Chapter I: The Prophecy
She came to me in form of a dream, smiling as she always did, yet with eyes haunted from past memories. Her eyes would always bear that sadness, I knew. Throughout the day she could mask it, but in dreams she was nothing but truth, and because of this I could see her true pain that she kept hidden. A pain that haunted us both.
I was suddenly thankful for her presence, as her arrival had instantly dissolved the nightmare that was torturing my dreams. She floated gracefully over to me across a sea of darkness, the inner-most depths of my mind. She looked as she always did, only slightly younger. Her natural state. Her true form. Her dream self.
The Triforce of Wisdom glew on the back of her right hand, the source of the magic she'd used to enter my phantasama.
"Princess Zelda of Hyrule," I acknowledged her, bowing.
"Link...after everything...must you be so formal?" Zelda sighed, staring down at the ground sadly. Her hands were clasped around a small, blue object, although I couldn't tell exactly what it was.
"What
do you wish of me?" I
questioned. "What evil has entered
the world now?"
"Link...actually, it's nothing like that," Zelda smiled slightly. "Nayru has sent me a prophecy to tell
you."
"A prophecy? About what?"
"I don't know, exactly," Zelda sighed. "It doesn't make much sense to me. Maybe it will to you. Are you ready?"
I nodded. Zelda took a deep breath, and began.
"You only live twice
Or so it seems
One life for yourself
And one for your dreams
You drift through the years
And life seems tame
Till one dream appears
And love is its name
And love is a stranger
Who'll beckon you on
Don't think of the danger
Or the stranger is gone
This dream is for you
So pay the price
Make one dream come true
You only live twice
And love is a stranger
Who'll beckon you on
Don't think of the danger
Or the stranger is gone
This dream is for you
So pay the price
Make one dream come true
You only live twice."
Zelda paused, then nodded to let me know that was it.
"I don't understand it either. You only live twice? What does that mean?" I asked, confused.
"I don't know, Link. But Nayru told me to tell you to seek out the Oracle of Secrets, Farore. Din, Nayru, and Farore says it's finally time to worry about your happiness instead of that of the world's."
I bit back a laugh. My happiness? Since when had anyone cared about that?
"Where is Farore?" I questioned.
"Farore shall be waiting for you in the land of Labrynna. In the Symmetry Village you'll find a sparkling portal at exactly 2400 hours. This will be your portal to reach Farore. To get to the land of Labrynna, you'll need to follow the spirits through the Lost Forest. They shall show you the Way. The journey will be long and hard, and you won't be able to make it alone."
"Zelda, let me get this right, you mean to tell me that I can't make it to wherever this is alone, and yet I was alone pretty much my entire journey through Hyrule?"
"You had Navi," Zelda pointed out.
Navi couldn't provide the same companionship that a human could, though. She was very helpful...but not the friend I needed for support during that journey. But because I'd taken that journey alone, in a sense, I now didn't need anyone for survival. Just me.
"You also might need this for your journey," Zelda said, stepping closer to me and pressing a familiar object into my hands. The Ocarina of Time. "Nayru said you might need it. I don't know why, but it might become necessary in your travels."
"...I wonder what I'll need it for," I wondered out loud, realizing this quest would probably be just like all the others...
"Well, I trust the wise words of Nayru," Zelda shrugged. "I would also suggest that you do follow through with this quest. I'm not one to argue with the goddesses."
"Nor am I," I sighed. "I shall begin on their quest tomorrow."
"It's only for your happiness, this time. An unselfish act," Zelda said, her bright blue eyes locking into mine. I couldn't hold her gaze for over a few seconds, though. I could have sworn I saw silver tears filling her eyes. Strange looking, but things often were different in dreams. "It's the same wish we all have, isn't it? We only wish to live our lives without regrets. And yet that one simple wish is so hard to fulfill, for no matter what path we choose, there's always one left untaken. Had our lives been different had we chosen a different destiny? Or was our path through life already pre-plotted? Was there anything we could have done differently? We'll never know. Maybe that's what's most painful about all of this..."
I glanced up at her to realize she was crying.
"Princess Zelda...."
"No, Link," she shook her head, a sad smile crossing her face. "Don't say anything. I wish you the best of luck on your quest. Remember. Follow the faeries through the Lost Forest. Find your way to Labrynna. Seek out the Oracle of Secrets."
She repeated the Prophecy once more as she walked backwards, eventually disappearing into the inky darkness.
Without her to hold my mind's thoughts, I found myself falling into a deeper state of unconsciousness and thought nothing more throughout the rest of the night.
~//~
A/N: Okay, the 'prophecy' is actually some song lyrics, as you probably guessed. "You Only Live Twice" is copyrighted to Coldplay. It's not on their Parachutes or A Rush of Blood to the Head CDs. But it's all theirs, and I love Coldplay, and since I'm one of their fans, wouldn't they like, not mind if I borrowed their lyrics making sure to point out that I do not own them? Yeah, I think they'll forgive me.
And Zelda...yeah, I don't own it. Any of it! None of it! None of it's mine and I'm not saying it is!
Well if you liked or hated this or whatever, could you let me know where I can fix it and what to do to make it better? Thanks much for reading!
~Xifa~
