Another long one... but it has a lot of important events in it! Haha.

Okay, I need to thank MikieJoe. You gave me the idea for this chapter, and it's awesome! Thanks so much! Like, literally. You actually wrote this idea in your review... so thanks, and I hope it turns out as you hoped! Enjoy!

Chapter Seventeen: Hero of Twilight's Note

LINK POV

Link jerked up in bed and sweat covered his face. He was panting, and his vision was slightly fuzzy. But as he wiped the beads of precipitation from his forehead and took a deep breath, he began to see more clearly. When he finally realized that he was in Telma's Bar, he sighed in relief and lay back against the pillow. He closed his eyes for a moment, and as soon as he did, he regretted it.

Frightening images appeared behind his eyelids; they were images of the Guardian of the Source and of Ilia's injuries. The only comfort among those horrid pictures was Zelda's face. That beautiful, flawless face…

Suddenly, Link's ears noticed the other sound in the room. Somebody was breathing. His eyes shot open and he slowly sat up, and then, he looked to the floor. Zelda was sleeping on the mat, and her back was to him, and he realized that it was the middle of the night.

Damn it, he cursed himself, shaking his head as he gazed at her. You overslept and made her sleep on the floor. Just the slight thought of her being discomforted irked him. Much to his dismay, there was nothing he could do about it now. He simply ran a hand through his wet, matted hair and kicked the blanket off of his legs. Then he saw that the reason he was so hot was because of the fact that he was still fully dressed in his green tunic.

He stood up slowly, being careful not to disturb the princess's slumber. He lifted his crooked hat and placed it on the nightstand, and then pulled his shirt off over his head. Finally, he took off his boots and let his bare feet soak up the coldness of the wooden floor. Link sat back on the bed and took in a relaxed breath.

Perfect… He wiggled his freed toes and smiled to himself. But nothing was perfect. Ilia was horribly injured, a crazy creature calling himself the 'Guardian of the Source' was on the loose, and Hyrule was in terrible danger.

When Ilia entered his thoughts once again, Link felt the temptation to check on her. Hurriedly, he walked out of the room and made sure to creep past Zelda's sleeping figure and close the door as softly as possible. Once in the hallway, he looked around anxiously and then made his way to the end, where Ilia was resting.

Link didn't bother knocking, because if she was asleep, he didn't want to wake her up. So he gently pushed open the door, cringing when it creaked, and peaked inside. Ilia wasn't asleep.

"Hi, Link." She turned towards him, a tight smile on her face. Link smiled with a blink, and then walked inside while closing the door behind him. "Feeling rested?"

He nodded uneasily, and then sat at her bedside.

"You don't have to worry about me. I'm feeling fine," Her words were proven wrong when she suddenly winced and sucked in a pained breath, and Link saw that blood still covered her arm. Worriedly, he touched it with light fingers. She chuckled uncertainly and bit her lower lip to mask the pain.

"You know, Link," She continued. "You almost died trying to save me."

He opened his mouth to respond, but Ilia shook her head.

"I need to apologize. What I did was stupid, and it wasn't fair to you or Epona. I put everyone in danger simply because I was being an idiot." Ilia sighed, finally admitting her fault out loud. Link smiled forgivingly, no longer angry with her. It was just the way Ilia was, and he partly respected it; after all, she had only run away with the goal of finding him.

"I'm glad you forgive me." She closed her eyes for a moment. "I don't know what I'd do if you didn't. You're my best friend, and I…"

Her voice trailed off, and Link looked away. He knew what she had wanted to say, and he didn't want to hurt her even more by saying that he didn't feel the same way. But the truth was, somebody else had already stolen his heart.

"Ilia, sweet pea?" Telma's voice came from outside the door.

"Come in, Telma." Ilia replied, and Link stood to greet the kind bar-owner.

"Oh! Look's like I was interrupting something important," Telma raised her eyebrow as she walked in, examining Link's bare torso. He blushed and glanced away. Telma was holding a lit candle in one hand, and her other hand was, of course, on her hip.

"You weren't interrupting anything. Please come in." Ilia sighed, and there was pain in her voice. Link wished it weren't because of him.

"How's your arm doing, honey?" Telma placed the candle on the nightstand and bent down to examine the Ordonian girl's injured arm.

"Fine…" As soon as Telma lifted the arm, Ilia let out a yelp.

"Don't even try lying to me, Ilia." She said. Then, she turned to Link for a moment. "How are you feeling then, honey?"

He smiled and nodded, an appreciative look on his face.

"And you didn't hear what happened, did you?" She asked, and when Link gave her a blank, perplexed expression, she continued. "Well, while you were asleep, you'll never believe what happened! The princess found some Oocca lying around!"

Link widened his eyes, taken aback by the news.

