Ghirahim returned from the deep woods carrying an armful of fruit, heading back to the enormous tree. Zelda would wake up soon and he wanted to surprise her.
Look what the spirit maiden has done to me. Not like a demon lord at all...more like some pathetic human man. Ghirahim chuckled to himself.
He looked around, half expecting to see one of Demise's bokoblin minions. He didn't want to have to answer any awkward questions about where he had been, or why he was carrying all this food. The bokoblins were inept, but they weren't completely stupid. Perhaps if he encountered one, Ghirahim could string them along to help him fulfill his own desires. They were not that far from where the Imprisoned slept. He knew he had to get Zelda away from Faron Woods soon. Maybe he could have the bokoblins make sure the sky child wouldn't interfere while he did this. Of course he'd never let on his true intentions to the bokoblins. How amusing, he thought, trying to keep the spirit maiden from the Imprisoned, instead of taking her to him. In Ghirahim's mind, Zelda was now his in every way.
He was thinking about the way Zelda looked when he left just a few hours ago. She had rested on her side, asleep, curled into a ball. Her shoulder rising and falling with each breath. He had marveled at how beautiful she looked.
Ghirahim made his way through the clearing and peered into the hollow tree. "I got these just for you...Zelda?"
The space she had slept was vacant now. He dropped the armful of fruit. His mind was racing.
"Damn!" He clenched his fists, cursing himself for leaving her alone. If he still had his powers, the sky would be changing colors right now.
There was only one place she could have gone. Ghirahim sprinted towards the Sealed Temple.
From a distance, he saw her. Link held the door to the Sealed Temple open and motioned for Zelda to go in. She hung her head as she walked through the door, disappearing into the depths of the temple.
"Damn him!"
...
The Sealed Temple felt unusually cold. Perhaps it was just a chill in the air, or perhaps it was the icy stare the old woman gave Zelda as she came forward. The old priestess seemed to be waiting for Zelda to speak.
"I'm ready to pay the price for what I've done...I'll maintain the seal...I've wasted so much time. I'm sorry."
The old woman's features softened, but as Zelda came closer, the ancient one perceived a change in the spirit maiden. Something about it made the old woman recoil.
Link felt the tension in the air. He didn't think much of it, until the old woman spoke, her voice shaking.
"...Your Grace...What have you done...?"
Zelda flinched. Link put his arm around her shoulder. "Let's get you through the gate, alright?"
Zelda nodded weakly. Link gave her a gentle push as he guided her through the Gate of Time.
Zelda looked around as she emerged on the other side of the Gate of Time. She couldn't fathom that the structure had been around for so long, but now she was standing thousands of years in the past. The first person she saw was Impa. Impa gave her a relieved smile. Zelda wondered what Impa thought about her. Perhaps Link hadn't told her as much as he told the old woman.
"Your Grace, at last you are here. In this age, this place is known as the Temple of Hylia. Demise has only recently been sealed away by Her Grace, the goddes." Then Impa raised an eyebrow as she looked Zelda over. "You're still dressed like that...It's a painful reminder of my failure to protect you. Regarding your capture at the Temple of Time... So sorry this has happened to you. I should have done more..."
"There's no need to apologize, Impa. There's nothing more you could have done. It's not your fault." Zelda looked up into her guardian's eyes.
Impa then turned to Link. "You have tempered the goddess sword in the three flames, now Zelda must bless it. Go through the great doors before you... Your Grace, know that I will keep watch over you. Such was my mission from the goddess." Impa bowed to Zelda.
Link and Zelda proceeded through the heavy doors at the rear of the temple. Zelda saw a ray of light coming through the ceiling over a pedestal at the far end of the chamber. She swallowed hard and turned to Link.
She held out her hand. "Link..."
Zelda took Link's hand in hers as she had at the Wing Ceremony and spoke evenly.
"Hylia's chosen hero, you have persevered through many hardships and journeyed far in order to reach this moment. Along the way you have awakened in yourself wisdom, power, and courage, and for this I shall bless your sword with the goddess's power. May it give you and your sword the strength to drive back the darkness that threatens this land."
The mark of the Triforce appeared on the back of Link's hand and gave off a faint, otherworldly light. Letting go of Zelda's hand, Link drew the sword and lifted it above his head. It transformed before his eyes. The mark of the Triforce appeared on the blade as well, glowing. Link studied the changes to the sword and then placed it back in its scabbard.
Zelda went silent and walked towards the the pedestal at the back of the room.
"Zelda, when are you going to tell me what's wrong? You've barely said a word."
Zelda had the urge to tell Link everything. She wanted to beg him to look for Ghirahim. She wanted to ask Link to find him and bring him to the temple to wait for her to wake up. Instead she held back, unsure of how Link would react.
Link hesitated, unnerved by her silence. "What must you do to maintain the seal? Whatever it is, you should hurry, so we can return through the Gate of Time."
"You don't understand, Link... Maintaining the seal isn't that simple... I have to stay here."
"Stay here? For how long?"
"As long as it takes...even until our present time. As Hylia reborn, I must hold the seal as long as I possibly can until Demise is defeated once and for all. The task of vanquishing Demise rests solely on your shoulders now. I will sleep for thousands of years so I have one request of you. When we were kids I always woke you up. Now I'm depending on you to wake me up." Zelda said this so softly, Link had to strain to hear her.
"Zelda, don't you trust me? Remember at the Wing Ceremony you were worried that I hadn't practiced enough? I am the goddess's chosen hero, right? Have some faith in me and yourself. Just tell me...how can Demise be defeated?
"There is one thing the old woman told me... The Triforce. I can remember it now in the deep recesses of my memories. Sometimes...I think about what it must have been like to guard it. She told me it could grant any desire. If you can obtain the actual Triforce, I want you to wish for the ultimate destruction of Demise. If you can do that, I'll be able to wake up, but..."
"I'll find it, I promise you. You'll wake up and all this will be over."
"Thank you, Link... Well, I guess this is it then... Despite all that has happened, I hope you still think of me as your friend. I'm still your Zelda..."
She ascended the pedestal and stepped into the beam of light. The light around her appeared to harden into a transparent amber crystal. Her last glimpse of the world was Link leaning against the crystal as if to say something. Her consciousness faded into dreams.
A/N: Just wanted to thank everyone for their reviews. They mean so much to me. They really brighten my day. I also want to thank my beta HazelGamerKat for proof-reading my work and reassuring me every step of the way.
