Twilight Storm Chapter 14: Bonus Chapter, a legend of zelda fanfic

Why hello there, Kiba Wolf here!

At (too) long last we've reached the end of Twilight Storm, but before we say our goodbyes I would like to humbly offer you this bonus chapter. It doesn't add a lot to the story (but there is some interesting information towards the end if you want more of this kind of story!), but it does give you an inside look on the writing process through out. This chapter will include deleted scenes, the playlist, and several clusters of commentary by me concerning the how and why of writing Twilight Storm. So please, do enjoy if you plan on reading it, but if not I still encourage you to take a look at the little surprise at the end.

Write on!

Playlist:

Chapter One: Traveling Song and Cry Me A River: Traveling Song is from Link's perspective and Cry Me A River from Midna's.

Chapter Two: I Don't Want To Miss A Thing and Harder To Breath: I Don't Want To Miss A Thing was originally for Link when I was still writing in third person (explained a little more with the "cut scene".) Basically more of his missing Midna and everything around him while he's dealing with the hole in his life. Midna's stress level goes up on so many levels in this chapter, so, yes, its getting harder and harder to breath.

Chapter Three: Only had one song, oops. Monsters: More of an action-y song not to mention monsters are showing up in all characters this chapter. Midna's jealousy clouds her mind, a monster in its self. Link's blindness to her feelings and, oh, of course the big attack on Hyrule Castle (don't ask me where Zelda was during this, just don't).

Chapter Four: Originally Hate That I Love You and Soulmate. Obviously I didn't lie when I told everyone this chapter took on a life of its own. What you, dear readers, read was not as I had originally intended. In the end I suppose it just got bumped back really, Chapter Five has a bit of fluff to make up for the insanity in this chapter.

Chapter Five: Why Can't I and Not Meant To Be. Both from Midna's perspective as she goes through her debates on whether she and Link were meant for each, whether or not they could be together, etc. I feel like these are songs that wish for one thing, and are frustrated by the current state of matters, and really that's how Midna's feeling through this chapter.

Chapter Six: Animal and One Headlight. Animal is the overall theme of this chapter. One Headlight is… because there is still a lot of relationship building that's very subtle, but also a lot of relationship tearing and whatnot. Especially towards the end. One of those sweet sorrow kind of endings.

Chapter Seven: Learn to Fly and How To Save A Life. This chapter is about our heroes rising, brushing the dirt off their clothes, and stepping forward again. Of course the harder song to find comes from the mid-part of the chapter, when Link loses sanity and it seems like they're falling down again. Which is where song number two comes in: I Caught Myself. I had considered Youth for this chapter, but saved it for a more appropriate chapter later on. Also bonus track! Hey Baby by No Doubt! Why? Well there will be some fluff in there that I rather like! The real number two song: This song is all about losing someone you love and this is really one-half of the whole core of the story. Link lost Midna and just when they thought they were together again she lost Link to a tainted darkness. It's a perfect song combo.

Chapter Eight: Show Me What I'm Looking For and This Town. The first song is really the chapter's theme song, in all honesty. This chapter is about being lost and, of course, the attack on Castle Town brings in This Town perfectly mid-chapter.

Chapter Nine: So Cold by Breaking Benjamin for Link and Midna. The Scientist by Coldplay for Midna, as she is trying to literally fix Link through this chapter. Sub-songs: chosen later, during the actual writing of the final chapter. Back 2 Good and Ballroom Blitz. The Scientist and Back 2 Good are almost inter-changeable, although Back 2 Good sounds better to me today (March 20, 2011) because it's more upbeat and the fixing is more emotional than just calm/reflective. Ballroom Blitz is much like This Town, kind of a setting song.

Chapter Ten: Head over Feet by Alanis Morissette and Forget You by Cee-Lo Green. I think it's kind of an ironic, but sad thing, everything Midna goes through. This is basically the song for them falling for each other all over again, even if it is with a tinge of sadness. Forget You is my little spark of humor, I suppose, since it does come up a little. Chapter Ten is the last serious shot for humor before the meeting of the Twili and Hylians and the final battle with Din.

Chapter Eleven: What Do We Know by Thousand Foot Crutch and Help is on the Way by Rise Against. The regular/fast-paced versions of this song are both used for the faster and slower feelings going on in this chapter. When it's massive, it's loud, it's ready to rock that's the fast paced. When it dives deeper, gets emotional, when it hurts that's when the slower version kicks in. What Do We Know had been planned out a while ago, and I like it more from Link's perspective (a bit of irony for one thing) as he tries to quickly come to grips with what he knows is truth and what he knows, generally speaking, as he prepares to battle Din.

Chapter Twelve: Headstrong by Trapt for the heavier, you know, generic action stuff. Taking on a god. Taking on a world. Take on anyone. Two Princes by Spin Doctors from Link's perspective, in the epilogue part of the chapter, was the original song, but last minute it was changed to Breathless by The Corrs. It almost fits both perspectives, but it has that more feminine twinge for Midna. Although I will say that the second (lesser) reason I changed it was because I plan on using this song for an upcoming story instead (hints!)

*Edit 24/4 – A note on the playlist for Twilight Storm: The songs are a mark for me to meet. When I pick good songs for the chapter then meet my goal for writing the chapter they go together perfectly.

Deleted Scenes:

Chapter One:

There were actually no cuts for this chapter (or the prologue for that matter). Probably because I wasn't sure of how to edit and what to cut initially, because it all worked fine when there was nothing else it had to be aligned with. Obviously this changed through out, and some chapters have significant chunks of text removed and edited. Some of the cuts here actually made it back into the story, just in a very different way or different time.

Chapter Two:

Link made it to Arbiter's Grounds shortly before the folks in his home village back in Ordon would be munching merrily on a mid-morning snack. He was right to have left them for that. They tried to understand his pain, they really tried because the village wasn't just a group of people it was a family. However, every time someone approached him and attempted to broach the subject he deftly changed it or simply walked away ignoring him or her. This had been going on for about a month after he returned before Mayor Bo decided it was time to intervene.

