna Zelda's Nobody? ~

Okay, so anyone who has played the game Kingdom Hearts 2 should know that Namine turns out to be Kairi's Nobody. Well, what if Midna is supossed to be Zelda's Nobody? Because, well, Namine hangs out in the shadow with DiZ and Riku, but is still a good guy. So, I propose that Midna is exactly the same as Namine. They have a lot in common; live in shadow, are almost exactly like their other half (Kairi and Zelda) and are both still good guys! Do you think that this is possible?

Random Rambling 2--- Midna's Childhood

In Twilight Princess, Midna is reconized as a childish imp who is bent on save her own people in a selfish manner. Later, we learn that Midna is deeply moved by how Link still wants to help her even though he learned the truth of her intentions. Because without light, twilight is nothing. Princess Zelda said so herself! She said:
" Light and dark are two sides of the same coin. One cannot exsist without the other."
We are never really told much about her life's story other than her parents dying, Zant cursing her and taking over the Twilight Realm. Who is she really? Is there more to the Twilight Princess than we know of? Please leave your ideas and opinions in your comment.

Random Rambling 1- Ganon's Story

~ Ganondorf- did he always want to rule Hyrule or was it a childhood accident? ~

In almost every single Zelda game ever made, Ganondorf, or Ganon, has tried to take control of Hyrule. Has there ever been a reason behind this event? What if it was some childhood tragedy that involved his parents? What if it involved someone he loved? For example:
(we'll call the queen Callia and the king Daphnes)

Let's say that Callia, Daphnes and Ganon were all childhood friends. He had no other friends because people shunned him for being a Gerudo. So, Ganon, Callia and Daphnes grew up together. Callia, who happened to be the princess of Hyrule at the time, turns 18 and is legally able to take the throne. She has to decide to marry either Daphnes or Ganon. Ganon may have had a crush on her his whole life, but, she had liked Daphnes more. So, she chooses him. Ganon, now lonely and heart-broken, vows to take revenge upon everyone who Callia holds dear--- her kingdom, her family and her child, Princess Zelda. Once old enough to rule over the Gerudos, he leads his personal army to rampage every village and home he lays eyes on. Finally, they come across a village tucked away in a remote forest, called Ordon. With the village in turmoil, Sophie and Raven (Link's parents) try to flee with their baby, Link. Both of Link's parents are killed. Before Sophi is murdered, she places the baby in a bush where no one can see him. After the rampage settles, Bo (the mayor of Ordon) finds the starving baby and takes him in as his own. After destroying everything in sight, Ganon and his hoardes turn to Hyrule Castle. Once they arrive, they take down everyone in their path. Ganon, filled with seemingly perpetual rage, finds and murders Callia; she happened to be protecting her 2-year-old daughter, Princess Zelda. Apalled by his actions, he tells his mutiny to fall back. The next day, he taken to the Mirror Chamber where he sealed into the Dark Realm. 18 years later, he escaped from his prison. He resumes his place as King of the Gerudos. Having been released by the power of Twilight, he floods Hyrule with this newly found power. The people of Hyrule, with nowhere else to turn, pray that the Hero of Time will once again appear. Which leads us to Twilight Princess...

Another scenario: (we'll call Ganon's mother Rina)
Ganon had a peaceful life up until his 12th birthday. In the middle of the celebration, the Royal Army burst into his home and accuse Rina of witchcraft. Tears streaming down her cheeks, she is dragged away from her child, screaming, "Remember me in your dreams!" The next day, she is executed (your choice). Ganon blames himself for a fraction of his life. Finally, when he reaches the age of 27, he decides to blame the Hylian Royal Family for the death of his mother. After all, they are the ones in command for the Army. So, being the King of the Gerudos, he commands Nabooru, his second-in-command, to gather up the Gerudo warriors and storm each home; he also commands that they kill anyone who dares appose them. Soon, they come across a mansion of in the country. The man of the house is killed protecting his wife (we'll call her Sophie) and his newborn child, Link. Sophie flees, bearing a heavy wound, with the baby Link. She arrives at the Kokiri Forest, where she then dies. After that event, Ganon leads his rebellion to Hyrule Castle. Callia, protecting the baby Princess Zelda, is murdered by a Gerudo woman. Daphnes takes over protecting Zelda and fights Ganon. One lucky swipe gets Ganon and his mutiny to retreat. Weeks later, Ganon decides to ask forgiveness for Daphnes. After being forgiven, he assumes the position of second-in-command to the King. Which brings us to Ocarina of Time...

