A/N: 45 chapters... guys I promise this story has an ending lol.

Big thank you to Amazing Spectacular Spider Man for the favorites!


Chapter 45

She was very, very sleepy. And comfortable. Her head was resting on something warm and firm, and it felt nice.

But then it moved, and she mentally grumbled in protest at being disturbed from such a peaceful position. She was too sleepy to actually wake up, though. She just let her head loll back and rest against the wall behind her. This was good enough.

Something brushed her face. Soft fingers, tracing her cheek. That felt nice, too. She smiled against the hand cupping her cheek, nuzzling into it. This was almost perfect. Sleepy, comfy, with her favorite person—what else could she ask for?

Warm lips met hers, and she opened her eyes to see his red ones, soft and smiling...


The ornate pattern on the ceiling above her bed was starting to swirl as Link's gaze grew unfocused. Her arm was tingling, having gone numb a while ago as she lay without moving, just staring into space.

It wasn't like that was the first time she'd had a dream like that. It was the first time with Vaati in it, though. Maybe it was just her memory replaying events for her, but she'd woken up with a strange longing and loneliness. She let herself wallow in the feeling; it was just another painful reminder of things not meant to be.

Her phone rang shrilly, breaking her out of her reverie. Link fumbled for it, wincing when her numb arm flared in objection. "H'lo?"

"Are you still sleeping?" came Vaati's irritated voice. Link cursed herself for not checking the caller ID before answering. "You were supposed to be here half an hour ago."

She rubbed her eyes, confused. Then she shot up. "Oh, snap, I totally forgot! I'll be right there!" The blonde tripped out of bed, grabbing the nearest set of clothes and throwing them on, then grabbing her two swords and rushing to the door, before realizing she wasn't wearing shoes. Swearing, Link shoved her feet into some socks and tugged the shoes on, then sped down the halls and stairs out to the courtyard.

The whole crew was waiting for her. Vio gave her a suggestive eyebrow raise and Blue tried to smother a smile. Impa and Vaati shared the same irritated glare, while Aveil, Red, Zelda, and Sheik conversed, seemingly not bothered by the delay.

"Good morning!" Link saluted everyone, and immediately had to fight an enormous yawn.

"Good morning, sleeping beauty!" crowed Vio.

Impa cleared her throat, and Link's twins quickly quieted. The rest of the group turned to face the Sheikah. "If you are quite awake, we would like to begin." She looked to Vaati. "Enlil, if you would."

The Mage nodded and snapped his fingers. The air all around them rippled almost like the disturbed reflection on water, then returned to normal. "We're good."

"Thank you. Now, all of you: our task for today is to prepare for the worst case scenario—the resurrection of Ganon. Link, Zelda, and Vaati—you three are the key pieces. Each of you has been training individually, but now we must put it all together. Should Ghirahim release Ganon, we must subdue the both of them—Link and Enlil, that is your task—and seal Ganon away—Zelda's role. Enlil has created an arena of sorts for us to practice in; the invisible walls will keep any damage to a confined space, as well as keep prying eyes from seeing our actions."

"Hurray for magic!" Blue cheered. "Man, life is sooo much easier with a Wind Mage around."

Vaati rolled his eyes, but Link could tell he took it as a compliment. Her eyes lingered on his face as Impa continued explaining the plan, the Sheikah's words fading out of focus. She really liked that tattoo under his eye; it accented his already striking red eyes. His eyes were shadowed, though, and she wondered when was the last time he'd slept well. He didn't catch her staring at him; part of her wished he'd notice.

With a heavy sigh, she turned her attention back to her guardian.

"...should work for this exercise. I believe that covers it for now. Do you have any questions?" the white-haired woman concluded. When no one raised any, she nodded and stepped back. "Get into positions and begin when you are ready."

Link scratched the back of her head as Impa, Sheik, and Aveil retreated to the edge of the arena, and her twins escorted Zelda a bit to the side. She slid over to Vaati and whispered, "Sooo... we're just basically going with the plan we thought up before, right?"

"Did you just sleep through everything Impa said?" Vaati scowled. "Yes. I act as Ganon and the bad guys, and you and Zelda defeat them and seal him away. Now wake up already so we can do this."

His tone was a bit sharp, and Link chuckled, nervous. It seemed like she was just getting on his nerves a lot already today. "Got it! I'll, uh, go over there." She ran over to her twins, shaking her head in hopes it would clear the cloudiness in her mind.

A week ago, they'd escaped the Lost Woods. Armed with the knowledge that fortune and time were on their side, Impa had ordered them all to begin preparations for a fight. She had Zelda studying the art of seals, while Link and Vaati honed their battle skills. Their practices were mostly solo, though, and it had given Link a lot of time to think; too much time. Maybe her dream this morning had been new, but the vein of thought it came from certainly wasn't.

It wasn't the time to be dragged down by those thoughts and questions and worries. Today, they were to fight like it was real.

