"Okay, how are we going to get them in a safe place to separate them?" Link asked Impa. "Do you know of any places that no one ever goes?" He thought for a moment.
"The garden!"
"That'll do. Convince 'Zelda' to come down there in an hour. I'll need a little more time." He nodded and started to walk out of the room. "Oh, and Link-" He turned around.
"Don't worry. I'll be able to save her."
"I know, Impa. I trust you." He went back to his room to relax. Link…are you…there? He looked around, but no one was there. A shimmering figure materialized in front of him. "Zelda! Is that you?"
"Sort of. Just my spirit. Listen. I know you are going to perform a spell to separate Ganondorf and me. But there's something you need to know. It won't work."
"What do you mean? Impa is great with magic!"
"No, I mean-it will only release his spirit. I don't have enough life energy left to return to my body; I can only stay in this form. Technically, I'm already dead. I went to the Chamber of Sages, where I had to decide either to be revitalized or be truly dead and live in the Sacred Realm. I can still visit you in spirit, though. Anyway, there is only one way to destroy him. We would need the power of all the Sages, including me, to seal him back in the Dark Realm. But, since I can't be returned to my body until he's gone, there's only one thing to do."
"I'm afraid to ask, but what is it?" She took a deep breath.
"I could give my pieces of the Triforce to you. Then you would have enough power to defeat him. The problem is that they're the only things keeping me alive. So if I disconnected with them, I would die. For good."
"You can't do that! I couldn't live without you!"
"There's no other way. I'm sorry, Link. I will always love you, and I'll miss you." She wiped a tear from her eye and disappeared. "Zelda…no…" Link couldn't do anything but cry.
"Are you sure you want to do this, Zelda?" said Rauru.
"It's the only way, and you know it." She was facing away from him.
"It's breaking Link's heart!"
"I know. But I'll always be with him. As long as he remembers me." She couldn't stop the tears from streaming down her cheeks. Even though she couldn't feel them, her vision was blurred. "When will you give him the Triforce?"
"Right before Impa does the spell. At least I have a little time to say goodbye."
"Didn't you just talk to him?" came Saria's quavering voice. She was on the verge of tears as well.
"Yes, but I can't leave him in the state he is. I just wanted to make sure you know what I am going to do."
"Very well, Zelda. It's your decision, and I can't change it. Now, go back to Link. He needs you," said Rauru. She nodded and teleported back to the castle.
"Link? Are you still here?" She appeared in his room. He was sitting on his bed, crying uncontrollably. He looked up when he heard her voice. "I thought you left for good," he said miserably. "I just needed to make sure Rauru knew what I was doing. You know, it takes more than a moment to say goodbye. I thought…we could go to the garden. I haven't been there in a while, and it's so peaceful that I thought-" She broke off, afraid she would start crying again.
"I need to tell Impa first. We were planning to do the spell there, but she'll understand."
"Can I come with you?"
"Can you make yourself invisible to other people?"
"Yes."
"Then okay." They hurried up to the library, Link's eyes still red and Zelda thinking quietly.
"Impa, there's been a change of plans," he told her hastily.
"Zelda is…"
"I have to give Link the pieces of the Triforce that I own."
"But Zelda, that will kill you!" Impa exclaimed in shock.
"I know. But it's the only way. Ganondorf has completely absorbed my energy and robbed me of my life. If you separated him and my body, you would only be releasing his newly energized spirit. I have to do this, as much as I will miss Link." She started crying softly. Link hugged her, not noticing that she was a solid figure even though she looked ghostly.
An hour later, Link was just about ready to get Zelda's imitation. "May this, my final gift to you, the Hero of Time, aid you in the struggle against darkness," Zelda said, placing her hand on top of his. There was a glow of white light underneath, and Link felt stronger, faster, and more skilled than he ever had before. Zelda's face twisted in agony. Her ghost grew more and more transparent, until she vanished in a puff of blue smoke. Goodbye, Link. Her words echoed in his soul, the last ones she ever said. Fighting back tears, he found the fake Zelda and led her to the garden.
"Where are we going, Link?"
"You'll see." They reached the entrance, Link closing the door behind them. He could sense Impa's presence, though he guessed she was using her shadow skills to stay hidden.
"Okay, now what's this all about?"
"It's time to get rid of you…Ganondorf!" Instead of looking shocked, Zelda smiled evilly.
"I'm surprised you have figured out my plans, Hero of Time. But it's too late. Your precious Zelda's energy belongs to me now."
