We hit a roadblock, as we didn't know where to go next. Link suggested going to the Sacred Grove, to see if we could get Skull Kid to be serious for once, and it seemed as good an idea as any.
I warped us there, and transformed Link back into a human, following him as he walked calmly to the two statues that guarded the entrance to the Sacred Grove.
"Beast who calls to our hearts…" they said, though it was quieter than normal. "Save this world from evil…" Then both of them became immobile once more, and Link looked at me.
"That was strange…" he said softly. "Usually I'm supposed to guide them back to their original positions or something…" I shrugged.
"It can't mean anything good. Let's keep going," I replied, taking his hand. Link nodded and walked slowly into the true Sacred Grove, stopping next to the pedestal where the Master Sword once stood. He took a deep breath, and slammed the sword into it's place, where the whole thing glowed in breathtaking beauty.
Skull Kid appeared behind it, serious for once in his life. He looked pale, or as pale as a skeleton could be. His scarlet eyes were shadowed, and he looked near death.
"There is evil in this world…" he whispered, and then collapsed, disintegrating into silver dust. Link ran forward, kneeling by the creature that he had so often complained about and cursed.
"No…" he said in a hoarse whisper, sifting through the dust with his fingers. "Ganondorf doesn't know what he's done…"
"Din was the life-force of so many creatures…and Skull Kid protected Sacred Grove…" I said softly, knowing exactly what he was talking about. "We should stay here tonight." Link nodded, and I quickly warped out to find some food, while Link built a fire.
Dinner was a bony, thin rabbit and a couple of apples, along with some spring water. We went to bed early, not having the energy for anything else.
In the morning, Link and I warped to Ordon to see what we could do. Ganon seemed to have hit every area in Hyrule.
"Colin!" Link said as the little blonde child ran up to him and hugged him, crying. "What is it?" Link asked, kneeling down until he was at the boy's level.
"Beth…" Colin sobbed. "And M-malo…"
"What happened?" Link was alarmed now.
"This…man…came, and he…he," Colin began, but was too overcome with sobs to continue. Rusl walked up behind him and put a hand on his son's shoulder, and Link rose up to his level.
"What happened?" Link asked softly, and Rusl shook his head in dismay.
"Ganondorf, was it? Yes, I believe that was what he was called. He came and threatened all of us, said that he had captured a Goddess. None of us believed him, of course, but then--out of anger, I think--he…he killed Beth and Malo…" Rusl explained, and Link's mouth opened in an O of horror.
"I'm going to make him wish he was never born," he snarled, beginning to warp away, but I caught the sleeve of his tunic, holding him back.
"Wait! Let's see what else they have to say, and then you can make him wish he was never born," I said quickly, and Link paused, warring with himself.
"Fine," he said finally, turning back to Rusl. "Is anyone injured?"
"Not exactly. A couple of cuts and bruises here and there, but nothing serious. Mayor Bo is worried sick about Ilia, though. You two wouldn't happen to know where she is, would you?" Rusl asked, and we nodded.
"She's in the Twilight, being…tended to," I said uncomfortably, and the man turned his gaze to me.
"Is she injured?!" he asked in alarm.
"Ganondorf attacked the Twilight first, and one of the buildings…collapsed on Ilia. She'll probably be alright, our healer is quite good at these kinds of injuries…" I explained, trailing off. Rusl closed his eyes, his lips moving silently in a prayer, and then looked back at us.
"And what about you two? Were you injured?"
"Yes, but we're pretty much fine now. Or…I think we are," Link replied, shifting uncomfortably.
"What happened?" Rusl asked immediately, and Link hesitated.
"We were fighting Ganondorf," I replied, and the man turned back to me. "He has captured the Goddess of Power, Din, and is more formidable than ever before," I finished boldly, and his jaw dropped.
"So that is why creatures have been dying everywhere…" he said quietly, and Link raised his eyebrows.
"What do you mean?" he asked, and Rusl sighed.
"All of the woodland creatures have been turning up lifeless, and at first we thought that it was a plague, but none of the villagers or children got sick, so many of us were confused," he said tiredly, and Colin came back up next to him and nodded.
