Somehow I was able to stop laughing by the time the mine cart came to a start, Link climbing out and holding his hand out to help me. He seemed to have gotten over his embarrassment, even though he refused to meet my eyes.

He's probably disgusted, even if it's just a small part of him that is. I waved the feelings of guilt and distress that followed the thought. Hadn't I known that people would react in such a way if they knew? I was prepared for such feelings, but the thought of Link thinking of me in such a way left a bad taste in my mouth. Setting my mouth in a firm smile, I sighed inwardly. He'll understand, maybe not today and maybe not tomorrow, but he will one day.

"Let's go catch up with Zelda," I prompted with the brightest tone I could muster. "I'm sure she's waiting for us up ahead, and we don't want to keep her there, do we?"

Link smiled, glancing towards my shoulder rather than my face, "Not at all."

We ran up a set of stone stairs, fresh air flooding through after hours of air that had not moved in thousands of years. Sunlight filtered into our eyes, making my heart beat fast for want of seeing the sky. A smile crept over my face, leading me to running faster. Emerging from underground, we blinked the sun from our eyes, quickly scanning our surroundings.

To our left was the tall stone wall, which I recognized as the gate that had been in our way earlier. To our right was a drop off, a stone bridge connecting one piece of land to the other. I looked up, the architecture of the temple overly familiar as I spied the giant turning cog in the center of the structure. Light blue symbols decorated the magical item. Of the symbols, I immediately recognized the symbols for Farore, Din, Nayru, and the item I knew to be called the Triforce. Hurrying through the scattered memories of my teachings, I was able to at least figure out what some of the accompanying symbols were. Translating quickly, I soon realized this is an artifact that had long been whispered about in my days, the Gate of Time. Back then, it was rumored that it would send you thousands of years to the future, which I suppose is now. If one were to walk through that Gate now, though…

I was so caught up in trying to place meaning to the other symbols that I completely missed the three women standing in front of the magical item. The ending notes of a song drifted into my ears, and in a distant part of my mind I recognized the song from long, long ago. However, I was more focused on how the wheel suddenly transformed, opening to reveal some sort of path, or even a gateway.

"Fallon! It's you!" My gaze focused on a familiar green-haired woman, a smile capturing my face as I recognized Kaxlin, Leslie's twin. I hadn't seen her since that day in the forest!

What really caught my eyes; however, were the two besides her. The one was tall and thin, built for speed and agility. After a moment, I recognized her as Impa, a woman I had known thousands of years ago. But how would she be alive after all this time? My eyes slid to Zelda, and my breath caught.

Zelda really was Hylia. I could tell by the way she carried herself, her dress, the harp in her hands, how her hair was styled. I had suspected, but to have my suspicions confirmed? How had I been so blind? She looked at me for a moment, sadness reflected in the depths of her blue eyes as she nodded.

This was why Ghirahim needed Zelda. The soul of Hylia would be more than enough to resurrect his Master. Did he know that Zelda was Hylia, or that she just had the key to awaken Demise? Either way, he must not get his hands on Hylia.

"Link!" Zelda called out, her voice not sounding any different from usual.

The two of them began to run to us and just as I was getting ready to bow to Hylia, an explosion rocked the stone beneath us. Debris launched outward, dust flying up and obscuring my vision for a moment as Link coughed. A chill flew up my spine as familiar laughter echoed in the darkening hall. Out of the dust shot a streak of white and red, landing on the walkway to the Gate of Time. Ghirahim straightened, glancing at Link as his sword sliced through dusty. A barrier appeared, blocking our path to Hylia and Impa. The demon's eyes didn't even seem to see me as he turned back to his prey.

Impa was barely able to react in time, but she darted forward to meet Ghirahim's sword with a field of magic. Unfazed, Ghirahim began to strike at her defenses with his sword, letting out grunts in both anger and excitement. Kaxalin drew her own sword, going to Zelda's side with a shout I couldn't hear.

"Your Grace! Quickly, to the Gate!" Impa's voice cut through the clang of steel against magic.

In panic I glanced at the barrier in front of Link. I still couldn't get to them! My heart thundered in my ears as I thought of what I had to do. I had to jump! My legs froze as Zelda ran close to the edge, Kaxalin at her side still.

Hylia raised the harp to the sky, shouting to Link, "Link, here! You'll need this where you are going!" In a burst of golden magic, the harp arced over and into Link's hands. She began to run back to the Gates of Time, and whatever lay beyond it.

"Go now!" Impa yelled somewhere in my thoughts.

A shattering sound pierced through my panic, and I turned my attention back to Ghirahim. Before my brain had even caught up with what I had seen, I found myself jumping off of the platform and onto the bridge in front of Ghirahim in order to not only protect Hylia, but Impa who laid in the shards of her broken magic.

My eyes focused in on Ghirahim's blade as it barely stopped in front of my nose. I held my breath as Ghirahim's eyes blinked once, his expression falling into shock. "Fallon?" He opened his mouth to say more, but was warned by Link's angry yell.

