Link and Zelda stayed at the castle for a few more days. The two of them spent most of their time with each other, running off to secret places together. They had both decided to keep their relationship secret. The king might have had a fit if he found out the boy was distracting Zelda from her training. And they didn't want the people of Hyrule making up rumors about the two of them.

What the princess didn't know was that these would be her last good times for a very long period of time. She and Link were having romantic, youthful adventures in the castle, laughing and running around like naive children. The two of them were floating away, but they would be brought back down to the ground soon.

Her first worries came after she had a strange dream. It was ominous, and she knew that something bad was looming over them. The dream had been the night before they left again, and it had bothered her since the minute she woke up. It was noticeable; the princess possessed a solemnity and pensiveness that nobody had seen in her for a long time.

Shortly, they were off on another expedition. Link and Zelda had been exploring Hyrule Field and Lake Hylia. Link had sensed her uneasiness and had tried to ask her if she was alright. She insisted that she was fine, but he knew her better than that. Still, he did not pry.

At one point, it began pouring.

"Let's take shelter under that tree." Link suggested, pointing to a tree ahead of them. Zelda sat on a log and he pulled out his sword, practicing his technique absentmindedly. The princess watched him from her seat, her mind going back to places it hadn't been in a while. She knew that they were destined to work together... but why couldn't she do her part? Sometimes she felt as if she were a mistake. That it was not her who was meant to be here, preparing, but someone else... Zelda was simply not meant to be where she was. Even if she felt at home and right with Link, she couldn't fulfill the prophecy.

"Your path seems to mirror your father's. You've dedicated yourself to becoming a knight, as well." She thought of her mother, and of all of the things she was supposed to be taught. She tried her best to be like her mother, but it was often too much. "Your commitment to the training necessary to fulfill your goal is really quite admirable..." Link stopped swinging his weapon, giving her his full attention. "I see now why you would be the chosen one." Then her expression changed as she cast her eyes to the ground. Link frowned.

"What if... One day... You realized that you just weren't meant to be a fighter." She looked sad now. "Yet the only thing people ever said was that you were born into a family of the royal guard, and so no matter what you thought, you had to become a knight." Her eyes were filled with sorrow and she looked away, trying to hide that from him. "If that was the only thing you were ever told... I wonder, then... would you have chosen a different path?" Then she stopped speaking. The only sound was the rain pouring around them. Link looked at her for a long moment. He didn't know what to say to her. It seemed as if demons that they thought she was rid of had returned out of nowhere.

"Zelda..." He slowly approached her, kneeling down in front of her. He gently took her into an embrace, holding onto her tightly. He did not let go for a long time, and when he did he looked into her eyes once again. They were shining and looked as if she was about to break down and cry. But she held it in.

"Are you alright?" He asked quietly. She simply nodded in response, unable to meet his eyes.

~

The two of them waited for the rain to stop, and then continued on their way. They did not travel much further, though. Zelda had changed quite suddenly; she was now often distant and lost in thought. Link had noticed this, but he didn't know what he could do. He had tried to cheer her up and had fried talking to her, but his efforts had been futile. She still smiled and did her best to act happy around him, but he could tell there was something worrying her. This only worsened one day when the two of them were at the castle.

Zelda had been admiring some of the technology, but her happiness wasn't bound to last. She was lost in thought and overcome with wonder, and then her father approached.

"What are you doing here, Zelda?" Her expression changed and she clenched her fists, determined to hold it together. Link knelt and looked down, as he was in the presence of the King of Hyrule.

"I... I... I was assessing the results of the experiments with the Guardians. These pieces of ancient technology could be quite useful against the--"

"I know that." Her father interrupted her. He continued to scold her, reminding her of her own failure. She tried to explain that she couldn't do anything else; that she was trying her best. But he wouldn't have any of it. All she wanted was to contribute in a way that made her happy. It was becoming more and more difficult to keep a brave face on.

Then, he forbid her from interfering with the technology at all. Zelda felt a part of her spirit sink. Without that, she didn't have very much left.

"...Do you know how the gossip mongers refer to you?" Her father asked. "They are out there at this moment whispering amongst themselves... that you are the heir to a throne of nothing... nothing but failure." Zelda focused her eyes on the ground. Why was he repeating this to her? She already knew what everybody thought of her. Even her own father seemed to believe it as well...

"It is woven into your destiny that you prove them wrong. Do you understand?" The princess felt incredibly small at that moment.

"Yes... I understand." The king turned and walked away as his daughter stood there feeling defeated and lost. For a long moment she remained, deep in thought again. Then, she suddenly hurried off to her room, Link following close behind. He shut the door behind him and turned to the princess. She just stood at stared at him, a helpless look in her eyes. He tried to search for his words again.

"You're not a failure." He finally said quietly. She just frowned at him, not understanding.

"I am." She choked out. "Are you blind? I have spent most of my life trying to access this... this power, and I still have nothing. I've gotten nowhere! I have tried so hard to be optimistic, but I.. I...." She tried to speak but instead began to cry. Zelda was finally letting out what she had held back from him. She had promised herself he'd never see this...

Link rushed over to where she was standing. He couldn't bear to see her so upset. He knew there was nothing he could do to fix this, but he was going to try. It was his job to be there for her, and she needed him more than ever. He wrapped his arms around her, holding the delicate princess as tightly as he could without breaking her. She buried her face into his shoulder and he gently stroked her hair. The two of them stayed that way for a moment, but she didn't calm down very much.

"I can't do this much longer. I'm not made for this. This isn't where I'm meant to be." She paused, taking shaky breaths. "I want to run away, Link. I want to go far away from here and never come back to this life. But I can't! The weight of an entire kingdom rests upon my shoulders. I cannot abandon everybody!" She pulled back, looking into his eyes. He held her face gently, trying to wipe her tears away. The princess only looked distant and sad.

"I know that you are not a failure. You haven't discovered it within you yet, but I promise it's there. I believe in you. I know that it's hard right now, but you need to hold on." His words hardly seemed to help, though. "It is destined that we destroy the Calamity together. I will always have your back; and I will always be there for you. Even if the everyone in the world turns their backs on you... I promise I will stand by you." She was starting to calm down. "And when all of this is over, we will never have to worry again. Then we can run off to wherever we want. We can get far away from here. Just wait a little longer. I promise it will turn out okay.." She tried to smile, feeling somewhat cheered up by his words, but still far from happiness. Link gazed into eyes. She looked so tired and weary; her life and worries were tearing her apart. It pained him that there was nothing he could do. If he was able to, he would have taken all of her struggles for himself in a heartbeat.

He gently leaned down and kissed her, trying his best to ease her pain. It lasted for a moment, and then she pulled away.

"I'm sorry, Link. I didn't mean for you to..."

"Don't apologize. I am here to protect you and support you." She blinked back more tears.

"I know... and I can't thank you enough for that."

~

A/N: um yeah so like basically I've already written this entire story and I'm well into the sequel (wink) but I don't know how quickly I should be updating in case I run out of steam or something... but I like updating so it might be like every two or three days. Anyways this story is gonna get real edgy and weird and not like the game but it's fine. Yes

Also! Thank you to everybody reading this! In getting more views than I thought and I'm super happy!! And I already have like two or three people who comment frequently and it just.... it makes my heart happy *wipes tear* I love you guys