Ganondorf's hand lingered over her head, unwilling to let go. He didn't want her to awaken, feeling sure that she would object to being touched. Her angry words at his imprisonment still raked his soul. A deep feeling of injustice welled up inside him. Why did it have to be this way? He had loved her from the beginning, but she had always escaped from his grasp. He knew that attempting to enter the Temple of Time, even to keep its secrets away from Ocine, had been a terrible risk. He could not blame her if she never trusted him again.

And yet he still could not just let her go.

For now, in these precious few minutes, she made no objection, nestled firmly against his shoulder. The sweet smell of her hair filled his nose, the warmth of her soft skin against his made his blood rise.

If only things had been different…

She murmured softly in her sleep, then her eyes flew open. She tensed, then relaxed slightly upon seeing him next to her. "It's you…"

He smiled slightly in spite of himself. "Who else would it be?"

Zelda sighed. "A nightmare, that's all, Ocine, coming after me, and Link fell trying to stop him…" Some of the heat in Ganondorf's body cooled upon hearing the boy's name. She stood. "The storm, I can still hear it outside…we're running out of time, is there anything we can do?" Zelda turned to him. "Nabooru, is she all right?"

He nodded. "We know how to survive out here. Likely she has found a hollow in the sand and drawn her cloak over her body. It will be enough to wait out the storm…but if we attempted to move any further, the storm would likely send us even further off course."

Zelda sank back down on the floor, her eyes filling with tears. "It's my fault…if I had believed you, he wouldn't have died. And now I may not even be able to say good-bye to his departing spirit…"

Ganondorf said nothing for a long time. Finally, he spoke in a strained voice. "You loved him, didn't you?"

Her head jerked up. "Oh, no! He was my friend, a very close friend…I cared a great deal for him. But…I loved him as a brother, the protective, elder brother I never had." She stared mournfully at her knees. "Ah, if only I had been born a boy…then I would not have been subjected to so much second-guessing about everything. A Prince's word is absolute, but a Princess must bend to the whims of society and the 'advice' of old fools. How I ran my kingdom, how I walked and spoke, what I did with my free time, who I chose as my mate…"

Her eyes flickered ever so briefly toward Ganondorf's, then returned to her knees. "I…I knew from the beginning that Ocine…that he wasn't the best person to take over as King. But there were so many unwritten laws to follow…I fought them at first, but with each strike I parried another one would come down upon me." She looked up at him with watery eyes. "You must think me a fool…bound by the will of soulless figures, unable to speak for myself…"

"I don't believe that," he assured her, looking into her face with an expression of utmost sincerity.

"But the words you spoke in the Shadow Temple…"

She was cut off as he kissed her softly, briefly. "Don't dwell on my own foolishness. I don't want to hear those words ever again." He paused, unsure what to say next. "Tell me, if you could choose…and not worry at all about the choice you made…"

She leaned forward and kissed him in answer.

He leaned in further, running his hands behind her back, consumed by both vindication and overwhelming desire, concealed all this time from their recent animosity. But this was neither the time nor place, and he turned gently to the side to kiss her cheek instead of her lips. She shifted in his arms, searching for him, placing her own lips against his neck, her warm breath tickling his ear. He opened his mouth to protest but his teeth brushed against her neck and she made a joyful little cry.

Suddenly his restraint snapped and he kissed her deeply, pressing her against the wall, kneeling over her as she sat with her back to the wall. She hooked her fingers into his clothing and pulled him downward, lifting her hips upward and pressing against him as she did so. He pulled her blouse over her head and buried his face in her chest, feeling her hands reaching under his light clothing as he heard her heart race.

He pulled her away from the wall and laid her gently on the floor, fumbling with the strings that held up her pants. Her fingers tugged at his belt and he offered her impatient assistance, feeling about to burst.

"Ahem." Their heads jerked up in surprise to see Nabooru staring down at them from the doorway, a half-amused look on her face. "Normally I wouldn't dream of interrupting something like this, but the storm's over…and you impressed on me that we don't have a whole lot of time."

