This next chapter has a lil bit of lemon in it.

Two days later. "Ugh! You put up a good fight, Taron! But you'll have to do better than that!" Loren said excitedly while sparring with her brother in law, using wooden swords. She had blocked a downward strike from her much taller opponent and delivered a blow to his abdomen with her other sword.

"Wow, you got me! You really have come a long way, Loren! I don't want to think of what you'd do to me if you were wearing the power bracelet!" Taron took off his fencing helmet and wiped his brow, his messy dark hair moist from sweat.

"Hah, I don't want an unfair advantage, big guy!" Loren said teasingly as she lightly punched him in the arm.

"I appreciate that! So…are you ok? After what happened with Link?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'd rather not talk about it anymore…" Loren shrugged and put her swords back on the weapon rack. "Wanna do some hand to hand?"

"Sure. And I understand, sorry for bringing it up." Taron said as he placed his hand on the back of his head.

"Accepted. Shall we begin?"

After a few minutes of full contact sparring with Loren getting the best of Taron, they paused for a moment, the Taron went in for a jab, where Loren caught him by the wrist and used his raw strength and momentum against him, she pulled him forward, then shifted behind him while still holding his wrist, and pushed him face first to the floor.

"Oof…very impressive…you have a unique fighting style, Loren." Taron said as he slowly sat up, with his hand on his cheek. "I'm six-foot-three and I weigh 210 pounds, and you tossed me like a ragdoll!"

"Oh, that's something called Aikido. I learned it while in combat training back in the other world. It allows someone my size, five-foot-four and 138 pounds, to use a larger opponent's weight and strength against them. Even someone smaller, like Zelda or Ilia, could fight effectively if trained properly! Even before I got any Triforce of Power fragments, I've been able to take down many opponents twice my size. Actually, I think Link used a similar move against me in the fighting tournament a while back."

"Ah. Makes a lot of sense! Well, Link is a special case. He's got brute strength AND speed going for him. Despite his height, he's almost unstoppable in a fight!" Taron said as he stood up. "Well, I think it's time we took a break! I've worked up an appetite!"

"Mmhmm…Link is very strong, for sure…" Loren heaved a sigh, then continued, "Yeah, I'm starving! I guess I'll get cleaned up and meet you and Zelda for lunch."

"Oh hello you two! Did you have fun?" Zelda walked in just as Taron and Loren were preparing to leave the training room.

"Of course, I always enjoy beating up your hunky husband!" Loren said, laughing as she pat Zelda on the shoulder.

"Oh Loren, you're such a goof!" Zelda chuckled and placed her hand over Loren's. "Hope she wasn't too hard on you, dear!" she said to Taron, who walked over and gave Zelda a soft, sweet kiss.

"Alright you two, enough of the kissy faces! Get a room!" said Loren, half-jokingly.

"I just had a baby not even three weeks ago, there will be no bedroom action any time soon!" Zelda retorted, shaking her head and smiling.

"Unfortunately for me…" Taron said, almost pouting.

"Zelda darling, you didn't give birth out of your mouth you know…" Loren said to her sister, winking.

"Oh my goodness, Loren!" Zelda exclaimed, bursting out laughing and blushing. "That's so unlady-like!"

Taron remained silent, and appeared to be thinking really hard.

"Oh pish posh, Zelda! To hell with manners in the bedroom! If you're feeling antsy, just give in to your desires! Neither one of you will regret it! Well, so I've read…" Loren said, shrugging.

"Oh Loren, have you no couth?" Zelda smiled awkwardly while Taron appeared to agree with Loren.

"Well, at least you have an awesome guy like Taron…too bad there's only one of him." Loren shrugged and walked ahead of the other two.

"Loren, what about Li-"

"Taron, please just stop bringing him up…" Loren cut him off, still walking ahead.

"My deepest apologies…"

The three of them arrived in the bath house, which was constructed shortly after Ganondorf's defeat. The stone tubs were made from high-quality Death Mountain rocks, and there were two areas, so girls and guys were separate.

"Well, I'll have a quick rinse here, ladies!" Taron said as he removed his armor, and took off his undershirt, revealing a lean, yet muscular build.

"Hoo…" Loren said out loud without thinking. She then covered her eyes with one hand and blushed.

"Loren…" Zelda smirked and looked at Loren like she lost her mind. "I think you should bathe in cold water."

"Yeah…good idea." Loren replied, subtly peeking through her fingers at her fit brother in law.

