Becoming Zelda

by c.blythe15

'I was the Zelda, crown princess of Hyrule forced to live in anonymous obscurity, deal with social hierarchy at its finest, and most all, safe my kingdom of Hyrule. Romance was just something that would have to wait.' Modern AU [was originally called "Anonymous Truths" but title was changed]

11. Chapter 10: The Party

Whoot, new chapter. Just throwing this out there, that this is the longest one I've ever done (a nice lovely 15,173 words, a nice 4,000 more after I edited the chapter), and probabaly one of my favorites too. A lot of things happen in this one. A lot. So, sit back, enjoy, and I'd love to hear what any of you think about afterwards! I'm sorry to anyone if I haven't responded in a while; I've kind of been living in a hole the past two weeks going through a lot of personal things, so I'm sorry and expect a PM soon if you were expecting one from me!

References that might make reading easier: "Last Friday Night"-Katy Perry (music Video), Can't Hardly Wait (movie), She's All That (movie), 10 Things I Hate About You (another movie that if you've never seen, go watch it right now), "Love Shack"-The B-52's (lyrics), Snooker (an apparently real game), Scream (classic horror flick), Lord of the Rings (need I say anymore), Tweedledum and Tweedledee (Alice and Wonderland), the Water Temple (OoT), Pretty in Pink (another quintessential teen movie. Go watch it. Right Now.)

I also have a slight playlist I used for certain parts of this chapter you might want to check out, you know, if you want to feel that writing mood I was in too... "Sorry for Party Rocking"-LMFAO (all the scenes happening in the party), "She Moves in her own Way"-The Kooks (the first scene of Link and Zelda), "It's Getting Boring By the Sea"-Blood Red Shoes (the Ruto scene), "Clocks"-Vitamin String Quartet cover (the other Link/Zelda scene), "Cut the Cord"-Pushmonkey (absolutely favorite song right now for the Dark/Zelda scene), "Tongue Tied"-Grouplove or the VSQ cover (the Clarke/Zelda encounter), "Enjoy the Silence"-VSQ cover (the ending scene, when Zelda heads off; you'll know what it is)

Sorry this was so long... Hope you all enjoy, thanks! Oh, and please review so I can know what I'm doing right or wrong!

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I had always pictured my first impression of a high school party. It was going to be very wild, just like every one of those high school movies showed them to be. I, of course, was to be the only dignified one there of sober mind and body while my other peers were to be foolishly drunk and incapable of doing much else besides play tongue hockey. There would illegal drinking, scandals happening in every bedroom left and right, relationships ending, relationships beginning, a howling girl in unnecessary tears that created an equally unnecessary big scene, a full-size drunken brawl, some poor geek who couldn't keep their liquor down, at least three articles of home furniture broken, and of course one of those giant Viking helmets that always seemed to work their way into parties but one never knew quite where to actually get them. With such a focused mindset, I firmly braced myself on the front doorstep of Dark's house, expecting all these necessary aspects as Link and I waited for the door to open.

"So are these usually like a "Last Friday Night" party, or a Can't Hardly Wait party?" I asked Link casually as I crossed my arms in front of me, trying to keep in warmth. Since we were nearing winter, the nights had started getting really cold and even though it was still early at night, there was already a slight chill. Link looked at me with a bemused expression as he shrugged and looked at the door, no doubt also hearing the intense pounding of the bass from the inside.

"More like a 10 Things I Hate About You and She's All That combination," he grinned as my eyebrows rose, my expectations for craziness set a notch higher than before. I bit my lip, all my previous worries of the future part of the night I had deliberated before we left rushing back into me.

"Hey um, Link," I swallowed apprehensively as he turned to me with confusion.

"Yeah, Zelda?"

I gave a little smile as I looked down and back up to him. "You, um, you'll be with me most of the night, right? I won't be bothering you or anything if I stick with you?"

He looked at me then smiled warmly and shook his head, giving a little chuckle. "I don't think you could ever really bother me so that's not a problem, and moreover I fully anticipated being with you most of the night, giving as it was me that asked you to come. With me"

Relief immediately flew through me as I grinned and was about to reply wittily as the door opened, revealing a girl wearing only an overly tight gold, oversized shirt (which I knew and assumed was a dress, but since it barely covered her I thought it seemed more appropriate to be deemed a very long shirt). She cracked the door a little and leaned on it in obvious posing form, surveying Link up and down with a greedy expression as she finally laid her eyes on me and I could practically feel the sneer as she took in my "passé" outfit and comfy Converse. I glared right back at her as Link glanced at me and back to the girl.

"Are we not allowed inside or something Hope?" he asked politely, always the perfect gentleman, as she suddenly flipped her perfectly not-a-hair-out-of-place straight dark hair and smiled at him flirtatiously. I instantly clenched my fist in infuriation.

"Of course you can come in Link! I was totally wondering when you were going to show up," she giggled and looked as if she wanted to join arms with his as he smiled politely to her and took a step inside. He then turned back to me so she couldn't see his face and winked. This caused me to bite my lip to try and keep from grinning as he turned back to her and motioned me to come inside also.

"You know Zelda Harkinian, right Hope?" he asked pleasantly as I walked in and unto the front mat, noticing the party going on a little behind her (which really was an accomplishment because of how little space she was showing between herself and the door). As I stood next to him, I smiled up to him and Hope (whom that was apparently) looked at the both of us, eyeing me again with a lot of intent.

"Not personally no, but everyone knows Zelda Harkinian right?" she asked, a tone of mocking in her voice that I grew angry at, instantly knowing I didn't deserve it.

"Apparently," I said with heavy sarcasm, not really desiring to deal with her anymore. She seemed to get the message (which surprised me that she could even perceive something I hadn't bothered to hide) as she smiled sweetly again and put a dainty little hand on Link's arm.

"It really was nice to see you again Link, and I do hope I'll get to see you again sometime tonight," she said with a wink as she closed the door, turned and sauntered off, somehow able to walk extremely graceful in at least 5 inch heels. Link turned to me and shrugged, walking in as I irritably followed suit and took in the whole party, instantly forgetting how angry I had been.

Despite how early the night still kind of was, the whole house was already in full swing that truly beat anything I could have anticipated. Girls were wearing next to nothing (though it wasn't quiet as hot as an oven quiet yet) and ridiculously oversized blingy heels as many of the guys in the rooms looked at all of them with disgusting greedy looks that made me want to slap them really hard. Various people milled around and carried red solo cups-drinking what I knew wasn't Kool-aid-while others merely walked around, extremely drunk as they passed by us, not even noticing our arrival. However, despite how exciting the scene in front of me was because I had been looking forward to it so much, I was immensely more impressed by everything else that I saw around me.

The walls were a beautiful, creamy white colored wallpaper with gold hints that insinuated class, which was furthered by the three chandeliers I could see in my immediate view from the door frame. To our left was a wide and open doorframe that looked to lead to an empty billiard room of sorts with a baby grand piano in its corner, while where we were standing and more to the right of the room was the main area where everyone was. It was a ballroom of sorts, with pearly white linoleum floors and nice furniture that was pushed to the side so people could be in the middle of the floor grinding with one another. On the other side of the room was a vast window that spanned the whole back wall and gave an amazing view to the lake (as well as provided the best window for any lurking creepers to look through and cliché-ly plot any one of our deaths). There was a door on the side that led outside to the large wooden deck (which did in fact seem to go all the way around the house). Almost directly across from Link and I, near the middle, there was a beautiful mahogany staircase leading upstairs to no doubt an immense number of rooms full of couples and dirty skeezes looking to get "lucky." I finished my survey of the room and silently wondered how much more amazing the house could possibly get.

"Kind of makes you wonder what they do for fun, huh?" Link asked me, no doubt seeing my wandering and amazed eyes. I turned to him with a grin and shrugged casually.

"Well obviously they take their private jet and leave this place because it is not good enough for them," I laughed, eyeing the crowd curiously and wondering how many of our peers were already drunk. My eyes traveled to the staircase, itching to look at the no doubt very intricate carvings when a figure appeared at the top, descending down with refinement and a swagger like he owned the place. As he stepped down and I could finally make out his face I saw that it was Dark, who did in fact own the place, a thought that made me blush as I moved my eyes away from him, hoping he didn't notice me. The more I thought about it actually, the room itself was gradually getting a little warmer than anticipated, and had my heart been pounding that hard before… I swallowed nervously, blinked and turned to Link, eager to get away from Dark before he spotted us. And me.

