Author's Note: Thank you to Post Rapture, DoomRater, Mihaele Rose, Ides of Diamonds, and everybody who read and/or reviewed my first fic. This is the third and final part of my epic trilogy and I hope you all enjoy it. And I'd like to give credit to any author whose characters or excerpts from their stories (No, I don't believe I'll be using one) that I used. I can't stress enough how much I'd like everyone to READ AND REVIEW, because I feel we may be approaching the end of something special.


Chapter 16

Link was nervous. He was making that final walk. As he led the Hylian army out to Hyrule Field, he could that Meyson's army was already there. He could see the anxiety on the faces of his friends: Malon, Zelda, Sodo, and Nabooru. As he reached the drawbridge, he could see his ultimate target. Standing there, was the evil Meyson and beside him was Saria, still being held captive. When he crossed the drawbridge and stepped into the field, he stopped the army.

Meyson stepped forward. "Well, Hero of Time, I can see that you've brought some backup this time."

"I guess I can say the same for you," Link shot back.

Meyson chuckled. "I don't need these monsters to defeat someone as weak as you. They are only here for the 'victory party', if you will. They are here to celebrate the impending release of the great Ganondorf by destroying Hyrule."

"That's not going to happen!" Zelda shouted. "We're not going to let that happen!"

"I'm afraid you have no choice," Meyson said. "It is destined to happen. And I will soon fulfill that destiny." Meyson looked out to the army. "But first, I will dispose of all these foolish Hylians. Monsters, ATTACK!!"

As the monsters began their charge, Nabooru and Malon led the Hylian army into the fray. Link ignored everything else. In his eyes, all he could see was Meyson. He unleashed his sword and prepared to charge.

It was a sight unlike anything Saria had ever seen. The evil monsters of Meyson were now trading blows with the army of Hyrule. She had no idea how many casualties there would be before it was all over.

She saw Meyson gather his three Lizalfos, collectively known as COMBAT.

"This is it, boys," Meyson began. "The moment we've worked for is finally at hand. Are you ready?" Kreature began to open his mouth. "And answer me without that stupid motto."

"We're ready," COMBAT answered.

Meyson grinned. "Good. Then we're going to the Temple of Time."

Meyson waved his arm. That black light was beginning to surround them again. As it surrounded them, Saria started thinking. She thought about what would happen to her when she refused to open the door.

Link started rushing the evil Meyson, but then the shape-shifter began waving his arm. Then in a black light, he was gone and so was Saria. Link was ready to stomp the ground in frustration, but the situation wasn't too bad. He knew exactly where Meyson would be headed. He would be going to the Temple of Time. Link walked over to Zelda. She had a grim expression. Link thought it was out of anxiety for what was about to happen.

"Are you ready?" Link asked.

"Link, we have a problem," Zelda said.

"Problem? What's the problem?" Link asked, irritated.

"Sodo's gone," Zelda answered. "He was here a few seconds ago, but when I turned around right now, he was gone."

Link became distressed at that announcement. "He disappeared right now?"

Zelda nodded. "He just disappeared right now."

Link knew what this meant. "I know where he is."

It looked like Zelda might have known as well. "Link, you don't think…? He couldn't have…?"

"He did," Link responded. "He went to the Temple of Time. He's going to try and Saria himself."


Chapter 17

Saria had never actually been inside the Temple of Time before. But she wished she wasn't in there right now, not under these circumstances. Meyson walked over to the Door of Time. He brought Saria's crystal over to it and called his three reptilian assistants.

"You three hold her," Meyson ordered. He waved his arm and Saria was finally released from the crystal prison. But as she fell out, she was immediately grabbed by the three lizards.

Meyson grinned. "This is your big moment, Saria. It's time. Now open that door!"

Saria shook her head. "Never! You can't make me!"

Meyson's evil smile faded. "I said open that door!"

"NO!"

"You'd better open that door," Meyson ordered. "If you don't, then I will not only kill you, but I will kill all of your little friends."

"It's won't work that way, Meyson," Saria shot back. "When Ganondorf gets out, he'll probably kill all my friends anyway. And if you kill me, what then? Then you'll never get that door open!"

Meyson didn't say anything. He just grabbed Saria by the arm and began to glow. The next feeling Saria had was one of excruciating pain. It was as if a thousand volts of electricity had been sent through her entire body.

"Open that door!" Meyson demanded. "Or all your friends will suffer like you just did!"