"Good morning, Link," Zelda's gentle voice greeted her. The blonde girl smiled, arms open in an offering hug as the Hero approached. "Your aura looks a little sad... are you okay?"

Link gave her just a quick hug. "I'm a-okay! We ready to kick some monster butt?"

"Heck yes!" Vio and Blue bellowed, pumping their fists, while Red nodded with, "We're more than ready."

"Red, Blue, you guys protect Zelda. Vio and I will handle everything else." Her twins gave her a trio of thumbs-ups.

Across the arena, Vaati was standing, fingers flexing at his sides and eyes closed, likely mentally preparing his plan of attack. Link shifted her stance likewise, steeling herself for whatever he might throw at her.

Wind lifted Vaati's hair and the ground rumbled as he raised a hand. The tiles of the courtyard began to shake and loosen, rock breaking through the carefully landscaped area and rising up to form random obstacles. The bushes morphed into tangling roots and vines. Link took a quick hop back as a crack appeared in the ground at her feet.

"Where the heck do you think we're going to be fighting?!" protested Vio. She was grimacing at a pillar of ground that had erupted right next to her.

Vaati cracked one eye open. "If you can fight well in tough terrain now, then you can handle whatever terrain we end up in later."

Shadows formed among the field, Keese and Darknuts and Stalfos and Bokoblins and Lizalfos, a miniature army manifesting before them. Fight like it's real, Impa had told them; and it looked like Vaati was taking her words seriously.

Link took a deep breath, then drew the Four Sword and charged.


"The Hero has failed before, you know. So don't get too cocky there."

"Ouch, way to burst my bubble, Sheik."

For the first time ever, she'd bested Sheik in a hand-to-hand spar, and she was definitely gloating over it. Even if maybe he was a bit out of practice, having only recently recovered enough to be throwing punches, it still felt real good to have finally defeated her rival.

"Even if you have the apparent advantage, you still have weak points, and your opponent is going to be looking for them. Here, let's try again."

It wasn't long before Link was the one gasping on the ground this time. Sheik offered her his hand and pulled her up. "I know my weaknesses, and I adapted to them. What are your weaknesses, Link?"


The Stalfos' skull cracked as two swords simultaneously came crashing down on it. Vio hooted and Link grinned at their smooth coordination. The skeleton disappeared into dark smoke, just another one downed by the pair.

"Give us a challenge, Vaati!" her purple-haired twin hollered with a twirl of her sword. "We want a boss fight!"

He frowned, and Link wondered if she imagined the shimmer of sweat on his forehead. But he complied, snapping his fingers. Every single monster vanished into smoke, the dark mist rushing back to its creator and swirling into a dark cloud of energy in front of him. Vaati raised both hands, his eyes glowing more intensely. The mist darkened, solidified, shifted into a massive form. In an instant, the shadows transformed to a boar, three times Link's height, with long, sharp tusks that looked ready to turn her into a shish kebab.

"Uhhhh..." Vio gulped.

Link took a few steps back. "You got what you asked for..."


"I miss the Academy," Zelda hummed, propping her chin on one hand, the fingers of her other hand tapping the book in front of her. She'd been relocated to the Castle a few days ago to use the library there for her studies.

"Me too. I hope my friends don't think I'm dead or something," Link joked. She was taking a break from her exercises, half-napping while Zelda read.

"You probably can't go back, can you?"

"...No. Unless some other evil villain decides to set up there! Nah, after this is all over..." She trailed off. "After it's all over, I'll just go back to doing whatever the Sheikah needs me to do, I guess."

"Is that what you want to do?"


"What is this thing made of?!" Link rolled out of the way as the dark-skinned boar barreled towards her, smashing through one of the rock pillars without slowing down a bit.

Her twin rushed at it from behind, and it shrieked shrilly as Vio slashed at its hind legs. Her eyes went wide and she moved as though to scramble back, but the boar's legs were already kicking back, catching her in the shoulder and throwing her almost a dozen feet away.

Link winced in sympathy. Vaati really wasn't holding back, was he? She sprinted to hide behind another rock, taking a moment to cast Nayru's Love. She couldn't risk a direct hit, either from the front or behind.

The boar could be heard, sniffing and snorting, stamping the ground in anger at its now-hidden opponents. Link snuck a glance from her hiding spot. Its tusks gleamed white in contrast to its black body, and its eyes were a raging red. Weak points, weak points...

Gulping down her fear, Link bolted out of her cover, raising her hands and taunting, "Here, piggy, piggy!"

Its red gaze snapped to her, and it roared, lifting off its front legs and stomping the ground so hard the earth cracked under its hooves. Then it charged.

Link prayed to the goddess Nayru that the diamond walls of the spell held, and braced herself.

The boar pummeled right into her protective spell with one of its tusks. Link stumbled back instinctively when she heard a terrible cracking sound, but her spell didn't waver; instead, it was the boar who crashed back, screaming in rage, one of its tusks now shattered and broken at the base.

"Aww, did the poor piggy lose a tooth?" she laughed in relief. Never had she been so glad that one of her crazy plans worked.

