Hellooo. So I've been back from Hawaii for approximately an hour and eighteen minutes so I thought I'd upload and what not. You can all be proud of me, because I wrote all of this in Hawaii but never had the chance to put it up. And I also wanted to make this part longer but I thought, what the heck, let's leave em' hanging and then maybe I'll upload the rest of this little section tomorrow. I may have become addicted to the cliffhanger ending. :)

LINK

"Good morning," she says as she squeezes my shoulders gently, pressing a kiss to my cheek.

"Morning," I reply. I sit at the table, my grandmother making us breakfast.

"How did you sleep?" she asks, coming to sit down across from me.

It's the first time I see her face since the night before. She looks up at me, expecting a response, but I can't say anything. Her eyes are red, swollen and tired, purple eyelids and dark circles beneath them. She looks as though she's spent the whole night crying.

"Are you alright?" I ask quietly.

She bites her lip, and gives me an unconvincing nod.

I reach across the table and lay my hand over top of hers, "What's wrong?"

She shakes her head. "I miss my baby."

Evangeline. I know I'm not in the same boat as she is, I'm definitely not in any position to stay up crying over her. I mean, I've only known that I'm her father for the past month or so, Zelda has built up a relationship with her for two years. But I understand being unable to stop thinking about her. Ever since that night, since the realization, I've thought about her every night; thought about her growing up, about if I had never known. It's silly, but I've even thought about her falling in love, getting married, I've thought about threatening the man she'll be in love with like Zelda's father did, just to act the part.

"I know," I say softly, "I miss her too."

"I think I'm going to go back...later today," she says.

I nod, "Okay. I'll come too."

She looks to her side, and when she looks back at me there's some bizarre emotion on her face, at least for the circumstances. She looks at me with sympathy. "I don't want to take you away from your family," she says quietly.

When I meet Zelda's eyes, there's hope in them, hope that I'll come with her I guess. But there's also disappointment, like she expects that I'll stay. "You are my family," I say softly.

I glance up at Brielle and her right cheek is lifted in a slight smile as she leans over a sizzling pan. She's obviously listening to us, but just has the decency to act like she isn't.

"Besides," I say, my eyes drifting back to Zelda's. "I can come and visit. And Brielle, you'll come and visit Hyrule, won't you?" I ask, directing my voice from Zelda to her.

"I would love to see Hyrule," she says, turning around as she fishes the fried eggs out of the pan and onto two plates. She sets them down in front of us and sits at one of the chairs. "You have a little daughter to get back to, but you can always come back. Bring her next time," she suggests.

"See," I say, taking a bite of my eggs, "I'm not leaving for good."

She purses her lips and scoops up her own food with her fork. "I know...but if you don't want to come with me now, you don't have to."

I shrug, "Well, I should probably get back to the ranch. Explain some things."

"As should I. With my father," she sighs and puts her head in her hand, "there are probably so many complications because of what happened. He's not going to be a happy man when I show up."

"Do you want me to come with you?" I ask.

She waits for a moment and says, "Maybe it'd be better if you didn't."

I smirk at her and take another bite. "We're on the same page with that."

"Please...do come back as soon as it's convenient for you. And write too, I want to hear from you," Brielle says as we stand in a silent grove, about to transport back to Hyrule.

"Of course we will. Once we sort everything out back in Hyrule we'll come back and hopefully be able to bring Evangeline," I say.

"Good," she says, gathering me into a hug again, "be safe until then."

"Goodbye," I say, stepping back and adjusting my shirt.

"Farewell, Princess," Brielle says, curtsying to her.

Zelda bites her lip and extends her arms to her. "You've helped Link and I so much. Thank you," she says softly, giving Brielle a gentle hug.

"It was my pleasure," Brielle says, and when she steps back there are tears in her eyes and she has to clear her throat before speaking again, "I'll see you both soon?"

I nod and look towards Zelda. She steps close to me and places her hand over my face, and soon after we're leaving the ground, leaving Outset, and returning to Hyrule.

We land before the draw bridge in front of Castle Town, it's still early morning, the birds have just awoken, the people are mostly still asleep in their beds. Zelda wanted it this way, so that she wouldn't have to confront all of Hyrule before confronting her own father.

"Well...I should go," she says quietly, taking two steps backwards.

I nod, "I'll see you soon."

In an instant she erases the two steps that she took and she is back in my arms, her hands wrapped around my neck, her lips on mine.