It was painful. It was something Saria hoped to never feel again. But she had to resist. "NO!"

Meyson was about to reach for her arm again, but the doors just opened.

"SARIA?!"

Saria turned her head. The voice sounded familair. She thought she was hallucinating as a result of the tremendous pain she was just in. But she wasn't. It was really him, but it couldn't be. Standing at the door was Sodo.

"Sodo?!" Saria shouted. "I'm over here!"

Sodo began running towards Saria, but Meyson's eyes began to glow red. Sodo froze in his tracks. Meyson walked over to the catatonic Kokiri and grabbed his arm. He sent the same electricity through his body as he sent through Saria. The young boy's cry of pain made Saria cringe.

"OPEN THAT DOOR!" Meyson shouted. "Or he DIES IN AGONY!!!"

Kreature leaned towards Saria. "I'd just open that door," he whispered. "I don't think he's bluffing."

Saria got a look at the evil eyes of Meyson. He wasn't bluffing, she could clearly see that. She looked at Sodo. He was in terrible pain. Saria's heart sank. She didn't want to do it. But she didn't have a choice. She couldn't live with herself if she witnessed one of her friends murdered coldly.

"Ok," Saria said. "I'll do it. Just let him go!"

"Open that door first!" Meyson ordered. "THEN I'll let him go!"

The reptiles let go of Saria and she walked up to the huge Door of Time. She closed her eyes and began to concentrate. She focused harder than she ever had before. Soon the Door of Time began rumble. Saria opened her eyes and was amazed to see that the Door of Time had opened.

"MEYSON!!!"

Saria turned to see that someone else had entered the Temple of Time.

It was Princess Zelda…and Link.


Chapter 18

Link looked around the Temple of Time. He found Sodo and, just as he feared, was in the grasp of Meyson. He looked towards the Door of Time and saw that Saria was finally released. And he also saw that the Door of Time was now open.

"Let him go, Meyson!" Link shouted.

Meyson threw Sodo to one side. Link saw Saria rush to the young boy's side.

"You're too late, Hero of Time!" Meyson exclaimed. "The Door of Time is now open…and I shall now release my master."

"Not without a fight you won't!" Link said boldly. He unleashed his sword and prepared for battle.

Meyson smiled evilly. "If you wish me to destroy you now, then so be it!" Meyson began to transform. This time he transformed into a nightmarish form. He transformed into Ganondorf and unleashed a huge sword of his own. "You want a preview of things to come. Then come and get me."

Link rushed the disguised Meyson. They immediately began trading blows. Meyson matched him move for move. An overhead thrust was met with another. Link knew this would be a long fight.

There had already been many casualties, but the war was far from over. However, Malon knew the situation was growing grim. The evil monsters were beginning to outnumber the Hylian soldiers. And she noticed that Nabooru was getting in over her head. The Gerudo leader began taking on two or even three monsters at once. She certainly was confident in her skills, Malon knew that much.

Suddenly, Malon noticed that two ReDead zombies were approaching her. Nabooru then tossed her a sword, which Malon nearly dropped.

"Don't just stand there, girlfriend!" Nabooru shouted. "Slice something!"

Malon had never handled a sword before, but she had seen Link use one hundreds of times. She held the sword up and pointed it at the ReDead. They continued approaching her, so Malon took action. She closed her eyes and swung the sword. She opened her eyes and saw she got lucky. She sliced off the legs of both ReDead, but they continued to inch towards her. Malon took the sword and stabbed each one in the back. Malon began to feel uneasy. She had a feeling this would be a long night.


Chapter 19

Saria started shaking Sodo. The poor boy had been knocked out. Saria was almost in tears. She had a crush on the boy for the longest time. But only recently did she begin to reflect on that. She started to believe that her feelings for Sodo were something more. It was almost as if she loved him.

"Sodo," Saria pleaded. "Please wake up!"

Saria was so touched that Sodo actually came to rescue her. He had risked succumbing to the disease of the vastness to come save her. It was sacrifice that Saria hadn't known since she left the village to find Link.

Saria struggled to revive Sodo. When she looked up, she saw that Link and Meyson were still trading blows.

Link continued matching Meyson move for move. Out of the corner of his eye, he could that Zelda was aiming to get a good shot in. Apparently, Meyson saw that as well.

"Oh, no," Meyson said in Ganondorf's evil voice. "Can't have that now." Meyson then took a step back and began to transform again. This time he transformed into Link.

