Chapter 1 - The Castle
Link and Epona sped off towards the castle, flying over the dusty path, their tailwind moving short grass. Link clicked his tongue, steering Epona off the path, which was turning to mud in the rain. The last thing they needed was to get stuck, especially at a time like this.
Her cries for help were still echoing around his head, making his temples throb every few seconds. Huge droplets of rain were splashing onto his face, blinding him so that he had to wipe his eyes to even have a hope of seeing. The storm was just beginning to work itself up, and already he couldn't see a meter in front of him. He closed his eyes, resorting to his inner guidance system to lead them both to the castle as quickly as possible. Luckily, Epona could run fast, even in rain, and was not spooked easily. They reached the castle within a few minutes – Link could tell because of the noise Epona's shod hooves made on the hard wood of the drawbridge, followed by the even louder clattering of metal on stone in the marketplace. All of the shopkeepers had taken in their stalls, and the windows on every house were shut tight. Even the guards were standing, shivering, under the stairs on Link's left. The alleys, he knew, would be full of puddles and soaking stray dogs, fighting amongst themselves for the best shelter.
And still the rain came down, as impenetrable and cold as ever. Link was soaked to the bone, but he still kept riding, hoping that the guards would be taking shelter in the small guardhouse just behind the gate. Link closed his eyes and slowed Epona down a bit, focusing all of his strength and calling up his seldom-used magic. He stretched out his gloved hands, willing the iron gate to slide open. When he opened his eyes again, they were past the gate and still going up the path. He laughed aloud in relief and spurred Epona on, blindly following his memories of the path leading to Hyrule Castle.
He could just barely hear Epona's hooves once again making contact with hard marble. He dismounted and slowly walked forwards, hoping against hope that the drawbridge was still down. His toes felt the edge of the moat, and he swore softly when he heard the clinking of chains that told him they were raising the bridge. The rising planks of wood smacked him under his chin, and he grabbed onto the rough edge of the wood, stars swimming in front of his eyes. As the Castle Guard pulled up the drawbridge, he clambered on top of it, slowly changing his centre of balance as the edge of wood got higher and more parallel to the ground. When it finally stopped with one last, loud clanking noise, he let himself dangle over the edge, his fingers clenching the wood. He moved as quickly as he dared, dropping down to the ground and landing on all fours to absorb most of the shock.
The inside of the castle was well lit by candles and torches, and the only damp spot was the small strip above his head that was left open between the drawbridge and the wall. The Castle Guard was lounging around, obviously not expecting an intruder on such a stormy day, the like of which had not been seen in decades. Link immediately spotted a large flight of stairs at the opposite end of the hall, and swore under his breath for the second time in the same amount of minutes as he scooted into the darkness formed by the low ceiling above him. There were no friendly shadows at the edges of the large rectangular room beyond this little entrance way; the small fires everywhere were canceling them out. He would have to make a run for it. He looked around nervously at the multitudes of guards playing poker or talking over mugs of ale. Many of them were gathered around a huge fireplace at the far end of the hall, which contained a blazing fire that blasted heat into Link's chilled bones, even from this distance.
Fuzzy screams blasted into his head again, and he wondered why Zelda had not called the guards. Maybe they couldn't hear her mental screams – that would be no surprise, considering she would obviously be prohibited from unnecessary contact with the guards, and only someone who had known her well and actually *had* even the slightest magical abilities could hear her, and he doubted any of the guards were magic. Her father firmly believed that any contact with men even close to her age would result in…*undesirable* consequences. That was why, after allowing Link to routinely visit Zelda for a year, the King had convicted him of High Treason, and followed through with the due punishment. Link grimaced to himself, knowing exactly why the King had done so. It was silly, really, how picky Royals could be, but there was no way around it. He closed his eyes, resting for a moment, and went back in time six years, not really caring that he could be found. For that moment, he just stopped caring and allowed his memories to play through his head.
***
He and Zelda had been walking in the courtyard, playing hide-and-seek around the trees and lying on their backs in the flowers, staring up at the sky and imagining, as young often do. Link was already eleven, and Zelda would be turning eleven in a few days. Young Link had remembered to bring her a small bouquet of pretty flowers from the forest, knowing how much Zelda liked flowers and disliked the shiny things the Royal Court insisted on pressing into her hands. They were, ironically, talking about the future. The clouds in the sky were reflecting in both of their eyes, but Link's tears were not from the bright sunshine. He could remember, in perfect detail, what Zelda had done after they had defeated Ganon's true form together. He wanted so much to forget it, but couldn't imagine living without the memories. Link remembered his whole time in that alternate Hyrule, and his dreams were filled with shadows and evil power beyond comprehension.