"Promise me," she says, pulling her forehead down to mine, our lips close but parted, "promise me that I'll see you soon."

I think back to that night almost three years ago, as we sat together on the hill outside the castle, blood and tears on my face as she asked something very similar of me. I think about how far we have come, how much we've come through, and I think about how I couldn't promise her back then. I was too afraid of breaking that promise and it killed me, watching her as she waited and being unable to say anything.

But now there is no war calling me, no evil on the horizon. There's not another man in the picture, there isn't anything holding me back.

"I promise," I say, my voice restrained with happy tears as I pull her face gently into my shoulder, burying my nose in her hair, "I promise."

"Link!" Malon's voice cries as she flings herself at me, wrapping me in her arms.

"Hey guys," I say to her and Talon, standing just behind her.

"We didn't think you'd be home so soon...it's good to see you," she says, finally letting go and smiling at me.

I nod, "I'm going to get changed...these clothes I wore to the wedding aren't very good for every day activities."

Malon laughs, it's like a song, her angelic voice can turn anything into a song. "Are you going to need my help? Just to unbutton your cuffs?" she asks quietly, cautiously.

"That would be nice, thanks," I say.

She nods to me, clearly pleased that I still need her help and nods to her father to go back in the house. We walk to the far side of the corral where the stone building is, the place I called home once. The cows and hay were replaced with a single cot and modest dresser, and I found solace there, at least for a while.

I open my dresser and pull out one of my old tunics, worn so that the material is soft. I turn back to Malon and hold out my arms to her, asking with my eyes for help. She quickly goes to work, undoing the dainty buttons on my sleeves. "So, it was pretty crazy what happened at the wedding, huh?" she asks, her head bent in concentration.

"Yeah, she was pretty shaken up," I say.

"I can only imagine. What did she tell you?" she asks.

"Um...I don't know, she was just upset but I think she was kind of happy too. I don't think their relationship was what everyone saw," I say.

"And did you... did you find your parents? Well... their home?" she asks, and I know this is what she's wanted to know first though she's tried to build up to it.

"Yes," I say.

She stops what she's doing. "You did? What did you see?"

"Well, we found my grandmother," I say, shrugging and accidentally jerking my wrist from her hand.

Her eyes grow wide. "You have a grandmother? Well, I mean of course you have a grandmother, but you found her? Link, that's amazing!" she exclaims, dropping my hand and slinging her arms around my neck.

She pulls back and there's a look of pure excitement on her face for me. This is why I love having her as my friend, she is probably more involved with my life and experiences than I am. But she also knows when to leave it alone, she knows when to step back and let me live in silence for a while.

I'm contemplating our friendship when she puts her hands on my collar and kisses me, she kisses me hard.

My eyes widen to find her lost in my lips, her eyes closed, her cheeks burning red. My hands hover in the air, unsure of what to do. I curse myself for kissing her before the wedding, because it hasn't been very long to completely change my perspective. She starts to open her mouth wider, to deepen the kiss, and that's when I put my hands on her arms, and push her back.

"Malon-" I start.

"I'm sorry, too fast," she says, looking at her feet.

"No, Malon. I have to tell you something," I say hesitantly.

"What is it?" she asks, looking back up, concern creasing her brow.

"You know how I was in the war?" I ask slowly, gently pushing her further away, "Well...she – Zelda got a letter, there was a mix up or something, she thought I was dead."

"Okay..." Malon says.

"She got engaged to Prince Lawrence, you know, and had her daughter," I say, hoping that she'll catch on.

She nods but doesn't say anything.

I take a deep breath, "But her daughter isn't Lawrence's child... she's... she's mine."

She sucks in a quick breath and stares back at me, her eyes so wide that I can see clearly when tears start to leak into them. She shakes her head slowly back and forth. "B-but how?" she stutters.

"It happened right before the war. Malon, I didn't know until maybe a month ago," I say.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asks, and her concern turns to the slightest of anger, her voice thick.

"I didn't think it would matter. I thought Zelda was still going to marry Lawrence," I try to explain though nothing seems to be coming out like I want it to.

"But you were still in love with her, you're in love with her now and you just used me," she says, pushing on my chest.

"Malon, I have no excuses. I was confused and I had no right to do that to you," I say.

"But you're just going to go back to her. You just came back to get your stuff, isn't that right?" she asks, walking away from me and the emotion becoming clear in her voice.

"Please... try to understand," I say softly.

"You've never cared about me like you care about her," she says, walking towards the door.