Link stood shocked. Zelda stood shocked as well. Now the princess wouldn't be able to get her shot in, because Link and Meyson now looked exactly alike.

Meyson moved in again. Link met his overhead thrust and kicked him in the stomach. Link tried to unleash a circular slash, but Meyson avoided it with a textbook backflip. Each one continued to counter the other's moves. Suddenly, a light bulb went off in the head of Link. He kicked Meyson back and stopped fighting. Zelda stood confused, still unable to tell which Link was which.

Then Link took his sword and slit his arm. He began to bleed red. It looked like Zelda knew Link's plan as well. Meyson could only bleed black. It was how Impa was able to see through him and Link noticed it back when Meyson invaded the Forest Temple the first time.

Zelda was now able to tell the difference between the two Links. She began to aim a shot at Meyson. She unleashed a beam of light towards the shape-shifter, but something unexpected happened. Meyson's eyes began to glow red and the beam of light turned in mid-air. The beam of light now struck Link directly in the chest, sending him flying back to the wall near the Door of Time. Zelda tried to aim another shot, but Meyson used his power to send her colliding into the wall.

Meyson now began walking towards the Door of Time, but stopped near the fallen Hero of Time. "Surprised? Don't be. I've had that little trick up my sleeve for a while now. Why don't you ask your little girlfriend, Malon, if you don't believe me."

After that revelation, Meyson walked into the Door of Time.


Chapter 20

Saria noticed that what they had all tried to avoid was now happening. Meyson was now in the Door of Time. She walked over to the doorway and saw Meyson kneel and begin chanting in that strange dialect. Suddenly, a huge portal of light began to open. Far within the portal, Saria could the see the face of evil that no one hoped to ever see again. She saw Ganondorf.

"Master!" Meyson said, as he bowed down. "I have done as you wished. You are now free!"

Ganondorf began to make his way towards the end of the portal, but he wasn't out.

"It may be minutes," Meyson said. "It may take a matter of minutes, but you are free. Come out, master! Come and smite your enemies and rule Hyrule just as you were meant to."

Saria turned to her left to see the three Lizalfos, COMBAT. They were walking towards Meyson had been silent through this whole ordeal. "Guys, please. You can't let this happen."

"Sorry, short stuff," Kreature said. "But you're a little late for that."

"Yeah, Ganondorf's on his way out," Krash added.

"And when he takes over, we'll have it made," Og said. "We'll be Ganondorf's top lizards. Sounds like a pretty good deal to me."

"Do you guys really think that?" Saria shot back. "Then I guess you haven't heard. Meyson lied to you! When Ganondorf gets out, he's isn't giving you anything. In fact, he's just going to get rid of you when this is all over!"

COMBAT looked shocked. They looked outraged at such an accusation, but still looked up at Meyson.

"I-Is that...true, Meyson?" Kreature asked.

"Y-Yeah. You wouldn't just get rid of us when this is all over, would you?" Krash added.

"She's lying right, Meyson?" Og asked, in concern. "After all we've done for you? You wouldn't just off us, would you?"

Meyson stood up and looked at the three lizards. Then Meyson began to laugh. He was laughing louder than Saria had ever heard him laugh before. "Fools! You're all fools! From day one, all you were, were a bunch of pawns! I only kept you around because I needed three morons to do my dirty work! But do you see that?!," he shouted, pointing at the approaching Ganondorf. "My master will soon be here! I don't NEED you three idiots anymore!! When the great Ganondorf gets here, you three will be eliminated!"

Saria saw the expressions on COMBAT. They were hurt. They had been betrayed. And their eyes were now empty of everything, but pure unbridled hatred. Hatred for Meyson. They each took out their swords and pointed them at the evil shape-shifter.

Meyson only laughed. "What are you three screw-ups going to do with those? You don't stand a chance against my powers. You don't have THE GUTS!!"

"Oh yeah," Kreature said angrily. "We'll show you!!"

"We'll show you how much guts we have!!" Krash said.

"And we'll show you that we're not screw-ups!! We are COMBAT!!" Og finished.

It was Kreature and Krash who struck. They took their swords and sliced off Meyson's necklace. As the crystal bounced around towards the lizards, Og took his sword and shattered the crystal.

"NO!!!" Meyson shouted. "My Crystal of Darkness!!! You destroyed it!!!"

