Shadow: I almost forgot we ended last chapter on a cliff hanger.

Time Stop: We're back!

Shadow: I feel a little bad.

Time Stop: We don't own a thing.

Chapter 13: Goodbye

The smoke cleared. Link was on his hands and knees, holding Nadai as she bled. The explosion was covered mostly by Link's body, but she was still covered in smoke and soot. The horn had pierced her shoulder clean through. Link had crushed her legs due to his heavy body; they weren't piercing the skin, but the bones were certainly broken.

Nadai grimaced in pain, her teeth grinding against each other. "Didn't think the thing would actually hurt me."

Link was silent. This was the worst wound she had received since Gannondorf, and that had been months and months ago. She had to be down-playing the pain. She had to. How else could she be still smiling at him? His chest ached. His heart went out to her, even as a powerful, angry pain next to it almost consumed his thoughts.

He looked up at the bull, as it scratched the ground. It was going to charge once more. And, from the looks of it, the monster would run over Nadai. Link gently set Nadai down. He stood up, and stood protectively over her.

"Link—"

"I'm not going to let her be hurt anymore." Link cut Tatl off. "I almost let her die once before, that's not going to happen again."

The bull charged. Its head was thrown back in a challenging roar before lowering its head. Link answered the challenge right back at it. He let loose all the anger and frustration that he was feeling. He braced his feet. He cocked his arms back to catch the bull.

He caught the bull's horns, and felt his feet begin to slip. He dug in further, and held the bull in its place. With his Goron strength, and his stubborn, headstrong feelings, Link was holding back against the monster that had crippled a giant. The two titanic forces waved back and forth, before they both let go and went back.

The bull roared louder, aiming to gore Link with one final attack. As he let go, he looked below him and behind him. Tatl was hovering next to Nadai. She had her eyes closed, her hands on the former Gerudo.

Link saw red. He turned to the bull. He angled himself at the last moment, ramming his fist right onto the bull's mask. There was a resounding crack, and the mask broke. The bull stopped moving, and slumped to the ground in a crash. At the same time, Link felt the bones in his hand pop, and watched as his fingers failed to respond to his beck and call.

He panted hard, watching as the dust began to settle. Slowly, he reached up with his good hand and pulled off the mask on his face. He could feel the pain then. His legs felt like jelly, and he fell down to his knees. He looked at Nadai, and closed his eyes.

The two of them were on the ground on a foggy plain. Link couldn't feel his legs, and Nadai's were still broken. He crawled to her, ignoring the pain in his broken hand and lay next to her.

"Bout time you beat that thing." She opened her eyes and smirked.

"What, I save the day and all I get from you is sass?"

She smiled, but grimaced in pain. "Wouldn't give sass if you did it sooner."

Link sighed, hiding his smile. "I'm just glad you're—"

An unbearable sound came to them, making their eardrums hurt so bad Link almost forgot about his legs. They clenched their eyes. When the sound was done, they opened them again.

"What's the giant saying now, Tatl?" Asked Nadai quietly.

"The General you guys defeated was named Goht. He thanks you for defeating him."

"That's nice." Link grimaced as the giant began to sing. "Really, the same song again?" He said when it was done.

"He says to play that song to have him help you."

Nadai grimaced again in pain. "Okay, cool. Can we go back now?"

"Seriously," Link said. "We've got to go—"

"— back in time and heal ourselves." He finished saying. They were back in the temple, the dust settling around them still.

"Go back in time?" Tatl asked.

"The last time we did, we were rejuvenated and we healed ourselves." Nadai explained. "Link's betting that by going back in time once more we'll be healed again."

Link took out his ocarina. "I'll play for the two of us, just hold on."

Nadai reached out her hand, and held onto Link's shoulder. "Your hand is broken."

"So?" He shrugged off her concern as he held it gingerly with his broken hand. "It's not like you can play with that injury anyway."

"I'm not that frail!" Nadai sat up a bit to look him in the eyes. "I'm not some damsel in distress for you to take care of!"

"I never said you were. But you're more injured than I am. You would do the same for me."

"So?" She shook her head. "I just want to pull my share."

"You already do." Link said. "Now let me—"

"As much as I hate to interrupt your bickering, children, but what is that?" Tatl pointed to the glowing blue circle sitting a few feet away from them.

"That's…that's not right."

Link nodded slowly. "That's only supposed to take us to the Sacred Realm." He said. "This isn't Hyrule, though."

"Maybe it's – hey!" Nadai shouted out as Link began playing the Song of Time. Her other hand darted out, grabbing Tatl as she neared the blue circle. And with a gentle whoosh from the wind, they disappeared.

They reappeared in the basement. Link's strength had returned, and his hand was working once more. Nadai's shoulder wound was closed, and her clothes patched. Her crushed legs were in working order once more. However, for both of them, there was a dull ache that was deep within their old wounds that throbbed gently. While they were healed, their wounds hadn't fully disappeared like they had expected.

"What was that!" Nadai turned to Link.

"Me playing the song."

"Cut the crap." She walked over to him and got in his face. "You've been acting strangely since the swamp. No, you've been acting strangely since we beat Gannondorf."

"Have not."

"Yes you have. What is it that you can't tell me."

"We don't have time for this."

"We've got nothing but time." She reached into her pack and pulled out the Fairy Flute. "Last I checked, we could play a song and roll back time."

"That doesn't mean anything."

"It does to me."

"Listen…we," he fought for the right words. "The sooner we finish with saving the world, the sooner we can find Navi."

"And what if we can't!" Nadai shouted.

Link's eyes widened, and he took a step back.

"What if she's dead?"

"She can't be." He said softly.

"Fairies die after their Kokiri die." Nadai said softer. "Unless they were a red fairy."

"She's special."