He smiled, though, and wiped away the thin trickle of salt water on his cheek as he listened to Zelda wonder about what the future held in store for her.
"My father says that I'm going to marry a prince from a far away land when I get older, but I don't really want to. I've met a few of them, and they all seem really mean. I don't want to get married at all. How 'bout you?"
Link avoided Zelda's gaze and stared uncomfortably at the sky.
"Oh, I dunno. Whatever happens, happens, I guess."
"Well, I want to go on a big adventure, and have lots of fun and excitement. We should go on an adventure together, when we're old enough."
Now Link did look at her, and sadness was in his smile and voice.
"I don't know about that, Zel. I don't really want to go on an adventure, more a…journey, I guess."
She smiled at him, teasing him a little bit.
"You're not really sure about anything, are you?"
He smiled back.
"Nope."
For some reason, they both found this hilarious, and they laughed together for a while. They were both out of breath when Link finally spoke.
"Do you still want to be friends, when we're older?"
She grinned at him, showing off her recently lost tooth.
"I don't know how I could survive living in this old stuffy castle without you for a friend, Link." She sat up, staring down at his face, wishing he would look her in the eye for once.
"We'll be friends forever, won't we?"
She touched his shoulder, and his only response was to close his eyes. A tear slipped out from underneath one of his eyelids, and she gently wiped it away, used to his crying for no reason. He sighed, his breath coming out shakily, and sat cross-legged, facing her. He opened his eyes, meeting her gaze, and smiled a bit. He laughed suddenly, surprising her, and got up, pulling her to her feet. Link flashed her a roguish grin, then said, "Let's sneak out of the castle, just for fun. I could show you where I live, well, where I live half of the time, anyway."
She grinned back, but when he started to pull her out, she stopped, frowning a bit.
"I don't know about this, Link. My father never lets me out of the castle."
"Aw, who cares about your dad? He'll never find out anyway."
Zelda thought for a moment, then gave in and ran after him, her long blonde hair streaming behind her.
"You're right. He doesn't care about me anyway. He's just a great big stuffy old badger."
They both giggled and ran behind the hedge, and slowly but surely made their way past the guards and out of the castle, crawling through the small drain that was only just starting to get too big for them.
About an hour later, Zelda and Link were in the busy marketplace. The princess marveled at the large number of people and listened with half an ear as Link haggled a shopkeeper for a rough brown traveling cloak. The keeper was asking for seven rupees, and Link only had five. The crabby, fat old man behind the counter finally gave in, reasoning that no one else had even spared the item a sideways glance and he was lucky to even get five rupees for the homespun cloak. He huffily handed it over as Link counted out his rupees, then he walked over to Zelda, who was standing with her back to him, gazing at the crowds of people.
"Zelda, here. People can't recognize you – we might get trouble."
She blinked slowly, coming out of an amazed trance, and slowly put on the cloak and pulled up its hood. Link smiled at her and spoke softly, always aware of the possibility of eavesdroppers.
"Now, just shuffle a bit and walk bent over. Pretend you're my grandma or aunt or something. Okay?"
She whispered back an affirmative and shuffled after him, getting knocked around a bit in the bustling crowd. They were slowly making their way towards the Happy Mask Shop and had nearly reached the deserted stairs beside it when Zelda was knocked especially hard by a foul-smelling man with a gritty face and greasy skin. He snarled down at her and pushed her to the ground, hoping to see some loose coins fall out of her cloak.
"Hey, granny, watch where you're walking! I'm trying to shop here!"
Link stepped between them, heeding the audience that was beginning to form.
"Stay away from her, mister. She hasn't done any harm to you!"
"Well, she was in the way!"
"She's old, not right in the head. Leave her alone."
"If she's crazy, what's she doing here? Get lost, kid. I'll take care of your grandma for you."
Laughing, he reached for the still disguised princess, his free hand going to his belt, presumably for a knife. Link stepped between them again, not wanting to cause any more trouble.
"Look, mister, if you leave now, I'll forget about this little incident. We don't want anybody to get hurt, do we?"
The man snarled and pushed Link aside.