"Hey, bet I can kill you at pool," I grinned to him suddenly and motioned to the pool table I had seen when we first walked in, hoping he couldn't tell how anxious I had just become. Link looked at me with perplexity, but luckily only just grinned with a shrug instead of inquiring farther.

"Challenge easily accepted," he agreed, a light competitive spirit appearing in his eyes that made me laugh. We walked over and he started to get the table ready as I surveyed all the available cues and finally selected my weapon of choice, a shorter stick common in playing snooker, a game that I was a lot more familiar with than pool. I think they're essentially the same though I mulled over as I put chalk on the tip of my cue and mentally went over some valuable pool pointers I had once been briefly given while taught years ago at the castle by one of my more favorite servants.

"Now, be warned, I haven't played this in a really long time, so if I suck I have an excuse," I said as I set the chalk down, eyeing my cue warily as Link laughed and rolled up his shirt. I usually didn't pay a lot of attention to what Link wore (tonight being no exception), so it wasn't until then that I fully noticed what he was wearing and could appreciate how good he looked in his own classic black Converse, washed out jeans, and a classy button shirt that was a really nice shade of green. He had rolled up his sleeves to reveal tan arms and no doubt make it easier to play.

"I'll be able to finally win at something then," he grinned as I gave him an annoyed look that made him laugh. "Fine, I'll be nice and let you break because I am that generous. Stripes or solids?"

"I think I'm going to do stripes, I'm a stripe-y kind of girl," I decided as he shrugged and removed the plastic triangle off the table. I slid off my purse unto to the ground and readied myself, shoving a piece of hair behind my ear before I hit one of the striped balls into the pocket successfully. Grinning, I continued hitting them until I had successfully got them all in one right after the other, not even letting Link hit at all.

"You know, there is a genuine reason why I never take pity on you when you say you can't do something," he pointed out as I started cleaning up after my unanimous victory. I grinned abashedly as we put everything away and shrugged.

"In my defense, I genuinely hadn't played pool in a really long time, I swear!"

"Whatever Zel, whatever you want to say," he grinned as I instantly contemplated what he had said. Zel. The only ones to ever really call me that were Malon and myself occasionally when I was thinking, but I wasn't going to lie. I kind of liked the way that sounded coming from Link. Zel.

I rolled my eyes at him and racked our cues and the other things, not wanting to make a mess of Dark's house. The doorbell rang as I turned to see it, looking through the billiard room doorframe that showed the front door perfectly as I wondered who had just got here. A minute later a girl hobbled over to open it, revealing a large raucous group of mainly football players, Clarke's tall and stocky stature easily distinguishable from everyone else. My mouth went dry with new concern as I quickly moved out of the line of sight so none of them could see me, not really wishing to be a mocking point for most of the student body and especially not Clarke. Link glanced to the door and rolled his eyes, looking back to me with understanding.

"It's not a real party until the idiots arrive," he laughed harshly as I nodded understandingly, already experiencing the change from the new additions. There was an overly loud bout of laughter as the rest of the party volume, in response, also raised a couple notches.

"Just look at it this way; it would throw off the whole social hierarchy if they weren't here, plus I'm sure they'll all be really fun to observe in an hour or two with some nice hard liquor in them," I pointed out as he laughed.

"I guess you're probably right. Hey, do you want some drinks? Usually there are some sodas somewhere around here if you can scrounge for them."

"If you want; I'm fine with anything as long as it's quenching and can pass a sobriety test. Do you want me to-"

"-no, no it's fine. I know this house a lot better than you," he grinned as I shrugged.

"Okay, sounds good. As long as there is no utterance of 'I'll be right back' and you don't try to squeeze in any kitty doors while gone, I think we'll be good."

"Nice reference, and I wouldn't dare say that," he laughed as he turned and left the room through the main hall area. I gave a sad little sigh, not really wanting to go into the mix but also not wanting to remain by myself in the off-chance a murderer did walk in trying to hack me.

This is why you don't make horror movie allusions right before you're left alone I sighed and looked around the room, enjoying its squishy cream carpet and how well furbished it was. There was a comfy red armchair that made me instantly wish I had a book to curl up with so I could sit in it and read, and a fancy glass blown lamp with strange markings stood right next to it. Expensive paintings of the northern (and richest) part of Castle Town and Lake Hylia lined the maroon walls, and I moved to examine one of my home, Hyrule Castle. It was obviously painted during the spring, when pink blossoms lined the apple trees and the moat was full of luscious water due to all the melted snow. I could feel the familiar gravel underneath my feet as I ran in front of my mother after coming home from the library, or when my small family of three had come back from a family picnic and I was hit with a strong wave of sadness as I sighed and closed my eyes, thinking all about certain aspects of my past. My thoughts were cut short however by an obviously fake cough that made me shoot my eyes open in alarm and spin around to see the source.

Standing near the pool table were three girls, each looking at me with contempt. I recognized the girl on the left as Benny, the one who had been with Clarke the night Dark and I went to dinner and I tried to decipher if she was as drunk as she was that night. The girl on the right had short cropped hair and was wearing a deep scowl that greatly marred her actually rather pretty face. However, my eyes instantly caught the eyes of the girl in the middle, causing them to narrow down at her.

She was of course drop dead gorgeous, because that was always the case with these kinds of cliché moments. Her piercing violet eyes were glaring at me with a strong power and authority that to some was probably terrifying, but had no effect whatsoever on me. Her bright blue Zora legs were held up by dangerous looking stilettos, accentuating the leg muscle I knew she achieved from swimming and playing water polo, as she was constantly bragging about it in the few classes we had together. She wore a tight white mini-dress that looked impossible to walk in and I mentally finished my analysis as I finally looked up into the face of Ruto Stone, who was smirking at me triumphantly.

"Well well well, look what the cat dragged in girls," she leered at me as her brainless bimbos laughed, flipping their hair in synch as I looked at the three of them with contempt.

"Three wannabe divas with less than adequate IQ levels?" I suggested dryly as the short haired one laughed then stopped, looking at me with confusion.

"That's a whole lot better than being a snarky loser geek with a 'less than adequate' fashion ability," Ruto smiled acerbically as I blushed, looking down to the outfit I had genuinely been really proud of. Determined not to let her get to me I looked up and lifted my head proudly.

"It's nerd. Honestly, how many times do I have to tell all you stupid jocks and cookie-cutter preps: I am a nerd, not a geek?" This seemed to take her back a little bit-no doubt surprised I was willing to openly admit I was a nerd-but in no time she was smiling again, blinking her eyes with a doe-eyed expression.

"As much as I'm resisting mocking you for that, I can wait and get right to the point: why are you here?"

I opened my mouth in surprise and closed it, instantly suspicious of where she was trying to go with this. "I was invited, shockingly enough to you," I said simply, pushing some of my hair behind my ear so it wasn't in my eyes' glaring way.

"Ha, like Dark or like, anyone else would want to invite you," the short-haired girl said, trying to give me a disgusted expression as it merely looked as if she was constipated.

"Dark may not have invited me personally, but I'm here with someone else, who I really should be getting back to," I said with an eye roll, not wanting to deal with them anymore as I motioned to leave the room. Before I could move though, Ruto pinned a finger on my collarbone, shoving me back with more force than I would have thought possible in stilettos as she smiled at me icily.

"See, I don't really think you get this whole order of things; you don't leave, until I tell you to leave. Let me repeat again, who are you here with?"

"… Right. You know, that's really none-"

"-Link Avalon. She's here with Link Avalon," Benny said, speaking for the first time as she looked me up and down languidly, deciding a sneer would best end the exchange between us. My ears reddened (as I hadn't wanted to reveal this information to any of them) as Ruto looked at me again, a seemingly forced smirk on her face that was bigger than I thought possible.

"Hmm, well isn't that just an interesting little tidbit of knowledge?"

"Apparently it's enough for you to still not leave me alone," I said with growing irritation, deciding that my few tactful comments I reserved specifically for every day shouldn't be wasted on these three.

"Link Avalon… That is interesting. On normal occasions I would of course ask if there was any sort of hidden meaning behind that, but I think we all know that's a little unlikely to hope for you, isn't it dearie?"

I clenched my fist, trying to remember that I was the crowned princess of Hyrule and no matter how much goading Ruto gave me, it was still my responsibility to act eloquent and not let her get to me. Or punch her, which was also a strong possibility at the current moment.