The fight was not going in the favor of the Hylians. It was not going well for Malon either. She was now surrounded by three Stalfos knights. Nabooru couldn't help her, for she was stuck in a battle of her own. Malon was in deep. She knew that this might very well be her time. But if her time did indeed come, then she would go down fighting. She only wished that she knew how to fight better.

But then something incredible happened. The evil monsters stopped advancing. They began to dissolve. The Stalfos knights in front of Malon dissolved in a puff of smoke. The army looked around in bewilderment. Malon couldn't believe what happened, but she was glad it did. She could only call it a miracle.

"Malon, LOOK OUT!!"

That was Nabooru. But by the time her warning came out, Malon was knocked down from behind by what felt like a ton of bricks. Malon looked up to see that the Iron Knuckle, Titanos, knocked her down. He was wielding his axe and was ready to deliver the final blow.

"The army may have been defeated, but I still live. And I shall now honor my master by killing you, the love of the Hero of Time."

Everything finally stopped spinning for Link. He was finally able to get up. He saw the one thing he didn't want to see. He saw Ganondorf trying to make his way out of the portal of light, being slowed down by its pull. But he also saw something that amazed him. The three Lizalfos, COMBAT, had stood up to Meyson. They destroyed his Crystal of Darkness and Meyson was infuriated.

"You three reptiles will pay DEARLY for this!!!" Meyson shouted.

Link saw that Meyson was distracted. Then a huge light bulb was lit in the mind of Link. He inched his way into the Door of Time. He got to his feet, approached the Pedestal of Time, and grabbed the one thing that could vanquish an evil like Meyson once and for all.

Link pulled out the Master Sword.


Chapter 21

Malon was stuck. She looked up to see that Titanos was about to strike. But before he could deliver the final blow, Nabooru tried striking it from behind. Unfortunately, her blow only made a loud clanking sound and got the attention of the huge brute.

"You dare attempt to strike me?" Titanos said.

"Yeah, I dare," Nabooru answered. "I created you. And I will destroy you."

"The only one who created me is my master," Titanos responded. "And it is I who shall destroy YOU."

Nabooru tried charging the huge metal beast. Her movements with her sword were graceful, but not effective. Titanos simply picked up Nabooru and tossed her into the moat.

"NABOORU!" Malon shouted as she got to her feet. But as soon as she got to her feet, Titanos knocked her down again.

"There is no one to save you now," Titanos declared. "Now I shall destroy you."

Link knew that now was the time for him to make his move. He approached Meyson ready to strike with the Master Sword, but Meyson quickly turned around. He saw Link coming.

"You don't give up, do you?!" Meyson exclaimed. "Well now I shall…"

Meyson didn't get a chance to finish. He was being held in place by a ray of light. Link looked over to see that Zelda had recovered and was able to hit Meyson with a beam of light.

"Link, NOW!!" Zelda shouted.

But Link ignored her. He had something more immediate to deal with. He walked over to the portal of light and saw that Ganondorf was almost out. Link looked at the Gerudo King and began to smile mischievously.

"YOU!" Ganondorf began. "Not you again!!"

"I didn't hear anyone say you could come out," Link grinned. "So I guess you'll just have to go back in. See ya!" Link kicked the evil Gerudo back into the portal. Once he was completely back in the Sacred Realm, the portal closed back in.

"NOOOOOO!!!!!!!" Link heard Ganondorf shout as the portal to the Sacred Realm was sealed. Link then walked over to Meyson. Zelda was still holding him in place.

"And as for you," Link began. "After all you've done, it's time you DIE!!"

Upon uttering those words, Link stabbed Meyson directly in the chest with the Master Sword. Link and the three lizards standing near Meyson were then thrown back by an unseen force. Meyson let out an ear-piercing, deafening scream. He then fell to one knee and began smoking before he spontaneously combusted. When the smoke cleared there was nothing left. Meyson was finally destroyed.

Titanos was about to thrust his axe deep into Malon, but then something amazing began to happen. Titanos fell onto one knee and let an ear-piercing, deafening scream. He began smoking before he spontaneously combusted.

As he combusted, Malon saw that Nabooru managed to climb out of the moat.

"Nabooru?" Malon asked. "What just happened?"

"I think it's happened," Nabooru began. "I DID say that the only way to beat the legend was to beat the one who released the legend."

Malon's face brightened. "You mean…?"

"Yes," Nabooru responded. "The boy's done it. Link's finally beaten Meyson for good."


