Ganondorf rode ahead of the small group. He was looking out for any trouble. For all he knew this meeting could be a trap set up by Demise. "You shouldn't go so far ahead, Ganon," a female voice called to him. Ganondorf reined in his horse to let the rest catch up. A blonde woman reached him, "There is no need to be in such a rush. Lord Merek would be late; he always is." Ganondorf looked at his ruler with confusion. Obviously, Hylia doesn't see the need for me scouting ahead.

"You have to understand that Lord Merek has to rein in his son to come," a blonde man said as he too joined Ganondorf, "He doesn't have well-behave children like mine." Ganondorf turned to watch these 'well-behaved children.' The oldest one, Pipit, had taken his younger brother, Link's odd green hat and was holding it out of the young blonde boy's reach. Sure, well behaved.

"Well, poor Lady Tifunee has that rambunctious daughter of hers, Midna I believe her name is," Hylia added a finger to her lips in thought. They're still talking about the other ruler's children. " What do you think Ganondorf. Which of the future rulers are most well-behaved?"

"None of them. They are children and therefore more trouble than they are worth," Ganondorf answered gruffly. Both blondes laughed at this comment.

"So as my advisor, you suggest I have no heirs," Hylia asked with a smile.

Ganondorf grumbled, "This is not relevant at this time Your Grace. We must be discussing about this impending meeting."

Simeon sighed, "He's right, Hylia. Demise has been amassing an army. He could be planning an attack."

Hylia frowned, "I know. I met with the chief engineer to talk about fortifying our defenses. Have you been recruiting any more soldiers?"

Simeon nodded, "Many of the citizens were very eager to protect their families from Demise." Ganondorf nodded his approval. While Ganondorf knew that war was a horrible thing, he was also grateful for the past war. It provided him the opportunity to show his power to Hylia and gain the lustrous position that he now held.

"Look, its Paxacis," Pipit's voice called from the rear. Two horses galloped by the red-head as Link and Pipit rode ahead to the castle by the large lake. Ganondorf spurred his horse forward trying to reach the point again.

With all the horses tethered, the group entered the stone keep. Ganondorf was surprised to see that the only other person that had arrived was Demise. The large demon sat at the large round table with his hands clasped in front of his face. He stood and walked to the group, "It is a pleasure to see you again, Hylia."

Hylia stepped forward and curtsied, " I wish we could meet under better circumstances." Demise bowed his head as if he agreed. Ganondorf narrowed his eyes at the large ruler. With a grumble the red-head took a seat that had been reserved for him. Simeon sat a chair away so Hylia could sit between the two of them. Link and Pipit stood silently against the wall.

Footsteps echoed through the spacious room as more people entered. Ganondorf turned to the entering beings. Zant jerked his way in followed by Lady Tifunee and her daughter Midna. Lady Tifunee took her assigned seat while Midna stood silently behind.

A flash of light indicated the arrival of the last ruler. Diamonds rained from the ceiling materializing to Lord Derek and his son Ghirahim. Guess Hylia was right Lord Derek is the last to arrive. Ganondorf looked distrustfully at the younger of the newcomers; there was something about that smirk of his that Ganondorf didn't trust. Nevertheless, everyone took their seats at the table.

Each leader looked from one to the other unsure of who was going to speak. "I guess I'll begin," Hylia sighed as she stood up. "Demise, your aggressive army building is causing quite the stir. I would like to remind you of section 10 of the Orea Peace Treaty. It states that your military force must not exceed one hundred thousand soldiers."

"And it hasn't exceeded that amount, yet. The treaty also stated that this rule would be void if my country was under siege," Demise defended.

"No one is trespassing on your land, Demise," Lord Merek groaned rubbing his temples.

"That's where you're wrong. Zant here has been sending spies to the northwestern border," Demise said gruffly looking at the Twili.

The Twili looked insulted and placed a hand on his chest. "I would never do such a thing," he said with a squeal.

"Don't lie to me," Demise growled causing the Twili to chuckle.

"You can't threaten me," Zant said smugly ,"After all, I found…"

"That's enough, Zant," Lady Tifunee warned in a low voice. This made Ganondorf curious; what could fill the Twili with such confidence? "We'll remove the scouts as soon as possible. We didn't think that it would cause such uneasiness," Lady Tifunee said smoothly.

Ganondorf had to nod his acknowledgement and his impression at the Twili's smooth talk. He may have been distracted by the meeting, but he still noticed when the children filed out led by the white-haired Ghirahim. The man shook his head and hoped for the best.

LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-LOZ-

Link had to run quickly to keep up with his older brother. " Where are we going? Why did we leave?" he asked hoping one of the older children will answer.

The tallest one with the strange white hair turned to face him, "Did you want to hear the grown-ups go on and on?" Link didn't answer, but his crinkled nose must have expressed his feelings on the matter. "It will be much fun out here than in there. It is like an adventure," the older child said.

"I like adventures. Just like the ones in my story books," Link said excitedly. The older boy just nodded his head while Pipit and the other girl just rolled their eyes. The white-haired child then continued his path. Link wanted to ask him if he knew where they were going, but decided that the other didn't know where they were going.

The group reached what appeared to be a training ground. Link looked at the dummies with targets in their center. Seeing the dolls, reminded him that he had a slingshot in his pouch. "Hey, I bet I can hit all the targets," Link called out pulling out his slingshot and waving it in the air.

Pipit gave his younger brother an annoyed look, but didn't say anything. The orange-haired girl looked at him with amusement. The white-haired boy lifted up an eyebrow seeming to question the younger. "I bet I can hit more of them than you, "he finally said.

Link nodded and loaded a rock into the sling. He pulled back and released the projectile. It landed right where he expected. He turned to his companions and gave them a triumphant smile. "Link, anyone could hit that," Pipit said annoyed.

"There is no need to be so rude…" the white-haired boy started and then suddenly trailed off. Something snapped and he clapped his hands, "I have not introduced myself to any of you. Good thing my etiquette teacher isn't here." He took a bow and said, "My name is Ghirahim. I apologize for my rudeness."

"My name is Pipit and this is my younger brother, Link," Pipit said looking uninterested.

"Midna," the orange-haired girl said noncommittally.

Ghirahim gave all of them a grin, "I bet we are going to be the best of friends." And Link couldn't help but silently agree.