A/N: Hello! Waendolien here with a new story, The Red Violin! And no, it has nothing to do with the movie that has the same title. :) I hope you enjoy this!

Summary: Link and Zelda are two sophmore college students who live in the same dorm. Not even previously knowing each other, the music of the red violin brings them together one night. But as their relationships deepens, Link finds himself having to make a hard choice, one that's between his passion for music and the woman he loves.

Disclaimer: I don't own Zelda!

Chapter One: The Red Violin

Sophomore college student Zelda Harkinan walked quickly out of her chemistry room, her head aching from stress and tiredness. She had had to stay late to finish a difficult lab, which involved balancing tricky chemical equations and following precise instructions. She glanced at her watch; it read 10:00 PM. Luckily, she didn't start classes tomorrow until the afternoon, which would give her plenty of time to sleep in, something she could rarely do these days.

She paused in the darkened hallway, thinking of which route to take back to her dorm room. She could go left and take the short-cut, but that would involve a lot of walking outside and she hated walking by herself at night. Chiding herself for her fears getting the better of her, she turned right and decided to take the long way, which required less walking outside.

She walked as quickly as possible, eager to crawl under her warm covers and sleep her anxieties away. She walked out of the Science Department building and into the Music Department. As she walked, the creepy silence was filled with the sound of a faint violin playing. Its long, sustained notes played a slow, beautiful tune, the steady vibrato adding to the sadness of it.

Zelda strained her ears, trying to figure out where it was coming from. Straying from her designated path, she wandered around the Music Department, following the notes of the violin; she had never heard anything quite like it before, and began to feel oddly entranced by its sweet, sad sound. The pretty cry of the violin seemed to call out to her, and she wanted to find it and embrace it with her heart and soul.

As she continued to follow the music, it grew louder and louder, causing Zelda to quicken her pace. Up ahead, she saw a thin stick of soft light on the ground and on the opposite wall. It was emanating from a door that was ajar.

Zelda crept quietly up to it and peered in. She was surprised to discover that she was looking into a large auditorium, and in the center of the stage was a man playing a red violin. The man had blonde hair, piercing blue eyes, and a sharp nose. He was wearing a green shirt and loose blue jeans. Zelda had to admit that he was quite handsome.

He stood straight and relaxed, his arm moving the slender bow deftly across the pearl strings, concentrating very hard to produce the right, satisfying notes. He seemed totally absorbed in the music, moving his body along with the notes he made. Zelda stared at him in wonder. The way a simple man could create such a wondrous, beautiful sound amazed her. Without knowing what she was doing, she walked into the auditorium and sat down, slipping her backpack off and sinking into the seat.

The man now had his eyes shut, so he didn't notice Zelda entering the room. She leaned back in the seat and closed her eyes, feeling her throbbing headache disappearing. The man continued to play, the passionate notes produced by the red violin filling her heart with warmth and happiness she had never felt before.

The song continued for about five more minutes, ending on a sweet, high, vibrato-filled note. Even after the song was over with the note seemed to hang in the air, as if longing to stay there forever.

Zelda opened her eyes and began to clap. The man took a sharp intake of breath and he jumped slightly.

Zelda stopped clapping. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

The man looked at her and blinked. Then he smiled. Zelda felt like her heart skipped a beat. "It's all right," the man said kindly. "You just startled me. I thought I was alone."

"I only came in about five minutes ago. You see, I was on my way back to my dorm room when I heard you playing. I wanted to find out where the music was coming from so I just followed it, and it brought me here. You play very beautifully, by the way, with a lot of passion."

"You think so?" the man said, his face turning red from embarrassment. "Thank you, that's nice of you to say." He cleared his throat, his voice growing stronger. "Music is important to me and I do try to put as much passion into it as I can to express myself and my emotions."

Zelda smiled. "Yes, music is a great way to express yourself." She paused for a moment. "Um, can I see your violin?" she asked, trying to think of a clever way to get closer to the handsome man, even though he was a complete stranger to her.