Chapter 22

Link was in pain. He was sore beyond belief. But it was finally over. Meyson was destroyed and the threat of Ganondorf was averted. But he noticed that Saria was still trying to revive Sodo.

"Sodo!" Saria shouted, still shaking the young boy. "Sodo, please wake up!"

Sodo moaned and finally moved. He looked like he was still in pain from whatever Meyson had done to him.

"S-Saria?" Sodo asked. "Are you ok?"

Saria gave Sodo a huge hug. "I'm fine. I'm just glad you're ok. But…Sodo…why did you do it?"

"Do what?" the young Kokiri asked.

"Why did you leave the forest?" Saria asked. "You could have died. Why did you risk your life just to save me?"

"Just to save you?" Sodo asked. "Saria, I didn't care what happened to me. For the last two or three months, I've been so happy to see you again after five years. And I couldn't stand the thought of losing you again. Saria…I love you."

Saria stood shocked. "Sodo…I…love you too." She then kneeled down and gave Sodo a kiss that Link knew would make most teenage couples jealous. Link smiled at this sight. This was exactly what Malon was hoping to accomplish by having Sodo come along. Link knew that. And he knew that Malon would whine all the way home about how she missed this heart-warming moment.

Link then noticed the three Lizalfos knights. He could hardly believe that they stood up to Meyson. But they looked distraught over the ordeal they had just endured.

Saria then looked up at them. "Thank you, guys. I knew that you would do the right thing."

"Yeah," Kreature said sadly. "I guess we proved we're not screw-ups."

"But where do we go from here?" Krash asked.

"We've got no home out here in Hyrule," Og said. "We don't have anywhere to go."

Link saw that look in Saria's eyes. She felt sorry for these three. Link was guessing there was more to this than he knew.

"Guys, I'm really sorry," Saria said. "I'd like to offer you a home at the temple…"

"…but she can't," Sodo interrupted. "You can't stay there. After everything you've done, I don't think the others would accept you guys."

"We realize that," Kreature said. "That's why we're not going to the Forest Temple."

"Yeah, thanks for the offer," Krash added. "But we wouldn't be happy living in the forest."

"We're fighting lizards," Og said. "We want to be where the action is."

Link had an idea. "What about the army?"

The three lizards looked at each other. "The army?" Kreature asked.

"No, the army's no good," Krash said sadly. "The Hylians hate us. They'd never accept three Lizalfos into their army."

"We'd stick out like sore thumbs," Og said. "I don't think there's anywhere we can go from here. It'd take a royal miracle for us to live a good life."

Link saw Zelda's face brighten. The princess looked like she had an idea of her own.

"You guys are fighting lizards, right?" she asked.

"Yeah. We live to fight," Kreature answered.

"And you guys want to live a good life, without being abused by the Hylians, right?"

"Yeah. That'd sure be nice," Krash responded.

"Well, I just happen to be looking for some royal guards. Personal royal guards. You interested?" Zelda asked.

COMBAT was intrigued at this possibility. "You mean take a job guarding the Princess of Hyrule?" Krash asked.

Saria's face began to brighten as well. "Yeah! Become Zelda's guards. You'll have a home in the castle if you become her guards. And you'll be happy because you'll be able to fight for the Princess of Hyrule. You'll be fighting for the forces of good."

COMBAT looked at each other excitedly. "You really mean it?" Og asked. "We can be your guards?"

"I can have it arranged," Zelda said. "I've needed some good caretakers since Impa left. Maybe you guys can fill the void. I think you guys could do a better job than the guards we have now."

"So we'll be guarding royalty?" Kreature asked.

"Wouldn't it be a bit awkward?" Krash added.

"Seeing the princess surrounded by three lizards could get people talking," Og finished.

Zelda smiled. "Trust me. We'll talk."


Chapter 23

Link, Malon, Zelda, Nabooru, and COMBAT stood outside of Hyrule Castle. It had been a day since Meyson had been defeated and Link was finally ready to get on his way. He had to make a quick stop at the Forest Temple to drop off Saria and Sodo. They had said they wanted some private time before leaving. Link smiled at the thought. They had been inseparable since they reunited last night.

Link walked over to the three Lizalfos. "I guess this is it, guys. Good luck taking care of Zelda."

"We don't need luck," Og said proudly.

"Yeah, we're fighting lizards," Krash added.

"And we'll be the best royal guards that Hyrule has ever seen," Kreature declared. "Because we're rowdy…"

"We're ready…"

"We're reptiles…"

"We are COMBAT!"