"You're being incredibly rude to the other villagers, son," he had said. "Now I want to understand as much as the rest of them what you're going through. None of us can hope to empathize because we have never been through what you have. In fact, it's thanks to you that we will never have to face such dark times in our lives again.

The mayor seemed to have a hard time to convey his message, probably because being the man that he was he wasn't used to trying to sympathize. Most of the time everyone agreed with him and moved on without any hurt feelings. How was he to know that the young but promising boy from his village would be selected by the goddesses to lead Hyrule to salvation from the twilight?

The mayor sighed in frustration when Link simply stared off into space. He, the Head of Ordon Village, was trying to reach out to this insufferable lad and he had the gull to simply ignore him!

"Now look here, boy," the mayor had said in a very fatherly tone of voice.

"Please, Mayor, I understand that I haven't been in the best of moods. I just wish for some peace right now. I don't feel like being pestered by the entire village!" Link had snapped back at him.

Link was still chuckling from his last story when Zelda asked him, "So she really got the best of you during your journeys together?"

"Well," he had replied pondering for a few minutes. "Most of the time she was on top, and I don't just refer to the fact that she rode me like a horse." He flashed Zelda a grin and she giggled.

"There was this one time," he said, a bit more serious though he still retained the playful twinkle in his deep blue eyes. "When we were up on Snowpeak Mountain looking at our first mirror shard lead, I got the better of her there."

"Do tell," the Hylian princess had implored him.

"Well we had just stepped out of the Zora tunnel leading to the mountains and I could tell she was cold even though she was in my shadow," Link rolled his eyes before continuing. "My shadow was trembling with the cold of the mountain! So I requested she transform me and when she complied I was quick to act. I pushed her off the cliff."

Zelda gasped. "Link! How could you do that?" She demanded.

The young swordsman just laughed though. "Well once I bucked her off a cliff she reached up and pulled me down so I would hardly call this a one-sided story."

*Edit 9/4 – The scene with Link and Zelda was cut, aside from changing the main perspective of the story to first-person, because reconsidering it I figured that this wasn't in character for them. Link would not be able to laugh and joke like this even after a full year, at least not standing in the same place where it all ended for him. Then of course there's Zelda's character, which was the most off thing about this short passage. The Zelda in Twilight Princess, more so than in, say, Ocarina of Time, isn't precisely fun loving. I take her as a very grim and serious character in Twilight Princess. Obviously her actions here would not imply that. This is from the beginning of chapter two.

Chapter Three:

Not a cut, but something I picked up around Chapter Three:

The Triforce of Power embodies the essence of Din, the goddess of Power, and amplifies the physical and magical power of its bearer immeasurably. It is usually associated with Ganon, who often uses it to help conquer Hyrule or come back from death. The piece is usually depicted to be the top piece out of the three.

The Triforce of Wisdom embodies the essence of Nayru, the goddess of Wisdom, and amplifies the wisdom and mystical powers of its bearer. It is usually associated with Princess Zelda.

The Triforce of Courage embodies the essence of Farore, the goddess of Courage, and seems to amplify the courage and adventuring skills of its bearer. It is usually associated with Link.

No cuts beyond that.

Chapter Four:

"No!" I heard a voice cry out, but it sounded far away. All I could see was the roof toppling towards me. I squeezed my eyes shut and waited for the end to come. I felt the impact, but not from the direction I had been expecting. The object hit my back – hard and I crashed into the cold stone floor with the pleasantly warm object pinning me down. I tried to move but was held firmly in place. Then I heard a voice.

"Stop moving, calm down, you're okay," a male voice whispered. The voice was very close, but what it was saying didn't make sense. Calm down? I was trapped under the roof of Hyrule Castle, which was currently under siege. I couldn't calm down, no, but I did stop moving as the voice had asked. Suddenly the weight that had been holding me down was removed.

To my surprise I felt space above me. Slowly I sat up and realized that the roof indeed hadn't crushed me. The space was small with the heavy stone of the castle creating walls all around me. I was trapped but alive, and I wasn't alone. As I looked around the small space (really there wasn't all that much to look at; its so dark) I came face to face with the man who had been whispering to me earlier. Slowly as my brain started to work out of the shock I realized he must've been the one who had tackled me and kept me pinned against the ground. I glanced up. There was maybe an inch of space between my head and the stone, had I been standing the massive stone would've killed me without a doubt.

"Midna?" The man asked and I noticed he was breathing hard. I looked at him, prepared to thank him until I saw who he was. Link. I huffed and looked away from him again. He may have saved my life but that didn't mean I was ready to look at him yet.

"Thanks," I spat at him angrily. There he got his thanks that was all I owed him, now I could sit here and die slowly in peace. Unless Zelda fended off the attack that I could still hear waging outside I was going to die here. Here in this cramped space with a man I wasn't sure I loved or hated – still. I resolved right then that – rescue or no rescue – I was going to figure this out. I didn't want to die not knowing if I had ever found love. That would suck worse than dieing a virgin – oh for the love of Nayru.

"Midna, please just listen," Link pleaded. He was never one to give up easily.

"Hey wait a minute!" I shouted. He looked at me with a confused expression, head tilted to the side. Hylian head, not wolf head even though I was sure I had left him as a wolf back in Ordon. How'd he get here in time not as a wolf?

"Who are you?" I asked slowly. He looked even more confused than before. "I left the real Link as a wolf back in Ordon. You couldn't be him." I eyed him suspiciously, daring him to challenge my discovery. He looked surprised and his face lit up like something just dawned on him.

"Hey," he said slowly, "you're right." He blinked a couple of times confused, then looked back at me. Like I knew how he got here as a Hylian? He spoke up again after a moment of mutual confusion. "Did you change me back when I hit you? I swear I was a wolf when I jumped for you."