"Move it, kid. You're in my way."
He took Zelda's arm, and her muffled scream was only audible to Link's ears. Enough was enough, and he was sick of taking crap from people. He drew the Kokiri sword and put his shield on his arm, ignoring the sudden hush that fell over the crowd surrounding them, ignoring that they all took a few steps back to give them room.
"Granny, move. I won't let him hurt you."
Zelda got up from the ground, but she didn't move. Instead, she crouched a bit, concentrating as much as she could, and let loose a blast of magic, knocking the man off of his feet, into the wall, and out cold. Total silence reigned over the moment, broken only by Zelda's panting. Suddenly, a woman screamed, making Link jump.
Loud murmuring ambushed Link's sensitive ears, and a woman in a blue dress shouted loudly, "She's a witch!" Someone else cried, "Stone her!" The crowd milled around, working itself into a frenzy, and several young men were sent to find stones. Link managed to get their backs to a wall, and he held up his weak wooden shield, knowing they would eventually die. Unless…yes, it just might work! He held out his small blade, pointing it straight in front of him, and let his learned magic flow through his veins. He bared his teeth and closed his eyes, ignoring the images of a tall, staring, screaming blonde teenager with a single pierced ear that flashed in front of him. His older self was bleeding, hurting, summoning up something deeper, something that nobody, including himself, knew existed. Something more powerful, something with more meaning, a certain *something* that shook him to the core. The angry faces and loud voices of the people fell away, and all that was left was him and the darkness surrounding him. He opened his eyes and, just as he had hoped, the shadow was broken by a soft blue glare surrounding his sword. Link slowly shuffled forward, careful not to break his concentration, and suddenly swung his sword, releasing the magic and knocking the stunned crowd away.
They got up, now a few more meters away, and talked among themselves in shock. They had heard of female witches, but *male* witches? The woman in blue screamed and ran away, soon followed by the entire crowd. They vanished into alleys, shops and dark corners, and, for the first time in centuries, total silence fell over the marketplace of Hyrule.
Link sheathed his sword and put away his shield, unhappy that he had needed to resort to such desperate measures. He turned to Zelda and pulled her to her feet, gently chiding her.
"You shouldn't have used your magic so quickly. I could have beaten him."
"I don't know. He looked pretty big, and *very* ugly."
Link chuckled. "I've beaten things much bigger and more ugly than him."
Zelda nodded, and looked at the ground, blushing. "Sorry."
Link shook his head. "There's no need to apologize. You didn't know you were doing something… unwise. Just remember that for next time."
"I'm afraid, children, that there won't *be* a next time."
The King of Hyrule, surrounded by his Royal Guard, and all on horseback, glared down at them both. Link bravely met his gaze, but Zelda stared at the ground, knowing the severe lecture she would receive later. The King met Link's eyes coolly, and Link heard the deep disapproval and the overall feeling of 'I-told-you-so' in his deep, commanding voice when he spoke again.
"So. This is what my daughter and her playmate have been up to all this time. Sneaking out of the castle grounds, disturbing the peace, and hurting anyone who gets in their way, hmm? Well, no more. Link, you are –"
"Father!" Zelda interrupted the King, and Link looked at her in surprise, knowing how much she was risking to speak out like this. The King looked at her, narrowing his eyes.
"Father. Link was only trying to protect me. It wasn't his fault, it was my idea in the first place. You must understand –"
The King raised his hand, and Zelda fell silent. Even she would not go against his direct wishes. He glared down at Link, looking him straight in the eye.
"Zelda, you know that I respect your opinion, but I think that in this particular case, your view is clouded by undue emotions. Guards, escort her back to the castle, immediately!"
One of the guards lifted Zelda onto his horse gently, and the Captain started to lead five of them back. The King called, "Captain! You are to stay, along with two other guards. The rest of you, go with the Princess. Her eyes are not fit to see what must happen here."
Vespin, the Captain, dropped his eyes uncomfortably, then signaled to two of his oldest and most trusted subordinates. They stopped their horses just behind the King's proud grey stallion, and the King waited until Zelda's desperate screams and pleading, along with the clip - clopping of the guards' horses had disappeared into the misty distance. The King looked up, wiping away a drop of rain that fell into his eye. The sky was clouding over very quickly, more quickly than was natural, and he didn't like it. He squinted at the young boy standing defiantly before him. A light drizzle began to fall as he spoke.