"Are you just mad because you didn't come here yourself with him Ruto?" Her eyes narrowed and I realized with an eye widening it had been me who had spoken. I swallowed nervously and continued with as much strength as I could possibly muster. "I mean, we've all seen you when he walks by, those beady eyes of yours popping out and all."

"I think you are confusing yourself, dear Zelda, with me." Her voice lost of a little of its edge and I knew I was finally getting somewhere as I smiled pleasantly to her.

"Oh that's right, I forgot, you totally have a thing for that other guy, what's his name, Clarke?" I gave a little laugh as her eyes narrowed again, not feeling any pity for her whatsoever. "Yeah, I know all about that because Malon said…" I paused, remembering Malon's words when we had discussed this issue two weeks previous as several things fell into place in my thoughts. "That's why this whole interrogation is happening, right? You've been mad at me, for no reason I might add, and have been terrorizing me now and through untrue and overly cliché malicious rumors all because you think Clarke is flirting with me."

"Puh-lease, as if I could care less what that pathetic man-whore thinks," Ruto said venomously as Benny suddenly squeaked, her face pale and sad as my mind flashbacked to how drunk she had been that one night with Clarke and her crying face as she got into deep drama the following day and dare I admit it, I immediately felt a little sorry for her. By the way she looks now, one would almost think she is still harboring a small hint of feelings there I thought, surprised at my intuition as Ruto noticed my eyes and glared at me.

"He isn't all that bad," Benny said softly, looking at Ruto with an expression of deep hurt and I instantly knew my assumptions were confirmed. I tried to give her a sympathetic look that no one but Ruto noticed, which made her glare at me as she tossed her head back with a contemptuous look.

"Yes, that's exactly what Zelda thinks too, isn't it?" she asked me, cocking her head at me with narrowed eyes. Benny turned her head and looked me over, a sudden harshness in her eyes.

"I'm sure she does," she spat bitterly as I looked at her, anger suddenly coursing through me.

"Funny though, I haven't been the one drunkenly hanging on to his every last word now am I?" I retorted, raising my head with strong boldness and extreme annoyance, especially when I had attempted my best at showing her kindness. She choked and bit her lip, looking down again as Ruto looked at her crossly.

"Are you done yet?" she snapped as Benny nodded, still looking at the ground. The short haired girl (whose name I still could not remember for the life of me) was still staring at me with confusion.

"Wait wait, so did you come here with Link or Clarke, I'm really confused," she whined with uncertainty as Ruto turned to her in livid exasperation, wearing a face that basically said Why-is-my-friend-such-an-idiot. The girl blinked at her then looked down, as if realizing her own stupidity.

"I came here with Link," I said with an eye roll, not caring anymore what they said to me about it as Ruto looked at me with small victory in her expression.

"I told you," Benny muttered, still looking down as I felt a twinge of pity for her that was soon erased as she looked up to me with malice. I frowned and put one of my hands on my hip, using the other to enunciate what I was saying better.

"You know, I still don't see why this is such a big deal to any of you, and really, as fun as this whole incident has been I really do have to-"

"-does Dark know you came with Link?" Ruto asked casually as my heart stopped, a lump forming in my throat as she smiled with a sweetness charm that genuinely made me really want to hit her again.

"D-d-dark?" I stuttered, instantly hoping she wouldn't catch the higher pitch of my voice as I was filled with instant anxiety. What would possess her to say that, unless she actually does know something? I wondered as she smirked again, eyeing me up and down as she walked over to me and began circling me like a vulture.

"Yes Dark, who we all know you're familiar with. Tall, handsome, popular, star of the football team, captain of the rugby team, and oh, yeah," she paused in front of me, her face in another sickeningly triumphant grin as I tightened my fist, feeling the anger coursing through me, "not to mention a lot more popular than you."

"I could really care less about high school social status," I said, trying to give the impression of her words having no effect on me when in reality my heart had begun to beat quickly, my tear ducts starting to fill with the tears inadvertently connected to my anger. Don't crack in front of her; don't crack in front of her…

She laughed a bubbly giggle that seemed to heavily contrast with the current cliché scene this whole encounter had been acting out as she was suddenly behind me, whispering slowly in my ear. "Let me set something clear for you Zelda, you don't belong here." I flushed at the harshness of her tone as I blinked, ignoring the stinging in my eyes. "You don't belong in this world of popularity and parties, of jocks and ASB officers, and most certainly not in the world of Link Avalon and especially Dark. Oh yes dearie, I know something is going on there with that little scandal, and soon I will find out everything about that because I'll repeat you don't belong there. Dark is only using you for one thing; don't you think everyone at school wants to hear how he nailed the overly geeky, nearly perfect virginal Zelda Harkinian? Not to mention… are you crying?"

At this point I couldn't help it any longer as tears started to slowly fall down my nose and onto my shirt, no doubt ruining the make-up Malon had put so much effort into. I scrunched my face as I turned around and faced her, never desiring to find Link stronger than I was currently. "No," I said as firmly as could manage, and I held my head high and turned to go looking for him right as she gave a fake little cough that made me turn around again to face her.

"Now I'm sure you're off to go and find Link, right?" she smirked as I glared at her, trying to ignore my blurry vision. She gave a little laugh and turned my head around to the main hall area where Link had disappeared to for drinks only minutes before. "You don't really have to look long for that," she giggled as I instantly spotted him. He had apparently been able to find two sodas, as in both hands he had two red cups full of something. However, at the moment I turned to look at him I saw him laughing, looking down to a giggling Hope who was pressed firmly into his side with a hand on his chest like a dominant lion. This was the final straw for me as more tears spilled down my nose and I bit my lip, dashing past a laughing Benny and the man-haired girl until I had reached the next hallway, spotting what looked like a door left ajar with some stairs that led down. Not really thinking about much and having extremely blurry vision that made it difficult to make coherent and well thought out decisions, I went through the door and down the stairs, welcoming the solitude and ability to have a couple minutes for myself so I could sob in peace.

How much does she know, how can she know anything? I kept thinking over and over again as I walked through the downstairs room to its other side and collapsed on the floor, sobbing as I pulled my knees to my chest in fetal position. The pounding of the party upstairs still was going strong and I doubted that anyone even noticed I was gone, especially not the ever preoccupied Link. No logical explanation could have tipped her off about any sort of tryst between Dark and I, unless of course he had told her himself, which I ruled out almost instantly because I knew the amount of heat and slander against me the past two weeks would have been much higher. At the thought of Dark himself I started to cry a little bit harder, trying not to think of what Ruto had said about him, of what she had accused him of. He wouldn't be using me; I would know if he would I thought after a sob-hiccup, still looking at my knees as another, snarkier voice entered my head. 'It'd make much more sense though, wouldn't it; him wanting this secret fake relationship so he could enjoy the benefits without the consequences? Haven't you always wondered anyways why someone of his status would like little old geeky you?' I felt my chest heave deeply as I tried to breathe, the possibility of Dark using me becoming more and more realistic as my own mind voice spoke again in a hollow manner. I am the ultimate conquest for him, that's all I am or will ever be…

I paused in my crying as I thought of that with a blurry frown. That doesn't sound like Dark though; he doesn't care about the game of getting girls. That whole scenario is more along the line of Clarke I thought, my thoughts suddenly steering from their current angsty and self deprecating ones against Dark to suddenly furious ones at Ruto, as well as major uncertainty at why she would make up such things. In fact, the whole encounter with her had been much unexpected and though it was necessarily melodramatic, it was still very uncharacteristic of Ruto. Yes, she was spoiled and insipid, but I had never thought her to be so vindictive or blood thirsty, especially against me. It was very curious. I frowned and looked up from my legs with these troubled thoughts and really just overall embarrassment at the whole thing, and that I had let someone like Ruto Stone get to me. Pathetic. I blinked as I wiped my face, hoping it was salvageable with little damage as I finally looked around the room I had chosen to hide in.

It was well furbished, which didn't really surprise me given the state of the rest of the house. There was a large flat screen TV on one of the side walls (that took up the whole wall of course), with a sofa and a few end tables facing it so people could watch various entertainment sources. The floor was covered with a soft cream carpet, while the walls were of that decorative stone variety on both the side I came down on and the other side opposite the unnecessarily massive TV. Two large closed doors were on that wall near a seemingly random bed, with a few small tables and lamps near the bed covered in their own little knick-knack items. I had chosen solitude in front of a sofa, and other various furniture items were strewn all through the room, each in a seemingly near perfect place. Near the stairs I had torn down was a massive bookshelf (no doubt filled with many first editions) that I would have been poring over if I hadn't been distracted by the current sight in front of me.

