Disclaimer: Jokes on you, still don't own it.

Chapter 1: First Star I See Tonight

It was getting late.

Zelda Harkinian finally glanced to her side, squinting to see the hands of the clock that ticked on the wall. Her eyes were fuzzy from staring at her paperwork for so long, and it took her a moment before her vision cleared up enough so that she could read the time.

She shrugged, a little impressed with herself. Three hours overtime and she hadn't even noticed. She dryly wondered if the saying, "time flies fast when you're having fun," held true.

Zelda finally dropped her pen, suddenly aware of badly her hand was cramping. She had been given more reports to look over than usual, and it was expected of her that she had them completed and turned in on her boss's desk the next morning. By the time she looked at the clock, she had just finished putting the last few corrections onto the report. It was hard, tedious work. If Mr. Ingo wasn't a borderline-sadistic boss with the work ethic of a god, she would've put the paperwork off for another week. She respected her boss's diligence, but his attitude left a great deal to be desired.

She straightened in her seat, dully noting how much she had been slumped over her desk. She brushed back the chunks of hair that had loosened themselves out of her braid, and the necklace she was wearing had somehow slipped out from under her shirt and was resting on top of her desk. She tucked the little locket back into her blouse before she started to stand up.

Zelda swept the papers together, stacking them on the corner of her desk so she could hand them to Mr. Ingo first thing in the morning. She was sure that she had completed her task perfectly, and she didn't have time to double check her work. Right now, she really needed to get back to her apartment. The clock said it was getting close to midnight and Zelda knew that she would have to walk since the bus she usually took home didn't run that late. She glanced at her heels and sighed.

Throwing her purse over the shoulder of her coat, she exited her cubicle and headed for the door. A quick sweep of the room revealed that she was the last one in the office. Funny, she didn't remember hearing anybody leave. She shrugged noncommittally, clicking the office lights off as she left.

Zelda buttoned up her coat a little more as she walked down the street. It wasn't a particularly cold night, but the breeze that ran through her hair had a bite to it that seemed misplaced for early August. She didn't really mind it, but that didn't mean she couldn't feel a growing number of goose bumps.

Looking around as she walked with her hands in her pockets, she realized how pretty of a night it was. The moon was a thin, pearly crescent, and there were hardly any clouds in the sky. The stars were dim from the streetlights but at least there weren't many cars around at this time of night to really distract from them.

She never noticed these things when she rode the bus. Usually, she checked her work or school e-mails on her way home every day, and she rarely glanced out the window – except to check if she was close to her stop. Sometimes she found her eyes were drawn to a random person walking, or a neon sign, but Zelda never really looked up at the sky. She would have to do that more often, she decided.

Zelda turned a corner, heels scraping against the sidewalk in response. They clicked loudly as she continued down the street and she half-wondered if the people in the buildings could hear the echo as she passed by. She mentally decided that they could. The night was near silent besides her obnoxious pumps, with no other sound than the slight flicker of a street lamp.

She was about two blocks away from her apartment building when she noticed another pair of shoes tapping against the sidewalk behind her. She figured it was just another worker who missed the bus like her and didn't pay any attention to them. Zelda kept looking up at the stars, wondering why she rarely looked up. She couldn't come up with any other answer other than she was busy, and therefore had no time to deal with stars. She certainly fit the horribly busy description of the modern employee, what with her near-insane boss and the overwhelming stacks of paperwork that she had to sift through, but she figured that work wasn't all-consuming like she made it out to be. She took classes up at the university, too.

She inwardly groaned as the thought hit her; she had forgotten all about the 7 o'clock class that she had the next morning, along with the 10:30 shift she had to cover at the office right after class. She couldn't really complain, though. It was her fault that she signed up for the earliest Psychology class that the university offered. But still.

