AN: I finally have no more exams! :D Yay! It's so nice not to have to study anymore…after having been revising solid for about a month --. Anyway here's the next chapter!Just a quick note though. Italics are Zelda's thoughts, and what happened in the last chapter was very necessary for something that will happen later in the story. But don't worry, Zelda did NOT die. You'll see what I mean in this chapter. Also I've just realised that link in chapter 4 never showed up, so I've put it in my profile instead. Sorry about that ;

Chapter 8: Departure and Arrival

Zelda's POV:

I began to feel that horrible slipping feeling; my consciousness ripped and separated from the dying old woman that was myself. The tingling fingers around my head gradually fell away and finally I could think freely for myself, not trapped inside the shell of a different body that sheltered this roaming spirit of mine through time.

It was like a dream, waking up in the body of someone else and being filled with their thoughts and recollections of their life. I had been filled with such wonderful, but frightening emotions. The relief and joy coursing through my veins when I had heard Link's voice had been one of the most exhilarating experiences I had ever lived through, while the sorrow of his loss was more than I could bear. The sheer dread and mourning grief dampened my heart like a thousand rivers of turmoil, and I resolved never to ever let myself feel that way again.

And the child…the small, little girl that I had held so tightly in my arms… I found myself blushing even through the rifts of time I was presumably travelling through. I didn't know where I would be taken next and I only hoped that Link was all right. I wondered if he had been to the future…if he knew about the child that we would raise together…

I smiled to myself wanting more than ever to see him and to once again be by his side. It was strange… I hadn't fallen in love with him through my own eyes, but through the memories of the future, and I found myself being swept along with the tide of their love. But I knew now that I did love Link. Every thought contained him and his bright smile, shining in even the darkest of moments…

I saw an opening up ahead; a dark circle at the end of the long tunnel of blurred images growing larger and larger. In a blinding light I found myself standing on the darkened, grey steps of Hyrule Castle, the rain pattering and splashing viciously on my cloaked back and the sodden earth and grass around me. The clouds veiled the entire sky with a thick, dark, ebony magma, a rumbling being born within its shell as the thunder cracked and clapped through the air. I could hear the waters of the moat behind me churn and speed hastily along the stone path of its course round and round the castle.

But in front of me stood a figure bravely withstanding the pelting bullets of water as he sat atop his horse, sitting proudly in the saddle. The man's clear blue eyes shone through the darkness like fiery torches and I saw the look of remorse on his dripping face as he looked at me.

"Link," I whispered, hardly audible in the lashing weather. "Please don't go, you can't leave now." My hands were clasped to my heart, trying to hold back the stinging pain beating against my chest, and amongst the rain water I felt the tears I had tried so hard to keep back fall down my cheeks. Link turned in his seat and jumped off Epona and walked slowly up to me, rekindling some kind of dying hope that he might stay after all.

"Zelda," he said touching a cold hand to my face. "You know I can't stay. I have to take this chance now, or I might never find Navi again. I know last time I tried to find her was in vain, but…" His sentence trailed and died on the wind. Link looked at me with pleading eyes, stroking my face tenderly. "I promise you I'll come back. I swear I won't be gone long, I promise you." He took my hand and held it to his lips, softly kissing each digit.

"Oh Link," I said sobbing. Gathering him to me I held his strong body in my arms tightly, never wanting to let go. "I'll miss you." But I knew that whatever I said would make no difference.

"Don't cry Zelda," Link cooed. "No matter where I go, or how long I'm gone, I'll always love you. Every time you close your eyes, I'll be there waiting for you. Every time you dream at night, I'll be there. I'm always with you Zelda." His gentle hands rubbed my shoulders making me shiver in the cold.

"I love you so much Link," I said choking on my tears. "I won't ever forgive you if you break your promise," I said smiling slightly. Link looked at me, and returned the grin.

"I'll always come back for you," he said wiping the droplets of water away from my eyes. I leaned up and kissed him with all my heart, savouring the sweet taste of his lips for one last time. Whispering 'I love you' over and over, my lips wouldn't stay satisfied with just one kiss. I kissed him again and again on his face and down his neck leaving a hot but quickly dampened trail over his skin.

