Eight a.m., and the mayor was meeting with a woman from Kakariko Gorge Rest Home.

"Of course sir, when we recognized your name, we knew how very important it would be to handle this with utmost discretion. Your daughter will not be dragged from her home screaming and thrown into a padded room. We work with the emotionally fractured, and help to rehabilitate them and develop coping mechanisms to find their place in the world."

"I thank you for taking this at such high priority. How much is the monthly fee?"

Anju smiled and held out a brochure. "We have several payment plans, including monthly, bimonthly, biannual, and annual. They can be debited automatically from your account, or you can choose to come in and pay them in person. The amount is determined by what sort of work we need to do, which we can figure from having a discussion with the guest."

"Guest?"

"We do not have patients. Patients are for hospitals, for the truly sick and dying. Our guests are only there for a short time, until they are ready to go of their own accord."

"I only filed the paperwork yesterday to have her declared..."

"We can take her to our facility today, if she is willing to go, and do a brief psychological analysis. If we determine there is a true need for her to stay in our facilities, we will ask her to stay while you wait on the paperwork. But as you know, we cannot force her to do so. All we can do is ask."

The mayor sighed heavily, looking at the brochure, the billing information, the placid descriptions of the grounds.

"Is she coming here, sir?" Anju asked after a pause.

"Uh, no. No. Her… friend, this accomplice of hers who is making her… what was…?"

"Emotionally fractured."

"Yes, um, this gentleman has a trial today. I know she will be there early, so we can talk to her beforehand and see if she will come along, but she may want to wait until after the trial. I just worry that he has something on her that she can't escape from."

Anju smiled. "Then I will meet you at the courthouse."

"Thank you."

Eight-thirty a.m., and Zelda and Link were showering, while his clothes went through the laundry. They kissed longingly under the steaming water, knowing that very soon, they may never be able to see each other again.

"I love you," she murmured in his ear as they pressed their bodies together.

"I love you," he assured her, wrapping his arms around her waist.

Nine a.m., and they were clean and dressed and had breakfast. After a thought, Link buckled his belt around his waist. They headed to Zelda's car to get to the courthouse.

Nine a.m., and Saria was rushing down to her car, on the phone with Ruto.

"Yeah, it's at 10. I know traffic is gonna be hell so I want to get there a little early and see if I can find a good spot."

"Yeah, good luck with that," grumbled Ruto. "You shoulda just had me pick you up."

"Well, I know, but…"

"Hey I'm about to get in the car, I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"Wha—

But Ruto had hung up. Saria stared at her phone in surprise. "But she has a limo driver..."

9:35 a.m., and Link was sitting just outside the court room, where another case was presiding. Gaebora sat next to him, looking over his paperwork and double-checking that everything was filed. Zelda sat on Link's other side, and was holding Link's hand, her eyes half-closed. Anyone would think that she was doing so with the intent of giving comfort, but Link could faintly hear her whispering under her breath, trying to will a memory out of thin air regardless.

9:42a.m., and Saria came running up, out of breath. "Link!" she cried out, and Zelda snapped out of her concentration to look up. Link also looked up, and he nodded grimly at Saria.

She hugged them both, tears in her eyes. "Oh Goddesses, you guys."

"We're just glad you could make it," Zelda replied, hugging her back.

"Thank you for coming, Saria," Link said, grasping her hand and squeezing.

Gaebora looked up in interest. "Saria? Saria Greenleaf?"

She tensed. "Uh, yes?"

"You were the one who bailed out Mr. Nobel, correct? I have you listed as a witness in my paperwork."

"What?" Saria balked in surprise.

"Didn't you get the subpoena?"

"No, I wasn't…" Saria looked at Gaebora in alarm, and he stood up.

"Come on; we'll have to put you with the other witnesses." He gestured for one of the armed guards patrolling City Hall, and one asked Saria to follow him. She hesitated, but Link gave her a gentle push. "You have to."

"Wait!" Zelda stood up, and handed Saria her car keys. "As soon as the trial ends, get to my car and pull out front, as soon as you can."

Saria clenched her hand tight around the keys. "But…"

"Your deathtrap is a four cylinder, Saria."

9:48 a.m., and the mayor approached them. "Zelda," he said, blatantly ignoring Link.

"Hello, father," she replied, getting up and hugging him quickly. Link was fine with being ignored; he was staring down the redhaired woman at the mayor's side.

