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Sorry for the long wait, this chapter is sort of a filler leading up to the action that starts to happen in Castle Town, and it took a while for me to get the proper balance of foreshadowing, Easter eggs, and feels.

More cameos this chapter, too, though I don't know how many of the first people that reviewed still follow this story, so I broke the rule and added new reviewers in, too. Let me know if you like your character!

A new thing I'm starting, I will try to have a new poll up for at least every other update. I know a lot of you either are too lazy or don't feel comfortable reviewing, so this will be a way for you to get your opinion across anonymously with no way of me judging you. And it only takes two clicks! Yes, there is a new poll up now, so go check it out, and feel free to review with an explanation if you deem fit.

Hope you enjoy the chapter!

xoxo,
~Alyssa

Pushing myself up from the floor, I stumbled wildly to the left, leaning against the wall for support. My hand brushed against my face.

It came back covered with crimson.

I doubled over, the thick air choking me as I heaved in disgust at the things I had just seen.

I had her. She was with me. And I let her slip through my fingers like she was nothing but the wind.

Bile rose in my throat, my eyes burning with unshed tears as I coughed and sputtered, futilely trying to block out the images that plagued my mind.

Her lips against mine. My daughter in my arms. A dagger against my throat. The burning hatred in her eyes as she threatened to end my life, as she called me a demon, a murderer, worse than the man I had ended to save her all those years ago.

No. No. No. No. No. No.

I fell to the ground, curling up on the cold marble of the floor, hugging my knees to my chest as if that alone could hold the cracked pieces of my fragile sanity together.

Breathe. I begged myself, and my chest unsteadily obeyed, sucking in a lungful of air.

Somehow I was able to lift myself up, staggering out of that damned room and away from the broken glass, the horrific memories, the impossibly high pitched laughter that rang in my ears as I ran down the hall…

"Farore! What happened to you?"

The stone doors thudded closed behind me, and I leaned against them. "I don't know!" I said hurriedly, like I was a small child frantically trying to piece the shards of a broken vase together to avoid a scolding. "I didn't do anything wrong!"

He stared at me uncomprehendingly. "I never said you did! Are you okay?"

He placed a concerned hand on my shoulder, and I took a deep breath, as if I were exhaling all my qualms, and wiping my face. "I…I'm fine." I said, shaking my head, though I was very far from fine. "I think I just might be a bit…erm…claustrophobic, is all. Sorry I made you wait all this time. You could have left without me, I would have found my way."

Archer's eyes flickered with apprehension. "Nox, you were only in there ten minutes."

Ten minutes.

Ten inconsequential, meaningless minutes.

How many horrible, impossible ten minute increments have I lived through? What of purpose could possibly happen in ten minutes…?

I watched the Deku Tree die. I destroyed a giant spider inside him. I fought a jellyfish inside a whale. I learned I had been sent seven years back in time, and that the land I called home was a wasteland. I learned Saria was dead. I saw Darunia sacrifice himself for his people, I walked through a barren, dead Zora's Domain, I fought a giant, disembodied monster with one eye that crushed me with his dead hands and whispered falsities down my throat, I proposed to my only love and watched her turn me down and get kidnapped by the man of my nightmares in one fell swoop. I fought him. I died. She sent me back in time.

I learned she didn't remember me, I saw a little girl get mauled and killed by a Wolfos, I fell in love a second time, only to watch my first love walk down the aisle to meet another man. I've lived through all of it, and always I've persevered, prevailed. I've picked myself up from the brink of death and madness and heartbreak every single time.

And now.

And now this.

I was forced to relive it all.

How many times do those damn Goddesses expect me to be slapped down, thrown to the Wolfos and have my face ground into the dirt and get back up again? How do they know that one day I won't decide that enough is enough and jump off the deep end?

What did I do to deserve this?

What had I done wrong?

When had I ever strayed from the task that they had given me? When was there ever something I hadn't given up for Hyrule, for her?

After all those bites and scratches, broken bones and severed tendons, burns and strangle marks, giving up my childhood, being unable to save the only kind of parent I had ever known, watching my home be ruined around me, falling in love and having my heart torn to shreds and still working for their cause…I still deserved this?

Suddenly the coldness from the Vera was on my neck, and a gentle voice whispered in my ear, caressing my neck with its velvety, seductive tone.

You will get your revenge.

"I will get my revenge." I murmured inaudibly, my eyes beginning to unfocus.

Bide your time, boy. Pretend like nothing is wrong. Make friends. Gain their trust. You will ruin Hyrule when the time is right.

My head snapped up, and I realized Archer was still looking at me expectantly, and that was when it clicked in my head that I should probably respond.

"Oh." I said offhandedly, wiping a mixture of perspiration and blood from my brow, and thanking the Goddesses he didn't ask about it. "Time just goes by so fast in there, doesn't it?"

I will get my revenge.

xxxx

After cleaning myself up and pilfering a bit of red potion from an unmarked closet to close the scratches on my face, I had Archer lead me back to the Den, hoping fervently that Kassia hadn't woken up yet.