"You're saying you got this deep into Hyrule Castle as a wolf?" I asked sarcastically. He nodded and I rolled my eyes.

"The castle is under siege. The guards were more worried about what was actually attacking them rather than a wild dog," he reasoned. I nodded once slowly trying to find a flaw in his logic.

"Wait, you didn't stop to help them?" I asked surprised. He looked down guiltily. After a few moments he spoke again, but he never raised his head while he was talking.

"I had a – feeling that you were in trouble. I couldn't stop to help them when you needed me," he muttered softly. I cocked my head to the side, confused not only by his tone but also his words. How could he know if I was in trouble? Not that I wasn't but how would he…

"The Triforce," he said suddenly, looking me in the eye.

"What about it?" I asked curiously.

"I guess you don't think about it much when you obtain it," he replied thoughtfully. "I've heard stories about how the Triforce bonds those who hold pieces of it, but I thought that only applied to people who came by the Triforce naturally. Its really the only way I can explain it though, and, after talking to Zelda about it, that's really the only way I can explain just knowing."

We have a bond through the Triforce? Sounded a bit stalker-ish to me not to mention laughable. A Hylian and a Twili bonded through the sacred Triforce, yeah, right. Then again it would make sense in some respects, like how I'm always so preoccupied worrying over him. Sure, that would make sense and its easiest to explain to whoever might inquire into it.

"I don't believe you," I said bleakly. I grinned at him, "You'll have to prove it." He grinned back at me and became thoughtful suddenly. While I watched him thinking I remembered something.

"Oh and Link," I said shyly, ducking my head down. "I'm sorry I hit you earlier, I didn't mean it – not really." I peeked up at him and was relieved to find him smiling.

"Think nothing of it," he said with a wave of his hand. "It didn't really hurt anyways, just caught me off guard." I rolled my eyes and punched him in the shoulder.

"Come here," he said suddenly. I just stared at him like he was crazy. We were only a foot apart in this cramped death hole, how could I get any closer? When he saw I wasn't moving he leaned forward and grabbed my left hand.

"Link what the h—," I started to yell at him but suddenly he pressed his lips to mine and the strangest thing happened. All of the fight left me. I had never known a life where I didn't feel like I had to fight, every moment was a constant struggle to stay above water. Raised from birth to be the next queen there was never a restful moment, then of course as soon as I receive the crown there's a hostile take over by a sadistic maniac. I always stood my own though, but right now I felt myself drowning for the first time in my life. I felt my bones melt, and the weirdest part of this ultimately foreign moment? I loved every moment of it.

I leaned into him and sank deeper into the kiss. I felt his arm wrap around my waist as he pulled me closer. I heard a small moan escape from my lips and Link forced himself even closer at the opening. Never had I lost control, not once, not really, but right now I couldn't even think let alone control. I just enjoyed.

Suddenly Link jerked back, breaking the kiss and held up my hand, grinning triumphantly. I looked at my hand in mild surprise. The Triforce on it was glowing quite brightly, certainly enough to light up the small space. I glanced down at Link's other hand and noticed it too was glowing.

"See?" He panted. I laughed.

"You had to do that just to prove your point?" I giggled giddily. I leaned back against the makeshift wall and tried to catch my breath. Link crawled closer to me and wrapped his arm around my shoulders.

"You bet," he said, grinning like a mad man. I rolled my eyes once before resting my head against his shoulder. Moments later the world faded to black.

*Edit 9/4 – This piece was removed from the original story line due to the fact that Midna was out of character and I do believe Link caught a bit of that disease though not as bad. The main reason, however, was because I wanted to time their first kiss perfectly. Call me a romantic if you please but I felt that this couple needs one perfect moment to hold on to for the rest of their lives. I figure that Link suddenly kissing her in a near death experience could be romantic, but it would seem like desperation not a true choice for the sake of love. This is from the beginning of chapter four.

Chapter Five:

*Edit 26/4 – Chapter 5 cut scene. Originally Midna's thoughts after coming out of a flash back from the Lanayru province. Cut because this scene because it turned into a story sharing between Zelda and Midna, whereas before it was just Midna thinking back. This is actually re-worked into the scene, strongly diluted.

[I] realized that thoughts of betrayal had never crossed his mind. Loyalty is simply a part of who he is.

A part that I loved so much despite the trouble it gave me in the end. Loyal to the last, my eyes locked with his as the mirror shattered: the pain, the hurt, everything echoing between us as our worlds fell apart just as everyone else's pulled together. I quickly shied away from the memories that were speeding down a path I had no desire to visit again.

I turned over restlessly. How did Link and Zelda stand sleeping on the cold, hard ground? This whole 'camping out' thing was the polar opposite of resting in Link's shadow. His shadow was always so warm and soft. Even though the bed in my royal chambers was of the highest quality, I still had a difficult time falling asleep the first few weeks.

Then again this wasn't nearly as bad as Snowpeak. Discovering the shattered mirror left me feeling hollow – it seemed impossible to return to the Twilight Realm now. Link, never missing a beat, quickly went in search of the fragments. I told him it was hopeless. The sages' cryptic message was nothing more than a fleeting hope. I mean honestly, a shard in the heavens?

We returned to Castle Town for Link to begin his search for the shards.

Later in chp5.

Link saving my life after Zant attacked us in Lanayru's spring shrine had been a turning point in our relationship. I felt more willing to talk to him. Suddenly traveling with him wasn't a chore anymore, but rather repaying someone who had saved my life. I couldn't have asked for a better friend than Link through the desert and especially after our tour through the Arbiter's Grounds.

I glanced over at Zelda who was now sitting up and looking at me curiously.

"Sorry, I didn't mean to wake you – I was having a hard time sleeping," I apologized quickly.

