Hey everyone, I'm so sorry that it's taken me this long to update this story. I had been planning on having this chapter up a week after I posted the prologue, but when I showed it to my friend, she started picking it apart, and I realized that this chapter and the next one needed a lot of help. However, I think we've finally got it back on track, and my friend agrees, so here is Chapter 1.

Chapter 1

Lya trudged down the hallway holding a small lantern out in front of her. Why can't this stupid castle have lights, torches, something, in the hallways so you don't have to bring your own light source, she thought bitterly as her lantern sputtered out and left her in darkness. She dropped it near the wall and gave it a kick for good measure. Overall, it had not been a good day. Actually, it had not been a good month.

Ever since Link had left for the mountains several days to the North, life had been rather unpleasant. Then again, few things had gone right since she'd returned the year before. Not many people remembered what had happened two years ago thanks to the magic that she had unleashed when she stopped Ganondorf's attack on the kingdom. It seemed to have erased most of the events from history, leaving only a handful of individuals with the knowledge of the true events. It hadn't erased the distrust though.

Most of the townspeople and villagers who lived close to the castle seemed uneasy around her and avoided her. As if it hadn't been hard enough to come back after a year of wandering other worlds and then admit that she had been wrong for leaving in the first place, now she had to deal with the constant looks of disdain and sometimes fear from anyone who crossed her path. The only people who treated her like nothing had happened were Link, his grandmother, and King Daltus.

About two months after returning home, Link had found her curled up in a corner in the castle library, sobbing quietly to herself. It had taken him a long time, but Lya finally told him about how she had almost destroyed an entire system of worlds shortly before she had come home. Something about a door that allowed you to travel back in time and change the past, a suggestion gone wrong, and a boy who helped her set it all right. Link didn't tell her that he already had some idea of what had happened, since he had mentally linked with her while she was there and had given her some encouragement. She seemed to think that she had imagined those exchanges, and he knew that it wasn't the right time to explain it to her.

After that he did his best to keep her close to him. The other Hylians seemed to be more willing to acknowledge her if he was nearby. Her depression started to fade over time, and a bit of her old confidence returned, though he could still see that she doubted herself.

When he had left to deal with some disputes and monster sightings near the mountain villages, Lya had been sure that she would handle his absence well. She hadn't expected everyone to go back to ignoring her within a few days of his departure.

Earlier this evening, there had been a note tacked to her door telling her to come to the garden at midnight. Recognizing the handwriting as Link's, she had spent an hour scouring the castle and surrounding gardens trying to find him. When she couldn't find any trace of him, she had set off in a huff for the library, intending to read until it was time to meet him. Somewhere between The Ballads of Old Hyrule and Sparks, Glitter, and Flares: A Guide to Unsubstantial Magic, she had fallen asleep. When she jerked awake some time later and looked at the clock, she realized that it was past midnight.

Jumping to her feet, she had stumbled out to the hallway, only to have to turn around and hunt for a light small enough for her to carry. And she just happened to pick the one that had been running low on oil. So here she was, muttering curses under her breath as she felt her way down to the gardens.

You would think I would know my way around this place by now, she thought as she backtracked after taking a wrong turn. Almost there now… The door to the garden had been left open just a crack and she stepped outside. A violent chill ran down her spine, causing her to shiver. It was cold out, but not that cold. Something's not right…

Lya scanned the garden, but she couldn't see anything amiss from where she was. Tiptoeing down the path, she approached the nearest fountain and slowed. The farther she went, the stronger the feeling of uneasiness grew, to the point where she was afraid to take another step. She considered going back inside, but reminded herself that Link was out here somewhere. He was supposed to be, anyway. Getting closer to the fountain, she noticed a figure slumped against the edge on the far side.

"I see I wasn't the only one who fell asleep," she laughed. He didn't move. "Link?" She took another step and her feeling of uneasiness changed to dread. The moon was behind some clouds, so there wasn't much light, but she could see that something dark had stained the stones of the pathway beneath him, and he still hadn't moved. "Link?" her voice was a panicked squeak and she started trembling.

Another step, and another, and another, and suddenly the clouds parted. Moonlight streamed down and Lya stood with her mouth open in a soundless scream.

There was enough light to illuminate the pool of blood beneath him, and the dark blood stains that covered his clothes. Lya tried to walk towards him but she couldn't make herself move. His eyes, which normally appeared a brilliant sparkling blue, were now a dull and unfocused dark shade somewhere between blue and gray. A slight breeze brushed his cloak aside and she could see several slab wounds on his chest. Then the moon was back behind the clouds and the garden was left in shadow again.

Finally finding her voice, Lya let out an ear-piercing scream and fell to her knees. Her alternating sobs and shrieks eventually brought some of the guards running to see what had happened.

"What's this?" cried one, as he held a lantern out in front of him.

"Murder!" shouted another. "It's Link!"

They turned and stared at Lya, who had curled into a ball and was still sobbing.

"Come now, lass, we'd best get you away from here," said the captain of the guards as he pulled Lya to her feet. "Come on," he coaxed her gently.

He led her to the throne room and left her with two other guards while he went back to the garden.

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By the sixth hour, everyone in the castle knew that there had been a murder. By the seventh, the news had spread throughout Castle Town and the immediately surrounding villages. By the eighth, it was well on its way to the outer edges of the kingdom.

No two stories agreed on the conditions or the victim. The tales of murder ranged from drowning to assassination by Stalfos, and the victims from the kitchen boy to the king. One thing was agreed upon, though, this was the first murder to occur on the castle grounds.

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Lya sat huddled in a small chair at the edge of the throne room. A few people had tried to talk to her, but they gave up when she didn't answer, or even acknowledge that she heard them. Now it was almost noon and a few more people were filtering in and taking up positions around the room.

Zelda swept in a few minutes after everyone had settled, and the crowd rose to bow and curtsy to her. She looked down her nose at the small group, her sharp gaze settling on Lya, who hadn't stood.

"As you all know, we have a situation. Never in the history of this kingdom has a murder taken place on castle grounds," she bowed her head, "Link would want us to come together and find this threat." She looked up and tears glistened in her eyes. "He was a friend and hero to us all, so we need to work together. Everyone in this room may have something helpful to contribute to this investigation." She stood even straighter, "So. Who wants to share what they know?

A/N - If any one is interested in being a beta for this story, please let me know.