There he was.

The curious little boy was now a determined young man who fit quite nicely into the green tunic I once wore.

I couldn't help but be proud of the man he became and the hero he was destined to be. He was so much like I used to be, yet different, better almost. I would be able to watch him save Hyrule the way I never did.

He approached me with a scowl, obviously not remembering the moment we had when he was younger.

He drew his sword in reaction to me leaning back to pounce, as I knew that would be the only way to transport him to the spirit realm, where I could teach him properly.

As soon as my paws met his shoulders, we were both taken to the clouds.

He wasn't facing me, yet he walked forward, probably trying to figure out where he was as his head slowly went from right to left.

I watched him stop in his tracks.

'Has he heard me?'

He turned around quickly in reaction to my presence, readying has weapon.

'Let's see what he does.'

Out of instinct to my battle stance, Link leapt forward and tried to strike me with a simple vertical slice. I quickly responded by knocking him down to the ground.

'He has much to learn, and I've been blessed with the honor of teaching him.'

"A sword wields no strength unless the hand that holds it has courage."

"Although I accepted life as the hero, I could not convey the lessons of that life to those who came after. At last, I have eased my regrets. You who have marched through countless foes, each mightier than the last…You, who now gaze to the future with vision unclouded…Surely you can restore Hyrule to its stature of yore as the chosen land of the gods…Farewell! Go and do not falter, my child!"

Author's Note: This is, indeed, the end of the fan fiction.

Another ending that isn't necessarily "happy", I know, but at least this one ends on a better note than it started.

Also, I know that the story continues from here, that every story never truly ends, and that Twilight Princess Link has an untold journey to embark on, but the Hero of Time's story is at an end. He has passed on and his regrets have been eased. So, the story that I set out to tell is over. This was always my intended ending and I'm really happy with how this story turned out.

Getting into the mindset of this character and into the circumstances of his story as well exploring themes of morality, death, and destiny within the context of a franchise I love has been such a satisfying and worthwhile experience.

I've surpassed my own expectations of my amateur writing ability and have enjoyed discovering motifs that I hadn't noticed before. Ocarina of Time, Majora's Mask, and Twilight Princess are all games that are close to my heart and I am so glad that I've grown up with them and have now had the opportunity to explore their depth.

None of this would have happened if it weren't for the reactions to my first two stories, as well as this one, so I'd like to thank you for reading, favoriting, and reviewing. It really means a lot.

I know that this story is deeply rooted in dark themes and explores aspects that can be unsettling to some. I understand very well the disturbing nature of the existentialism and the violent images I've created as well as I understand that my writing abilities may hinder my ability to write an absolutely perfect story. It is for this reason that I do not fault anyone for not finishing. It's a rough 27,000 words and I know that better than anyone.

Yet, it is these things that teach us lessons. The hardest lessons to learn are the most valuable to acquire.

Help others and accept help from others when you need it. Don't take things for granted, seize every opportunity, and most importantly, have hope. As hard as it is the keep our vision unclouded by despair, remember to have hope, spirit, courage, and wisdom.

It won't be too long until my next one, because it's just a couple one shots.

I have some things in the works for my next big project after that, so we'll see how that goes.

Until then,

-fatefulfaerie