The Legend of Zelda: Time After Time

Chapter 2: The Hero of Time

When Princess Zelda Orianne became aware of her surroundings again, she once again stood in front of the alter in the Temple of Time, but it was as if her playing the Song of Time had somehow restored it to its former glory. The great stone walls arched high above her making her feel small compared to the immensity of time. Sunlight shone through the many stained-glass windows creating dappled patterns of color on the tiled floor. The architecture was carved in detailed bas-relief that depicted the scenes of Hyrule's creation by the goddesses. She felt as if the weight of the ages was collected in this one sacred place.

"Zelda?" a tenor voice sounded behind her. The way the two syllables of her name were spoken held a tenuous mixture of surprise and hope. Zelda Orianne started at the sound and whirled to face whoever had snuck up on her. Her dress fanned out around her as she spun, the blue silk material whispering sweet nothings to the sleek tile floor. Her golden hair curled around her shoulders as she quickly stopped her abrupt movement, and clutched the Ocarina of Time to her chest as she stared in puzzlement at the man who had spoken her name.

He was tall and sturdy like a young tree that was grounded in the earth but still able to bend with the pressure of a storm – solid, yet adaptable. His skin was lightly bronzed by the same sun that had lightened the longish straw-colored hair that fell into his eyes and framed his face. He wore a tunic and matching hat of light gray cloth that had designs associated with Hyrule and the Triforce embroidered in gold, green, blue, and red. His pants were of a darker shade and tucked into his black leather boots at the knee. Lightweight long sleeves were tucked into gauntlets that matched his boots and betrayed the presence of a pale undershirt beneath his tunic. A grin slowly spread across his handsome face as he approached Zelda Orianne. His deep blue eyes held her gaze as he drew near.

"I knew you'd come. I even dressed up for you, Princess." He stopped walking and stood about an arm's length away from her. "It seems like returning the Ocarina of Time to you was a good idea. I knew you couldn't forget, just like I couldn't."

Zelda Orianne found that all speech had left her as he stepped closer and gently ran his fingers through a strand of her hair. "Zelda, please tell me that you've changed your mind and you aren't going to marry that silly Lord Iorworth."

The young princess suddenly discovered her voice at that statement. "What?" she exclaimed, her sapphire eyes widening in shock and confusion as she jerked back and away from him. "I-I'm not marrying anyone! Least of all some Hylian lord I've never heard of – and oh by the way, who are you? Why are you acting like you know me?"

The young man's eyebrows knit together as an expression of confusion and hurt wiped away his smile. "You don't know who I am?"

Zelda Orianne lifted an eyebrow and narrowed her eyes at the man. "Um, no. I told you I – " she cut off her own sentence as she heard the great doors at the front of the temple open. For some reason she couldn't explain she felt the need to hide from whoever was coming. Clutching her ocarina and her bag she turned away from the crazy mystery young man and pressed herself behind a column.

The rhythmic clicking of high heels against the tile near the doors sounded just as she whirled into her hiding place. The young man stared after Zelda Orianne and hesitated for a moment, then turned his attention to the newcomer. The sound of the footsteps paused and a gentle female voice spoke, "Link. You are wearing the tunic I had made for you." She smiled slightly.

Zelda Orianne could hear him slowly turn to face the speaker, "And you're wearing green, Zelda. I always did like that color on you." His voice was polite and warm as he spoke, but it didn't hold the raw emotion Zelda Orianne had heard from him earlier. His encounter with her seemed to have left him slightly unsettled. She couldn't resist peeking around her column to see what the Princess here looked like. The sight left her speechless. It was like seeing a mirror image. Long blonde hair the same shade as her own fell down around the other Princess' shoulders and framed sapphire eyes that could have been hers. This other Zelda might have been her twin. No wonder the man had mistaken her identity. The Zelda he had been waiting for wore a gown of the traditional royal style with all the ornate designs that defined a Zelda's role as Princess, but it was shades of green instead of the usual pinks, purples, and whites. When Zelda Orianne looked closer she also realized that the style of it was a bit old-fashioned.

