A/N: Well, I bring you three more chapters! Here's the first, so enjoy! Also, I have just noticed that whenever I switch between people, the enters I use are erased so sometime, when I get around to it, I'm gonna have to reformat most of the pages, but that'll be later. >> stands for a forward move in time and the -- means character change.

Chapter Thirty-One - Dark Link's Next Attack

Zelda watched Ruto leave, thinking about what she said. "She's obviously got a point. That and she's been on Link's side of this, whether she knows I know or not," Zelda said to thin air, hoping that by voicing this, she would come to a solid conclusion. "If I could just make sense of it all, then..."

"Then it would be a lot easier," Impa finished, stepping from the shadows. "Then we could know what needed to be done. However, I agree with Ruto. You need to figure out your feelings for him before he thinks it's hopeless and moves on."

"I know, but, well, I don't know, okay? I have no idea what I'm doing, what I'm being told, or what I'm supposed to do! I'm so confused..." she groaned. She fell back against the wall of the Temple of Time, sliding down into a sitting position. "Why can't someone write a guide or something to this? I mean, I don't want to lose him, but, well..." She sighed and dropped her head, looking at the tile that was the floor of the Temple. "It's so simple, it's complicated."

Impa nodded. "If it was simple, there wouldn't be half as many problems in this world."

"Impa, I know how he feels, as does everyone else, and they wouldn't hesitate to tell me so. I know how I feel about him, too, but why do I find it so hard to tell him that? It's almost like every time I try to, something happens, or something comes up."

"Well, you might want to try a bit harder before something happens."

Zelda nodded, her face still obscured, and rose to her feet. She walked to the exit of the Temple and looked up at Impa. Her eyes were glistening with fresh tears, but there was a fierce determination in her eyes that was echoed in her voice. "Well, let's hope that that something doesn't happen too soon, shall we?"

>>

"Hey Link!" Saria shouted as she saw said Hero of Time emerge from the kitchens. Link nodded a greeting in her direction as she followed him up the stairs, passing in front of him. "Where were you all day? Zelda and I were worried sick!"

"I went out on an excursion with Ruto."

"Which means that you two did what, exactly?"

"Nothing happened between us, okay? We went swimming at Lake Hylia, stopped by the Domain to eat, and explored the Water Temple. That's all."

Saria thought for a second before shrugging. "Well, next time, do you mind leaving us a note or something telling us that you've gone somewhere?"

"No prob. I'll just mention that next time I'm dragged off somewhere. Now, if you will excuse me, I'm gonna head off upstairs."

Saria nodded and started to move out of his way, then stopped. "Link, please... You might not understand, but whenever you do stuff like this and vanish into thin air, it's rough on Zelda and me, Zelda especially. She loves you Link, whether or not she tells you so. If something happened to you during one of your escapades, she'd never forgive herself. Nor would I..." She passed by him once again and started walking down the steps.

Link watched her for a second, and then inquired, "What did you mean by that last part?"

Saria turned to look at Link, trying her best to look like she had meant it in a friendly way, but Link had that inescapable feeling that the sadness that belied it meant otherwise. "Oh, just that I'd worry too. We are best friends, after all." She attempted a smile with only partial success. "Besides, the mind of a Kokiri works different than yours." She sighed before walking away, leaving a slightly confused Link standing on the stairway.

>>

Link sighed, looking at the darkened sky. My life is starting to get way too confusing. It's a rare occurrence, but times like these really make me miss the days before I broke the curse. Back then, life was simpler. It was just me and Sarah, together to face the world at large. There are some times when I wish that I could revisit the times before the curse, even if I did have to make up with Zelda again. I don't know, though. Hyrule's a pretty awesome place. Dark Link's the main problem, though.

What did he mean with the whole war thing? Would Ganon really be stupid enough to declare war? He'd get trounced fast, seeing as how the Gerudo and those monsters of his don't stand a chance against me alone, let alone the entire force of Hyrule. Wait...