The Hidden Leagcy of Cleopatra

~ Prologue ~

There is a legend that has been hidden since 30 BC. It is the hidden legacy of the famous Queen Cleopatra. She ruled over Ancient Egypt for many years and there was peace throughout the lands, according to various history books. That was a mistake. There is another side to her story that has never been released to the public before… until now. Here is the true story of the famous Queen Cleopatra.
* * * * *
“ Hey! You can’t just leave me behind like that!” Cleopatra’s voice was quickly cut off by the endless, humid abyss and the sound off the crashing stones by the slaves off in the background. She bent over her knees and caught her breath. Her black, silky strands of hair quivered slightly by the wind that just barely blew by. Both Horus and Baste pushed the doors to the throne room open all the way. “ Aw, come on! Don’t tell me that you’re worn out already?” Horus mused. He was a strong young man with short, dark brown hair and a stubby goatee. He had gorgeous yet mysterious goldenrod eyes that held an undying will. He almost always remained calm, even in the most depressing moments. Baste, on the other hand, had a childish feel to her. She had bright, optimistic green eyes that were in the shape of cat’s eyes. She had bushy, red hair that covered her left eye almost always. She was very athletic, but she still held that feminine feel to her. She let her gray, striped cat ears stay out for she thought it irritating to have to hide them, along with her gray, striped tail. She smiled enthusiastically and proudly let her fangs glisten in the sunlight. The three had raced all the way from Cleopatra’s boat miles down the Nile River to her throne room in Cairo, Egypt. They all laughed at the fact that she was so tired and continued on into the room. Later that night, Cleopatra revealed the devastating news the she held in all day long. Horus stood in absolute anger. “ The King of England has called war against us!? Why!? What is it we have done to have come to this!?” His eyes held fiery anger that seemed to be impossible to put out. Cleopatra hung her head and sighed. “He… he wants my crown.” She immediately buried her face into her hands. Her shoulders shook violently as she wept heavily. Baste put her arms around Cleopatra and hugged her tight, trying to calm her. “I… I just don’t know w-what to do! How c-can I stop him?” She was crying so hard now she could hardly speak. Horus and Baste exchanged glances; both held a worried look upon their faces. “ Aw, it’s ok! We will always be here for you, as both your best friends and as your loyal subjects.” Baste removed her arms and stood beside Horus. The two bowed low in deep respect for her. She looked up and smiled weakly. As she wiped her eyes, she threw her arms around them and laughed. “ Thank you. You guys are the best friends a girl could have!” The three hugged for a moment, but then broke off in all directions. Cleopatra stood up, a fierce look on her face. “Okay. Let’s go!” She walked off towards the stairs that led to the throne room below, Horus and Baste following behind her. And with that, the war had begun.
* * * * *
Fire flashed off in the distance through the windows of the throne room. Screams rose over the sounds of the ring of swords and the crashing of houses being destroyed. Even so, Cleopatra remained adamant at her post. She sat on the throne while Horus stood beside her, sword drawn, and Baste stationed on a window, the string on her bow pulled back and ready to shoot down anyone with her poison arrows. They all remained so in silence for what seemed like an eternity. Suddenly, they heard a loud bang on the large, golden doors. Three more bangs followed it. On the fifth bang, the doors swung open and an army of the British piled in, weapons at the ready. Both Horus and Baste immediately tensed, preparing for battle. Horus dashed forward and began to fight. He stabbed his sword into one man’s ankle and severed it clean off, the blood spurting and spilling everywhere out of the wound. Baste fired multiple poison arrows all at once, all of them striking a British soldier in the heart. After all of the soldiers were annihilated, the battle seemed to be over by Horus and Baste’s standards. They were horribly wrong. When they turned around to congratulate each other with Cleopatra, they found her being held by the king of England. He firmly held his hand over her mouth and, with his other hand, held a sword to her throat in a death grip. Their hearts sank at this terrible sight. The king laughed manically, throwing his head back. “Now, you see what this has come to? All I wanted was the crown of Cleopatra, but, no! You had to fight back and start this worthless war.” Baste started forward, thoroughly infuriated. “ That is a lie! You started this war! We had nothing to do with this!” Baste’s voice echoed as it rose in anger. The king laughed once more. “Do you really think I care about petty little details such as those? Ha! You foolish, barbaric savages!” The king slowly pressed the sword harder on Cleopatra’s neck. She let out a muffled cry as tears rolled down her cheeks. “No!” Baste held her hand in a desperate act to protect her. The vile king removed the sword, leaving Cleopatra gasping for air. He leaned in close to her ear and whispered, “Long live the Queen Cleopatra!” He returned the sword to her throat and slowly pulled it across. The blood made it’s way down her chest and the sword as he did so. When he released her, she slumped to the floor. Blood oozed from her split veins as she fell into an deep, endless sleep. Baste fell to her knees, the tears flowing nonstop down her cheeks. “ Impossible…” Horus gasped, not believing what he just witnessed. Baste sat there, shaking. She made no reply. What happened next was truly remarkable. Apparently, with her last bit of strength, Cleopatra crawled around the vicious king and stolen the sword that practically killed her. With that sword, she thrust it through his heart. As the blade punctured his innards, a shower of blood flooded out of his chest, dripping onto the floor as he fell down beside Cleopatra. Baste immediately stood up and ran to her dying queen’s side. “No… n-no… no, you can’t die! Egypt still needs a ruler! Y-you… please d-don’t leave us!” Baste threw herself upon the half-dead figure beneath her and wept. She heard a low cough from beneath her and instantly sat up. “B-Baste… I… I’m s-s-sorry… b-but I… I can’t go on… I… h-have no energy…” Cleopatra shakily lifted her golden crown off her head and placed it in Baste’s hands. Baste stared deeply into her eyes. “What…?” She seemed utterly confused. “ Y-you… shall rule in my place… for you cannot die… you shall g-guide my people to peace… please… f-for me.” She placed her hand on top of Baste’s arm. As her eyes rolled back into her head, her hand fell limply to her side. Baste and Horus could not believe it. Just like that, their best friend and queen had died. While Baste sat there in disbelief, Horus calmly strode towards the two. He scooped up Baste and carried her out of the throne room. He later returned for Cleopatra’s body and gave her a proper mummification and burial ceremony. The entire kingdom was devastated by her death. None remain today who know what happened.

