Link looked out the window of his treehouse in the Kokiri forest longingly. It had been a long three years since he last saw Zelda, the golden-haired princess, and since he defeated the evil king Ganondorf. He remembered every part of it though. Every single detail, small and large. Something in him wouldn't let go of them. His favorite part of that memory was traveling all through Hyrule. He had to admit that it was fun. He was so deep in thought that he didn't hear Saria coming up behind him.

"Hi Link!" She said quickly.

"AAAHHH!" He responded, falling out of the chair he was sitting on. His blond hair fell into his face and he quickly brushed it away.

"What's wrong?" She asked, her blue eyes looking at him through her oddly green bangs.

"Saria, don't do that to me! You scared me half to death." He said, standing up and dusting himself off. Then he sat back down and offered Saria a seat in the chair next to his. She sat in it and smiled at him.

"Like you haven't faced worse, mister Hero of Time." She replied, grinning like mad.

"I'm glad at least someone believes me." Link sighed. He had told everyone in the forest about his adventure, but not a soul believed him. Except for Saria, that is. She seemed to know he was telling the truth. Part of it was probably because she was a Sage.

"The others don't easily believe things. They're pretty stubborn. You, of all people, should know that." Saria told him.

"Yes, you're right. Why'd you come up here?" He asked suspiciously.

"The Great Deku Tree wants to talk to you. He said for me to come tell you." She said simply.

"Uh-oh. What did I do wrong now?" He wondered aloud.

"I think he just wants to talk to you about something. I'm not really sure, he just said he needs to see you." Saria said, getting worried herself. Link walked out of his small treehouse and jumped down his ladder. He then proceeded to go to the Great Deku Tree.

"Ooh, what did Link do wrong now?" Mido teased. Link ignored him and walked past.

"Mido, leave him alone! You have absolutely no idea what he's been through!" Saria scolded.

"Oh, and I should believe that stuff about the Hero of Time? Make me." He said, teasing Link about his adventure that Mido didn't believe happened. Link sighed and continued on his way. He stopped at the entrance to the field where the old tree stood.

"Come here, young Link. Do not be afraid." Link walked forward slowly.

"You wanted to see me, Great Deku Tree?" He asked.

"Yes, I did. Do you know why?"

"No I don't. Why?"

"You are different, you know that?" He nodded. "And you are special. Because you are, and have been, the Hero of Time. Saria told me of your adventures. She is different too, you know."

"She is? How? Why?" He asked, confused and concerned.

"She may not outwardly show it, but she is different. She is special also. I received a message from Hyrule Castle, and the Princess, Zelda, wishes to see both of you."

"But Saria can't leave the forest!"

"That was when Ganondorf lived here. Now he is gone, and the Kokiri people are free to come and go. Now tell Saria, and be off, both of you!"

Link walked back to his house. He looked around for Saria, but he didn't find her. Then he checked her house. She wasn't there either. He went back to the Great Deku Tree, but didn't let the great tree see him. Saria wasn't there.

"Where could she be..." He went into the Lost Woods, and navigated his way to the Sacred Forest Meadow, seeing if he could remember the way. She was sitting on a stump there, and he went up to her.

"Link, hi." She sounded a little sad.

"Something wrong?" She shook her head. "Are you sure?"

"No, nothing's wrong. What were you telling me?"

"Well, the Great Deku Tree said that we have to go to Hyrule Castle to see the Princess for some reason."

"I can't leave the forest! Wait, oh yeah. I can!" She had forgotten that since Ganondorf was gone the Kokiri were free to come and go from the village as they pleased.

"Well, let's go then. Do you mind if I get the Kokiri Sword, just in case?" Link asked.

"Not at all, but hurry. Whatever Zelda wanted, it must be important." Saria said, rushing herself to go get a few things they might need. Link went through all the obstacles and got the Kokiri Sword. Then they set off for the castle.

"Where do you think you're going?" Link and Saria turned around. It was Mido.

"It doesn't concern you where we're going." Link said.

"Oh, the kid without a fairy suddenly has a smart mouth. Well, Link, it does concern me. I'm the leader of the Kokiri, so I have a right to know when two of them are leaving." He sounded so sure of his power that he was almost scary.

"We're going to the castle. And you're not invited, so leave us alone Mido. Come on Link, let's get going. We shouldn't keep the princess waiting." Saria said, giving Mido a disapproving look that made him shut up. He walked away silently, and started muttering to himself.

"I really don't like him." Link said.

"He's just jealous that you're my friend and upset that I don't like him." Saria said.

"Are you sure?" Link asked.

"I can read him like a book! He's too predictable. Yeah, I'm sure that's why he's so mean to you." They left the forest and walked out onto the plains of the beautiful country of Hyrule. Saria shielded her eyes, since the sun was high in the sky and the forest light she was used to was mildly dim, shielded from the tall trees to it couldn't shine through so much. "The sun's really bright out here." She said.

"Yeah, you'll get used to it." Link looked up, somehow expecting that the owl, Kaepora Gaebora, would show up and talk to him.

"What are you looking for?" Saria asked, still holding her hand above her eyes.

"Nothing. Well, there used to be this owl who would show up here." Link sighed.

"Well, we should hurry." Saria took her hand off of her eyes and squinted for a little while. Then she became accustomed to the sun and her eyes got wide at the sight before her. There were rivers, and trees, and in the distance stood a magnificent castle. The towers stood tall and seemingly proud, and the drawbridge was down, welcoming visitors. They looked at the mountain in the distance with the faint gray cloud around it's peak. "It's beautiful." Saria said in awe.

"Yeah." Link had almost forgotten the sight of things. He was staring at everything as if it were again new to him. They neared the castle. The drawbridge was down to they walked inside. They stood in a market. Saria looked around and saw a girl.

"Hi." The girl said. She had fiery long reddish hair, and bright blue eyes. She looked like she belonged there. Saria and Link just stuck out like a sore thumb with their mainly green forest clothing.

"Hello." Link and Saria greeted.

"Where are you from?" The girl asked.

"We're from the forest." Saria told her. "What about you? And while we're at it, what's your name?" She asked.

"I'm Malon, from Lon Lon Ranch. Who are you two?"

"I'm Link, and this is Saria. Nice to meet you Malon." He said. "Again." He added under his breath.

"What? Did you say something?" Malon asked, suspecting that he had said something.

"Nothing." He replied hastily.

"Where are you guys going?" She asked. Link noticed the large wooden crate beside her. It had letters on it. They read 'Fresh Milk.'

"We're going to the castle." Saria said.

"Really? That's where I'm going! I have to deliver some milk. Apparently Lon Lon Ranch is the favorite place to buy milk." She said proudly. "Hey, do I know you from somewhere? You seem kind of familiar for some reason." She asked Link.

"I don't think so." He replied, trying not to look strange as he lied to her.

"Well, see you around!" She said as Link and Saria walked to the castle. They walked through the market, past all the people looking at them, past all the people offering them food, or items, or jewelry, or other items. At the people looking for a bargain, with their rupees in their hands. Link thought they seemed a little greedy, always trying to barter for a lower price of something they want. They ignored the offers and the people talking loudly and the other people who were screaming and the wandering children looking for their mothers, or holding their mothers hand, and left the market. They were almost at the castle. They walked right up to the guardsman at the iron gate, instead of sneaking around him. And the guardsman stopped them, just as Link guessed he would.

"What do you kids want?" The man asked crossly. In fact, he seemed almost suspicious that they had bad intentions.

"We're here to see princess Zelda. She's asked for us." Saria replied, looking up at the man.

"Names?" He asked with no emotion.

"Link and Saria. We came from the Kokiri Forest to see her." Saria told him.

"Oh yes, she told me to let you through when you come." He clapped his hands and the iron gate moved aside. Then the forest children walked through.

"Thank you!" Link said as they continued to the castle. They looked up at the huge palace, the stones of all different shades of gray, the ivy climbing up the sides, the huge stained glass windows, the sheer magnificence of the castle itself. It was almost overpowering for the two children.

"This...this is overwhelming." Saria stuttered. Link only nodded, speechless. The sight of the castle was enough to take your breath away, and leave you with nothing to say. It was astounding. The people who lived there were very lucky indeed, in Link's opinion. They're even luckier because they don't have someone like Mido to deal with, he thought to himself. They went up to the men at the open drawbridge and introduced themselves. They stepped out of the way so Link and Saria could go through, into the castle.

Their feet made soft sounds on the tan marble floor inside the castle. Link's boots made a sort of tap tap noise as he and Saria went to ask where they could find the princess.

"May I help you children?" They spun around, and saw an old man standing there smiling at them.

"Um...yes. We're...we're...looking-" Saria trailed off, staring at the elaborate carvings on the walls and high ceiling. It was an overwhelming sight indeed for someone who has seen nothing but the green walls of the forest for all of her life. She could barely speak. She almost wished she could live in such a place, but then she remembered all of her friends back in the Kokiri forest.

"What Saria is trying to say is that we're looking for the princess. Do you have any idea where we can find her?" Link finished for her. She was still staring at the walls and the ceiling, and the spiral staircases, so she didn't hear a word anyone said.

"I don't really know. You may want to try the courtyard, since that's her favorite place. If she's not there, then ask someone else because I don't know where she is." The man replied, pointing the way to the courtyard from where they were.

"Okay, thanks anyways." Link said, as they walked towards the courtyard where Link had been so many times before.

"This is almost too much to take in." Saria said, pulling herself together after absorbing all of the designs.

"Yeah, it's pretty isn't it?" Link mused.

"Pretty? This place is gorgeous, beautiful, I can't really describe it in words." Saria told him.

"Okay, that's good description too." He said as they made their way to the courtyard outside. The princess was there. Link saw her. Either that, or it was some other girl who looked like the princess. "Princess Zelda?" He asked. No answer. Probably because he just barely got it out of his throat, and it came out as a croak. "Princess Zelda?" He tried again, a little more legitimate that time.

"Yes?" She replied, turning around.

"You wanted to see us for something?" Link inquired.

"Oh yes! Link and Saria, you're finally here." She exclaimed.

"Yeah, what do you want to see us for?" Saria wondered impatiently.

"We found some kind of tunnel, or something. It opened, and then it closed again. I was wondering if you could go look at it." Zelda said.

"Why am I here?" Saria asked.

"I thought you could help Link look at it. Two people are better than one, and you two are good friends so it might be better."

"Oh." Link and Saria said in unison.

"Show us where it is then." Link said.

"Well, it disappeared. Two people jumped out of it first. They looked really strange." Zelda told them, sounding alarmed.

"Well, where are these people?"

"I don't know. They're probably still in the castle." Zelda said, as Link and Saria went to search the castle for the intruders.

****

"Link, do you think we'll find them soon? This place is too big to search in a day." Saria said, trying to keep up with his pace. Suddenly he stopped. "What is it?"

"I thought I heard something. Be quiet." He looked around the corner and stayed in the shadows.

"Where are we?" One of the people asked.

"I don't know." The other said.

"Well, let's find someone who can tell us."

"Loren, I think I see someone over there."

"Who?" Loren asked.

"Never mind. It was my imagination."

"Melissa, I think we both need our heads checked." Loren joked.

"Loren, that wasn't funny." Melissa said.

"How did we get here?" Loren asked.

"Maybe some kind of world tunnel, like in Sliders." Melissa joked.

"I don't get it."

"You obviously don't watch the show. You need to turn on the Sci-Fi channel some time."

"I don't like that channel. It's a little too creepy for me." Loren said.

