The young man screamed in agony as the bolt of black lightning tore his chest apart. He fell to the ground, gasping, sword falling from his suddenly nerveless fingers.

Malon reached out for him, already concentrating on a healing spell, she touched the wound and waited. Nothing happened. She looked at her hands in horror, why wasn't her magic working?

Death glazed the cerulean eyes that stared up at her, but still he tried to smile, to comfort her as he lay dying upon the floor. She grasped his hand, once again calling to the magic that wouldn't respond, crying at how hopeless the situation seemed. He weakly wiped her tears away, trying to smile and ending up coughing up blood instead, he sighed.

"Malon," he whispered, his voice strained, "Do you remember the first time we met?"

She nodded, trying to hold back tears, unable to speak.

"I think," he closed his eyes and smiled, "That was when I fell in love with you."

His eyes remained shut as his life finally slipped away, leaving Malon alone to pick up the pieces of her shattered heart.

"So even with two Heroes of Time, Hyrule will still fall!" a voice growled from behind her, laughing horribly.

Black rage welled from deep within her and she screamed out a challenge.

Burning eyes appeared out of the infinite darkness, "You can rant all you want child," the voice hissed, "But you will never win."

Another bolt of black lightning shot out of nowhere, striking her down. And even as death reared its ugly head, she gripped her lifeless love's hand and prayed for salvation.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Malon awoke in a cold sweat, nightgown sticking uncomfortably to her skin. Not in all her ten years of life had she had such a nightmare.

She realized that the man who had claimed he loved her was also the man who she had dreamed about the day before she had met Link. A notion stirred at the back of her mind, but she couldn't prod it enough to come forward and become obvious.

A soft click broke her concentration, her pointed ears twitching slightly at the sound, and she instinctively wrapped the blanket closer around herself.

The door opened slowly and a pair of blue eyes peered questioningly into the room, Navi flitted in ahead of her partner, "Sorry Link, sleeping beauty already woke up, the time to play Prince Charming has passed."

The young hero rolled his eyes, but not before a faint blush stained his cheeks.

The fairy settled herself on Malon's shoulder, crossing her legs she remarked, "You've been asleep for quite a while, do you feel all right?"

Malon frowned, "How long have I been out? Daddy wouldn't tell me when I first asked him."

"I think he said a week." Link offered, taking a chair from the table and pulling it near her bed.

There was a blur of colors and both boy and fairy were left blinking blankly at the empty spot that had once been Malon. Navi hovered in the air a moment longer before falling into the rumpled covers of the bed. Link smiled slightly at the cursing fairy then turned to the young sorceress who was pulling a dress out of her closet.

"What are you doing?" he asked, holding back a chuckle at her apparent state of disarray.

"Daddy and Ingo need my help running the ranch," she explained while attempting to pull a simple white dress over her head, "They must be so behind!"

He couldn't help it, he laughed, "First of all," he began, getting out of the chair and walking toward her, "Talon shut down the ranch to take care of you."

"Why did he do that, doesn't he know about taxes?" she squeaked, her voice muffled from beneath the dress she couldn't get over her head, "Why won't this damn dress fit?!"

"Nice language, Malon." He said, obviously amused, "Put your arms up."

Malon growled angrily, throwing her hands above her head and grumbling, "You didn't answer my question."

"Which one?" Link snickered, pulling the dress down for her.

"Don't get smart." She growled, adjusting the gown a little, and then she froze. She hadn't realized how close they were until now, their noses were almost touching and his breath was warm against her lips. Foreign feelings rushed through Malon, making her flush. She backed away just as the door opened.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The first thing Talon saw when he walked into the room was two blushing, shamefaced children.

There was a moment of awkward silence, and then Navi snorted. The snort rapidly escalated to a giggle, the giggle to hysteria tinged laughter.

"Honestly Talon, they're only ten!" she wheezed between gales of mirth, "What do you think they did? If only you could see the look on your face!"

The tension faded, Talon chuckled embarrassedly, Malon grinned, and Link rolled his eyes heavenward.

"Well you kids must be starvin', what would you say to a little lunch?" the rancher asked, walking out the door.

Malon's mouth watered at the thought of food and on cue her stomach growled.

Link smiled and ran out the door, yelling over his shoulder, "Hurry Navi, if we don't get there before Malon we might not get any at all!"

