Disclaimer: I do not own the Legend of Zelda, Nintendo owns it completely.

~Please read authors note at the bottom~

~ Desolation ~

A Twilight Princess Fan-fiction by SSBMgirl

Pain - the only thing that flowed through the depths of my body. I knew I could will some of it away, but not to this extent. It was not a physical pain. I had long since been healed of that. No. It was the torment my soul and heart was going through that was almost too much for me to bear.

The agony I felt would take much more time to heal than a few cuts and bruises.

I sat, curled up beside the only window in the room of the dark, cold tower. My arms wrapped tightly around my knees as I tried to control the sob that threatened to wrack my body. My arms and legs trembled violently and tears flew freely down my pale cheeks and I was barely able to swallow the lump that resided in the back of my throat. But why do I feel so much pain? We were barely even acquainted…..

But he completed me.

At least, that was what my heart whispered gently to me. My mind, on the other hand, warned me against him, reminding me that we could never be together.

I should have listened.

I shouldn't have been surprised when he left. I should have known that he would have wanted to be with her…..She was the one who had helped him through his quest. It wasn't me who galloped with him through the vast fields of Hyrule, stopping the dark forces from destroying all of humanity.

I smiled bitterly; I would never have that sarcastic humor that she used to lighten up the atmosphere whenever circumstances looked bad.

But I still wanted to be with him. I longed for it.

To anyone else, if they could spot it at all, it must have looked like an infatuation. Like what the rest of the town girls had. There wasn't one town that he left where he didn't' leave some girl heartbroken.

But I still loved him.

I shivered as a cold wind blew through the tower windows, still shattered and ruined. The sun, saying its final good-bye for the day, slipped behind the vast mountains. It did send out a few last rays that spilled over the fields and stretched across the sky. However, a second heavenly body floated into the air; the moon just beginning its rise. It wasn't quite night, though. It was that time in the day, when the human world collided with theirs.

I sighed and wiped the last few tears that had not dried on my face. I glanced down at my handkerchief and saw that I would need another one in the very near future.

Once again, my eyes gazed out the broken window, wandering to Death Mountain. Tales of his heroic adventures swirled all over Hyrule: from Zora Domain to the Gorons deep in the mountains, from the small towns scattered across the land to Castle Town square. The citizens would sit around the fires at home, or at the bar talking about how he, single handily, managed to save Hyrule. His courage was unlike any other – he risked his life and managed to bring peace back. There were also whispers that another being helped him along his quest, although it had not been confirmed. Either way, the people were extremely thankful, yet sad that he seemed to have disappeared from the world. He was around one day, quietly asking for supplies or directions, the next day he was gone.

One part of the story that hadn't made its way to town was my involvement. To the citizens, it appeared that I sat back and waited for him to do everything. I heard the complaints of the people, how they think I am an incompetent ruler.

How I long to tell the truth!

But they would not believe it – a tall tale, they would say, to just weasel my way back into their hearts – to be accepted once again.

Even the two people it involved…they haven't seemed to fully realize that I was with them. Not in a physical body, but in spirit - I was a part of her soul. I saw through her eyes, and to some extent, felt a small part of her emotions.

I gave my life so that she could live and watched as he became the savior Hyrule needed him to be.

He never wanted to be a hero.

He was humble and shy, just a young man from a small village on the outskirts of Hyrule. But even though he didn't have an out-going personality, he was still strong - stronger than I could ever dream of being. Within a year of coming to the throne, I was captured, forced to watch my people become spirits, a part of twilight.

And there was nothing I could do.

But then he came; a small flame that burned brightly against the thick darkness of night. I thought all was lost, but then he came, with her.

I met her first, before he appeared. It was just after I had been locked in the tower, when a little voice made me aware that I was not the only being in the room. She told a little bit about the leader that had taken over, however, she kept her information vague and wouldn't tell me how she knew so much about him. When I had asked who she was, she just laughed and told me that I would find out soon. Before she left, she told me that she needed to find someone, a being that would help solve the problems of both this world and the other world.

So I waited - there was nothing else I could do. Minutes turned into hours, hours into days. Time passed and I felt every second of it: the slow tick from the clock on the wall was the only thing that kept me sane. I felt buried alive, the uncomfortable feeling of being held prisoner in my own castle and not being able to do anything. I thought for sure that she had forgotten or that she hadn't been able to find the one she had been looking for.

I was soon proven wrong.

I remember the day so clearly. Zant, the usurper king, had once again tried to make me tell where the Hero of Light resided. We had had this argument many times – I really did not know where he was or if he in fact existed, but Zant was convinced I was lying. Once again, I told him truthfully that I did not know, but for him, it was the answer he did not want to hear. Before I had realized what was happening, he struck me across the face with such force that I was thrown to the ground. Hot pain shot up my side when I hit the ground and my cheek burned from the strike. Against my will, a few tears of pain slid down my face and my hand flew to the spot where he had hit me, gently feeling the hot mark.

"I don't know where he is." I looked up at Zant, anger filling my voice. "And even if I did, I wouldn't tell a nut case like you."