Though I hadn't first noticed, the room was covered in a blue eerie glow, which of course hadn't altogether been my first priority to observe when I had first darted down the stairs. However, now I could see that my first impression of the sight-once I actually noticed it-was indeed true, and that instead of an opposite wall from the house there was instead a giant window that showed into the middle of Lake Hylia. I stood, wiping any last tear remnants, and walked slowly to it, startled to press my hand on the cold window and think that at any moment if the window broke I would most surely drown. Little fishes were swimming past me as I peered through the glass, wondering if my eyes were deceiving me when I saw what looked to be a stone house under the lake, far away from the house. I continued looking as I wiped my eyes again, no more thoughts of crying in me as I looked through the window, transfixed a little as I heard the sound of someone coming down the stairs. Expecting it to be an oblivious and engrossed couple, I didn't bother turning around until a voice behind me spoke my name into my ear, making me jump and instinctively smack him in the chest with the back of my hand.

"Hey, hey! One does not simply hit the bearer of fine drinks!" Link protested, holding up both cups as I turned around to see him and I blushed, looking down in embarrassment.

"Oh, I'm really sorry Link! I was, surprised by you," I said as I lowered my guard and got a strong image of a bimbo plastered on his chest, making me feel a little sick as I continued looking down, not wanting to look him in the face for fear of being reminded more of the shock. Not that it really matters; he can have whoever he wants to flirt with him, I don't care I thought, surprised by the harsh edge of my thoughts. Link handed me my drink as I took it, looking back through the window with brimming annoyance.

"Amazing what money can buy, huh?" he asked, taking a sip of his drink as he motioned to the window. I took a small sip of my cup also, purposefully not looking at him.

"I guess. It's kind of interesting though to look at the natural marine biotic ecosystem. And it is insightful, even if the possibility of drowning is barely kept at bay," I said with afterthought as he grinned at me with seemingly more cheerfulness then I could currently muster.

"Way to keep it realistic," he laughed, continuing to grin idiotically as I pursed my lips, not daring my mind to decipher why he was so happy.

"I try." I took another sip of my drink, still not in the mood to really talk as I noted from the corner of my eye he was staring at me intently and I looked up to his questionable eyes with slight annoyance from his stare.

"Was it Ruto?" he finally asked, no doubt noticing how red and blotchy my face was. I bit my lip as the corner of my eye filled a little instantaneously with a tear and I looked down, not really wanting to relieve the whole scene again.

"It's nothing," I murmured, the image of him and Hope filling my brain so much more surprisingly stronger than the words of Ruto about Dark and I.

He surprised me then by giving a small laugh as I turned to look at him, though he was already pacing the room. "I'm sorry Zelda, that is probably my fault, I should have warned you."

"I, I don't think I'm following," I said after a pause with genuine confusion as I tried to keep from mentioning to him that the mere reason Ruto attacked me was just because she was a vicious diva with no hair and a spoiled personality, all things which he personally could do nothing to improve upon. He set his cup on a nearby table and ran a hand through his hair with a sigh.

"She, cornered me after school yesterday and started asking a lot of questions about you, something about you and Dark Ombra of all people, about you and I... A lot about you and I actually and well, I told her to um… let's just say it wasn't a very 'G' rating thing for me to say to her." He kind of laughed as I smiled a little, amused and deeply impressed by his antics. "Anyways, she got very irate at me and I knew she was probably going to pull something tonight with me, though I never would have guessed she would have cornered you."

"Oh its okay, Ruto and I have never exactly been lifelong friends," I said dismissively, somehow soothed by Link's words of the possibility Ruto had said everything to me just because she was mad at him, though the annoying voice in the back also pointed out the Ruto had used Dark to manipulate and make me cry much more than anything she said about Link had. I ignored this, wanting to reassure Link it wasn't his fault.

"So I was right in thinking she…"

"Cornered me with Tweedleditz One and Two? Yeah, you would be," I said, trying not to think about Dark and if any girls here were plastered unto him with such intentions as Hope had looked like she wanted to accomplish with Link. It took me a second to realize I was clenching my cup with more force than I thought I was using and I instantly loosened my hand, not wanting to spill any Coke on any of the Ombra's carpet.

Link looked me over again as he frowned and cocked his head to the side to observe me a little better. "Was that it, you look a little more perturbed than just a run in with Ruto."

He moved closer to me as I smelt the strong aroma of vanilla, a scent I had always hated in perfume form that I figured must have come from Hope. I grew a little angry again as I shrugged and looked straight out the window again, wondering if any of the party guests had stupidly tried to go skinny dipping in the lake yet. Before I knew it, Link had slipped a casual and friendly arm around me, somehow instantly making me feel eight times better as I instinctively leaned my head on his chest, letting my mind and troubles float away. I closed my eyes with a sigh and triumphantly thought (despite myself) that Link never put his arm around Hope or any of those other girls who were always flocked around him.

"So is this how all these party shenanigans go for you?" I asked before I knew that the words had slipped out as I felt Link chuckle deeply on the back of my head. I opened my eyes and looked up to him, noting how much bluer the lake glow made his twinkling eyes.

"Not quite," he grinned as I laughed, a huge relief suddenly lifted off my chest for some inexplicable reason. We stood there for a minute as some glint in his eyes shifted and he blinked at me, his grin sliding off his face to be replaced by another, unexplained expression. I felt heavy pounding in my chest and was somehow already blinking up at him, leaning up on my tiptoes to get closer to his face despite myself….

"Have you seen outside," he asked suddenly as I set my heels down and shrugged out of his arms in horror at what I had been attempting to do. I swallowed and shook my head ferociously with a half little fake laugh.

"Not yet, though I'm sure it's a lot better view than this place," I laughed shakily, my voice three octaves higher than normal as I grabbed my cup, eager to leave this cursed underground room and all its apparent bewitching capabilities on one's better judgment. Link grabbed his own drink and headed up the stairs as I followed close behind him, hurrying faster as I turned back, thinking I had heard a sound behind me when in reality nothing was there, freaking me out and supporting my serial killer theory. We emerged at the top of the stairs and walked into the smaller hall from the billiard room into the main hall as I suddenly realized the party had greatly escalated in comparison to what it had been when we had first arrived.

Red cups lined everywhere as we tried navigating our way through the crowd, a harder feat than it sounded as there was almost zero floor space anywhere. A couple girls and a few guys lay sporadically throughout the room, passed out on chairs and the ground while the same couple in the corner from before seemed to have gotten a lot more physical in the past few hours as drunken guys watched them with excitement, making a lot of gestures behind one of the couples' backs (it was hard to distinguish who was who at this point). Link grabbed my hand to try and lead me through the crowd as an idiotic football player chose that particular moment to try and slide down the stairs on only a sheet of cardboard. I rolled my eyes as he crashed into an expensive looking vase, much to the triumph of his brainless friends who were cheering him on raucously. A giant mob of people were all in the middle, grinding on each other so hard it was hard to tell who was "dancing with who." A giant Viking hat lay on the head of a guy in the middle, who was seemingly very drunk and close to being fully nude. In this hectic mess I instantly spotted Clarke, who was sandwich grinding between two girls as he looked around lazily to everyone else in the room as if looking for someone else (as the two of them were apparently not enough for him). Before I could move my eyes away, he had locked gaze with me in a triumphant grin and glanced at Link with a wink to me, and I knew by the end of the night I would have to deal with him in one way or another. I tore my stare from him gratefully as I looked around the room, still not seeing Dark anywhere as Link finally reached the door, letting go of my hand to open the door and lead us out and away from all the craziness.

"Well, it's certainly getting pretty wild in there," I commented with a light laugh as Link shut the door behind us and we stood on the large wooden deck just so that we were right above the water. Outside, I could confirm the deck went all the way around the house and I couldn't help but notice how pretty the water truly was at night. He set his drink near the door (as did I) and walked over to lean his arms on the thick wooden railing of the deck as I followed suit, looking up the full moon in awe.

