Hi! So, my first proper fanfiction! I hope you enjoy it!

Disclaimer: I, of course, don't own The Legend of Zelda. Which sucks.

One:

Ganondorf was back again, intent on speaking with my father – in order to persuade him to do something else with his magic words and silver tongue, no doubt. Watching them talk through a tall window that gave me only a limited view of the Great Hall I tried to guess what Ganondorf was saying, but I had always been hopeless at lip-reading.

"He's probably infecting father's head with his poisonous ideas again…" I muttered bitterly, narrowing my eyes at the sallow green face. As if sensing my gaze his deep yellow eyes flickered in my direction and he tilted his head ever so slightly, arching an eyebrow almost challengingly. I clicked my tongue angrily; spotted. Deciding I didn't care that I had just been caught spying, I glared back for a moment before I had to look away, unable to hold his burning, hawk-like gaze. When I looked back I saw that the corner of his mouth that was visible to me had twitched upwards. He was laughing at me. Grinding my teeth in frustration I stepped away, turning so that my back was to the glass. If I listened hard enough I fancied I could almost make out their conversation, but in reality it was just my wishful thinking. Frustrated and restless I adjusted and readjusted my skirts, plucking at the fabric with agitated fingers. Wishing I was in the room, listening to their discussion, I found myself tempted to pace in an attempt to relieve some of my irritation, but I didn't want to risk Ganondorf seeing and thinking he had unnerved me.

Staring across the courtyard I was stood in I swept my eyes over the short green grass and the tall stone walls encompassing it. Taking a deep breath I tried to calm down, telling myself that I didn't need to know what lies Ganondorf was filling my father's head with as long as I could prevent his plans in the long run. At just the thought of the man, however, another wave of restlessness hit me. Fixing my eyes on the courtyard's entranceway I chewed the inside of my cheek, trying to remember if there was anything I could be doing to fill the time. The sight of the empty archway filled me with worry, however, and I knew distractions would be useless. How many weeks had it been now, since I sent Impa out searching for the source of my vision? I didn't know, but so far we had had no results, no successful searches.

"Expecting someone, princess?" the low, gravelly voice I hated so much reached my ears before I registered the dark presence a little way off and I jumped despite myself. Feeling my cheeks flush slightly I straightened my back, lifted my chin and turned to face him. Ganondorf smirked at me from where he leaned against a nearby wall. The meeting was over, I supposed. Pushing away from his leaning post he unfolded his arms and strode towards me, dark clothes rustling softly. Upon his approach I narrowed my eyes slightly, doing my best to resist the urge to move away as he got nearer. Contempt and anxiety warred within me at the sight of him.

"What do you want, Ganondorf?" I asked, which made his smirk widen. I had never bothered to address him formally, to put a 'Lord' before his name, and I never intended to either. Luckily it had never been brought to my father's attention – he would surely reprimand me for it – as I had never had to suffer the misfortune of talking to him in anyone else's presence.

"My, are you sure a princess should be speaking like that?" he said, tilting his head slightly. Ignoring the remark I disregarded him, facing forward again while trying to ignore his heavy presence. He chuckled softly and leaned down to me.

"So, who are you waiting for?" he practically purred, and I shivered as his cold breath brushed my ear. The need to move away from his suppressive aura was almost unbearable, but I held my ground. I was a princess – the princess of Hyrule – and I would not show weakness to my country's enemies.

Cold fingers ghosted down my arm and I stiffened before, instinctively, I gripped his wrist to stop his hand in its tracks despite knowing he could easily break my hold. When he didn't I instantly became suspicious and was going to act on my suspicions when his hand was suddenly wrested from my grip. A familiar presence appeared beside me, on the opposite side from Ganondorf, strong and sure as ever.

"My lord, please refrain from touching the princess with malicious intent." Impa's voice filled my ears and I almost smiled, my relief was so overwhelming.

"Why, whatever are you talking about?" Ganondorf replied, but he moved away all the same. Impa stayed at my shoulder, no doubt glaring at him. He stared at me in silence for a moment, before he smirked and began walking away.

"I hope your search is not in vain, princess." He said as he went, sounding smugger than usual – if that was even possible. Unnerved I stared after him; did he know something I didn't? I put my fingers to my lips, thinking. Once Ganondorf was out of sight, his cold aura gone from the nearby vicinity, I turned to Impa.