Zant's face contorted in anger, and grabbed a dagger that was hidden in cloak. I scrambled to get up, my eyes darting for something I could use for defense.

There was none.

He let out a scream of rage and frustration and started to run across the room. Before he reached me, I glanced down at my hand and the shape that was embedded in it. It glowed briefly and at the last second before Zant reached me, a golden shield flew around me, protecting me from the wrath of the mad man.

The usurper king's eyes widened but could not stop the flow of his movement. He collided into my shield, his dagger bounding harmlessly and flew somewhere into the depths of the cold room. His cold eyes glared maliciously at me, but I noticed something else that wasn't there before: fear.

He got up quickly from the ground and growled. "I know you know, Princess." He practically spat out the words. "And one of these days, you will tell me where he is."

I just glared at him from the safety behind my shield. He spat at my feet, turned and left the tower, his robes billowing behind him.

It was later that day, that I met the hero that would save the world.

It was strange, our first meeting. It was late afternoon, just a few hours after Zant's interrogation. Like every other day before, I was desperately trying to figure out some sort of plan to save Hyrule. But nothing ever came together – there were always flaws. I was once again looking out the large bay window that overlooked castle town. Even though I couldn't see them with my physical eye, I knew that the flames that wandered the castle town were the symbols of the people that haunted it.

I rested my head against the cool glass, my dark blond hair coming loose and falling around my face. My deep blue eyes gazed out the window, it was then I became aware of the sound of footsteps. I was used to the guard that frequently made its trip up to the tower, but this sounded…..different.

Pitter patter….. pitter patter…..

It sounded like….paws.

A soft gasp escaped my lips; the foot steps that I heard were too soft to be the guards. I was just about to go and look for the knife that Zant had dropped, but before I had a chance to turn around, the door creaked open.

I heard a deep growl come from somewhere behind me.

This was it, I was going to die.

Rather than keep my back to the attacker like a coward, I turned to face Death, and my eyes quickly found the creature that had growled at me. I was so surprised and to a large extent, frightened, that I couldn't help but gasp. The beast was massive, it was hunched, its teeth bared and a low growl came from the back of its throat. However, the minute it saw me, and not just the dark cloak I wore, it stopped and looked up at me, almost with a puppy expression.

It was then that I noticed the passenger on the wolf's back.

"Midna….!" I managed to gasp.

I took a moment to recollect myself and started once again.

"….So, this is the one for whom you were searching."

The imp grinned mischievously, "It's not exactly what I had in mind, but I think he will do."

I looked away from Midna and looked at the creature before me. Besides being large, there was one other feature that stood out of place.

He had blue eyes.

When did a wolf ever have blue eyes?

The beast, while large, seemed almost…human. His expression….his eyes almost looked wild like the animal it was, but had something else as well….compassion, maybe. There was also a deep sense of sadness as well. I wondered what events had happened to cause this deep sense of despair.

A soft, small voice interrupted my observations.

"Poor thing, he has no idea where this is or what's happened... So, don't you think you should explain to him what you've managed to do? You owe him that much...Twilight Princess! Eee hee!"

I inwardly sighed and couldn't help but feel a little silly. Here I was, talking to an imp and a beast! But when I looked at the creature, I knew there was something different about him…so I began my tale about what had happened to Hyrule and its inhabitants. I told him how Zant had taken over and how I had to choose between life and death. Everything, except about how inadequate I felt.

I'm sure he could sense my emotions anyway.

Before long, I heard movement downstairs, signaling that the guard would once again come up and check on me.

"Time has grown short. The guard will soon be making his rounds. You must leave here, quickly." But even as I said those words, I did not want them to leave. I missed companionship, even if they were not human.

As they left, the wolf looked behind one last time before going through the door.

I waited for many days. Time blended once again, and I did not see them for a long time. I always thought about them, though. I wondered if they were alright, and if the curse I was sure had been placed on him, had been lifted.

Eventually, they came back. It was the day I saved her - the day I gave my life.

I broke out of my reverie and I clenched my fists and hit the ground with a residing thud. Pain shot up my arms and a cry escaped my throat. Why could they not see that I had emotions too? I wish I could have remained dead. Fresh tears threatened to spill down my cheeks again and I angrily wiped them away.

Enough. No more tears.

My spirit felt hollow, my emotions drained. I would have to face my responsibilities. I lived for the people. As a queen, I was bound to them. Nobility did not have the luxury of having a personal life.

I slowly got up off the floor, my legs shaky from the anguish I felt. I crossed to the wooden door that stood on the opposite side of the room and glanced back one last time before shutting the oak door behind me.

It was in this tower were I first met him. But he was gone. Gone forever with her – forever with her in the twilight realm.

Wow. First story ever published. First and foremost, I am pure Zelinker, but I do ship FRIENDSHIP MidnaxLink, even in Twilight Princess. However, when I wrote this, I was going through a depression, so I made Link go with Midna.....

I've always wondered what Zelda was going through when she was imprisoned in her own home, forced to watch her country fall apart. It must have been so frustrating for her....I really wish Nintendo did show her side of the story.

Anyways, please review! Constructive criticism is greatly appreciated!