Hello everybody! Here's a new chapter to this story. I'm really trying to belt this out as quickly as I can so as to get all the introductory stuff out of the way. Since I'm going to be in my summer job soon, I want to set the story up as fast as possible in case I'm forced to go on hiatus. That and I'm taking summer courses this year which run in tandem with my summer job. That means my summer will be a terrible one. Just a warning in case you suddenly see me stop writing for a while. It won't mean that I've given up on this; it'll just be that work and classes take priority over this.

With that said, I had a lot of fun writing this chapter. I'll tell you all now; this chapter will have two parts to it. I won't say much more on it, but I'm just letting you know so you won't be too off-guard when the change happens. However, I did try to make it as smooth as possible, but I am sorry if it still manages to somehow sound choppy.

I'm really proud as to how this story is coming out. When I first went to college, I thought majoring in creative writing was kind of stupid. I mean, I've been writing since I started high school and thought there was nothing to writing except knowing the basic rules of grammar and whatnot. It wasn't until I took the college courses in writing did I learn there's more to it than just the rules. Like I said in the last author's note, the structure of dialogue and their overall believability can either make or break a story. This story is the first one I've made after attending a few of those classes, so I hope that the difference in this story from the rest of my others is somewhat apparent.

violingirl4102: Thanks for leaving me a review. To be honest, I wasn't thinking about Wind Waker when I decided to have Link with a little brother in this. But even if that were in my mind, I'm not going to make Connor like her! Like you said, Aryll was too much of a goody two-shoes apart from sailing around the world with the pirates for a bit of adventuring. It was mainly to put into contrast Link's sense of responsibility which he always has in all the games he's in. I just thought it'd be a good twist to add in brotherly responsibility as well.

And I also make it a note to be conscious about my grammar on here. If there are any mistakes, then you know it's an honest one. Just like it is with you, it irks me when there's a story on here that has potential yet is marred with an unacceptable amount of grammatical mistakes. Being an English major and specializing in creative writing, this is something I just can't stand. So if you do happen to see any mistakes in my writing, please don't be too upset as it's not done consciously by me.

ESopre: Thanks for leaving me another review. I guess you really like my story. Nice to know I'm doing something right here! But yeah, I figured that having a blood relationship would make Link's character a bit more complex. He's always seen with the responsibility of saving both Zelda and the world; it's all a bit of a one-sided responsibility. Now that he has a brother, things might get a bit complicated in the future. I honestly haven't thought that far into the story yet since I'm a guy who likes to write as he goes along. I really have no idea where the story will take me, and I'm basically as much in the dark as you are.

And in terms of Malon and Link, I purposefully tried to make the conversation between them as ambiguous as possible. I don't want to make their relationship into something definite; rather, I want you as the reader to interpret for yourself what they are. You can either see her words "there are a few other things I could probably mention" as privately sexual or just friendly banter. You can also see the kiss as a token of thanks or an exchange between boyfriend/girlfriend. I hope I did a good job with the ambiguity, although your review seems to indicate that I have in your eyes.

Skittycreamstar: Thanks for your review. I literally just saw this as I was posting up this new chapter. You made it into my reviewer shout-out just in time! I agree with you; Zelda requires a lot of rescuing in most of the games. They do try to compensate by making her not so willing to just give up, but she always ends up being kidnapped and not doing much on her own. At least Spirit Tracks and Skyward Sword had her play a more proactive role. That is what I'm trying to shoot for in a sense, a woman who is trapped by impending evil but will not step down regardless of the dangers.

And with how her "bad-ass" attitude is, I wouldn't be surprised if she found herself in an actual fight or two. Like I said to ESpore, I have no idea about the story from this point forward. I'm the kind of writer who can create something so long as there's a beginning and an end. Even when there's no middle, I can make a story out of what I have. It makes for an interesting journey for me as a writer, but I like the feeling of being in the dark as though I'm the one reading it for the first time. With that said, I don't know if I can make it so that she'll be in a fight. However, I will try my hardest to make that a reality since that's also what I want!

Now that we've gotten all the shout-outs out of the way, I'll leave you all alone to read the new chapter. Until the next update to this or any of my other stories on here everybody!

Chapter 2: The Shadows in Peaceful Days

After Link and Connor completed their chores, the two sat outside eating lunch and admiring their work. The collection of wood was taken care of, all the chickens and their eggs were collected, and the fence was back in working order. All of the crops had been taken care of and the items Malon handed them earlier were put away. Even the broom that Connor broke earlier had been fixed with new straw bristles.