Ghirahim grabbed me, forcing my body behind me as he dodged Link's powerful jump attack. Hastily he backed up, before whipping around to grab my face with warm hands. "Do not get in my way," Ghirahim ground out, before giving me a quick, but hard kiss. He turned around, only to discover that his quarry had escaped through the Gate. The muscles in his arms tensed as he watched Impa destroy the Gate of Time. I moved to grab a hold of him, but he stepped forward with a clenched fist.

"Now you've done it, Link!" Rage coated Ghirahim's tongue as he glared at the hero in front of him, poised to strike at any moment.

Kaxalin walked forward, interrupting Ghirahim to ask, "What exactly do you understand, Ghirahim?" I sent him a puzzled look. What was she talking about?

Ghirahim's face relaxed into a feral grin, "That even if I can't get that silly girl… I can still use you!" His hand twitched and he began to move forward.

Again, my body seemed to think before my mind did. I tackled Ghirahim to the ground, pinning his arms and legs down with a strength that would have scared me just a few weeks ago. I would figure out what was going on, when my mind would finally catch up. For now, all I knew was that Kaxalin was not safe from Ghirahim and that Ghirahim was struggling with all his might to come out from underneath me.

I couldn't see her face, but as Kaxalin asked, "How do you know?!" I could feel the fear that she herself felt.

"Your Highness, as your sword spirit and bodyguard I advise you to run!" That had to have been Furrie. "I'll hold off this demon scum!"

Ghirahim stopped struggling for a moment, allowing me to relax just enough that I was not about to pop a vein. He looked over my shoulder and laughed. And what a hollow sounding laugh it was. "I've been planning this for over a thousand years! I of course looked for loopholes in case something should happen to the Spirit Maiden, and it is only natural that I found out about the Children of the Goddesses!" With what he had to say done, he began to throw himself about again.

I clamped down hard, sweat dripping down my face as I pleaded, "Please go! I can only hold him down for so long!"

"Let go of me, Fallon!" Ghirahim grunted, anxiousness crossing his face and dripping into his voice, "I need her to resurrect my Master!"

My eyes locked on his as my hands clamped down harder on his wrists. Slowly, I said so that only he could hear, "No, dear." Heat sparked and he looked hard into my eyes, as if realizing something for the first time.

"I will fight you to prove to my people that you demons are nothing! I am not afraid of you!" Kaxalin said with a confidence I almost envied. I saw her footsteps out of the corner of my eyes as she ran past, followed by what must have been Furrie's feet. Looking up, I saw them teleport away.

I went slack with relief, allowing Ghirahim to grab me by the waist and drag me along as he stood. A sword appeared in his hand as he looked at Link with a sigh that could almost pass as a groan, "I blame myself for this. I should have reprimanded you the last time we met, but I was…" Ghirahim looked at me, "Soft. I'd take pleasure in punishing you, but I do not have time for such recreation. But next time, I'll do more than just beat you senseless." He chuckled menacingly, one arm still around my armored waist. Ghirahim waved his sword, preparing to teleport, "I'll make the affair so excruciating; you'll deafen yourself with the sounds of your own screams."

Chills went through my entire body as we teleported. I was suddenly afraid for my student. Ghirahim wouldn't be afraid to carry out his threat, even if I were to try and intervene. All I could hope for is a miracle.

I had more important things to worry about for the moment, though, as things came into focus. I was back in Ghirahim's castle, more importantly his room. Ghirahim himself stepped away from me, eyes locking on the armor I wore.

"Now that we are somewhere a little less public, do you mind explaining what exactly is going on?" Ghirahim folded his arms, a frown on his face. "And where did you get that armor?"

"Hello to you, too," I muttered, throwing down the pack from my shoulders. "I don't know what is going on anymore, Ghirahim. I just keep you from hurting other people I care about." It was a partial lie, not that it really mattered. "As for the armor, I found it at home. It had been left for me to use."

Ghirahim tilted his head, his posture relaxing slightly, "Do all knights use such armor?"

"No, this one belongs to the Lumiar family," I watched him awkwardly, unsure of what he was planning. "It has since Skyloft existed."

Stepping back up to me, Ghirahim reached out, pulling the banner aside to show the shining breastplate. He stared at my midsection for a moment, before softly touching my face, "Well, you have returned to me. That means I am never letting you go again."

I licked my lips, inching forward so that we were closer. "You know what? I'm okay with that."

Ghirahim's gloved thumb traced the shape of my lips, his own lips curving into a smile. Hot breath fanned out on my lips as he bent down, for a kiss, "Good, because I have been waiting centuries for you, my dear."

Hey! Sorry for the really short chapter after months of inactivity! Just gonna say thanks for the reviews, you are all lovely people~ The reason why this chapter is so short is because the next chapter/part will have lots of graphic sexual content. If you are not comfortable with thinks such as sex and the like, it will be uploaded as chapter 19.5... Just an fyi! I will try to not put in important plot points, but if I do I will be sure to have them mentioned in the following chapter~

Thank you!
Oblinity