~ Chapter 1~

The burning sun overhead beat down upon the back of Sara’s neck as she slowly rode down the hill on her horse. Man…I cannot believe how hot it is out here! She thought to herself. The heat was overbearing and the sweat rolled down the side of her face. As she reached for her handkerchief, she fell backwards off the back of her horse as it reared up, whinnying with surprise. She rubbed her neck as she struggled to sit up. She noticed up ahead that there was a dark figure standing before her. When the figure stepped forward, she had a full view of its face. Although there was not much to view, she had clear sight of the eyes which held a green reflection of the sunlight. In its right hand, it held a spear with a red and gold tasseled string tied around it. The figure was dressed in a simple navy blue turban, baggy shirt and pants tied together by a navy blue belt. Its face was shrouded by a mask that covered both its mouth and nose. It pointed the tip of the spear at her heart as she stood. “You have no business here! Leave or die!” The figure’s voice was feminine and sort of high pitched. You could tell that she would not be easily moved. Sara simply placed a finger on the tip and moved it to the side. “Calm down! I’m not going to stir up any trouble! There’s no need to flip!” Her carefree spirit shined through, but only momentarily as the spear returned to its spot over Sara’s heart. “You must leave or you will be forced to! These lands are cursed, so do not come any further!” The figure held her place as another figure joined her side, also holding a spear at Sara’s heart. Sara shook her head and replied, “ Listen, I’m not a treasure hunter or a thief or anyone who wants to excavate here! I’m only coming here because I need a place to stay and study! If you let me in, I promise that I will not touch or look at anything that you don’t want me to.” The two exchanged looks in a suspicious way, making Sara shudder. The first sighed and said, “ Very well. You may enter as long as you are under our supervision. Understand?” Sara nodded. The figures removed their spears and threw them aside. The first removed its mask, the second following. Now the figures weren’t as intimidating to Sara. The female smiled and held out her hand. Proudly, she said, “ My name is Rai-jiin, but you can call me Rai.” Returning her smile, Sara smiled also. Rai’s comrade stepped forward, gently grabbed her free hand and kissed it. Sara blushed, slightly embarrassed. “ The name is Baron. It is an honor to meet you.” Rai grabbed his ear and pulled. Baron screeched in pain as he was yanked away. Once Rai released him, his entire right side of his face was a flushed pink. “ You think you such the ladies man, don’t you!?” Sara laughed as Baron rubbed his ear, mumbling under his breath. Rai sighed and shook her head. “ You will never learn, will you?” Throwing the subject to the side, she walked over to the gates and pushed them open. Helping Baron up, Sara grabbed the reigns of her horse and guided it through. Shutting the gates behind him, Baron ran to catch up with the rest of the group. “ Welcome, Sara, to the lost throne of Cleopatra!” Rai said excitedly. “ Here, let me take you to a room you can stay in.” As Rai guided Sara to the guest room, Baron took her horse to a stable. Sitting on the bed, Sara said, “ How come everything is so well kept if no one has lived here in centuries?” Giving Rai a suspicious look, she stood up. Rai, sensing no harm in the matter, simply replied, “ Our tribe has taken care of it since the death of Cleopatra and we worked hard to keep it that way, so, we usually don’t welcome strangers in.” That wasn’t enough for her so she asked, “ Oh really? And what tribe would that be? Hmmm?” Sweating, Rai twiddled her thumbs. “ T-the legendary tribe of… of.. of t-the Sheikahs! Yeah, that’s right, the legendary tribe of the Sheikahs!” Still not entirely convinced, Sara gave her the evil eye. Deciding not to press the matter, she waved it off. Rai sighed with relief and, pulling Sara along, replied, “ How about a tour?” Even though there is not much to see, she thought. Sara nodded. “ That would be great!” The two raced down the stairs to meet up with Baron and looked around the Great Cleopatra’s throne room.
* * * * *
“ So… this is where the queen Cleopatra sat? Right here?” Sara’s jaw hung open as she caressed the arms of Queen Cleo’s throne. Rai nodded her head proudly and winked, giggling. “ The Queen Cleopatra loved this place… and everyone in it. She took great care of the slaves, even though they were usually treated like vermin.” She paused for moment to stare dreamily at the ceiling. She shook her head and offered to make camp. “We should probably rest up for tomorrow. M’kay?” Sara nodded, unpacked all of her belongings and left to set up camp. Baron appeared over Rai’s shoulder and said, “ Do you think that she’s figured it out?” Rai folded her arms in front of her and shook her head. “ As long as she remains naïve to the truth, we needn’t worry of what tragedies or successes that befall her… for now.” Rai left without another word and helped Sara set up camp. Baron stood there with an unsatisfied look on his face. He snickered deviously and said to himself, “ Very well. Let us see what our new friend is capable of and if she really is part of the legend.” He soon left the empty throne room to join the two with Sara’s unpacking.