"That's not true!" I say, louder than I mean to but with urgency to keep her from leaving. She does stop though, her hand on the doorknob.

"I loved you Malon. I do love you Malon. You have been my best friend and you have been the only constant person throughout everything. Ganondorf, the war, and every single time in between. I don't know where I would be if it wasn't for you. You have no idea how reassuring it was to know that you'd always be here and that you'd always be the same. I lost so many friends and I have lost almost my whole family. I don't want to lose you too, because you're one of the only people I can count on," I finally finish. She hasn't turned around and there is water building in my eyes.

It's quiet, save for her slight sniffling.

"Malon, did I ever tell you about Saria?" I ask.

She nods once slowly, "You talked about her once."

"She was my best friend for the whole first part of my life. She was from the forest too, and she was one of the only friends I had. And I left her to find the princess, to help her, and when I came back she wasn't the same. She's a sage, and I never get to see her now," I speak softly.

She doesn't say anything in response.

I feel a lump in my throat, an aching feeling that makes it hard to talk. "And I miss her... so much."

She finally turns around, her eyes filled with sorrow.

"I don't want to lose you like I lost her," I say.

She lets out a sob and lunges towards me, burying her face in my chest. "I love you, fairy boy."

"I love you too," I say, wrapping my arms around her shoulders, smiling at the nickname she hasn't used for a few years now.

She looks up at me and though her eyes are still sad, there's also a resolution in them, to hold that place in my heart I'm afraid that she'll leave. She touches my face with her hand gently and smiles slightly at me. "Go and get her."

ZELDA

I open the door a crack and poke my head inside, finding my baby girl sitting in her room facing away from me playing with her toys, one of the maids sitting in her rocking chair and keeping an eye on her.

"Princess," she says, standing up and curtseying.

"Thank you, you can go back to your quarters now, I'll take her," I say politely.

She nods and leaves the room as I near closer to her. "Hey, sweetheart," I say softly.

She turns around, her eyes growing wide, "Mommy!"

My eyes begin to tear up as she stands up, toddling over towards me and extending her arms. I scoop her up in my arms and kiss her face everywhere I can reach.

"Momma," she says, "Stoppit."

"I missed you," I say, hugging her close.

"Put me down," she says, her voice garbled, her hands and feet struggling against my tight hold.

"Okay, okay," I say, setting her back on her feet.

"Momma?" she asks after a moment.

I sit down in the rocking chair beside her, "Yeah, pumpkin?"

"Where's daddy?"

I swallow, I look back into her big wide eyes, just like Link's, though I know she's talking about Lawrence. "Ev, daddy's not going to be... he's not going to be coming home," I say.

Her eyes fill with concern, "Why?"

"Well," I say, slipping my hand into her little one, "mommy and daddy aren't gonna get married anymore."

"Why?" she asks again.

"Because, well... we don't love each other like we used to," I say quietly.

"Why?"

"Because things changed and mommy loves someone else," I try to explain.

"But why?"

I bury my face in my hands, "Do you remember mommy's friend, Link, Evangeline?"

"Yes," her sweet voice says.

"Mommy loves Link a lot. And he might come here, and he'll be like daddy, and he'll play with you and have fun with you," I say, sweeping some of her unruly hair away from her face.

"Link be new daddy?" she asks, her baby voice turning the L into a W sound.

"I don't know, sweety. Maybe," I say.

She looks down and turns back to her toys. There weren't any tears, maybe because she's too young to understand the fact that Lawrence will never come home. Or maybe it's because Lawrence never was in her life like he should have been. He was always at meetings, councils, and when he came home he wasn't one to sit with Evangeline and play with her toys. He was just 'daddy' to her, but that rarely meant anything more than that he and I were her parents.

But I know that should she have the chance to call Link daddy, the role, the title, will take on a completely new meaning.

There's a knock on the door and when I turn towards it my father is twisting the handle and peeking through. He had never had a lot of patience, and waiting for someone to answer a door for him was generally out of the question. My heart drops slightly and my face grows hot as his expression changes from happiness to confusion to sorrow to anger all very quickly.

"Zelda?"

"Hi...Dad," I say slowly.

He puts his lips in between his teeth and stares at me, a face I know well, one that means he's trying to contain the first words that pop into his head, probably for Evangeline's sake this time.

"We need to talk," he says with every ounce of patience in his body.

"Where's Evangline's nanny?" I ask.