"We did pretty good today, didn't we?" Connor said as he finished the rest of the food that was left over from breakfast.

"Yeah, we got a lot done," Link admitted. "You did a lot of work yourself. And that's including breaking the broom and making more work for me."

"I already said I was sorry. Geez, are you ever going to let that go?"

"Well, why don't you clean these plates while I go get the fishing gear? If you can catch a fish, then maybe I'll consider forgetting it."

"Alright!" Getting to his feet in record-breaking time, Connor took both his and his brother's plate into the cottage. He then quickly came out with a bucket in hand and dipped it into a barrel of water before going back in.

With a bemused roll of his eyes, the blond teen got up and went to the back of the cottage where a small tool shed was situated. Opening it up, a brown chicken came fluttering out and made the guy jump a bit.

"How'd you get in here?" he murmured while taking out two fishing poles and a small metal box of tackles.

"I'm done!" Connor exclaimed, his excited footsteps sounding closer until he rounded the corner. "Did you get the stuff ready?"

"Yeah, I'm just wondering how this chicken got in the shed. I'll go and put it back into the coop. Think you can wait for me by the fence?"

"Alright, just don't take too long." Without warning, the boy took both rods and the tackle box from his older brother before heading to the fence. Clearly, he was more than eager to get the fishing trip started.

It only took a few moments for Link to get to the coop and place the chicken inside. Once the coop door was shut and locked, he made his way back to Connor who was already outside the fence line. They then began walking together towards a nearby lake while making small talk over a bunch of random things.

In about twenty minutes, they made it to the lake. There were a few other villagers around who were either on a walk or taking a dip in the water. The boys managed to find a good spot that was away from the swimmers and began prepping their gear. Connor was so excited; he accidentally threw the fishing line in before there was any bait on it. He had to reel it back in so as to stick a worm on the hook before throwing it out once more. Link was more patient and took the time to make sure the fishing line was strong enough and the bait was properly put on before throwing his line out.

"Do you think we'll get any fish today?" the young boy asked as he took a seat on the grass by the lakeshore. He was tightly gripping his fishing rod and waiting for the moment he felt a fish tugging against it.

"It depends how hungry they are," the blond responded before sitting down next to the other. "Fish are funny; they either take a nibble and leave or get themselves caught trying to take the whole thing. It's almost like gambling; you're either lucky or not."

"Except the only thing we lose here is bait. I guess it's a good thing that worms are easy to come by, huh?"

With only a nod for an answer, Link sat quietly as he waited for his first bite. Even with his general lack of knowledge on fishing, Connor knew that it was best to be quiet if they wanted to catch something. He did not want to risk scaring the fish away after working hard all day just to come here and catch them.

The two sat in general silence for about half an hour. They occasionally made small talk, but it only lasted for a couple minutes. A couple of villagers greeted them as they passed by, and even a couple of kids came around to bug them. Connor was more than happy to chat up a storm with them; Link was accepting of their presence but annoyed at the fish being scared off because of that. Still, it proved to be a livelier afternoon than usual for them.

Another hour had passed, and they still failed to catch anything. They had a few nibbles every now and again but nothing major. Connor's previous excitement was quickly faltering and being replaced with impatience. The warm sun beating down on them was not making things any easier for them. There were still a few people at the far end of the lake swimming, but most of earlier crowd had gone away.

"Is it always this hard to catch a fish?" the young boy finally asked. "We've been here for a while and only got a bunch of freeloading fish!"

"Like I said before, you're either lucky or you're not," the blond said. "Although I have to admit that this is getting boring. When dad used to take us, the fish would never stop coming. It's like they think he was their leader or something."

"I remember that! Didn't he use some kind of special bait to attract them? Maybe we should be using that instead of worms."

"You're probably right, but I don't know what he used then. For all I know, he could've been using nothing."

"You didn't ask him?"

"I didn't think I needed to. I mean, I just thought that…he'd still be around for me to ask later. I thought he'd be around longer."

