(A/N: Lyrics by Fuel, Hemmorage)

Hands

Don't fall away,

and leave me to my self.

Don't fall away,

And leave love bleeding in my hands,

in my hands agian.

He dodged another of Ganondorf's wild hacks, shuffling over in the dust of the field, parched from the heat of summer. He took deep breaths of the heavy air, and wielded his sword again, trying to gather enough energy for one last strike- one last move. He was tired, exhausted. Far too long had he been at war with this villain, and far too long had he been upon this never ending quest. He'd slept under his own shield in the rain and moved on foot through mountain and desert alike. Far too many horrors his eyes had seen, and far too many lives had he ended to save his own and those of others. It all amounted to a detrimental weight on his soul, his being, his every fiber. Without the Princess he loved, he'd never have reached this battle under the stars.

She warred along side him even now, a battered fury in her eyes and a sense of anger in her stance. Zelda was stripped of her crown and jewels now, and armed with her tools of battle, a bow and arrows. In a ripped dress she fired at the villain, as he dodged. It was hardly a war anymore. It was a fight with no more composition than than a child's brawl. All strategy was lost with time and panic, everything learned thrown to the winds of the field.

Staggering, he moved to attack again, but he was knocked over by the blunt side of the enemy's sword. He rolled down a ways, and she cried out with a hoarse voice. He heard a different cry of anguish, and sparks lit up the sky.

"Link! Now!" She shouted. Ganondorf had been struck by an arrow, he grimaced in pain- locked in with magical binds.

He raised his sword, charging with every drop left of will power and determination. With every thread of strife, he took his sword up, yet Ganondorf was far too quick for him. He broke free, and instead of facing the man, a so called Hero, he turned to the Princess, and metal caught the moonlight and his sword swung across the night air, making some sort of contact with the Princess. She was thrown back, and in silence she tumbled of into the grasses.

Link clenched his teeth suppressing his own cries of anger. As Ganondorf was turned toward his own attack on the innocent, he leaped up, shoving his blade in between the shoulder blades of everything that was wrong with this worlds. He feel to the ground, death encompassing him, but Link quickly finished him off, silencing his last words with his weapon. Forgetting everything but her, he met her side.

She was lying a good ten strides away. He moved apprehensively, more afraid of what he might come upon than any monster he had ever faced. She was laid upon her side, hands together, and he sighed when he saw her chest rise and fall, a temporary relief. He turned her over carefully to face him, to find her eyes barely open, and a sweet smile on her face. He carefully cradled her, examining her with is eyes. Scarlett blood had began to mark her dress, a tear in the fabric deep across her stomach.

"Link, you won." She managed the words.

He barely heard her, as victory barely mattered anymore. His eyes were stunned, he placed a hand on her wound and her could tell it was deep.

"Zelda..." He shook his head lightly in disbelief. How could this happen to her. "Come on we've got to get you some help."

He lifted her up, wrapping her legs around his body and throwing her arms behind his neck. Her head rested on his shoulder, and he could feel her shallow breaths. Epona had walked towards them. Even the roan mare could sense something was wrong. He mounted the horse, still embracing Zelda's small trembling frame. He urged the horse quickly towards Kakariko, the closest town with a healer. The horses hooves stamped the ground, and his heart beat quickly in his chest.

"Link, It's so cold," She mumbled, barely coherent.

"I know," he lied in the summer heat. "I am going to find you help, don't worry." Still as he felt blood spread from her wounds onto his tunic he kicked the horse to go even faster, cursing in his head. He wouldn't let her die, she wasn't dying.

The town seemed miles away and the cause desperate. Her head lulled to the side, her breathing increasingly strained. He pressed on, holding her tight to him with one arm, the reigns in the other. Over the dusty field her rode, until her voice broke him from his determination.

"I'm so tired Link. Can we stop and rest?"

He swallowed, and dammed tears. "Alright," he agreed with a shaky voice. "Only for a while."

He stopped besides the river, and laid her down upon the soft grass that grew around it. He took her hand and held it to his chest. Her beautiful face lost it's glow under the pallor of the moon, her lips lost their shade. She was marked by battle for her kingdom, for justice, and everything else good in the world. A martyr for the world. He contemplated the veils of death, the loss of everything he had ever cared for.

He braced her in his blood covered hands, disbelief written on his brow. She looked up at him with peace in her eyes.

"I love you," she whispered.

The river moved on and the moon went on with it's trip across the dark sky, but right then time stopped, as Zelda exhaled her last breath. Calmness, yet all the rage in the world was born in that single second. Time never started again for him, as he took arms again. There was no one to take revenge against, for Ganondorf had died in that same field.

Her funeral would have been the finest the world had seen, with lilies and the deceased draped in white with grief stricken mourners bowing to her in black. He wouldn't know, as he took the path of a hero and a coward. Time would never start for him again, as he went on, praying for the next task to be his last one, for the next formidable foe to end his life.

Then he woke, not in a jolted matter but in a gentle climb from the darkest despair of dreams to the joy he uncovered in reality. His surroundings were familiar yet darkened, the only light behind the moon's glow coming in through the open glass doors leading to the balcony with views of the other towers of the castle, framed by lace curtains dancing in the summer breezes.

He slammed his eyes shut again, slowly lowering himself to the pillow, and then he turned to his side, and turned to his side before opening them once more to meet her sleeping figure. The moon shone in her golden hair and illuminated her perfect cheek. He let a hand reach out to gentle touch her face, to assure her reality. She exhaled and inhaled again. His beautiful wife.

She turned onto her back, and whispers of air escaped her lips in response. He touched her stomach, sheltered only by a thin nightgown, to assure she was real, and he felt a tiny raised portion of skin, a bloody wound turned to a small scar, thanks to expert healing.

That night had happened, but a year ago. She fought, bled, and nearly lost her life for all of Hyrule. That night still haunted him, the night he could do nothing. The dreams came, each time with that fictional ending, the tragic ending. In truth he had pushed on, the limp girl in his arms until they reached the castle. For days, she lay in bed, barely holding on, but now life returned to her, and love returned to him.

He settled down, trying again to reach slumber. He put an arm around her, just to remind himself she was here, with him. The dreams that once brought him anger and fear now brought him solace, for there was immense comfort in knowing she was in his hands again, and forever- for no one would ever harm her. He'd see to that.

A/N: Hey all, just a breif oneshot I wrote a while back, a small reminder that I am in fact not dead, just frightfully busy. I hope to post more soon, and I do plan on getting back to "Pauper Princess," and mayhaps a one shot or two.

Thanks for your reviews!

Victoire