"Loren, no peeking! My husband, not yours!" Zelda exclaimed while giggling, as she placed both of her hands over Loren's face.

"He's the one who took his shirt off…anyways I'll meet you guys in the dining hall!" Loren exited and went to go clean herself up.

"Zelda, your sister is something else." Taron said with a smile as he removed the rest of his clothing, much to Zelda's delight.

"I agree. Very quirky, but so loveable. I really hope she and Link can work out their differences. Also, I can't blame her for peeking. You, my love, must be some kind of god of attractiveness, as if your body was carved by Din herself." Zelda looked seductively at her husband and began untying her dress. "I left Zayden with a nursemaid so you and I…could spend some quality time together." She let her silken dress fall to the floor. Her body hadn't quite recovered from pregnancy, seeing as how her stomach was still somewhat puffy and had a few stretch marks, but her breasts were fuller than ever, and Taron still saw a beautiful woman who is now the mother of his child, and he felt his heart pounding and became very aroused.

"Oh Zelda, you're so gorgeous…are you sure you're ready though?" Taron asked Zelda sweetly as she slowly entered the tub, holding his hand as he helped her in.

"Well, even if we can't do that, I feel you deserve a treat from me!" Zelda said lovingly as she straddled Taron and leaned against him, her breasts pressing against his muscular chest. She played with his hair as she gazed into his bright, emerald green eyes.

"You really are the best wife a man could hope for!" he said excitedly as he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her passionately. He felt his erection brush up against Zelda's soft, wet ass, and longed to be able to just slip himself inside of her. He ached to feel her from within once more.

Zelda slowly pulled away and said, very softly and longingly, "Oh Taron…this is just excruciating…I need you inside me…one way or another." She leaned over and kissed his chest, and slid her hands downward and grasped Taron firmly, causing him to inhale deeply and shudder.

She had him sit on one of the higher steps leading out of the tub, and she placed one of her hands on one of his strong, well-toned thighs, and used her other hand to grip his cock as she kneeled in front of him and took him into her mouth, licking and kissing the tip. "Mmm…I know it's the first time I've done this…so forgive me if I'm not too good at it, Taron…" she said with a sexy, yet innocent tone as she looked up at him through her lashes.

"Zelda…it's….absolutely perfect…" He said between sighs of pleasure as he felt Zelda's soft lips glide up and down over his length and occasionally stopped to kiss the tip again. "Thank you so much…"

"Anything for my sexy King…anything."

"Hmm…I wonder what could be taking Zelda and Taron so long…" Loren thought to herself as she sat at the dining table, sipping wine. "Come to think of it, she never followed me out of the bath house…" Loren smiled and thought that perhaps Zelda and Taron were finally having some fun together. "They deserve it." She took another sip of her wine.

Suddenly, a guard burst into the room. "Zelda? Where is she?" he asked, frantically.

"She's with her husband at the moment, what's wrong?" Loren asked, with worry as she stood up.

"Your friend Terah is here, she rushed here from Ordon Village, with the children in tow. She says something bad happened in the village!"

"Wait, what!?" Loren hastily exited the dining area and headed for the royal chamber. "Oh no…Link! I hope he's alright!"

Terah greeted her, looking panicked and had a few scrapes and bruises. The younger village children were all with her, and they all looked scared. "Loren! Thank goodness! The village was attacked! I got the children out of there…and everyone's alive, but the village was pillaged and there were injuries…Link was badly injured protecting the villagers, and Rusl has a broken leg…and they took Ilia!"

"What!?" Loren exclaimed, feeling her heart beat faster from extreme worry. "Link is hurt? I'm leaving now! You stay here with the kids and wait for Zelda and Taron!"

Loren arrived in the village, via teleportation. She ran into the main village, which looked heavily damaged. Windows were broken, pumpkins smashed, houses damaged, and there were still a couple of thugs outside of Rusl and Uli's house, where Kieran stood with his sword drawn. Loren quickly ran over and engaged them. She blocked a punch from the first one, and punched him in the jaw and kicked him in the kneecap, causing him to fall over in pain.

"Shadow, thank the Gods!" Kieran exclaimed with relief as he took down another thug. "They took Ilia, Loren…they took her…and Link is in pretty bad shape, he was stabbed…"

"Wait, WHAT!?" Loren shouted as she stopped toying with the thugs and punched them both so hard that they hit the ground firmly, completely unconscious. "Where is he!?"