"Boy, we will speak man – to – man. I'm sick of all this dodging and hiding that we do. Do you understand?" Link nodded, never taking his eyes off of the King's. The noble man sighed, and many years of much responsibility fell onto his shoulders, sagging his proud posture and drawing lines on his face that had been nearly invisible before.
"I must be forward with you. I don't like you, boy. I don't like the look of you, the amazing skill you have with a sword, your relationship with my daughter, and I especially don't like your eyes." The King forced himself not to flinch as Link turned the fiery stare of those eyes on him.
"You've planted ideas in her head, made her disobedient and unpredictable, which are not the signs of a good future Queen." He paused for a moment.
"Let me tell you a bit about my wife, boy. She was quiet, beautiful; Zelda looks just like her. She was a little thing – she died giving birth to Zelda, and I promised her that I would make sure Zelda became a proper Queen and a proper wife. You're changing all of my hard work, and I don't like it. And now, you've endangered her life. You know what I call that, boy?"
Link shook his head, not liking how this conversation was going. The guards shifted uncomfortably.
"I call that treason against the High Crown. Do you know what the punishment is for High Treason?"
Again, Link shook his head. Captain Vespin was shaking ever so slightly. Link stared at him for a moment, then looked back at the King.
"The penalty for High Treason is execution by beheading. I don't think a trial is necessary in this case. So, do you have any last words?"
Link stopped breathing, paralyzed by what the King was saying.
"I said, do you have any last words?"
The world swirled around him. What had he done wrong?
"This is your last chance, boy."
Link shook his head, and small droplets of rain went flying around him. The sun shone down on the marketplace as the rain fell, an ironic background to an ironic situation.
"Yes, I have last words."
"Well, what are they?"
Link stood up straight and stared the King in the eye.
"Tell Zelda…tell her I'm sorry, I never meant any harm. And tell your daughter this…her father is a fool." The King clenched his teeth in anger, but merely raised an eyebrow, waiting for him to either continue or finish. He was now determined to kill the child, and paid no mind to the far-off look in his eyes.
Link sat down hard on the stone-paved yard, and watched faces peer out at him from shelters. Could they hear every word he was saying? Did they know he was going to be executed right there, in the market? Could they possibly understand the flurry of emotion within him at that very moment? He stared up at the King, still caught in disbelief, then moved his gaze to the sky. What he saw wrote itself into his mind forever.
"Anything else, boy? Hurry up, I don't have all day."
The sky to the west was clear and blue, and the only thing that marred it was a black figure, holding something he couldn't make out. As he watched, the figure was caged by a prism of pure golden light. The object, which he was pretty sure was a Hylian, threw back its head and opened its mouth. Thunder echoed through the damp air.
"Well, if that's all…Captain Vespin, carry out the sentence, if you please. Lieutenant Oran, relieve him of his sword and shield." Link stood, staring into the sky, unable to move as Oran removed his weapons, muttering under his breath, "If you can get away, we won't stop you." Link gave no indication that he had heard this, so Oran stepped back, not wanting the King to suspect anything. Indeed, the King's voice was entirely without suspicion when he spoke again.
"Link, you are sentenced to death by beheading."
The person floating in the sky turned its head, and Link felt as if his entire body was being pierced by that gaze. He shuddered, and, with another loud boom of thunder, the person disappeared. Words came unbidden into his mind, and he spoke them.
"Though shadow is rising over the world, light can always be found through the doorway to the truth."
The King smirked. "You had your chance for last words. Now that chance is over. I don't care for your silly rhymes; they will not delay your death. Kneel, boy."
Link got onto his knees, his gaze still fixed on the now-empty sky. The clouds had not yet reached the West; from what he could see, it looked like they were holding back from that place. He felt cold steel on the back of his neck, and looked up to see Vespin shaking like mad, holding his sharp blade as far away from his own body as possible.
"I do not wish to dirty my robes with this boy's blood. Finish him, Vespin, then report to me."
The King rode off, leaving behind only the three guards and the boy, surrounded by pelting raindrops. A plan began to formulate in Link's mind.
"I'm sorry about this, Link," Vespin shouted over the rain. "I know you always tried to do the right thing."
Link narrowed his eyes, calculating, as Vespin raised the sword.
When the Captain closed his eyes and swung downwards, he sprang!
