Chapter Two

Captive

Zelda ran as far as her legs could take her. Blindly, her legs swung like pendulums as she hammered her feet into the ground, sprinting to her destination. She didn't care where she went. She only wanted to run, as if running fast enough would spin the image at Lon Lon Ranch out of her mind.

Her heart echoed loudly in her chest and her breathing became unsteady. Her fatigue gave in and she collapsed on the floor. Her tears were flooding from her eyes like faucets.

Why had it had to be Malon? She was beautiful, everyone in Hyrule knew that. She was also sweet and outgoing, but what exactly did she have that Zelda didn't? These were the questions zipping through her mind as the memory of Link dipped into a kiss with the farm girl replayed over and over in her head, each time tearing a larger and larger gash in her heart.

Couldn't he see that she loved him so?

She wiped at her eyes and looked at her surroundings. Though she thought she had ran a lot further, she apparently had only made it to the bridge between Kakariko and Hyrule. That wasn't too far at all, giving how long she was actually running. Painstakingly, she glanced back in the direction of Lon Lon Ranch. From this far, she could only she the fading outline of it. She she wished for Link to come running after her, realizing his mistake, and then kissing her to make it all better. But no one came.

She sniffed loudly and wiped again at her eyes. Somehow, tears kept squeezing out. She figured she must look like a wreck. She could bet that her eyes were completely red and her hair was a tangled mess, not proper for a princess to portray herself. She gathered herself together and took a deep breath. It was painful and long, but as she released it really made her feel better. She continued to breathe deeply to calm herself. She didn't want to go back to Hyrule Castle looking like she had been attacked or something rather. She would just have to deal with this later.

She dried the rest of her tears in the hem of her dress and sat up from the ground. She wobbled a bit, lightheaded from so much crying. She combed her golden hair with her fingers, hoping it would be enough to tease it back into place. She didn't have a mirror, so she had to make do with how her hair felt. As she leaned back to touch it, it still felt as smooth and clean as the morning before. This shocked her so much, she had to laugh. In the matter of seconds, it seemed like her body became broken. She expected appearance to be broken as well but she guessed the only indication of her true feelings was probably her eyes. She figured they were probably red and swollen.

She tucked her hair behind her ears and started to walk back towards Hyrule Castle. She knew that if she didn't return with Link, she would be in trouble with Impa. At the moment, she really didn't care. Anything seemed more appealing than having to go back to Link and face him.

As she walked, the clouds in the Hyrule sky got thicker, blanketing the field with a heavy layer of glum. She had to laugh at this as well. The only thing that could make her mood worse was if it rained. As though to answer her thoughts, she felt a tiny droplet of water fall on her cheek. She rolled her eyes, wiped at her cheek, and quickened her pace to Hyrule Castle. She didn't want to get caught in the rain.

LOZlozLOZ

Malon was pressed up against the outside wall to the stable. Link was snuggled close to her, continuing to kiss her. Their tongues probed each other with satisfaction. Link always loved the way she tasted. He always thought she tasted so sweet.

Link rubbed the back of Malon's neck, which made small moaning noises escape from her throat. This excited Link and he brought his hand lower, tracing her collar bone, slipping right into the opening of her dress.

It was then she broke the kiss and whispered, "I can't, Link, not here," she smiled.

He smiled and shook his head, "I just want to touch them," he said, "We won't do anything."

She took a step to the side to create some distance between them, "Please, I don't want Zelda to catch us."

Link nodded. He forgot they were waiting for her to return with Epona, "What's taking her so long anyway?"

Malon shrugged, "I'm not sure, but I'll go look."

She adjusted her dress so her cleavage wasn't showing as much and walked into the stable to look for Zelda. She was only in there for a moment or two before she came back out, a confused expression on her face.

"Zelda isn't in there," she said when she reached Link.

Link became just as confused as Malon was.

"And Epona isn't in there either."

"What?" Link said, shaking his head, "But she was right here only a moment ago."