"Can we go for a walk?" the mayor asked.

"I'd… rather not," Zelda said, looking at Anju and then back to her father suspiciously. "Link's trial is starting soon and I'd like to be there to support him."

"It will only take a few minutes."

"Hello Zelda, I'm Anju Yeats," she said, stepping forward and holding out her hand. Zelda reluctantly shook hands with her, but she kept her face inscrutable.

"Father, this trial is important to me. I will walk with you afterwards if you want to talk."

Anju was smiling and Link could feel her false cheeriness on the air. He reached and took Zelda's hand tightly.

"It'll only be for a minute. Your father has something very important he'd like to discuss with you."

"After. The. Trial." Zelda's tone was calm, but she bit off each word, looking between the two of them.

Anju put a hand to the mayor's arm. "Alright then. We will meet you out front afterwards. It was nice to meet you."

Zelda remained standing as they walked away, watching after them.

9:58 a.m., and the previous case let out, finally. Link watched a young man being led away in handcuffs and sobbing, and he felt a chill, knowing it could be him. Gaebora immediately stood up, and when there was no longer a rush of people from the courtroom, they went in.

Ganondorf was already at the prosecutor's table with his paperwork set up; presumably he had just been involved in the case previous. Link kept an eye on him surreptitiously, grinding his teeth together. Zelda had to stop at the banister separating the viewers from the proceedings, and she sat directly behind Link, reaching over to squeeze his shoulder.

Ruto came in not too much later with Denno in tow, sitting next to Zelda and also reaching up to pat his back. "We're here for you," she told him, and Link thanked her. He turned to look, and saw several people, namely Saria, coming into the court room now. He recognized some of the other people with her, but he couldn't place them, except for the restaurant maitre d', and the manager, who came up and sat at the table with Ganondorf. He said something low to Ganondorf and laughed a little, glancing around. His smile flickered when he saw Link.

"Please ensure all phones are off," called out one of the guards, looking around. Link thought he heard Ruto grumbling under her breath as her phone turned off with a little tune. "Please rise for Honorable Judge Ping."

All stood up as a small man wearing heavy black robes walked into the room and took his seat in the judge's chair, banging his gavel immediately. "Please be seated," he called out in a bored tone. "Case number 75032289, Sakon's Restaurant against Link Nobel, how does the defendant plead?"

"Not guilty," Gaebora answered immediately.

"Alright, please give your statement."

"Your Honor," Gaebora said, standing. "My client has no prior convictions on his record. Do you not think this is a bit extreme for a first charge? The usual pattern is for such an extreme incident to be a follow up to several smaller incidents."

The judge sighed. "Is that all you can say? You may have a dog that has never bitten before, but does that mean it never will?"

Link looked down at his hands, feeling cold.

"No, Your Honor." Gaebora cleared his throat. "I believe that a temporary lapse of judgement due to low blood sugar is what upset my client, as well as being briefly held against his will by the plaintiff."

"Very well. Your statement, Mr. Dragmire?"

Ganondorf stood up and adjusted his tie. "Your Honor, Mr. Nobel fully intended to go into that restaurant and cause bodily harm to those people, out of some maliciousness towards the restaurant owner."

"I don't even know—" Link started to shout.

"Mr. Nobel, you will hold your tongue until it is your turn to speak," Judge Ping ordered.

Ganondorf glanced at Link, and he flinched slightly when he realized that not only was Link projecting pure hatred for him, but he felt it in return for the innocuous man at that table, and he could not place why. He'd honestly never seen him before in his life.

The judge sighed. "Very well, call up the first witness."

Ganondorf grinned, and the meat of the trial began.

"Ms. Chase, where were you on the night of Jole 18th, at 6:17pm?"

The young woman on the stand fidgeted slightly. "I was… at Sakon's, meeting someone on a date. He hadn't shown up."

Ganondorf started to slowly pace from one side of the court room to the other. "Ms. Chase, did you see the accused at the restaurant?"

"Yes. I was sitting and I saw him talking to the maitre d', then I saw him being led to the back of the restaurant. I thought he was being taken to the bathroom."

"When did you next see the accused?"

"Um, he was running from the back, and he had a really big sword out and was holding it."

"Was he threatening any patrons with the sword?"

"No."