~ Chapter 2 ~

“ So, young one, how well do you think you know the story of Queen Cleopatra?” The old man smiled in a creepy, toothless way. Sara’s smile stretched from ear to ear. “I studied the history on Cleopatra’s life in my fourth college year!” Old man Jenkins managed to croak out a dry, raspy laugh. “ All that you have learned about how she died… is a lie!” Sara gasped, unable to believe it. “ Shall I tell you, then?” Sara nodded, clutching her pillow tightly. “ On a night quite similar to now, our young queen died and I’ll tell you how.” Rai groaned. “Huh, verse!” She threw up her hands and pulled the covers up to her ears to block out any sound. “ Anyway… the story that you are about to be told, starts in a place before the world was old. Our queen was a beauty and her fame stretched across the land, until her story reached the ears of a monstrous band. She informed her two guardians of her fate, then their entire essences seethed with hate. So, Cairo was at war and the soldiers were ready, armed at the door. They sacrificed their lives in hopes that their kingdom would once again thrive. But, alas, the poor queen was killed by the man who came from over the hills. Unfortunately, her two attendants found out that she was to be married right after she was buried.” Sara shook with fear and excitement. “ B-But… who were her two guardians?” The old man smiled deviously. “Why, they were none other than-” Rai shot up, threw the covers to the side and smack him on the back of the head. “Don’t you have some kind of homeless shelter to go to!? Shoo!” The old man frowned, got up and left. Rai shook her fist at him as he disappeared into the mysterious desert. Ignoring the glares coming from Sara, Rai made her way back to her sleeping bag, laid down and went to sleep. “I don’t understand what all of the fuss was. Why did you send him away?” Without turning to look at her, Rai waved the question away. “It doesn’t matter. Just go to sleep.” As Sara calmed down and tried to fall asleep, she could have sworn that she heard purring coming from Rai’s direction. She soon felt herself drifting into what she thought would be a peaceful night’s sleep.
Sara… Sara… can you hear me? Sara slowly opened her eyes sleepily, unaware that someone had called her name. She sat up and stretched, yawning. She looked at her watch and sighed. “Man… its only 2:00 am.” She moaned and turned over, pulling the covers over her head. Sara… Sara… can you hear me, Sara? “What? W-who’s there?” She once again sat up and looked around. She saw nothing but the tumbleweed rolling by peacefully. Sara… the voice spoke again, this time coming from behind her. Sara stood up and whirled around as she quickly grabbed a hunting pistol from her belt. She aimed straight in front of her, finger at the ready over the trigger. “A-alright! I know that you’re there! I d-don’t want to have to… to hurt you, so… s-show yourself and no one will get hurt!” No response other than the strange reverberation of her own voice. “I… I mean it! Reveal yourself or I’ll pull the trigger!” As soon as those words escaped her lips, a silver silhouette emerged from the oasis. Sara’s arms slowly fell to her sides. Her pistol slid out of her grip. There, levitating before her was… the lost spirit of Cleopatra. “What…?” B-but… Queen Cleopatra… she’s… impossible, she thought. “No, Sara, it is not impossible. But, yes… I have passed on.” Oh, great! Now she can read my thoughts? “Yes, unfortunately for you, I can.” She smiled in a ghostly way that still seemed sweet. “Are you really the ancient Queen Cleopatra, though?” She asked. The spirit nodded and placed her hands on her hips in a childish way. “Yes, I am, but you don’t have to say it like I’m that old!” Sara laughed nervously, slowly starting to back away. “Sara, I have a serious favor to ask of you… I want to show you something, but you can only see it if you swear on your life that you won’t tell a single soul!” The queen’s expression became fierce as she closed in on her. Feeling helpless, she fell backwards in fear. “I-I-I promise! I won’t tell anyone!” Sara stared into the paranormal queen’s pale- gray eyes, nodding reassuringly. Still unsure whether to trust her or not, Cleo shrugged.