"But we got to thank you for this chance, Link," Kreature said. "No one's ever given us lizards a chance before."

"Yeah, thanks to you and Princess Zelda, us lizards are finally getting a break," Krash added.

"But before you go, we want to say goodbye to Saria," Og said. "She's the first one to ever actually care about what we did with our lives. She went out of her way to care for us."

"Yeah, I understand," Link said. "She went over there. You'll find her with Sodo."

The Lizalfos walked off and Link was approached by Malon.

"Where are they going?" Malon asked.

"To say goodbye," Link answered. "I just hope Saria doesn't mind the sudden visit. She did want to be alone with Sodo."

"That is so romantic," Malon said gleefully. Then she suddenly slapped Link on the arm. "I can't believe you didn't want Sodo to come with us in the first place. You see what happens when you listen to me?"

"Ok, ok," Link said. "You were right, o' mighty mistress of love."

"Thank you," Malon smiled. "I just wish I was there for that special moment."

Link suddenly noticed that Nabooru was mounting her horse. She was getting ready to leave. Link walked up to her.

"Leaving?" Link asked.

"Yeah, I got to get going," Nabooru answered. "You know, that stupid 'sages can't leave the temple' rule. But it was good seeing you again Link. If you're ever around the Gerudo Fortress, I'll make sure that the girls give you a much better reception next time."

"It couldn't get much worse," Link said.

Nabooru started moving out. "Make it easier on yourself, boy. Take the little woman with you. So long, Link." Nabooru was almost gone when Link heard her yell, "Oh yeah, and talk to the princess!"

Link suddenly remembered what he now had to do. He had to talk to Zelda one more time. He walked over to Malon.

"Malon," Link began nervously. "I've got to go talk to Zelda…alone. It's not anything like you think, but you know…"

"Link," Malon said with her arms crossed. "What did I tell you way back at Lake Hylia?"

"That you liked the way I turned out," Link said proudly.

Malon smiled. "Besides that. I said don't be so nervous. I trust you. Now go talk to Zelda."

Link walked over to Zelda, who was standing by the gate. "Princess, can I talk to you alone?"


Chapter 24

Saria was lying with Sodo under a nearby tree. They had been looking peacefully out at the field for hours now. Sodo still felt a little sore over what Meyson had done to him, but he was fine which was a relief to Saria.

"So what do we tell everyone when we get back?" Sodo asked. "They might start talking."

"Wouldn't be the first time," Saria said. "Fala and Ralo are always talking anyway. Mido's changed, so he won't be saying too much. And we've got about 1001 insults for the Know-It-All brothers if they open their big mouths. I think everything will work out just fine."

"How do Rala and Domi live like they do?" Sodo asked. "No one ever says anything about their relationship."

"Maybe it's because Domi will charge double if they do," Saria smiled.

"HELLO!"

"HELLO!"

"HELLO!"

The singsong introduction made Sodo jump, making Saria giggle. She looked up to see that COMBAT had come in.

"Hi guys," Saria said. "What are you doing here?"

"We just wanted to say goodbye," Kreature said.

"It'll the last time we see you before you go back to the temple," Krash added.

"Yeah. We're going to miss you, Saria," Og finished.

Saria shed a tear. "I'm going to miss you guys too."

Sodo wasn't exactly as sentimental. "Well, see ya."

"Sodo!" Saria shouted sternly. "He doesn't mean that guys. He's going to miss you too."

"Yeah, like I miss a Mad Deku Scrub," Sodo muttered.

"We can't blame you for still being sore at us, shorty," Kreature said.

"After all, we did leave you 'hanging around'," Krash added.

"Yeah. We're sorry we almost killed you, shrimp," Og said.

"He accepts your apology," Saria said. "Thanks guys. Good luck."

The three lizards said their good-byes and left. Sodo then looked at Saria angrily.

"So let me get this straight! You're friends with them now?! After all they've done, you're FRIENDS with them?! And how could you just assume I'd forgive them?! They almost killed me! I was hanging upside-down from about 70 feet in the air! Those scaly reptiles! If I were a little bigger…"

Saria stopped Sodo in his tracks by locking her lips with his. When she released the kiss, she saw that the peaceful boy was blushing.

"W-W-What were we talking about again?" Sodo smiled bashfully.

"I don't remember," Saria smiled back before resuming the kiss.


Chapter 25

Link and Zelda walked into the castle gate and made sure there was no one around. Link didn't know how to begin.

