Hello again! It hasn't been too long, I hope! I've been catching up on all of my homework assignments (seriously, I have art work like nobodies business). But I've been writing this chapter in stages, so I finished this today, since I don't have class till late tonight.

I don't own the Legend of Zelda.

Link awoke on the day before the wedding with a very heavy feeling, like something was sitting on his chest and he couldn't see it. He figured that Zelda was probably already up and getting ready for her big day tomorrow. Absently, as he lay in his bed he wondered what she was thinking right now, what exactly she was doing.

However he quickly snapped himself out of it. Now that he had made the decision to leave, he couldn't start having second thoughts. This was what for the best, for everyone. Or so he kept telling himself, and he wasn't about to change his mind so suddenly.

He decided to remain in bed for a bit longer, sitting up and reaching for his book beside him. Link had been reading quite a lot since he came to the castle a few months back. He would often visit the library when he wasn't spending time with Zelda or Epona and just sift through and find books that seemed interesting. Often he got lost in the imaginary worlds that the authors created.

Now he was reading a book about pirates who sailed the seas in search of treasure. Seeing as Link himself was never a pirate, the book was something that he easily lost himself in. He was at the exciting part where the main pirate hero faces off with the evil pirate, to win the heart of the rich lass that the pirate loves so much. He did his best in that part to ignore how awkwardly close this scene was to his own life. It was pure coincidence anyway.

Most of the day Link spent in his room reading that book. When he finished he shut the novel and placed it on his table again. The young man stretched and stood up, changing into his day clothes. Now he looked around the tiny room he had been given. In the past few months he hadn't accumulated much in the way of possessions. Really, only the ocarina and the sword, of course the sword was a very big and powerful sword at that. It would be easy to pack his things when he left, not being burdened by loads too big. He pulled out the black cloak Zelda had given him as well. It may prove useful at night when he was traveling.

Then something else hit Link. Where was he going to go after this? Kakariko? Ordon? Both places would welcome him back that was for sure. Ilia would probably be thrilled to see him again. But the thought of seeing Ilia again didn't really do much in terms of excitement. Kakariko held a lot of memories of Saria, which then made him think about Zelda. He didn't know if that was the place for him, either. Maybe he would travel and find a new place to stay. Then he remembered that he had Epona too, and would take her as well. Zelda had pretty much given her to him. Besides, she did have her Isabelle. That would make his traveling much easier.

He laid out the Master Sword, the Ocarina of Time and his black cloak on his bed before he left his room. Today, he figured, he would get all of his provisions done before he departed for good. Food and water would be a good idea, so he went down to the kitchens to knick some food that would not waste quickly. Little things would do, since he would probably stop at towns along the way and stock up there. Making sure that no one was around, he nicked a canteen of water from a pantry and stowed it away seamlessly. This was turning out to be simpler than he had anticipated. Maybe this would turn out well after all. Well, as good as it could be. Everything would be better if he could have Zelda instead of needing to run away.

Link hadn't had much luck in terms of things going his way. The first love of his life moved away, leaving him poor and barely able to keep a job. The second—and deemed final—was a beautiful princess who was to marry a man of high power, leaving him behind as well. Maybe he wasn't really meant for anyone, maybe he was just one of those people who never find anyone to be with. Well, as long as he didn't get his heart broken anymore, he was fine with that.

The boy decided to leave tomorrow, around the time that the wedding was to take place. With all of the excitement and preparations, no one would really notice him slip away. It wasn't like he was a vital asset when it came to being Zelda's servant. All he had done was fall in love with her.

So he was going to have food, water, a weapon, a horse, and a musical instrument. He laughed inwardly to himself. 'Well, I'm all set!' he thought. Nothing else really stuck out in his mind. He was only going to be traveling, not going off to war.

Then he remembered Zelda's words to him on the roof of the castle, how she had feared that something bad was going happen. His connection to the Hero of Time rang in his head. If he was in fact this hero and the time came for him to step up, would he? Would he rise up and become a hero that all of Hyrule looked up to? Link sighed at the thought. He didn't want any of it, he just wanted to leave this all behind him and start anew. He was going to run, no matter what.