Archer had a place to be, as soon as we reached the door he mumbled a quick excuse and bolted in the opposite direction without so much as a goodbye. Shaking my head, I opened the door and slid inside.

A few dozen teenagers about my age were all gathered around a small bulletin board, and judging by the tone of their voices, they weren't at all happy.

"What's going on?" I asked, Kassia abandoned, pushing my way through the throng to see what exactly it was they were all worked up about.

"Just look at this." huffed an outraged boy just a few years younger than me, pulling the piece of parchment that everyone was looking at slightly off the wall so I could see it. "By order of the High Matriarch," he read in a snooty voice. "All persons over the age of sixteen will be honored with the duty of continuing the work of our fallen allies and will be sent to Hyrule immediately to aid the Royal Family in their time of need. Belongings will be limited to one pack per person which will be fully supplied with rations. Be ready to leave at any moment. Hyrule thanks you for your services."

He growled, angrily throwing it back to the wall, where several others leaned forward so they could see it for themselves. "What do they think they're playing at?"

An eager girl with bright green eyes grabbed onto his arm, trying hard to not smile. "Hank, maybe you'll find dad! Oooh, you're so lucky, I wish I could go!"

Hank shook his head roughly. "No, you don't." he said angrily. "And I'm not going. There's no way in Hell I'm leaving you alone. This is a death sentence, Synea, don't you understand? They're sending us there because no one in the original group is left! Something killed them, and now Hoan's sending us like pigs to a slaughter."

Synea's face fell, her eyes beginning to water as her brother stole the hope from right under her feet.

"Damn right." agreed a girl to his left, her sleep-disheveled blonde hair falling halfway to her back. "There's no way he's really going to send all of us. At this rate, we'll die out."

"I don't think that matters to Hoan, Leila." said another boy with shaggy black hair bitterly. "As long as he's tucked away safe and sound while we fight the battles for him."

Leila crossed her arms. "Bet he'll change his mind when he realizes his stupid decree of his entails his son to go, too."

"That's right." The same boy agreed, a thoughtful look coming over his face. "But is he one of us, technically?"

"He said he was going anyway at the meeting, didn't he?" pointed out the identical looking girl standing next to Leila.

"That doesn't mean he won't ditch us." interjected a girl with dark mahogany hair that fell down her back in wild tendrils. "He's not going to Hyrule to help, he's going because that's where he was headed."

Just then, the door to the chamber opened, and a young man with skin a similar shade to Eli was opening the door for Shadow, who had a very displeased look on her face.

Hank turned quickly around, ripping the paper off the wall and stalking towards them angrily. "Jay! Cora! What the Hell?" he yelled, waving it around furiously.

"I'm not happy about it either!" snapped Shadow, presumably Cora, slamming the door behind her as she began to bolt up the stairs.

The man that was Jay caught her, rubbing her shoulders soothingly as he half-pulled her back to us, most of whom fell into step behind Hank, their faces demanding answers.

He looked up at us, scanning our small mob with careful calculation in his eyes. "I know you're angry." He began quietly. "I know you're upset. I'm not too thrilled about it either. But—"

"We're not stupid, Jay!" someone shouted. "We're being sent to our deaths!"

Jay's eyes flickered to the perpetrator, shooting him a sharp glare. "Don't you think I know that?" he growled, his voice slowly getting louder as he became frustrated. "Don't you think I would do anything to spare my brother this? There's nothing to do! Nothing to do but sit around and wait for whatever's out there to come and get us here! You have families to think about to, do you not? Younger siblings, nieces, nephews? Will we let them breach our home and slaughter them?!"

He paused a moment, and no one, not even the impassioned Hank, dared refute the fury carved into the contours of his face.

"No. We will not." He promised to no one in particular, letting go of Shadow and walking forward. "We will fight, and we will prevail, as we always have. We may be no more than children, but we will prevail. We will come home after this time of need as victors, back to our families and those we love. But if we waste our time arguing and do not stand as a united front, we will be destroyed, I promise you that. Now stop complaining and pack your damn things, we leave at sunrise, and if I hear another word about it I'll kick their ass to kingdom come quicker than they can open their sorry little mouth to apologize."

Shooting the dumbstruck crowd of teenagers a charming smile, he took Shadow's hand, leading her past us and into a room, where he promptly slammed the door shut.

As soon as he was gone, a frustrated murmur rose from the masses, no one wanting to risk being the noise that drew Jay back out from his room. I politely pushed past them to try to get to the stairs without being noticed, but the boy with the shaggy hair from before stopped me before I could.

"You're with Hoan's son, aren't you?" He asked with fury in his eyes, taking a step closer, and suddenly I was quite aware that he stood almost a head taller than I.

He was thin, though. And lanky. Not a bit of meat on his bones. But so far I hadn't seen a Sheikah that did.

I could take him. Easily.

"I am." I said, daring him to make a spectacle and try to attack me. A part of me wanted him to. There had been a certain bloodlust inside me for a long while now, aching to be set free. "What about it?"