Zelda ran a hand over her face, pausing to look back up at the inky blue sky as if asking for a blessing. It would take a miracle for her to get through tomorrow. Mr. Ingo was giving her more and more menial tasks to fulfill lately with the promise of a promotion, and she didn't have any other option but to do them. She needed the money that a pay raise would bring; if working ridiculous hours was the only way to get what she wanted out of life, then so be it.

Zelda finally tore her gaze from the sky when she noticed the footsteps growing louder behind her. The sound was even and calculated in her ears – as if the person behind her knew the precise amount of steps they should take to get home. A flicker of worry passed through her, but she dismissed it. Maybe they were just enjoying the night on their commute home? They had been on the same path for a block now, so maybe whoever they were lived in an apartment too. But, then again, she didn't remember any of the other people who lived in her apartment complex working late hours other than Dampé, and he was a grave keeper.

She also didn't remember anybody from her building who liked to take nighttime walks. They were all morning people, just like her – the kind who went to bed at midnight and who had breakfast out on the table by 7 o'clock sharp.

With a rising suspicion, Zelda decided to take a random corner to see if the person was actually following her. Sure enough, the footsteps didn't fade away like they should have. Zelda turned another corner, producing the same result. She was only a block away from her home, but whoever was following her was getting more persistent. She had to lose them.

Zelda calmly began weaving her way through the series of alleys before the apartment complex, glad that the business district of Castle Town's layout was a messy grid. Yet, despite her many turns, the footsteps never seemed to falter as the person following her continued their pursuit. Zelda was running out of ideas, and it wasn't until she had accidently turned into a dead end that she realized that it may get ugly. She reached into her purse, turning around as the person following her entered the alley.

Zelda could only confirm two things as she analyzed her follower; the person was a young man, and he wasn't your standard mugger.

She knew the former by his broad shoulders, too broad to be female, and his light build. She decided that he couldn't be older than 30 and no younger than 18. He stood with the confidence of a bachelor. She couldn't see his face due to the hood he was wearing, and she couldn't identify him via hair color either. She only had her gut feeling to work off of.

She knew the latter because if he was indeed a mugger, he would have wasted no time in running towards her with the intention of getting her wallet, but he hadn't. Instead, the man simply leaned against the corner of the alleyway, looking like he had all the time in the world as he crossed his ankles lazily.

"You didn't hesitate to give me the slip back there, Blondie," the man said coolly. "What's the matter? Afraid I was a purse snatcher?"

The man's voice was dangerously smooth, like crushed velvet, and it made the hairs on the back of her neck stand up with dread. No, she decided firmly, he wasn't your standard mugger. He was something else entirely. She just didn't know what. "Something like that," she muttered.

"Well, if that's the case, what exactly do you propose I am?"

"Why are you asking?" Zelda replied shrewdly, narrowing her eyes. "Aren't you supposed to be robbing me or something?"

The man laughed; a deep, melodic sound that made Zelda shiver with she didn't know what. "I want people to know what they're dealing with before I make any moves."

Zelda frowned. "That's kind of sadistic, making people guess what you are."

"I like to think of it more as a public service. I'm trying to even the playing field here; I know a little about you, and now you get the chance to know a little about me." The man said, crossing his arms. "So? What am I?"

Although she was wary, Zelda brushed off his odd request – she had seen enough Law & Order in her days to know to humor a criminal if she was ever faced with one in order to buy herself some time. Plus, she couldn't deny her budding curiosity, so hey, why not go with it?

She tilted her head slightly, deeply considering what he was asking. She had already decided that he wasn't an average thief, but that didn't really limit her options. He was dressed too nicely to need any extra money, anyways. The sleek black overcoat and crease-less button-up looked expensive, and the leather combat boots he wore weren't anything to scoff at either. She could probably see her reflection in them if she was close enough.

"You don't look like a drug dealer," she said. "And your getup doesn't really suit the 'local outlaw" look, either."

The man laughed softly. "Good, good. Anything else?"

