A/N: As always, I must apologize for the time taken between updates (but don't expect the wait to get any shorter, unfortunately). Life is extremely hectic right now, and writers block isn't helping either. I increasingly feel as though this story is falling apart, even though it has just begun. Bear with me as I fumble around and try to make it work. As always, feedback makes me crazy-happy, and I always take constructive criticisms from my readers seriously, and try to address/fix all issues brought to my attention. I hope you enjoy!

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Later that day, Link wearily checked to see that he had packed everything he needed to for a trip to Castletown. Link was relieved that a trip to Castletown brought Sandhya's mind off what had happened earlier, and wished for a moment that he could be as carefree as his daughter. Alas, that was not the case. While Sandhya thought that they were going to Castletown for a mini vacation, Link knew the truth - they were in danger. He felt certain that if he remained at Lake Hylia, Ilia would find a way to hurt his little girl. Staying with the Queen was a much safer and sensible option at this point. With a curt nod to himself, Link concluded that everything was packed, and it was time to go. He turned to look at his little house, sighing. A wave of sadness swept over him as he looked at the goats grazing and at the water shimmering in the sunlight. He had grown to love this place - and now he would have to leave it, not knowing when - or if - he would ever return. Epona seemed to sense his sadness, nickering quietly and nuzzling his shoulder. Link smiled at the horse, setting a gentle hand on her nose. "I know Epona, I know. Sandhya!" He called out, waiting for his daughter to emerge from the house. With a small grin, he wondered about how wise it was to let a five-year old pack her own belongings.

"I'm coming, daddy!" He heard a small, singsong voice answer him. With a chuckle, he observed his daughter stumble out the front door, trying desperately to carry the heavy pack on her back, as well as balance the cat in her arms. He shook his head as he strode up to her.

"What are you bringing?" He asked, amused.

"Stuff!" She answered simply, trying to close the door behind her. Link gently took the pack off her back so that she could move around a little easier. "Thank-you." She said with a smile, successfully closing the door.

"You're welcome, but Coal will have to stay behind. The journey to Castletown is no place for cat." He said gently, trying to pry the black ball of fluff out of her arms.

"No!" Sandhya shouted, yanking the cat away from her father.

Link looked at her, slightly surprised at her disobedience. This wasn't something that was common for her to do. "Sandhya, honey - Coal needs to stay here - he could get seriously hurt-" his daughter cut him off, tears forming at the edge of her blue eyes.

"Daddy - Coal told me he didn't want to stay here." She sniffled. "He thinks that we're not going to come back - please let him come with us!" She cried snuggling the cat close to her.

Link sighed, a pang of guilt hitting him. He hadn't thought of how leaving Lake Hylia would affect his daughter, especially if they were not going to return anytime soon. Even though he had not told her how long they would probably be gone, he imagined that she had probably picked up on it when she saw the sheer amount of stuff her father was packing. With a frustrated sigh, Link caved. "Alright... but he's your responsibility. If he runs off, or gets hurt - "

Sandhya's eyes lit up. "Oh daddy! I promise I'll take good care of him! I won't let him out of my sight! Thank-you, thank-you, thank-you!" She squealed, causing Link to smile. He watched her as she ran up to Epona, gently trying to place the cat on top of all the packed goods on her back despite her short stature. Coal seemed to understand what he was to do, and leapt out of the little girl's arms and up the side of the horse. To Link's surprise, Coal let out a yawn and curled up into a content ball on top of the luggage.

Link gently passed a hand over the animal, causing it to purr graciously. "Strange thing." He chuckled. Grabbing Sandhya's pack and securing it with the rest of their belongings, Link smiled. "Ready, pumpkin?" He asked his daughter.

Sandhya's tail wagged madly, her blue eyes sparkling with excitement as she nodded her head. Link gently lifted her up and placed her in the saddle, and then got on behind her. Sandhya turned to look at her father with a toothy grin. "I wanna go fast." She said softly, her tail still wagging, thumping against the saddle. Link grinned, nodding. To his amazement, he felt the cat that had been curled up behind him climb up onto his shoulders and slide down into Sandhya's waiting arms. Link laughed as the cat seemingly meowed his agreement.

"Alright then." Link said, taking Epona's reigns in his hands. Taking a deep breath, he started her off at a gentle trot. As they neared the specially made exit of Lake Hylia that would lead them to Hyrule Field, Link let out a loud "Hiyahh!", causing Epona to whinny and take off at top speed.