"Yeah, sure!" the man said enthusiastically. Zelda smiled and got up, slipping her backpack on and walking down the isle and onto the stage. The man gently handed her the violin.

"Wow," she said, staring at it in awe. The deep red wood was rich and added uniqueness to the gracefully-crafted violin. It was light-weight and the wood felt very smooth as she ran her fingers across it. Out of the corner of her eye she could see the man watching her and her cheeks grew warm. "It's very beautiful," she said truthfully.

"So are you," the man said quietly. Zelda's head shot up and she looked at him in shock. The man looked suddenly appalled and said quickly, "Please forgive me, that was really stupid of me to say –"

Zelda laughed, her spirits suddenly feeling lighter than air. "No, it's all right. It was just unexpected. Um, thank you, that was very flattering." She awkwardly handed him back the violin. "So, do you always come here and practice at night?"

"Yeah, usually," he said, looking relieved that the subject had changed. "I like coming at night when no one else is around. Then I can just be alone with my music with no one around to bother me. N-not that you're bothering me," he added quickly. "So…Do you play any instruments?"

"No. But I love listening to classical music. It relaxes me, especially yours. You really are a good violinist."

"Thank you," the man said, smiling gratefully. "As a matter of fact, I'm majoring in music. I really want to be a professional violinist."

"But you already are!" Zelda said, smiling.

The man grinned. "Trust me; I still have a lot I can improve on. I need to really advance myself if I want to be at a professional level." The man then turned away from Zelda and walked towards a black violin case that sat on the floor. He bent down and began packing the red violin away. Zelda looked sadly at it, longing to hear more. Curiously, she peered at the nametag on the case. It read Link Brown.

"Well, I guess I should be getting back to my dorm," Zelda said, turning to leave.

"Wait!" Link said, quickly turning around. "I'll, um, walk you to your dorm if you want."

"That's kind of you." They walked together out of the auditorium, Link flipping off the lights as they passed through the door. They were silent for a few moments.

"So…What year of college are you in?" Link asked.

"I'm a sophomore. And you?"

"Hey, me too!" They walked out of the Music Department into the warm April air. A chorus of grasshoppers greeted them as they walked together on the sidewalk. "Nice night," Link said casually.

"Mmm," Zelda agreed, inhaling deeply and closing her eyes. "I love spring. It's such a pretty season. Everything is just starting to bloom over the previous harsh winter."

"I have to disagree with you. I like fall the best. The changing leaves really inspire me to write music."

"You write music, too?" Zelda asked, looking at him curiously.

"A little. I've written a few compositions, but lately haven't had much time to write. I've been focusing more on playing."

This guy is really talented! Zelda thought. "I don't mean to be nosy, but how come you're going to a small town college like this? Why not a prestigious music college such as Julliard or Eastman?"

Link laughed out loud. "Well, I've been playing violin since I was three, but to tell you the truth, I actually never enjoyed playing it until I was a sophomore in college. Now that I've decided that I want my career to be a musician, I've been preparing myself for auditions for various music schools. I'm hoping to transfer to a musical college next year."

"Wow, that must be exciting! I wish I knew what I wanted to do with the rest of my life."

"Well, you don't have to know now," Link said. "Just pick something you love doing. That's what will make you truly happy." They made it to Zelda's dorm building. Link stopped and stared at it. "You're not telling me this is your dorm, is it?"

"Well, yes," Zelda said, frowning.

"It's mine, too!"

"Are you serious?" Zelda said, bursting into peals of laughter. "We're both sophomores, we're both in the same dorm, and we haven't even seen each other once! I think your violin kind of brought us together, huh?"

Link laughed, patting his violin case. "Yeah, you're right!" They walked in to the building together. "Oh, hey, I didn't even catch your name," Link said, turning to Zelda.

"Zelda," she said with a smile.

"Zelda…I like that name," Link said softly. "And I'm Link. My room is on first floor, so I should be going…It was nice meeting you." He held out his hand.

"It was nice meeting you, too," Zelda said, shaking his hand. It was rough and calloused, evidence of intense music playing. "Are you going to practice tomorrow night, too?"