A Switch in Time

- Chapter 1: A Switch in Time –


“Long ago, before the world had form, there was nothing but chaos and darkness floating in a mysterious abyss. Then, one day, three golden goddesses descended upon this chaos. They were Din, the Goddess of Power, Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom and Farore, the Goddess of Courage. Din, with her strong, flaming arms, cultivated the red earth into form. Nayru poured her wisdom onto the earth and gave the spirit of law to the world. Farore gave life to physical beings who would uphold the law. Their tasks complete, they departed for the heavens. The golden triangle, known as the Triforce, was left behind where the three goddesses left the earth. If someone with a pure heart finds the Triforce and makes a wish, Hyrule will be thrust into a Golden Age. If someone with an evil heart makes a wish, the world will once again rein chaos and destruction. The Seven Sages, fearing such calamity, sealed the Triforce into the Sacred Realm.” This is the history of the glorious land of Hyrule. But, unaware to the land’s inhabitants, there is another legend that has been passed down generation after generation by the Hylian Royal Family. It is the story of a boy from the forest who set out to defeat the Great King of Evil, Ganondorf. This boy was raised in the forest as a Kokiri by the legendary Great Deku Tree. But, when an evil force invaded the forest, the boy was called to the tree’s sanctuary. With the aid of his fairy friend, Navi, the boy vanquished the evil that set the killing curse upon the Great Deku Tree. Unfortunately, the Great Deku Tree was done for before the boy even started. With his dying breath, he implored the boy to take the Spiritual Stone of the Forest and go to Hyrule Castle to meet with the Princess of Destiny. The boy, known as Link, accepted the request and left Kokiri Forest. Before he left, his Kokiri friend, Saria, gave him the Fairy Ocarina that would suit useful on his journey to the castle. Armed with nothing more than the Kokiri Sword and a Deku Shield, he made his way across Hyrule Field. Once he snuck past all of the guards, Link found himself in a small, garden-like area. Up ahead was a window with a girl looking through. The girl was the reason Link had come so far. Her name was Princess Zelda. She was the Princess of Destiny that the Great Deku Tree had told Link about. He showed her the Spiritual Stone of the Forest and she knew instantly why he had come to see her. “For the past few nights, the same dream has reoccurred. In the dream, I see dark clouds shrouding Hyrule from the light. Then, a long beam of light shot out of the forest and brought Hyrule back into the warm light. The light then shifted into a figure holding a green, shining stone and was followed by a fairy. I believe… that you are that figure. As for the dark clouds…” Zelda stepped aside for Link to see through the window. The Great King of Evil, known as Ganon, stood there as he spoke with the King of Hyrule. “I believe that the dark clouds represent that man.” The Princess explained to Link that Ganon must be after nothing less than the Triforce of legend. She asked for Link to get the other two spiritual stones while she guarded the Ocarina of Time. Once Link gained the Spiritual Stone of Fire and the Spiritual Stone of Water, he returned to Hyrule Castle. But, once he arrived, the castle was in flames. He then saw Zelda and her attendant, Impa, speed by him on a white horse. Ganon followed right behind them and sped past Link, unaware that Link was even there. Lucky for Link, Zelda had tossed the Ocarina of Time into a small moat off to the side before Ganon could notice. After Link retrieved the ocarina, he sped off towards the Temple of Time. He placed the spiritual stones in order of how he earned them. After playing the Song of Time on the ocarina, the Door of Time opened. He walked up to the Master Sword that was in the Pedestal of Time and pulled it out. When Link woke up, he was in the Sacred Realm and seven years had passed. The Light Sage, Rauru, told Link about what had happened during those seven years of slumber. Link agreed to awaken the five remaining sages. After a series of boss battles, Link succeeded. He awakened Saria (the Forest Sage), Darunia (the Fire Sage), Ruto (the Water Sage), Impa (the Shadow Sage) and Nabooru (the Spirit Sage). After returning the sages to their rightful places in history, Link fought his way through Ganon’s Castle, which is where our story begins.