"Be careful," I said hugging him one last time.

"I will," he replied, embracing me with equal ferocity. Without another word he pulled away and leapt up into Epona's saddle once more and kicked his heels. At once the mighty creature cantered away down in the hill and out of the gates, the dull thud of hooves in the earth growing fainter and fainter as my love galloped out of sight.

I stayed there for a very long time, losing myself in the beating of the rain and the sloshing of the moat. Suddenly I felt a fresh waterfall of tears escape valiantly from my eyes, containing a far stronger emotion that any I had felt before.

"What?" I whispered to myself. "Whose tears are these?"

They're my tears.

This was real. This wasn't some vision of my feelings; I really felt it. Deep down in my heart I knew that now, I did love Link. Those few moments weren't my acting out the thoughts of another but my…real feelings too…

At that moment, everything suddenly made a little more sense about what had happened…and why.

Link's POV:

"Zelda," I murmured. "Zelda, come back…"

"Are you all right young man?" a loud, sudden voice intruded. I jumped out of my sleep and found myself in an all too familiar situation with someone staring rather closely into my face. Having thought momentarily that this had all been a bad dream, back with the old man in the red cloak, I soon recognised the wooden ceilings and the soft bed in which I had rested in when I had arrived at Ruto Town.

"Sorry, bad dream," I muttered to the innkeeper and he quickly returned to his duties before looking back at me strangely.

It was Zelda; it really had been her standing there before me, cold and wet from the storm. I could still feel her lips against mine, the ghostly form of her mouth still lingering with me and I wanted more than anything in the world for her to be here at my side. But she too must be caught in the time shifts. At least I had the reassurance that Zelda was all right.

I set out with Epona as soon as I could, impatient to find another Triforce shard. As I rode toward the gates though, a distressed cry came from one of the houses. A wooden stall came hurtling out of a glass window, shattering it into tiny fragments. The shouts became louder and Epona reared in fright. I clamped my arms around her neck, trying my hardest to calm her down as well as stay in the saddle.

The brown mare eventually landed her hooves back on the ground with a large click as they crashed down to the stone cobbled street. Patting her neck and stroking her mane, I looked up to see a figure stumble and run from an alleyway and the sound of a slamming door echoed into my ears.

"You damn Gerudo! Come back here!" the voice of a gruff woman shouted. Snapping the reigns I pulled Epona in front of the thief to block their path, but in a swift leap the Gerudo jumped up to me, shoved me roughly out of my saddle and immediately sped away on Epona, their white cape and hood flying behind them.

"Hey!" I yelled. I was about to run after her when I realised that the sword that the old man had given me had fallen on the floor. Hastily I grabbed the blade from the ground and held it securely in a tight grip.

"W-Who are you?" the woman said in a timid voice. I had been about to run again but I froze in my tracks at her question. "A-Are you a ghost?" My mouth dropped open slightly and suddenly I realised what she was talking about. Technically I was meant to be dead…

Before the situation went any further, I dug around in my pockets for a Deku nut. Perhaps if the sword stayed with my through different times, then maybe other objects I had stashed away did also. Finally my hands felt the small wrinkled sphere, and following the tradition Sheik had used so many times in front of me I smashed the nut to the ground and ran away into the shadows before the brilliant light dimmed.

Running into the opposite alleyway, I knew I had to find a route that would bring me back to the Gerudo. Taking the first right possible I ran down the next street through the wandering people, but there no way I would catch her on foot; I needed something faster. My eyes searched the market stalls lining the road for something useful but many were just selling fruits and beans of some sorts.

And then I saw them, tucked away on the other side of the street: Pegasus Seeds direct from Holodrum and Labrynna. Weaving my way through the crowds, I pulled out a surprisingly small Rupee bag, and asked quickly how much they cost. But the old man sitting at the counter raised his head as if from a dream.

"Yes lad? How may I help you?" his old, tired voice droned.

"I need some of your Pegasus Seeds, quickly!" I said, my feet itching to be back on the run.

"Well now, how many bags would you like?"

"How much do they cost?" I said restlessly.

"One bag costs 10 rupees," he said filling the small dark sack carefully. "Two bags cost 20 rupees, and three - ". He was going so slowly that Epona would be undoubtedly beyond the gates by now.