"Oh, no, actually it was the Triforce," she clarified. I tilted to my side and was about to ask her what she was talking about when I noticed my hand. It was glowing rather obnoxiously though it looked like it was dimming some.

"Why's it doing that?" I asked, peeved. Zelda laughed softly before responding.

"Various reasons. Link's glowed when he first entered the Twilight, I believe. Mine glows when I activate its healing powers. Yours though, is hard to say why. The Triforce of Power has never been on the side of good, according to the historical texts. Its magical properties are vastly unknown to us," she elaborated.

"Hmm, so do the pieces share similar properties? Something they all do?" I inquired, thankful for the distraction from my previously restless thoughts.

"Not exactly, the most common thing about them is the fact that they're all magic based and from the goddesses… at least that I know of." The queen of Hyrule furrowed her brow, perplexed. "I've read stories," she said slowly, almost quietly enough that for a minute I thought she was just talking to herself. "A long, long time ago – well before the forces of evil were a common place thing – there existed a Hyrule, far happier than the one we live in now. Everyone was pure-bred Hylian and retained pride for their country, not like today's cowards." She paused and scowled.

"So what does this have to do with the Triforce?" I asked, breaking her reverie.

"Oh, right," she paused to find her place in the storybook inside her head. "So things in Hyrule were pretty good, prosperous and growing, but then Ganondorf made his first appearance—."

I cut her off quickly saying, "Wait first? You mean he's been coming back all this time and Link just now stopped him?"

"Precisely," she answered. "I had hoped that our Link had finished him off for good, but it seems my hope was wasted. Who am I to think I best my ancestor?"

"Uh, Queen, you're losing me here. Keep in mind I didn't grow up in Hyrule Castle," I reminded her promptly before she started rambling too much.

"Oh, right, forgive me, Midna," she corrected herself. I shrugged. "Right well, to get back to the original point, the Link and Zelda of that time—," she paused at my bewildered look, " – You see Link and I are reincarnated for the sake of the Triforce of Courage and Wisdom, respectively. Ganon is the same throughout history as far as we can tell though. Anyways, our historical counter-parts knew much more about the Triforce than they ever bothered to record for future generations. I suppose they had the same belief we had, that they had defeated Ganon for good.

Later, later in chp5.

Oh, well. While I had some time to myself I could mess around with the Triforce of Power a little. As Zelda had said, no one really knew what kind of power it held; I might discover something useful for our mission.

The first thing I did was lean over towards Link and place my hand on top of his own. The Triforce in both of our hands glowed brightly before I even made contact with his skin, and then when I actually touched him the light was near blinding. Surprisingly it didn't wake him, actually I think – did he just smile? I sat back and frowned at the upside-down mark on my hand.

I closed my eyes and focused, though I wasn't sure on what. Zelda claimed that an ancestor of hers could communicate with the ancient Hero of Time through the Triforce with their minds. I've heard of some strange magic before so why not? How did I make this connection though? I tried to focus on Link himself, but didn't pick anything up. Perhaps if I just thought about him, what with the mental part involved in this.

I felt a spark run up my spine and a new presence enter my mind; it felt just as it had when Zelda healed me and forced her conscience on me. Well, this isn't quite the same. This is more… it feels right. Not like an intrusion at all. I smiled, just a little, and basked in the warmth of the new being within my own.

Flashes of light and color and sheer brilliance played in my mind like children on the first day of summer. This one is so happy, so carefree. A shudder went through me as the core of my own mind brushed against another's. The feeling was brief but strong – very intimate and that caused my mind to flinch back reflexively. The new presence jumped back as well, but slowly it crept forward once more. I recognized this kind of action somewhere in the back of my mind, but I ignored it. Courageously the other mind's heart approached me, obviously curious and trusting. Strangely it was not weary or fearful almost as if it knew it could trust me. I smiled even more in encouragement, despite the fact that this presence could not see my face.

I gasped out loud, nearly breaking my focus, as the center of my mind and the other's collided once more. Then, simple and pure bliss filled my mind. I couldn't see, think or feel anything that wasn't him and me, me and him. Our minds twisted together in some kind of celestial dance, never missing a beat. Secrets, without shame, burst forth from my mind and he returned every single one of them with one of his own.

I love you! I love you! I screamed in my mind, but it was only a faint echo compared to his roars of agreement. The heat of the emotions and pure intimacy of joined minds caused a single drop of sweat to streak down my back. I vaguely noticed when I started panting. Suddenly and without warning our minds were torn apart.

I gasped out loud and sat shaking on my bed mat, trying desperately to regain my surroundings. I was sweating much more than I had noticed and my breathing was ragged. My heart pumped out a disjointed rhythm as it tried to keep up with the rest of my body. I had never moved so fast in my life. Finally I noticed who had broken my connection.

"What?" I asked in a daze.

"Midna, you were trembling and – I thought you were in pain," Zelda explained, a bit on the confused side herself. "What was that?"

"I don't know – Link?" I turned towards the hero, as he shot up out of his bed, wide-eyed and panting. He turned slowly to face me.

I had looked Link in the eyes before, of course. We traveled together so much I got used to looking at his handsome face. To say towards the end of our journey that didn't start to bug me a little is untrue, however now was something totally different. I gazed into his eyes and I felt like I could never look away again. Was I so blind this entire time? How is it I never really noticed him until now? His deep blue eyes like the night sky and his fair locks, in a disorganized mess as always. How did I not notice every little detail of him until now?

Zelda cleared her throat, and by the sound of it she must've already tried to get our attention several times. I hadn't even noticed.

"Are you both all right," she asked in a concerned yet curious voice.

"Just fine," Link replied dreamily, not yet blinking since he woke up. I felt a sudden blush heat up my neck. What did I just do? I leaped up and took off running for the deeper part of Faron Woods. I never ran away. It just wasn't like me to do something like that, so why was I doing it now?

I just needed to think without Link or Zelda distracting me. Especially Link.