The two boys sat in silence once more, this time reminiscing about their father who had passed on a few years ago. Link and Connor were the only people they had left in terms of their family; the older brother made it a point to raise and protect the other as best he could. He even decided to take on the responsibilities of maintaining the family farm. It had proved to be more difficult than he first thought, but the help from his fellow villagers along with the village elder made things easier. Were it not for their help, they probably would be worse off than they were now. They had since lost most of their land due to the fact that he was working on his own at the time and could not handle everything. They managed to work through that, and now Connor was old enough to take on some of the simpler tasks. They were now able to make a meager but sustainable living, although they still thought about their parents now and again.

"…I really miss dad a lot," Connor suddenly said, his voice filled with sadness as he remembered the times they had together.

"I miss him, too, Connor."

"…Do you remember what mom was like?"

"Yeah, I remember a little bit," Link explained as he started digging in his memories. "I know she really loved us a lot. I think we all used to go on picnics together here at this lake. I sometimes got mad at you because she was always giving you her attention. You were a pretty fussy baby, always demanding the attention. She was definitely beautiful; a lot of women would often come to her for beauty advice. Dad got annoyed a lot at their constant visits. I was seven when she died, but I don't remember much else about her.

"Dad really loved her, and he wasn't the same when she was gone," he added as he reeled in his line and reapplied some fresh bait. He then threw the line back in before continuing the conversation. "He still went fishing with us, but he stopped doing most of the things we used to do as a family. I think he used his position in the military after that as an excuse to travel around instead of actually protecting the people. I'm guessing that's why we didn't get to see much of him. He was hurting pretty bad, and I think he was already gone when he died. It was after that I decided to take over the farm."

"Was it because of me?" the young boy asked, having intently listened to every word that was spoken.

"Yeah, you played a big role in my decision there. You were already seven then, but you didn't do well with strangers. I didn't think you'd last a minute out of my sight, so that's when I decided to be the best big brother to you I could possibly be. I know it isn't much, but you being okay and cared for is all that matters to me." Link let out a melancholy smile as he affectionately rubbed at Connor's light brown hair.

"You don't have to work that hard just for me. I mean, both our neighbors and the Elder have offered to help us out whenever we need it. I know you've been stressing over a lot of things; getting a bit of help from them is okay."

"Don't worry; we're not that bad off yet. Until we are, I think we'll be just fine on our own. Now how about we get back to fishing?" the blond quickly changed topics in an effort to get away from the somber mood that was brought about.

"Hello there, boys!" a voice suddenly called out before they could get back to fishing. Turning to their left, they saw a middle-aged man dressed in simple white robes walking up to them. He had in his hands a large wooden staff with a knob at the top that had been hollowed out. He carried about him an air of strength and leadership and was accompanied by a younger man who appeared to be his escort.

"Hi, Elder!" both boys greeted in unison. Then Connor asked, "You out for a walk today, sir?"

"Well, it's not every day that you get such beautiful weather here in Faron Village," the Elder replied with a warm smile. "I also thought I'd see how my fellow citizens are faring in the aftermath of the drought. I've heard mostly positive things as of now, but I know it has affected everybody one way or another. How about you two? Is your farm alright?"

"We're doing just fine, sir," Link answered. "Thank you for your concern. Connor and I are able to live through to next month's payment of goods to be shipped to Hyrule Castle. We even managed to get in some repair work today, didn't we?"

"We sure did!" the little boy agreed excitedly. "We got the fence patched up and cleaned up the farm. It looks better than yesterday for sure!"

"Well, it sounds like you two are doing just fine," the man chuckled lightheartedly. He then added in a more serious tone, "I'm also concerned as to the wellbeing of everybody ever since Prince Xagrun's men occupied our village. Have they caused you any trouble lately?"

"We've been lucky so far with them," the blond said with a frown. "I haven't had any trouble with them either in the market or at home. However, I have heard that they're stopping any wagons travelling the roads."

"I've heard as much from everybody else. According to some, the soldiers are rifling through their belongings under the guise of running a check for weapons. There haven't been any major incidents so far, but I'm afraid that might change soon. The town's starting to get restless, but there's not much we can do so long as the prince is here.

"I suggest that neither of you talk about this in the open as I am now," he warned. "I'm only doing so because there aren't any soldiers about. I've noticed that they're starting to pick up their patrols, so mind your tongues when around them. I feel that Prince Xagrun might be planning something, but I don't know what it is."

"Do you think he's taken control over the castle?" Link asked in a low tone. "I highly doubt the king would be okay with this. I mean, he's bound to catch word of our complaints since we live so close to him!"