"Thank you." I said, smiling. Impa smiled back.

"It was no trouble, princess. Anything to keep you safe from that man." I widened my smile, grateful but then I grew serious, knowing why she had returned and wondering what news she bore.

"How did the search go?" I inquired and Impa sighed, expression darkening.

"No luck as ever." She said, shaking her head. "This boy from your visions is nowhere to be found." I stifled a frustrated sigh; of course he wasn't. I thought the acknowledgment with no little irritation. How hard could it be to find one man?

"Do not worry, princess." Impa laid a hand on my shoulder gently. "We will find him."

"Yes, we must… sooner or later." I turned my gaze skyward, biting my thumb nail thoughtfully.

The visions had started not long after Ganondorf had shown up in our country, and they always followed a similar pattern. In them, storm clouds covered the skies of Hyrule and fires engulfed the land, scorching the earth black. However despite the darkness and destruction, always always was there a ray of light. In the light stood a single figure clothed in green, with a fairy hovering about his head. The first time I had had the dream I had been perplexed; the Kokiri didn't grow up, so why was that mysterious man dressed like one? Despite the strangeness, as the vision returned night after night, I had come to accept it and Impa and I had since been searching for him. We had recently been having a long run of bad luck, so Impa had requested I stay at the castle, in case he came to me. It also gave me ample opportunity to watch Ganondorf, so I had complied, and waited. I lowered my eyes from the pale blue sky.

"Impa…" I began, suspicious.

"Yes, princess?"

"Do you think… do you think Ganondorf knows something? The way he spoke earlier…" I trailed off, worried.

"I do not think so, princess." Impa replied, and I raised my eyebrows slightly. She elaborated. "Lord Ganondorf has a knack for getting into people's heads, princess. He is a remarkably clever and devious man; I do not doubt he is extremely capable of lying – and lying well."

"Yes… I suppose you're right." Although I spoke of agreement there was still a knot of uneasiness in my stomach that worried me. My intuition was rarely wrong, which made it even more worrying.

"Now, princess, I must get back to searching. After this long we cannot be far from finding him." Impa moved around me, descending onto the grass of the courtyard before turning to face me.

"Alright. Good luck, search hard." I said, smiling and pushing aside my uneasiness for the moment. Impa nodded once in acknowledgement of my orders, before throwing something to the ground. There was a sharp bang and a flash of light that forced me to shield my eyes, and when the spots cleared Impa was gone. Staring at the spot where she had last stood I crossed my arms, thinking. What had Ganondorf been implying? He had seemed too smug to simply be feeding me a lie, but what did that mean?

As I pondered my dilemma, the world suddenly began tilting beneath me, my eyes blurring and then clearing rapidly. Reaching back I found the wall to steady myself, quite familiar with the experience. It was a vision. However, as I descended into the realm of the future, I noticed that something felt wrong. There was an urgency to the air that made the hair on my arms stand up and sent a shiver down my spine. Images flashed before me; temple doors sealed shut, a pair of disconcerting, completely red eyes, a small, blue fairy and… the urgency swelled into panic as I heard a slowing heartbeat, heard a final, rattling breath, saw a gloved hand in chains fall to the floor with a soft thud.

I surfaced, gasping for breath. My head ached and as I choked on air my legs failed me, sending me onto my knees. I sank down further, pressing a hand to my chest. My heart was racing as if it were trying to break through my ribs. Taking a few deeper, steadying breaths I tried to calm myself. I was completely disorientated. Never before had I had such a vivid vision, or felt such panic and desperation while viewing one. I wondered what it meant, trying to sort my muddled thoughts.

"What's up with you?" I was startled as someone suddenly spoke, in a voice I didn't recognise. It scattered the thoughts I had managed to collect together, and looking up I found a figure stood before me, covered completely in a floor-length black cloak and hood. With their back to the sun their face was shrouded in shadow, though I could just about make out the glitter of eyes beneath its low rim.

"Who – are you?" I asked, still a little breathless. Goosebumps erupted up my arms as I felt their gaze rake over me; it was cold. They suddenly laughed shortly, and I saw white teeth.