"Gang member? No, no you're not really wearing anything gang-related to identify you with, other than all black and that's not really uncommon." Zelda's brows furrowed as she ran through the different types of criminals that she knew of. "Rapist? Or maybe a serial killer?" she suggested thoughtfully.

"I must say, I'm a bit impressed. Most people stop at gangster." The man tore himself away from the wall, taking deliberately slow steps towards her with arms still crossed against his chest.

Zelda suddenly felt cold. "So you've done 'this' to other people?"

He ignored her. "Well, I'm not a gang member, although you are somewhat close with that one. I wouldn't mind taking a bite of you Blondie, but I would prefer your consent." The implied 'prefer' hung in the air for a moment before he continued: "So no, I'm not a rapist. As for being a serial killer, I can confirm that I have better things to do than murder a few Hylians for fun."

Zelda's curiosity had peaked by now, and she couldn't help herself when she blurted out, "Surely you have to be one of those things. You said I was close when I said gang member, but you don't have any symbols on you. If you're not any of those, then what are you?"

She could practically hear the smirk in his voice as he stopped a few feet away from her. "What? Are you sure you don't know, Blondie?

"I honestly don't," she commented dryly, feeling stumped and a little bit annoyed that he already had a pet name for her. She took a casual step back to keep the distance between them. "Tell me, then, if you're so keen on wanting me to know what kind of criminal you are."

"Funny, I thought that you of all people would've recognized a man just trying to do his job," he replied, a note of amusement in his tone. "We're both employees of someone bigger than us. Only I prefer to think of myself as something like a protégé than an actual employee."

Zelda was completely clueless as to what he was talking about. Her curiosity begged her to ask him another question, but he spoke first.

"You're a smart girl. You'll figure it out eventually, and I'd hate to ruin the surprise by telling you. Now then," he said, his voice lost all of its previous diversion and he became cold, "You have something that I want."

Zelda squashed down her curiosity at his words, becoming serious as well. She had almost forgotten what she was looking for in her purse, and she continued to brush against the contents until she finally felt the comforting feel of metal against her fingertips. "I do?" she asked.

"Yes. And I intend to get it from you."

A flicker of panic rose through her. So it was going to get ugly after all.

The whole scenario vaguely reminded her of the old comic books she read when she was little; a young girl is trapped in an alley by a mysterious figure cloaked in black, but just before things took a turn for the worst, the girl gets whisked away by a handsome hero and is taken to safety.

She inwardly groaned. Her supply of dashing knights was painfully low. She curled her fingers around her weapon with a frown on her face. Without any way to ask for help, she'd have to do this by herself.

The man stretched out a slender, gloved hand to her. "Give me your necklace, Blondie."

"My necklace?" she asked. She had been completely clueless before, but now she was dumbstruck.

"Like I said, I prefer consent, and I would much rather have you give it to me than have to rip it from your pretty little neck." He said coldly.

Zelda didn't budge, and the two were at a standstill for a few, agonizing minutes. Her mind was racing all the while. Why would he want her necklace? It was a keepsake of her mother's, just a simple gold locket with a Triforce on it – nothing more than your standard old trinket. Maybe he was a robber after all. The necklace had a few small gems on it, but there was no way he knew that. She could feel the cold metal against her chest where her heart struggled to beat evenly. Was he ordered to retrieve it, and if so, why would his supposed "employer" want it?

"I'm not wearing a necklace." she lied.

A pause: "Is that a 'no', then?"

"I-"

"Don't give it to him!"

Zelda was about to turn to where the new voice had erupted, but the man in black rushed forward in an attempt to take her by surprise. She quickly dove out to the side, landing into a type of kneel. The man's head was angled at the dumpster behind her and hissed a string of curses before returning his attention back to her. Hoping her reflexes were going to be quick enough, she ripped the handgun out of her purse, readying it in her hands when the man was only a foot away with her arms outstretched.

Although she still couldn't see his face even at such a close distance, she was sure a smirk had curled onto his face. "I didn't expect that," he said, sounding a little impressed as he held his arms up in surrender. "The whole "pencil skirt and heels" look you have going on made me think you were just the cute secretary."

