A/N: This is the first LoZ fic I ever wrote seriously. It actually was started about three years ago and has been finished on and off after having survived through three hiatuses and a serious consideration of scrapping. But I decided to give it another chance, and am actually quite pleased with the results. Rated PG-13 for violence and Link's surprisingly dirty mouth; warnings include angst, sadness, violence, Link/Zelda pairing (no citrus), and alternate realities. The timeline I'm basing things on is a quasi-alternate-reality of my own creation: I base most if not all of my Zelda fanfiction on the idea that all the deeds done and chronicled in the Zelda games (with the exception of the Wind Waker for obvious reasons) were the deeds of one brave young lad chosen by Destiny and the three Goddesses as the Hero of Time, the Legendary Hero. Oh. And I don't own Linky (more's the pity) or Zelda or any of the game's other characters. They are copyrighted to Miyamoto Shigeru-san and Nintendo, the lucky bastards. I own, however, sole copyright of each and every one of my original characters. Steal them and I will hunt you down and break your elbows. Remember: A vague threat is no one's friend.
-Act III-
A Hero's Return
1
Zelda paced the short length of her cell, wringing her hands anxiously. Her face betrayed an inner turmoil that she couldn't quite contain. Ganondorf had murdered her father and was probably only a small ways away from doing the same thing to her.
It was not a pleasant thought.
Zelda stopped pacing the instant she felt the dark presence at the door of her cell. The hair on her neck stood on end, confirming her suspicions. "What do you want now?" she asked rather ungraciously.
"Am I not allowed to pay a visit to Hyrule's most illustrious, gracious monarch?"
Zelda sighed as she listened to him. Link's dark side seemed determined to drive her insane. This was the fourth time he'd come to taunt her within the space of an hour. "Don't you ever go away?" she asked pointedly, sliding down to sit on the small bunk at the far wall.
"Oh, come now, you know you don't actually want me to leave…" he said quietly. "I've never understood why you like him so much better. I'm a lot more fun," he said blandly.
Zelda knew who he was referring to. "You have an odd idea of the word fun," she said, a faint frown creasing her forehead.
"You should get to know me before you make judgments," the shade said, sounding hurt.
"I already know what you are," Zelda said tiredly. "You're the exact opposite of everything Link is."
"Ah. And that's a bad thing?"
"Yes!" Oh, he was so infuriating! He knew what she'd say! He was baiting her on purpose. "It's horrible! Everything that makes him who he is, loyalty, goodness, human decency, respect for life…you have none of it! You're not even worthy to call him a brother!" Zelda had stood up, and was screeching at the door. "You're just a thin, pale shell compared to him! You're nothing!" she cried. Her eyes started to sting.
The shade said nothing for a moment, and Zelda wondered briefly if he had left. Then, a grating, cold laugh floated through to her ears. He was laughing at her. Zelda cursed herself inwardly. Of all the silly people to lose her temper with, it had to be Link's dark side. It figured. Even his evil half still knew just how to infuriate her, to push just the right buttons to make her screaming mad. Except for the fact that the shade used those buttons to hurt Zelda, to make her truly angry. Link would never have done that. His purpose in yanking her chain was merely to tease, or joke.
Zelda couldn't even begin to know how deep her animosity toward his shadow went. "If I am nothing, as you say," he said quietly, "then why do you waste so much energy trying to insult me?"
Zelda didn't rise to the bait. "Just go away," she said tiredly.
"What, and leave you all alone?" he asked mockingly. "How could I ever leave my princess all alone?"
Zelda's blood started to boil. "Don't you ever call me that!" she cried. "I do not belong to you!"
The hollow, mocking laughter faded away, telling Zelda he had finally gone. Nervously, she went back to her pacing, trying to calm herself and relieve the tension that the soulless shadow always seemed to cause. There had to be some way out of that confounded prison! It was going to take time, Zelda realized, but she thought that if she was given enough time, she could possibly find the flaw in the structure or crack in the dungeon that would help her to escape. Time was all she needed.
Just a little time.
How hard could it be?
-Act III-
A Hero's Return
1
Zelda paced the short length of her cell, wringing her hands anxiously. Her face betrayed an inner turmoil that she couldn't quite contain. Ganondorf had murdered her father and was probably only a small ways away from doing the same thing to her.
It was not a pleasant thought.
Zelda stopped pacing the instant she felt the dark presence at the door of her cell. The hair on her neck stood on end, confirming her suspicions. "What do you want now?" she asked rather ungraciously.
"Am I not allowed to pay a visit to Hyrule's most illustrious, gracious monarch?"
Zelda sighed as she listened to him. Link's dark side seemed determined to drive her insane. This was the fourth time he'd come to taunt her within the space of an hour. "Don't you ever go away?" she asked pointedly, sliding down to sit on the small bunk at the far wall.
"Oh, come now, you know you don't actually want me to leave…" he said quietly. "I've never understood why you like him so much better. I'm a lot more fun," he said blandly.
Zelda knew who he was referring to. "You have an odd idea of the word fun," she said, a faint frown creasing her forehead.
"You should get to know me before you make judgments," the shade said, sounding hurt.
"I already know what you are," Zelda said tiredly. "You're the exact opposite of everything Link is."
"Ah. And that's a bad thing?"
"Yes!" Oh, he was so infuriating! He knew what she'd say! He was baiting her on purpose. "It's horrible! Everything that makes him who he is, loyalty, goodness, human decency, respect for life…you have none of it! You're not even worthy to call him a brother!" Zelda had stood up, and was screeching at the door. "You're just a thin, pale shell compared to him! You're nothing!" she cried. Her eyes started to sting.
The shade said nothing for a moment, and Zelda wondered briefly if he had left. Then, a grating, cold laugh floated through to her ears. He was laughing at her. Zelda cursed herself inwardly. Of all the silly people to lose her temper with, it had to be Link's dark side. It figured. Even his evil half still knew just how to infuriate her, to push just the right buttons to make her screaming mad. Except for the fact that the shade used those buttons to hurt Zelda, to make her truly angry. Link would never have done that. His purpose in yanking her chain was merely to tease, or joke.
Zelda couldn't even begin to know how deep her animosity toward his shadow went. "If I am nothing, as you say," he said quietly, "then why do you waste so much energy trying to insult me?"
Zelda didn't rise to the bait. "Just go away," she said tiredly.
"What, and leave you all alone?" he asked mockingly. "How could I ever leave my princess all alone?"
Zelda's blood started to boil. "Don't you ever call me that!" she cried. "I do not belong to you!"
The hollow, mocking laughter faded away, telling Zelda he had finally gone. Nervously, she went back to her pacing, trying to calm herself and relieve the tension that the soulless shadow always seemed to cause. There had to be some way out of that confounded prison! It was going to take time, Zelda realized, but she thought that if she was given enough time, she could possibly find the flaw in the structure or crack in the dungeon that would help her to escape. Time was all she needed.
Just a little time.
How hard could it be?