"He's definitely flexed his political muscle in some way. Whether it's by magic or his silver tongue, he's garnered the favor of both His Majesty and his council. I fear that dark times might be heading for our kingdom.

"However, that's all I can say on the subject. Anything else I say now would be no better than a rumor, and spreading them can be bad for the village's morale. I must be continuing my rounds. It was a pleasure talking to you boys!" With that, the Elder continued his walk with his escort following closely and silently.

"…Do you really think the prince is planning something, Link?" Connor asked as he continued to watch the retreating form of the two in the distance.

"I don't know, Connor," the older brother admitted. As nonchalant as he was trying to sound, even he could not help worrying about all this. "From what I remember dad telling us about His Majesty, he cares a lot for his people. The fact that he isn't doing anything about Prince Xagrun's men despite hearing our complaints tells me something's up at the castle. I think the Elder's right about this; the prince is planning something."

"I hope it doesn't mean anything bad for us. Oh!" the young boy suddenly exclaimed as he felt a sharp tug on his fishing rod. "Link, I got a bite! Whoa, I think it's a big one!"

"Really? Let me help you!" With that, the two brothers began fighting against what was clearly a rather large fish. Just like that, the depressive discussion about both their parents and the current politics of Hyrule passed from their minds. All that mattered now was reeling in this fish and seeing how big it was for it to be putting up such a struggle.

-Meanwhile-

"Why does Princess Zelda continue to be so stubborn?" Xagrun grumbled as he paced around the grounds of the castle's royal garden. The Hylian guards were all but absent from this part of the castle simply because it was in the center of the castle grounds. There was no chance of an invasion from that particular point barring an aerial assault, so security was redirected to more prudent areas. Leaning against a nearby pillar was his masked shadow who had his arms crossed in thought. "I already have the council eating out of my hand like dogs. The king's also hanging onto every word I say. There's little point left in her resisting. Does she really think she alone can change their minds?"

"I must admit that I foresaw her as being an obstacle," the hooded man replied, his voice quite deep and level. They were clearly having a private conversation; he occasionally surveyed the area to make sure nobody was eavesdropping on them. "Even then, I didn't think she would resist us for this long. She's more persistent than I gave her credit for. Did you really do all you could to persuade her?"

"Of course I did!" the prince replied irritably. "I even threatened to have my men attack her towns from the inside-out. Even then, she refuses to sign the treaty and unify our kingdoms. I don't know what to do with her!"

"Humph, you can't even make a woman bend to your will," the other bemusedly stated while adjusting his hood to better cover the white mask that covered his face. "How pitiful it must be for you as a prince."

"What did you say?"

"…Although I doubt you did all that you could, I had a feeling she wouldn't be so easily convinced," the man said without bothering to repeat his insult. In fact, he hardly seemed to fear the sense of danger that came from the other's threateningly low tone. "She's too strong of a force to be swayed by such simple tactics. Perhaps it would be best if you came up with another mode of attack."

"Do you suppose she knows of our plans?"

"I wouldn't put such a thing past her. She is the descendant of the Maiden of Wisdom. Because of that, she doesn't fear you. She'll do anything she can to douse the flames of desire that burn deep within your soul."

"What are you talking about?" Xagrun had stopped pacing and looked at the other with a hard stare. His black cape fluttered a bit in the afternoon breeze and served to make him seem more intimidating. "There's no way she doesn't fear me! I made sure of that last night when I slapped some sense into her."

"I apologize; I should've said that she fears your lust for power," his shadow corrected. "She's not as scared of you as a person more than she is of the desire for power that drives you. Being blessed with the Power of Wisdom, she's able to see through our ruse of peace. If you still intend on winning her over, then perhaps you should try attacking her in a less physical and political fashion. Clearly, your present tactics seem ineffectual."

"I don't need you telling me what it is I should be doing! I'm the prince; you're my advisor. If I wanted sassy remarks, I would've brought my insolent escort instead! I only brought you along for your advice and knowledge on the subject."

"And I believe I've provided you with nothing but that the moment I came to you. How else do you think you managed to get this far? If I remember correctly, you didn't even believe in the legend when I first told you of it. And in terms of advisory, I've stated a few truths about how well your current tactics have fared and what could be changed to garner better results. If you believe I've done or said something wrong, then feel free to correct me."