"I'll have her come," he says, pulling out the gossip stone he'd reinvented to fit in one of his many pockets. I wait as he informs whoever sits on the other side listening that the nanny is required and then fidgets uncomfortably across the room from me. "Where did you go?" he asks after a moment.

"To Outset," I say calmly.

His eyebrows raise slightly, "Outset? What's in Outset?"

"Link's family," I say.

"You said Link had no family," he says, narrowing his eyes in suspicion.

"I thought he didn't, as did he. But then he saw that picture, the one of Mom and her best friend. That woman was his mother, and he was the baby she was holding," I explain.

"But how can you know if he was abandoned at such a young age?" he asks.

"He wasn't abandoned, his parents were killed, and the woman was wearing his mother's wedding ring that he was left with. We found his grandmother and stayed there for the night," I say, hoping to bring closure to the conversation.

"Hmm," is all he says. We wait in silence until her nanny arrives.

It's an awkward exchange when she knocks on the door a few minutes later, my father and I avoiding glances, Evangeline screaming as I try to hand her off holding handfuls of my skirt to try and keep me from going. Not to mention the fact that I'm nervous about what he's going to say about Link, what he's going to say about what happened.

He leads me down to his office quietly once we've escaped through the door and Evangeline's cries are cut off, and sits down at his desk, offering me the seat across from it.

"Father," I begin, "I'm sorry about all of this."

"Are you? Because last time I checked, you told me that you couldn't marry Lawrence. So according to my information, everything turned out exactly how you wanted it to," he says methodically, his voice not giving way to any anger.

I bite my cheek and say, "I'm sorry that because of what happened, there are probably serious consequences that you'll have to deal with."

"No, Zelda. There won't probably be serious consequences. There will definitely be serious consequences. All of our negotiations with Falvale will have to be reneged. Our economy will plunge deeper into the slump it was entering due to the war and the costs to repair our country after what Ganondorf did to it, and I will be forced to remain in power until you can find a husband," he explains with bizarre patience.

"I can take power and fix this if you'll just let me-" I begin quietly.

"Marry him?" he asks, "Tell me, Zelda, did he ask you to get out of your engagement? Was this all part of the plan?"

My mouth falls open, "Dad, it was Lawrence who left."

"Don't deny the fact that you were relieved that he did," he says strictly.

My lips tremble as I try to explain myself and the circumstances I faced. "Link begged me to marry Lawrence because he knew it would be better for me. So stop criticizing him because you don't know a single thing about him."

"I know that he doesn't know how to rule a country, Zelda," he says, his voice growing louder.

"What happened to you? What happened to my father that I loved and that was kind? The one that tried to teach me that the people out there are not so different from us?" I question.

"...His country began to fall and he couldn't save it. His people looked up to a forest boy more than to him," he says after a long moment.

"Jealousy? Is that honestly what is keeping you from trying to understand?"

"No, trying to save this country is."

I let out a deep breath and look him directly in the eye. "Continue the trade agreements with Falvale, the war truce, the civil defense agreement. Offer them your allegiance during times of war, not only times of peace, rather than your daughter. We can provide weapons if they can provide wheat and crops. These alliances are not as fragile as you think they are. I will speak to Lawrence, I will make things happen. I will fix this if you will talk to him... to Link, and hear him out," I conclude.

"You have so much faith in him," he murmurs.

"As should you, Father. He saved this country twice before," I say.

A hint of a smile graces his face as he says, "You are wise, daughter."

A soft laugh escapes my lips. "You and I are not so different."

"Where is he?" he asks.

"Home," I reply.

"When will he be here?"

I shrug, "Soon."

"This isn't a yes, Zelda," he reminds me.

"I know." But he's willing to give him a chance, and that's more than we've ever had.

LINK

"Do you think you'll still come back and visit?" Malon asks.

I take another pair of pants from my drawer and fit them into bag Malon is helping me pack. "I'll certainly try my hardest. You guys are like my family."

"I think my dad will miss you a lot, it'll mean he's going to have to make up for you," she says with a laugh.

"Well, have you ever considered hiring another farmhand... you know, to replace me?"

She looks down and folds the tunic in her hands. "No... I guess I hadn't really thought about it. And I guess I never really wanted to believe that this was... permanent," she says, trying to pull her lips into a smile, though she's hindered by the doubt and rejection in her voice.

I nudge her chin up with my knuckle. "I think you should. Who knows, you may just save another poor guy like me that just needs a place to stay and people to look after him," I say with an encouraging smile.