"Talo found one first, it was a…a squirrel, and he brought it to Mr. Jaggle and Mrs. Pergie, and they talked to mom and dad, because by then all the grown-ups had been finding…dead animals all around, and they all talked about it," Colin explained, faltering when he began to speak of the perished woodland creatures. Link smiled understandingly and knelt next to Colin, saying something in a low voice to him. Colin hesitated, then he grinned, his whole face lighting up as he thanked Link profusely, then ran off and began animatedly chatting with Talo, who looked heartbroken, and devoid of his usual spirit.
At what Colin said, however, he looked up and at Link, who nodded, still smiling. Talo suddenly beamed, and they both raced over.
"Really? You will?!" Talo asked happily, and Link nodded. "You promise?"
"I promise," Link said, chuckling. They screamed in delight and ran off, slamming into everything and shrieking in their excitement.
"What in Hyrule did you say?!" I asked, smiling a little as well. Link shrugged and turned back to Rusl.
"Would you or Uli mind very much if I took Colin and Talo on a…field trip, of sorts? You would be very welcome to come as well, and Pergie and Jaggle," he said tactfully, looking down at Colin and Talo again and winking, which made the little boys try to hide their laughter as if they were part of an inside joke and race back into the houses, resuming slamming into the walls.
"Where would we be going?" Rusl asked, smiling at his son and Talo.
"Two places, actually. One of them is where an old fishy friend resides, Prince Ralis. The other we would need the Princess's consent to go to, which I think that she would be happy to give. Zora's Domain and Hyrule Castle."
Rusl's eyes widened, and a ghost of a smile tugged up the corners of his mouth.
"How would you get the Princess's permission? Bribing her? And how do you know the Prince of the Zoras?" he asked disbelievingly, laughing a little. Link shrugged.
"I wouldn't have to bribe her. I know Zelda well, and I know Prince Ralis because Midna and I helped him and his people after his parents were…executed," Link replied, smiling.
Rusl was staring openmouthed at his casual reference to Princess Zelda, and it took a moment for him to respond.
"And you are inviting us all to go with you?" he asked, smiling again.
"Only if you want to, of course," Link answered, nodding.
"Why, of course! I will talk to Uli, Jaggle, and Pergie about it."
"Wonderful." Link and I politely excused ourselves as Rusl walked over to talk to his wife and Talo's parents, and we went to the spring to secretly warp and get Ralis and Zelda's permission.
We went to Zora's Domain first, and Prince Ralis was elated to see us.
"Link!" he said, leaping from his throne and catapulting into Link in a most un-prince-like gesture. Link laughed and hugged him back, and Prince Ralis drew away, now embarrassed.
"What's wrong?" Link asked, smiling. "Is it a crime to get to know your subjects?"
"I suppose not…" Ralis replied, and then his gaze fell on me. "Who is this?"
"Midna," the Hero replied with a hint of pride in his voice. "She was actually helping you all as much as I was."
"Was she now?" Prince Ralis answered, smiling and not questioning Link, as absurd as his statement seemed. "Well then, it is wonderful to meet you." He held out his hand, and I shook, for the first time feeling the slick, damp skin of the Zoras.
"The pleasure is all mine," I answered, smiling. "Did Ganondorf…do anything to this area of Hyrule?" Ralis shook his head.
"We…lost many guards, but he could not succeed in actually destroying our domain. My people are very…protective of our architecture, as you may have seen. We take great pride in our ability to carve stone. My mother, especially, was very gifted at such things," he replied, his voice almost wavering. I saw remorse in Link's eyes as he knelt next to Ralis and embraced him, seeing the tears swimming in the Prince's eyes.
"Would you like to see some of your old friends?" he asked, smiling slightly. "Colin and Talo would like to see the Zora's Domain, as do their parents." Ralis looked up, smiling slightly.
"Ah, yes. I remember them perfectly," he said, and Link laughed.
"Then we will be there soon," he replied, and then stood. Ralis nodded, smiling, and saw us off as we both warped to Hyrule Castle.
The soldiers immediately recognized Link, for some reason I couldn't comprehend, and shepherded him quickly in, looking fearfully up at Princess Zelda, though she laughed.
"Relax. I didn't scold you that much, did I?" she asked good-naturedly, and they shook their heads, looking slightly less afraid, and backed out. "Hello Link, Midna," the Princess said, greeting us. "What brings you here?"
"I was wondering if I could bring some of the residents from Ordon here, on sort of a field-trip. They are all in need of something uplifting, after the…the death of Malo and Beth," Link replied, and then added, "If you weren't too busy, of course."