"Loren, that's why it's sci-fi. It's supposed to be creepy."

"Hey, I saw someone!"

"Oh, hah hah. Don't make fun of me for saying I saw someone."

"No, I really saw a kid over there. I swear it!" Loren said, aching for someone to believe her. Then Link came out of the shadows.

"I told you I saw someone." Loren mumbled.

"Hey, who are you two?"

"I'm Loren, and this is Melissa. Who are you?" Link looked at the girls. They looked about the same age as him. Loren had short blond hair and brown eyes. Melissa had medium height wavy brown hair and blue eyes.

"I'm Link. I want you two to come with me." Melissa looked at him. He seems to by my age. He's kind of cute, too. Maybe being here won't be so bad after all, she thought. She and Loren followed him. They walked over to where Saria was standing.

"Oh, good! You found them." She said.

"Who are you?" Melissa asked.

"You tell me first." Saria said in reply.

"Well, I'm Melissa. This is Loren. I don't know how we got here, or where here is, okay? We just...I don't know. Now it's your turn." Melissa snapped.

"I'm Saria. Link and I were looking for two intruders, here in Hyrule Castle, and we found you two. I'm assuming you're the intruders, so you'll need to go see the princess and convince her that you're not bad or anything." The girls nodded and obediently followed Link and Saria to the courtyard where Zelda was waiting.

"Oh, you found them!" Zelda said happily.

"Yeah. Now what?" Link asked.

"Okay, first you tell me your names, then tell me how you got here." Zelda demanded.

"I'm Loren." Loren said.

"And I'm Melissa. We were doing this experiment with her parents," She said, jerking her thumb over at Loren, "And they said we wouldn't get hurt so we figured why not. We stood on this pedestal with...hey, where's Alan? Wasn't he doing the experiment too?" Loren nodded.

"Looks like we have to find him, he must be here somewhere." She said.

"Go on with your story, please. We'll find your friend later, after we decide what to do with you." Zelda said. The girls looked at each other, wide-eyed.

"Well, we stood on this stand while Loren's mom started typing. Then everything got dark. We held hands to stay together, but Loren must have let go of Alan's hand, and then we fell out of some kind of tunnel. And now we're here." Melissa explained.

"So what are you going to do with us? Lock us up or something? That wouldn't be fair since we didn't know what we were doing, really. Why don't you let us go look for our friend, and then we'll try to find a way to get home." Loren said hopefully.

"Well, I can tell that you didn't mean any harm. Why don't you go find your friend Alan, then come back to the castle. Link and Saria, I want you to escort them so they can get back in, okay?" Link and Saria nodded. "Meanwhile, I'll try to find a way to get you home. Now, go. And be careful. Even with Ganondorf gone, it's still dangerous in Hyrule with animals and thieves, and stuff like that." Link and Saria nodded, grabbing the girls and running to the exit of the castle. It was getting dark, and they wanted to get a move on.

"Do you know how to ride a horse?" Link asked.

"I love horses! Of course I know how to ride. I even taught Loren how." Melissa said.

"Good. Saria can ride with me. Let's go to Lon Lon Ranch to get the horses, okay?" Link said. The girls nodded, and they stayed in the castle that night, since the sun was setting. Link sat with Saria on the castle's western wall.

"I've never really seen the sun set." She said.

"It's pretty, isn't it?" Link said, looking at her. Saria nodded, not wanting to spoil the moment with pointless chat. They went to bed, and began their journey the next day.

Chapter 2

Saria looked in the stables, but the horses weren't there. Link checked the house, and found Talon standing there.

"Excuse me, are you the owner of the ranch?" He asked. Talon nodded. "We need to borrow three horses. Is that okay? Princess Zelda has suggested coming to you, saying that your horses are the finest-bred." Talon looked up, liking the flattery. He looked at the child, no older than his daughter Malon. He had blue eyes and blond hair, and was dressed in green. His friend had green hair and blue eyes. She was also dressed in green, and a fairy followed behind her. The other two were oddly dressed. Both were wearing pants of a denim material, and they both had clips in their hair. One looked like the princess, only with brown eyes. The other didn't even look like a Hylian.

"Well my boy, you travel in strange company." He said at last.

"My name's Link. We need to borrow three horses." He repeated.

"Well, can we work out a deal?" Talon asked.

"I don't have any money with me. What could you possibly want?"

"I just ask that you return the horses you borrow safely, fed too."

"That sounds agreeable." Link said, thinking it over. "I guess we have a deal then. Can we pick our own?" Talon nodded.

"Go right ahead."

"Thank you." Link left the main house and went out to the corral. There were about six horses. One stood out. She was a chestnut color, and had a cream-colored mane. Link already knew her name, so he went over to her. She shied away and he started to talk to her. "Hey, Epona. How are you? Don't you remember me? Oh, of course not." He whistled a tune and she calmed down. He mounted her, and sat in her saddle. She was the same old Epona.

"Link, what about the others?" Saria asked, coming up to him. He dismounted and walked over to Loren and Melissa, who were looking in the stables for the horses.

"Girls, they're out in the corral. Why don't you take a look at them?" He walked back out to Epona just as Malon walked up. He mounted, not noticing her, and then she spoke up.

"She seems to like you."

"She does?" He asked. Malon nodded.

"She doesn't like a lot of people. You're only the second person who has been able to ride her. I was the first." She said.

"Really? I feel special now." He said, grinning.

"She appeals to a certain song." Malon said suspiciously.

"You mean this one?" And he whistled the same tune as before.

"That's it! How did you learn it?"

"I listened to you singing it. I just copied it." He lied.

"You must be talented then." She said.

"Well, I'm better at playing the Ocarina, but I can catch tunes pretty fast and whistle them too." He bragged. Malon looked at him and grinned.

"Don't brag so much. Maybe I'll see you around." He nodded and walked Epona to where Loren and Melissa were looking at horses. Malon came over too.

"I like him." Melissa said.

"Well, I picked him out first. Go find another horse, Melissa." She said, arms crossed and her hand refusing to let go of the jet-black horse's bridle.

"I'll guess that you're Melissa?" Malon said, gesturing to Melissa. She nodded. "Ebony has a half-sister who's just as fast and beautiful. Why don't we go look at her?" She offered. Melissa thought for a moment.

"Well, okay." They walked over to the other side of the corral where a dapple-gray mare stood. "She's beautiful!" Melissa said, her eyes bright.

"Her name's Cloud. Would you like to ride her?"

"Who wouldn't?" Melissa asked, excited.

"Well, she's a little hard to handle at..." She trained off. Usually Cloud was insane when people tried to ride her, but Melissa whispered to her in a baby-talk voice and she calmed down. "She likes you." Malon said resentfully. Cloud had been her favorite horse, but one time she tried to ride the mare and she got thrown. Hurt her ankle and never rode the horse again. She was getting just a bit jealous of Melissa, who was about the only one who could ever ride her.

"Aw, she's not hard to handle at all! She's just a good girl." Melissa said, almost like she was talking to her dog at home.

"Well, go back to the others with Cloud, since they've already found their horses." Malon said, and they walked, with Cloud behind them, to where Saria, Loren, and Link were standing. "I don't think we've been introduced." She said to Loren.

"I'm Loren, Who are you?"

"Malon."

"I'm Saria." The Kokiri girl said.

"Nice to meet both of you."

"Same." Saria and Loren said together. They looked at each other and started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Link asked crossly. He didn't understand why they were laughing, and he didn't like private joked either.

"Nothing." Saria said, since she was the first to calm down. Link looked at her. "Really, it's nothing." Link sighed and mounted Epona. Saria mounted behind her, and the other girls mounted their horses.

"Bye!" Malon said, waving at them as they left the ranch at lunchtime. They waved back and trotted out of the ranch, the sun high over their heads.

"This reminds me of a movie I saw once." Loren said.

"Which one?" Melissa asked.

"I can't remember the name." Link and Saria looked over at the girls.

"Movie?" He asked.

"Yeah, haven't you ever seen one?" Link shook his head.

"Melissa, I don't think they've invented movies here. Or cars, or guns, or TV, or anything we have. This is a privileged world." Loren said. She had always wanted to live in a place like Hyrule, and now she was, for the time being.

"Well, I don't know about you but I like TV and movies and cars." Melissa grumbled.

"Well, we have magic and swords for weapons, too." Saria said, trying to help Hyrule keep its pride.

"Magic?" Loren asked, excited. She loved magic, and anything having to do with fantasy. She had posters all over her room with fantastic creatures on them, and she wrote about magic a lot.

"Yes." Saria said, grinning. "In fact, if you're here long enough magic will start to happen, and it'll never go away no matter what." Saria was just saying what she believed was true about magic. Truth is that the magic would only stay with Hyrule, and it wouldn't work for people who didn't live there. Not like Saria knew that though. Melissa didn't believe in magic, although she wanted to. She could never believe something she couldn't see.

"Prove that you have magic." She told Link and Saria. Link fished through his bag fir a minute and pulled out three stones. "What are those for?"

"They have magic. One's for each of the Goddesses. Blue for Nayru, red for Din, and green for Farore." Link told her.

"What are they for?" Loren asked, her eyes lit up.

"I'll show you." Link said, grinning. He dismounted from Epona and held up the red crystal. He slammed it onto the ground and a dome of fire surrounded him. Then it dissipated, leaving a faint scorch mark on the grass from a radius of about five feet away from him. "Believe me now?" Melissa nodded.

"Let's get going. It's not getting earlier here." Saria said. The others nodded and they trotted off in search of a person from another time.

****

The boy stood in a desert-like surrounding. The sand was blown in his eyes by the hot wind all around him. He covered his eyes and wandered aimlessly. Where was he? He didn't know. Who was he? He couldn't answer that either. He just remembered falling, and landing in the sand. His dirty blond hair, now full of sand, fell in his face. It helped keep the sand out of his eyes, but it still pounded his face. Then, in the distance, he saw a gate. It was opened. He ran towards it.

"Stop right there!" The boy stopped at the gate. He froze. "Who are you?" He heard. Then turned around, and he saw a woman.

"I...I can't remember..." He said desperately.

"Oh really, young man? Looks like we have some kind of intruder. Take him to see Nabooru!" He was grabbed from behind and dragged to a fort, or some kind of building.

"Nabooru, someone's here to see you." One of the people who had a hold of him said.

"Bring the guest in here then." A voice from another room directed. He heard doors opening with a loud creaking noise, and they threw him into the room. "Who are you?" She asked.

"I...I wish I could answer that. But I don't know." The boy said.

"How did you get into the haunted wasteland without being noticed, boy?" He shrugged.

"All I remember is falling and landing there." He told her with a sigh. Nabooru nodded, and called in two guards. She motioned them to take him to one of the cells and they did so. He sat there, trying to remember anything. He closed his eyes. Something came to him.

"Come here. We're going to do an experiment." A girl with blond hair and large brown eyes said. He followed her into a house, where a girl with brown hair and blue eyes was standing. "Hey, you're kind of late." Said a woman sitting at a desk crossly. "Sorry, I forgot about this." He said. "That's okay Alan." The blond girl said, then the vision ended.

He opened his eyes. He had a name, Alan. And he had friends, two girls. He did an experiment, and he was late to it. He again closed his eyes, and something else came to him.

"Melissa, this is my brother Alan." The blond girl said to the brunette. "Nice to meet you. Loren, he's kind of cute." Now the girls had names. "Well, he's my age. We're twins." The blond girl, Loren, whispered to the brunette, who's name was Melissa. "When's your mom going to finish her work?" Melissa asked. Loren shrugged. "She said that when she's done she wants us to try the experiment for her. Said it was completely harmless." Melissa grinned. "Let's play a game."