He jumped up and stole his sword from Oran, who was standing there, nonplussed, with the small sword lying alone in his outstretched arms. He unsheathed it in a flash, letting the scabbard fall onto the stones with a clatter, and pointed it at Vespin, who immediately dropped his sword. Oran followed suit, as did Tarun, the other guard. They smiled as Link nodded his thanks and picked up his scabbard and shield, swinging them onto his back as he slowly backed away, getting closer to the drawbridge. Finally, when the rain hid them from each other's view, he ran full-tilt, crossing the drawbridge and jumping into the moat, willing it to hide him from view. When he felt the metal drain at his side and he could go no further, he climbed out onto the bank and ran, heading for what he was pretty sure was Kakariko Village through the pouring rain. He ran as fast as he could, not even daring to look over his shoulder. He knew the King would be angry, but he could not even imagine the lengths the King would go to in order to find him.
For the next two years, wanted posters of Link's face flooded the world, and bounty hunters scoured the land for him.
Link was forced to live in the Windmill Tower, where he could look out on all of Kakariko and watch the bounty hunters' fruitless efforts to find him. The rich family who neighbored Impa's house, whom he had made friends with after he left the forest, brought food to him every day; they would leave it behind the Windmill Tower on the stretch of grass that was separated from the Lost Woods by a tall, impossible to climb fence, and Link kept active by climbing up and down the Tower three times every day. He passed the time by playing on the rooftops, which he got to by hanging onto the arms of the Windmill and jumping at just the right time. He would fly through the air like a circus performer minus his trapeze, and land on the blue-roofed house, rolling to absorb the shock. Nobody looked up very often, so his little escapades went quite unnoticed.
The first day he landed on the blue roof, the man sitting there looked at him as if surprised, and exclaimed, "Hey, I know you!" Link grimaced, hoping the man hadn't recognized him from the wanted posters, but the man grinned and said, "It's nice to see you again! But you looked a little different last time…taller, thinner…weird. Guess you're well-fed or something."
Link had stared at the man until he thought his eyes would dry out.
"What did you say? You've seen me before?"
The man looked thoughtful. "Well, I don't know. It might've been your bigger brother or something; he looked a few years older than you, kiddo."
Link stopped himself from saying, "I don't have an older brother," and instead asked him what he was doing up here, even though he still remembered from the alternate future.
"Well, I got stuck up here, so now I have nothing to do but look around. You have a great view of Death Mountain from here!"
So for the rest of his two years of exile, he and the man on the roof swapped stories and jokes, never telling each other their names or their pasts, which was the way Link liked it.
On the day he finally noticed that all of the wanted posters were now fuel for fires and the bounty hunters had all vanished, the man was telling him about a strange inscription he had come across while researching ways to vanquish ghosts. Link had discovered that the man was a former treasure hunter, but the man still knew nothing about Link.
"Well, I was looking through some papers to see if there was a potion that could be used, but instead of that, I found a poem, of sorts. It was written in some language that I can't read; I stole the paper, and I still have it with me. What do you make of it, my young friend?"
He held out a ripped, aged, yellow piece of paper that was beginning to rip at the folds, and smoothed it out on the roof shingles, placing it into Link's hands. He stared at the ancient writing, recognizing nothing, and shook his head, reluctantly handing the old paper back to the man, who stared at it longingly before folding it back up and shoving it into his pocket. He looked Link in the eye, smiling, and clapped a hand on his shoulder.
"Well, m'boy, it looks like the King isn't so obsessed with finding you anymore. I'd lay low for another few months; then you should be good to go."
Link's mouth fell open, and he tried to speak, but words escaped him.
"Yeah, I know, kiddo. I didn't turn you in because…well, I had a feeling about you. Besides, the King is cruel and corrupt, and he refuses to think of us peasants as equals. He only cares about his castle, and that's why the Market is so prosperous; there's so much blackmail and illegal trading that it's a dangerous place to go." Link tried to interrupt, but he shook his head. "I know it doesn't look like that by day, but by night it's a different story. It's up to decent people like you and me to stop the bad ones in their tracks; you hear me, boy? Now, you get out there, and you stop the bad ones. Teach the children that other races are nothing to be afraid of; teach them that blackmail is wrong. Make the world a better place, for me."
"What about you? What will you do?"
He sighed, and looked down, fiddling with the roof.
"I can't tell you all I'd like to right now, but I can tell you this. I've been sitting on this roof for four years because I've been waiting for you. And I have a message for you."