But the thought of war breaking out across the land made the hair on the back of his neck stand up. He hadn't been alive when the last hero had lived, but he had heard stories of death and destruction across the whole land. People were shunned to their houses, and only those called to battle were seen out in the lands. He would definitely have to put his traveling on hold for that. So Link secretly hoped that he wasn't the Hero of Time, and everything just passed by quietly. Zelda would marry Ganondorf and become queen, and he would settle in a small town, happy and content.

Well, maybe not completely content, but enough so that this whole ordeal could be one pleasant memory.

Link went back to his room after that, settling on the floor and crossing his arms over his knees. He pretty much had a full twenty-four hours before he set off anywhere. Leaving at night was not an option with all of the monsters that now patrolled the lands, and leaving now, certainly someone would notice him. So all he had to do now was bind his time until he could sneak out.

In the meantime, Link allowed himself some time to be with Zelda. He remembered the first day he saw her in the throne room, and he had seen the cold and distant look on her face. She had never seemed more like royalty to him than she did in that moment. That night, they had met out in the gardens, and Zelda had spoken to him like he was a real person. His curiosity for the princess grew after that, as did his desire to be with her. Over time, the more he got to know her, the more there was to like about her, even one day love. It just didn't seem right for the goddesses to make him fall in love with her, only to take her away. Three months wasn't a long time to spend with someone, especially when you loved him or her. He had a few years with Saria, after all.

"If only things were different, Zelda," he whispered to the air around him, closing his eyes.

Before he knew it, though, Link had fallen fast asleep again.

While he slept—in the very awkward position, mind you—he had the same dream he had before, where he was traveling. He was running through unfamiliar woods, running from something, he figured. Then he was in the same snowy mountains, and then in the fire again. However, things seemed to shift after that, changing colors. Things were black and white then, with a strange and dark feeling to them. He was running again, only he felt different, like he was too heavy or something. There was a high-pitched voice calling out to him and he was trying to find that voice, because that was the only thing that made sense. At the very end of his dream, Link looked down at his feet and found paws there instead.

He jolted awake; his body now curled up on the floor instead of leaning against the bed. The boy sat up and wiped his brow, his heart racing from the force of his dream. At the end of the dream, he had been a…was that a wolf? Why was he such a creature? The mystery of it dumbfounded him, and when he looked out the window, he saw that the sun was getting lower in the sky. He had slept almost the whole day away, dreaming about strange places and wolves.

To clear his head, he went out for a quick stroll around the gardens, touching the leaves of the weeping willow where he and Zelda had first kissed. Now that he was outside, the visions of his dream seemed much farther away, and much more farfetched. He was going away from here, traveling, it was only natural for him to dream about going different places. As for the wolf, he was just anxious, that's all. His mind tended to play tricks on him when he was anxious like that. It was no big deal.

He was walking back to his room a short while later, wanting to really do nothing else but go back to sleep until he had to leave. On the way, he passed Zelda's two main handmaidens, the young girl and the older woman, towing fabrics in their hands.

"Did you hear?" the younger girl said. "Her Highness has requested that both of us come with her to her husband's castle, Ria!"

The older woman laughed. "I did hear, Katy. Princess Zelda has a great deal of trust in us." Her eyes went to Link, who was walking slowly down the hallway past them. "Master Link, are you going to assist the princess as she prepares for tomorrow?"

Link stopped and turned around to look at them. "Princess Zelda doesn't really require my services anymore," he told them.

Katy looked confused, her light hair swinging around her face. "But the Princess says you're her favorite, Master Link…"

The boy just shrugged. "She'll fair all right with you two, trust me." Then he turned and left them standing there baffled at his words. Ria did tug on Katy's arm after a moment and pulled her back on track of Zelda's room.

Link found solace in his room again, shutting the door tightly behind him. Now that twilight had come and gone, he found this time to be perfect to go back to sleep. His body was still heavy and tired from his previous nap, and he wanted to get a good night's rest before his journey tomorrow. Who knows when he would get to sleep in a bed again?