"It's certainly very stifling, that's for sure. Mainly I just wanted to get out of that room because, well…" His ears flushed as I could feel my own face turning red and hot, despite how chilly it had become outside. He turned to me apologetically and said, "I'm really sorry about that by the way. I don't know what came over me and-"

"-its fine, kind of my fault too. Or at least, I was also going to…" I blushed deeper and looked forward to the shining lake, determinately focusing at how many ripples a flying fish could make as it jumped and not on my unexplainable behavior in the downstairs room.

"Well, good then. It was an accident-"

"-complete accident. And nothing happened-"

"-nothing at all! So it's nothing to really worry about."

"Right, nothing," I laughed shakily, glad that Link and I weren't going to become awkward by the-potential-kiss-that-could-have-happened-that-actually- wasn't-necessarily-a-kiss situation-in-the-first-place that had happened five minutes ago. He grinned at me and for a split second, I found myself suddenly wondering what would have happened if he hadn't pulled away. Would I have actually been fearless enough to kiss him myself? Did he truly not want to kiss me or something? Would I have even been a good kisser because I've never actually kissed anyone? I bet he never has to worry about that; Link's probably kissed plenty of girls I thought, filled with that same semi-heavy heart of sadness and disappointment as I had downstairs, realizing that Link had probably had many past relationships, experience, and party kisses given how popular he was. He turned to me, not realizing my sudden and deep mental interest in his personal life as he pointed out to the lake with a gleam in his eyes.

"Do you know they say that a well-known temple is supposed to be at the bottom of lake, the legendary Water Temple that the Hero of Time was said to have to endure and go through in order to fulfill his quest in discovering all the sages to aid him in the war against the Lord of Darkness ."

"Really?" I asked with genuine interest as hurriedly I shook off my dejected mindset. I had of course heard and studied about the Water Temple before, but I never knew where exactly it was located and my mind instantly thought of the stone house I had seen downstairs through the window, thinking it really did look more like the entrance to a temple now that I thought about it….

"Yes ma'am. The temple was known to be very tricky, full of dangerous puzzles and monsters but once defeating them all, the hero was able to reawaken the Sage of Water, a young Zora Princess at that time, and she along with the five other sages were able to assist the hero in defeating the Lord of Evil."

"Wow," I said, as though of course I knew all this I was nonetheless greatly impressed by Link knowing it so devotedly also. My face must have given this away as he grinned cheekily and rolled his eyes at me.

"Yes, you know, some of the rest of us pay attention in Hyrulean History also, shockingly enough to you I know."

"I didn't say, I never said that!" I laughed, enjoying myself out here, away from the craziness where I was freely able to talk to Link, much more than I know I would've have done if we were inside. Instantly, I was reminded again of Ruto's words as she mocked me being at the party, as if I was not allowed to even come just because I was a 'geek.' I frowned, readying myself to ask Link his opinion about this as the door suddenly opened, revealing a crying Midna wearing a black dress that truly left nothing to the imagination. She was gripping the doorknob as she closed the door, almost running into Link's arms as he straightened up from the wooden railing. I watched her with genuine anxiety as she put a hand on her chest, trying to catch her breath.

"Link, I'm so glad I found you!"

"What's wrong?" he asked with heavy concern deep in his voice as she flung herself in his arms and began sobbing in his chest. Personally, I felt this was rather much (and noted this was the third girl to have thrown herself into his chest the entire night), but since I knew they were really good friends, I decided I was going to let this one slide.

"Oh, it's Sheik! Please Link, you have to help, you know how good you are with calming him down!" she cried, as I suddenly caught whiff of the heavy alcohol on her breath. "He got in an argument with Groose and now they're fighting and he's going to get really hurt and oh, please help Link!"

"Midna, please, calm down," he said, looking down at her with an unfathomable expression as she sobbed in his chest harder and he stroked her hair, causing suspicions in me. He looked at me franticly as I bleakly nodded and motioned to the door, even holding it open for him and Midna as they went in, her still sobbing. I noticed Sheik and one of Dark's friends, the one with the funny red hair, tearing into each other in the middle of the dance floor, no one dancing anymore as everyone stood in a circle, egging the two on. I saw Link make his way to the middle and I finally shut the door, turning around to stand outside by myself as I pondered what I had just seen between Link and Midna. I knew they were friends, but I didn't know they were that good of friends I thought bitterly, kicking a loose rock into the water as it suddenly hit me and I wondered why I hadn't been able to see it before.

He's in love with her I thought with shock, a little surprised once again by my amazing intuition this evening. My chest contracted a little again as I shook it off, deciding I wouldn't let whatever weird emotion I was currently feeling and had been feeling since the little incident downstairs mar my usually unbiased judgment on such matters as these. I instantly felt a very sympathetic for Link, as it was his best friend was currently dating Midna and I stared at the lake a little more, thinking of this new revelation. The door behind me opened and I turned around with a pondering frown, expecting Link. It was not Link though, and my eyes were instantly met with Dark, who closed the door behind him promptly and stood there, looking at me with a crazed emotion in his eyes.

"Hi," I breathed, my mouth suddenly dry as he gave a half laugh and looked down.

"Hiya," he replied as I pushed part of my hair behind my ears and gripped my hands behind me on the deck rail. He was wearing dark khaki pants with a long sleeved blue button down and grey jacket over it. His wavy dark hair swooped in front of his face like the first day I met him, his green eyes staring at me intently. I could hear the fight going on inside as I tried not to look in, somewhat worried about Link stepping into something but more concerned by the fact that Dark was here, standing in front of me. I stood there, only able to stare at him as I realized with a jolt (my mind finally putting Dark and Link in the same mental image) that Dark and Link had certain resembling features, such as their prominent chins and eye shape that reminded me slightly of a wild animal. How did I not notice this before I wondered as I realized this was the first time I had truly seen Dark in the last week, and how different he looked even since the last time I saw him, such as the weary expression in his face and sudden feral look in his baggy eyes. Wordlessly, without really knowing what I was doing and just acting without thinking, I stepped forward and stroked underneath his eyes as he closed them with a sigh.

"Are you alright?" I asked him with concern as he opened his eyes slowly, still looking at me as I touched his face. He gave a small, haunted smile as he took one of my hands in his own and started to caress it. I blushed at our close proximity, noting the difference of how I felt with him in comparison to anyone else, and how quiet it was out here alone with him. Alone. My heart started pounding faster as I realized ideally that anyone could see us through the massive window of the house. He turned around to see what I was looking at as he turned back around and shook his head.

"They won't care; that fight is more important to them than two invisible people out here."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that for everyone," I said skeptically as I instantly thought of Ruto, who would no doubt love to have any excuse to expose me and Dark for good. However, I couldn't lie to myself how so much better I already felt in Dark's presence, how he could instantly calm me with a few simple words, how Ruto's words and seeds of insecurities began losing their ruthless edge, how I forgot about any and all Link problems, and I instantly felt bad for the cold shoulder I had been giving him the whole week. I took my hand away from his and turned around, looking at the lake as I swallowed and tried not to think of my previous behavior and wondered how in Hyrule Dark could still be so nice to me after how rude I had been to him. He was suddenly there beside me, following my lead as we leaned on the railing just as Link and I had down about a few minutes before.

"I think the more correct question is if you're alright," he said quietly as I bit my lip, looking down in shame. I cocked my head so it was at an angle as I looked up at him with a wry smile.

"Why are you being so nice right now? I have been horrible to you all week and I, I don't deserve this sweetness, especially not from you. Please be mean to me; it's what I deserve."

He looked at me with bewilderment as I looked back away, making a big point to stare at the lone tree a little ways off from the house. "You shouldn't be apologizing to me," he finally said, looking at me with an indescribable emotion.

"Of course I should be apologizing! I overreacted and didn't talk to you-"

"-you were right for every one of those reasons though. I was the one who should have told you beforehand about this party."

"But I'm assuming you didn't because of really concerned reasons. You've always tried to protect me from people and well, let's just say I finally got a nice dose of what you've never wanted me to endure tonight," I said with a small smile, thinking of my exchange with Ruto and a warning he once gave me long ago when we first met each other in treetops, back when things were a lot less complicated. He gripped the railing on the deck angrily as he turned, a livid and suddenly comprehensive look in his stunning green eyes.

"Are you serious?" he asked hotly as he looked in the house, something registering in his face. He let go of the railing and started moving to the door as I ran front of him and pushed him back.