* * * * * * *

Link rolled to the side as Ganon came down with his blade. Ganon pulled the blade from the cement and laughed maniacally. “It is useless, Link! You know that it is impossible to defeat me! All of Hyrule will perish under fire and water and all shall know of my power!” Ganon lunged towards Link, blade pointed at his heart. Link smirked and leaped into the air, landing on top of Ganon’s sword. “You’re wrong! You have forgotten one thing, Ganon!” Link flipped over Ganon and struck him in the back with the Master Sword. Ganon screeched in pain and fell forward. Link landed on one knee, sword outstretched. “I am the Hero of Time. Forgetting that… is a big mistake on your part.” He coolly stood up and sheathed the Master Sword. Zelda, who had just been released from her rupee-shaped encasement, came out of the shadows. She smiled and said, “You did it, Link! You defeated Ganon!” He grinned at her, scratching his neck. “Aw, it was nothing!” He laughed sweetly. He heard a slight shifting sound coming from behind him. He thought that it was only Ganon’s lifeless body collapsing the rest of the way, but he was wrong. It all seemed to go in slow motion. Zelda screamed as Ganon stood and grabbed his sword. Link whirled around and tried to reach for the Master Sword, but it was too late. Ganon shoved the blade’s edge through Link’s chest. The blood poured from the wound, forming a crimson pool beneath him. He coughed up blood that ran down his chin and dripped onto his clothes. He gasped for air, but it was too painful even for that. Zelda fell to her knees, tears streaming from her eyes. She screamed his name over and over again and buried her face into her hands. Ganon laughed in a vicious way. He then turned the blade in a full circular motion. Link cried out, clenching his teeth. The pain was excruciating. With his last breath, he managed to gasp out her name. “Zelda…” At last, the unimaginable pain and sorrow released their grip. His last mental image contained a victorious smirk on Ganon’s face along with Zelda prone to the ground, tears streaming down her cheeks as she reached out to him in a desperate act to save him. Link slumped to the floor as Ganon pulled the sword from his heart. Blood spurted everywhere. The pain that engulfed his entire essence softened as the light left his eyes. “No… no!” Zelda sat there, staring in awe of what had just occurred. The thought that the Hero of Time had succumbed before the power of Ganon was just too much for her to bear. As Link stared into the endless abyss of death, his eyes shifted from a deep blue to a pale gray as proof of his passing. Zelda continued to stare, shaking as though an earthquake had erupted underneath only her. Ganon broke out into a bellowing laugh. “My, what a twist to our story, eh?” He stepped over to Link’s body and shoved his foot into Link’s chest. “Ha! How pathetic! Some ‘Hero of Time’ you are!” Ganon smirked victoriously down upon what used to be the Hero of Time. “Ganondorf, king of the Gerudos, heath my words, the words of the Light Sage. I have seen the troubles and I have seen what you have done to the hero of legend. Now, you all shall be cursed.” After the voice finished echoing throughout the tower, a long stream of light settled upon the tiled floor. The light shifted into Rauru, his ferocity showed through on his face. Zelda shuddered as she stood. Rauru pointed a withered finger at Ganon. “Ganon, you have broken the law of the world and, now, you shall be severely punished! Your rebellious actions have caused nothing but trouble!” Ganon merely shrugged it off. “So what? You all deserve it, anyway!” He folded his arms in front of him and laughed menacingly. Rauru growled and smashed the palm of his hand against Ganon’s forehead. Not soon afterward, white light swallowed Ganon whole. His eyes rolled back into his head. Rauru smiled in a creepy way. All the while, Zelda stood there and watched in surprise. “Nothing that has most recently occurred here or with you shall be forgotten and nothing shall lead back to it.” Ganon’s eyelids began to droop. “For… forgotten?” Rauru nodded. “The only thing you will remember is that you have lived in Kokiri Forest your entire life and you know nothing about the outside world. Your friends are Saria and the Great Deku Tree. Understand?” Rauru raised an eyebrow. Ganon sleepily nodded. Rauru removed his hand and watched as Ganon collapsed to the floor. Zelda shrieked and held her hands up to her mouth. Rauru pointed his finger at the ceiling, forming a silver portal. The portal began to vacuum up anything beneath it. Ganon, still covered with the white light, turned into smoke and flew into the portal. “Rauru, what’s happening?” Zelda bellowed over the roar of the rushing winds. She looked around. Rauru had disappeared. She looked up into the portal. As soon as she did so, the portal stopped its suction. A small, golden orb daintily floated out of the portal and landed underneath Link’s eye. Zelda looked down at him and slowly stepped forward. As the orb melted into his skin, she kneeled down beside him. Rauru’s voice broke out of the silence. “Fear not, Princess. The Hero of Time shall live again. Link cannot be defeated that easily by the likes of him. Just look at his eyes.” Zelda nodded to the air and stared into Link’s cold gray eyes. As if by a miracle, Link’s eye brightened into a deeper blue. He shot up, coughing and gasping for air. Zelda’s face lit up and she hugged him. “ By the gods! You’re alive! I cannot believe it, you’re alive!” Link laughed gently. “Well, I won’t be for long if you don’t let go of me!” Zelda blushed and released him. Link looked down at his chest. “But… Ganon stabbed me with his sword, right? How am I still alive?” He looked into Zelda’s eyes. She shrugged and looked to show him the portal that still hovered overhead. Before Link could move an inch, the portal started up again. “Zelda, what’s happening?” She shook her head, but remained silent. She slowly turned into a golden mist that slithered up into the portal. “Zelda!” Link shouted, his voice reverberating off the walls. Not long afterward, Link joined her. Navi, who had been in the other room at the time, flew in only to be greeted by a disappearing Link. As soon as Link was completely swallowed by the portal, Navi flew in after him.