Malon glared at him, opening her mouth to argue only to have her stomach growl yet again. She let the denial die in her throat and she sighed, running after him.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Lunch was devoured quickly and with great enthusiasm, the roast beef sandwiches and cool raspberry tea both gone within five minutes. Afterwards, Link was forced to tell Malon about everything he had seen in his journeys in painstaking detail.

"You went through all that?" Malon asked at the end of his tale, "So the Gorons really don't eat children?"

Link laughed, "Just rocks." He replied, and then looked up to see the sun retreating, allowing the moon to take up residence in the sky.

She followed his gaze, "Why don't you spend the night?" she asked, continuing to look at the sky rather than at him.

He turned to her in puzzlement, "That was a big change of subject." He remarked, but after a moment he sighed, "I'm going to have to take a rain check."

"But it's already night, you might as well just stay." Malon felt the heat rise in her cheeks and hoped that it wasn't too noticeable.

Link raised an eyebrow at her insistence, wondering if the ruddiness of her cheeks was entirely due to the sun. He shook his head, realizing how silly he was acting, and was ready to refuse altogether when Navi interrupted.

"I would enjoy an actual bed for once." She said, glaring at him pointedly, "We can sleep in a pile of leaves tomorrow if you want, but tonight we sleep in a bed!"

Link seemed uncertain, and Malon knew she was gaining ground, "You can have my bed." she volunteered happily.

It seemed that had been the final blow, Link's resistance crumbled, "Where would you sleep?" he asked, sounding tired.

"In the barn." She replied, then saw his dubious expression and rushed to assure, "I usually sleep out there anyway."

"Then it's settled." Navi said in a no-nonsense tone of voice, grabbing a night-cap and a teddy bear out of thin air. "Goodnight kiddies, don't do anything I wouldn't do."

The fairy disappeared into the house, and Link gave Malon a defeated smile, "You sure you want to sleep in the barn?" he attempted one last time.

"Don't worry about it." She giggled, ushering him toward the door. "See you in the morning."

Malon ran toward the barn, pleased with herself for keeping Link safe, if only for one night.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

It was later that night that Malon heard it; the sound had floated softly into the barn awakening her from a light sleep. She got up and opened the door, walking outside and following the strange melody.

Link stood in the middle of the field, playing the tune in a roundelay, repeating the same set of notes yet making it sound intricate. She noticed a faint purple light emanating from him as she made her way across the field, making the already odd scene seem surreal.

The music stopped, he was looking at her now, taking the ocarina away from his lips, the glow fading.

"What was that song?" she asked softly, unsure if she was dreaming or not.

"A lullaby." He answered, smiling slightly at her sleepiness, "The Royal Family's song."

"It's beautiful." She breathed, "Do you think you could teach me how to sing it?"

He nodded hesitantly and played it once again, allowing her to get the hang of the odd tune.

Her voice was unsure at first, but as she continued the sound grew in volume. A faint purple light began to shimmer around her and she stopped, turning to see Link's approval.

"Now I'll teach you a song." Malon said brightly, "It's called Epona's song; it might be of use to you later."

Link listened attentively then tried it himself. He played the ocarina masterfully, she clapped at the perfection.

"I wanted to thank you Malon." He whispered, halting the applause, "For everything you've done."

"I didn't do that much." She stuttered, taken aback at the new subject, falling back upon her natural modesty.

Link gestured to his healed side, "You saved my life, I consider that to be worth thanking someone for."

She stared at the ground, too nervous to meet his eyes, and unsure how to respond. A 'you're welcome' seemed inappropriate, so she let the seconds tick by and after a eternity she finally looked up at him, wondering if he was still even there.

And that was when he kissed her. It was just a gentle brush against her lips, lacking in both passion and grace, but there was a lovely sweetness to it. Link pulled away to look at her shocked expression, and then grinned lopsidedly.

"Goodnight." he murmured dreamily, turning and walking toward the house.

Malon waited until she heard the door shut, and then she reached up and touched her lips. The tingling feelings had again invaded her stomach and chest, demanding attention that she could no longer afford to deny. She ambled toward the barn, eager to talk with Epona about her first kiss.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Author's Notes: That has got to be the most fluff I have ever placed in a fanfic, wow what a pointless chapter. Well eventually the whole exchange of songs thing will work to my advantage, and all you people who asked for romance should be marginally content. Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed it.

– Ourania