"Dark, its fine I swear! Please don't do anything rash!" I protested, trying to shove his strong arms away from the door. He paused as he breathed deeply out, no doubt trying to calm himself down. I watched him with slight fear, not wanting him to do anything stupid on my behalf when currently I still didn't believe I deserved any such pleasantries from him. I shoved against his arm as he heaved a big breath and shoved his arms away from me and down to his sides nonchalantly, barely glancing at me as he took a small step away.

"I wasn't going to," he said gruffly as he gave one last loathing look at the house with strong contempt and then turned back to me as I gave a huge sigh of relief. "Just one thing."

"Yes?" I asked as he slinked farther away from the door. He looked quite a bit angry still as he turned towards me, and then shook his head a little and started to walk farther away from me on the deck.

"It was Ruto, huh?" he asked, turning around as he looked at me forcefully. My eyes flickered with extreme surprise at his intuition as I merely looked down with a small nod. I doubt it's a good sign if both Link and Dark immediately knew that Ruto was the one to blame for disheartening me so much tonight I thought wryly as Dark's face grew more livid then it currently was (which was saying something), though not surprised. "That explains a lot," he muttered, kicking a random rock lying on the deck into the lake as I instantly grew curious, but didn't say anything more. He leaned against the rail again and was looking a ways off into the lake as he suddenly continued to talk very quickly. "Explains why she walked around so smug, her comment to Hope, why she threw herself on me-"

"She threw herself on you?" I asked right away in spite of myself, hearing the heavy tone of anger. I hoped he hadn't also heard it, but to my chagrin he turned to me with a crooked grin.

"Practically. Why, am I hearing some jealousy in there?"

"Jealous, me? Of Ruto Stone? Of course not, don't be ridiculous. I have much more superior things in my life to squander jealousy on," I said stiffly as he grinned, sidling along the rail until he was near me.

"It's alright to be jealous you know, as long as I'm the cause and it's in my favor."

"Do you in all honesty think I would stoop so low into being jealous?"

"I don't know, people do crazy things when they're in-"He stopped as he suddenly looked down, unable to say anything else as my heart started to pound in a manner that would even rival hummingbirds. I blushed and looked away through the house to distract myself where I saw that people seemed to be grinding again, the big inevitable party fight apparently over. I suddenly remembered Link and anxiously wondered if he was hurt and I turned to go inside to go check on him. Before I could move away though Dark had instantly grabbed my arm, causing me to flush and look into his despondent eyes.

"Don't, don't go please," he pleaded as I widened my eyes and looked down, gently moving his hand off my arm. I could feel the small difference in the atmosphere and I somehow knew right then and there if I didn't go inside right now, something very serious was going to happen, that somehow this was a major deciding point in ours somewhat relationship. He looked down and shrugged, obviously trying to shake off the serious mood we were in as I breathed and scooted closer to him, mentally knowing I was thus sealing my fate.

"Well you see, someone's got to help me inside later in case I become intoxicated or something," he continued nonchalantly with a small grin as I rolled my eyes with a grin in spite of myself, leaning next to him as we both propped ourselves on the railing again.

"You're not drunk though," I pointed out as he shrugged.

"I could be though; it's never a possibility to eliminate."

"But you aren't," I said firmly again, motioning to the party behind us. "All of those idiots are, but you, you have enough sense and a lot better judgment to not be and-"

"I could be intoxicated by your beauty." I paused in my rant as I swallowed and looked over to him, to see if he was kidding. He was staring at me though with sincerity, blinking evenly as I looked down and smoothed my sweater.

"Well maybe you are drunk," I mumbled as he gave a little laugh and moved his head so he was in my line of sight.

"I'm not drunk Zelda, and not kidding either just like I know you're thinking. Don't deny it, I can see that expression of yours," he smiled as I bit my lip with embarrassment that he caught my skeptical face. "I could be intoxicated by your beauty because you truly are beautiful. You don't need short dresses or jealous actions for anyone to say that, though I wouldn't complain of course if you wanted to do either, and you can come to a party in a sweater and Converse and still look 34 times more stunning than every other girl in the room. You are beautiful."

I continued to stare at him, unable to say anything as he continued talking, speaking fast and low. "I've tried to think of any way I could to not be bold like this to you, but I just couldn't. I hadn't invited you to this party because I was ashamed of how my friends act here, and I didn't want you to see that. That," he motioned to the party with a half laugh, "that isn't me. I don't like to drink to have a good time, I don't like to grind, I don't like to put up this pretend show of me enjoying these type things just for other's benefits." He began to talk quicker, running a hand through his hair as I stared at him, still unable to say anything. "I thought it was my great luck when I saw you in the front with Avalon when you first got here-looking as perfect as anyone could look-because that meant that I would maybe not have to try so hard to look like I was enjoying myself all night. I would be able to see you and just, forget I was even at this stupid thing, to forget everything about these people. I watched you beat him rather amazingly at pool, then went downstairs to get something when I heard someone running down the stairs and realized a minute later with a jolt it was you, sobbing. I was going to move out of my hiding on the side of the room, assuming that Avalon was going to soon become a heavily crushed man when of course, he came down too, comforting you like a, gentleman," he admitted begrudgingly as I looked at him, speechless at the amount he was telling me as everything began to make a lot more sense than I ever would have thought it to and parts started to click into place. "I saw him put an arm on you as I listened to you guys talking, surprised by the immediate anger the sight gave me. It should've been me comforting you; it should've been me that assuring you that there would be nothing for you to cry about."

"None of this is your fault," I began as he shook his head, his hair falling into his face a little bit.

"It is though. I, I'm not very sure why it is, but I know it is." He looked down a little as I breathed, pondering he had told me as it all ran through my head. "It should've been me comforting you." "You are beautiful." "I don't like to put up this pretend show of me enjoying these things just for other people's benefits." My heart pounded as I stared at his face, thinking and rethinking everything he had said. Hesitantly I raised my hand to move his hair out of his face, my hand shaking as his words coursed through me again, confirming a lot of things I had been thinking hard about. He had been trying to protect me this whole time, had been watching me all night, had even gone so far to tell me I was beautiful… His eyes widened a little at my touch as I was once again surprised by my extreme boldness. I was about to lower my hand when he instead grabbed it, moving me so we had our arms around one another as if we were dancing. As if reading my mind, he smiled a little and started to make us sway as I gave a little laugh, leaning my head on his chest as he put his chin softly on the top of my head.

I closed my eyes and thought how different the night had turned around, much different than I would have expected and realized that this whole thing would probably end with a kiss. Maybe this will finally be that first kiss of mine I thought unevenly; a little ashamed I had never been kissed in my life before. In my romantic endeavors, I found that the proper time had never presented itself, or the guy, which was the main reason my lips were still on the virgin side. However as I opened my eyes and felt Dark's chest breathing up and down on my face, I could feel the right atmosphere and readied myself, knowing said kiss would be with someone who cared deeply for me. I looked up to him, staring into his green eyes that shone even brighter in the night as I started to creep up, wondering how one got into this whole kissing maneuver. At the last second I turned my face away with a gasp; unable to do it yet as he placed a soft kiss on my right cheek that instantly made my heart pound faster than humanly possible.

"I'm sorry, was that too bold?" he murmured as I shook my head, ashamed I couldn't even kiss a guy yet as the corner of my eyes watered. How much more pathetic could you get my mind sneered at me as I let go of him and squirmed away, knowing I needed to escape from out here and him as quick as possible. He looked at me with confusion as I laughed uneasily, trying to keep my tears of shame in (which of course tended to flow a lot easier than my actual tears or the tears of anger I also experienced).

"I'm sorry I have to… I'm sorry," I whispered as I took a step back, trying to keep my disordered emotions in as he looked at me with confusion, putting a hand on his forehead and glanced down.

"Zelda," he said pleadingly as he locked our eyes right as the door opened, revealing none other than Clarke himself. I gasped despite myself, my heart still heavily pounding, as he looked at me then idly back to Dark, putting his hands in his pocket as he did the acknowledging head nod thing to Dark, who of course was still staring at me.

"Dude, what are you doing out here? That one Zora chick is looking for you," he said to Dark, who still looked incredibly stunned as if all he could do was stare at me, and I doubted he heard any of what Clarke said even though of course I did and my mind instantly started to whir in anger and anguish about whom that "Zora" chick just could be.

"Dark," I said quietly, motioning with my head to Clarke and inside, looking down again so he could have a better reason to go inside. He unwillingly turned to Clarke with a small defeated expression of acceptance.

