Hey, welcome to my first Zelda fic :) If you read my Skyrim one, you might have high hopes, so I hope this is up to your expectations. Maybe it'll even exceed them, considering I probably have more experience with the franchise.

If you read my WATCH_DOGS fic, you probably aren't here right now.

(I plan on deleting it until I can actually put time and interest into it.)

:) I also have a poll up, feel free to vote on your favorite Nintendo character. (Or at least the ones I listed)

Also, sorry it's short and a bit of a wet blanket.

Please leave a comment, and enjoy!

The sun was near setting. The clearing in Hyrule field was littered with bodies. Smoke filled the air and blood stained the grass.

Zelda dismounted her horse and pulled her hood over her head. "Any sign of him yet?" She cast her gaze to a guard behind her. "No, your majesty." A pang of fear prodded her stomach. Link had been missing since the battle. The carnage was terrible here, and most had been won by Link himself, slicing through the lines and acting as a one-man army. The triforce of courage guided him well. Midna would be proud of him.

The princess turned sharply, looking the guard in the face. "I want to go look." She said, gesturing towards the woods surrounding the clearing. None of the guards spoke out against this. She nodded her head in approval, then went into the tree line submerged in darkness.

"Link?" Zelda called out. "Link?" She tried calling upon power from her triforce of wisdom, but to no avail. The silence of the woods was deafening, and she could barely recognize her own voice in the echos. "Please, Link." Her voice a mere rasp now, as she slowly lost hope in the hero. A tear fell down her cheek. Zelda found this strange, as she scarcely cried. Link meant a lot to her though, and she would cry a thousand tears just to hear his voice again.

The princess searched for hours on end, rummaging through the bracken and underbrush, searching for anything. She'd even settle for a body, for at least then she would be able to bury him in the courtyard. Pushing that thought from her mind, she began to search harder, getting thorns in her satin gloves- but she hardly minded.

The wooded land dove into a small dip, with tree roots protruding out from the earth.

There was a soft moan. Zelda froze. She didn't dare assume.

The next time it was more of a whimper. The princess walked towards the small dip, looking frantically around. Had she imagined it?

No, she was certain she'd heard something.

The princess moved slowly to the drop, taking care to weave around anything that might cause her to trip. She swept her eyes through the forest. Nothing, really, just grass and trees, until she registered a spot of crimson. She came closer to the substance, and the smell hit her hard. Blood. The bitter scent caused her to cringe. This blood was different than the foes that lay on the battle ground though, this was Hylian blood. The princess choked back a sob.

Zelda followed the foul-smelling ichor, but it only led her a few feet.

Link lay there, leaned against the trees' trunk. Crumpled and bloody, she knew at first glance he was dead. She approached anyways.

A gaping stab wound on his abdomen was bleeding hemorrhage, he had cuts on his chest and some major ones around his collar. His right leg was shot out with an arrow and he suffered many other fleshy, bloody gashes.

"Link," Her voice was a rasp as she crouched down beside the hero. Her hero. Link shifted, his bright blue eyes taking on a small amount of life in them, but still looked hollow. His dirty-blonde hair was matted and bloody, no hat resting on it's crown. On his stomach, the green cloth as well as the chain mail had been ripped, opening to a nasty stab wound covered with white cloth, that had quickly been bled through. He croaked, and his mouth moved, but no sound came out. He tried to lean his head up, but she shushed him and laid him back down. "Zelda, I… I'm sorry." Link whispered. Zelda's look softened to that 'silly boy!' expression. She gave a half-smile. "There isn't anything to apologize for." She reached her hand for his collar to tear the fabric and give him room to breathe, getting blood on her dress sleeve, but she didn't care. "You were amazing. We won, Link. We're safe again, thanks to you." He looked at her, and for a moment his expression was just as it had been before: strong and loyal, courageous to the core of those piercing blue eyes, but fear arose. In his eyes he held such an intense fear, one that gripped at the edges of life, trying to hold on.

"I-I'm glad." He whispered shakily. "But Zel… I don't want to be a shade. I- I don't want to die with regrets." Zelda's expression was puzzled. "What regrets? You aren't going to die." The hero choked out a cold laugh. "I'm not stupid, I'm pretty damn sure when I'm fatally wounded. I know I'm going to die."

Zelda was dumbfounded. "N-no! You can't die, Link! I can, I can use magic and heal you!" She was frantic with her words. Link's eyes were already fading. "Please Link! Hold on! I- I need you here!" The princess begged, rubbing the side of his neck. "Please," She murmured softly, and pressed her forehead to his. "Please. I need you." She whispered, barely audible to even herself. Then she pressed her lips to his, barely making contact, but there nonetheless. "I need you," Zelda repeated softly. "Hold on."

The princess then ran away, towards the clearing and the guards without another word to the Hero of Twilight.