Alan felt something in his eye. It was a tear forming, and he opened his eyes again. The girls, his friends, were part of this too. "Maybe they're here somewhere too." He said, jumping up. Then he remembered that they had locked him up, and he sat and waited for someone to help him.

****

"Where to next?" Saria asked, getting weary of being in Zoras Domain. They left, and ventured onward.

"Better?" Link said sarcastically. Saria nodded.

"Where haven't we looked?" Loren wondered.

"The Gerudo fortress!" Link said. Loren looked at the landscape, and thought about the names of places. Hyrule, Zoras Domain, the Kokiri forest, Kakariko...I remember these places, but from what? Then it clicked.

"Melissa, I remember these places." She whispered.

"From what?" Melissa asked, perplexed at how they could remember somewhere they've never been.

"That video game I got the other day, these are places from the map in the manual that came with it. Remember, Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time! We've been here before, when we played the game!" Loren said excitedly.

"Are you sure?" Melissa questioned. Loren nodded vigorously, excited at her discovery. "So Alan is somewhere in Hyrule too?" Loren shrugged. She didn't know, but anything was possible. They galloped to the Gerudo fortress, and Link showed them a card. They let him through, and he led them to talk to Nabooru, the Gerudo leader.

"Nabooru, we're looking for a boy. Could one of you describe him?" Link said, not knowing what Alan looked like.

"He's kind of tall. He has kind of dark blond hair and brown eyes, like me. He has a lot of freckles too." Loren said.

"I've seen the boy. He's in one of the dungeons outside. Take him if you wish." Nabooru offered, tired of having to lock someone up. The foursome went out to the cell where they were keeping Alan and they unlocked the door. Alan ran out and hugged Loren.

"Alan, you're okay!" She exclaimed, hugging him. He was her brother after all, and she had to look after him, since they were family.

"Yeah, for a while I didn't think I would be." He let go of her and looked at the two who were native to Hyrule. "Who are they?" He asked, beginning to get frightened.

"This is Link, and this is Saria. They helped us find you." Loren introduced.

"Nice to meet you." Link and Saria said together.

"Well, we should get back to the castle. Maybe Zelda found a way to get you home." Loren sighed as Link said this. She had always been a fan of the Legend of Zelda games, she had every one of them. Now that she was there, she didn't want to leave. "What's wrong?" Link inquired worriedly, breaking Loren's train of thought.

"I...nothing. Well...never mind. Okay, it's like I've always wanted to be here, somewhere like here. And now I have to leave. It's not exactly my idea of fair."

"Oh, I see. Maybe you could stay another day or something? I'll ask Zelda if you can, okay?" Link offered. Loren smiled at him, then went over to her brother.

"Alan, you can ride with me." She said, pointing Alan to Ebony. They all mounted their horses, with Alan behind Loren, and started towards the castle. Melissa looked over at Alan. You could say she had a little crush on him, but I wouldn't. He looked at her. Their eyes briefly met, and then Melissa quickly looked away. They trotted back to the castle, and stopped in the market.

"Why'd we stop?" Melissa asked.

"I don't know. Something doesn't feel right here. I mean, the market's usually busy around this time. I don't get it." Link said, jumping off of Epona's back. He looked around. Absolutely no one was outside, even though it was midday. He ran to the various stores, but no one was there. They were locked up. He went to the back ways of the market, but no one stood there. The stench of wrongdoing hung in the air. "We've got to go to the castle." He went back to Epona and walked her to the castle, with the others behind them. Something wasn't right in Hyrule, and the castle could be in danger.

Chapter 3

They arrived at the castle, and tied the horses up in the stables nearby. Then the five travelers went into the huge building through the front door. There were no guards around, and they knew right away that something was amiss in the castle too. Link looked at the marble floor while they walked to where Zelda should have been waiting for them. The color was different. Darker. I don't like this, he thought, Something's not right here. Saria apparently shared his thought, because she nodded slightly. Loren and Melissa stayed together, with Alan behind them. The quiet was unsettling. Something was terribly wrong.

Alan tried just to contain himself. First he arrived in Hyrule, a place where he only dreamed of going, and then he got to go inside the castle! He looked at the marble design on the floor, the mandela. Then he stared at the mosaic windows and then the ceiling with the amazing painting on it. He turned his glance to the walls, with the patterns carved in them. He couldn't even speak.

Link ran to Zelda's room, where she would have been working on finding a way to get Loren, Melissa, and Alan home. She wasn't there. In fact, he just noticed that no one was in the castle.

"What is going on here?" He wondered aloud.

"I don't know, but I'm getting scared." Saria said, coming up beside him.

"I think you're too late." They heard, and turned around slowly. A wizard stood there. "He's taken everyone. From the castle and the market. I was lucky that I just arrived here." He continued.

"Who are you?" Link asked intently.

"My name is Agahnim." The wizard explained. I remember him, he was from one of the Zelda games, Loren thought. But which one? Then it hit her.

"A Link to the Past!" She shouted. Her words echoed through the halls of the castle. "Oops." She added, covering her mouth so she wouldn't shout. She remembered the supposed order of the games; Zelda five, then four, then three, then two, then the original. Agahnim may not be evil then.

"What?" The old wizard asked.

"It's a game. I recognized your name from it." She told him.

"Oh, I see. A children's game, eh?" Loren nodded, scared half to death. The old man smiled at her, a real, true smile from a kind man. How can he be the same Agahnim? He's actually being nice, she thought. "You appear to be afraid of me. Why is this?" He asked.

"I remember you from somewhere. But you were evil then." She replied, too scared to lie to the wizard. He nodded, like he understood, but said nothing.

"So...Agahnim, do you know where everyone is? How do we get them back?" Link demanded.

"I don't know where he has redirected them. He probably sent the important people to another country, or another world. The people who got in the way are probably just invisible. There are three choices; Calatia, Artanemis, both on this world, or your world." He said, pointing to Loren and Melissa on the third option.

"You mean all of those people could be on Earth?" Melissa asked. Agahnim nodded.

"Sadly, they may be there. They've most likely been relocated to Calatia, since their population is below normal. You must go find them." He pointed to the horizon, the direction to Calatia. None of them had ever been outside of Hyrule.

"How are we going to get there?" Saria asked.

"I will send you there. You may feel slightly dizzy, but never fear for you will arrive in Calatia in record speed. Now, go on." He waved his hands and the five companions disappeared from sight.

****

"Where are we?"

"I think we're in Calatia. Link? Saria? Alan? You okay?"

"Yes, we're fine. Are you?"

"I think so. Alan?"

"Right here."

"Here where?"

"Over here. Gosh, I can't see anything."

"It's pitch dark here. Saria, where are you?"

"Over here."

"The word here isn't doing us much good. Feel around for something."

"Ouch!"

"Alan, what happened?"

"I jabbed my knee on a rock!"

"Cold!"

"What's wrong Saria?"

"It's a puddle, and the water's freezing!" From a little way away, three figures stood. Their faces were cloaked, as well as their bodies, but their eyes glowed yellow.

"What's that? Six lights!" The figures closed their eyes so they wouldn't be seen.

"Who are they?" One asked.

"How ssssssshould I know? What about you, Arisssssh? Do you know?"

"Haven't the faintesssst idea. Sssshould we talk to them?"

"No! Agni, they are like the other ssssstrangersssssss!"

"Well, we ssssshould find out if they are with the otherssss, Arigon."

"Point taken. Let'sssss go over." They seemed to glide to the travelers, and they stared at them.

"AAAHHHH!" Loren cried.

"AAAHHHH!" Link agreed, and soon they were all screaming.

"Husssssh! We mean you no harm." One of the figures said. They immediately stopped screaming.

"I am Agni. These are my brothersssss, Arigon and Arisssssh. We are the brotherssss of the ssssswamp."

"Pleasure, I'm sure. I would shake hands, but I can't seem to see anything." Link said, beginning to get agitated. Agni clapped his hands and light filtered through the tops of many tall trees.

"Better?" He asked. The others nodded. Link looked at the brothers. He still couldn't see anything of their faces but their eyes.

"Are you with the otherssss?" Arish asked.

"Others?" Saria replied in question.

"Yessss, the othersssss. They appeared a sssshort while ago, from a place called Hyrule. Are you from there?"

"Yes! Where did they go?"

"They all went to the town. Would you like ussss to point the way?" They all nodded.

"Through the busssshessss, and ssssstay on the path. It takessss you right into the city."

"Thank you!" Link said, and they were off. He took out his sword and started hacking away at the brush to get through. Then Saria shrieked. "What? What's wrong Saria?"

"SPIDER!!!" She shouted. Melissa went up and looked at it.

"It's a harmless little thing!" Melissa said to Saria.

"Keep it away from me!" Saria shrieked. Then she ran behind Link. Melissa rolled her eyes, and they kept walking into the city. Immediately the people stopped what they were doing to stare at the strange group. They had rounded-off ears, unlike Hylians. Only the Hylians had the pointed ears. They looked much like Loren, Melissa, and Alan. People started murmuring below their breath to their neighbors.

"Excuse me, have you seen a few other people like us?" Link asked, walking up to a woman in the crowd. She walked away, ignoring him.

"Has anyone seen people like these two?" Loren asked, shouting and pointing to Link and Saria.

"I have!" One man said, walking up to Loren.

"Where? Which way did they go? Where did they come from? Did they stay here?" Loren asked.

"One at a time! They went that way, through the city. They came out of the swamp, like you did. No, they didn't stay here. No one spoke to them." The man told her.

"Thanks." Loren said, and she told the others.

"Let's go then!" Link said, pointing to the edge of the city.

"Right behind you!" Loren said, as she followed behind Link. They ran out of the city, and saw someone walking in the far distance.

"That must be one of them! Look, he's following some other people!" Saria said, pointing to the man. They started to run aster to catch up with them.

"Faster! Come on, am I the only one here on a track team?" Alan asked. Melissa was right behind him. Then Loren, with Link and Saria right beside her. Finally, they started to catch up to the man that they had seen. Link recognized him as someone from the market.

"Hey, sir!" He said, walking up to the man.

"Who? Oh, Link! It's you! How'd you get here?"

"Someone got us here to find you all. Hey, where's the princess?"

"She's somewhere in this caravan, I know that."

"Okay, we'll go look for her. G'bye!" They started to run to the front of the procession, and found the princess. "Princess, over here!" Link shouted.

"Link?! Where are you? What are you doing here?" She asked, looking around for him.

"I'm right here! Looking for you all, and why are you all here?" Zelda shrugged.

"If I knew that, I wouldn't be here anymore. By the way, where is here?"

"Princess, this is Calatia, one of Hyrule's neighboring countries." Link told her, coming into her view.

"Oh, it is? Well, the Calatians aren't very friendly to the Hylians, are they?" Zelda asked crossly.

"Nope. We figured that out. No one would speak to us, but they would talk to Loren and Melissa. Probably because they aren't Hylian." Link replied.

"I don't see why they resent the Hylians! I mean, we didn't choose our race, and they didn't choose theirs. What's so bad about us?" Zelda continued asking questions. Link shrugged. Just then a figure appeared in front of them.

"Agahnim?" Link asked.

"Yes. It is I, Agahnim! I will return all of you to Hyrule." As he said that, the crowd faded into thin air, and everyone returned to their homes except for Link, Saria, Melissa, Loren, and Alan, who were all transported to the castle where they were before.

