EDIT Jan. 8th 2016: WELL this story is old but one I hold rather close so I revised it and am gonna update the chapters accordingly. Not much is changed but I feel it flows a little better (I'd be impressed if anyone remembered how it was hahaha). It's a bit slow paced and lacks action, set in the middle of the game, directly after Zelda and Impa disappear in the Time Gate in Lanayru.

I love Fi and I'm so sorry I did this wow- either way, I hope you guys enjoy this!


Chapter I: Wishes Gone Wrong

His steps echoed in the sudden silence of the area, soon overpowered by the soft whistle of wind blowing the desert's sand. Electric blue eyes, usually so full of determination, power, that special shine, were dull with deep pain and disappointment.

He remembered her words-'no, you're right on time'-but he couldn't help but feel it wasn't true. He was too late to go to Zelda, to slow to finally reunite with her. If only he'd been faster! One minute, one second too late to reach them before that damned demon lord irrupted into the ruins. He had been able to drive him away just long enough for his best friend and her guardian to escape, earning what he knew were real threats from the demon before he vanished. And yet, the second Fi told him he wouldn't be able to dowse for Zelda, his spirit faltered- his best friend wasn't there anymore? What happened to her? Why?

...why.

The blond hero managed to give his Goron friend a slight smile and an understanding, apologetic nod and a wave before scurrying away toward the Bird Statue. No, he didn't need to hear what Gorko saw, he had seen it himself and he didn't feel like explaining anything. Not now. Too soon.

He pulled out the sailcloth and brushed his fingers against the soft material, his mind summoning the image of Zelda's smile as she handed it to him before he shook his head with a small noise- a whine, a groan? Silently, he reached to touch the stone bird, cool to his hand even under the desert's sun; Link looked at it as the decorative yellow and purple marks glowed for a second, along with an orange flick in its eyes as signal. He readied the cloth to catch the magical, warm air that launched him toward the clouds.

The second he was above the cloud barrier, he let go of one of the edges of the cloth in order to call for his Loftwing whom responded with a loud screech behind him, sweeping under him in time for the Skyloftian to grab the rein before flapping its wings and switching course toward the Sealed Temple. Link stayed silent as his bird flew, his pondering soon interrupted by another caw.

Surprised, he patted his Loftwing's neck, "Everything alright, buddy?"

The bird replied with another caw and stretched its neck just enough to look at him with those large, yellow eyes. Link understood the behavior immediately and offered a shaky smile, patting the red feathered neck again. "Don't worry about me, everything will be alright..."

The Loftwing gained altitude with another loud squawk. Link sighed, knowing the guardian bird didn't believe him, but in the middle of flight there wasn't much it could do but take its rider where he needed to go. He motioned the crimson bird to speed up a bit, wanting to reach the old woman in the temple for advice before it grew too late to fly. Then again, he thought as he calculated the time, it seems to be early. The green pillar drew near and he jumped off, hearing a soft tinkle near his ear.

"Master, try to calculate the area you wish to descend to." He nodded in response, already used to that piece of advice-however he gave a start as the bell-like sound chimed again. "Master, there seems to be something approaching at a high speed."

Before he was able to ask for more information, a strange noise reached his ears, growing louder by the second. Where was it coming fro- ...above? Link looked over his shoulder and recognized the source of the sound.

Groose's terrified yelp was soon echoed by Link's own, losing control of the dive as the redhead clung to his middle. Barely managing to hear Groose's voice over the roar of air, he took out the sailcloth, slowing down their fall but not nearly enough for a nice landing.

'This's gonna hurt...', was his last thought as he closed his eyes tightly.


It took him a while, but the blond was stubborn and had a natural talent with instruments, soon enough he was able to play the harp in the rhythm the old lady had tried to teach him. Slowly but surely, he strummed the harp and allowed the notes dance and bounce inside the temple. He felt a small quake as a large, dark-colored column dotted with strange symbols rose behind him.

Link was about to ask her what exactly that was when another quake interrupted him, longer and stronger and a bad omen.

He rushed out the temple with the old woman close behind, catching sight of a panicked Groose near the entrance before another shake almost made him lose his footing-he heard the old woman say something about the seal and he sprinted for the strange stone spike in the middle of the pit.

And just before he was able to reach it, a powerful roar pierced the air and the creature of his nightmares came out the large, shadow-like portal. And he froze for a second in disbelieve.


He was still shaking with adrenaline when he performed the needed motions for the new seal, panting heavily and hardly hearing the woman's voice over the deafening rush of blood in his ears.