"She's just a fairy."

"She's not just a fairy!" Link roared out.

Nadai was silent. Link breathed hard, his shoulders rising and falling heavily. Tatl switched her gaze between the two.

"You're right, she isn't." Nadai whispered. "She was our friend."

"She's not dead."

"I know we've been looking for her for months now. You love her like no one else I've seen you with. And if there's something that you have to tell her, and only her, then that's fine." She looked up, tears in her eyes. "Link, I don't want to lose you too."

"Nadai…"

"She was my friend too." Nadai continued. "The three of us saved Hyrule together. There's a bond there that can't be broken. Navi was my fairy, as much as she was yours. I don't know exactly what is happening here, and I don't think I will ever fully understand. Please, trust me like you trust her."

"…I can't."

"You can't?"

"I can't." Link repeated. "It's… There are forces more powerful than me keeping me quiet."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Then why can't I believe you? I want to, I really do, but I can't."

Link looked down at the ground.

"Please, trust me."

"It's not that simple."

"So what, you can trust me in battle at your side, but not with this?"

"That's different."

"Is it? But you could trust Navi? You can trust Malon?"

Link looked up, hurt in his eyes. "You did not just go there."

"You could trust Malon. You couldn't trust me." Nadai let her tears fall unhindered. "And you won't even have the decency to tell me why."

"Nadai—"

"Goodbye."

She ran past him. He darted his hand out to grab her, but she pulled her arm out of reach. He moved after her, but got tangled up in his own legs and hit the ground. She didn't turn to look back, not until she opened the door. Deep betrayal was splattered all over her face.

Then she was gone.

Above, Tatl hovered as if unsure of what to do. Then slowly, silently, the fairy flew off after Nadai. Link sat up on the ground, and looked around him. And then he began to cry.

Half a day went by before Link stopped moping about. He didn't know where she had gone, didn't know what had happened, really. She had left him. He was still trying to process that information.

Had he taken her for granted? Had he messed up beyond return? Was it time to spill the beans? Were they done?

No.

Link got up, clenching his fists.

They would meet up one more time. They had to figure things out.

He ran out of the Clock Tower, and scanned the square. Up ahead he saw the guards, working away on the platform. However, they were bandaged and moving slowly.

"Nadai," he whispered. He looked up to the sky. "Which way do I go?" He asked aloud. "I know you can hear me, Goddesses. Show me where to go."

Nothing answered him.

Angrily, he took out his flute and played a song. Wings sprouted from his back and he flew up into the air. High in the air, the cold air chilled him. He looked about. From the far west, he saw the water. He stared hard at it, before flying at it.

A few hours later he was getting closer to the water. From this high up, he could see the bay. To the south lay a small inlet, with a river pouring water to it from the swamp. To the north he could see a massive fortress with high walls. He couldn't see who manned them from that far though. Between the two of those landmarks was a small, sandy beach with a small hut.

He flew lower and lower. There was something on the beach by the hut. Seagulls were flying around it. He pulled to land. He landed heavily, rolling to a stop on the sand. He ran forward, waving his hands, calling out.

The seagulls were circling a body.

The seagulls flew off, leaving as Link neared. As the seagulls flew off, he could see who it was. It was a Zora.

"Hey, you alright?" Link skid to a stop by the Zora.

The Zora coughed up blood. "Is this the Afterlife?"

Link shook his head. "No, no. You're still in Termina."

"Good. Good." The man tried to get up but his body failed him and he plummeted back down.

"Easy," Link commanded. He brought out a water skin and gently tipped the Zora's head back. He dribbled in some water, and the Zora drank it greedily.

"Thank you, stranger." The Zora looked up at the sky, with the storm clouds hanging low. "I have one more favor to ask of you."

Link shook his head. "Oh hell no. You're not dying."

"I know when my time is up." The Zora smiled. "Please, I don't have much time yet."

"… Fine."

"My wife laid eggs." The Zora spoke quickly but softly. "But they were taken by the Gerudos. I tried to take them back, but I've failed. They mortally wounded me, and hunted me down like a dog." He coughed. "Please, save my children."

Link stared at the man. "I'll do what I can."

"You're a good man, you're a good man." The Zora coughed loudly. "If I only had more time! If I only had one more chance to save her! Someone save my troubled soul, someone save my trouble heart."

Link was silent. The Zora reached out and gripped Link's hand. "I wish I had loved her more. I wish I had been with her more. I wish I had been a better man." He looked up at Link. "Kid, if you ever get a wife, take my words well."

Link nodded dumbly.

The two were silent, and the Zora looked up at the sky. Over an hour passed and the two stayed there. Then his eyes closed and the Zora took his last breath.

Link let go of the man's hand and stood up. He took out his Ocarina. "Sorry, friend. I'll make sure you're kids are saved."

He played the Song of Healing. The Zora disappeared, and what remained in the sand was a Zora mask. He picked up the mask, and put it on.

His body lengthened, and grew hard and scaly. Fins popped out of his arms. His hair fused together and lengthened. Gills popped out of his neck.

Link looked down. He was wearing the bottom half of his tunic still. That was the first time that he had seen a Zora wearing clothes. In his hand instead of his Ocarina was a fish bone guitar. He strapped it on and behind him so that it wouldn't be in the way.

"Hey!"

Link turned to the side, where three Zoras were running to him.

"Where have you been, Mikau? Lulu has been worried sick!"

"Wait, I'm not—"

The three Zoras picked him up. "We've got to go! Lulu's only getting worse!"

Link protested, trying to move and escape the Zoras. But the three of them held on tight to Link, and they carried him away.

"Hurry, to Zora Hall!"

Static: A short one this time. We're still stretching our hands after some time away.

Wang: Are we?

Static: We are.

Wang: Oh. Please Review!