Chapter 4

The floors were their regular tan color, and they felt right this time. The guards stood at the doors behind them, and they were in the entry hall of the castle. The designs were back to normal, as was the giant stone mosaic in the middle of the room.

"Well," Saria said, "Everything's back to normal. Maybe now you three can get home."

"Hopefully. This has been fun, but I miss my house. We need to get home." Melissa told her.

"For some reason, I don't want to leave. But I know I have to." Loren agreed. Alan just nodded.

"Well, let's go find the princess then!" Link said, looking around. "Hey, where's Aganihm?" He added.

"I don't know...Wasn't he right over there?" Saria asked.

"No matter! Let's get you home!" Link dragged Loren and Melissa, and Loren dragged Alan to Zelda's room, where she was waiting.

"Well, that was a...strange experience." She said, dazed.

"Sure was! Now, have you found a way to get these three home?" Link asked.

"Oh, yes I have! There was a wizard here earlier, he taught me the way to go about doing this. Now, you three hold hands."

"No problem doing that." Melissa said slyly. She slipped her hand into Alan's and grinned at him. Loren held Melissa's hand.

"Close your eyes. All of you. Melissa, that means you. Then repeat after me." She directed. They closed their eyes as directed, and Zelda started the spell to get them home. "A place for everything, and everything in its place."

"A place for everything, and everything in its place." They repeated.

"Send these three to their home, through time and space." Zelda continued.

"Send us back to our home, through time and space." They again repeated, this time substituting s few words. They opened their eyes for a brief moment. "Bye everyone!" They said as the castle faded away, and with it all hope of going back to Hyrule. Link, Zelda, and Saria waved goodbye to them, then the three were gone.

****

Two girls and a boy walked through a small town. They had been missing for about two days, and they were back.

"Home, sweet home in the suburbs." The brunette girl said.

"You've got that right. Bye, Melissa. Come on, Alan. Let's go home." And the group split up for the day. But they would never in a million years forget Hyrule.

****

"Well, that was strange from when the Deku Tree said that you wanted to see Saria and me." Link thought aloud, grinning at the two girls.

"Well, you have to admit that it was kind of fun." Saria said.

"Oh, we have to return those horses!" Link remembered.

"You're right! This time we have to watch an extra horse as we go there." Saria agreed.

"May I come with you?" Zelda pleaded.

"Okay, sure." They all went out to the stables and got the borrowed horses from Lon Lon Ranch. It wasn't quite dark outside, but that was about to change. They mounted up and set off for the ranch, unaware of any danger that might lie ahead of them.

"I'm famished. Are you both as hungry as I am?" Saria asked, her stomach growling just a little.

"Now that you mention it, I am kind of hungry. Being in that swamp kind of made my appetite at lunch dissipate." Link replied.

"Well, is there some leftover food in one of those saddlebags?" Saria pointed at the saddlebags that Epona had been carrying. They all checked for any food left over, and found nothing.

"Nothing." Zelda sighed, also feeling that it was time for dinner.

"Nothing here either." Saria agreed.

"Nope, these saddlebags are all empty." Link pointed out.

"Well, maybe we can eat dinner at the ranch or something?" Saria wondered.

"That would be a good idea. Let's get going!" They galloped the horses the rest of they way to Lon Lon Ranch and stopped at the entrance. The gate was shut. Link dismounted from Epona and knocked on the heavy wooden gate that was almost as tall as his head.

"Who's there?" A deep voice asked. It was Talon, the owner of the ranch.

"This is Link. I borrowed a few of your horses, remember? Is it okay if...if we come in to the ranch to return them?" Link asked.

"Well, it's the young man I rented the horses to is it? Of course you can come in!" Talon said. They waited for a few seconds and Talon swung the gate open so they could get in. "Sorry for the extra security measures, but it's getting dark. Those pesky Gerudos always attack at nighttime, and we can't afford to lose any more livestock. They're going to put us out of business!" He apologized.

"Ok, it's quite alright." Zelda said, coming from the back of the line.

"Princess Zelda! What a surprise it is to see you!" He said, bowing slightly in her presence. She dismounted from the horse she had chosen to ride, Cloud, and looked at him.

"Please don't use formalities here. It's your home after all." She told him. He stood up straight and took the horses. Saria hopped off of Ebony's back as Talon led the horses into the stable for the night.

"Is there anything else I can do for you?" He asked after coming out of the stables.

"Yes. If it's not too troublesome, could we eat dinner here? We wouldn't get back to the castle in time for dinner even if we started off right now." Zelda requested.

"No, that wouldn't be a problem! Come right in!" He escorted them into the house. Malon was standing at the kitchen stove, cooking dinner. She turned around and saw the three guests.

"Link, Saria! Nice to see you again! Hello, princess!" She sounded so cheerful, it was kind of worrying.

"They're staying for dinner. Is that a problem Malon?" Her father asked.

"Nope, but the next time we have guests for dinner you're cooking!" She replied. Talon sighed playfully.

"Alright. I think I could stand cooking for more than just us." He said.

"Oh, and dinner's ready right now." Malon said, picking a pot off the stovetop and taking something out of it. Talon directed everyone to a seat at the large round dinner table and they all sat down. Malon put the food on the table and they started eating. After they were done, Zelda, Link, and Saria said goodbye and started back towards the castle. Zelda stopped right outside Lon Lon Ranch as Talon closed the big gate behind them.

"Hey, would you like to stay at the castle tonight?" Zelda offered.

"Well, I don't see why not. Saria, what do you think?" Link asked the Kokiri girl.

"Sounds fine to me." She agreed.

"Well, I'll have some guest rooms set up when we get back." Zelda said smiling. They started walking again, and they got halfway back to the castle before the sun dropped completely under the horizon.

"Hyrule is kind of scary at night." Saria said, shivering. Link got out the Kokiri Sword and had it ready.

"Hey, there are bound to be enemies here that Ganondorf didn't create. Maybe those skeleton things that I used to encounter acted under their own control or something." Link explained. Just as he finished, a skeleton creature popped out of the ground. Zelda shrieked, and Saria moved behind Link. The creature swiped its bony paw at Link, and he quickly counterattacked with the sword. When he put the sword back at his side, the creature was missing an arm. Link then drove the blade through the creature's stomach and it fell as a pile of bones.

"L-let's get out of here, before another one of those wakes up!" Saria suggested.

"That would be a good idea." Link said. Zelda nodded, and they ran for the castle. They didn't stop running until they got to the market drawbridge, which was closed.

"Oh no!" Zelda said. A creature came out of the ground a few yards behind them, and Zelda panicked. "Open this drawbridge now!" She commanded. A watchman's head appeared over the top of the gate.

"Under whose orders should I open this gate?" He asked.

"Under the orders of the princess of Hyrule! And hurry, a creature is after us!" Zelda commanded in her best I'm-in-charge-so-get-out-of-my-way voice.

"Oh, I'm sorry princess. I didn't recognize you in the dark!" He said hastily.

"Don't bother with apologies, just OPEN THE GATE!" The gate slowly opened, and they didn't wait for it to open all the way. "Okay, close it quick!" She said. The gate closed, but the creature was inside.

"I'll handle it!" Link said.

"Hey, kid! You can't-" The man stopped when he saw how Link fought. He made it seem like an art, and the creature was quickly turned to a pile of bones.

"Can't what?" He asked the watchman after the skeleton was disposed of.

"Nothing. Where did you learn to fight like that? You can't be older than the princess!" He said, out of range of Zelda's hearing.

"Let's just say I've had experience at this." He winked at Zelda and Saria, and they stifled some giggles.

"Well, you three should get to the castle! It's getting late, and the king is worried sick about you princess." The watchman rushed them into the market, and on the road to the castle. They went right to the throne room, as Zelda showed them the way there.

"Zelda! I was worried about you. Where did you go?" Her father, king Harnikan, asked.

"I was helping Link and Saria return a few horses." She replied.

"Well, next time tell me where you're going." He told her.

"Okay daddy." She hugged him, and then said, "Daddy, could they stay here for the night? They can't get all the way to the forest without the threat of being attacked by creatures."

"Well, they can stay here for tonight. Let's just get some rooms ready." He told a soldier to have a maid get two rooms ready for the guests and turned back to them. "You must be famished." He said.

"Daddy, we ate dinner when we returned the horses." Zelda told him.

"Oh! Well, go on to bed then."

"Okay daddy." Zelda walked off to her room and the other two just stood there awkwardly.

"You two are from the Kokiri forest?" King Harnikan asked.

"Yessir, we are. But he's not a Kokiri." Saria replied.

"Really? Well, first let me know your names."

"I'm Link. This is Saria." Link told the king.

"Link? I think I remember that from somewhere...but no. You're not a Kokiri, but you live in the forest?" Link nodded.

"I didn't really know until a while back. People there always knew I was different. Probably because I didn't have a fairy." Saria looked guiltily at the fairy sitting on her shoulder.

"And you, Saria, are a Kokiri?"

"Yup. Link grew up with me." Link kind of blushed a little, but no one really noticed it. A woman came up and spoke privately to the king.

"Your rooms are ready. Kirsten will show you to them." The woman, Kirsten, led them out of the room and into the hallway.

"The king has apparently taken an interest in you two. Your rooms are by the princess's." They stopped in a hall with three rooms. One door was closed, but the other two doors were opened. They were right across from each other. Link took one room and Saria took the other. They went to sleep and went to the Kokiri Forest the next morning after breakfast.

****

"Well, they're back. Did you two have fun?" Mido asked snidely.

"Mido, just shut up." Link said, finally having the nerve to say such a thing.

"Well, Link's got the nerve to speak to me like that!" He said.

"Remember this, Mido. You still look like a ten-year-old. Sooner or later I'm going to be bigger than you, so don't make me an enemy now." Link threatened. Mido wiped the grin off of his face, and just stood there with a vacant look on his face. The only part of Link's story that he had actually believed was that Link wasn't a Kokiri.

"You sure showed him Link!" A blond-haired blue-eyed girl said to him. He again blushed just a little and kept walking.

"You were pretty good." Saria agreed. Link blushed a little more. He walked to his treehouse and climbed up.

"Home sweet home." He muttered. Saria didn't follow him up, she went to her own little house. No matter, he was thinking at the moment, We're home. And I don't think I'll ever forget those guys. The day passed quickly, as others would. Night settled over the Kokiri forest, and the crickets started chirping. A few fireflies bussed about, and maybe one or two nightingales chirped. It was the natural symphony of the forest, and it lulled Link to sleep, as well as Saria. They slept soundly, as they would for many nights ahead of them.

Part 2: Treachery and Exile

Five Years Later

Chapter 1

Zelda awoke with a start. It was still dark. It had been a long time since she had had such a dream. She replayed the whole thing in her head, trying to pinpoint its meaning.

The land of Hyrule was in turmoil. There was a war, shadowed figures fought in the midst of a terrible storm. Lightning struck, and thunder overwhelmed even the clangs of swords. Then a black cloud rolled over the warriors, and when it was done only two were left. One had a sword in hand, and the other had a bow with arrows. They were still shadowed, but their purpose was known. Then a ray of light shined down, and from the light a figure stepped. They had a staff in hand, and a sword at their side. The person melted the dark figure to an extent, and it cowered. But then it struck back, and the staff-clad person fell. Then Zelda awoke with a start. The dream ended.

"What does it mean?" Zelda asked herself. There was a knock at the door. "Come in." She said. Impa, Zelda's handmaid, came in.

"Get dressed." She told the young princess.

"What? Are we doing something special today?" The princess inquired.

