It was over, the Dark Lord had been defeated, and all the hero needed to do was lay the Master Sword to rest, thus closing the Door of Time and locking evil away from the land forever. But in doing so, he would have to say good-bye to the princess he had fallen so deeply in love with. Both he and the Princess knew, however, that the goddesses would never allow him to leave the Door of Time open, and that a day would come when they would have to share that final kiss and leave one another forever.
This thought was unbearable, and the Hero refused to break his promise to the Princess. So, the two eventually came up with an idea; they would stage it, stage their final good-byes and shut the Door of Time, leaving just a miniscule crack unclosed so that they might sneak to see one another occasionally. This worked out wonderfully for awhile; almost nightly they would alternate between the Hero coming to the Princess's time, and the Princess coming to the Hero's time.
They had found it simple to transport themselves between times, the Hero need only draw or place the blade from or into its pedestal, and the Princess need only play the Song of Time in the room which housed the Sacred Blade. Yes, they both thoroughly enjoyed their secret lives together. Never getting caught, never having any problems whatsoever. It was perfect. They could live in their respective times and love in another world entirely.
There was a small click at the window, and the Princess smiled as she eagerly made her way towards it, knowing only too well who it was. Her long golden hair hung freely behind her, and she donned a beautiful white nightgown that hung nearly to her feet, just short enough to reveal a pair of soft ashen slippers. She opened it, feeling the cool night air on her face. “Link?” She said, looking down at the courtyard below, scanning for him with her crystalline blue eyes. “Is that you?” She didn't see him, but noticed a guard stomping his way through the wet grass. “Ah,” She said to herself, realizing why he had disappeared and pretended to be preoccupied with the windowsill.
“Ah, Princess! What are you doing up so late, your father would not like this one bit…” The guard was looking up at her inquisitively, and she felt herself flush.
“I uh, I was just heading to bed…I just thought I'd get a breath of fresh air first.” She bit her lip and turned around, hoping the guard had failed to notice how anxious she was.
“Um…ok… go ahead and do that, but I don't want your father to find out and get angry with me and the rest of the guys because we didn't keep a close enough eye on you.”
“Y…yes sir.”
The soldier nodded and walked away, the Princess soon after seeing a head of bright blond hair covered in a green hat peer out from a nearby bush. She smiled and did a thumbs-up, the figure then fully emerging from the brush and brushing off his forest-green tunic. He then approached the window, waiting. She took a deep breath, waved her hand in a small circle a few times, and soon a light-blue, transparent stairs formed between the windowsill and the ground. He climbed them quickly, hopping into her room the second he reached the top. She then waved her hand again, and as soon as they had appeared, the stairs were gone.
“Zelda,” He said as he continued pulling twigs and leaves from himself, “It seems security is getting thicker around here everyday.”
“I know,” She replied, biting her lip once more. “I have a feeling Father is becoming suspicious that someone is sneaking into my room. Soon he'll probably have the whole army outside my window…”
“Well then,” He said, leaning in to kiss her, “I suppose if the whole army's over here then I can just come in through the front door!”
She giggled, “Clever, that's what you are.”
“Yes, I suppose I am.” He smiled then, stepping back to take a look at her. “Hmm…” He squinted, pretending to be critical.
She colored, and looked away as if embarrassed. “I'm sorry; I should've cleaned up a bit before you came…”
“No,” He shook his head, grinning and approaching her, “you're beautiful as always.” He then put his hand to her cheek, caressing it. “You know, I'd love you even if you were bald and weighed eight hundred pounds, but frankly, you could make a grocery bag look like top of the line ensemble.”
“…Thank you…” She replied quietly, shivering as she felt his fingers creep around her waist, his lips expectantly waiting just a hairs breadth away from her own.
“Now kiss me…”
Zelda simply nodded and the young man's lips pressed to hers again, this time much more fervently.
She moaned; the depth and passion of it overwhelming her as they fell to her luxuriously soft bed.
They stayed there for awhile, locked in the kiss, until the Princess dipped her head back to break away. “What is wrong, Zelda?” The Hero looked at her worriedly.
“Oh, I…it's nothing, it's just, this morning, when I was coming back from that sleepover with you and the other Kokiri…” She paused, a look of fear upon her face.
“Tell me…” He said, “Was it the Door of Time?” He too looked worried, his bright blue eyes reflecting great concern. “Because I…felt it too. No more than a half hour ago.”
She nodded, her eyes filling with tears. “It was like…like you could feel an ominous breeze blowing from it…and the whole Temple seemed freezing cold…”
He pulled her closer to him, “I know…” His voice was barely a whisper, “and I don't want to leave you…Zelda, I love you…”
She shivered at the unusual fear and seriousness that seemed to shroud his voice as his warm breath licked at her cheek. “I'm scared, Link…what have we done…?”
“It will be ok… maybe it's nothing…” She could feel the fear in his voice, but still the comforting tone seemed to relax her somewhat.
“Maybe…but do me a favor…” She looked into his eyes.
“What is it, sweetheart…?” She shivered again; his voice seeming to pierce her unusually deep. It was like he viewed it as a last request.
“Please…just hold me…hold me and never let go…promise me that you'll stay with me forever.” Her voice broke and she buried her head into his tunic, feeling tears beginning to fall from her eyes.
“Forever,” His answer was solemn, “forever, I promise.”
Back to Prologue | Continue to Part 2