I ran until I came upon a stream and, not wanting to get wet by crossing it, collapsed on its bank. What have I done? There wasn't a doubt in my mind that I had reformed a connection that had been purposefully shattered for hundreds, maybe thousands, of years. Even now the cursed goddesses-given Triforce glowed softly, still in a state of bliss from the mind contact. I shuddered thinking about the brief but ever-lasting moment. Never in my life had I felt so close to someone before. Evidently my position as ruler of the Twilight Realm didn't allow for many so-called 'friends'.

The sun moved in its never-ending celestial walk across the sky as I contemplated my relationship with Link – again. Could you be friends with someone after your minds had been fused together like that? I doubted it, but what if Link didn't want to be my friend after all of this, let alone anything more?

Why can't I just figure this out? It is not that hard! Just go back to him and say it! Don't make the same mistake you made the first time – don't leave everything up in the air. My thoughts drifted back to Link, to every moment of our journey during the Twilight invasion, every time we talked while we rested for the next part of our quest, everything about him: the way he looks, the way he talks, the way he thinks

And lastly in chp5

A rumbling in the distance distracted my thoughts, but as the noise increased I couldn't help and think, maybe it was coming closer. Bursting forth from the trees on a black stallion was Ganon himself. I jumped up, prepared to defend myself. I summoned some Twili magic and stared the Dark Lord down, daring him to approach any closer. He simply grinned malevolently at me, without making any moves to come closer.

Suddenly I felt the weight of a club brought down on the back of my head, and I fell towards the ground with a yelp of pain. I commanded my body to get up, to move, but with no luck. Ganon approached me now that his minion had rendered me useless.

Chapter Six:

*Edit 6/5 – Chapter 6. This was a small cut; basically this part was pushed back to Chapter 5 and then Chapter 6 focused on the time Midna was locked away. Chapter Five was already my longest, so I opted into wrapping it up on a cleaner cliffhanger.

Chapter Seven:

*Edit 11/5 – Chapter 7. Why did I turn the seducer sort of good in the end? I liked the character, what can I say? I got attached. So I had to send her down, yes, but at least down fighting the good fight.

Chapter Eight:

Why no cuts here? Because this was basically a transition chapter (I believe it's written out below what I mean by that / how the story was divided up in my mind), and being as such, it was impressively short.

Chapter Nine:

*Edit 3/20 – Several parts of this chapter were cut out, all of the cuts were from fairly different spots, although with the exception of the first one, I believe they all have to do with the same inconsistency (of Link's wolf form).

I'm not blind.

I could almost hear the collective sigh that echoed through my head. Screw you voices. I had more important things to worry about right now; I didn't have time for this.

Twilight Princess, I can help you, but you must do as I say.

Who are you exactly?

That's not important right now; what is important—

We're not playing the guess who game or the mysterious help from a stranger game, I thought angrily back. I have enough on my mind without there literally being something, or more accurately, someone in it as well. I had to figure out how to deal with Link. Not deal with him, that sounds too harsh, but deal with my reaction to things he does. I mean, he's still him, right?

3/23

Part of me wished he would just look at me, while another part was glad he was ignoring me. Honestly, what was I supposed to say to him? Hey Link, sorry I've treated you like dirt the past week since you've returned, but I'm just hung up over you having sex with Ganon's prostitute?

I don't think so.

"Midna did something happen before I got here?" Link asked rather suddenly. I looked down at him, perplexed. "Uhm, you just seemed really distracted just now," he clarified.

"Oh," was all I managed to say in reply at first. "Yeah, I guess so. Some weird Hylian approached me earlier—."

"He didn't hurt you, did he?" Link asked quickly, interrupting me. My eyes widened in surprise at his suddenly fierce tone and the fire in his eyes.

"No! Of course not!" I reassured him.

Placated, he looked down at the floor and murmured a soft, "That's good."

"Speaking of acting weird…" I trailed, arching an eyebrow. Link looked up in surprise and cocked his head to the side like he wasn't sure whom I was talking about. I sighed and shook my head, but not in a dismissive way. "Link, look, I think we need to talk."

He looked up at me mournfully and for a brief moment I almost regretted saying anything, but then he nodded. He took a step back, breaking the contact between us before offering his arm. I took it as expected and he led us out the great wooden doors to the castle courtyard.

How long ago had I been sitting in an eerily similar room with so many problems I couldn't possibly imagine anymore? How did it come to the point where I yearned for those to be my only problems?

3/24

I made a spur-of-the-moment decision and commanded Link to hold tight. Before he could say anything I grabbed his arm and changed him. Avoiding shock may have been the original plan, but that plan had also included him avoiding the Twilight Realm.

"Follow Zant," I commanded, pointing at the flustered sorcerer. Wolf-Link yelped in confusion. I patted his head, the only gesture of reassurance I could think to give.

"I'll explain later, I promise, but we have to go now and you need to come with us." It took him but a moment to process his options before he took off after Zant. I followed hot on their heels wondering what else could possibly go wrong at this point.

…or I had taken the time to open a new twilight portal near the curtain. Link was fast as a wolf, of course, …

"Look, I would turn you back to normal, but you would just transform again once we went through," I informed him. "And yes, you have to go through." Link was still exceptionally brave, despite what his left hand currently lacked, but he was also noticeably more hesitant and cautious. I gave a sigh. "Okay, I won't make you trust me or anything, but you either need to go in with us or you stay out here and hideout for however long we're in there. That could be days and I have to remind you that you have no way of reversing your transformation either way."

The massive wolf gave an almost resigned sounding sigh as he plodded forward, cautiously approaching the curtain. Not wasting another moment, I went ahead, figuring he would come if he wanted on his own time. Right now I had something urgent to deal with. I caught up with Zant at the palace after crossing the border.

Did they have special perks now as well?

He broke into a wolfish grin that followed him into his Hylian form.