"An ambassador is coming." Impa replied. "Now, get dressed." Zelda hurriedly pulled on a dress and went down to the throne room, where her father was.

"What's going on?" She asked.

"We're having guests today. We're going to sign a treaty between our countries." King Harnikan said.

"Really? That's nice."

"Well, we need two representatives for Hyrule to witness this. You and someone else. Why don't you pick a person?" He suggested. Zelda and Link had kept in touch for about five or six years, so she picked him.

"Why not Link?" She asked.

"Well, why didn't I think of him. Zelda, that's a good decision."

"What country are these guests coming from? Calatia?" Zelda queried.

"They're coming from Artanemis, to be precise." He told her. "My good man, would you go bring Link here?" he asked the man at his side.

"Daddy, let me go please. I know where it is. I could tell the Great Deku Tree that his Link is requested to come here." Zelda pleaded.

"Do you need to actually leave the castle to talk to this tree?" Her father asked in good nature.

"Well...no."

"Then you may." Zelda went back to her room and picked up a stone from under her bed. She took a shard of rock in her hand and started to write invisible letters on the stone.

Great Deku Tree, tell Link that his presence is requested in the castle. He needs to get here, alone, as soon as possible. Princess Zelda's orders.

The stone seemed to glow a little, and the message was sent to the Great Deku Tree. Then Zelda out the stones away and went back to the throne room.

"The message has been send." She said.

****

"Link!" Saria said, scaring the Hylian. He fell out of the chair he had been sitting in.

"Saria! How many times have I said not to sneak up on me like that!" He remarked.

"Sorry, it's just funny to see you fall out of your chair. What were you doing?" The blue-eyed green-haired Kokiri girl asked. Link stood up and pushed a strand of hair out of his face.

"Nothing. Absolutely nothing." He replied with a sigh. Saria looked up at him, since he had grown and she would never.

"Well, the Great Deku Tree wants to see you. Says it's urgent."

"Oh. A little excitement to add to my incredibly dull day." He muttered as he went to see the old tree. Mido was about to crack a joke as Link went by, but he gave him a stony glare and Mido said nothing. Link was soon in the presence of the Deku Tree.

"Why have you asked to see me?" Link inquired.

"The princess wants to see you at the castle immediately, young Link." The great tree answered.

"She-she does? Why?" He asked, baffled at why she would want to see him.

"She only said that it was urgent." The tree said. Link went off right away. He passed Saria on his way out of the forest.

"Where are you going?" She asked.

"To the castle. Don't ask why because I don't know." He said. "Bye." He continued, and he ran out of the forest to the largest field in Hyrule.

****

"Oh, where is he?" Zelda asked herself, becoming distressed. She paced around on the first floor of the castle, in the entryhall.

"Zelda, they're on their way and Link isn't here yet." Impa told her.

"I know that!" She snapped back. "Where could he be?"

"Right here maybe?" A door swung open and Link stood there.

"Well, he decided to show up." Impa mumbled.

"Hey, it's a long way to go from the forest all the way to the castle on foot." He said, defending himself.

"Well, at least you're here. There's someone on their way, to sign a peace treaty with us. It would be good if, if Ganondorf or someone of equal evil came, we had someone who we could trust to help defend us."

"Hey, I defended Hyrule well enough." He joked.

"Well yes but...but...I don't know. The treaty's probably just if there's a conflict between the countries." She said.

"Well that's understandable." Link said. He was unconsciously agitating Zelda with his joked all the while, but she showed no outward signs of it.

"Now, let's go." Zelda said. She grabbed Link by the arm and practically dragged him all the way to the conferencing room.

"Hey! I can walk on my own, you know. Why are you being so uptight? You seem to be strung as tight as my bow!" Link asked.

"No reason. It's just...never mind." She said with a heavy sigh.

"No, really. What's wrong?" He asked, really becoming concerned.

"Well, the king of Artanemis is about my age, and...I think that my father...well, you know!" She told him.

"Really? I don't think your father would make you..." Link said.

"Maybe, maybe not. I hope for the latter option." She muttered.

Link looked at her, with her head hung low. He lifted up her chin and said, "I really don't think your father would do that. Besides, there are plenty of people here in Hyrule who probably wouldn't be a stuck-up as the king of another country."

"You think so?"

"Really, I do. No lies."

"Since when have you lied to me about something?" She asked with her hands on her hips.

"Um, never mind what I said." He said, grinning.

"No, when did you lie to me?" He started absentmindedly running around the room, with Zelda right behind him. Then she caught up to him and grabbed the back of his tunic, pulling him down on top of her.

"Oww!" Link said.

"Okay, you can get off of me now." Zelda told him.

"There. See what happens when you play around too much?" Link asked playfully, after getting up and brushing himself off. Zelda playfully hit him on the shoulder.

"Oh, you! Can you ever be serious about something?"

"Zelda, sometimes I can be so serious that it's scary." He said. Apparently that wasn't one of those times, because he burst out laughing and Zelda wasn't far behind.

****

(Seventeen years ago...)

It was a party. There was a king, a queen, and their nameless daughter standing in the center of the room. Guests at the castle stood all around the ballroom. Then there was a gust of wind and the doors to the room blew open. An old woman stood there. She walked over to the baby and touched her forehead.

"This girl has a very interesting future. A battle...she's a warrior. I name her after the Old Language word for warrior. Girl, I name you Kyranda." Only this one woman had the right to name a child, since it was her job to do so. She was the Namer who lived in the castle. Now the princess of Calatia had a name, and it was Kyranda.

"The castle is burning!" A man shouted while others ran in with tubs of water, trying in vain to douse the flames.

"No, no no! That isn't working! We need to save the royals!" Another man yelled. Just then a man whose face was covered ran out of the burning castle carrying a child. She was a few weeks old, but he ran off with her. Judging from the scorched clothing, it was the princess, Kyranda. Then an eccentric woman ran out, face black with ash in some places but pale in others.

"Kyranda! Stop...that man! He has my baby!" Then she collapsed. No one had to check to know that she was dead.

A few hours later, the castle still had a few flames leaping from its once-proud towers. The king and queen were dead, they found the king's body in the throne room. As well as the bodies of other people who didn't belong in the castle. They belonged to the country of Artanemis. Word got out to a few places, too. Hyrule to name one.

"Who could have laid this treachery upon that country?" The king wondered.

"I don't know, but I pray that those raiders never reach Hyrule." His wife said.

"Yes, so do I. But if they do, we may have to be ready." They both nodded in agreement to this and went about their normal daily routine. The family's sister's family, who also had a girl the same age as Kyranda, took over the throne in their brother's family's wake.

****

(Seventeen years later, back where we left off...)

"What is going on here?" The king asked, coming into the room to see Link and Zelda laughing on the floor.

"N-nothing s-sir." Link stuttered as he tried to stop laughing. The king walked over to the head of the table and told the two to sit down beside him. Zelda sat beside her father and Link sat beside her. Then a dark-haired dark-eyed man with rounded-off ears came into the room, followed by two very similar people.

"Greetings, king Harnikan. I am Zanion of Artanemis. These are my two representatives, Malcom and Rahel." The front man, obviously Artanemis's king. King Harnikan stood up.

"Good day gentlemen. You know me, but these are my representatives, Link and Zelda. You already know Zelda." Zanion went over and looked at Link.

"You must be this Hero of Time that I once heard of. I can tell by the look in your eyes. You're hungry for adventure, like a true warrior." He laughed and took a seat at the other end of the table. "Now, let's begin."

Chapter 2

Kyra had grown up in Calatia with her father. Her mother had apparently died. She had made a friend, the princess of Calatia. Right then she was eating lunch.

"Kyra, I want to give you something. Before your mother died, she asked me to give you this when the time was right. I know you love to swordfight, although you don't know very much of it. Hopefully someone will come help you learn it, someday. But until then, just keep this with you." Her father said. He handed her a sword with a cloth around the blade.

"Father, I love it. It even has my name engraved on it!" Kyra said excitedly. It was the Light Sword. You see, between the countries of Hyrule, Calatia, and Artanemis, there are three swords: the Master Sword belonging to Hyrule, the Light Sword belonging to Calatia, and the Dark Sword belonging to Artanemis. The Master Sword could overpower both of the others, but that wasn't known.

"Yes, I was hoping you would." He grinned. Then they art their lunch and Kyra went to her room. She saw a little scratch beside her name in the sword so she polished it over, and the scratch disappeared. Then she set out to go through the town into the castle.

"Hey, where are you going?" Her father asked as she was leaving.

"I'm going to go talk to Rachael." She replied and dashed out the door. She arrived at the castle shortly after, and knocked on one of the huge doors. A guard opened it and directed her to Rachael's room, where the princess was.

"Rachael, hi." She said.

"Hi Kyra! Boy, every time I see you I feel your name is familiar, but I don't know where from. Well, is there anything special you want to talk to me about?"

"Yes, father gave me this sword. I love it, don't you?" She asked. Rachael nodded. She took the sword and undid the newly-wrapped cloth around it.

"Kyra, do you know what this is?" She asked.

"No, what is it?"

"This, my friend, is the fabled Light Sword! How did your father get it?"

"He said that my mother wanted me to have it. Look, it has my name on it." She said.

"Well I'll be damned. I never thought this sword was real. This sword that can only be used if it is given to someone. Kyra, be careful with it. It has great power. Let me get a holster for you." Rachael dug around in the Arms Room until she found a good holster for the sword. She said something under her breath and went to give it to Kyra.

"Thanks Rachael." She said. Then she slung it over her shoulder and tried it out. It was perfect fit, and the Light Sword slid easily into it. Then she went back home.

"Back so soon? I thought Rachael would have taught you some magic or something. She said you were very good from a wizard's point of view." He said. Of course, he was only afraid that Rachael would have found out who she really was. He was only protecting her. Protecting her only from her destined future.

"Well, she gave me a holster for my new sword." Kyra said. She decided not to tell him what the sword was, since he might have taken it back claiming she was still too young.

"It's a nice holster, that's for sure." He told her, looking over the sheath.

"Mmmm." She said in agreement. She wasn't really paying much attention, though. She was dreaming about what she could do with that sword. She had no idea that Rachael, being a wizard, enchanted the leather scabbard.

****

"Well, now that we signed this treaty, would you good fellows like to stay the night? I'm not sure you would make it back to Artanemis before nightfall." King Harnikan offered.

"No, I suppose we wouldn't. I believe we'll take up your offer, good man. You're very kind." Zanion said. He stared at Link for a moment with a venomous look on his face and then smiled at Zelda. She flashed a fake smile back at him and then a real smile at Link.

"Link, you should start to get back to the forest." She suggested.

"Zelda, I won't have him travelling in the dark! Link, you're welcome as well to stay here at the castle." King Harnikan said.

"Well, I suppose if I wasn't imposing..." Link started.

"Nonsense, my boy! You wouldn't be imposing at all. The more guests the merrier." The king said. They were all directed to rooms, Link's being right beside Zelda's and the Artanemans were in another hall.

"Well, sir. They look king of attached." Rahel said to Zanion later that night.

"Well, I'm going to go talk to Harnikan." Zanion said. He walked out of his room where Malcom and Rahel were just standing. He went to the king's room and went inside.

"Sir, if you don't mind I would like to talk to you about your daughter..."

Zelda sat in her bed, still dressed, thinking. Zanion and his servants as they seemed to be didn't seem right. Well, at least they're not tools of Ganondorf, she thought. Then she heard a knock at her door.