"What is it?" he asked emotionlessly as I closed my eyes with a small sigh, feeling a lot more awful about the not being able to kiss him than I had before as I opened them again, glad I had a semi-strong check on my emotions that would stop me from crying anymore. Clarke glanced at me then back to Dark as he suddenly nodded with a small and frightening glimpse of understanding and he merely gave a smirk and shrugged, his mind no doubt brooding plenty of horrible things to say to me later.

"Just thinking you should go back inside. Some of the group wondered where you went but that is, of course, if Zelda can spare you."

"No it's fine I'll go," Dark said, looking down as he turned back to me, seemingly wanting to say something more as he breathed deeply and turned again to go back inside which left only Clarke and myself outside, something I really wish could have been avoided. I breathed quietly, deciding I didn't wasn't to deal with him in my current state as I bit my lip and motioned to move inside right as Clarke side-stepped so he was conveniently blocking the door.

"Will you please move?" I said, glaring at him intensely as I tried to keep in my still slightly distraught and confused emotions from just moments before as I wondered if he was purposefully antagonizing me. He looked at me lazily and shook his head with another smirk, and I almost laughed out loud, wondering why I would even think such a stupid question.

"You know, I don't think I'm going to do that," he said simply as I took a deep breath to try and calm myself down and pursed my lips together, anger quickly overcoming all the other emotions I had in me.

"Well, I came with someone here that right now I really need to check on," I explained as he grinned, leaning back on the door.

"Oh don't worry; pretty boy is perfectly fine in there. Cleaning up a little, but still fine," he said, tilting his head to motion inside as I looked through the window, trying to see if I could spot Link amidst all the grinding and making out, unless of course he was also in there doing all of those things… I frowned and looked up at Clarke, who was watching me with close interest.

"What on earth would he need to be cleaning up?" I demanded, putting a hand on my hip as I shuddered a little bit from a sudden breeze I felt. He scoffed at me, still eyeing me up and down and I knew he was still thinking of what he had seen with Dark and I, he was just waiting for the perfect time to bring it up.

"His idiot friend tried to pick a fight with Groose, who by the way is about twice his friend's size. Avalon felt the need to break up the fight and well…"

"Is he hurt?" I gasped, my eyes widening as he looked down at me with slight bewilderment.

"No, he's fine. I couldn't say the same thing about that friend of his, but Avalon is fine." I gave a sigh of relief as he gave me a peculiar expression, moving forward so that I was forced a little back. "So then does Dark know you show this much concern for Avalon?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," I said instantly, blushing more furiously than I thought possible. Clarke grinned as he stepped forward again and I stepped back, not wanting to be any more near him than necessary.

"My my little nerd, dare I say you're getting a little more flustered than normal in my presence?"

"N-n-no," I stuttered, taking another step back as he came forward.

"What's the deal with you and Dark?" he stressed again with another step that forced me into the deck. I gulped as his hands were suddenly on either side of me, trapping me so that I was unable to move on either side as I my back rounded backwards and I grew a little freaked out, then immediately very irritated.

"There's nothing there. Why are you so interested in this part of my life?" I asked angrily, mustering courage as I pushed him away from me so I could properly stand, which seemed to startle him.

"I'd like to know if my best mate is fraternizing with-"

"-what, losers like me?" I said with a harsh laugh as I stood at my correct height, pleased to see him struggling for words. However, it was a short lived victory as he closed his mouth and gave me another smirk.

"Yes, losers just like you. Just like you." I glared at him defiantly and held up my head high as he laughed.

"Funny, you usually don't seem to mind that much fraternizing with losers such as myself. Or, at least, in particular with a loser like me," I pointed out, Link's words and heeding from earlier instantly running through my head. "The attraction could merely be because you're not like the other girls he's used to, did you ever think of that?"

"Well, there's a difference in that though. We have a class together," he pointed out after a pause, as if that justified his questions as I rolled my eyes.

"As do Dark and I, and Link and I, and oh yeah, probably myself and a lot of other people in there. Just admit it, there really is not difference, you're just being overly difficult with this because it's you."

He shrugged and glanced back inside, then back to me. "So what, you have a lot of classes. You're not answering my question."

"What question?" I asked in exasperation as he smirked, motioning to the house.

"You, Dark. I'm not an idiot, despite those negative thoughts against me you think, because we both know you think about me often," he said, putting a finger on my mouth to stop my protest as I shoved his arm away in disgust. "I've seen you two together a lot, and I just thought I'd ask if I've need to congratulate Dark for finally getting some, but looking at you I know nothing could really have happened there yet as you still have that lovely shining virginal glow about you."

I flushed and scrunched my hand together in anger and embarrassment, wondering how much he would laugh at me if he figured I couldn't even kiss a guy yet, let alone even think of sleeping with him. "My personal life, especially my love life, is really of no concern to you," I hissed, hoping he wouldn't be able to tell my lack of experience by my refusal to answer one insipid question from him.

He shrugged again as I gave a little shiver from the cold. "Just throwing some helpful tips out there, watching out for you," he said casually as my stomach sank with new anxiety. "Clarke unquestionably likes you, no matter how implausible you want to believe it is."

"So do you do this often then, this careful watching of me?" I asked, the words slipping out of my mouth before I could stop them from me thinking more and more about Link's warning. Clarke paused, apparently not expecting such a bold question from me.

"What?" he asked, obviously taken aback and I severely wished I hadn't said anything. However, I breathed deeply and shrugged, looking at him as I tried to keep my cool.

"Well I don't know, you made it sound as if you watch me quite often so I was just wondering if it's that often or more of an every now and then kind of thing; maybe those occasional times when you're truly feeling pathetic and hope a quick glance to me will make everything all better again."

"What's this, is Zelda actually fighting back for once?" he smirked at me as I rolled my eyes, suddenly wondering why I had never punched him before as my murderous thoughts were interrupted by me shivering again.

"What, you give me a ton of crap everyday and I'm not allowed to say anything in response? That's awfully misogynistic, even for you."

He stared at me, an odd combination of expressions on his face of what appeared to be pride, amusement, and another discernible one that concerned me the most because I couldn't figure out what exactly it was. He opened his mouth as if to say one thing, then closed it with a nonchalant shrug. "If you want me to be sexist, I can easily make that happen, and consider this the last time I try to show you kindness."

"Thank you," I said stiffly, "but I think I can handle it all on my own."

He stared at me as I shivered again under his stare and the breeze that passed us by. Before I could say anything else though in retort, he had already removed the dark green cargo jacket he was wearing and handed it to me. I stared at him, trying to pick up if he was joking or not, but hastily put it on anyways, the cold winning over my pride. He was looking at me curiously as I looked at him back, looking at his features more closely than I really ever had before. He was wearing a dark grey button down and jeans with what appeared to be cowboy boots as I wryly thought I didn't know that he was a rancher. I had always thought him merely wide, but I suddenly realized he was actually rather slim but his broad, thick, muscled shoulders and his tall and well over 6"4 height just made him appear bigger than he was. His wavy dark brown hair was overly tousled (which I tried not to think hard how that had happened), his similar dark brown eyes still staring at me as I flushed and motioned to the jacket.

"Thanks," I said simply as I looked down in embarrassment. "Watch out for Clarke tonight…."

He turned to the window, looking in to the party, which looked even crazier than it had five minutes ago. "It's really going mad in there, huh?" he asked as I shrugged noncommittally

"I don't know, you seemed to be enjoying yourself enough," I said, an image of him grinding in between two girls filling my mind. He seemed to know exactly what I was thinking of as he shrugged and shook his head.

"It's really not that enjoyable if neither of them know who they are when anything is happening."

"And here I was thinking that to guys like you, trivial points such as that didn't matter, my mistake," I said with disgust as he shook his head again.

"I'm just stating facts. Usually if I'm hooking up with someone, I like them to always remember it. Not that they usually need any reminding of me; I always make sure to leave a lasting impression. Intoxicated women are productive, greatly productive, but lacking in many aspects I rather like to enjoy in such intimate and steamy instances that require full attention."

"One piece of information I really could have lived forever and avoided hearing," I muttered, looking at him with somewhat interest. "You don't drink."

"No," he said tersely as I raised my eyebrows silently in wonder, hoping he'd continue. "I just don't like it, alcohol, especially the smell. I know this comes as a shock to you, but I'm not as vile as you think all the time."