Malon shrugged again, "Should we go look for them?"

Link was going to protest, but then he noticed the dark clouds circling the sky, threatening a storm. Suddenly, he became worried for Zelda and his horse, Epona.

He nodded, "Let's go look for them."

LOZlozLOZ

Zelda had knelt down next to the small stream surrounding Hyrule Market. The water seemed a lot lower than usual, but it was still clear as glass. She scooped up a handful of water and splashed it on her face, rubbing the dried up tears from her face. She didn't want to be questioned by the guards at the Hyrule Market. Thought they worked in the marketplace, they were employed by the castle, and if they suspected something wrong with her, either Impa or the King would know about it.

The water made it feel tons better. She no longer felt clammy, and she stood up from the ground and turned to make her way into the marketplace.

Suddenly, like lightening, a large, strong arm wrapped around her waist, holding her tight against someone's body. She prepared to scream, but was halted by a knife pressed against her throat.

"Don't even think about it, beautiful," said a familiar voice.

"Link?" Zelda asked, suddenly relaxing, thinking he must be joking.

"By goddesses," the voice said, "Why does everyone keep calling me that?"

So it wasn't Link, Zelda thought. But it sounded just like him. She wasn't relaxed anymore as her fear returned, her heart pounding in her chest like a hammer beating a nail. She could hear the blood rushing through her ears. She suddenly felt stupid for purposely washing her face in the stream where the marketplace guards couldn't see her. They would have been running to her rescue right now.

"It doesn't seem like anyone is around," the voice said. She felt his grip around her waist relax a bit, but not enough for her to be able to escape, "Do you have any jewels? Money?"

So that's who it was, a thief, Zelda thought. This made her a tad less fearful. If she was being mugged, all she had to do was give up her money and he would leave her alone.

"Y-yes, I do..." she stammered.

"Where?" he demanded.

"In my bodice..." she answered.

The thief stayed quite for a moment and then replied, "Don't try to run for it. I'm a very fast runner, I will catch you and you will be sorry you ran."

His words froze her like ice, and she didn't move an inch as he released her waist, dipping his hand down the front of her dress, and pulled out the small, purple silk pouch she carried her money in. She heard him open the pouch behind her, and she heard the small jingle of shifting rupees as the thief counted his find.

"What kind of a young lady barely over seventeen," he started, "Carries only silver rupees?" he asked, "There must be over five thousand rupees in your breasts."

Zelda bit her lip. She didn't know what to say, so she only said, "I only use it for emergencies, you can take it."

"Emergency money, so you must have more?" he asked, "Are you from a rich family?"

Suddenly, Zelda remembered the lessons she used to take from Impa. Zelda, because she was royalty, would automatically be targeted by the wrong kind, which could put her in dangerous situations like this one. Though she never thought she would find herself in this situation, she still remembered the number one rule Impa always told her: Do not tell anyone you are royalty.

It must have been wrong to not answer, because she was soon shoved to the ground, flat on her stomach.

"Gotta make sure you don't escape," the voice said as he knelt over her. He shoved her arms behind her back and held them together. Using a cord, he bound her wrists together tightly in a flash. He then flipped her over worked at tying her ankles together.

It was then Zelda sat up and got a good look at the person, and she gasped with recognition.

"Link, what are you doing?" The young man tying her was the spitting image of Link. He even wore a tunic identical to Link's, only his was completely black rather than green. The only difference was that this Link had black hair.

"Who the fuck is Link?" the young man with black hair asked, "My name is Prince."

Prince? Zelda didn't know who this young man was or where he came from. He finished binding her and stood up. He took the time to open the purple pouch full of rupees and count them again. As he slid them one by one back into the pouch, Zelda noticed something else. The stolen Master Sword in all it's gleaming beauty, was strapped to his side!

So that's why the Temple of Time's game keeper thought it was Link. Anyone would have thought it was Link by the striking resemblance.