"Yes?" She said, and the door slowly creaked open. Link stood in the doorframe.

"May I come in?" He asked. Zelda nodded. He walked in and sat beside her on the bed.

"Do you feel something strange about the Artanemans?" Zelda inquired. Link nodded slowly.

"Yes. Did you see the way Zanion stared at me? It was like he wanted me out of the way." Link told her.

"And then he smiled alarmingly sweetly at me. I think he's up to something. Something big." Zelda added.

"Zanion, I can't just hand her over. My daughter will marry who she pleases. And be it you, or Link, or any other man, I can't stand in the way of love. Now if you'll excuse me and go back to your room, we can get some sleep." Harnikan said to Zanion.

"Yes, sir." Zanion grumbled as he left for his room.

"Well?" Rahel asked when he returned.

"He said the girl will marry who she wants." He muttered.

"That's too bad. What are you going to do?" Malcom asked.

"We'll just have to make her want someone other than that peasant boy. Ad then we'll get him out of the way." Zanion told them with an evil grin on his face. He laughed sinisterly and his servants laughed with him.

Zelda turned her head over o the doorway.

"What is it?" Link asked.

"Did you hear that? That laughing?"

"Kind of. Why?"

"Because I think it was Zanion."

"Are you sure?"

"No. I just think it was him. What did I just say?"

"Oh. Never mind."

"Let's go check it out."

"Okay." They left Zelda's room and went to the hall where the guests slept. Zelda leaned on the only closed door where Zanion was staring a spell.

"Make her love me more than that boy." She heard.

"Oh, no!" Zelda hissed, getting away from the door.

"What? What is it?" Link asked.

"He's starting a spell. Let's get to the library and look up some kind of protection from spells before it works." She said, grabbing Link's arm. He ran ahead of her and was soon the one dragging someone. They got down to the library and found something that would repel spells. They started it and Zelda felt a tap on her shoulder as Zanion's spell touched her but was repelled.

"Did it work?" Link asked.

"I guess it did." She replied. Then they went back to the door where they stood earlier and creaked it open just enough so they could see a little. Zanion was there, talking to some sort of orb floating in front of him.

"What do you mean she was impenetrable?!" He asked.

She had some sort of shield over her. No spell could touch her that I tried.. They heard inside their heads.

"Well, I think we should go tell your father." Link suggested.

"We can't! Then Zanion will just do something to my father!" Zelda whispered. "Let's go get some sleep." They went to their rooms and Zelda locked her door. So did Link. In the morning when they woke up they got dressed and went to breakfast. Afterwards, Zelda went back to her room and Link waited for Zanion.

"Zanion, I know what you tried to do last night. I heard you." He said.

"Well, I don't know what you're talking about." Zanion replied.

"That's why we used a spell-shield." He told the man.

"Please, go leave me alone young man." Zanion said and went ahead of the Hylian. Link went back to his room.

"We have to get rid of that boy!" Zanion said.

"Sir, I have something that may interest you." Malcom said, handing him a book.

"A book of the laws of Hyrule? How is this supposed to help me?" Zanion snapped.

"Well, you see what the price of murder is?" Malcom asked. Zanion nodded.

"Prohibition."

"And you see what the price of a second murder or attempt is?"

"Exile? Yes, Malcom, you're a genius! Not as much as I am, but very helpful. You'll be rewarded."

"So if we disguise you as him then you can kill someone and then just attempt to kill the king which you accidentally mess up, and then Link will take the blame!"

"Yes...we'll do that."

Chapter 3

"Kyra, what are you doing?" Her father asked.

"I'm practicing, what do you think?" She asked, referring to her form.

"You're kind of stiff. Here, let me show you." He took a stick and showed her the fluid movements that a wielder of a sword should show.

"Well, beautiful and beneficial." She thought aloud.

"Yes, very much so." Then Kyra heard a noise in the back of the house. She went to check it out to see something moving around under a large bin of overturned meat scraps. She went over, sword arm extended, and lifted the bucket. Under it was a dog.

"Well, what are you doing here you poor creature?" She asked. He barked and wagged his tail.

"Kyra, what is it?"

"It's a dog. Can we keep it, if we clean it up?"

"Well, I suppose it wouldn't hurt having a guard dog around."

"Good. Come on, I'll call you...Artou." She said as she led the dog into the house.

****

Link walked the streets of the market with a mean look on his face, sword ready if needed. Then a man popped out of the shadows and started making offers to Link. He stabbed the man with his sword, killing the man. The people in the market gaped at him and he ran back to the castle. He arrived and went up to the throne room where the king sat.

"Hello, Link." King Harnikan said.

"Hello, your majesty." Link sneered as he accidentally-on-purpose missed the king's head and stabbed his sword into the top of his throne.

"Link, what is the meaning of this?!"

"I'll be back to finish this." He said as he seemingly disappeared.

Meanwhile, Link and Zelda were enjoying a ride through Hyrule. They went out to the forest for a little while and then visited some other places. Then they headed back to the castle.

The townspeople stared at Link as he rode by with the princess. They whispered to one another, and stopped when he looked at them questioningly. The body of the man had been carried away by the people and the bloodstains scrubbed off. Link and Zelda stabled their horses and went into the castle. No one was in the entryhall.

They went up to their rooms and rested for a spell, and then went for lunch. All through lunch the king stared at Link suspiciously. He had told the guards to keep an eye on the boy, and they were doing a good job of it.

****

"Jeremy, what are you doing?" His wife asked him.

"I'm writing a letter to the king, that's what. Didn't you hear? Link killed that old fellow in the market today. He needs to know that something's wrong with the kid." And Jeremy kept writing, then sealed the envelope and went to the guard at the castle.

"Who are you?" The guard asked.

"Could you deliver this message to the king?" Jeremy asked, handing the guard the letter.

"Sure, old fellow. I can do that." He gave the message to another man and that man ran up to the castle to give the message to the king.

****

"My lord!" King Harnikan said, standing up in the middle of reading the message.

"What is it father?" Zelda asked. Link had packed up and gone back to the forest an hour earlier. The king gave Zelda the message and she read it wide-eyed.

"But that's impossible! Link was with me!" Zelda said.

"Yes, but they have all the people in the market to disagree."

"But...but..." Zelda stuttered.

"I'm sorry. But we're going to have to call Link in for questioning."

"Okay." Zelda said, almost crying.

"Bring Link here under arrest, guards." King Harnikan said.

"Yessir." The guard said. Then two guards left for the forest, and to arrest an innocent man.

"What are you doing? What did I do?" Link asked as the guards escorted him to the castle. He didn't fight, since he was innocent and that would just make him look guilty.

"You are under arrest, Link." One of the guards said. They took him on horseback to the castle, into a room which they had converted to a courtroom.

"Link, you are charged with the murder of a man in the market today. How do you plead?" King Harnikan asked, being the judge.

"Innocent. I was with Zelda yesterday." Link explained.

"Really? Well I saw you myself with your sword in hand, and you charged at me." The king said.

"I did no such thing! I didn't even have a sword." He defended.

"Well, we have a whole room full of witnesses that testify otherwise." Then a man burst into the room. "What? Who are you?" King Harnikan asked the man.

"I'm Jeremy. I actually was there when Link killed the man. But then I saw someone walking back on a horse to the castle. But the two were dressed exactly the same. Princess, is it possible that this man could have gotten out of your sight and come and killed this man?" Jeremy asked.

"I'm not sure. Maybe he was out of my sight for a few minutes, but that was all." Zelda thought for a moment. Then she looked at Link with a look on her face saying 'I hope you're telling the truth.' Then the king looked at Link.

"Link, I'm sorry I have to do this."

"Father, don't! Please! You can't..." Zelda begged, leaping up and going over to her father.

"I'm sorry, Zelda. But I have to-"

"No you don't! What if they weren't the same person?"

"But how could that be? I only know of one group of people who has magic that strong. That being the wizards of Calatia." He said. Then a man appeared in front of the king. Out of nowhere.

"My name is Agahnim. Link, you and I have met before, I know that. And I know we will meet again." The man said.

"Agahnim? Well, sir. Do you have anything that could contribute to this trial?" The king asked.

"Maybe yes, maybe no."

"Well, what is it? I'll judge if it will help our case against this young man."

"I can only tell you this: Link was the one who killed the man in the street today." He said. Link gaped and Zelda started to cry silently. "But," The wizard said, holding up a finger, "He is also innocent of this crime. I cannot tell you how, but he is both guilty and innocent. Someone has committed a horrible crime. It may or may not be Link, but I will not tell how."

"Why not?" The king asked.

"Because that is all I know."

"Well, this is interesting. A man who in part can and in part can't help this case." Zelda wiped a fresh tear away from her eye.

"Father, please. Don't..." She trailed off.

"Zelda, Link, I am deeply sorry. The best I can do is save him from death. Link, of the Kokiri forest, I am going to give you until tomorrow at sunset to be out of Hyrule. This case is dismissed." Link opened his mouth, but he couldn't say anything. The land he loved...the land where he grew up, he was being forced to leave it. Along with his friends, and his dear Zelda. He walked silently out of the room and was escorted back to the forest to gather his belongings.

"Father, I can't believe you actually believe that Link could kill a man, and try to kill you after that!" Zelda said, after gathering herself and calming her sobbing. Her cheeks were stained with tears, and her father tried his best to explain it to her.

"Zelda, you know I enjoy having him here. It's not in my best wished that I'm making him leave. It's about justice. The worst that anyone could have done to him is kill him for the murder of another man. And, I hate to say I saw him come into the throne room with a sword. It had some blood on it. Then he said he would kill me and you. So I'm doing this for our best interests." He said. Zelda ran to her room and packed a small bag. Then she went to sleep. It had been a long day.

When she woke up, it was lunchtime. Maybe it was because she didn't want to wake up and remember. She hastily ate lunch and went out to the forest where Link should be ready to go. But he was just arriving back there.

"Link, where were you?" She asked.

"I was at Lon Lon Ranch. I bought a horse. It's kind of a long journey, so I figured I would need one. They gave me Epona." He replied. "Now, what are you doing here? Come to say goodbye?" He smiled slightly and looked away. He couldn't look her in the eye.

"I want to go with you. I don't see how I could be here without you." She said.

"Zelda, you shouldn't come with me."

"Why not? I can make decisions for myself."

"Well, think about the future. I mean, who's going to lead Hyrule when your father dies if you come with me? What about everyone here, depending on you to become queen?"

"I hate to admit it, but you have a point. Maybe...maybe I can get away from here someday and see you." He lifted her chin and kissed her.

"Remember me by this. Promise me that if you find that I'm innocent if someone confesses, you'll tell your father." He said. Then he put a small flute in her hand. "It's not as nice as the Ocarina of Time, but I bought it and thought you might like it." He continued. A tear slid down his cheek.

"Oh, come on Link. Big men don't cry." But she was crying too. They exchanged their good-byes and parted. And as the sun started to set, Zelda went home and Link went to Calatia to find a new one.

Part 3: A War to Remember

Chapter 1

"Kyra, come with me! I want to show you something." Someone said from outside her door. It was her...good friend, Tyran. He had blue eyes and sandy colored hair.

"What, did you find a princess to rescue?" Kyra teased.

"Oh, come on! You're my princess." He joked.

"Well, what do you want to show me?"

"More like who. Oh, just come on!" He grabbed her wrist and tried to pull her outside.

"Hold on, I'll get my sword."

"Why do you need it?"

"Just in case." She grabbed her sword in its holster and ran out the door after Tyran.