Ganondorf thought. "Did he act delirious in any way?"

"I… can't say. I don't even know him," she said sheepishly.

"No further questions." Ganondorf went and sat back down.

Gaebora stood up, clearing his throat. "Ms. Chase, are you a medical professional?"

"Objection!"

The judge looked at Ganondorf.

"Relevancy, Your Honor?"

Gaebora also looked at Ganondorf, then to the judge.

"I'm sure Mr. Gaebora asks this for an important reason, Mr. Dragmire. Overruled. Please answer the question."

The witness hesitated. "Uh… no."

"Are you a professional metalsmith?"

"No."

"So then, with your… lack of professional accuracy, could you definitively say my client was carrying a weapon made of live steel, meant for bodily harm?"

"Uh… no."

"Could you say that he was in his right mind, and not suffering from deliriousness due to having not eaten?"

"No…"

"Is it possible, then, that it could have been a prop sword for a costume party?"

"Objection! Leading the witness," Ganondorf called, standing.

Judge Ping sighed. "Sustained. Reword your question, Mr. Gaebora."

Gaebora nodded in agreement. "No further questions, Your Honor."

"Ms. Chase, you may take a seat. Thank you for your testimony. Next witness."

And for a while, it went on like that. The restaurant patrons gave similar testimony; only one of them was a medical professional, and while he said it did not seem as if Link was in his right mind, such situations affected everyone differently, and he would not be able to give honest testimony as to Link's condition at the time of the incident.

Saria was called to the stand by Gaebora, and she glanced back at Link, offering him a little nod. She sat down at the stand, and kept her hands on her knees, wiping the sweat from her palms. The bailiff presented her with a golden plaque of the Triforce, and she put her hand on it, her fingers touching each individual triangle.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help you in the name of the Goddess Farore?"

"I swear."

"State your full name for the record."

"Saria Magnolia Greenleaf."

"Thank you."

The bailiff stepped back, and the judge gestured towards Gaebora. "Your witness."

Gaebora stood and offered Saria a jovial smile.

"Miss Greenleaf, how do you know the accused?"

She fidgeted a little. "We went to school together, starting from primary."

"So you can safely say you know him fairly well."

"Yes."

"Has he ever shown signs, in your opinion, of mental illness?"

"N… no."

Gaebora cleaned his glasses as he came up with his next question. "You bailed Mr. Nobel out that night, correct?"

"Yes, he uh… named me as next of kin."

"If you believed him to be a dangerous character, who would storm into a restaurant with a weapon and threaten innocent lives, would you have bailed him out?"

Saria shook her head. "No, I wouldn't."

"No more questions, Your Honor."

After a beat, Ganondorf stood up. Saria looked at him and Link could tell at a glance that she felt the same prickle of revulsion.

"Miss Greenleaf, you say you know the accused well."

"Yes."

"Then supposedly, you knew that he had left Hyrule a few years back, and moved to Termina."

"Yes."

"Did he tell you why he came back to Hyrule?"

"Objection, relevancy," Gaebora called out.

"Sustained." Judge Ping eyed Ganondorf. He switched tactics.

"You kept in touch with Mr. Nobel while he was in Termina, correct?"

"Um, off and on. There's a two-hour time difference, so I called when I could."

"And he seemed mentally alright?"

"Well, yeah."

"You say you work for Kokiri Labs. Presumably you are studying biology, not psychology?"

Saria clenched her hands.

"Answer the question, Miss Greenleaf," said the judge after a beat.

"Yes. I am studying biology."

Ganondorf walked up to the witness stand, his hands behind his back. "So you have little familiarity with the human psyche. For example, you would not be able to tell if someone were of sound mind or not, especially in a phone call."

Saria glowered at him, and took a deep breath. "No, I wouldn't."

Ganondorf stepped back and started pacing, rubbing his chin.

"When were you aware Mr. Nobel was in town?"

"When I was called to bail him out."

"Not before then."

"No."

"Did he indicate he was staying nearby?"

"No."

"So where has he been staying?"

"At… my apartment. Off and on."

"Did Mr. Nobel have any luggage with him?"

"No."

"Did he bring anything else with him? Money, identification…"

Saria looked at her hands. "No."

"So… Mr. Nobel was wandering around in a costume, carrying a live weapon, with no identification or money, and nowhere to stay. He did not inform anyone of his arrival, not even his next of kin."