She rubs her forehead with her hand and puts a vague smile on her face. "Yeah... maybe."

"Helping people is what you do best," I say firmly.

"Thank you," she says and then asks, "when do you think you'll go?"

I bite my cheek, "Hm... maybe tomorrow? Traveling at night didn't exactly work out well last time."

She laughs sarcastically at the memory. "Oh yes, I remember quite well. You not coming home, getting the letter about you being in the hospital, receiving another letter about your surgery, thinking you were going to die, staying up late with dad by the fire. That was a fun time... It gives me peace of mind to know that that won't happen this time at least," she says, her voice growing quieter as her rant comes to a close.

I purse my lips and go back to packing clothes quietly.

"Is that everything?" she asks suddenly and when I look up the last of my drawers is empty, the only thing remaining to be packed is my hat, which sits in my hands. The hat that I wore throughout my adult life of my journey, the one Navi used to sleep inside.

Navi, I remember being young and thinking her advice wasn't relevant. That I could get by just fine without her despite her being my only friend at times. What I would do to have her now, to tell me what to do.

"I think so," I finally reply.

"There's just one more thing," she says.

"What's that?" I ask.

"Epona," she says, her face serious, "I want you to have her."

I shake my head, "Epona's yours."

One of her cheeks pulls up into a smile. "She never liked it here. She always wanted to be out with you... just take her," she says the last part with a whisper.

I cock my head to the side and say softly, "You already gave me the cow, Mal."

She laughs and rolls her eyes. "You won the cow. I'm giving you Epona."

"Well I want to give you something too," I say, digging around in my bag for a moment before finding what I was looking for. "This is the hat I used to wear when I was a kid. It doesn't fit anymore and I don't know why... but I've just been dragging it around with me. Trying to hold onto that – being a kid... I guess."

She takes it in her hands and smiles at me, "I was the one that coined the name 'Fairy Boy.'"

I nod. "I don't know what you'll do with it."

"It's something to remember you by," she says, holding it up to her heart. She lets out a breath of a laugh and says, "It smells like your hair."

I scratch the back of my head and cringe, "Is that a bad thing?"

She lets out her laugh this time, rather than keeping it in. "No, it's a Link thing."

"So... good?" I ask skeptically.

"Yes, Link. It's a good thing... well, I better go back in the house. Sleep well, okay?"

I look towards the window at the top of the building and find the stars framed by stone. "I will, goodnight, Malon."

"Goodnight," she says, leaning forward, the hat clutched in her hand and kisses the top of my head.

"Goodnight," I say, unable to return her token, because it would mean something different than hers. It wouldn't be reassuring like hers was, it would hurt her. So my words have to suffice.

ZELDA

"Goodnight, sweet pea," I say, stroking Evangeline's hair gently as her eyes flutter closed. She snuggles further into her knit blankets inside the safety of her crib, and drifts off easily into sleep. I wish it was still that easy for me.

I try to take as long as I can to get back to my empty room, taking all the long passages and walking with slow short strides. I haven't been completely alone at night for so long, and even Lawrence, with our disconnected relationship was a comfort when I would wake from night terrors about my past, replaying the battle a different way than it turned out.

My door looms above me, tall and menacing. I enter it and light what candles I can find, trying to provide some illumination. In the emptiness, changing, feeling my bare skin with nothing but the cold air against it feels foreign. It feels terrifying.

I lay in my bed for moments, just sitting and gazing around in the silence, just to make sure that everything is sitting still, that everything is quiet, before laying back and closing my eyes.

I think it's a dream at first when I hear the light jiggling of the balcony door knob, though it startles me into waking. Fear is the first thing that strikes my heart, which is soon soothed by the knowledge that the only person that would climb up my wall would be Link. I laugh softly to myself and try to calm my racing heart as I swing my legs over the edge of my bed and make my way towards the door that separates me from the pitch black night.

I turn the handle and push the door open though a blade of wind slices past me and snuffs the candles I had lit. A cold sweat condenses on the back of my neck as I peer out onto the balcony, Link shrouded in darkness.

"I-I thought you were... going to come tomorrow," I say, my voice slow, unsure.

He takes a quick step towards me, his hand raising to my face quickly and for a moment I think he's going to hit me.

And that's when his pale skin catches the moonlight and I realize that he's not Link at all.

I barely have time to scream before he smothers my mouth with a cloth and my eyes grow dark.