"I'm full of surprises," she replied coolly. With the gun cocked in her hand, she felt a lot more confident than she had a few moments ago.

"As am I."

Before she could react, the man reached into his pocket, pulled out a small, brown sphere and threw it down in front of him. Zelda was blinded by the flash that erupted from shattered Deku Nut, and a gust of wind flew over her. Her hand jerked off the trigger to cover where the locket was under her blouse when something brushed her ear. She heard a soft, "I'll see you soon, Blondie," along with a sharp pain across her cheek.

When her vision finally cleared, she saw that the man in black had vanished. She quickly checked that her mother's locket was safely looped around her neck before she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Goddesses!" she shrieked, jumping back from the offending hand and aiming her gun. She looked up from the barrel to see another man, this time in green, smiling down at her. "What the hell do you think you're doing? I could have shot you!"

"I came here just in time." He said matter-of-factly. He crossed his arms over his chest with what she interpreted as a smug grin. "That man was dangerous. Glad I was here to save you, little lady."

"You didn't save anyone," she muttered angrily, annoyed that she had lost the criminal and by the new guy's cocky attitude. She aimed the gun at the man's chest. "I had this completely under control before you went ahead and ruined it."

"Uh, huh," he nodded sarcastically, "seems like it."

Zelda eyed his forest green outfit warily. He wore a similar hooded overcoat, but she could see his face clearly besides the thin mask he wore to cover the area around his eyes. They were a startling blue, but other than that she couldn't tell anything else; the moon wasn't enough light to make out any distinguishing features. She did notice a few tawny chunks of hair poke out from under his hood, though. She also made a point to note that this guy's voice didn't have the dangerous velvety feel of the other man's voice, but it sounded equally as masculine – kind of like melting chocolate.

His intentions seemed to be good as he offered a hand to help her up, but she swatted him away. The blonde huffed as she stood up, wobbling a little on her heels. The man reached to steady her, only to back off when Zelda cast him a scathing look.

"You know, I really should arrest you for obstructing the law, and for being a possible accessory to the crime." She said stiffly, brushing off her skirt with one hand while she kept the gun steadied in the other.

The man's golden brows shot to his hairline. "You're kidding, right?"

"Hello, arresting the bad guys is kind of my job," she said, waving her handgun at him for emphasis before re-aiming at his chest. "And since I have no intention of being fired, I order you as a member of the Castleton Federal Police Force to get down on the ground and put your hands behind your head. If you can't complete this task in the next five seconds, I'm legally permitted to shoot you down under the charges of resisting arrest."

He crossed his arms, frowning. "You can't be serious."

"One…"

"Not that I'm opposed to getting orders from a girl in high heels or anything, but really? You're arresting me?"

"Two…"

"Did you miss me rescue you from that guy?" he asked shrilly, waving his arms. "Because that literally happened a few minutes ago, and I don't think a police officer such as yourself should have that short of a memory-"

Zelda cocked her gun, narrowing her eyes. "Three…"

"Fine! Fine!" he muttered hotly. "I'll put my stupid arms behind my head but I'm not going to get these pants dirty."

"Four…"

He groaned loudly. He reluctantly tucked his arms behind his head and dropped to the ground on his knees, glaring at her. "You are one, cold-hearted woman, you know that?"

Zelda shrugged, smiling slightly. "Comes with the territory, I guess."

No longer viewing him as a serious threat, she debated whether or not she should put away her gun. She had a strange feeling that this man was trustworthy and would do as she asked. Still, the feeling didn't stop her from reaching into her coat pocket where she kept a pair of handcuffs, pulling them out for good measure.

The man eyed the silver chains in her hands, shaking his head with disbelief."Handcuffs?"

"Handcuffs," she repeated simply. She slipped the gun back into her purse, but kept a part of it sticking out in case she ended up needing to use it.