"Link, I did come to see you today, but I am afraid it is not for the reasons you would like," the other princess spoke softly but in the quiet of the Temple of Time Zelda Orianne had no trouble hearing her.

"What do you mean?" the man asked in nearly a whisper.

The princess who looked so like Zelda Orianne closed her eyes as if steeling herself and drew in a breath, letting out a small sigh. She looked Link directly in the eyes when she spoke. "I have accepted Kenton Iorworth's proposal."

The man moved to gently grasp her arms. "What? But, why Zelda?" his voice was taking on an edge of hurt desperation.

"Because, Link, he is a good man and a good friend. He truly cares about Hyrule and its people as well as for me," her voice was cool and steady as she spoke. A slight crease in her eyebrows was the only thing that betrayed turmoil in her feelings.

"But Zelda, I love you! I've loved you since before we even met again in this time you created! You cannot tell me that you've forgotten all we went through together!"

The Princess turned her head away from him. "No, Link. I haven't forgotten," she murmured.

"Then why are you doing this? You were always by my side then, helping me, looking out for me as Shiek while I tried to save Hyrule." He let go of her arms and took her gloved hand in both of his. "You can't say you don't feel the same way about me!"

She looked into his eyes again. "You are right. I do care for you very much, Link. But I cannot marry you."

He stepped back and dropped her hand, clearly wounded. "Why? Am I not good enough for you, Princess?"

"Never that," she shook her head. "It just could not work well for the two of us right now."

"Or ever?" his tone was flat.

She hung her head as if chastised. "I am sorry."

"Is it your father and the council again? Because if it is I – "

"It is not just that," she interrupted.

"Then what?" he pleaded.

She shook her head slowly. "I cannot jeopardize the peace you fought so hard for, and our union would do just that. Do you not understand this?"

"No, I don't see how us getting to live happily ever after would harm the peace at all," he answered stubbornly. Zelda Orianne found herself silently agreeing with him. She had always wondered why the Princess and the Hero didn't live happily ever after together. No amount of explaining from her mother had led her to believe it should be otherwise.

"Link," the other Zelda drew the syllable of his name out in frustration.

"Zelda, I love you. Why is it wrong of us to be happy together?"

"Link, we have been through this a thousand times."

He sighed and his shoulders drooped. "There's no way to get you to change your mind is there? You'll do this, even at the expense of our hearts."

"I am sorry." She lowered her eyes and her head. "Goodbye, Link." Her heels clicked against the tile as she turned and made her way toward the doors.

Zelda Orianne's heart ached at the sad finality in his voice as he murmured, "Goodbye, Princess."

Walking away from him was the hardest thing the Princess of Destiny had needed to do in her life. And since she had had the unique opportunity to live seven years of her lifespan over again, that was saying a lot. She couldn't keep the tears from flowing as she shut the doors to the Temple of Time behind her, closing the way to happiness at Link's side behind her forever.

"Zelda?" an all too familiar baritone voice interrupted her sorrow and she turned abruptly to face her fiancé. Kenton Iorworth had longish auburn hair that he kept neatly in a tie at the nape of his neck. He was dressed elegantly, yet simply in a white shirt and brown trousers. A darker brown jacket that hung to his upper thighs added a few touches of embroidery to the outfit. She appreciated that he was not one of the nobles who liked so many ornate frills that they ended up looking more like a peacock than a person.

"Kenton, I am sorry; I did not expect you to be waiting for me here." She bowed her head respectfully, trying to hide her tears from his watchful amber eyes. She wasn't very successful.

"That much is obvious," he stated wryly. "My dear, you are crying." He stepped forward and used one hand to gently raise her chin, while stroking away her tears with the other. "I must admit that I hoped to see you a bit happier on the day you accepted my proposal of marriage."

Zelda Destine sighed. "I am sorry Kenton, but I – "

"Was saying goodbye to the man you named Hero of Time?" he probed gently.