He looked at Link, then reached into his pocket, pulling out the old paper. He closed his eyes, remembering the one who had given it to him, who had instructed him to wait for a boy with blonde hair and green clothes. He held out the paper with a trembling hand, wishing he didn't have to do this, but knowing he had no choice. A promise was a promise. Link took the paper and looked at it, lying innocently in his palm.
"But, I already told you, I can't read these runes."
The man stood up, suddenly angry. "No, no, boy! The runes
are not the message. Look on the back."
Link unfolded the paper, careful not to rip it, and skimmed over the words.
"It says here –"
"NO! No, boy, don't say those words aloud! No soul but you was ever meant to read or hear them. Don't you dare show that paper to anyone else. If you do, you'll regret it for a long time to come. If you say those words aloud, if you show them to anyone else, it will destroy everything around you." The man shut his eyes, knowing what he had to do, now that he had delivered the message and the meaning. He took a step backwards, watching Link as he read and reread the words on the paper, trying to make sense of them. He took one final step backwards, and when Link looked up to ask him who had given him the paper, he was gone. Link fell onto his knees and looked over the edge, gripping the gutter with his hands; the man was gone, without a trace. Link stood up and looked around, amazed, but he didn't see the man anywhere. He hopped down, tucked the paper into his shirt carefully, and walked around Kakariko Village for a while, looking for the treasure hunter, but he was gone, as if he had never been there. He gave up and walked out of the small town, finally a free man. He resolved to teach the children to accept other races as he stepped through the stone archway.
~~~ (A/N: This is where the memory ends, but we're not back to the present yet.)
Far, far above Link, the man with fiery red hair looked down upon his beloved Kakariko. He was perched on the great grassy wall that surrounded the town, waiting for what he knew was coming. And come it did; a great figure that was *probably* Hylian touched down on the grassy wall on the other side of town. It lifted into the air again and, aiming right for him, zoomed over Kakariko. The figure that was wreathed in shadows and light stood next to him, staring at him; he could not meet the figure's eyes, and instead turned to stare at Death Mountain. They both stared at the majestic mountain for a few moments until the figure sighed deeply, burdened by many things, and spoke quietly.
"You have done your work?"
"Yes."
"You know what I must do?"
"Yes."
"You accept it as your fate?"
"Always."
"Then pass through this world and into the next, knowing you have done well. You will live a good life in the next world."
"I have one question."
"Ask it, and it will be answered."
"Why must I pass?"
"You know why."
"Yes, I know."
"Knock at my door, and I will open it to you, my friend."
"Thank you, old friend."
"Farewell."
"Yes, farewell."
The figure grabbed his upper right arm with a Hylian hand, and the man closed his eyes, not wanting to look upon this figure again. Five years ago, he had seen this figure for the first time, and he still hadn't gotten over the shock. He was completely silent as the figure placed one finger on his forehead, and he didn't cry out as his spirit was sent, completely intact, to the next world. The figure took hold of the body of its friend, then lifted into the air, not able to look upon the face of the man whose life it had just stolen. It moved with incredible speed, arriving over Death Mountain Crater within moments. The figure dropped the dead body into the flowing lava below, then backed off when a large puff of black smoke rose out of the volcano's mouth. It wished it could weep, but it knew that it would never be able to. Instead, it opened its mouth and screamed, and disappeared in a flash of golden light, leaving only a red Tekktite to wonder about what it had just seen. The Tekktite leapt up and down, then pounced on a small lizard, the thought of a humanoid figure floating in the sky leaving its tiny brain in an instant.
*** (A/N: *Now* we're back to the present.)
Link almost slapped himself on the forehead, but didn't for fear of the noise it might cause. He was such an idiot! Drifting off on clouds of thoughts in the middle of a crisis; and Zelda needed his help! Who cared if she and the whole world had forgotten he was even alive, he had to help her! He gritted his teeth and, without a second thought, or even any smidgeon of a plan, drew his sword and dashed across the hall, yelling at the top of his lungs.
The guards, dozing off because of the heat of the large fire, were shocked awake by an idiot running through the main hall, swinging a sword around and screaming loud enough to wake the dead. They tried to stumble to their feet, and Captain Vespin, who was now graying with age, stared at the face of a man he almost recognized. Could it be Link was still alive, and had escaped the bounty hunters for six years? Link would be seventeen by now, and this young man certainly resembled him, and looked to be about seventeen. He raised an eyebrow at who he was now sure was Link, and the young man grinned in return, forgetting the urgency of the situation because of the adrenalin jolting through him. This was the most fun he'd had in years! He swung his sword and sent a guard's spear clattering to the ground, then ran up the stairs, towards the library.