"In there…" Kieran pointed towards Rusl and Uli's house, with a look of despair on his face.

Loren quickly rushed into the house, where she saw Rusl resting his broken leg on a chair, Uli filling a basin with water, and Link lying in the bed across the room, bleeding profusely while Arrolen was pressing a cloth to the wound in his abdomen. "Oh my god, oh my god…" Loren stammered in utter panic as she ran to her best friend's side. "Link! Oh my god, please be ok…please!"

"I'm doing the best I can to stop the bleeding…but to no avail…it's slowing down, but won't stop." Arrolen paused and heaved a sigh, while all the color vanished from Loren's face. "He'll bleed out soon…"

"No…no no no no no no please! I can't lose him Arro, I can't…" Loren threw her arms around her unconscious friend. "The last time I saw him…I was angry at him for what happened the other day…" Loren paused for a moment, and turned to Uli and said, "Terah made it safely to the castle with the children. I just wanted to make sure you know they're ok." She then turned back to Link, still holding him. "Please…stay with me…" she choked back tears as she felt her heart rip in half. "A-Arro…do you know where they could have gone with Ilia?" she asked, sniffling as tears began flowing.

"Not at the moment…one of my wolves can track her scent though."

"I know Kieran is very worried about her. I have to go rescue her." Loren said while still leaning over, resting her head next to Link's, tears unrelenting. "Link…please don't leave me…I…I…" Suddenly, her hand began glowing after she placed it over the wound. "Whoa…what's happening?" she exclaimed, with shock. The crest on her hand glowed, and she felt Link's breathing rate change from short, shallow breaths to much more deep, normal breathing.

"M-Milady…" Link's weak voice was heard, as Loren felt him touch her hair.

"Link!? Oh thank the Gods!" Loren happily exclaimed when she saw him open his eyes and smile weakly at her.

"You…you healed me…you saved my life, Milady…" Link lifted his hand and touched Loren's cheek.

Loren looked at her hand, with a tearful smile. "I…I guess I did…"

"Wow, and that's with the incomplete Triforce, Loren!" said Rusl from across the room. "Imagine what you could do with it completed!"

"Well, he still has some recovering to do, but he's out of the woods at least!" Arrolen said, with a reassuring smile.

"Hmm….well Rusl, let me heal your leg!" Loren walked over and placed her hand on Rusl's broken leg, and concentrated for a moment. "Hmm…nothing is happening. Well shoot! Maybe I can only use that power occasionally." Loren exhaled through her nose, looking somewhat defeated.

"It's ok, Loren. I'll be alright. Link's going to live, that's the most important part. You worry about saving Ilia."

"Take one of my wolves, Loren. They'll be essential in tracking her down." said Arrolen, as he walked Loren to the door.

"Thanks, Arro." They walked outside where Kieran was still waiting, pacing around nervously.

"Shadow…Loren…it's dangerous to go alone, please take me with you…" Kieran pleaded, with desperation.

"No Kieran, it's far too dangerous. I need you to stay here and help your brother look after the others. I will bring Ilia back to you. I need you to look after the man I…care about." Loren closed her eyes and heaved a sigh.

"I understand, Shadow."

"Hey, what is it, Lady?" Loren asked Arrolen's female wolf when she started whimpering and circling around Epona, whom Link lent to Loren, since she didn't ride Malon from Hyrule Castle. "Oh, this way? Alright, faster Epona! Heeya!"

A while later Lady tracked Ilia's scent to what Loren remembered as the Hidden Village. Loren walked into the abandoned town, where she saw an old, injured woman lying on the ground. "Oh my goodness, Ma'am, what happened?" Loren exclaimed as she ran to the woman's side.

"M-My name…is Impaz…they brought that brave young girl who saved my life three years ago…I don't want to think about what they're doing to her…I…I'm far too weak to do anything to save her…"

"Impaz…I'll save her. I can do that for you…and my best friend, he cares very much about her…there's also another young man who loves her…" Loren said gently as she picked up the elderly woman and carried her to an empty shack, where she had Lady and Epona guard her.

"Thank you, kindhearted woman…they took her…to a dungeon at the far end of the village. Please, save her…"

"I will, Impaz." Loren stood up and began sprinting towards where Impaz directed her, and next thing she knew the crest on her hand began resonating. "Another fragment? It's in the same place Ilia is!" she picked up her pace and entered the dungeon, descending the steps.