"Objection, leading the witness," Gaebora called back.

Judge Ping raised his eyebrows and looked between the two.

"Your Honor," Ganondorf started. "I only wish to state the facts as they are."

"You are goading Miss Greenleaf to admit that my client was carrying a live weapon. We have not proved such as of yet."

"Do we have the weapon in evidence?" the judge asked.

"No, Your Honor," Gaebora answered.

Link turned his head carefully, looking at Zelda. She dipped her head slightly; the sword was in her car, wrapped up in an old blanket and tucked into the trunk.

"So we won't be able to prove its status as deadly or not."

"Your Honor, we do, in fact, have the weapon in evidence," Ganondorf said with a smirk.

"What?" whispered Zelda in shock. Link's eyes went wide. How the hell was it possible?

"Please bailiff, retrieve the weapon," Ganondorf asked.

The bailiff left into a side room, and a few minutes later, he returned carrying Link's sword. Saria's eyes went very wide and she glanced at Link in a panic.

"I would like this marked Exhibit 1, Your Honor," Ganondorf said, as the bailiff handed up the sheathed weapon. The judge looked it over and withdrew the sword partially from its sheath, raising his eyebrows, then put it back and returned it to Ganondorf.

"Miss Greenleaf, I am handing you Exhibit 1 for identification," he said, turning and handing it to her. She simply held it in her hands, staring.

"Do you recognize this item?"

"Uh…" she fidgeted. "Yeah."

"What is it, please?"

"A… sword."

"Whose?"

"Link's."

"Mr. Nobel?"

"Yes."

"That is all."

He took the sword back. Saria rushed from the witness stand and sat next to Ruto. Ruto put her arm around her shoulder.

"Your Honor, I move that Exhibit 1 be introduced into evidence."

"I'll allow it," the judge replied. Ganondorf took his spot before the bench, facing to the crowd, the sword still in his hands.

"I would like to call to the witness stand Mr. Edward Klyng, please."

An older gentleman, who walked slowly and with a cane, approached the stand and took his seat. He swore on the Triforce and stated his full name, then

"Mr. Klyng, what is your profession?"

"I am retired," he said in a deeper voice than expected, "but before then I was a historian at the Hylian Museum of Culture."

"What was your specialty there?"

"Weapons and armor of the early to late ages of Hyrule, specifically live steel."

"So, swords."

"Yes."

Ganondorf handed over Link's sword. "Would you be able to identify if this is a live steel blade or a prop blade?"

"Oh, most certainly," Mr. Klyng answered. He withdrew the sword with shaking hands, looking at the blade and testing its edges with his thumb. He nodded a little to himself and sheathed it, looking over the general construction of the sheath.

"How do you find the item in question, Mr. Klyng?" Ganondorf asked.

"Honestly, if this is a replica, it is one of the best I've ever seen."

"Could a person be injured with this item?"

Mr. Klyng looked it over, adjusting his glasses. "Oh yes, most certainly."

"That is all." Ganondorf stepped away.

"I am unsure what the procedure is with evidence after the fact, but I do believe the curator may be interested in taking a look at this item. I think it could make a great addition to our exhibit," the old man said suddenly, looking up towards the judge.

"Thank you for your testimony, Mr. Klyng. The defense?"

Gaebora folded his hands. "No questions, Your Honor."

"I now call to the stand Mr. Sakon Chiff."

Again, the swear-in, the giving of the full name.

"Can you detail for us the events of the night in question?"

Sakon leaned back, quite casual and relaxed. "Of course. I was at my restaurant, and my maitre d' comes back with the accused in tow, very concerned. The young man had claimed to be looking for someone, and the maitre d' had brought him to the office to use our phone without frightening customers. We tried to get information from him about a caretaker, but he could give us nothing more consistent than a woman with long blond hair."

Zelda went very rigid.

"When we continued to question him, he grew irate, threatened us with his sword, and stormed out, presumably to go after our customers."

Link bit his lower lip to keep from jumping up and calling Sakon a liar. But he did, at least, lean over to Gaebora and whisper, "he's exaggerating. I was being held against my will."

"Alright, alright. Save it for when you're called up," he hissed in return.

"We called the cops immediately after."

Ganondorf nodded. "Thank you." He went and sat down, and Gaebora stood up.