"Zelda…I want to apologize," Link said.

"Apologize?" Zelda asked. "For what?"

"For my outburst at the temple," Link answered. "I know I already apologized for the outburst itself, but it's the reason for it I want to apologize for."

"What do you mean?" Zelda asked confused.

"I yelled at you because I thought you hit Malon," Link began. "I thought you had stupidly gotten involved and shot without looking and hit Malon. But what I didn't realize was that you were trying to help me and the reason that the shot hit Malon was because of Meyson's magic. You weren't responsible but I yelled at you. For that, I'm sorry."

"I know you care about her Link," Zelda said. "I've gotten to talk to her and I know she's a good person. You're a lucky guy."

Link looked out at the sun. "I guess this is goodbye."

Zelda took a deep breath. "Link, I've got something to tell you. It's something that I've been meaning to tell you for a long time."

That got Link's attention. "I think I know what you're trying to say. Zelda, I'm sorry. But you and I both know this can't happen. I'm in love with Malon." Link was amazed at what he had just said. Did he really say that he was in love with Malon?

He couldn't think about that over Zelda's reaction to what he just said. She started giggling. It soon burst into all-out laughter. "Link, you thought that's what I wanted to tell you? You think I wanted to…declare my feelings for you?"

Link stood confused. His ego stood bruised. "You mean that's not it?"

Zelda tried to stop laughing. "Link, you're a cute guy. You really are. But we aren't meant for each other. But what I wanted to tell you is that you and Malon are."

"What makes you think that?" Link asked curiously.

"Let me put it this way," Zelda began. "Do you remember that day when you defeated Ganondorf?"

"Yeah."

"And do you remember that you went back and saw that Malon remembered everything?"

Link couldn't see where she was going with this. "Yeah. How did you know that?"

"Malon told me all about it," Zelda answered. "She really surprised me when she remembered everything from the Imprisonment War. Yet I made it so that no one remembered anything from that time. So it led me to believe one thing."

"What's that?" Link asked.

"When I restored you to your time, I decided to do something for you. To make up for the pain I brought you. I decided to have the one person, besides the six sages, you care about the most retain his or her memory of the past. And…that one person was Malon."

Link stood shocked. He and Malon knew that it was a miracle that she remembered everything. But they decided not to bother to find out. Now Link found out why. It was because of Princess Zelda.

"You did that?" Link asked. "It was because of you that Malon retained her memory? H-How can I ever thank you?"

"Just do one thing for me," Zelda responded. "Forgive me for everything I've done. Forgive me for the pain I caused you."

Link wanted to forgive Zelda sooner or later. Link felt that this was the time. "Of course, Zelda. I forgive you." He threw his arms around Zelda and gave her a big hug. He didn't know what Malon would think, but Link owed Zelda for Malon even knowing who he was.

"Then it's time for us to part ways again," Zelda said. "But this time, I hope you'll visit."

"You can count on that," Link responded. "But I have to ask one thing…"

Zelda smiled. "What's that?"

Link was curious. Malon had this question practically tattooed in his mind. "I know I had it bad during that whole quest…but what was it like for you? I never found out what you had to go through."

Zelda's smile remained, much to Link's surprise. "You know…it's about time you considered what I had to go through. I didn't have it easy, you know. But…that's something to tell you another day."

"Another day?" Link asked.

"You DID say you'd visit, didn't you?"

"I did," Link conceded. "Then I guess I'll…see you later."

Link gave Zelda a quick kiss on the cheek and walked back to a waiting Malon. He couldn't wait to tell her what Zelda just told him.


Conclusion

Link and Malon were finally approaching Lon Lon Ranch. It was all over. They had bid Princess Zelda and COMBAT farewell and dropped off Saria and Sodo. But Link had yet to tell Malon what Zelda had told him.

"Well, it's over," Malon said sadly. "Coming back to the ranch seems kind of boring now."

"Actually, I've got a little something to tell you that might pass the time," Link said.

Malon smiled. "And what's that?"

Link gave Malon a passionate kiss. "First, I just want to say how much I love you."

Malon was speechless. She and Link jumped off their horses and began walking into the ranch holding hands, as Link continued.

"Malon, have you ever wondered why you retained your memory of the past?"


THE END

Whoo! That was weeks in the making, but the story is finally over. I'm eager to hear your reactions and comments. So do not hesitate to review below or mail me at HyruleKokiri13@hotmail.com.