To his luck, as Link slept that night, he did not have any bad dreams about strange places or freaky black and white lands with voices. However, Zelda was a prominent feature in his dreams, giving him a moment in the world that he could never have. In his dream, he and Zelda were together, she a pretty girl, the daughter of a cattle farmer in Kakariko. There was no Ganondorf, no Hero of Time, just he and Zelda. It was one last gift from Zelda, this piece of her that he could never have, before he left for good tomorrow.

The next day, the day of the wedding, Link awoke with the sun heavy on his face. He jolted awake, his eyes flying open. He looked out of his window and saw that the sun was too high in sky—he had slept in too late.

"No!" Link shouted, hurrying into a change of clothes, the clothes that he would take with him on his travels. He nearly fell over trying to put his leather boots on, but managed to get dressed in a terrible rush without harming any part of him too much.

He was hitching his sword around his back when he noticed something sitting on his tiny beside table. Link picked up a leather pouch and opened it, finding a shiny assortment of rupees. His eyes went wide—Zelda must've…she must've dropped them off sometime during the night. The thought of her in this room made his chest tighten up, but he quickly swallowed the feeling. Right now, when his time was so limited, was not the time to think about his reason for leaving. If he wanted to depart soon, he was going to have to keep moving.

Once the Master Sword was situated against his back, he gathered up the black cloak, the ocarina, and his other provisions before opening the door of his room. He looked around, keeping his ears peeled. He could hear voices one floor below him, shuffling and shouting. It must be early afternoon, and the wedding was probably scheduled to start soon.

Sooner than he expected, because once he reached the bottom floor of the castle, he heard the music playing. He mentally cursed his sleeping habits, realizing that Zelda was being prepped to walk down the aisle at this very moment. He steeled himself against wanting to go in and stop the wedding, and hurried outside to the sanity of the cool afternoon air.

Making sure he was alone, Link made a full on sprint to the stables, where Epona stood as though she was waiting for him. He opened her stall door and reached out to pat her neck softly. The horse whinnied quietly as Link saddled her up, fastening his meager belongs onto said saddle.

"I know, I'm making you leave the safety of your stable," Link whispered as he lead Epona out of the stable. "But you get to be free again, you get to run with me, Epona. We'll find someplace else together, I promise."

He easily mounted the horse and set her off into a steady trot, not wanting to draw attention to himself by galloping away. Link wasn't entirely sure that he wasn't being watched. He'd had that feeling all morning, that someone was close by monitoring his actions. However, he tried to shrug it off as the castle started to disappear farther and farther behind him.

As he ran across the grounds toward Hyrule Field, though, Link noticed the sky becoming darker. The sun had been shining only a few moments ago, and this made him curious. His left hand departed from Epona's reins and gripped the hilt of his sword, ready in case something attacked. Nevertheless, what happened next was not what Link had been expecting.

A great rush of sound came from behind him, where the castle was. Link stopped Epona's canter instantly and turned the horse to look at the place that he had just run from. His cobalt blue eyes went wide in utter horror. The castle was now encased in a strange orange triangle. The young man's heart sank, suddenly remembering that Zelda was inside, and that she might be in danger.

Forsaking all thoughts of running again, Link kicked Epona forward into a full on gallop toward the castle. He didn't know what to expect, but what if he was needed? What if something had happened to Zelda? He tried to shy away from the thought, but the loud pulsing from the encasement told him to stay focused. Something was telling him that this was the danger that Zelda had told him about, whatever it was, it started today.

He reached the castle, sweat dripping down his brow. Up close the barrier appeared to be made with millions of geometric designs. Black squares seemed to dance around the barrier, and that strange pulsating noise rang so loudly in his ears that he thought it would never end. Link dismounted Epona and unsheathed his sword slowly as though the sudden motion would make the barrier come alive.