"Mr. Chiff, when did you ask my client for any information about a caretaker?"

"We asked him who he wanted us to call."

"And he told you explicitly the name of a rest home or a half-way house."

Sakon cleared his throat. "No."

"Who exactly, did he say to contact?"

"He didn't say to contact anyone, actually."

"So then, why did you take the young man into the manager's office?"

"To be out of the way of customers."

"Why?"

"We have a narrow hallway at the door, and with his odd dress, we felt it was best to keep him out of sight of our clientele."

"You said he came in looking for someone. You could not have simply said that you hadn't seen the person in question?"

"Well…"

"Instead, you chose to hide him in the back of your restaurant for no reason, and hold him against his will, which may very well have led to panic?"

"Objection! Badgering!" Ganondorf shouted, standing.

"I withdraw the question," Gaebora said coolly. He lingered a bit longer, then, "Did he give you the name of the person he was looking for?"

"Yes."

"Who?"

Sakon shifted his gaze. "Zelda Harkinian. I thought maybe he was looking for her to attack her. I was doing this city a service."

Gaebora turned and looked at his client, then Zelda right behind him. He turned back. "Mr. Chiff, are you an officer?"

"No, that's—

"Is it not possible that my client could have been separated from his friend while returning from a party?"

Sakon looked at his hands.

"Answer the question, please," ordered the judge.

"Yes," he muttered after a minute. "Bu- but he did draw his sword!"

Gaebora shrugged. "No further questions."

He shuffled his papers around. "I call Mr. Link Nobel to the stand," he announced.

Link stood up and walked up to the stand with his head held high. He sat down and kept focused dead ahead. He swore the truth to Farore, gave his full name, and then his battle began.

"Please tell the court what occurred on the night in question."

Link hesitated. He had sworn to tell the truth, but on the other hand, he did not want to sound insane. He cut it off.

"I… approached the plaintiff's restaurant to ask if they had seen a friend of mine. The maitre d' asked me into the back, where I was asked who I was looking for. The maitre d' accused me to the manager of being mentally ill, which I took offense to. I asked that they let me leave, but they refused, trying to call sanitoriums to send me away. I drew my sword and asked again, and they finally let me go. From there I walked through the restaurant and out, and left the building."

"Did you at any point make threats to anyone?"

He hesitated, and Gaebora nodded very slightly.

"I did gesture towards the other gentleman with my sword, but once he let me out I left. I did not threaten any of the patrons."

Gaebora smiled. "No more questions."

Ganondorf stood up, and Link's adrenaline surged through him.

"Quite a sharp memory you have. Why were you carrying a sword around? Especially, as has been determined by an expert witness, a sharp sword."

"It was for show." Link answered simply.

"Awfully sharp for a prop."

Link stayed silent, and Ganondorf paused, looking at him with smoldering hate. He could grab the boy by the hair and slam his face—

"Any further questions, Mr. Dragmire?"

"Yes, Your Honor." He cleared his throat and shook his head with a frown. "Why did you enter this restaurant?"

"It was the first place I came to that looked open."

"Why were you looking for Miss Harkinian?"

Link decided to seize on the seed Gaebora had offered. "We were walking back together from a party."

"You took a live sword to a party?"

He hesitated. Slowly, then, "Yes. I… had it secured."

"But you freed it easily when you threatened the host at the restaurant?"

Link did not answer.

"Answer the question, Mr. Nobel."

"No."

"No, you did not free it easily?" Ganondorf asked.

"I refuse to answer the question." Link folded his arms.

"Answer the question or I shall hold you in contempt," the judge ordered.

Link looked towards his sword, sitting innocuously on the evidence table.

"Yes."

"Seems as if that takes a great deal of strength, especially if the item was secured for walking through the streets and taking to a party."

"Even a good soldier should be able to get to his sword." Link retorted suddenly.

Ganondorf approached him at a slow pace. "Do you believe you are a soldier?"

Link looked at his hands. "Well." He thought. "Yes."

Ganondorf was repressing a grin, and Link did not enjoy the sight of that.

"Where was this party you and Miss Harkinian were coming from?"

"At a friend's," Link said quickly.

"What friend's?"

"R… Ruto's."

"Miss Ruto Clearwater?"

"Yes."

Ruto sat up straighter.

"How did you get to Hyrule from Termina?"

Link could feel his palms sweating. "We flew."