Her eyes widened in surprise and her cheeks flushed. "Kenton, I – "

He placed two fingers over her lips to keep her from continuing. He was a bit shorter than Link, so his eyes were almost level with hers, his curious gaze catching her sapphire eyes easily. "Princess, I must ask this. If you so love him why on Din's earth are you planning on marrying me?"

Princess Zelda Destine was struck silent for a few moments as she searched for a way to answer the question.

Lord Kenton Iorworth sighed sadly. "I can see that this is not an easy question to answer." He offered her his arm as he suggested, "Shall we take a stroll in the castle gardens then?"

The Princess nodded and accepted his arm, "That would be fine."

The two of them let silence stretch between them as they left the Temple of Time and walked through the bustle of the town to Hyrule Castle. Neither of them really noticed the sculpted shrubbery and beautiful blooms that decorated the gardens' paths. Both were more concerned with the slight tension that hung between them. Zelda Destine was lost in thought for some time and Lord Kenton waited patiently for the answer to his query.

Finally, Zelda broke the silence. "I cannot marry him."

Her escort glanced at her curiously. "I know your father does not approve of him, but surely that is not the only reason you are not going to marry the man you are in love with," he spoke quietly, without accusation, and Zelda was glad of that.

"Kenton, in order for you to fully understand, I must tell you a story."

"A story, Princess?"

"A life I lived, a quest he and I undertook that now never happened."

"You have my undivided attention, Milady," he answered seriously.

And so she proceeded to tell the tale of her attempt to protect the Sacred Realm from the Gerudo King, Ganondorf, and the consequences of her actions for Link and all of Hyrule. The story of how he had rescued her, and how she had aided in the Evil King's defeat. And then how she had used the Ocarina of Time to restore the balance of what once was.

"Well," he took a deep breath after her telling, "It seems as if you and he did a very good job of restoring the peace. I have never even heard of this Ganondorf fellow, after all. But I fail to see the problem. You two restored Hyrule just as you meant to, right?"

"Yes, but unfortunately all is not as it was. Ganondorf was not destroyed, only sealed away in the Sacred Realm. The Triforce of Power remains with him. The relic is still in three pieces rather than one." She looked over into Lord Iorworth's amber eyes, and noted that he still did not quite grasp her dilemma. "The Triforce is a relic of balance, Kenton. It is meant to be in either three pieces or one. If two of the Triforce bearers were joined together, their pieces would be together, and inevitably the third would be called. Link holds the Triforce of Courage, and I the Triforce of Wisdom."

The Princess could see the "ah-ha" moment cross behind Kenton's eyes. "You think that if you married him, Ganondorf's piece of the Triforce would be called forth by your union, and everything you'd fought for would come to nothing, because he would be free again."

She nodded sadly.

He stopped and turned her to face him. "Zelda, that's terrible," his voice held such sympathy that she couldn't help breaking down into tears. He gently wrapped his arms around her and stoked her hair as she cried into him.

After a few moments she stepped back and looked at him probingly. "You are taking it rather well, finding out that your fiancée is in love with another man."

He chuckled at that. "Well, I'd be lying if I said I was completely comfortable with all this. You must realize that if I was hearing this story about Evil Kings and time travel from anyone else I probably would not believe him," he sighed. "But this is you, Princess, and you do not lie."

"You believe me where my own father will not," she stated in wonder.

"Well you did say that he trusted this Ganondorf in the first place, so I wouldn't say his judgment is infallible." He smiled wryly, "And don't you go thinking too highly of me, Princess. I certainly cannot help but be jealous of this Hero who has earned your love so valiantly." He shook his head, "How can I even stand up to someone like that?" When no answer was forthcoming he nodded and said, "Of course, I cannot."

Zelda Destine looked like she wanted to say something but didn't know what to say.

He gazed at her intently. "So, why me, Princess?"

"You are a good man who cares about people, and about Hyrule, and even about me." He raised an eyebrow and she continued, "I know that this conversation has not been that encouraging to you, but it has solidified in my mind that I made the correct choice." He looked confused and she smiled at him. "You were very brave to put comforting me above your pride, and even though my story is far-fetched to someone who didn't experience it, you believed me."