She felt some clawing and nibbling on her legs. "Ow, what the…" She looked down to see four large rats climbing up her leg. She gasped and quickly shook them off of her. "Ew…ew ew EW!" she hissed to herself.

As she walked through, she saw various torture devices, and smelled burnt flesh. She began to grow very uneasy, as this reminded her of her time in Iraq when she was a prisoner of war and was tortured. She didn't want to remember those horrific events, which is why she dodged the subject when Link asked about her burns. Suddenly, she found herself vividly remembering how her captors chained her to a table and stripped her naked, using a blowtorch to burn her skin just for their amusement, while one of them recorded it, to post on the internet. She was stuck being a victim to them for almost a week before she was miraculously rescued by American soldiers. "Oh man…I would never wish this on Ilia…" she said quietly to herself as she clenched her fists. "It's so quiet in here…"

Loren explored the dungeon further, until she heard the tinkling of chains and muffled cries for help, sounding like, "Loren! Over here!". She turned and gasped, since she saw Ilia, chained up by her wrists, gagged, and stripped naked, looking beaten up.

"Oh goodness, Ilia! Are you alright!?" Loren shuffled over to her and began picking the lock of the shackles after removing the cloth that gagged her. "Ilia…did they…?"

"N-No…not yet…but they t-touched me…I've been…defiled, Loren…" Ilia said with pure fright in her voice, as tears streamed down her face. "They chained me down…and cut my clothes off…and they tortured me…and laughed at me as they did so…"

Loren closed her eyes and took deep, angry breaths, then removed her cloak and covered Ilia. "Well, it's all over now. You're safe." Loren finished picking the lock and scooped up Ilia and headed for the exit.

"Whoa, where do you two think you're going? Ooh, look, the Princess of Shadows herself had the decency to save us the trouble of tracking you down! Looks like double the fun for us!" a large, burly man with a sword blocked their path and stared Loren down, smiling evilly at her.

"L-Loren…this…this is the man who stabbed Link…" Ilia said weakly when she took sight of the man.

"Ilia…you might want to close your eyes…" Ilia complied, and Loren, without even putting Ilia down, flicked her wrist and summoned several shadow blades to impale the man in several places, causing him to growl in pain. "How's it feel, shithead?" Loren said to the man, with her voice deepened. She then noticed her hand glowing again. "Oh, that would explain how you were able to overpower the Hero of Twilight…" Loren flicked her wrist again, and the shadows finished the man off, except he didn't bleed, he crumbled into dust, revealing another Triforce fragment.

"What the…what happened to him?" Ilia asked, as she looked up at Loren, wide-eyed with shock.

Loren integrated the piece into her crest and said, "Well…apparently this fragment has enough power to reanimate the dead…" She walked forward, still cradling Ilia. "It's crazy, what this Triforce of Power is capable of…Ilia, Link was mortally wounded. He was dying, and I saved his life. It was involuntary. All I did was…well, cry over him, and next thing I knew I was able to heal him."

"I…I see. Thank you for saving me…"

"Ilia, I did it for Link…and Kieran. Anyways, we better get out of here before the others come back, and I need to get Impaz back to Ordon too…"

"Is she alright?"

"She will be…"

"Loren…even if you're just doing me a favor, I really appreciate it…I know you're probably pretty upset with me after the other night…"

"Well, never enough that I'd let horrible things happen to you…besides, I've already moved on." Loren closed her eyes and sighed, as they arrived outside of the dungeon.

"Oh…" Ilia said weakly. She looked extremely tired.

Loren walked over to where she left Impaz with Lady and Epona. "Ilia, are you strong enough to ride behind me? Make sure you keep that cloak wrapped around you and hold onto me." She slowly put Ilia down and helped fasten her cloak to keep her covered, then she picked up Impaz, and helped both of them onto Epona, then she herself mounted the horse, and headed back to Ordon Village.

"Lor! You're back! Thank Hylia!" Terah exclaimed as Loren rode back into the village. "The kids are safe, I let Zelda and Taron know what happened."

"Thank you Terah! We need to get Ilia somewhere private so we can dress her, and Impaz needs treated. Seems she just has some bumps and bruises…but those bastards, they drove her out of her home…"

"Ok, let's get Ilia home and we can take the old woman to Rusl and Uli's."

They headed into the main village, where Terah quickly helped Ilia into her house. "Ilia, you're ok!" Mayor Bo said with relief as Terah walked in with her, making sure Loren's cloak covered her.

"I'm sorry Mayor, but can you excuse us? Loren will explain everything. She brought the old woman Impaz from the Hidden Village too."