"You know," he said casually as she hooked the metal cuffs around his wrists, "I normally don't mind being handcuffed by a pretty woman, but somehow I think you ruined them for me."

"Oops," she said, purposefully tightening the restraints until they dug into his gloves and hopefully his skin. She dully noticed how sleek the leather was. "My bad."

"Whoa there, Sheriff," he joked. "Take it easy. No need to take it out on my poor wrists."

"What are you supposed to be anyways?" Zelda huffed, ignoring his previous comments as she returned to the front of him to look him in the eyes. He was really starting to get on her nerves, and the crude jokes certainly weren't doing anything other than souring her mood."Some kind of wanna-be hero?"

"I prefer the term 'masked vigilante'," he commented stiffly.

Zelda was a little amused that he had gotten offended rather quickly by her comment. His eyes suddenly narrowed, and she was sure that he was going to make another snide remark but he didn't. Instead, he nodded towards her cheek.

"You're bleeding." He jerked his chin down, gesturing towards his breast pocket. "There should be a handkerchief in there. You can use it to cover the wound until you get home."

Zelda tentatively brought her fingertips to where he had nodded to; surprised when a few droplets of blood soaked into her skin. She figured it was from the Deku Nut's shell as it exploded, causing a piece to fly off and cut her - unless the man in black had decided to knife her during his escape.

The blonde eyed his pocket for a second before the man groaned, saying, "Oh, come on. Don't be stubborn. Take it out before it you bleed all over your clothes."

She glared at him for a moment before begrudgingly slipping her hand into his pocket and pulling the cloth out. She pressed it to her cheek immediately. It was soft, like satin, and a part of her felt bad for dirtying it - the other part didn't care. Zelda had mentally decided that she didn't like the new man in green, and although she had to give him some credit for trying, he hadn't really done anything helpful. He made her lose a good lead on what sounded like a growing crime operation, and Zelda wasn't too sure when she would hear of it again. He also had managed to rub her the wrong way with just a few sentences. He came across as a cocky jerk who thought he was some kind of hero of the people. What kind of hero was he supposed to be, anyways? The city had the police to keep them safe. He wasn't even a necessary asset. She was sure he was just a poser with a lot of time on his hands.

Yet, there wasn't any other explanation as to why his presence made the man in black leave in a hurry other than him being a genuine "good guy". Maybe the man in black just didn't want to be seen in a shady alley trying to steal from a random girl? Then again, if he was a criminal, he wouldn't have cared to protect his reputation. Plus, why would he have cursed so much if he didn't know the new guy? Zelda was puzzled as her list of questions grew.

"Aren't you supposed to be reading me my rights or something?"

Zelda blinked. "Oh. Right."

The so-called hero shook his head lightly, peering up at her with his head tilted sideways. "You're new to this whole 'cop thing' aren't you," he asked with a grin.

"Office jobs pay better," she shrugged. "But I think I'll skip out on the rights for now. I need to call for someone to come pick you up."

The man in green rolled his eyes, but said nothing.

She whipped out her phone and punched in a quick message to her boss. Mr. Ingo had recently discovered the delicate art of texting and would only respond in that format, refusing to answer any of his phone calls no matter how urgent they could have been. Despite the slight inconvenience, he still managed to get the job done. Zelda tucked her cell back into her pocket with the complete knowledge that somebody was being sent to her location.

The wind blew through her hair as an oddly comfortable pause ensued. Zelda felt her eyes wander to the so-called hero. He wasn't looking at her, opting to stare at the ground as if he had suddenly gotten deep in thought. The moonlight cast pretty looking shadows on his face, and she hadn't paid much attention to his appearance until he gave her that - dare she say it - cute grin. It was still too dark for her to make out any real features, but he did have a nice set of pearly whites on him. Zelda inwardly groaned; even if he turned out to be a 10/10 in the light, she refused to give in to whatever her feminine side had to say.