"I'll take two bags," I said slamming down the entire pouch and scooping up the remaining seeds myself. Leaving the old man speechless I hurried off and chucked a handful into my mouth. At once I felt the strength and speed stream through my veins and in a flash I was running as fast as the wind down the street. Ignoring the confused people I dashed my way around the villagers, keeping my eyes alert for any sign of Epona.

An abrupt, occurrence then came across my line of vision. A white cape billowed in the wind as it rode perpendicular to the straight road up another alleyway and I saw the chestnut red colour of my mare disappear behind the stone buildings. Shoving another handful of the seeds into my mouth I sped after them, finishing the first bag. Dropping it to the floor I screeched around the corner and sprinted as fast as I could toward the flickering white cape of the rider.

The Gerudo turned around in the saddle and saw me trailing close behind, but I swear I saw her smile as she turned her attention back to where she was going, making Epona pick up speed. I followed her right out toward the gates and she cantered into the open fields of the late morning. The sun was high in the sky and I could see the Gerudo thief a lot more clearly. The breeze had picked up and blew her hood away from her head, letting her long, tied back red hair twist in the wind.

Cramping another of seeds in I came level with the tired horse and looked up at the woman who taken Epona captive. "So you've caught me, eh Link?" she said smiling. Suddenly she pulled my horse to a stop, dust clouds gathering at her hooves. I on the other hand kept on running until I realised that the thief had stopped. Digging my heels into the earthy soil I ground to a halt and jogged, rather quickly, back to Epona and the Gerudo.

But as I neared, I finally recognised who she was. "Nabooru?" I said confused. "What in Din's name are you doing?" I said continuing to inhale the refreshing air deeply as I caught my breath.

"So the rumours are true," she said ignoring my question. "Are you really back from the dead or are you some other kind of unearthly being 'your majesty'? A mixture of solemnity and sarcasm rang in her words as she hopped down from Epona's saddle.

'Well if she's not going to answer my question, there's no reason I need to answer hers," I thought. "Why did you steal Epona?"

"I had to get away somehow. You just happened to have a horse that I could use. She's a good strong horse, but you probably know that already," she said stroking Epona's neck.

"Why are you here?"

"I could ask you exactly the same thing 'your royal undead-ness'," she said with a mock bow. "But for your information, I'm here to investigate what the hell has been happening down here. You know Hyrule's in a right mess because of you!"

"Yeah, I know. But the real problem is back in my world!" I protested.

"What? Your world? This is your world!" Nabooru exclaimed.

"No it isn't. For me, this is the future. I've been sent here because time has become disrupted and now my Triforce has broken, with each part probably thrown into a different time!" I said, realising just how hopeless this situation actually looked. "I might never see Zelda again, or even find her if this isn't fixed; I might stay in this god-forsaken land for the rest of my life - "

"Hey! Hero of Time!" Nabooru said loudly. "I've got something that might interest you."

"If it's a ticket home I'll gladly take it," I said sarcastically.

"No, something a little better," Nabooru said with a cunning smile as she opened a pouch at her side. "I believe this belongs to you." She tossed me a shining object and when I caught it, a bright light shone from my palm and it suddenly disappeared…into a larger glowing piece of my Triforce triangle on the back of my hand…

"Nabooru," I said, shocked at what had just happened. "Where did you get this from?"

"I picked it up on my travels. To be precise, I found it in that old hag's home. It was just sitting there on the shelf, so I thought I might as well give it back to its owner."

"Thank you," I said gratefully.

"Well, don't just stand there. We've got more Triforce to find!" she said pulling her cloak back over her head. The Gerudo then put two fingers to her mouth and she whistled loudly, calling her own horse from the town gates. The brown horse cleverly un-tethered itself from the post near the walls, and quickly cantered to its mistress. As the stead came toward her, Nabooru lifted herself up onto the saddle in a fluid swing, all while the animal was still moving. "Hurry up slow coach!" she called over her shoulder as she sped off down the dusty road.

Shaking my head I jumped up into Epona's saddle and galloped after her, smiling to myself at the fact that no matter how many years had passed, Nabooru was just the same as when I had first met her.