"What a sight. The princess of Hyrule on her knees, completely vulnerable." I rose to my feet as they spoke, feeling unsteady but forcing myself to stand tall.

"Who are you calling vulnerable?" I demanded, narrowing my eyes and addressing the stranger with my best princess voice. All I earned for it was another chuckle. I guess I really wasn't all that imposing when I was about a head smaller than them.

"You, princess." The stranger replied, and I identified their voice as masculine. Something about their tone and manner made me think of Ganondorf.

"I'm not as weak as I may look." I informed him, keeping my tone haughty and my senses wary. "So, what business do you have with me?"

"I need your help." He replied after a brief silence, and he sounded grudging as he said it.

"My help?" I repeated. "Why?"

"Because…" he paused and sighed. "If I said it had something to do with that guy who was scaring you earlier, would you help?" I narrowed my eyes – he had been watching but none of us had noticed his presence? As I thought about it I realised I still couldn't; it was as if he didn't really exist… like a ghost or something similar.

"Ganondorf wasn't scaring me," I said defensively, "but I probably would – depending on your reason."

"So you wouldn't help just 'cause you want to screw him over?"

"No. I need a good reason to help a complete stranger who just happened to sneak past all the castle's guards and isn't even showing his face." I eyed the heavy cloak, wondering what lay beneath it. It seemed to almost absorb the light from its surroundings, making its owner seem insubstantial in a disconcerting way.

"So, you'd help me if I said, say, 'help me if you don't want your only chance of defeating this 'Ganondorf' to die'?" That made me stiffen.

"What do you know about that?" I asked, narrowing my eyes. The man lifted an arm and I got the distinct impression he was pointing to himself, despite the fact that the cloak's sleeve completely swamped his hand, hanging well over his fingertips.

"I'm the guy who's going to stop him."

"What?" I openly stared, struck dumb by the sudden announcement. "You… you're the man from my visions?"

"Well, not exactly, but I swear, if you don't help me he will die."

"What do you mean by 'not exactly'?" I demanded, excited by this new development but determined not to get my hopes up.

"By the goddesses you don't half ask a lot of questions, do you?" he shook his head and sighed, shrugging slightly. "Alright, fine. I'll explain everything – but don't freak out when I take off my hood, 'kay?" I nodded slowly, wondering if what lay below it was that bad.

"Okay." Brushing my fingers against my lips I waited impatiently as the stranger lifted a hand to his hood. The fabric crumpled as he gripped the brim, before he stopped.

"What is it?" I was tempted to tap my foot, the wait was so unbearable. I was so very intrigued by the figure before me; he seemed so full of answers I desperately needed that it was taking all my restraint not to physically attack him and force them from him. But I wouldn't, because a princess has to maintain her dignity and regal appearance at all times, however much of a pain it is sometimes.

"Seriously, don't do anything, okay? I like my face how it is." He said, and I felt his gaze boring into me, burning a hole in my forehead.

"Yes, alright." I sighed, patience wearing thinner by the second. The man mirrored my sigh before he tugged down his hood and dropped his arm. I was rendered speechless by what I saw. He had the strangest appearance I had ever seen, even compared to the Zoras or Gorons. Despite his human appearance and figure his skin was a deep, dusty grey that was almost black and seemed to make his face featureless apart from his sharp eyebrows, though I could clearly see that he had an angular, handsome face and his ears were long and pointed like my own. Atop his grey head was a shaggy mess of completely white hair, despite the fact that he was obviously only a year or so older that myself. However it wasn't the strange hair or skin colour that drew my eyes. No, it was his eyes. They stood out like beacons in his dark face, glowing softly in the sun, and were disconcertingly and completely red. They narrowed as I stared at him, before he had yanked his hood back up and hidden his strange face from sight once more.

"Don't you know it's rude to stare, princess?" he said, snapping me out of my daze.

"Why…" I said weakly, confused and fascinated.

"Why do I look like this?" he finished and I nodded. "It's kind of a long story, so I'll shorten it because long stories are dull. Basically, there's this guy named Link, and he's the one from your visions or whatever. He was on his way here because Navi – his fairy – told him to go, but he got jumped by… I guess they were this 'Ganondorf's' goons, and his soul got split apart."

