Chapter 8

***WARNING!!!! From this chapter on, there could be spoilers for those who haven't beaten the game!!!***

    "Sheik, come into the house for a second." Impa said. Zelda stopped playing with a pocket cucco and went back into her house. Impa shut and bolted the door. She then whispered into Zelda's ear;

"Happy seventeenth Birthday, Princess. I have a surprise for you. Stay here." Impa went into her small bedroom upstairs. Zelda could not possibly think of what it was, and then Impa came back with a package wrapped in brown paper.

"I had this imported from Calatia." She beamed. Zelda carefully pulled the string, and the paper fell away. Zelda gasped at what she saw.

"Thank you thank you thank you!!!" She cried, and gave Impa a big bear hug. For laying on the wooden table was a white long dress of fine linen with no sleeves, a purple sleeveless top to go over it, a blue banner bearing the Hylian crest on it, attached to a belt of gold, and gold arm coverings, and to top it off, a shining gilded tiara, bearing a ruby from it.

"It's beautiful, Impa. THANK YOU!!!!" Zelda gave Impa another hug.

"Got it for you to wear when you return to the castle...I know you will, because though I never told you, I have occasional visions too." Impa smiled.

"You do?.....May I try the dress on?" Zelda asked.

"Of course." Impa said. Zelda went into her bedroom, and slipped on the dress. She then pulled on the top, fastened the belt, and pulled on the arm coverings. Finally, she let her hair out of a bun, and brushed it so it hung loose about her shoulders. She then set the tiara on her head, and went back into the main room, where Impa was waiting. Zelda dipped into a graceful, noble curtsy, and Impa's cow in her cage *MOOOOOED* in reply. Impa exclaimed;

"Oh, Zelda, it's beautiful!!!!! You're beautiful! Oh...." Zelda felt good at these remarks.

"Thank you, Mother...."

"Okay, go put on your jumpsuit now. It's unnatural to bolt your door in daytime, and the others might wonder if there's anything amiss." Impa cautioned. "By the way, put that dress behind a sheet in your room. Also......Link should emerge tomorrow from the Sacred Realm." She said. Zelda's heart leapt into her throat, and she trembled with excitement all day.

***

    Zelda approached the abandoned Hyrule Castle Town the next afternoon at about 17:00. She stepped cautiously as if she were in a graveyard, until she approached the main marketplace. There, the bodies of the ones slain seven years ago had transformed into life sucking monsters!!!! Zelda quickly backed out before she would see any one she recognised, such as a guard. Out on the field again, she felt along the town's wall until she felt a loose brick. She pushed it in hard, and a panel of stone spun out, leading to a tunnel...a royal family secret. Zelda walked through the dark passageway, emerging minutes later being the Temple of Time. She went around to the front, and entered the dark Temple. The only light streamed from the windows near the ceiling, making blocks of rosy light on the floor. She then looked to the altar. The Spiritual Stones glistened in their hollows on it, undimmed by dust. Behind the altar, Zelda could see that the Master Sword was gone from the Pedestal of Time. That meant Link truly was the Legendary Hero of Time!!!! Zelda heard a mystical sound, so she ducked in the shadows near the Pedestal. She tried to supress a gasp as she saw Link descend to the Pedestal in a burst of blue light. His faerie too. She heard Navi say something about seven years passing and weapons in her high piping voice. Link then said to the faerie,

"Let's get out of here, Navi." That's when Zelda stepped from the shadows, saying;

"I've been waiting for you, Hero of Time." Link whirled around, his sword drawn.

"Wha-who are you?" He asked, a quiver in his voice. Zelda replied;

"I am Sheik. Survivor of the Sheikah. Daughter of Impa...." She studied him. "As I see you standing there, holding the mythical Master Sword, you really do look like the Hero of Time." She stepped forward. "When evil rules all, an awakening cry will go forth from the Temple of Light to the other Sages who dwell in the five Temples. One in a deep forest....One on a high mountain......One under a vast lake....One within the house of the dead.....One inside a spirit of the sand. Together, the Hero and the Sages shall bind the evil, and return the light of peace to the world."

"What?" Link was obviously puzzled. "Oh, OK, I get it now." He said after some thought. Zelda went on;

"The first sage is waiting for the time of awakening in the Forest Temple. The Sage is a girl I am sure you know. But, currently equipped as you are, you cannot even enter the Temple." Zelda said.

"Why not?" Link asked. Zelda could not help thinking of how gorgeous he looked, how that lock of hair dangling in his eyes gave him a boyish look.... Her mind was wandering. She went on;

"There are no steps." She said. "I do believe that Dampe had a treasure he carried to his grave.....If you want to save the forest girl, head toward Kakariko Village! Good luck hero...Also, there will be times you will need to return here quickly. I will teach you a magical song for when that time comes...The Prelude of Light." She pulled her lute from behind her back, and plucked the strings lovingly in a tune that sang of hope and life. Link followed along with the Ocarina of Time...her ocarina. It was a magical moment. Zelda then spoke;

"Link...Until we meet again." She stepped back, and raised her hand high. Waving it with a flourish, she threw a Deku nut on the stone floor, and disappeared to find herself back at the gates of Kakariko Village. Leaning against a stone wall, she prayed to Nayru;

Please let him like me. Please.

***

    That night, Zelda had another vision of Link. He was riding a chestnut mare with a flowing white mare, obviously racing a man atop a chocolate stallion. Link won, and leapt over a wall of the ranch.

Zelda woke up laughing.

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