"Now!" Link shouted as Impa came out of hiding. She poured a glowing green liquid on Zelda's head. There was another golden flash, and there was Ganondorf, standing in front of Link. He drew the Master Sword and attacked the Gerudo in a blind rage, somehow leaving the surrounding plants unharmed. Slash after slash, spin after spin, he only got a few good blows on Ganondorf, who was firing magic blasts the entire time. Impa used a quick spell to freeze him, allowing Link to stab him hard. "This is for all the suffering you put Hyrule through!" He thrust the blade into Ganondorf's black heart. "This is for all the monsters you made me fight!" Another strong attack. Pulling the sword out, he shouted one last thing. "This is for Zelda!" He stabbed the Gerudo for the last time, which made him scream in torture. A dark portal opened, sucking in all of the evil. It vanished as quickly as it had appeared, restoring peace to the garden. Link was breathing hard, but it was mainly from the last three attacks. The rest of the battle hadn't taken much out of him. "Now he'll never come back." He sheathed the Master Sword, then said to Impa, "Thanks for all your help. I couldn't have done it without you."
"You're welcome, Link."
"I would like to say thank you as well." They turned and saw the Aronos leaning against a tree, his face peaceful, despite the battle he had undoubtedly seen. Instinct told Link who he was. "You-this is all your fault! It's because of you that Zelda had to die!" Link rapidly pulled out his sword, ready for battle again.
"I do not want to fight you."
"You sure don't. Now that I have the Triforce, you don't stand a chance!" Aronos simply walked over to him. "I am truly sorry about Zelda. It was out of loyalty to Ganondorf that I did it, although I can't say I know why I was ever loyal to him. Allow me to make it up to you." He chanted under his breath, "Ichen ralmea sacredia.". A golden sphere descended from the sky. "Step into it, Link." Link cautiously walked into the glowing orb. As soon as he did, he found himself looking at a vast sky. A vast golden sky. He could sense peace and happiness surrounding him. "The Sacred Realm," he said to himself. He suddenly remembered a poem about the Sacred Realm, and decided to say it. " 'In a Realm beyond sight, the sky shines gold not blue; There, the Triforce's might makes mortal dreams come true.' I never thought I'd actually make it here. But I have. I wonder if-"
"The one you seek is here, Hero of Time." He heard three gentle voices speaking in unison. It must have been the Goddesses. "Zelda? She's here? Where?"
"All will be known in time. First, there is another for you to meet." He stared into the distance, seeing a small silver circle flying towards him.
"Could it be?" As it got closer, it was unmistakable.
"Navi! You're okay!" She floated around him, giggling.
"Yes, I'm fine. How are you?" He turned away from her.
"It's Zelda. She's-"
"-here. But we'll get to that in a minute," she finished, almost nonchalantly. Link was starting to get annoyed. He had come here to find Zelda (he thought), and everyone, even Navi, was holding him back.
"She's regaining her life energy. Anyway, I'm glad you're okay. And you did a really good job of getting rid of Ganondorf. Do you know anything about Aronos?"
"Slow down, Navi. One topic at a time. In order: good, I'm fine, it was easy, and no."
"Oh. He's Impa's nephew. When you, him, and Zelda were little, Impa would bring him over to the castle to play with Zelda. They were almost as good of friends as you and Saria. When Zelda told Impa about her dream, Impa took him to live in Kakariko Village. Before he left, Zelda gave him a book of magic spells because he loved reading. Kind of like when Saria gave you the Fairy Ocarina."
"So, he wasn't always evil?"
"No, that happened after he met Ganondorf. You know the house in Kakariko that was where the well is now? That was his house. Ganondorf destroyed it, killing his mother and sister; the only family he had. It made him turn evil, but now he's back to normal."
"That's sad." He paused for a second. "So, where's Zelda?"
"In a minute, Link! Listen, you need to make a decision. You can either put the Triforce here so it can stay protected, or you can keep it safe within you. If you leave it here, you may not be able to be completely sure it is safe, but it would be one less task for you to fulfill. If you keep it, you can personally be sure it is secure, and you will have greater power than ever before. But with that power comes responsibility. Try not to use it just for fun."
"I won't."
"I'm guessing you're going to keep it then?" He nodded with a smile, though his eyes were still sad. "I don't mean to rush, but when can I see Zelda?"
"I'm right here." His face brightened and he turned around towards the voice. Zelda was standing there, smiling. Her voice was peaceful and calm. She ran toward Link and hugged him.
"I'm so glad you're alive!" he said, crying from happiness. Zelda was crying too. Navi was about to cry, but instead she just sighed and waited. After a few moments, Zelda pulled away and looked at Link.
"I think I want to go home now," she said.
"Good idea." Link looked at Navi. "Navi, would you like to come back with us?"
"I'm sorry, but I need to stay here."
"Why?"
"I am going to watch over the world with the Goddesses."
"You mean-"
"Yes. Din, Nayru, and Farore."
"Oh. Okay. Just be sure to visit me sometime." She laughed.
"I will."