- Chapter 2: Link, the Gerudo/ Hylian King –


“Link… Link! Are you all right? Wake up!” Link slowly opened his eyes, but saw nothing except swirling blurs. “Navi…?” Once his vision settled back to normal, he saw a tall Gerudo woman standing at the end of the bed. She smiled sweetly and her eyes glowed like amber. Link blinked. “Nabooru?” She gave him a smirk. “ Yeah! Who did you think you were talking to?” Another Gerudo woman entered the tent. “Sir, the King of Hyrule sent a message that he would like to see you right away.” He gave her a questioning look. “ What are you talking about?” He asked her. Nabooru smacked him in the back of the head. Link hadn’t noticed that she walked over to the bedside. She threw the covers to the side as Link rubbed his now throbbing head. “Now get up! If you want to put this plan into action, you have to deal with playing the King’s pawn just a little longer! Geez, you’re the leader of the Gerudo Tribe and I’m the one who’s ordering you around!” Link looked at her. “What plan?” She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Man, are you slow this morning or what? You know, the plan to overthrow Hyrule! Geez, you are so forgetful! What, did you parents drop you on your head when you were younger or were you just born like this!?” Shaking her head, Nabooru exited the tent, muttering something under her breath. Then, Link realized what had happened. He and Ganon had switched places. Link was now the Leader of the Gerudo Tribe and the villain while Ganon was in Kokiri Forest and was the Hero of Time. Man… I guess I’ll just have to go along with this until I can find Zelda…wait, Zelda! She must have switched with someone too! But… who? He thought. Oh well... Link got up out of the bed and brushed off the sand that flew in. Okay... act like Ganon would... He looked at Nabooru and smiled in a devilish way. “Well, what are you waiting for? Let’s go!” Nabooru clapped her hands together. “Now that’s the Evil King I know!” She bent over and came back up with a pile of clothes; she threw them at Link. “I can’t take you seriously in that outfit. Wear that or people will think you’re a forest person.” She laughed mockingly as she left. Link held up the clothes and moaned with displeasure. Great... first I have to act like him, now I have to look like him? What has the world come to?! Shrugging it off, he replaced his old but characteristic tunic with one of Ganon’s outfits. Surprisingly, it fit him... and he looked good in it. As Link looked at his reflection and thought about Ganon, shuddering. What was he doing? Was he with the Great Deku Tree or Saria? Was he even in Kokiri Forest at all or had he already begun his journey? Link was coming close to a resolution when Nabooru whistled to get him out there. Muttering franticly under his breath, he walked outside of his tent. Shortly there after, he was greeted by Nabooru, who was mounted on a horse. The other Gerudo woman came over with a horse for him. Wait... is that... Epona? As the Gerudo woman left, Link slowly walked over to Epona. What if she mistakes me for Ganondorf? What will I do then? Not quite sure what else to do, he began to stroke her nose as he softly hummed her song. Epona looked as though she was about to bite his hand but then recognized the song and nuzzled him instead. She neighed affectionately and signaled for him to mount her. He nodded climbed up the saddle. Nabooru glared at him suspiciously but thought nothing else of it. “What are you waiting for, the grass to grow? Move it!” She nodded and dashed off. With a loud “Kyaaaa!” Link followed behind her. Half-way across Hyrule Field, Nabooru stopped suddenly. Link dodged and rode around her. “What’s wrong?” he asked. Nabooru shook her head. “I’m going to stop by Lon Lon Ranch really quick and, uhhhhh... pick up some milk... okay?” But before Link could answer, she was off. He stared after her for a while, and then shook his head. “Come on, Epona. Let’s see if Zelda is still at Hyrule Castle.”
* * * * * * *
As hard as Link tried, he couldn’t stop looking out of the corner of his eye to see what the people of Hyrule Castletown where doing. In front of him, they were frowning but stilled bowed with a faux respect... far different than what he remembered them doing in his youth. He sighed, but kept leading Epona towards the gates past Castletown. Link remembered having to sneak past the guards; he was going to see if he could pull off just walking past them. Once he reached a spot where the guard had a full view of him, he put on a devious but superior smile. “Master Link. Welcome back. I suppose you’ve gotten the letter from the King?” The guard asked, grabbing Epona’s reigns from him. Link nodded and said, “Please watch Epona for me. Take good care of her.” he said, not changing his expression. The guard lifted an eyebrow. “Are you feeling alright? You are... being nice.” Link walked past him and folded his arms behind his neck. “I’m in a good mood.” he said over his shoulder. Each pair of guards he walked past saluted him until he reached the castle’s main entrance. Link swallowed and pushed open the doors; he stopped himself from staring, jaw-dropped. He had never been inside the throne room before. He was amazed at the grandeur, but kept walking to meet up with the King who standing in front of his throne. “Ah! Link, my most loyal friend!” Daphnes grabbed Link around the neck and noogied him. Link laughed and tried to pull his arm from around his neck. Daphnes released him and smiled broadly. Well, at least I can act friendly around the King like I always did. Link gave him a friendly smile and folded his arms behind his neck. “Well, someone is happy about something! What are you up to?” Link asked. Daphnes smacked a hand on Link’s back. “I am so excited about this. So, tell me, Link... how would you feel to be promoted to ‘royal vizier’? People will have a higher respect towards you and you shall have more privileges. What say you, eh?” Link forced his eyes to brighten. “W-well, honestly, I would love to. Of course, it is still your choice.” Daphnes gave him a toothy smile. “Well then, my dear friend, I’ll make you a deal. You... take some time to think about it so I can have some time to think about things you could do to help me as royal vizier. Okay?” Link nodded and turned to make his leave. Just as he was about to push open the doors, he stopped. Looking over his shoulder, he asked, “Your Highness... perhaps you could show me where Princess Zelda is?” He turned all the way around. Daphnes gave him a questioning look. “Zelda...? I think you mean Malon! I have no idea who this ‘Zelda’ person is, but I can show you where to find her. She’s...” Link raised a hand. “No need. I was just curious. Farewell.” Link turned and left without another word. As the doors shut behind him, Link looked around to make sure no one was watching and yelled out in agony. He fell to his knees and pounded the ground in a childish way. What!? Zelda and Malon switched places!? This is outrageous! It’s crazy! Link began to growl, then threw back his head and screamed. When Link was finished rebuking the air around him, he sighed and stood up. He stalked off in the direction of what used to be Zelda’s special garden area. “Boy, did Ganon really screw up this time! If I ever see his face again, I swear I will strangle him! That no good, conniving little...” Grumbling under his breath, Link stalked off towards the little garden area. As he reached the entryway, he slowed to a stop and lowered his flustered remarks. Once he caught view of the two small figures conspiring together, he cleared his throat and sauntered powerfully towards them. Well, here goes!