****

Link woke up on the shore of Calatia. A few remains from his boat were around him. He stood up and looked around. Then a boy started walking towards him. A girl followed him. She wore a dark gray tunic and an old cloak which was purple on the outside and gray on the inside. It was faded in places. She had a sword holster on her back.

"Tyran, what did you want to show me?" The girl asked. He saw her before she saw him.

"Um..." He started. Link walked over to the two. Tyran kind of froze and Kyra walked up to him.

"Hi. I'm Kyra. This is Tyran. Who are you?" She asked.

"I'm Link." He replied. He put his hand in his pocket and pulled out a necklace with the Triforce symbol on it.

"Hey, what's that?" Kyra asked pointing to the necklace.

"It's something Zelda gave to me." He told her, putting it away. He looked around and found his bag.

"Maybe you should go into town." Tyran suggested.

"Okay." He let Tyran and Kyra lead the way as he followed.

"Why did you come here? Why didn't you stay in Hyrule with your friends?" Kyra asked.

"You like asking questions don't you? Well, actually someone thought I did something that I didn't do." He said.

"Really? What was it?" Tyran asked.

"Someone apparently disguised as me killed someone. It wasn't me, because I didn't have my sword with me at the time it was done. Someone wanted me out of Hyrule." He said.

"Oh, that sounds shady. Who would do such a thing? I mean, you seem pretty nice." Kyra mused.

"Well, I think I know who."

"Who?" Kyra and Tyran asked together.

"Someone who wants princess Zelda." He replied, walking a little faster. They soon got to a town and Link looked around. "People don't seem to be as quiet as the last time I was in a foreign country." He mumbled.

"Well, people have gotten more understanding since a few years ago." Kyra said. Link nodded. Kyra unwittingly started to whistle a very familiar tune. It took a minute to recognize the tune as the song Zelda played on the Ocarina of Time to send him home. Link looked at her strangely.

"Where did you hear that?" He asked.

"I learned it when I was little. My mother used to sing it to me before she died." Kyra told him. Link didn't buy it. He didn't tell her that, though.

They soon left the town and proceeded to a smaller village where Kyra and Tyran both lived. Link looked at the girl and noticed the sword that she carried.

"Do you fight?" He asked, putting his hand on his own blade.

"No. I was looking for someone to teach me, but I don't think anyone will." She let out a sigh as she said so.

"Really?" He asked. Well, he thought, it's like I was supposed to come here or something.

"Yes. Do you fight?"

"As a matter of fact, I've had a lot of experience with sword fighting." He said, a smile starting to form on his face which had not been seen for days.

"Really? You have? Would you teach me?" She asked eagerly.

"Let me see how good your sword is." He said. She handed him the blade and he looked it over. He noticed the markings on it. "Kyra, do you know what this is? This is the Light Sword! Only the people chosen by the royal families are allowed to carry this." He told her.

"Well, it doesn't feel different that any other sword I've held. I know it's the Light Sword, my friend Rachael told me that. Maybe that's why I can use it." She mused over the thought.

"Hey, have you ever held one of these three swords?" Tyran asked.

"I actually used the Master Sword." Link replied.

"Seriously?" Link nodded.

"With who's permission?"

"The princess of Hyrule had me go on a quest to kill a man named Ganondorf to save Hyrule. Of course, no one knows that because it technically never happened. I mean, she sent me back seven years after it happened. It's along story."

"Okay, I won't ask." Kyra said. They walked to an abandoned house and Link looked around.

"The owners just left. Said that anyone was welcome to the place if they wanted it." Kyra told Link. Then they walked inside. It was a little dusty, but not too much so that the place was incredibly messy. Link put his stuff there and noticed that the furniture and stuff was still there.

"Well, this place seems nice enough." Link said.

"I live right over there. Right next to this house." Kyra said, pointing to her house. They left the small cabin and stood on the street in the village. Tyran went home and Kyra looked at Link. "Thanks for teaching me how to fight. When do we get started?"

"Tomorrow morning after breakfast. If your parents ask, tell them I know what I'm doing." He said.

"Okay." She walked over to her house and went inside. Link was left to himself to settle in. The next morning, Link and Kyra stood behind her house, swords in hand.

"Apparently there's a good area over behind these trees, but there are a lot of vines and such on the way." He said to her. "We'll be cutting our way through."

"Hey, isn't it an old training ground?"

"Apparently. Come on." Link led the way through the trees. Kyra just slashed with her sword aimlessly while Link did all the chopping. Then he stopped. "Kyra, you shouldn't use your sword like that. Keep your eye on your target and be careful, okay?" Kyra nodded. They went through until they got out of the wooded area and stood before a training ground, overgrown with vines. Kyra looked behind her and noticed that she and Link had cut a perfect trail through the woods.

In the training grounds, there were fences, walls, a table, and countless dummies scattered all over the place.

"First thing first. We should fix this place up." Link said, beginning to chop away weeds. Kyra followed his example and in about an hour they had gotten all the vines and weeds cleared away. The training grounds looked as good as they used to.

"Now, I'm going to teach you some strange techniques for fighting." Link said, and they started her first lesson.

****

Zelda stared out her window, wondering if she would ever clear Link's name. She sighed and there was a knock on her door.

"Come in." She said.

"Zelda, your father wished to see you." Impa said to her, standing at the door.

"Okay, I'll be right there." She replied to the Sheikah woman. Impa led the way to the king's chamber and Zelda went in. "Yes?" She asked.

"Zelda, I'm getting worried about you. You haven't been eating much, and I don't think you've been sleeping well either. What's wrong?" He inquired, concerned.

"Nothing much." She lied.

"Is it because Link's gone?" He asked.

"That doesn't concern you." She mumbled.

"It does concern me, Zelda. I'm your father." He snapped. Zelda didn't say anything, instead she walked out of the room.

"I'll show you that it wasn't Link." She muttered on her way out. She was stopped by Zanion.

"If it isn't the lovestruck princess. "He sneered.

"I thought you were in Artanemis!" She hissed.

"Yes, well, I have more important things to do. Rahel is looking after the castle."

"What do you want?" She asked.

"Princess, don't you get it? I want you. Or at least your power." He said. Zelda gasped as Zanion's plan went into effect.

Chapter 2

3 Years Later

Kyra had become very good with her sword. She knew bits and pieces of magic spells too. Then she tried a spell on her sword to make it enchanted. She whispered a few words and nothing happened at first. She stared at it, sitting in her lap. Then it started to levitate. It hung in midair and began to spin.

"What the..." She trailed off. The sword glowed a bright yellow, almost blinding. She shielded her eyes as the sword began to stretch. The hilt disappeared and the sword turned to a piece of wood. A staff of sorts. Then its holster became heavy, as if her sword was in it. She grabbed the tall oak staff that her sword had become before it fell to the ground. There were three crystals on it; one was red, one was green, and one was blue.

She gaped at her new staff and felt into her holster. She pulled out her own sword: the Light Sword.

"Magic!" She said, marveled. Then she stood up and leaned on her staff.

"Hey, what's that?" Link asked.

"A new weapon." Kyra replied. Link looked at the staff.

"Well, how strange." He thought aloud.

"Really!" She agreed. She accidentally slammed the blue crystal which was on the end of the staff onto the ground and a blue glow surrounded her.

"Oops." She said. Then she spun the staff to the other end with the green crystal and put it on the ground. She blinked and she was standing in another place. She was a few yards away from where she first stood.

"This is strange." Link said. Kyra nodded, the blue glow around her fading.

"I have to show this to Rachael!" Kyra said excitedly. Link stood still.

Link! He heard in his head. Link, this is princess Zelda. Come back to Hyrule immediately. Zanion has taken over the castle, and we need your help. He heard.

"Kyra, would you like to go help save Hyrule?" He asked.

"I'm not sure. But who ever can be sure?" She said, starting to sound philosophical.

"Does that mean you'll come with me?" Link questioned. Kyra grinned.

"Let's go." She went home and packed a bag. Link did the same, taking everything that he had brought with him. Then they set off. "Wait, I want to talk to Rachael." She said, stopping at the castle.

"Okay. Maybe she can disguise me or something." Link agreed. Kyra went over and knocked on the huge door. Rachael opened it.

"Hi Kyra. What's going on?" She asked, seeing Kyra's bag.

"We're going to go save Hyrule. Oh, and I wanted to show you my new staff." Kyra replied. She held out the staff and Rachael looked over it.

"Nice. Well, take this for good luck." Rachael said, handing Kyra a blue star-shaped amulet. Then she put her hand on Kyra's shoulder. An image appeared in the young wizard's head.

~~~~

"This girl has a very interesting future. A battle...she's a warrior. I name her after the Old Language word for warrior. Girl, I name you Kyranda."

"The castle is burning!" A man shouted while others ran in with tubs of water, trying in vain to douse the flames.

"No, no no! That isn't working! We need to save the Royals!" Another man yelled. Just then a man whose face was covered ran out of the burning castle carrying a child. She was a few weeks old, but he ran off with her. Judging from the scorched clothing, it was the princess, Kyranda. Then an eccentric woman ran out, face black with ash in some places but pale in others.

"Kyranda! Stop...that man! He has my baby!" Then she collapsed. No one had to check to know that she was dead.

A few hours later, the castle still had a few flames leaping from its once-proud towers. The king and queen were dead, they found the king's body in the throne room.

~~~~

Rachael was shocked. The man who carried the princess was Kyra's father.

"That means that...that you are Kyranda." She said to Kyra.

"What? What are you talking about?" Kyra asked.

"I just saw an image of the princess, a long time ago. She was kidnapped by a man. That man is your father. Kyra, you are the real princess of Calatia! My cousin!" Kyra didn't say anything. She just stood there for a moment, dazed.

"Well, how strange." Link said.

"I'm sorry, I should introduce myself. I'm Rachael." The girl said.

"I'm Link. Now, if you don't mind we have to save Hyrule from an evil man. Oh, haven't I done this before?" He asked, remembering Ganondorf.

"Why are you here if your home is Hyrule?"

"Because I got charged with something I didn't do and was exiled."

"Then will you need a disguise?"

"I'm not sure."

"Okay then. Kyra, please get back safely."

"Don't worry." Kyra and Link boarded the next ship to Hyrule and were soon there.

"Hyrule looks like an interesting place." Kyra noted.

"Yes, well we've had our share of strange happenings." Link told her.

"Really." Kyra said, looking around.

"I feel that there are stranger things to come in the future." He continued, barely keeping focused on what either of them said. He was home! Finally, now he could earn his respect back. They walked all the way to the castle from the port and stopped. No one was in the market or near the castle. Kyra took out her sword. "Wait, I think Zanion would have the Dark Sword. Maybe I could go get the Master Sword." He thought.

They took a little detour to the Temple of Time and Link went inside. The door of time stood open, and the Master Sword in its pedestal stood unguarded. Link went over and pulled it out. Then he heard a voice.

Hero of Time, the fate of Hyrule is in the hands of the girl and yourself. Use the sword wisely. He looked around but couldn't find a source. Then he left the Temple of Time with the Master Sword in hand and they went to the unguarded castle. Kyra went in first.

"No one's here. I guess you can come in then." She said. Link followed her and they looked around.

"I guess he locked everyone in the dungeons." Link said, directing her towards the stairs leading to them. Kyra nodded and they went down them. Link picked up a torch, since the hallways were starting to get darker, and held it over his head. Kyra walked into the dank dungeon first. She looked at the overcrowded cells and spotted princess Zelda in one of them. Then she saw the king, and went over to him.