"I understand." came the reply. Mayor Bo walked over to Rusl and Uli's house, where Loren had taken Impaz. "Loren…what did they do to my daughter?" he asked, with a grimace.

"Bo, you better sit down…" Loren took a deep breath and explained what happened.

"They did what!? They were planning on raping her? I'd like to pound them into the ground myself!" Mayor Bo exclaimed with anger.

Kieran remained silent. He was wearing an expression that looked like he was contemplating murder.

"It's true…if I haven't gotten there when I did…that dungeon, it brought back awful memories. I can imagine how frightened Ilia was…" Loren closed her eyes and furrowed her brows, as she slowly lifted her top a few inches. Everyone in the room gasped when they saw the burns on her body.

"Milady…" Link said, somewhat quietly. He looked very upset, due to Loren's injuries.

"They go up this far…" she slightly lowered her top, showing the burn between her breasts. "There's more…" Loren finally broke down and told them about her time in captivity.

"I…I don't know what to say, Milady…" Link placed his hand on her knee.

"My body is scarred for life, Link. But I've learned to cope with it…"

"You…you're still beautiful, Loren…" Link slowly reached out and slipped his fingers under her top, touching the rough patch of charred skin, causing Loren to wince. "Oh…I'm sorry, I should have asked…" Link said apologetically as he withdrew his hand.

"No…it's ok, it just hurts…I've just gotten used to it. But…enough about me."

Terah walked in and said, "Ilia will be ok. She wants to speak with Kieran."

"Alright, I'll be right there." Kieran stood up and headed to Mayor Bo's house.

"I'm coming too." Mayor Bo stood up and followed Kieran.

"Milady, thank you for rescuing her. Even if it seemed that I would have chosen her over you…you still saved her life." Link took Loren by the hands, and looked her in the eyes. "Look, Ilia will always be special to me. Ya know, like how Zelda is to you. Or even Taron. It doesn't mean I think less of you, or love you less…" Link suddenly paused and blushed. "I mean, care about you…" he placed his hand on the back of his head and avoided eye contact.

Loren smiled half-heartedly and leaned in and kissed his forehead. "I…know what you mean. However…you and I…it can't happen. I can't get hurt again, Link…"

Link looked up at her, with pure disappointment in his eyes. "But…"

"I'm sorry Link…but love only gets people hurt. I hope we will always remain best friends though…" Loren closed her eyes and looked downward.

Link felt his heart shatter. "Well…whatever makes you happy…but will you really be happy?"

"I prefer perpetual contentment to ever risking heartbreak ever again…" Loren successfully held back tears, and stood up.

Just then knock came to the door, and Loren answered it. The postman was there with a letter. "HEY! I have express mail addressed to Princess Loren!"

"I'm Princess Loren…" come the reply as she accepted the letter.

"Well, that concludes my delivery! Onward to mail!" the postman gave a salute then jogged away.

Loren opened the letter and read it, then she stopped, and said to Link, "I…I have to go." she dropped the letter on the ground and walked outside, to where she saw Kieran and Ilia sitting on her porch. Kieran had his arm around her and kissed her head, in such a loving way. Ilia tilted her head upwards and kissed him on the lips."

"Well…at least they can be happy…" Loren thought to herself as she left the village, without a word.

Link picked up the letter that Loren dropped, and read it. He then growled and crumbled it up, throwing it into the fire, for it read, "My dearest Loren, I told you not to be out all day. You get your ass back to me or there will be consequences. I'm the fucking man in the relationship. I better see you soon or else. With love, Marlon."

Link stomped outside, then saw a bucket lying on the ground. He growled and kicked, sending it sailing. "DAMN IT!" he shouted, with anger and heartbreak.

"Link, what's wrong?" Rusl asked him, with concern.

"Everything is wrong, Rusl…everything…"

"Oh, you've arrived, my pretty. Glad you finally decided to come the fuck home!"

"Marlon, I had to go save-"

"Whatever. All is forgiven, my pet. You know what to do now. You just keep the lights off so I don't have to look at that repulsive, charred, tiny-breasted body of yours. I swear, you and the queen barely look like women whatsoever."

"Well, you're no Taron yourself…welp, let's get this over with." Loren replied, devoid of emotion.

"Excellent. A relationship without love. No strings attached. This man cannot hurt you, for you clearly do not love him. You are far above such petty things, my dark Princess." The deep voice echoed in Loren's head again.