- Chapter 3: Princess Malon –

As Link stepped towards Malon and the young Ganon, their conversation softened to a whisper before completely diminishing into nothingness. Link nodded his head in respect, smirking viciously. Even with the convincing imitation of Ganon, Malon could tell that something had been done to change things. In his eyes, she could see the truth shine through and reveal itself. “Well, Princess. You look as radiant as ever, I see.” He snickered deviously, but gave her a pleading look as if to ask her to save him from the torture of being in Ganon’s place. “Flattery is not needed. Step away from me!” She glared at him, playing her part. Link bowed low with faux respect and snuck a glance at the young Ganon that stood across from him. As he stood straight, he snarled at the boy, who jumped with surprise. Turning on his heel, Link smirked and abandoned the two. As he left, he caught the words, “He’ll never guess what we’re planning!” With one last look over his shoulder, Link dashed around the corner and hid. Only a few moments later, the young Ganon came barreling out of the garden area with Impa, the two unknowingly passing Link. When Link was absolutely sure that the coast was clear, he made his way back to where Malon was. Once he reached her, he saw that her back was facing him. “I knew you would come back, Link. I knew you would be curious enough to return here.” When she turned around, tears rolled down her cheeks and her face was flushed. “Malon...” However awkward it may have seemed, Link hugged Malon to comfort her in her time of need. She buried her face in his chest, her shoulders shook while she sobbed. “Malon... I... I’m sorry...” Link released her so she could wipe her eyes. She looked up at him and gave him a questioning look. “S-sorry...? For what?” Link stared into her eyes for a moment, sighed and sat down on the small staircase. Malon held her gaze and sat down beside him. “Well... I’m not sure what happened, but... all of us have switched places.” Malon’s eyes widened. She managed to gasp out, “S-s-s-switched places!? How could this happen!? Who switched with who!?” Link sighed once again and stared at his feet. “ Ganon and I switched while you and Zelda switched.” Malon’s jaw dropped. “So, that is why I have to play the goodie-good princess!? Are you kidding me!?” She slammed her fist on the concrete. “Well, having to be in Ganon’s place ain’t no picnic, either!” Link mused, sighing. He stood, placing his hands on his sides. His eyes wandered to the clouds over their heads. Malon stood beside him, trying to catch his attention. “Well, how long will we have to keep this up? Can we tell anyone?” Link immediately turned fierce. He scowled at her and gritted his teeth, sending chills up her spine. He placed a single finger in the middle of her chest and pressed hard to show her that he was serious. “The one thing you cannot do is reveal any of this to anyone other than to me and Zelda, okay?” Once he removed his finger, he turned and huffed an angry breath. Malon cautiously laid her hand on his back. “Why can’t we tell Ganon? He should already know... right?” Link whirled around and stared intensely at her. His gaze seemed to pierce through her and caused her to shudder. “No. Ganon doesn’t remember anything because Rauru wiped his memory so that he couldn’t change the future or for some other stupid reason, so, we cannot tell Ganon anything! You just keep playing your part and everything will, hopefully, go back to normal soon!” When a single tear slid down Malon’s cheek, Link softened his look into sympathy. “I’m sorry. I’m just... upset about all of the recent events.” Malon wiped her eyes and sighed, shaking her head. “No, it’s not you. It just that want to go home and do I usually do at the ranch because... that is all that I really know how to do. I can’t be a princess! I don’t know how to!” The two stared at each other, lost in thought. Link sighed and shook his head when no ingenious idea came to him. He lightly laid his hand on her shoulder and smiled comfortingly at her. “Well, there is nothing that we can do to change the past. I have come to learn that sad fact in my travels through time, as you may remember. I guess we’ll have to go along with this until it comes down to the last battle. Then, everything will be normal again. I’ll go back to being a Kokiri, Zelda will go back to being a princess and you can go back to scolding your father for not working.” Malon laughed, smiling broadly. She stepped back and put on a playful yet brave face. “I’ll do my best, Link. I’ll best princess that there has ever been! After this ‘final battle’ thing you mentioned, I’ll go back to being a farm hand. Being a farm girl is what I do best. Go do whatever it is that you are supposed to do, fairy boy! I mean, Mr. ‘Big Bad Guy’!”