"Yeah. I practice every night and whenever I have spare time. Why?"

"Would you mind if I came and listened to you play?" Zelda said quickly. "I really enjoy it."

Link looked at her in surprise, but grinned, looking pleased. "Sure, I would really like that! I'll be there at 8:30. See you tomorrow." And with that, he turned and walked away down the hall.

Zelda felt like she was floating on clouds as she made her way back to her dorm room, her spirits soaring high. She entered the dorm room and quietly shut the door. Her roommate, Malon, was sitting on her bed. "Zelda! There you are. Where were you?"

"Uh-huh," Zelda said dreamily, twirling around and falling spread-eagle onto her bed.

"Hmm…" Malon murmured, looking suspicious. "Distant eyes, a dreamy face, ignoring the roommate…All right Zelda, who's the guy?"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Zelda said cheerfully, continuing to stare at the ceiling with a ridiculous expression on her face.

"Come on, Zel! You can tell me who he is! I won't tell anyone. Please?" she simpered, moving over to Zelda's bed and bending over her, displaying the sad puppy-dog face.

"All right, all right," Zelda said, playfully whacking her friend with a pillow and sitting up. "You would have found out sometime anyway." Malon moved over on the bed and looked eagerly at Zelda. "His name is Link Brown. He's a sophomore and he wants to be a professional violinist."

"Ooh! Kind of a boring name and profession, no offense, but the important thing is, is he cute?"

"Oh, Malon, he's gorgeous! I was on my way back to the dorm room after having to finish a stupid chemistry lab when I heard him playing his violin. It was the most beautiful sound I had ever heard! And not only is he good-looking and a great violinist, but he's very kind." Zelda sighed and fell back against her bed again. "It's such a weird feeling…After hearing him play and seeing him for the first time, I feel like I'm in love with him already! I can't wait to see him tomorrow!"

Malon laughed. "So are you guys going on a date, or what?"

"I don't know if you would call it a date, but I'm going to go listen to him play tomorrow night."

"You should tell him how you feel! I mean, come on, you said so yourself that you're practically in love with the guy."

Zelda suddenly looked doubtful. "I don't know why I feel like I love him. We've only just met, and I barely even know him! And I haven't dated in a long time, so maybe this sudden feeling of love will pass by tomorrow morning."

"Pshh. Come on, Zelda! Haven't you ever heard of love at first sight?"

"Well, yes, but…"

"Ok, so maybe you're not sure if you love him, but you definitely have feelings for him, right?"

"Yes," Zelda said, smiling. "That's definitely true. But I don't even know how he feels about me."

Malon got off the bed and went to her closet. "I think you need some sleep, Zelda. Stop worrying about it! Besides, you're so nice, and you're beautiful. I'm sure he's thinking about you right now as we speak."

"Maybe," Zelda said, secretly hoping beyond hope it was true.

They got ready for bed in silence. Zelda set her alarm and crawled into bed, sliding under her warm covers. Malon turned the lights off and jumped into her bed. "Goodnight!"

"'Night," Zelda murmured. She sighed and closed her eyes, the beautiful song of the red violin lulling her to sleep.


A/N: Well, what did you think? Sorry, that was kind of a dumb ending, but it's late and I can't think of anything better. This story was originally supposed to be a one-shot, but it was getting too long to be one. So, I'm thinking it'll either be a short story (about 4-5 chapters) or a full-length story. I haven't decided that yet and I'm not quite sure where the plot will go from here, but I'll think of something!

I know, I know, I shouldn't even be starting this b/c I have another story I'm working on. But I couldn't help it! This story has been in my brain for a while and had to come out!

Hmmm.. I have nothing more to say. It's late, I'm tired, and I've been working on this for a looong time. And I gotta get up early tomorrow to take my sister to college. AH! I'm turning into a maniac writer... :)

Please review this! I really want to know what you think of it. It would be most helpful. I'm not sure when I'll update this or The Protector, but hopefully before school starts. Until next time, have a good one!