The young man called Prince finished counting his last rupee and turned to Zelda, "Seven thousand and six hundred rupees, exactly," he said, "You are obviously from a rich family, so I wonder how much more I can get from a ransom!"

Zelda's eyes widened. She couldn't believe she was being kidnapped! Of all things Impa could have prepared her for, she followed the number one rule and still got herself in trouble!

Prince looked at the sky. Rain was tugging at the thick black clouds, "Gotta find some shelter from the rain. Are there any inns in that village?" he asked, pointing to Kakariko. Zelda didn't say anything. Prince sighed heavily, "Looks like we'll have to find out. Be good for me, beautiful."

He bent back down and with a quick motion, he cut the ropes binding her ankles. With another quick jerk at her arms, her yanked her from the ground so hard her arms hurt. Tears were welling in her eyes. He hooked his hand on the ropes binding her wrists and led her away to Kakariko.

LOZlozLOZ

"Look!" Malon said, directing her finger towards Epona. She spotted the horse eating grass only a few ways south of the ranch.

"How did she get out here?" Link asked, more to himself than to Malon.

"I don't know..." she said, "I hope Zelda is alright."

"I'm not sure," Link muttered, "I have a feeling something isn't right."

Malon didn't like Link thinking about Zelda in such a tender way, but she had to admit she was worried something was wrong too. She didn't know Zelda too well, but she knew that Zelda wasn't the type to run off for no good reason, so there had to have been something wrong for her to leave so abruptly.

"I'm taking Epona to the castle," Link anounced. Before Malon could protest, he slid his foot in the saddle loop and mounted Epona, "Go straight back to Lon Lon. I'll return her in the morning."

Malon nodded sadly, "Be safe," she whispered. Link blew her a small kiss and gave Epona a smack to get her going. As he galloped towards the Hyrule Marketplace, he silently prayed the goddesses that nothing bad happened to his friend Zelda.

LOZlozLOZ

Impa stared out the large observatory window in her office at Hyrule Marketplace. She watched the vendors close up early and shoppers tuck away in their houses to shelter from the rain. The dark, black swirled around the sky, darkening the afternoon sky.

"I haven't seen clouds so thick in a long time," she said. She hated the rain, but she always like the sound of thunder. She was excited to finally get a good storm. As she turned away from her desk, she sat back down in the chair. She looked at the pile of paperwork and sighed. It was tough enough being the nanny of an impossible teenage princess, but to add to the work of being the King of Hyrule's personal assistant and adviser, things could get really tough. She figured she could get started right away. The early she starts, the earlier it would get done.

She took up her feathered pen and pressed it to the paper. Before she even scratch some ink onto it, the door to her office had a knock applied to it. She sighed. She was never going to get her work done.

"Enter," she said.

The door opened and a guard stepped in, "Lady Impa," he began, "Sir Link is here to see you, he couldn't find Princess Zelda, so he decided to speak with you."

"Can't find Zelda?" she repeated. She stood up, "Send him in," her mind began to be flooded with the worst. What could have happened to her?

The guard nodded, bowed, and sent Link in his place.

"Link," said Impa, worry growing in her voice, "Tell me you know where Zelda is."

Link didn't dare shake his head. The look in Impa's eyes scared him, "I came here looking for her," he answered, "It seems she left my sight within a split second."

"Where were you? In Kokiri Forest?" she asked, praying that Zelda didn't slip into the depths of the Lost Woods. She would never be found in there.

Link shook his head, "In Lon Lon Ranch."

"And you can't find her?"

Link stood quiet. He didn't need to answer for Impa to know. She frantically turned to her observatory window, as thought she would see Zelda just running about the marketplace. A bolt of lightening tore through the sky, followed by rolling thunder.

"Call a meeting," she ordered Link, "And call a meeting on Red Alert."

A/N: You know, I feel terrible for letting this story go. I started it so long ago, I was just catching up to it. I'm so upset with myself for letting such a promising story go to the shadows. I hope you like my new installment of this story, and yes, you can look forward to me finishing it!