"His soul got split apart?!" I repeated, astounded and horrified. Just what kind of black magic was Ganondorf using?

"That's what I said." The man said, sounding a little irritated. I quietened myself and waited for him to continue. "Thank you." I got the feeling he was glaring at me. "So, anyway. His soul got split apart and the different parts got sealed in different temples-"

"That explains the temple doors in my vision." I murmured, more to myself than him.

"-but I escaped and headed here, 'cause I had a hunch you'd be able to help or something." He ignored my interruption, though his words after it sounded like he was saying them through his teeth.

"So… you're a part of this 'Link's' soul?" I asked and got a sharp nod in reply. "And does the original 'Link' look like you?"

"No. I'm just the part of his soul that harbours all of his more… negative emotions." He tilted his head. "I'm like an evil Link, or something. Hence the appearance."

"That's… charming." I said, wondering if, should he be an 'evil' version of the man from my visions, I could trust him.

"Oh, but you can trust me." He said, seeming to read my thoughts. "I want my soul restored. That's worth more than betraying you or anything stupid like that."

"What happens if you don't fix yourself?" I inquired, trying to guess what his answer would be.

"I'll waste away and die. And so will the rest of my different parts. That's why I said that if you didn't help me your precious hero would die." A fresh tremor of unease made my stomach clench.

"Hm…" I hummed thoughtfully, thinking. "So that's why Ganondorf sealed all the different Links in different temples – to make it harder to reunite yourself. I knew he had been up to something! That man…!" A wave of anger washed over me – he had seen right through all of my plans, and the knowledge of it angered me to no end.

"Well, before you go after him, help me, won't you? I'll die otherwise."

"Yes, alright." I snapped, needing to vent my frustration. "But why exactly do you need my help?" 'Dark Link' shrugged gracefully, as if it were obvious.

"I was under the impression that you had some kind of white magic to Ganondorf's black stuff. I assumed you'd be able to break his seals and things, see?"

"Ah, that's true. I suppose I could do something like that."

"You sound unsure."

"I am unsure. In theory, yes, I could do it. In practice, I have no idea what would happen."

"Ugh, for the love of Nayru! And here I thought you could help!" he threw up his arms, spinning to face away from me. "I'll find someone else, then." He began striding away and I panicked, suddenly very afraid he would fail and die. I understood my vision now and there was no way I would let it occur. Some said the future couldn't be changed, but I was determined to try.

"Wait!" I called, and he halted. "Just wait a moment. Don't go doing rash things." Lifting my skirts I followed him, crossing the distance between us at a quick pace. I halted a few steps away and stared at his tall back. Waiting for him to turn I wondered just what exactly I was going to do. Determined as I was to help, what good would I be if I couldn't break the seals?

"It's better than hanging around here while I waste away because Princess Useless can't use her magic." The venom in his voice made me flinch, but anger began bubbling in my stomach in response as well.

"Don't call me useless." I commanded. "I'll help, don't think I won't. Give me a day or so and I'll know all there is to know about breaking seals." The man in front of me finally spun and as he did he clamped his hands down on my shoulders, squeezing tightly. The strength in his fingers made me wince. He took a deep breath.

"A tall claim, princess, but don't you understand? I can't waste a day or so – I'm fading! Every minute I spend talking to you is another minute I can't use trying to find the rest of my soul. Even if I reunite with all but one piece it won't stop me wasting away, won't even slow it. I have a time limit, and if you can't help me, then I'm leaving you behind." Breathing heavily he ended his tirade, pushing away from me and turning again, body humming with restless tension.

"That's fine." I did my best to seem unshaken, but his sudden outburst had startled me. "I'll learn as we go. I refuse to let Hyrule's saviour die, alright?" He took a deep breath through his nose.

"Fine. I'll meet you at the drawbridge in an hour. If you're late I'll leave you behind. But I swear, to all three goddesses, if you fail and can't break those seals I will kill you." The threat was real, and I shivered under it. I nodded once, despite knowing he wouldn't see, as he began walking away. Watching him go I hugged myself, wondering what I had gotten myself into.

First chapter, hoorah! I hope you enjoyed, and if you can leave a review I'd appreciate it!