Holding the Master Sword in both hands, Link tensed his body and readied to hurl himself at the barrier. If this sword was evil's bane, then it should be able to break through this, right? He wasn't entirely sure, but if Zelda was trapped inside, he had to at least try…So, raising his hands, he propelled his body off of the ground toward the shining obstacle. The sword came in contact with it, but a jolt of energy shot through his body like lightning and flung him backward into the dirt.

He groaned and sat up slowly, his hand still holding the sword weakly. Blinking, he noticed nothing different about the barrier—his sword had done absolutely nothing to deter it. Link cursed and tried to stand back up again, when he heard the sound of someone giggling. The tone of the voice was so similar to the voice in his dream, that he stopped moving altogether.

"Oh, I wouldn't try that again, if I were you," the voice told him.

"W-who are you?" Link demanded.

Floating down from the top of the barrier came the strangest creature Link had ever laid eyes on. She was tiny with a gray and white body and bright orange eyes (well, one eye). One of her eyes was obscured by a large headpiece. The creature—which Link presumed was female—smiled a toothy grin down at him and crossed her legs.

"Finally, I get to meet the Hero of Time!" she cried. Link finally stood up, his sword tightly in his hand. The creature eyed his sword and shook her head. "You act like I'm going to harm you, Link. I have no such intention. Not when you can be of use to me."

"What's going on?" Link asked, his voice hard. "Where is Zelda?"

"Aren't you going to ask me my name?" she teased, making a face. She laughed and spun around, landing a few feet away from him. Putting her hands on her hips, she said, "I'm Midna, and I am here to help you."

"Help me?" Link questioned in disbelief. "I don't even know what you are."

Midna made a face. "I am an ally, sent by Princess Zelda herself." He froze at that, and Midna saw his hesitation at her words. "You see, something bad happened in there during the ceremony, and it went wrong. Ganondorf revealed himself as the true evil of the land, and this barrier was put up to keep anyone from leaving or entering, like yourself."

"Why is all of this happening?" Link inquired, dropping his sword slightly.

Midna sighed and shook her head. "Zant," she breathed. Link raised an eyebrow. "All you have to know is that if you want to save Zelda, you're going to need to do what I say. The lands will probably be covered in Twilight by now, and you won't survive without my help."

"I'm lost, completely lost," Link grumbled. "Is Zelda safe?"

"For now, perhaps. I've done what I can, but rest assured Ganondorf will do his best to ensure that you don't find her. Ever. We're going to need to work fast in order to restore this land. We need to find the origin of the Twilight, and go there first."

"Origin of…Twilight? Zelda mentioned the Twilight Realm, is that where you are from?" Link asked, his voice tight from anxiety.

Midna clapped her hands once. "Bingo! Ladies and gentlemen we have a genius in the house!" Link scowled up at the imp girl, his lip curling. She grinned. "Just kidding, boy. Now, if you will, your horse please, Link. We need to keep moving…"

"How can I trust you?" Link asked of her as he sheathed his sword and remounted Epona, who seemed to be strangely at ease around all of this chaos.

Midna rolled her eyes innocently. "I don't think you can, but I gave Zelda my word, and I intend to keep that. So don't you worry, I'll make sure you save the world correctly. You can't do anything for Zelda here, so let's go."

Link hissed through his nose as he turned Epona round. All he had wanted to do was run and keep his sanity through all of this. Now, he was running to God knows where with a strange Twili imp at his side, directing him. Zelda was imprisoned by Ganondorf, and he had to save her. This was the most unrealistic situation he had ever heard about in his life.

"Where are we going?" he looked up at the girl.

Grunting, Midna looked around the grounds. "Get out your sword, Link, I'm sure we're not alone out here." Link did as he was told, shooting her an obvious look. "Oh, yes, head toward the Ordon Providence, please. That's where the original portal is…"

"Ordon?" Link's blood went cold. "Is everyone there…?"

"I don't know," Midna told him. "The sooner we get there, the sooner we will know what's going on. I don't know what to expect. I'm hoping that Ganondorf hasn't done it yet, that's all."