*Edit – Another semi-cut came throughout the end of this chapter (during the ballroom scene), but most of what was cut was put back in some way. The biggest change for the end was originally Link and Midna were in a bedroom when they hold their conversation over Midna leaving, the Arbiter's Grounds memories, and of course, the infamous kiss.

Chapter Ten:

*Edit – Chapter Ten almost got a lot cut out, because I was so worried about balancing Link and Midna's characters with progressing their relationship. I realized a few things: first, Link's behavior is explainable, so if I'm asked I can defend; second, this is a LinkxMidna story so they need this, I mean heck, they deserve this; third, anyone out there reading the story this deep in probably enjoyed it as much as I did.

Taking the opening, I slipped away from the tree and stood a safe distance from Link.

He didn't bother adding anything about Link, but I had a feeling Zelda knew he was with me and would follow me down to the ballroom.

I slowly closed the door with a soft click and turned around to fact Link. He was sitting on the bed, his face in his hands.

He chuckled a bit. "Come on, let's go back down before Zelda gets the wrong idea." I said, opening the door once more. (Returned to ballroom—one last big even before the end of the ball then they travel, after a few days of preparation, to the Snow Peaks ((survival training)), then to Gerudo Desert ((hero training)).

He stopped and I followed suit, opening my mouth to ask him why he had stopped when he muttered, "Well, this must be it."

He then knocked on the door and received a prompt "Enter" from a muffled voice within.

Faron Province had the opposite problem

And you may even catch glimpses of his feelings that he never showed

*Edit –These are little snippets that were moved/changed throughout the chapter.

Chapter Eleven:

With the undead Hylian left far behind, the events of Snow Peak had us both a bit flustered around each other, but Link's hand had made a full recovery and his strength was back up to normal. Not quite what it was at the end of our original journey, but good enough to take him to the cavern the latest voice in my head had mentioned.

*Edit – This was cut because it didn't blend with the story like I wanted, and to be honest, there just wasn't room for them to be flustered, too much was going on.

*Edit – I almost resisted making a comment on possessed yetis. Almost. Didn't quite get cut though.

With that in mind I decided on our next destination; it was time to muster our might and face Ganondorf head on. All of our strength meant recruiting not only some friends, but also some well-worn and time-tested weapons. Well, one weapon.

*Edit – This line was cut out because I couldn't smooth it into the next section (because I was trying to transition between something I wrote a while ago with something I had just written). Reading it over again I decided that the transition was pretty much unnoticeable and made enough sense to let it slide. Also, an entire idea for a scene was processed and eventually cut before I even typed it up. That is, of course, the desert training grounds. AKA Snowpeak part two.

It was almost easier when she was traveling with us in my head.

Our arrival at the castle went largely unnoticed. With the, to say the least, strange ball behind them the Hylians had gone full-force into preparing for battle. Their faces were grim and determined as the men gathered to practice and the women and children organized and moved supplies and rations. Zelda kept a tightly run ship, no one was lazing around and everyone was working hard.

*Edit – I really liked the few lines I typed up on the Hylian mindset, but it didn't fit in at the part I had it originally and I didn't feel it was appropriate for later in the chapter when they finally return to the castle.

…and felt the undead listening carefully.

"Keep walking," I growled at him…

*Edit – This little snippet was clipped off the part where Link and Midna arrive at the Twilight palace with the Twilian. Originally I had him conscious when they arrived, but obviously something (a rock) happened and he was knocked out the whole time.

The Twili, as predicted, arrived that evening, and Zant happened to be the one to jar me awake.

*Note – I found out an interesting little tidbit while writing Chapter Eleven: did you know there was an official trading card deck created from the game? No kidding! Anyways, the cards have little facts on them, including character bios. I found out Link was in fact 17 during Twilight Princess. What does this mean you ask? In Chapter Four I mentioned Link's age as 18 (as this story takes place a year after the events of TP) without knowing this. Ah, lucked out on that one!

"Stay back," it screeched, pressing itself up against the wall on the far side of the room.

I ignored it for the moment and rushed to Link's side. "Link are you okay?" I asked worriedly.

"I'll survive," he grimaced. The Master Sword glowed anxiously as the deep wound bled profusely. "What is that?" he asked

Probably the last memory he would recover would be one of a dark, bloody day filled with nightmares, including that of a possessed Hylian-like creature.

"We've run into it before," I replied grimly and his brow furrowed in puzzlement.

"I don't remember," he confessed after a moment. I nodded once before turning my attention back to the strange creature on the other side of the room.

"What are you and why are you attacking us?" I demanded.

*Edit –This got diced because the first fight scene turned out differently, which split it into two fight scenes instead of one like I originally planned.

Chapter Twelve:

Normally I would have brushed off the question and ignored him, but something—an instinct, I suppose—told me that what I knew now would not be what existed after we confronted what awaited us.

Link waited patiently for me to continue.

"Zelda understands this very well, and perhaps, that's the only reason we were able to reconcile."

"I'm glad you both became friends once again, otherwise we'd have twice as many problems I think," Link remarked sarcastically.

"That ancestor of yours has had a really bad effect on your attitude," I snapped back irritably. "You want to hear the story or not?"

He held up his hands in surrender. "Okay, continue."

*Edit – The last few lines are here because I had to dice them up and remix them a bit to fit the newer stuff I wrote in on top of it.

I never really had the chance and I think… I think that may have to do with, well, the—."

*Edit– Another case of changing the wording to get a better emotion across.

[H]e was right, in a sense.

"But you're still a bit stubborn, still have a lot of that pride, and you're still a bit greedy," he answered again.

"…[T]his was the first place in my mind."

Zant just surprised me, that's all.

*Edit – Almost more of a little factoid: I had the battle scene pre-written (at least part of it), but when I went to write it I couldn't find it. What you read was done from scratch shortly before the chapter's publication.