After a few moments, he broke the silence:

"The guy who ran off, do you know what he was after?" He asked, staring at her intently.

Zelda bit her lip. The only thing she knew about this guy was that she didn't like him (and that he could potentially be swoon-worthy, but she wasn't about to mention it), so she wasn't exactly ready to confide in him. Yet, a voice in her head insisted that he was completely trustworthy. After a moment of internal struggle, Zelda decided to go with it; besides, she had nothing else to do but wait for backup to come take him back to the station. She might as well keep up with the conversation.

"Well, not initially, no. He had been following me for a block before I tried to lose him in these alleys. I went into this dead end by accident and he closed me off. I thought he was going to be some pretty mugger who just wanted my wallet, but after a few minutes he asked me for my necklace."

The man's eyes narrowed. "Show it to me."

Zelda paused, unsure.

"Please," he insisted, "It's important that I know what he wanted from you."

Zelda reluctantly kneeled in front of the man, tugging the necklace out from under her blouse to hold it out for him to see. The pendant looked so small in her hand – only an inch or so wide – yet it still managed to sparkle in the moonlight. The man in green poured over it intently.

"Where did you get this?" He seemed to be interested in the Triforce in the center, asking her to bring it closer so he could see it up close.

"I found it at a pawn shop," she lied quickly.

If he suspected something, he didn't let on. Instead, the man nodded, continuing to look at it for a few moments longer. "I wonder…thank you, miss. I think you're safe now." He said abruptly. "He shouldn't be after you anytime soon. You're free to go home now. "

Zelda furrowed her brows, suddenly confused. "What are you talking abo-"

The handcuffs fell to the ground loudly as the man stood up, rubbing his wrists gingerly. He tucked his now-free hands into his coat pockets before he started to run out of the alleyway.

Zelda gaped at him in awe. "How did you-" She suddenly came back to her senses, scrambling to catch up to him - heels were such a bad idea.

"Wait! Get back here, you bastard!"

The man simply waved over his shoulder. "Have a good night!"

"Oh no you don't!" She hissed, picking up the pace. She stretched out her hand to grab his coat, but another flash of light exploded from the ground and the man vanished in a flurry of green.

Zelda blinked until the glare disappeared, shaking her head as the second failure of the night sunk in. "He got away. They both did."

That night, Zelda lie wide awake in her bed, clutching her necklace in her hands. She had gotten home safely, but it wasn't without the occasional cautious glance over her shoulder. The so-called hero had said that the man in black wouldn't be after her anytime soon, but she could still hear the whispered, "I'll see you soon, Blondie" in her ear. It gave her chills.

Her day had ended poorly, she decided. She lost what she thought was a good lead on a rising criminal organization, and she found out that there was a masked vigilante who was somehow ahead of the police force when it came to new crime in the city. Not to mention her embarrassment when she had to explain to her fellow officer that the man she apprehended had escaped. And, there was the bit about her mother's locket that she had yet to understand. She turned it over in her hands, outlining the gems with her fingertips.

Why was everyone suddenly so interested in it? It was just your standard old trinket; her mother gave it to her as a birthday present ten years ago. Why would anybody want it? The thing even had a few dents in it from when Zelda dropped it in the garbage disposal on accident and turned the thing on before she noticed the necklace was missing. The lie she told the blonde guy could've been accurate if she hadn't known better. It did look like it might've come from a pawn shop, other than the brilliantly-cut gems on it.

Zelda sighed as she flopped onto her stomach: I bet Mary Jane never had to deal with thugs after her jewelry.

Author's Note: Yay! Chapter 1! If you read my super long intro in the prologue, bless your heart. It was long and embarrassing, but it needed to be said. Chapter 2 is being edited as we speak, and it should be up in the next two weeks! Bare with me though. I'm slow at these things.

But anyways, hope this was enough to make you want to read! I don't really expect a lot of readers, but hey, who doesn't like a good cop story? I sure do.

-callmeordinary