"They allowed live steel on the plane, even in baggage claims?"

"They saw it was secured."

"Do you have any proof of such a plane trip?"

"No."

"Did you two agree to meet at Sakon's before leaving the party?"

"Yes."

"How were you planning to pay with no money?"

"My wallet was in Zelda's car in a separate set of clothes."

"But you had no other overnight supplies?"

"In her car as well."

"And you never picked up your items from Zelda's car?"

"I did."

"But she didn't come bail you out, Saria did, and didn't even know you were here at this party?"

"Yes."

"Had you been drinking at this party?"

"No."

Ganondorf nodded his head, still grinning.

"And yet, in Miss Greenleaf's testimony, you had nothing, no money, no identification, no extra clothing."

Saria raised her hand, and the judge looked at her in bewilderment. "Miss Greenleaf, this is not a class. Keep your hand down."

Ganondorf looked at her in amusement, then back to Link.

"I will remind you that you are under oath, Mr. Nobel."

Link stared at him. "Zelda brought my clothes around the next day, at Saria's."

Ganondorf nodded. "So. No drinking, no eating, and costumes. What sort of party was this, Mr. Nobel?"

"Objection on grounds of speculation, the type of party should have no bearing on the case of self-defense."

"Objection on grounds of misleading, this is a case of attempted assault, not self-defense."

"Approach the bench, both of you," Ping ordered. Ganondorf and Gaebora did as asked. "I sustain both of your objections; this is a case of attempted assault, but the type of party does not have relevancy to this trial." He folded his hands, looking them both in the eye.

"Yes, Your Honor," they muttered in unison. Ganondorf resumed his pacing, and Gaebora sat back down.

"Mr. Nobel, when held against your will, did you or did you not threaten the maitre d' with your sword?"

Link gripped his knees. "Yes, I did."

Ganondorf grinned broadly. "No more questions."

The judge adjusted his glasses. "Closing statements."

11:20 a.m., and the jury had gone in to deliberate. Link turned around to Zelda, whose eyes were huge with worry. He could hear Ganondorf and Sakon talking in low tones about something.

"Link," Saria whispered. "I blew it."

"No. You did fine. I tried too hard to keep to a story."

Zelda put her hand on Link's.

"You did the best you could."

"How do you think we did?"

"Well…"

But before she could answer, the jury had reappeared, filing in one after another. Link watched them coming in and sitting down, his heart pounding. He saw them almost as executioners. He bristled.

Ganondorf and Sakon straightened. Link turned the right way around, and hoped that something would happen; someone would call out, say 'wait! there's something we hadn't considered!'. Maybe Zelda would grab onto him, and they would be pulled away in a memory. Even Ganondorf suddenly bursting into his true form and charging around the courtroom would be welcome.

Link looked at Ganondorf with hard eyes, almost willing him to do it. Ganondorf felt the strength of that stare and turned, looking at Link. He looked away with a snort.

The jury was seated. The judge adjusted his weight in his seat. "Have you come to a decision?"

"Yes, Your Honor," said the first person in the first row, closest to the judge's bench.

"In the trial of Sakon's Café versus Link Nobel, what is the jury's verdict?"

She cleared her throat. "We find the defendant guilty of all charges, Your Honor."

Ruto shrieked. Zelda stood up, her heart in her throat. Gaebora immediately began to fish out paperwork to file for appeals.

"Order! Order!" shouted Ping. It didn't work quite so well on Ruto.

"You stupid fucks!" she shouted.

"Miss Clearwater, I will hold you in contempt of court!"

Denno pulled Ruto down into her chair, and Zelda put her hand on Ruto's shoulder.

"Mr. Nobel, you have been found guilty of one count of attempted assault. Therefore, I sentence you to sixteen months in Hylia Correctional Facility, with no appeal for eight months."

Link stood, but before he could get much farther, the bailiffs were on him and he was being handcuffed.

"Zelda!" he shouted, looking at her. She tried to follow him, but was also stopped by a bailiff. Ruto, meanwhile, was being held tight by Denno.

Zelda was ready to burst into tears herself, but she held them down.

"I'll follow you to the prison, and we can talk from there about what to do," she assured him. Then, no longer able to watch, she turned away to leave.

"Where's Saria?" she asked Ruto, turning back.

The officers led Link out through a side door, taking him to a small parking lot on one side of the building, where a cop car was waiting.