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Link was barely awake as Epona slowly sauntered across the field. It was the early morning hours - they had been riding all night. Link had thought about stopping, but after seeing that Sandhya was asleep anyway and Epona showed little, if any, signs of fatigue, he had decided to keep going - they had gotten a late start anyway. He smiled slightly, breathing in the night air, reminded of the times he and Midna had spent out here, fighting Ganondorf's minions. Looking down at his sleeping daughter, his smile wavered. She knew little about her mother. Link was not sure how much would be safe to tell her at this point - or if she would even understand any of it at this young age. How do you tell a little girl that her mother was not welcomed in this place - or that there was even another shadow world attached to this one? How do you tell her that she was now in danger because of who her mother was? Link pondered these things, as he had done many times as of late. His silent internal debate was disrupted when he heard a noise off in the distance. His eyes narrowed as he slowed Epona to a halt. Listening intently, he slowly looked around Hyrule Field, watching for anything out of place. A quiet nicker from Epona upheld his suspicions that something was amiss. The sudden tense-ness of the moment seemed to have disturbed Sandhya from her slumber, as she slowly uncurled from her fathers lap.

"Daddy?" she yawned. "What's going - "

"Shh, baby." Link silenced his daughter. Sandhya looked at him, her eyes wide with fear.

She followed his eyes towards a distant point off in the field. Something - or someone - was following them. Suddenly, he drew Epona's reigns back and caused her to rear and whinny in protest - until the horse saw a flaming arrow fly past where she had once stood. Link whirled around in the saddle, raising his shield and unsheathing his sword, blocking his daughter from whatever onslaught was to come her way. "Epona, move!" He yelled, kicking her into a gallop.

"Daddy!" Sandhya cried, terrified as she clung to her father's back as the horse raced forward.

Link glared towards the dots in the distance. Bulbins - both on foot and atop bullbos, were trailing them, their fiery arrows raining down upon the father-daughter pair. A thousand questions ran through Link's mind as they raced away, his Hylian shield being the only object between himself and the piercing pieces of flaming metal being shot towards him. "Why are the Bulbins after us? Who have they allied themselves with now? Is this Ilia's doing? " He wondered, his anger spiking as he thought of Ilia and her actions toward Sandhya. He immediately regretted allowing his thoughts to distract him from the tasks at hand. As Epona whinnied in terror, Link could see bullbos and their riders closing in on them from the sides, as well those that were coming up behind them. He muttered a quiet curse as he saw that they were effectively surrounded. Thinking of what to do next, his eyes suddenly took on a different tone - gone was the angry fire that had been ignited upon seeing the Bullbos, and replacing it was a frighteningly peaceful gaze. As he calculated his options, he had come to the one conclusion that would ensure his daughter would get out of the fray safely. Still holding the shield in a position to guard both him and his daughter, Link turned towards Sandhya.

He smiled at her, his love for his baby girl shining through. Sandhya looked up at her father, her tear-filled eyes meeting his, finding peace in his gentle gaze.

Time slowed as Link sheathed his sword, and used his now-free hand to retrieve something from his neck. Attached to a thin piece of leather cord was a shiny, mirror-like object, carved into a rough triforce. Link knew what it was - a piece of the shattered Twilight Mirror that Midna had destroyed in their last moments together. He had painstakingly carved and chipped away at it to get it to resemble the Triforce, and then sanded the sides down to make it safe to handle and wear. He had kept it with him for all these years, and for some reason, it seemed fitting to give it to his daughter now. Quickly slipping it over her neck, Link smiled.

"Daddy?" Sandhya questioned through sniffles, the meaning behind the moment lost to her in the chaos.

" Always remember, Sandhya." Link said softly, cupping her red-furred cheek. "Always remember that you are a gift from the goddesses. Don't let anybody tell you otherwise." He continued his voice cracking. "And... always remember that daddy loves you."

Sandhya nodded, her tears flowing freely down her face once again. "I love you too, daddy." She whispered.

Link nodded gently, leaning in to kiss her forehead. "No matter what happens, Sandhya, never look back, got it?" He said, a tear finally making it's way down his face.

Time seemed to speed back up, ending the bonding moment between the two. Link twirled around in the saddle once more, facing forward. He brought Epona to a whinnying halt as he back flipped off of her. "Epona!" He shouted, still shielding himself and the young girl from the flaming arrows that threatened to pierce their hides. "Kakariko, girl! Go to Kakariko Village!" Praying the horse understood his request, he smacked her rump and watched as she raced off, with Sandhya holding onto her mane for dear life despite her terrified cries. Link quickly dropped his shield and sword, grabbing his bow and bomb-arrows instead. He lit a bomb-arrow and let it fly - it sailed high above the heads of Epona and her young rider, and eventually ended it's flight at the foot of two bullbos and their riders. The bomb exploded, causing the large pig-like animals to fall over, dumping the bulbins that were riding them. Link smiled sadly as he watched his daughter and trusted steed make their way through the new opening in the circle of bulbins. The moment was destroyed, however, as Link felt a white-hot piece of metal suddenly embed itself into the flesh of his right arm. With a loud cry of pain and anger, Link dropped his bow and reached for his shield and sword again. He stood, poised for attack, as the bulbins approached, and once again, time seemed to slow as his eyes closed and he muttered a brief prayer to the goddesses, asking them to protect his baby girl. A feral growl overtook him as he reopened his cerulean orbs, the cool aqua replaced with a fiery deep blue.

And Sandhya wept as she heard her father's cries in the distance.

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