"Done what?" Link was getting tired of her cryptic answers already. Why couldn't she just tell him what was going on? That would be nice.

The imp just shook her head. "C'mon, Link, we've got things to do."

So all of a sudden, Link's plans switched from running away from the castle toward wherever the wind took him to running toward Ordon with this Midna who Zelda trusts. If Zelda trusts her, then maybe he should too? What had he gotten himself into? If he had just resisted Ganondorf when he offered him the job in Hyrule Castle in the first place, this whole thing could've been avoided.

"It's your destiny, you know," Midna told him along the way. He was almost through Hyrule Field now. "Princess Zelda saw this coming, that's why she told you what she did. You promised to save her, and now you must hold to your word, just as I am."

"What did you promise her?" Link inquired of his new companion.

Midna shot him a sideways look. "That I would find you and look after you. So, here I am. Since you have to save her and I have to watch you, I'm going to be with you for a long time, Link, so you better get used to me."

Link mumbled something under his breath, ignoring her comment. But he did think about her promising Zelda to watch him. Did that mean that she had seen Zelda before all of this happened? That she knew what occurred in the castle? If Zelda sent Midna here to watch him, then something must've happened to her that she didn't want him to know of yet. All he knew was that he was probably going to have to save her in the end, and keep his word.

It took them most of the day to reach the Ordon Providence. Link knew the way by heart, so his shortcuts were a massive help in getting there swiftly. By the time they reached the Providence, Link noticed the unfamiliar black and white that had been featured in his dreams. However, there was nobody around. It was completely deserted. He looked up at Midna, who was now leading the way to where the fountain where he and Zelda has shared their last night together. She stopped at the edge of an old bridge and turned to him.

"Leave your horse here. She cannot follow where you are going…"

"And where am I going?" Link said in a harsh voice as he descended the mare. "I want answers, Midna."

She stopped in front of a large door that had the same patterns as the barrier blocking the castle. Strange light seemed to be omitted from the edges, and it gave him a very eerie feeling. Midna smiled at him over her shoulder. "You're about to find out, Link…" Then he watched her disappear through the door as thought it was nothing. Link only stood waiting for a moment before a large hand reached out and pulled him through the door into the unknown.

On the other side, Link noticed it was exactly like his dream, the air was thick and dark (if air can be dark) and had such a dismal feeling to it. But the air seemed to be choking him, as though it couldn't sustain his body. He began to shake from it, his body collapsing to the cold ground. Suddenly, he felt as though his arms and legs were being ripped apart, and a fire spread inside his veins. It was as though his bones were moving and shifting together differently. He closed his eyes against the pain and waited for it to cease.

When it did, and he opened his eyes, he found the world to look different. It was as though he was seeing it with new eyes. When he looked down, he saw that his nightmare had come true.

He was in the form of a wolf.

Oooh.

This was so easy for me to write, from the moment I started this chapter I knew how Link was going to meet Midna and what was going to go down with them. I didn't include the wedding this chapter for a reason, because the next chapter will have the wedding. I wanted to do one of those things where you see what happens without actually knowing what occured and then go back and show you what lead up to Link and Midna leaving together. And why exactly Ganondorf put the barrier around the castle, well, that's all in the next chapter. Like Zelda wasn't really in this chapter, Link really won't be in the next one. It's more of her story about this day, anyway. But I can't tell you how much fun I had with this, even though it's a very serious chapter.

I don't want to bore everyone with the events in Twilight Princess, so it will be a condensed version, if you will. I mean, bits and pieces will be very simliar, if not the same, but unlike the game, I won't go into the gory details. I'm also going to be adding more to fuel the whole 'great war' thing. I'm not going to ruin it, but I don't want you to expect a recap of the game, because I don't want that for you guys.

Now, we're really getting into the nitty gritty, aren't we? Link is in the Twilight Realm, and Zelda is...MIA for now. This is where all of the action happens, building up to the ending that you are probably wanting, but won't be anticipating. ;) Thanks for reading guys and let me know your thoughts in a review!!