Link ran over to the table, jerking a map from the shelf behind him. If he gets enough monsters to put us at two to one odds and he puts them here, then he could force us to face the brunt of his troops with limited amounts of ours...

He marked off several places on the map, delving deeply into to possibilities of what could happen. He was so deep in he didn't hear the door open.

"Link?" Zelda asked, walking in.

"Over here," he replied, not looking away from the map.

Alright, just go over there and say it. "Could I talk to you for a second?"

"Can it wait until later? I'm sorry, but I just had an idea and, knowing me, if I don't figure it out I'll forget it."

She sighed, crestfallen. "Oh, okay. I'll... talk to you later, then. Bye." She started out the door.

"Listen, I'm really sorry. I'll make up for it, okay? Just name the price," he replied, smiling.

She nodded. "Okay."

Closing the door behind her, she sighed and fell back against the wall, sliding to the ground. "So close..."

>>

Link groaned as he sat up. It seemed that he had fallen asleep on the map, which was really uncomfortable. He stood up and stumbled sleepily to the door. He opened it and in slumped Zelda's limp form. Surprised, Link bent down to wake her, with no success. He picked her up and carried her over to his bed. As he placed her on said bed, he noticed something small and purple all over her. He picked a piece of it off of her and watched it disintegrate.

"Great," he growled, grabbing his sword. She's not going to be out for more than a few minutes; what I'm concerned with is why she's got it on her...

As if on cue, Link heard a shout echo through the castle.

"Link!" Saria shouted as a dark figure materialized in front of her. Within seconds, Link was beside her.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't the great Hero of Time, just in time to see today's performance. You know why I'm here and what I want, I presume?" Dark Link asked.

"Saria, get out of here, now!"

"What, don't want your wood sprite to hear what I have planned?"

"Not when it comes to you."

"It's nothing much. First, I'm gonna kill you, and then I'm going to grab her and take her to the Gerudo Fortress. I'll take away everything she has, and then I'll-"

"Just shut up!" Link shouted.

"Seems I've struck a nerve. You don't want to know what happens next?"

"What do you want with me?" Saria demanded, scared to death, but still not leaving just in case she could help.

"Oh, it's not you I want. You're just an exciting means to the end," Dark Link replied, his trademark smirk already plastered on his face.

"You're not going to lay a hand on her," Link said, baring his sword.

"Oh, really? Saria, right? Well, Saria, if you will just let me do him in first, we can continue the whole 'kidnap and torture' thing, okay?"

"You couldn't kill Link if you tried."

"Well then, I guess I'll have to try extra hard, hmm?" Dark Link drew his own sword and stabbed at Link, who dropped to the ground and lunged forward, slamming himself into Dark Link's legs, sending the shadow sprawling. Link jumped up and slashed at Dark Link, but before the blow could connect, Dark Link rolled to the side and sprang up as well.

Link turned his slash to the side, his sword blocked by Dark Link's sword. Dark Link spun his sword in a wide arc and knocked Link off balance. Stepping into the gap, Dark Link brought his right fist to collide with Link's stomach. Link grunted, but pushed past the sudden loss of breath and sliced the air with his sword, trying to make contact with Dark Link, to no avail. Link stepped back to assess Dark Link's next move.

As if on cue, both rushed forward and brought their swords down to collide with each other. Having done the same move, however, both swords crashed into each other and bounced off. Dark Link took advantage of this and lunged forward once more, this time skewering Link through with his blade.

Link gasped as the sword in his gut sent shockwaves of pain coursing through him. As Dark Link slid his now red sword out, Link dropped to his knees and, with a final exhale, fell to the ground.

"Now, I believe you're coming with me." Dark Link turned to Saria, who was frozen with shock and fear.

"L-Link..." she managed to choke out as tears started running down her face, the realization that Link was lying dead in the middle of the room hitting her like a ton of bricks.

"I told you. I said that I'd kill him and then you and I could go take an adventure."

Those words froze Saria to the bone. Link had said them before, and then they sounded alright. Now, though, even though Dark Link sounded exactly like Link, those words sounded as if they were coated in poison.

