(New Chap! *yaaay* XD Enjoy!)

-X-

Link's howl of pain and fury sent a chill through my spine. But nothing was louder than the dripping sound of Ghirahims blood hitting the floor. I found myself counting droplets as life seeped out of his tattered body, feeling part of his pain. The valley was filling with shadows as the seal finally gave way, releasing the monstrosity within, so I could not actually see him. But what I could hear told me all I needed to know.

Ghirahim was dying.

As I let this fact sink in I watched the shadows accumulate into a single dark, humanoid figure. The darker he became the more detailed his picture became to my half blinded vision. He was tall, taller than any human I had ever seen, and he had muscles that put Groose's standards to shame. His hair was as red as fire, much as mine as I noticed with horror. But it took me a few more moments of denial before I realized that I was in fact looking at a face I had seen before. I knew him from my near-death experience. And it was also the face that stared back at me from the mirror, hiding under the softening touch of my mothers genes.

A terrible smile cracked his expression when he gazed up towards the rim of the valley. Looking him in the eye made my stomach lurch horribly.

„Father..." I mumbled in disgust.

But nothing, nothing could have prepared me for what happened in the next few moments. My father's rough but gentle voice was hidden to my ears beneath the sound of Ghirahim's dying but then he stretched out his hand and, with a slam, my lover was whirled through the air, caught by invisible shackles. He hung there gasping, yet with a maniacal grin that blurred into a grotesque laugh.

My sealed eye strained painfully when I saw, how his body began to transform and dissolve.

„No!"

I think he glanced at me one last time. Fulfillment and content joy where the only thing I could see. No regret, no sorrow or hate. Just excitement.

My fists hammered against the barrier: „NO!"

It was too late. Ghirahim was gone with a flutter of diamonds and cloth. Then there was only that sword.

My father claimed it with a satisfied grin. Ghira had done what he had been created to do, I realized, still screaming and crying. Even if he had been able to live without his master, he could have never been happy. It would have killed him.

How could I have been so foolish as to fall in love with him? It would have broken my heart sooner of later for my own good.

Behind me, Groose and Impa dove after the falling Zelda as father flung her to the side carelessly, but I did not know why they bothered. Her heartbeat was fading rapidly and her breathing was almost too shallow to be heard. She was dying.

Numb, I heard how father challenged Link, hearing the mixture of frustration, relief and fear in Link's deep exhalation when told that he did not have to battle him right away. The seal in the ground engulfed Demise, swallowing him in shadows, then it was over. The entire bizarre, mortifying past five minutes seemed to never have happened.

I could not tell what I was feeling.

"She's alive!"

Irritated, I glanced behind me. Both of my eyes where teary and puffy but I could still see Groose's hand on top of Zelda's, for me, invisible form. He was probably touching her as close to her boobs as he could, I noticed with a faint grin.

Don't blame me, I am allowed some gallows humor.

Yes, this is how long it took me to get, what he had just said. Stupidly I repeated: "She's alive?"

"That's what I just said!" his voice was shaky but became loud and frantic within a moment, "Link! Link, Zelda is still alive!"

Link's distant "WHAT?!" only half reached my consciousness.

"How is that possible!" I heard myself asking as I knelt down next to him, careful not to touch, well anything.

Impa answered for him: "The ritual must not be completed... I can feel there is still quite a lot of her soul left in her. Demise is still weak."

Groose sounded beyond hopeful: "So if Link can kill him now we can save her-"

Link's footsteps reached us. I didn't need to ask how he had gotten up here so fast, I'd heard him use the upwinds. He interrupted gravely: "Groose, I can't. I cannot lift my damn sword. I need to rest."

"How much time do we have?" I asked Impa.

She looked doubtful: "A couple of hours... The darkness around here is siphoning her life essence away and transporting it to Demise every moment."

Link's hair rustled in the wind as he nodded. But then he broke down, sobbing.

-X-

Impa ended up carrying Zelda while Groose helped Link walk back inside. I sat down on a little stool, watching them as they rested by the tree sapling in the side wing of the temple. An air of defeat hung around us, as well as looming doom. The dying goddess lay on her back from what I knew. I could imagine her golden hair spilling all around her, making her look pretty despite the situation. Pretty, fragile and caring, the way she always had been. Even her quiet breaths sounded so much like her that it hurt.

Link had fainted in Groose's arms on the way inside and was now sleeping a restless sleep while my half brother and Impa watched over them. I couldn't do that, since I could not even see them. Besides, they could probably do a better job at that than me. Both of them had spent a lot of time protecting Zelda. I had been born to do the exact opposite of that.