"Not always, you do have your redeeming moments," I admitted, looking at the jacket he wordlessly let me use just because I was cold. If I was going to be honest, I was genuinely a little surprised that Clarke was so strongly opposed to alcohol and drinking, but for some strange reason the information made me a little bit prouder of him. He looked at me again with what looked like a sliver of a genuine smile and looked down again, making me wonder if I had imagined the smile altogether.

"So how come you've never been to one of these before?" he asked suddenly as I was shook out of my own personal thoughts. I comprehended what he said and immediately snorted, giving him an apprehensive look.

"Well, as you consistently remind me, I don't belong here and in all honesty, I don't really know myself why I came. I kind of wish I hadn't; this night was not one of my most successful in a lot of aspects," I gave a small laugh, extremely unsure of why I was telling him this or why it had suddenly become so easy to tell him all of the little oddities I myself was personally thinking. He took my mini-rant in with a frown and shrugged, another seemingly genuine expression on his face.

"I'm sorry," he finally said as I stared at him with wide eyes, unsure if I heard correctly.

"You're, sorry? Like, legitimately sorry? I didn't even think you could feel empathy," I said in wonder as I crossed my arms in front of me to try and keep in the warmth. However, this comment seemed to trigger anger, as he was abruptly looking at me with wild rage, his emotions having flipped like a coin.

"I'm not as bad as you think, okay?" he snapped, clearly very angry as my eyebrows shot up and I glared at him, forgetting the pleasantries we had been enjoying a mere few seconds ago.

"You're not as bad as I think you are? Hah! That's just rich, really, coming from the guy who has done everything from publicly humiliating me, degradation of one of my really good friends, snarky comments to myself innumerous times, stared at me for no reason, which you yourself have openly admitted to not five minutes ago, creeped me out in many aspects and accounts, made false and highly inappropriate accusations about myself and at least two other guys, gone from girl to girl like it means nothing, probably many other, horrible things, and oh, yeah, given me many cases of sexual harassment. You may have had your moments here and there, but they are not enough to justify your other fiendish behaviors. Still going to claim you're not all that bad?"

He looked at me angrily and raised his arm a little as I genuinely wondered if he was going to hit me. However, he merely breathed deeply and shoved his balled up fist down, pointing a menacing finger to me. "Once again, the great self righteous speech from the noble Zelda Harkinian." I glared at him as he gave an angry smirk, the livid fire in his eyes still brimming. "We've had this conversation before but let me remind you: you're not always going to have Avalon or Dark to protect you from this horrible world and the men out there who are a good deal more shocking than I could ever be in your esteemed eyes."

"As stated before, I can firmly tell you that you aren't that solution for me, and I'm pretty sure I can take adequate care of myself," I said angrily, preparing myself to leave him and his unhinged mood swings. Before I knew it he had pushed me backwards, shoving me back into the deck as the wood dug into my back and I gave a little gasp in pain.

"Obviously not," he smirked, pinning my chest down with his arm as I glared, trying to ignore the panic that had swiftly coursed through me so I could try and stand up to him properly.

"And you wonder why I think you so horrible?" I said softly, eyeing his arm with a frown, as he looked down and begrudgingly let me up, his face unreadable as I glared at him, not really knowing what to say to him after that.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he said simply as I stared at him with disbelief and shook my head, once again not knowing or wanting to know if I could deal with him much longer. I walked around him and his psychotic mindset to try and go back inside as he asked behind me smugly, "So I'll see you Monday then?" making me turn around with confusion.

"Why would I bother wanting to see you Monday?" I asked with disgust, not wishing to see him any sooner than necessary. He smirked again and started to walk around me like a lion ready to attack his prey.

"Well, correct me if I'm wrong, but a certain Zelda is going to be tutoring me in Ancient Hylian, and since we all know Zelda Swan is a complete idiot, I just assumed when Shad mentioned this person it was you." I felt the pit in my stomach sink as my heart started beating extremely quickly in anger and slight fear. I glared at his triumphant face, trying to keep my emotions in check.

"You did this on purpose, I just know you did. I don't know how you happened to arrange it but I just, I know that you did this on purpose."

"Zelda, I-"

"No, you don't get to talk! Just listen to me; I don't know why you love tormenting me, or how much of a great kick you get out of this torture, but I just, I can't deal with it anymore. Why can't you leave me alone?" I finished screaming at him, surprised at my outburst as he looked at me with a pitiable expression, obviously hurt. Before I could start feeling bad I had already stepped backward with a few shaky breaths and turned around, needing to get away from him even as he called after me. I could feel my angry tear ducts water a little as I sniffled and went around to the front and down the porch steps to the line of cars where I had planned to wait for Link. Clarke's voice as he talked to someone in the house carried over to me, causing me to turn in my path before he could follow me in more protest. As I tried navigating to a more recluse spot to hide from him I began to wonder why I had been so unable to leave him not even five minutes before, why I continued to talk to him even after he had been horrible to me. Sadly though, I knew with chagrin there was some part of me that was exceptionally interested to see where the whole conversation might have lead, to maybe even see if he had a shred of decency hidden within him. One of the more stupid things you've done lately I remarked as I looked up to see I had been idly walking to the lone tree a little ways away from the house. I gave a little shrug as I continued towards it, knowing it'd be a great place to think somewhere in peace when I abruptly stopped about twenty feet away from it, a piece of fear entering into me from the sight in front of me.

Though it was dark, I could make out two figures on the ground by said tree, one on the ground and one kneeling beside him. My eyes hadn't adjusted very much to the dark yet so I couldn't really tell what was happening; I only knew that panic and fear had rushed into me, which took over all other emotions as I shakily breathed. Knowing that a person on the ground was never a good thing, my hands started shaking and despite my better judgment I took a hesitant step forward and with my horrible luck accidently stepping on twig in the process The kneeling figure looked up at me and fluidly stood, holding what appeared to be a giant butcher knife as my eyes widened, taking full account of the severity of the situation. He started to move slowly closer to me in a lazy prowl as I clumsily backed up, wondering why no one else was seeing any of this happen at the house. I took a step back and fell onto my hands with a gasp, realizing he was suddenly only a few feet from me and would be able to do a lot of things with me unable to defend myself, the handy pocketknife Malon had caringly packed in my purse that was laying inside. I looked up, a small wishful part of me hoping to recognize him but I knew it was futile and I wouldn't be able to even see him, the full bright moon having been suddenly covered by clouds and giving no aid to me. I gasped softly and closed my eyes in anticipation, unable to bring myself to do anything else as I heard a low chuckle and heavy breathing then a voice, low and swift in my ear, his warm breath so contradictory to the chilliness I was feeling all throughout my body.

"Oh don't worry Princess, I won't be harming you quite yet. I have much greater activities in store for you, just you wait," the voice breathed into my ear, as if trying to be alluring with his rather intimidating voice. Before I could do anything else I felt something on the inside of my ear, moving up and down it slowly and I realized in horror it was the person's tongue and I shuddered with a cry and shot open my eyes to see him, but there was no one there, not one.

"Zelda!" Clarke called as I looked back to see him running with heavy concern on his face, Link trailing close behind him.

"Why are you on the ground?" Link asked me with heavy concern as I shook my head, unable to say anything as I tried to hold in the contents of my stomach, my heart pounding so hard I thought it might burst. I closed my eyes to try and act calmly as I remembered the other man with the apparent killer and I opened my eyes and numbly stood, ignoring the stares of both Clarke and Link as I walked cautiously over to the tree, only to see a familiar looking man spread eagle on the ground, several puncture wounds in his side, a loose noose around his neck. My eyes widened as I gasped and covered my mouth to try and stop myself from screaming again. The man was wearing regal clothes of the Hyrulean Knights with a giant triforce on the chest and I knew him to be the captain of the guards and one of my father's closest advisors. I heard a sharp intake of breath as I stared numbly at the man, apprehensively watching as Link bent down to check the pulse and looked back to me.

"It's okay, he's alive," he murmured as I numbly nodded, giving a shaky laugh in return. Before I knew it everything that happened to me, everything I saw fell on me at once and I collapsed into Clarke's quickly outstretched arms, grabbing unto his neck for support as I leaned my head unto his chest and began to sob hard into the night, unable to get the murderer's voice out of my head.

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Cliffhanger... Anywho, I really want to hear some response about this one because I did a couple of scenes I was unsure about so please really do review, even just to say you loved it, which really would be an honor. Oh, and maybe if people liked my little reference dealie/song thing, I'd love to hear some feedback about that too...

Thanks again!