"Oh, not at all! It has actually been a bit discouraging for us here, so I think a visit from a couple of lively children and adults would do us all good," Zelda replied, smiling. "When should we expect you all?"
"I can't say. We're going to see Prince Ralis first, and then we will come here," Link answered, inclining his head.
"Perfect. Thank you, Midna, Link. Safe journeys, and may the Goddesses be with you," Zelda said, and we left, warping back to Ordon Spring.
Colin smacked into Link with a bear-hug as soon as we entered the village, and Talo catapulted into me, beaming. I laughed and picked him up, swinging him onto my shoulders.
I had never been good with children, nor had I ever been much of a child myself. I had been forced into ruling at a young age, when my mother had died and my father had needed someone to run the castle while he was out fighting. I had learned everything the hard way, and had never really gotten to have a childhood. Not that Link's own early years were much better, or even Colin and Talo's.
"Midna?" Link asked, and I shook myself and turned toward him. "Ready to go?"
"Of course," I replied, and instructed everyone to form a chain, everyone touching someone that was in contact with me, and I warped us to Zora's Domain.
"Midna! Link!" Prince Ralis exclaimed, and then caught sight of Colin and Talo. They all screamed and ran for each other, forming into one tangle of legs and arms and hands.
Rusl, Jaggle, Uli, and Pergie all chuckled, and Prince Ralis detached himself to come and greet them.
"We can't exactly show them the Temple, though that is our greatest structure…" Ralis said to Link and I, absently waving to the Zora guards as he walked past them, to which they bowed and resumed their posts. "What about the waterfalls?"
"That sounds good," I replied, shrugging. "And then we could go to the mother-and-child rocks or something…" Ralis nodded enthusiastically.
"And we could--only if you all want to--go to Snowpeak, now that it is devoid of monsters, and the Yetis would be very happy to share their mansion for lunch."
"Great! It was pretty cold, but that probably won't be a problem," I answered, and Ralis's eyes brightened as he raced back to tell the others our plan.
Link and I walked to the spring, giving them time to chat, and sat with our feet dangling over the outcropping over the water.
"What's your story?" he asked suddenly, and I jumped.
"What do you mean?"
"Your childhood. I never knew much about it, just what happened before I met you."
"…Oh. Well, my mother died when I was ten, and so I had to take charge of the palace in her place. Father died shortly after he had officially chosen me as Queen, when I was around sixteen. Zant--as you probably know--wasn't very pleased with this, and Ganondorf found him that very night, the night of Father's death," I said hesitantly, and Link nodded.
"Go on," he said gently, draping an arm over my shoulders.
"So Zant…cursed me, though he didn't know to take away my last Fused Shadow, the one I wear as a headpiece, so I still had some power, to levitate and use magic and everything, but I was still…well, an imp."
"A very cute imp at that," Link interrupted, and I laughed.
"I glad you think so. I got used to it, after awhile. I was even sad when I regained my Twili form, that I wouldn't be able to bounce around or levitate or blow things up with my hair," I chuckled, continuing. "Anyway, I kind of wandered for a couple of months, and--to an extent--I even tried to stop Ganondorf from expanding the Twilight, but he was much too powerful for me, with only one Fused Shadow. I was in the middle of that…when I found you. No more than seventeen, a ranch-hand had supposedly wandered into the Twilight, but then you turned into a wolf, the 'divine beast' that had been talked about so many times in the legends of the Twili.
"So I followed you. The Twilit Messenger dragged you to a cell, and I waited until you woke up before freaking you out." Link laughed.
"And I'm glad you did. I would've missed it otherwise," he said, chuckling. I laughed as well, and then went on with the story.
"I'm pretty sure I confused you for awhile, being all mysterious, but I was afraid you wouldn't help me if you knew what I really wanted. So I kept you in the dark for awhile, but I'm sure you figured it out, being the Chosen Hero and all. That's really it. You know what happens from there, don't you?"
"Of course!" Link said indignantly. "I don't think that it would be very easy to forget, much as I used to try."
"I'm not the only one, then. I really am sorry, I shouldn't have--" I began, but Link held a hand up.
"First of all, there's nothing to apologize for. Second, I think that the kids are ready for their expedition."
We got up and walked out of the spring, seeing three very excited-looking kids, even if one of them was the host. A lump formed in my throat as I thought of all the things mere children had to go through, all because of one being. Me, Link, Ralis, Colin, Talo, Malo, Beth, Ilia…