"That's right, Oocca! Like, from the sky! And, being the sweet girl that she is, Zelda brought those Oocca straight down to Shad. Poor boy, fainted as soon as he saw them!" Telma explained. He laughed at the image of Shad, the scholarly and intelligent man, fainting at the sight of the two birds. "But it turns out that they were looking for him! Said that there's something wrong up at home, and only Shad can help them. They wouldn't even tell anybody else their problem!"

At this, Link narrowed his eyes pensively and began pondering. He would need to talk to Shad and Zelda later…

"Anyway, thought you might want to be filled in." Telma shrugged. Their conversation was interrupted by a small whimper from Ilia, and Link rushed to her aid. Telma shook her head with a sigh.

"I just don't understand it…"

"What?" Ilia furrowed her brow, her voice muffled by her clenched teeth.

"I sent for the doctor yesterday morning, and he still isn't here! He still owes me, you know." Telma sighed. "It's certainly baffling me."

Suddenly, she looked to Link. He predicted what was coming.

"Link, you're a brave, noble young man." Telma began. "And I know that you and Ilia are close. So why don't you go down to that old bat's place at check on him?"

The hero immediately agreed, willing to do anything to help Ilia. Everyone could tell that she was in a lot of pain. In a few minutes, he was dressed and out the door, heading for Doctor Borville's office. He had been there a few times, but no good memories came from the place. Doctor Borville was simply an old, crotchety man who was willing to help almost nobody and owed Telma a debt. Link remembered that it was the only reason he'd helped Ilia regain her memory in the first place.

Once outside his door, Link knocked gently. There was no reply.

Must be asleep, he shrugged. So, he knocked significantly harder. There was still no answer. Hesitantly, Link turned the small doorknob. He was surprised to find it unlocked, and though he felt it an intrusion of privacy, he pushed the door open. All of the lights inside were off and habitually, Link's left hand moved to the blue hilt of his sword.

"Doctor?" He called. Again, everything was silent. Link felt uncomfortable in the darkness, so he pulled out his lantern and lit it. A small bit of the unkempt, messy room was illuminated. He stepped forward and found himself stepping on many sheets of papers, and he tried to maneuver around the gizmos and gadgets lying everywhere. Something was not right.

Link turned into a small alcove, and a gasp escaped his lips. He nearly dropped the lantern, and he felt his stomach turn uncomfortably. His throat became dry, and though his mouth was open, no sound came out. His heart sank all the way down to his churning stomach when he saw it:

The doctor's body lay in front of him, face down on top of all the papers. Blood soaked his back, and Link recognized it as the mark of a stab from a very, very large sword. The doctor's glasses sat beside him, shattered and crooked. Link gathered the courage to take a step towards the bloodied corpse, and he put the lantern on the ground as he knelt. Link's face was horror-stricken. He didn't know what to do.

I have to go back, he told himself. I have to go back and tell Telma.

Link stood up shakily after examining the body, and took a step back. Just as he was about to turn around and return, he saw something out of the corner of his eye. Under the broken pair of glasses sat a crumpled, yellow piece of paper. With a furrowed brow and curious, squinted eyes, Link bent down and picked up the piece of paper.

Shivers ran down his spine, and he felt like throwing up when he saw the note. He opened it and read. On the front, written in Doctor Borville's blood, it read:

THE HERO OF TWILIGHT

Link fanned Telma as she dropped into the armchair, hyperventilating and muttering to herself.

"How could this happen?" She asked, more to herself than to Link. "Who could've done this?"

"It must've been terrible," Ilia shuddered, tears streaming down her sensitive face. Now added to the terrible images in Link's head were pictures of the doctor's corpse. Link was struggling not to break down and react just as Telma was.

"The only doctor in Castle Town… dead!" Telma cried, burying her face in her hands. Link put his arms around her shoulders and rubbed her back comfortingly. "How heartless for somebody to do this!"

At that moment, yet another member strolled into Ilia's room: Zelda. She had also heard the news. The poor princess was a sickly pale, and her face had seemed to take on a permanently terrorized expression. Link gave her a sympathetic look, but couldn't leave Telma's side. While Telma was stuttering and whispering, Zelda was too horrified for words. She hadn't said anything since Link brought the news. He took that to mean that she was simply deep in thought.

"Princess," Telma suddenly straightened up. "Link, I'd like you two to run down to the castle and tell the guards what has happened. Just let them know that we have a murder on our hands."

Link nodded obediently, and Zelda blinked as she stared down at her feet.

"I'll take care of Ilia here," Telma still looked shaken, but she gathered the strength to stand up and move to Ilia's bedside. "Go on, get going."

Link grabbed Zelda's hand and led her out the door gently. When they were downstairs and ready to leave, Zelda lifted her hood to disguise herself, and then they left. Link didn't know why she was trying to stay hidden from the guards and the Royal Council.