The small boy was almost indistinguishable except for a shock of red hair and gold eyes. A small Gerudo boy clambered away looking frightened and confused. I started to go after him, but Zelda stopped me with a hand. "Let him go." (Ganon's reincarnation with pure, untainted Gerudo blood; he receives Din's Triforce of Power; Din—satisfied—feels no need to come down to earth and speak with the heroes.) "Did everyone just see that?" I asked with a ghost of a smile tugging at my lips. "Are you referring to Nayru and Farore just appearing before us? Then yes."

After Gerudo boy leaves, Triforce of Power leaves Midna's hand, Link speaks up about Colin. "You know Colin caught me when I was leaving for Arbiter's Grounds?" I stared at him curiously. "I was about to tell him my story of just leaving for a few days, but he saw right through me. Before I got a word out he shook his head and said, "It's okay, I'll tell them when I need to, just be safe." That was it. He smiled at me and headed on back. That boy's got courage." With this a green light shot from Link's hand (headed to Ordon to Colin; Link's birthmark vanishes as does Midna's, Zelda's remains. Link wonders about returning to Ordon to help Colin, but Zelda stops him (her mark remains) then the goddesses come except Din and talk. Link and Midna given the chance to live together). "What have you done?" I heard Link gasp. I told him to wait as I stepped through the curtain of twilight I was shocked to find my world—all of it—really there, joined to this world and separated by only a curtain of Twilight.

*Edit – The above is actually one of the first snippets I wrote for this story, when the original idea first came to me. It didn't smooth into the actual ending quite as well though, hah.

I gently brushed a stray strand of hair off Link's face.

*Edit – This line just didn't quite fit for some reason. Probably because it was Midna doing the gesture.

Zelda later talked to me in private about the strange Twilians. Apparently some soldiers recognized a few of them, and it was discovered with dawning horror that the Twilians were in fact Hylians who had perished during the Twilight Invasion. Apparently the particles of Twilight in the area had fused with their lifeless bodies and taken on a life of their own. Ganondorf either knew about this or found out through Din and took control of them with her power. They did in fact live off the blood of their living relatives, as it was the only way for them to sustain themselves. Oddly enough, despite being cursed by the Twilight, they were never cursed to the point where they couldn't be in broad daylight. They appeared to dislike it, but they could stand it as was proof in the desert battle. As night had fallen they had grown more powerful.

*Edit – I didn't want to remove this, but it felt like a last-minute blurb of explanation just thrown in (which it kind of was).

The goddesses retracted the Twilight as a gift to Link (yeah, just Link. Link elbowed me), and condensed it into a new portal, one that functioned for both Hylians and Twili. It seemed too convenient until I realized that the Hylians would turn to ghosts and Twili would become shadows if they had no spell or blessing on them.

Link smirked over at me. "Oh come on, just say it already!"

I rolled my eyes at him, but nonetheless said, "Link… I… love you!"

*Fun Fact – Although Chapter Twelve is officially the last chapter of Twilight Storm, the original pre-writing of the story included fifteen chapters. The original direction of the story and what it ended up being are totally different from one another; originally Din never turned evil, Midna kept the Triforce of Power, and the final clash was to be between Link and all of his ancestors' enemies (Vaati, Ganondorf, Majora, etc).

Here's the original plot of the story:

Chapter 1. Players in place, Arbiters

Chapter 2: Return to light

Chapter 3: Discussions, accommodations, attack

Chapter 4: Discoveries—Link/OCs character building, histories, Majora and Vaati

Chapter 5: Midna's capture by Ganon/feelings

Chapter 6: Rescue, Triforce, and bond no more

Chapter 7: Recovery, Twilight curtain, return to Twilight, sword training

Chapter 8: Zant and what he knows

Chapter 9: Ganon again, his new Triforce power and challenge to Zelda

Chapter 10: The ball

Chapter 11: Good dreams cut short and attack

Chapter 12: The battlefield and Link's solo attack on Ganon

Chapter 13: Showdown in the Sacred Realm

Chapter 14: End of the battle

Chapter 15: Return and politics, epilogue

The confusion, jumping around, and broken plot of Twilight Storm

From any persepctive but mind I think Twilight Storm could have been confusing. It wasn't a complex storyline like I enjoy, but just straight up confusing. You know, the story jumped from chapter to chapter, nothing was really clear, some plot holes, some things went unexplained. As one person mention the story seemed to change every chapter. I'll be fair, I might've been confused if not for having all of the notes setting around me.

That said, the last four (roughly) chapter probably seem more together than the rest, but not a single chapter was wasted, I promise you that. Twilight Storm could really be broken into three parts. The first part was establishing conflicts and relationships and that was up to about Chapter Six, with Chapter Seven being the transition to the "in transit" chapters. These would be Chapter Eight and Chapter Nine, which were my weakest chapters, but they still served a purpose. These were the chapters that, when I got to them and wrote them, I was a bit off and confused as to how the story could still end like I originally planned when the characters and story had gotten so out of hand. They were hard chapters to write, and I think everyone who read them noticed the weakness in the writing. However, Chapter Ten, Chapter Eleven, and Chapter Twelve would then, because of those rough chapters, turn out to be the best. Partially because I picked myself up, sat myself back down, and said, "Look, this story went off course a bit and everyone might hate you now. They may not read or review, but if you let this go then, more than anything else, you let yourself down." Basically, I just couldn't leave this story unfinished. Whether anyone reviewed or not, I had written over a hundred pages of this story and I just couldn't let that waste away.

After that, when I went into the process of writing the final few chapters, I was constantly jotting down notes for different things, I started re-reading the story from the beginning to pick up on plot holes, I played the game again to get a renewed feel for the characters as well as to check the plot again, and the very first thing I did… I sat down and jotted down all of the conflicts and open ends left to be solved and tied before I could type "The End."