The Imprisoned, that's what she called that monstrous, scaled beast. The creature of his nightmares had a name, was real... and had the possibility of breaking free again, and soon. He paled as she continued talking, but understood what needed to be done, why it needed to be done, and how to do it. But he still had that annoying little question inside...

Why.

He turned to look at the red-head, his bully back in Skyloft, and switched his gaze back and forth between him and the old woman as he practically had a melt down and belittled his own worth, and she tried to soothe him and make him stop dwelling in self deprecation.

'Everything happens for a reason, you are here because you have a mission. You aren't useless; you are ignorant of what your reason for being where you are is. There is potential, you just need to dig deeper in order to reach it. You must not give up before starting.'

Link wasn't sure if she was talking to him or to Groose anymore. Soon enough, the red-head walked out the temple with his chin high and Link looked back at the old woman, catching her faint nod and smile. He knew his new mission, and he knew it wasn't going to be easy.

No one said it was going to be easy.

With a quick farewell, the blond walked out the temple to see the sky painted with warm colors and his rival muttering-angrily, gloomily...-before rushing away; risking a peek, Link saw him slamming his fist against the wall in anguish. He wasn't sure how to react to that, but decided against trying to talk with him. Groose needed time to think and he-as the soft chiming from his sword followed by Fi's voice reminded him-needed to get back to Skyloft to look for someone that may know the lyrics, something he couldn't do if night fell.

He hurried toward the Bird Statue and summoned the magic, allowing himself be dragged to the clouds and as soon as he could, he called for his Loftwing.


It wasn't long before twilight colored the sky and the red bird landed on the plaza after denying every one of Link's attempt to dive on his own. The blond jumped off and patted its beak in gratitude before receiving a light push; he rubbed the long neck as the beak snuggled his cheek in what he deemed as comfort. "Really, I'll be alright just... shaky and stressed at the moment. Thanks though, I'll call you when I need you again, alright?" The crimson Loftwing cawed again, nudging him again before returning to the air, disappearing behind the light tower.

The blond took a deep breath before starting his way toward the Academy, pondering how he was going to get those lyrics and what his new goal was going to be, imagining things he knew were crazy but... letting his imagination wild on that was better than allowing his thoughts wander to Zelda or The Imprisoned.

The plaza was almost empty and he had to quicken his pace just to out-run the fast approaching night. He managed to squeeze through the front door a second before Horwell closed it, ready to lock it for the night; Link greeted him and paused, hopeful.

"Uh... Professor, do you by chance know the lyrics of the Song of the Goddess?"

Horwell quirked a brow in interest before shaking his head slowly. "I'm afraid I don't. Why would you need them?"

"It's... confidential." Link mumbled quietly, shuffling his feet restlessly before sighing. "Do you have any idea of who may know them?"

Horwell gave him an understanding smile, crossing his arms behind his back, "I'll guess and say it's something to do with Zelda, I won't question you any further then. About who might know them, perhaps the Headmaster could enlighten you."

"Thank you, Professor!" Link cried over his shoulder as he bolted for the stairs, heading straight for Gaepora's quarters, knocking on the large wooden doors as soon as he stood before them. "Headmaster, it's Link! Do you have a moment?"

"Ah, Link! Come in, come in." Came the deep, warm tone from behind the doors and the blond pushed them open, greeting the tall man who walked over to him and rested a firm hand on his shoulder. "For you to come here there must be news of Zelda, what happened?"

Link lowered his head grimly, feeling questioning eyes on him. "I... I don't know if I should..." He was interrupted by the other's voice.

"Don't push yourself, Link. Something must have happened to her if you can't tell me... but that isn't the reason for your arrival here. Is there any way I can assist you?" The blond felt even worse after the words, was he really going to keep the truth from his best friend's father?

Link curled his fists, digging his nails into his glove-covered palms. "I'm sor-"

"Don't be, if you can't tell me then it must be something hard to swallow for you... I know whatever you're planning to do is for my daughter's wellbeing. Please tell me what do you need?"

Sighing lightly, blue eyes raised to meet understanding dark brown before he spoke again. "I need to know the lyrics of the Song of the Goddess."


As much as he wanted to hurry, he found himself unable to do anything at the time. He knew the lyrics now-had them written down even-but it was night already. It was too difficult to see distant and small things, and the danger of being attacked by enraged animals and monsters while searching was too high. He had had one too many fights that day and fatigue was starting to take over his body.