Rain was beating against the ancient stones of the castle, but his yelling drowned out even the storm. He twirled his sword around his wrist as he ran past some young boys, no doubt servants, who stared after him in amazed shock. A crowd of guards rushed after him, some buckling on armor and unsheathing swords. They stopped and the old Captain panted, "Which way did he go?"
A young brown-haired boy pointed them straight down the hall, and they took off, running blindly through the unfamiliar hallways.
The guards, because of the King's refusal to let them wander the halls, knew very little about the castle, and Link soon lost them in the maze of corridors. He knew his way about the building much better than any of the guards, and once he had left them behind, he ran for the stairs again, laughing in between breaths. He was only slightly out of shape, so he was breathing fairly easily when he came to the final flight of stairs that would take him to the library. He ran past an open doorway leading to a candle – lit room in which several people were playing poker. The King, an Elite Guard, and a visiting dignitary poked their heads out of the poker room, and the King gritted his teeth as soon as he saw the green clothes he recognized all too well. Link was back, and he had somehow snuck inside the castle, despite the rain and the guards. The visiting dignitary turned to the King and said angrily, "I thought you said we were safe, and yet lunatics freely roam your halls! I demand you throw him out."
The King resisted rolling his eyes, knowing that, although the foreign prince was a spoiled brat, he was the King's only chance at handing his throne over to a competent, *male* ruler. The King signaled to the silver-haired Elite Guard, whose name was Oran, and picked up a hefty broadsword from the rack on one wall of the room. The foreign prince did not arm himself, and instead sat down at the table and began dealing out Solitaire. (A/N: Do they even have Solitaire? Oh well, they do now!)
The King and Oran strode out into the hallway, and as they walked, the King muttered to the guard at his side, "This is your chance to redeem yourself for your error six years ago. If you fail me, I will not tolerate your presence at this castle any longer!"
Oran nodded, knowing full well his life depended on rounding up this crazy man and throwing him out a high window. He had changed since that time, long ago, when he had let a small boy go after it had been proven that he was endangering the princess' life. He had been punished by the King, and, after spending two years in the dungeons, had a total change of heart. He smiled slowly and adjusted his grip on the spear, preparing to throw it if they came within range of the lunatic.
***
Link was walking through a memory now, and happy childhood memories of running around the castle with Zelda, playing hide and go seek, were marred by the thought that if he was caught, he would surely be killed. He came to the top of the stairs and stopped before the door that would lead him to the library. The library was at the top of the west tower, and if you looked out the window and squinted, you could almost see the gleam of heat waves rising off of the desert. Now, however, water would be streaking the glass, making it impossible to see past the glass.
His hand shook as he reached for the doorknob. Link had not considered what was behind that door, who or what could be attacking Zelda. But that didn't matter now; he had to save Zelda. He had to ensure her survival, or he wouldn't be able to live with himself. He made a pact in that moment; if he wasn't able to save Zelda, he would hurl himself from the window in the library. After all, they were four stories up, and nobody could survive a fall of that height.
Wait a second. They were four stories up, and obviously nothing could get in through the door, owing to the many guards and witnesses any intruder would have, as he had found out five minutes ago; something was wrong. The only other entrance to the library was the window, and nothing could climb up the stones in this weather. The only other option was flight.
But what could fly and be big enough to pose a threat to the princess? Not birds, certainly…
Oh, crap. Ganondorf could float; he knew this from past experience. But Ganondorf was sealed away, and he would never return; but then again, Ganon had sworn that he would return to destroy Link's ancestors, in that alternate future; but how could that be?
He wasted another precious second thinking, stroking the old paper that he had kept and wondering for the hundredth time what the cryptic words inscribed on the back of the paper could mean.
*Shut up!* That little voice that embodied common sense was screaming at him again. *Just shut up and get in there, before somebody dies!*
Link obeyed, throwing open the door and nerving himself to run inside.
But before he could run in, he nearly dropped his sword in shock. He had been prepared for anything...
Anything but this.
***
This chapter has also been revamped: it's now twelve pages long instead of three! Celebrate good times, come on!
-Shawshank