The list took up an entire page, ha ha. There were fourteen points to be solved before the end… I split them up and that turned into fourteen points in three chapters. I sat down, started writing, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Things I want to improve after looking over and finishing Twilight Storm: Timeline/time flow and general organization. I've never been big on in-depth pre-writing, but I do and needed to do a little more I discovered through writing this. Also I learned, in fan fiction terms, I should type out the entire story and release it on, say, a weekly basis (depending on the story) rather than writing as I go along, because it reduces the chance for long breaks/pauses/hiccups/writer's block or whatever else you want to call it.

Some things I learned and want to improve with my next story

Character representation, for sure. I feel like I did okay with the characters in the beginning, but then I kind of dropped off at some point. I'm between reconciling the fact that the characters had to change for my story to take place… or rather changed because my story took place, and wondering if that's not just an excuse for how OOC some of the characters got (let's take a moment to look at Zelda… enough said.)

Another thing I want to practice, as stated above, is overall plotting and planning of the story. I think I reigned in Twilight Storm so that it was a "good/okay" story, but I feel like it could have been so much better had I understood better the time it takes to pen a good story (let alone edit it and perfect it)… that as well as how vital extensive pre-writing is.

As I type this I currently have several pages of pre-writing done for my next story, and I know it'll take at least until the end of the month before I have a few serious and totally complete chapters done.

I know that, as a reader, when updates don't happen we get mad as all get out. And then when the author finally comes back they return empty-handed and try to make excuses, which only serves to make us roll our eyes and dismiss them. However, as I got more into writing Twilight Storm I understood not only how legit those excuses (yes even writer's block) are, but how painful it is for an author to know people are waiting on a chapter that's not coming.

Long story short, I learned a lot, and I hope to only improve from here on out. You'll be seeing plenty more from me in the future—after all practice makes perfect.

Oh and to use breaks less. Longer sections, fewer breaks, not a problem.

Prequel and Sequel

The planned prequel and sequel to Twilight Storm (and they have been planned since early on) were to be written and released simultaneously, after the end of Twilight Storm, of course. Here are the summaries and the question that follows is number ten of the survey questions:

Prequel, a Legend of Zelda story in the Ocarina of Time era, pairing of Link and Zelda. In this story we experience the life and death of one of the greatest heroes ever to walk Hyrule. The ancestor to all, first vanquisher of evil, original savior of light. Ganondorf was defeated many years ago. Now Link lives a peaceful, and generally happy life with Zelda. Well, not with, I mean, not exactly with-with or anything like that. Ah, on second thought, he's not really sure where he stands with Zelda. They aren't married, but they are like best friends. Where is that line drawn? Maybe one of his descendants could assist him on this matter; after all, the Hero of Twilight seems to have his own terms to deal with in his own strange relationship. Involves OoT Link's side of the events of Twilight Storm, including his intrusions into the TP world and the time between.

Sequel, A Legend of Zelda story in the Twilight Princess era, pairing of Link and Midna. Din has been defeated, the Twilight Storm quelled. Link and Midna had their happy ending as the Twilight King and Queen, to live out their lives in peace, prosperity, and love. Well, supposedly. There are a few political… issues though. The Hylians are still struggling to accept the Twili as allies, even with their acknowledged hero as the King of the Twilight Realm. Not to mention there's the issue of… heirs.

And now as a thank you for getting this far…

Here's a snippet of the planned sequel:

My hand dropped down to my stomach nervously, stroking the scar left by Ganon's torture. I murmured gently, partially to myself, in an attempt to reassure and calm down. I reached a hand up and wiped a small tear away that had escaped and stained my once dry cheek. I noticed Zelda look at me curiously in my peripheral vision.

"Midna, I know you're worried, but I'm sure Link…" she trailed off not sure what to say.

"I don't think you understand, Zelda," I mumbled. She turned to face me now and placed a hand on my shoulder.

"What's going on Midna? You've been acting so unlike yourself recently," she inquired in a concerned manner. I smiled gently and raised my left hand, pausing to look at the scar there. "I don't understand, is your hand bothering you? I could help maybe I should…" I cut her off, shaking my head. Slowly I placed my hand against my lower stomach and rubbed it once with affection. I heard Zelda gasp, and I have to give her credit for never once losing her grip on me.

"You see Zelda, I don't need him. We need him." I could tell she understood that 'we' wasn't Hyrule this time.

"Oh, Midna, I didn't realize," she started, stumbling over her words. I waved my hand and turned away from her.

"It's no big deal, I'm the only one who knows, aside from you now."

"You didn't tell Link?" she asked in a puzzled tone.

"Well, I'm sure he knew it had to happen sooner or later, but I didn't find out for sure until after he left," I explained, not managing to keep fresh tears from falling.

"So, how long…?" Zelda trailed, curiosity burning her tone. I laughed once before answering her half-question.

"I'm nearing six months* now. I'm excited, of course, I started dreaming about this long before we were betrothed, but," I paused, depression creeping over me again. I had to remind myself that it wasn't healthy for the child I carried to have such haywire emotions. His child… our child. I sighed happily.

"Wait, six months?" Zelda asked in confusion. I could see her counting backwards in her head trying to fix the time into its proper frame.

"Well, we didn't exactly wait. Right after Link gave his big speech about being loyal to both Hyrule and the Twilight Realm, we took the shadow channels home. Back at my palace we had the wedding within the hour," I spoke in a dreamy tone.

"An hour? For the wedding of a queen?"

"It was small, a very simple wedding as those things go, and it was all being arranged by Zant as soon as he arrived home. But" – I paused grinning mischievously – "We were very eager, and Link only requested that we make everything official first. Don't get me wrong, he was just as eager, I could tell," I continued to think about that first night of our marriage, lost in my own world for a time.

"Oh, that was, er, fast indeed," Zelda replied, not being able to think of much else to say. I laughed, more like the way I used to laugh, in good humor for the first time in a long time.

He would come home—he had to. After all…

He has a family waiting for him.

And with that I say once more:

Thank you!

~Kiba Wolf