A/N: This is the first LoZ fic I ever wrote seriously. It actually was started about three years ago and has been finished on and off after having survived through three hiatuses and a serious consideration of scrapping. But I decided to give it another chance, and am actually quite pleased with the results. Rated PG-13 for violence and Link's surprisingly dirty mouth; warnings include angst, sadness, violence, Link/Zelda pairing (no citrus), and alternate realities. The timeline I'm basing things on is a quasi-alternate-reality of my own creation: I base most if not all of my Zelda fanfiction on the idea that all the deeds done and chronicled in the Zelda games (with the exception of the Wind Waker for obvious reasons) were the deeds of one brave young lad chosen by Destiny and the three Goddesses as the Hero of Time, the Legendary Hero. Oh. And I don't own Linky (more's the pity) or Zelda or any of the game's other characters. They are copyrighted to Miyamoto Shigeru-san and Nintendo, the lucky bastards. I own, however, sole copyright of each and every one of my original characters. Steal them and I will hunt you down and break your elbows. Remember: A vague threat is no one's friend.

-Act IV-

Convergence

5

Clank.

Zelda's head came up sharply. Clank. There it was again.

Clank.

Clank.

Clank.

Measured timing, to be sure. Which meant that it wasn't just some animal. She sighed. "Haven't you found anyone else that you'd rather play with?" she asked wearily. Zelda didn't bother to get up. That only meant that she'd have to actually look at that mockery of her Hero.

The shade laughed, that same cold, mocking sound. "You're much more fun than my other playmates, Princess," he replied urbanely.

"Swell," she sighed. Still seated on the floor, Zelda glanced over at Kitara, who seemed to be sleeping more peacefully now that her wounds had been at least partially healed. Zelda doubted if she would even have been able to stand at that point.

Clank.

"Must you do that?"

"Does it bother you?" he retorted.

She shrugged. "Not so much. I was just wondering if it kept your mind occupied while you thought of new and interesting ways to irritate me." Somehow, he didn't seem as bad with the knowledge that Link was coming. Zelda felt like she could just ignore all the baiting and irritation for just that little while longer.

"Passes the time."

"Of course, you must have a lot of time to kill in between new torture ideas," Zelda said with a bit of a smile.

There was silence for a moment. "Oh, now you've gone and hurt my feelings, Princess."

Clank.

"You don't have feelings," Zelda sighed. "We've been over that, too."

She didn't have to be able to see him to know that the shade was smiling. "But do you really know if I don't?" he asked teasingly. "I know how you could find out for sure," he said, his tone suggestive.

"If you can do nothing more to me than to bring lewd suggestions, then you are wasting your time. I would never cross paths with the likes of you," Zelda snapped.

Clank.

Silence.

Slow footsteps and fading laughter told her that the shade was leaving.

"Not a moment too soon," Zelda muttered sourly. "I really hope Link gets back here soon. And I hope he doesn't find that shadow of his. Because I really want a piece of that thing."

There was a low moan from the cell's flat bunk, and Kitara stirred. "Whoo…" she mumbled, sitting up with one shaky hand to her forehead. "Who ran me over, and with how many horses?" she asked faintly, squinting from the intense headache that was pounding on the inside of her eyelids.

Zelda couldn't help but smile. "He was torturing you," the princess replied bluntly.

"So I wasn't run down by a stampede of wild horses," she verified.

Zelda shook her head, a bit sadly. "No. I wish it had been that simple."

"Are you feeling all right, Highness?" Kitara asked, looking a little closer at Zelda.

Zelda waved her off. "I'm fine, really," she said.

"You look a bit pale," Kitara continued. "They haven't done anything to you, have they?"

Zelda shook her head quickly. "No, nothing like that," she said. "My power as Sage of Wisdom allows me to partially heal the wounds and ease the pain of those around me if I so choose."

Kitara's eyes widened. "You-"

Zelda nodded. "I was able to correct some of the damage," she said, "but most of the scar tissue is very frail. Don't stand up too fast, or you'll really hurt yourself."

"How much energy did you lend me?" Kitara asked in a hushed voice.

"I had to be sure you would make it," Zelda said cryptically. "You were precarious, at best."

Kitara swallowed. "Are you going to be all right?" she asked worriedly.

Zelda nodded, somewhat tiredly. "My energy returns after a time. Give me a little while, and I'll be all right."

"You took my pain on yourself, didn't you?" Kitara asked next.

Zelda smiled. "In case you hadn't noticed, we've got an escape to plan," she said, deftly sidestepping the question.

Kitara shook her head. "Are you always like this?" she asked.

Zelda didn't answer. That was all right. Kitara hadn't really expected one.

"I think I would like to sleep now," Zelda said suddenly. She tried to stand, but her legs wouldn't support her full weight and she wobbled unsteadily. Kitara rushed over.

"Here. Let me help." She put one arm around Zelda's shoulders and helped her over to the flat bunk. Carefully, Zelda sat down and then tried to make herself comfortable on the hard surface. Within minutes, she was asleep.