Yet he found himself sitting on the steps that lead to the Goddess' statue, the place where he and Zelda had last been together. He held his head on his hands and rested his elbows on his knees, an air of defeat around him. The cool breeze tossed his already messy locks around, for once free of the hat restraining them.

A soft chime reached his ears and he spared a tired glance at the sword resting against the steps; slowly, he reached for it and dropped it on his lap, seeing the Spirit materialize in front of him. "Master Link, my projections indicate you have an extremely high level of stress and fatigue. Both these combined have a 90% chance of affect your performance considerably. I suggest you return to your room and rest in order to lower both factors."

"I can't sleep Fi, I'm tired but I can't sleep..." Link mused with a faraway, troubled look before he stood and walked toward the room inside the statue, his grip slacking slightly on the sword's hilt. He heard a soft sound behind him, one he recognized as the Spirit following him.

"Your level of fatigue should allow you gain rest quite easily." Her robotic, monotonous voice drifted through the air as he stopped inside the circular room next to one of the pillar closer to the entrance.

He sighed through clenched teeth, tightening his grip. "I know that, Fi. But I can't..."

"But Mast-" She was interrupted by a frustrated growl.

"You don't understand! There's too much going on and I just-" Link huffed harshly, suppressing a second growl as he swung the sword toward one of the pillars, gritting his teeth. The loud clang brought forth from the motion echoed around them, leaving them in tense silence before the Spirit's voice replaced it.

"No, Master, I do not understand. Perhaps if you explain the situation it could be easier to analyze." He could've almost sworn there was a small hint of worry, hesitation in the tone but he was too frustrated to really care.

"What can I explain, Fi? My best friend is in another era, a creeper of a demon is waiting for the right moment to behead me, the creature of my nightmares is real, the fate of everything lays on my shoulders, I can't tell anyone about most specific parts of this without sounding like I've lost my mind, and all of those things happened in one day!" He shouted, lashing at the sturdy pillar blindly with the sword, ears deaf to the loud clangs brought by his action. A few seconds of that and he stopped, right hand shaking with the faint vibrations caused by the blade hitting the stone before subsiding. However, his anger didn't wane in the slightest as he realized that yes-

All he had said was true. And all happened even thought he didn't wish for it. He didn't wish for any of this.

"Your frustration level is reaching a dangerous peak, Master Link..." He heard her say as calm as ever, seemly unaffected by the outburst, both physical and verbal. Her voice, one Link found soothing most of the time, suddenly felt so much more like a little, uncaring buzzing to him right that moment. "I sug-"

"I don't care, Fi!" He twirled to glare at the petite blue sprite, not registering the start and abrupt pause as he shouted. "You don't get what I'm trying to say, you can't and neither can anyone else, and all those useless calculations you're spouting are driving me crazy!" He threw his sword-wielding arm at his side, creating a deep dent in the stone pillar, eyes narrowed. "Shut up, will you?"

The surprised look on her face was quick to vanish into the almost emotionless mask, a small crease of her eyebrows being the only tattling sign, one that only someone that paid close attention and knew what they were looking for could detect. "Mast-"

Link roared, throwing the blade with all his strength against the wall as if it was a boomerang. "Silence!"

...Why...

Crack! His furrowed brows shoot up, angry glare turning into an alarmed stare. Snapping his neck as quick as he could, he saw the sprite-his partner, his advisor-doubled in pain for a split second before vanishing from sight.

Her gasp of pain lasted longer.

Why.

His eyes widened as he stared at the area she had been at a blink ago, before rushing toward the weapon on the floor, dropping to his knees in near panic. He touched the blade with a shaky hand, mouth dry and voice quaking. "F-fi...?"

A flick of blue light from the hilt and a murmur from nowhere were the Spirit's reply.

Why.

"F-fi, are you okay?" He whispered back, slowly studying the sword. The blade itself didn't seem affected at all, sharp and shining with the light from the torches, whatever little scratches were marring the surface could be fixed with a good polish; the teal hilt looked just as fine.

And then he saw the diamond.

"...N-no, Master. This m-may be a gr-grave problem..." The Skyloftian's eyes would have widened more if it was possible as he listened to her voice, broken and pausing like a scratched record in what he could have swore was affliction. The crack in the jewel taunted him, mocked him, as he brushed his fingers against it.

Why did this have to happen...

Because he never meant for any of this to occur, never to fail to protect and be there for Zelda, never to create more worries for everyone, never to keep secrets and bottle them up. Never to lose his composure this way-because no matter how much he had wanted to see Fi show emotions or reacting, he never intended to harm her.