He took a deep breath as they pushed him further and further towards the opened door, yawning like a hole for a grave.

He looked around desperately. There was a large gate that the vehicle was pointing towards, with a large (closed) door for the vehicle, and a smaller one to its right, presumably for just people. If his sense of direction was on, he should be able to get through that door and he would end up running to the front of the courthouse.

In the time it took him to think of this, they were another three steps closer to the car.

Link kicked backward with one foot, sweeping the foot out from under the officer. As the other one started to turn, he swept his leg forward, knocking the other off his feet. Then, he took off running. Some enterprising government employee who chose to ignore the "DO NOT PROP OPEN" sign above the small door had kept it propped open, presumably to sneak in and out of there for a smoke break. Link rammed his shoulder into the door and kept running.

He was out front of the courthouse, and at first people stared because he was running. Then they stared because he was handcuffed, and the guards around the courthouse gave chase.

Zelda wasn't far behind; she was running. She spied Saria's shitty green car almost at the same time Link did, and Saria was already throwing open the doors on Link's side.

"Zelda!"

She whipped her head and saw her father and Anju coming for her.

"Zelda, wait!"

She turned her head back and ran to Saria's car, fighting off the cops who threatened to detain her as well, and managed to climb in. Saria was already speeding into traffic before Zelda got the door shut.

"Why the hell aren't we taking my car?" she cried.

"I was parked closer!"

She pulled into traffic and immediately started pulling multiple lane changes, trying to keep ahead of the cops as carefully as she could.

"The fountain, take us to the fountain," Zelda urged her.

"It's gonna take a while—"

"Saria, I am giving you my Goddesses-damned car, fucking wreck this thing if you have to! Just don't kill us and get to the fountain!"

Saria pulled into the left lane abruptly, cutting off a car. She then rode directly on the bumper of every car in front of her, making left turns when the light was red (as long as there was no traffic), and basically ruining a long driving life of careful, defensive maneuvers.

Someone had blessed them that day, and they reached an open stretch of road, hitting almost every single green. The sirens were going off behind them in the distance, but Saria just turned up her music louder. Link kept himself braced in the back with his legs wedged under Zelda's seat. Saria kept her foot down hard on the gas pedal, her speedometer creeping up to

The centerpiece fountain of Hyrule was not in the middle of a road. In fact, one had to park and get out to walk up to it. Much of the area around it was open for walking or bike-riding only, with cobblestone-style paths and nice sunken gardens of hardy flowers.

Saria laid on her horn as she floored it over the slight step separating the sidewalk from the road. Her car shuddered and squeaked painfully as it hit the bump and made it over. She kept honking her horn, and people ran out of the way of her car.

She smashed into the side of the fountain, and some of the ancient bricks were pushed out of alignment. Her car gasped and died, and Saria swore; her engine block was hosed. Zelda jumped out, the sirens closer than she'd hoped, and she helped Link out as well.

"Saria? Are you okay?" she called.

"Yes, I'm fine!" Saria hopped out of the car. "I didn't have time to get anything in your car."

"It's fine, don't worry about it." She turned to Link and took his hands, closing her eyes. Link looked up at the strangely green Triforce at the top of the fountain, and let his eyes go out of focus. With a flood of relief, he could feel a memory nipping at the edges of his subconscious. He brought up the fountain, the way it looked as he knew it with the Triforce still coppery and bright and new. He remembered the day it was installed, even. Still, the memory persisted, and a headache was coming on at the back of his head. He gripped Zelda's hands tight.

Zelda could also feel her own memory welling up inside of her. She felt the same symptoms at Link, and slowly her hearing started to muffle. The far-off sirens became bird calls, and she could hear the murmur of townspeople overriding the sound of cars. "Remember," she whispered, gripping Link tight.

He was almost there, this much he knew. The bright sunny day was becoming unbearable on top of his headache, and he was blinded with white light. Zelda's nails were digging into his hands and later he would find bruises, but for now he pulled away from the memory as best he could, reminding himself over and over again of who he truly was.

Saria wanted to scream as the cop cars parked in a half-circle around the fountain square, but she could see their figures fading and flickering, and she would not interrupt them now. She bit into one knuckle until it broke the skin, clutching at herself.

Zelda gasped.

Link cried out.

They vanished.

All went white.