"Well, I'm glad you're okay, Navi. I've missed you so much!" He gave the fairy a gentle hug, then walked back to the glowing orb that had brought him there. "Goodbye, Navi!" he shouted to her. "Bye!" Link took Zelda's hand, and they walked into the magical, glowing portal, arriving back at the garden.
"I feel really bad about what happened when I met Ganondorf, Impa. I'm sorry." Aronos was talking to Impa. His face was troubled.
"I know. It's not your fault. Ganondorf corrupted many people."
"But I was…so…loyal to him. That…evil…Grrr!" He felt so angry; at himself, at Ganondorf… "Aronos, please!" She put a hand on his shoulder. "You couldn't have done anything. He was too powerful."
"She's right, you know." Link said. Impa ran over to Zelda and hugged her.
"You don't know how worried I was!"
"Why were you worried? Link was with me," she said, with almost a hint of confusion.
Impa laughed.
"I guess you're right." Zelda noticed who else was standing there. "Aronos! I haven't seen you in years!" She ran over to him and gave him a hug. For once, Link didn't feel overprotective of her. He knew Zelda hadn't seen her best friend in a long time, while he got to see Saria almost every other day.
"You look different," said Aronos.
"You too! I never thought that's what you would look like when you grew up!"
"Same here. I thought I'd never see you again after I met…him…"
"Will you get over that already? What's done is done. What matters is that you're okay; I'm, well, alive; and that we're all here together! Right, Link?"
"Right." She went back to Link and stood next to him, smiling.
"I'm so happy everything worked out! It couldn't get much better than this!"
"Actually, it can," said Impa.
"How?" Zelda said curiously.
"I'll show you," said Aronos, waving open a portal. He led Link and Zelda inside, leaving Impa in the garden.
Zelda, Link, and Aronos found themselves standing in the room where Zelda had been trapped. "This is where my spirit was. This is where I died…I hope Dark Link isn't here!" Zelda looked frightened. Link pulled out the Master Sword, ready for battle. "Yes, I'm here. But I won't kill you this time." They saw Dark Link and Shadow Zelda by the dead tree. They looked…different somehow.
"You aren't black anymore. What happened?" said Link.
"My fault, actually. But it doesn't matter too much. We are no longer your evil shadows. Instead, we are…ummm…what are we again?" Shadow Zelda said, seemingly talking to herself.
"That is a little hard to explain. You see, even though you're not dark, evil beings anymore, you're not completely good. The reason you turned silver is because you were never fully living before the…incident, if you will. However, you possessed enough dark energy to stay in a Hylian form. In other words, you were dead, but you weren't, and you used to be evil, and now you're not all the way evil, but not totally good, either," said Aronos. There was a long silence.
"What does that mean?" asked Dark Link.
"I think I get it," Link said.
"Even though you two were just our shadows, whatever happened to you must have made you part living."
"Oh, I get it," said Shadow Zelda. Zelda had been humming the Serenade of Water the whole time. She turned into Sheik, took out her golden harp, and played the magical song. Link took the cue, pulled out the Ocarina of Time, and began the song. Aronos smiled and listened to the music. After being played, the light, wispy notes seemed to hang in the air for a whispery moment before vanishing, only to be smoothly replaced with new notes. Link and Sheik didn't even notice when their shadows rejoined them; the song didn't change at all. As they lapsed into the last few notes, they realized that Dark Link and Shadow Zelda had disappeared. "Where did they go?" asked Link.
"They are a part of you again. You are finally back in balance," said Aronos. Sheik turned back into Zelda.
"Let's go back to the castle." Link said, taking hold of Zelda's hand.
"Good idea." Aronos opened a portal, and they teleported back home.
Review Responses:
Well, that's that. I hope you didn't hate it. I had to change a million and one things, so it is quite strange. Originally, it was going to be about that missing piece in the center of the Triforce, but as I typed it, my slightly twisted mind changed it. Review. Please? Come on, it won't hurt! That much…Anykawhosit (Anyway), I'm working on another one now. It's completely written out. Yes, I confess, I write out everything before I type it. Stupid, waste of paper-but I can't take a computer to school and have my friends regularly read and review my story, so notebooks work better. Speaking of reviewing…GO! NOW! RUN! (chases people towards review button) Now click on it! (people stand there confused) Don't make me bring in the rabid non-reviewing-people-eating dogs! (people review as many times as possible) Good people! (horsie890 wakes up from dream of people reviewing) Why can't the world be perfect? Anyways-aren't you glad I don't believe in putting author's notes in the middle of my story? DDK1993: You do that all the time. horsie890: Not on the computer. DD: True. horsie890: This has been another really weird story from me. Yep. Bye now. Wait, I just thought of something! (Someone from the back row throws a plastic brick at horsie890's head, knocking her unconscious) Everyone: Yay!
–your idiotic/psychotic pal, horsie890.