"Ah. Of course," Ganondorf answered, his voice echoing awkwardly off the walls. He looked down to see Zelda pulling her blouse back on, her entire body flushed a bright shade of pink.

Nabooru stepped back outside, shutting the door behind her as the other two put their clothing back in order. The couple exchanged glances, then started laughing.

---

Zelda exhaled in relief as the Spirit Temple loomed into view. Exhausted and roasting from the heat, she also felt relieved to be able to focus on something other than the man in front of her. She felt a little ridiculous to be having such thoughts in such a dire situation, but at least now she did not feel so hopeless.

But one thing bothered her, and she mentally kicked herself for not thinking about it before. "Ganondorf," she said softly so that Nabooru could not hear her, "isn't it your responsibility to…er…keep the Gerudo tribe going?"

He shot her a puzzled look. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Well…considering what you said in the chamber…about your choice…I mean, if you were to live at the castle, that wouldn't be allowed…" She felt a slight flush creeping over her face, embarrassed that she had not realized he probably had his own restrictions until now.

His brows curved in a maze of perplexity. "This is hardly the time to be talking about this…your mind must be clear if you wish to find answers in the Spirit Temple. Let us focus on the task at hand, or else there will be no future to plan for."

Zelda said no more after that, and sighed in relief as they left the burning sun for the cool refuge of the Temple. It had a strange old smell, not musty, but very dry and somewhat sweet. She suspected that years of incense burning had left their scent.

She marveled at how neatly the Temple had been kept, realizing her people's prejudices had conditioned her to think that it would be a sandy, cobwebby mess. But this was a temple of the gods, every bit as much as the Temple of Time back home. It held the same holy aura.

Nabooru led them to the side, and down a series of corridors, where Zelda recognized the Burning Eyes stationed at certain turns and entrances. Their lids were shut now, but she knew that if any intruder who passed under their gaze would end up as a pile of ash. Strange creatures and unfriendly voyagers often wandered the desert, so this most remote of outposts was well guarded.

Finally they entered a huge, high-ceilinged room. Zelda stared up in wonder at the enormous statue that dominated the space, a bare-chested woman with the lower body of a snake. Her two arms were held out much like the outside carving, something like a set of scales. But she sat as immobile as the rest of the Temple.

The two priestesses attending the statue bowed to Nabooru, and once again more deeply to their King. Zelda they ignored. Nabooru spoke a few words to them in Gerudo, and they each opened a chest on either side of the statue. One brought forth dried flower petals, the other twisted brown matter that looked like tree bark. Each threw their incense into the large, bowl-shaped torches just in front of the statue. Zelda smelled a calming, intoxicating aroma as the two women began chanting softly, guided by Nabooru's strong voice.

Ganondorf turned to Zelda. "You knew Link best. Think of him, form his image in your mind. Put together all the memories you can, and they will call to his spirit."

Zelda shut her eyes, the smell of the incense and chanting of the women creating a large blank spot in her mind. She seized upon an image of Link, smiling, clear blue eyes watching her, wrapping her in a protective veil. Link, sitting next to her in the courtyard, telling her news of the outside world. Link, dutifully fending off any threats to the Sacred Realm, including the one she loved.

Link, torn and bloody, dead in her arms after he had spent his last breath warning her of Ocine's treachery.

Hot tears spilled from her eyes and flowed down her cheeks. The chanting seemed to swell around her, filling her ears, mind, and soul. Then, suddenly, it stopped, and she felt Ganondorf's hand on her shoulder. She opened her eyes.

There, between the torches, stood a translucent figure, his sapphire eyes filled with the benevolent kindness she knew so well. He smiled at her, and with that one gesture, put to rest the thoughts of fear and guilt that had tormented her in the Shadow Temple. iI don't blame you. I never did. I played my role, I accept my fate./i

But then his expression turned serious, and he spoke with a voice that sounded more like an echo from far away. "Princess Zelda, you must hurry. Ocine has already determined the location of the Ocarina, and is headed there as I speak."