For the first few minutes in Castle Town, both of them were silent. Then, Zelda spoke.

"Tell me what happened." She said. Link stared at her. "Out in Hyrule Field with Ilia… I want to know."

Link told her the entire story. She didn't even look at him, but kept staring straight ahead while he explained. She barely flinched.

"I do hope you understand what the Guardian of the Source is." Zelda continued. Of course Link understood. "It means that the orb isn't the only source of this evil."

Before Zelda had a chance to continue, Link pulled out the wrinkled note from his tunic. Zelda shrunk back a bit at the sight of the blood, but then maintained her composure.

"I take it you found that at the doctor's office…" Zelda sighed, and reached her hand out. Link placed the note in her palm. She nodded appreciatively and unfolded the paper with trembling fingers.

ZELDA POV

It was getting harder and harder to stay composed. The recent ordeal was becoming overwhelming, and this note wasn't making anything any easier. The note was addressed to Link and written in blood:

THE HERO OF TWILIGHT.

Take this as a warning. Any threat to the source will pay dearly. Pain will continue… and now the only doctor in Castle Town is dead. The source's path will not be blocked by a doctor or the supposed Hero of Twilight. Evil will spread like viruses through a body, killing everything. And everyone. Beware, Hero of Twilight. You won't be able to win this time.

Zelda took a deep breath and rubbed her temples, handing the note back to Link. The words were now imprinted in her mind.

"The pieces of the puzzle are starting to come together." She stated, though she was still trying to stop the headache pounding in her brain. Link nodded, tucking the note back in his shirt. "The only doctor in Castle Town is dead… viruses through a body…" She repeated.

Link gasped, suddenly understanding as fully as Zelda.

"A plague is going to spread through Castle Town. People will become sick, just like the Gorons." She paused, and then looked at Link purposefully. "Just like the Oocca,"

She had known the minute Ooccoo mentioned a problem that it was this plague. The voice inside of her head told her so, as did her common sense and reason. There was no other explanation for Ooccoo to need an expert and no other Oocca being able to help. Link also seemed to understand that.

"The guardians have killed the doctor for a reason." She continued. "They want to clear the path for the virus. They want to make sure that nobody will be able to stand in its way. Without a decent doctor, nobody will stand a chance against the plague."

"We need to find the source." Link intervened quietly.

"Exactly. And to find the source, we need to find information and complete the orb." Zelda nodded. Then, they reached the castle entrance. Guards stood at the ready, though they seemed somewhat bored. At the sight of them, Zelda took a deep breath and paused momentarily. Link touched her arm, and she swallowed down her fears. She was going to have to face them eventually.

"Good evening," Zelda greeted the guards, making sure to keep her hood completely covering her face.

"Hey there." One guard nodded to her.

"I'm sorry to say this, but I'm afraid we have some bad news." Zelda began. "The doctor has been murdered."

"WHAT?" Both guards shouted. Link glared at her. She shrugged, hiding a smile. Perhaps she should've been subtler.

"Please send word to the Royal Council about this." Zelda said. The guards were freaking out, putting their hands to their heads and looking around anxiously.

"We didn't see anything suspicious! Nobody could've passed us!" They kept repeating.

"Please, gentlemen," She interrupted. "Tell the Royal Council."

"Uh, o-of course," One of them stammered. "Princess Zelda will be alerted as soon as possible."

"Not the princess," Zelda said. They both looked at her, baffled. "Tell her closest advisor. Now go."

"Um… okay," They were surprised at her authoritative tone, but it was effective. They immediately ran back towards the castle. Link was still silent, staring after them with a pensive look on his face. Zelda gazed at him, and then habitually lowered her hood.

She had so much on her mind, and it was beginning to intimidate her. Everything in her life was spiraling out of control. For a while now, her life politically had been getting more complicated. The Royal Council was giving her more responsibilities, which she didn't mind; but they were also starting to take things into their own hands without her consent. It was the reason she had first summoned Link to Castle Town. She needed to discuss this with him.

Without warning, her eyes became filled with tears. All of the secrets of her life were bottled up inside of her, and the bottle was on the brink of exploding. The pressure the Royal Council was putting on her, the plague, her feelings for Link; it was becoming too much for her.

She needed to tell someone. Then, she made the mistake of letting her composure slip. For the second time, she began sobbing right in front of the savior of Hyrule. He glanced at her in shock as she sank to the floor, burying her face in her hands as she sat on the stairs. Zelda sat on the floor, crying and letting the tears flow. Link's arms were almost immediately around her, and she took comfort in his warmth as he cradled her and shushed her gently.

Everything was going to be okay… at least, while Link was around.

Okay, I admit the end was a bit random and a tad confusing. So, tell me if you think I should keep it the way it is or transfer it to the next chapter. Your reviews and criticism are very welcome! Thanks again for everything peopes! :DDD