"Y-you monster!"

He laughed. "You could say that. Actually, you're free to say that. It has a nice ring to it, don't you think? Now, you're coming with-" Dark Link started, but suddenly, a sword erupted from the shadow's chest. He grunted and turned around once the sword was removed.

"Game set and match," Link said. A large amount of blood was on his tunic, but otherwise he seemed alright. He pointed the Master Sword, blackened by Dark Link's blood, at his counterpart.

"B-but how? No mortal could survive that blow!"

Link smiled as a fairy revealed itself before flying away. "I am the Hero of Time. I am Cursebreaker, Dreamweaver, as close to an Oracle as anyone has been. Never confuse me with anything else, for I have the entire universe on my side. Now, leave!"

Dark Link glared at Link, but walked over to the window. "Well, Sage, I guess I'll have to finish this later. Until then, I bid you a fond farewell." Dark Link took one step back and fell out of sight.

Saria ran to Link, embracing him, her tears still flowing freely. "I thought he had killed you. I thought you were gone. I thought..."

Link returned the embrace. "I'm here now, so no worries. I thought I was a goner for a second there too. My body's still screaming that I'm dead even though my mind says I'm not."

"You're gonna be okay though, right?" she asked looking up at him.

"Yeah, just gotta rest soon. Gimmie time to heal and all."

She let go of him and wiped her eyes with her sleeve. Link nodded and opened the door.

"Come on."

"Where are we going?" she asked as she exited the room.

"Downstairs. You really don't need to be up here right now, especially with all that blood. It's not good for your health." He sighed. "I'm really just glad nothing happened to you. If he had got you, or I hadn't got there in time, I'd never forgive myself."

She smiled. "Well, he didn't, and you did, so let's not worry about the ifs, shall we?" Link returned the smile as they entered the main room.

"Saria! Link! What happened!" Zelda shouted as they came into view. Both of them were coated in blood, but neither seemed too injured.

"Don't worry. We're fine," Link responded. "Morning's ruined, but beyond that..."

"You're both covered in blood! How is that alright?"

"Oh," Saria merely said, looking down at her outfit. "Um, this isn't my blood, if that makes you feel any better."

"Then whose is it?" Zelda asked, confused by this declaration.

"It's mine," Link said.

"Yours? How did you lose all that blood? Better yet, how are you still alive after losing all that blood?"

"Yeah, mine. Dark Link came back and tried to take Saria. And as for how I'm still alive, trust me, my entire body's screaming that I'm not."

"Huh?"

"I'm okay," Link replied before walking down the steps. "Now, I'm no doctor, but you might wanna go change. Immersing yourself in my blood can't be good for your health either." Saria nodded and walked back up the steps to her room.

"Now, are you sure you're okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. He'll be back, though, so I've gotta get my rest."

"Who's next?"

"What do you mean?"

Zelda walked over to Link. "Don't play games, Link. There's a creepy killer after anything to do with you. Who's he coming after next?"

Link sighed. "He's coming after you. Again."

"Tell me what happened. Please."

Link nodded. "When I chased him down, we fought, and I knocked him to the ground. He then told me his only reason for existence was to ruin my life. He said he'd turn everyone against me, then come after Saria, then you." He looked at her, worry reflected in his eyes. "I won't let him. I'll do anything to stop him. He won't get you."

"You need to rest before you can protect anyone." Zelda led Link up the stairs to his room, but he stopped at the door.

"No, not here. It's too bloody. Somewhere else, please."

Zelda nodded and helped the deteriorating Link into an adjacent room.

>>

"Heh. It seems that he has a few tricks up his sleeve as well. I'll just have to be extra careful when I go for the Queen." Dark Link stood up, his black eyes scanning the lands of Hyrule. As the sun set, he frowned, watching the light spread, choking out the darkness.

"Too bad, though. I was looking forward to having some fun with that girl. Oh well. It can't be helped. I guess I'll just have to vent on some of the Gerudos." He vanished as the major darkness faded completely.