For a few moments, there was a tense silence between the two. The prince stared hard at his companion as if daring him to say more; the other merely met the gaze without much effort to it. It was an equal standoff until the lord turned his back to him with unintelligible mutterings leaving his lips.

"Now we have that out of the way, allow me to make a suggestion," the man continued as though nothing happened. "Consider changing up your mode of attack. Your current repertoire has seemed to wear thin with the princess."

"So are you suggesting that I should try killing her instead?" the prince testily suggested as he ran a hand through his hair in frustration. "If she keeps standing in my way, then I'll get rid of her and be done with it!"

"No!" the other quickly exclaimed. His voice actually held a slight bit of panic at hearing this suggestion. "We need her alive. Have you already forgotten what I told you? If you want the ultimate power, then she can't die prior to its attainment."

At this, the prince let out a sigh as he ran a hand through is hair in irritation. "She's not making this easy what with how stubborn she's being. Of all the women who could receive the Power of Wisdom; why must it be her? There must be an easier way to do this!"

"It's true that she intends to stop us upon every turn we make. However, you're still a few paces in the lead. The Power of Strength rests within you, and we have Princess Zelda in our sights. That means we have two pieces of the ancient power within our grasp. All we need now before moving on to the next phase of our plans is the third piece, the Power of Courage. Unfortunately, this particular piece is always the hardest to locate. I only hope the bearer is somewhere nearby."

"Don't worry; I've had my men on the lookout ever since we arrived. With them under the ruse of providing me safety, not even Zelda can erase their presence. If he's a Hylian citizen, then we'll find him. I just wish my search could be faster! Her not signing that damned treaty is just making things harder."

"…Perhaps you still can exert some of your influence despite only running on the limited powers from your political rights. I remember clearly the discussion from our last meeting with the princess. She mentioned something about her citizens having spread distasteful rumors about your men. Being that they are an extension of your power, you could go to the towns yourself to demand that the people pay for it. The princess clearly cares about her people, but she'll have no authority to stop you from collecting against those who undermine your position. If you do this, then she might change her mind for their sake."

"So we force her to reconsider by toying with her devotions," Xagrun concluded. He carefully listened to everything the other said, and he gave a sadistic smile as he understood the plan. "I like where this is going. It'll also give me an excuse to search the land myself for the third wielder of the ancient power. If he's but a simple farm boy, then it should be easy to take him in without incident. Where do you suggest I should go to do this?"

"Hyrule is a large kingdom, my prince; it would be imprudent for you to wander far from the castle. I would suggest you only visit the farming village of Faron near here. It's small enough that you can exercise your power to all its citizens within a day. And if you make your moves right, you might also unwittingly be able to stymy one of the castle's supply lines," the man added. "After all, your demand of payment can be in forms other than money. Do this right and you could also put pressure on the castle itself."

"I love how your mind can come up with all these ideas. Very well; I'll go ahead and make my leave for this village. I'll take a couple of men with me in case some of the villagers have the gall to attack me."

"Then I will stay here and keep watch over the princess," the masked man replied as he finally peeled himself away from the pillar. He then began making his way back into the castle. "Just make sure you don't do anything too rash that might constitute a political scandal. You're so close to completing the plan; to fail now would be…undesirable."

The prince merely rolled his eyes before heading off to his chambers to prepare for a day out in Faron Village.

Well, that's it for this chapter. I purposefully made this chapter into a two-part session since the topics do seem to naturally converge. I mean, the Elder talking about Xagrun possibly planning something made for a good detour into that private conversation. To be honest, the second part was meant to come first, but the conversation I made with Link and the Elder seemed like a bad way to end. The chapter would've ended on a somewhat happy yet strained note, but the beginning started as ominous and bad. It just felt like a bad sequence of feelings, so I decided to switch them up at the last minute. I hope that ended up working to the aesthetics. And don't mind me calling the Triforce of Power "Strength". It was going to be redundant to call it "the Power of Power", and the two words have a similar definition. Just letting you all know on the off chance somebody gets confused at the wording.

But yeah, I won't say much more here since the beginning author's note was pretty long. I just hope you liked the back-story I tried to put in for the brothers. Please don't forget to leave a review before you leave. Not only is it encouraging; it also helps to know if you catch anything you feel is wrong or needs to be better explained. I hate leaving my readers confused unless I did it purposefully, so it helps if you catch on and tell me the little things like that. Until the next update to this or any of my other stories on here everybody!