Vio stumbled over to Link's side, clutching her shoulder. "Nice one! Oh, Din, this hurts," she winced.

"Uh, that's definitely dislocated and broken," Link cringed. Her twin's shirt was torn and soaked with blood and dirt where the boar had kicked her. "Go switch with Blue!"

"Aye, aye, Captain!"

Deep breaths. She anxiously rotated the sword in her left hand, watching the boar who was mindlessly crashing through the rocks in a rage. They just needed to subdue it, and then have Zelda place a seal on it. And then it would be game over for the session. Another tusk, and maybe a broken leg or two, should do the trick...


"Link. I... would like to have a word with you."

The way Impa hesitated sent Link's brain into a panic. Was something wrong? Was she in trouble? There were too many big and little things Link was guilty of to know which one it was this time. She followed her guardian to a balcony, buzzing with nervousness.

The Sheikah sighed deeply and gazed out at the frosty gardens. Oh Hylia, this wasn't going to be good...

"I know I have not been the most... compassionate mother. But I like to believe our relationship is one of trust and mutual respect."

Oh Hylia, Din, Nayru, Farore—it was a mother-daughter talk? Link stood frozen, likewise staring out at the scenery.

"What I would like to say is... I am proud of the person you have become. Not just because you are the Hero. You have proven your own courage, justice, and loyalty countless times. You are prone to mistakes as much as the rest of us, but the one mistake you have never fallen into is trusting the wrong people. Despite constantly trying to teach you that a spy must never trust anyone, you've time and again put your whole heart into people you just met... people who proved worthy of that trust."

"That's... um, thanks, I'm glad it's been helpful?" Link chuckled nervously.

Impa drew a hand down her face. "I asked Aveil how best to go about this, but her advice was... not to my strengths. What I wish to convey... you and Vaati Enlil—"

Panicking, Link interrupted, "You don't have to—it's not a big deal—don't worry about it or anything!"

"Link." Impa finally faced her, red eyes narrowed, annoyed at the interruption. The blonde stammered an apology. "He is the Wind Mage, and therefore I could not trust him, and I feared for you when you grew so close to him. I feared he would be the one to break your trust, to break your... heart," she sighed. "But I realized that I should have trusted you. Vaati Enlil... I trust the two of you, and whatever path you choose to share together."


Link and her twins stepped back as the black skin of the boar turned to golden light, evaporating into the air as Zelda held her hands above it, gold crystal-like symbols emanating from her palms. The red light in the creature's eyes died, and soon it all faded from existence. Zelda lowered her hands and turned to the Hero with a smile.

She tried to give a thumbs up in reply but her side clenched in pain when she lifted her arm. Under the fabric of her shirt, there was probably a big, black bruise in the shape of a hoof; the boar had kicked her just as Nayru's Love had started to fade, and while the blow was definitely blunted, her ribs were still definitely broken.

The ground rumbled, and Link grabbed Blue's arm to keep her balance as the broken ground and rocky pillars shifted, receding into the ground, the holes and cracks repairing, dust settling back and bushes regrowing, until the whole courtyard was once more pristine.

Vaati lowered his arms, but the red glow didn't fade from his eyes. He marched over to Link, panting. "Show me," he demanded, gesturing to her abdomen.

"I'm fine!" She grimaced despite her words.

He grunted and grabbed her shirt, pulling it up just enough to reveal the massive bruising on her lower chest. "You call this fine? A hit like that could kill you, Link! I don't care if you have a magical shield, you can't just put yourself directly in harm's way like that!"

"I'm fine, Vaati, really! It's just training; I'll stay out of the way next time, okay?"

"Next time? Your ribs are definitely broken, and so is Vio's shoulder. We don't have time for you to be getting injured!"

"Vaati—" Zelda gently touched his arm. "I've been studying healing spells; I can heal her, it's okay."

But the Mage shook his head. "We need you to save as much magic as possible for Ganon; we can't rely on you to heal anyone when it's the real deal. I can use some healing magic too, but dark magic definitely isn't suited for it." He fixed Link with his glare. "How can you expect to beat Ghirahim and Ganon like this?!"

His words hurt more than the broken bones. She shook her head, hoping they'd assume the tears streaking her cheek were from the physical pain. "I will, because I have to..."

By this time, Impa and the others had joined them. Aveil frowned, putting her hands on her hips. "Vaati, you're the one who let her get hurt."

"I can't go easy on her," he retorted, "because the enemy sure as hell isn't going to. And if anything happens to me, she—" The Mage clenched his fists. "She has to be the one to finish it."

Link's vision was getting hazy. "What... what do you think... is going to happen to you...?" she asked between shallow breaths.

He shook his head. "It doesn't matter."

His voice was distant. White static crept into her vision, and her stomach was fighting against waves of nausea. "Guys—I'm—"

"Oh, she's passing out!" Blue yelped, her hands grabbing Link's arm just as all of the blonde's senses abruptly went to darkness.