My hands shook in my lap as I fought back tears. I was scared for my life, yes, I was mourning to Zelda and for my lost friendship in Link, I was sad and disappointed and confused about my father, but most of all, I was crying for Ghira, which made me feel pathetic and like a traitor. I hated that feeling, no, I hate it now just as much. It is diminishing, embarrassing and it eats you like a monster, gnawing at your very soul. The need to do something, anything, was growing stronger and stronger within me by the moment. All I wanted was to forget my situation for a moment.

Impa had to say my name at least twice before I realized she was talking to me: "Medowlaria!"

"Huh?" I mumbled, blinking confused.

"Finally..." she scoffed, "Can you feel how her soul is drained?"

"Why do you ask?" I raised an eyebrow, wincing at how that strained my eye. Man, had that spell of Ghira's tightened since the last time I had tried blinking?

She gave me a cautious look before explaining: "I know very little about the nature of dark magic. But could it be possible to stop the magic in the room from stealing Zelda's soul?"

I actually had to think about it for a moment. Finally abandoning my promise for good, I felt out into the room and communicated briefly with the magical elements around us.

"That's some powerful magic..." I mumbled when I felt the cloud of light around Zelda and tried to stop it, "There is nothing I can to do actively prevent it..."

"Can't you slow it or something?" Groose suggested. I blinked at him, momentarily surprised about his obvious desperation and hope. But then I became aware of the fact, that he knew of Link's death threat. He just didn't want to loose me too, even if I was a demon.

Closing my eyes and banishing his heartbreaking expression from my subconsciousness for the time being, I nudged my magic against Zelda's soul. The light was instantly attracted to my black wave but the call from my father was stronger. So it was magic against magic, eh? With a little grin I added some more force into the spell, instantly stealing Zelda's soul essence and bringing it, which surprised me, to myself. The light felt warm and inviting. When I let it into me, it burned only for a short moment before easing any pain I had felt. All sorrow and fear and shame seemed to be miles away. I gasped at the surprising sensation and my eye lid fluttered for a moment before I forced the light out of myself again, collecting it in my shaking hands best I could. Everything I spilled was immediately stolen by my father and taken out of my reach.

Cautiously I had the black strings carry the light back to my best friend, spilling it into her body. To my surprise, it worked. She absorbed her soul immediately and it only seeped back out more slowly than before.

My eye snapped open in triumph, but by the time I found my voice, all I could feel was emptiness. The exciting thrill left with the surfacing memory of careless and happy moments: "I can buy us time!"

-X-

Link mumbled something incomprehensible when he awoke a couple of hours later. I glanced towards where he was, still concentrating on my task: "Hey..."

His voice sounded hoarse and sleepy: "How is she doing?"

"I'm stopping Demise's spell best I can." I explained what I was doing in a couple of sentences.

He nodded, bewildered: "Where... where are the others?"

"Impa retired to the sacred chamber to recover from her wounds and pray. Groose went back into present time and if getting some supplies for you. You know..." I shrugged, "Potions, food... And mostly he is finally getting some time back at home."

A little, toneless chuckle escaped his throat: "So that's where my sailcloth has gone..."

"He'll give it back." I promised, remembering how I had sown it for him all those weeks ago.

"Medowlaria..."

I glanced at him: "Yes?"

"Are you really protecting Zelda?"

My heart sank: "I'm trying... it is damn hard and I can't guarantee that my father won't notice my meddling at some point and fight me back. If that happens she will die nonetheless."

"Your father...?" he sounded wary and confused.

"Demise. He must be. There is no other option." I explained regretfully.

There were a few moments of awkward silence. Not that it surprised me.

Finally he said something: "You know... I shouldn't have threatened you."

"No. You shouldn't have."

"Med... I'm sorry." he sounded so sad that I looked at him in surprise, unseeing, "I won't touch your life. I couldn't."

I didn't say anything quite yet.

"I'm sorry for your loss." he added in a grave tone of voice, "I killed your lover. And tomorrow I will have to kill your father. But I won't kill you, I can't... You're my friend."

A shaky breath passed through my lungs as I paused my magic for a moment. I was becoming to emotional to continue seamlessly: "Link, I'm sorry. But I don't believe you."

He didn't say anything. But his steps came closer until he stood besides me, where he held his hand just beyond my cheek. I could feel the warmth on my skin, hear the blood rushing and pulsating through the smallest of blood vessels and sense the love and care I had once felt for this man. The yearning burned up for a split moment before a mental image of Ghira's smile shattered my reality and I finally broke into helpless tears.

-X-

Soooooo tired! Need sleep! But hey, I got this chapter through XD I hope you guys can leave me your thoughts and impressions in the review section. (in case you think it sucks just as bad as I think this chapter does: Tell me why please cause I can't seem to figure it out)