"King, there's something about Zanion you should know. He disguised himself as Link and killed a man, to get Link out of Hyrule so he could take over. He has powerful magic." Kyra said.

"Is this so? Well then, I have made a grave mistake. But how will Link know that he is again welcome in Hyrule?" He asked.

"He came with me when princess Zelda told him that Hyrule was in trouble." She told him.

"And what's your name?" Zelda asked.

"Kyra. Well, Kyranda, but everyone calls me Kyra." She said, remembering what Rachael had told her. Link came down the stairs and found the keys to the cells. Then he started to unlock them. Each cell had about ten Hylian soldiers in it, or more. Finally he unlocked the last cell, which held about five soldiers, the King, and princess Zelda. The princess jumped up and went over to Link.

"Thank you for coming back." She said.

"Well, how could I not?" He asked, grinning.

"Okay, we still have to get rid of Zanion, right?" Kyra asked. Zelda nodded. "Let's give him a chance to leave peacefully. But if he doesn't, then we'll have to kill him." Kyra said.

"I'll go speak with him." Zelda offered. She went up the stairs to the throne room, where she guessed that Zanion would be.

"Why, it's princess Zelda! To what do I owe this pleasure?" Zanion sneered.

"To me." Link said, coming up behind her.

"You!" Zanion hissed. "I got rid of you!"

"That's what you thought for three years, but I'm cleared. And now everyone wants your head." Link said. Kyra came up behind him.

"You paid a man to kidnap me, and kill my parents. You wanted the man to kill me too, but he raised me as his daughter. Why did you want me dead?" Kyra asked.

"Because I knew one day if you were raised you would have a battle that would endanger Artanemis." He replied.

"Well, we're giving you a fair chance to leave Hyrule, or we'll have to kill you." Link demanded. Zanion laughed and disappeared, but his voice rung in the air.

"I'm giving you a day to prepare. I'm coming back, with my whole army. We'll see who gets Hyrule." Then his voice died away and the room was quiet.

"Does this mean we're going to have some kind of battle?" Kyra asked.

"No. No battle. This will be a war." Zelda replied with a heavy sigh.

Chapter 3

Kyra, Zelda, and Link all helped the men of the army prepare for the war at hand.

"A single day is not enough!" The king said.

"We'll have to make the most of it, sir." Kyra told him, working with some of the men.

"Zanion is supposedly coming tomorrow, correct? Then we'll have to keep our guard up since he can arrive at any time." Link said. Kyra and Link helped steady the sword skills of the men while Zelda started to teach a little magic. Then they stopped for dinner.

"Here." Zelda said, tossing Kyra an apple.

"Thanks." Kyra responded. She ate the apple quickly and reached into a small pouch she had. In it was a roll, some cheese, and some grapes. She ate those and was finished before everyone else. Then all the men went to sleep.

"I'll keep watch." Link offered.

"Okay. I'll take up the dawn watch." Kyra suggested, and went to sleep also.

Link felt that no one could sneak up on the group. He sat up all night and waited for an attack, not blinking. He kept the Master Sword in his reach and kept watch until dawn. Then Kyra woke up and continued for him so he could get a little sleep. Kyra started singing the song her mother used to sing to her softly and Zelda woke up. Kyra didn't notice so she kept singing.

"Kyra, where did you learn that?" Zelda asked.

"What? Oh, my mother sang it to me when I was a baby." Kyra told her. "Well, before she died at least." She added, thinking of her real mother.

"Oh. Well, it's a nice song." She said. Then she took a flute out of her pocket. It was the one that Link had given her.

"How about you play the flute and I'll sing along?" Kyra suggested. Zelda smiled and started to play the song that Kyra had been singing. Kyra came in and their music brightened up the already dreary day. Soon they were absorbed in the music. Then Kyra looked over at the port and saw a large number of people coming towards the group. She gasped.

"What is it?" Zelda asked.

"They're coming!" She shouted. "Zanion and his army are approaching!" The soldiers immediately got up and readied themselves.

"Zelda, I don't think you should fight." Link said.

"Why not?" She asked.

"Because you don't have any weapons." He replied.

"Okay, so I don't have a weapon. Any other reason?"

"Zelda, please." Link pleaded. Zelda sighed.

"Alright. But don't get yourself killed. You either Kyra." Zelda said, walking over to the castle. Kyra got out her staff and looked at the green crystal. She decided to try something with it.

"Hopefully this will work." She muttered. Both the Hylian and the Artanemian army charged into battle, having almost equal numbers. The Hylians armed with swords and shields and the Artanemans armed with wooden spears and light armor. She remembered a word she could use as a spell from her book. She pointed the green crystal at one of the Artanemans and shouted the word. The man flew backwards as if thrown back by an invisible hand. His helmet fell off in the process, revealing a scar on his forehead. Kyra took out her sword and quickly re-opened the scar.

"Oh, we were just getting to know each other too." She said. She would only say those things to make herself feel better about killing people. But she felt sick. She had never seen so much blood in one place. She had never killed before either. Oh, Lord, she thought, What have I done? I...I killed a person. Did he have a family? A child? A wife? Then she realized that he had lunged at her with his spear. Technically she did it out of defense. That didn't make her feel any better about it, though.

Kyra continued fighting with only her sword. One soldier would attack her, then she would block, counterattack, and then kill. That's the way it went for her. Attack, block, counterattack, kill.

Link had a different way of doing things. The Artanemans would attack him in groups, coming from all sides. He would let them get close, in sword's reach, and then he would pull a spin attack and wipe them all out in one swift move.

"Hah, beat that." He said after the first spin attack.

Kyra saw one of the warriors trying to get to her staff. The man touched the staff and then started screaming. The large oaken wand was burning his hands. She grabbed it and hit the Artaneman with the flat side of her sword, knocking him out.

"Caught you hot-handed." She joked.

Zelda watched sadly. Her home was being fought over.

"Zelda. Zelda! Girl, behind you!" An old, raspy voice told her. She whirled around and Agahnim stood there.

"What do you want?" She asked angrily.

"This is more about what you want. You want to fight, yes?" Zelda nodded. "Well, you can use magic to help the Hylians win what is rightfully theirs."

"The Triforce?" She asked.

"Yes, child. If you use the Triforce, you can help greatly." Then Agahnim disappeared. Zelda ran to the room containing the Triforce and held her breath as she lifted it off of its pedestal. It stung her a little ad she put it back.

"Damn! What did it do that for?" She asked herself. Maybe it just wasn't behaving well that day, in a sort. She sighed and went back to her balcony to watch the battle.

Link was surrounded. Whole rows of men, one behind the other. He would surely be captured. But slowly, one by one, each man fell silently. About fifteen minutes later he was down to the most inside row, and he tried his infamous spin attack to get rid of them. Each man fell except for one, all slashed through the stomach.

Kyra had stabbed the men in the back, one by one. Now she took her staff and spun it above her head. A ring of fire appeared and she stopped spinning. She motioned for the ring to go around one last man and it started to close. Soon the man fell in two pieces, a scorch mark where the fire ring had been. The man's fingers twitched, and he then lay still. Kyra looked away, just in time to dodge an oncoming attack.

The Artanemans had very little protection. And they didn't have very good weapons either. The Hylians could run their swords right through the armor of the Artanemans, and break their spears. But both sides were about even.

Soon every man on the battlefield was down, but not necessarily dead. Now only Kyra, Link, and Zanion remained standing. Zelda looked down on the field, and saw the three standing. Come on, I'm counting on you Link. She thought, not wanting to disturb the strangely peaceful silence.

Link and Zanion stood there, staring at each other. The gray sky seemed to erupt with rain.

"Oh, rain is so nice." Kyra muttered, standing away from Link and Zanion. Suddenly, Link charged. Zanion shoved him down and punched him. He was about to run the Hylian through when Kyra jumped in. She stabbed his arm and went in front of him.

"Hey, don't mess with my friends!" She snapped as Zanion grasped at his arm. He groaned and tried to get her with his spear. She grabbed the tip just below the head and pulled the staff away from him. She broke it in half and tossed it aside. Zanion grabbed the half with the head attached, and stabbed at her. The point bit flesh as it went into her shoulder and she screeched slightly. It was just one of many wounds she would carry back to Calatia with her.

She spun around with her sword extended, but hit only air. She growled and swung at him. He blocked with his now very short spear and threw the sword from her hand. She stood still and looked at the spear. It started coming closer, seemingly in slow motion. Then she felt its cold tip on her chest. Oh no, oh no, oh no, she repeated over and over in her head. The needle-sharp spear point just barely drew blood and then withdrew.

Zanion fell backwards. The Master Sword's tip was sticking out of his stomach. Blood flowed from the wound. From behind, Link twisted the sword and withdrew it. Kyra let out a breath and fell backwards in the opposite direction. She saw nothing but blackness.

"Kyra! Wake up." A soft voice called. She opened her eyes, and looked into another pair. They were green, brighter than the green of her eyes. The woman's long brown hair was just a shade darker than hers, but still had the red tone to it. She sat up and looked around. She just guessed that she was in the castle back home in Calatia. And she knew who the woman was.

"Mother?" She asked. The woman nodded.

"Yes, Kyra."

"But...but you're dead." She said, alarmed.

"Yes. And it's not your time to rejoin us. Please, go back to your friends." She pointed to the door which should have led her out of the castle. Instead of a landscape behind it was a white light. Zelda, Link, and Tyran stood in the doorway.

Kyra weekly got up and turned to her mother.

"Kyranda, it is your duty as my daughter to lead Calatia. Its future is in your hands." Kyra nodded tearfully and walked to her friends' extended arms.

"Kyra. Can you hear me?" The girl opened her eyes, and Tyran was in her face.

"Yes. I'm fine." She said, pushing Tyran up so she could sit up.

"She's awake!" Came another voice from the door. It was Rachael, her cousin. Link and Zelda stood in the doorway. Link had his arm around the princess's waist as they waited for her to wake up.

"You're okay!" Link said, walking over to her. Zelda followed.

"Yeah. If it hadn't been for you, I would have been dead far before I almost was." Kyra said.

"I told you I know what I'm doing when I teach someone how to fight." He told her, grinning.

"Well, you actually saved Hyrule again, mister Hero." Zelda said, hugging Link.

"I did, didn't I?"

"You sure did. And you saved my life too." Kyra explained.

"You should get some rest. In the meantime, we're going to go back to Hyrule." Link told the girl. He and Zelda left the room, which Kyra then recognized was in the castle, and she laid down to sleep.

When she woke up, she was alone. She got out of her bed and looked around for her weapons. They were leaning on a chair beside her bed. She picked up her sword and looked it over. The rest of her name was scratched out, but the 'Kyra' part still remained.

"So he was protecting me from Zanion." She mused.

"Yeah, I guess he was." Tyran said, coming into the room.

"Tyran!" She exclaimed, hugging him. She looked up at him and stared into his brown eyes. He grinned and kissed her.

"Everything's fine now. You're home. And you're still my princess." He joked. She smiled and kissed him again.

"I don't think life can get any better than this." She said. And she was basically right.

Epilogue

Link and Zelda were married shortly after the battle, in the Temple of Time. They were to spend many years together, and had a son whom they also called Link. They didn't know of their son's upcoming adventures. Agahnim knew, however, but he never told. He knew of his own future, too.

"But why bother trying to change it if it's my destiny?" He asked under his breath, not expecting an answer. Kyra and Tyran got married, too, and ruled Calatia as king and queen until one of them was to die. For a time, the sun would shine in Hyrule and Calatia. For a time...

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