He stuck his nose up, as if he smelled something particularly unpleasant. "I just thought you might want to tell him we're leaving tomorrow, so he knows he has a nice little escort back to Hyrule to save that pretty little high and mighty arse of his before he ditches us. Pass that on, will you, and tell him Fo—"

Eli appeared out of nowhere with Leila at his side, subtly nudging his way in between him and I, watching my face carefully. "Knock it off, Fortis." He rolled his eyes, and Leila let out a little laugh. "Leave the poor guy alone."

"You're siding with him?!" Fortis demanded.

"I'm not siding with anyone!" snapped Eli in an equally vehement tone, putting a hand on his chest. "You're being unreasonable! He's done nothing wrong!"

Fortis looked him up and down once, sizing him up, then scoffed. "You're lucky you're Jay's doormat, otherwise you wouldn't have gotten off so easy." He pushed past Eli, making a point to shove him with his shoulder before ramming into me.

I stumbled backward into Leila, who caught me and held me back just before I could throw a punch. For a girl, and a small one at that, she was surprisingly strong. "It's not worth it." She said lightly, waiting until Fortis had slammed the door to his room shut before releasing me.

"I could have taught him a lesson or two." I disagreed, clenching my hand into a fist. "Pummeling in his sorry little face would have given me a bit of enjoyment. Maybe he'll think twice about shooting his mouth of next time, too."

Calm yourself. Bide your time.

"Down, boy." laughed Leila as I unclenched my hand, taking a deep breath, starting towards the slope to the landing. "We've got to be ready by sunup, and I'd like a nice night of sleep before making that trek to Hyrule. You can come and help me pack, if you want."

Act as though nothing is wrong. Gain their trust.

"Sure," I said, nodding once and shooting her a smile.

"I'll go, too." Eli said. "No doubt Jay'll be looking for me in ten minutes, and I can't think of anywhere better to hide."

"Is widdle Elijah afwaid of his big bwudder?" Leila teased, reaching up to muss his dark brown locks, then ran ahead of me and up to her room before he could retaliate.

"I swear to God, if you call me Elijah again, I'll—"

"Jay's your brother?" I interjected, beginning to follow her.

He rolled his eyes, keeping pace with my strides. "Unfortunately. He also happens to be Hoan's second hand, so you can guess how fun that is."

He led the way inside her room, which had a small wooden necklace carved above it, a Triforce the only charm.

Inside was remarkably similar to mine, with the exception of the several books lining her shelf, the clothes in the dresser, and the pictographs that littered every available surface. There was one on her dresser with her and what I supposed were her sisters, her twin grinning identically at her side and a girl smiling serenely behind her, who looked vaguely familiar—

"Dammit." Leila growled, coming out of the door that led to her bathroom with an empty bag, rather abruptly scaring me out of my thought process. "I can't find my puffy little sponge thing!" She gestured with her hands erratically, trying to convey what she was thinking of.

"You mean a loofah?" supplied Eli helpfully with a grin on his face, sitting down on the chair in the corner.

"No!" she snapped, slamming herself down on her knees to look under her bed. "That's the stupidest word I've ever heard! I mean my puffy little sponge thing!"

"Is she like this all the time?" I whispered conspicuously, causing Eli to chuckle and Leila to shoot me an annoyed look.

"Why don't you help instead of making stupid comments?" she said.

Before I could though, none other than Kassia wandered in through the door. "Nox?" she said, peering inside, her face turning red as she realized I was there. "Sorry," she apologized quickly. "I thought I heard your voice, and you weren't in the room, so I thought—"

Make friends.

I waved her off, smiling and wrapping an arm around her, pulling her close. "Eli, Leila, this is Kassia. My…fiancée."

Eli waggled his eyebrows suggestively, causing Kassia to blush deeper and me to roll my eyes, where Leila looked up from her frantic searching, turning on her.

"You're a girl, right?" she demanded rhetorically. "You know those puffy sponge things that you use when you bathe? What are those called? I'm missing mine!"

"Those puffball things? I know what you're talking about." Said Kassia, cocking her head to the side.

Eli smiled, reaching down to grab Leila's shoulders in a similar way that I was Kassia. "Yes, those puffy puffball sponge things. Because those don't happen to be called loofahs, do they?"

Leila rolled her eyes, shoving him off her and smirking when he hit the floor with a thud. "Just find me a new damn puffy sponge thing…Elijah."

Before Eli could maim or otherwise bodily harm her, Kassia interrupted, looking behind the closed door and taking a remarkably white, puffy, sponge-like thing off the doorknob, holding it up for display. "Is this what you're looking for?" she asked, tossing it to Leila, who nodded. "Oh. You meant a loofah?"

Eli and I burst out laughing, and even Leila couldn't help but join in.

Happier note, for a change. I had to mix things up a little bit!

Yes, I'm well aware loofahs were most definitely not invented back in this time period. Let me have a little fun, okay? It's my way of saying thank you to a friend.

But hey, Nox is starting to seriously lose it. I'm building it up, guys, I promise. It'll happen. Be patient, trust me. I won't let you down!

Hope you enjoyed, and be sure to check out the poll on your way out!

Love you guys! Thank you again!

~Alyssa