"So…let me get this straight, you still want to marry me?" he asked incredulously.

"Yes, I do. You will be a generous and equitable king, and you have already proven yourself a friend to me," she looked into his eyes with confidence.

"You're asking a lot, to marry someone that you know is in love with someone else," he raised an eyebrow.

She lowered her gaze. "Yes, I know. I understand if you wish to revoke your proposal. But no matter my personal feelings I must think of Hyrule, and as an only child I cannot afford to remain unmarried and not produce an heir to the throne."

He considered for a few long moments and then took her hand. "I would be honored to aid you in serving Hyrule however I can, Zelda. If you wish that to be by your side as your husband, even knowing this, I will accept that."

The Princess smiled into his amber eyes. "Thank you, Kenton."

He grinned back, "It certainly doesn't hurt that I do care for you, Princess. Perhaps in time you will learn to love me as well."

"Then, we shall proceed as normal. For Hyrule."

"For Hyrule," he agreed.

Zelda Orianne slowly stepped out from behind her column, her eyes on the man, Link, as he stood with his head down, dejectedly staring after the Princess she suspected now was Zelda Destine. How she had come to this time was something of which she was still not entirely sure. But after hearing the conversation between the man and the Princess, she had an inkling of why she had been brought here. For this man was surely the Hero of Time. If anyone could help her in her quest, it would be him. After a few moments where neither of them moved, she stepped closer to him. When he still didn't react she walked around in front of him and was startled to see a few silent tears leaving shimmering trails down his face. 'The Hero of Time is weeping…' the thought seemed so foreign to her image of the strong Hero setting off to rescue the princess and save the world. She hesitated a moment, and then placed a sympathetic hand on his shoulder.

"Zelda?" he whispered her name questioningly.

Zelda Orianne shook her head slowly. "Not the Zelda you're wanting anyway." As she stood in the restored Temple – no, the earlier, newer Temple – her mind ran circles around the possibilities. She had traveled through time. She could find out what happened to the sages because she could go back to the times when they had disappeared. But if she was truly here in the time of Zelda Destine all of Hyrule's races would still be in the land. Could she find out from the distant past what would happen in what to this time period was the future?

"You look just like her… who are you? Are the Goddesses just trying to mock me?" He turned his back on her and straightened his shoulders.

"I'm sorry. I didn't even realize I was coming here, let alone that I'd come at such a bad time." The young princess shifted awkwardly before continuing, "My name is Zelda Orianne. If my guess is correct, I take after her as her descendent."

Link spun to face her, his piercing gaze locked on hers. "What?"

She spread her hands in a gesture of helplessness, "I'm a Princess Zelda from the future." When he only continued to stare at her she went on, "I might as well explain as best as I can. You are the Hero of Time, right? Perhaps you can aid me."

"Wait, what?" he shook his head as if to clear his mind with the motion. "You actually believe the story of me being the Hero of Time? No one heeds that tale!"

"Even if the people of this time forgot what you did for them, that doesn't mean such a story as yours could disappear from the legends. The tale of a young man who in spite of all odds stood against the darkness and rescued the princess and saved the world is one that inspires hope." Zelda Orianne spoke from her heart as she gazed up at the light shimmering through the stained glass windows of the Temple. "Even if it were not real, a story like that can matter in the way it touches lives and challenges people to be more than they are. But your story did happen, which makes it all the more precious." She smiled, "And the Royal Family did believe you."

"Or Zelda does," he muttered.

"Same thing," she answered with a shrug. "If the Princess decides to pass down a legend to her children, then it is unlikely to be forgotten. I should know; I grew up listening to the stories of the Hero, to your story." Zelda Orianne carefully avoided eye contact as she added softly, "I always thought the Hero and the Princess should have lived happily ever after too, if that's any consolation."

When she glanced back at Link he was regarding her intently and with less suspicion. "I know this must all seem very strange and sudden, and believe me I was just as surprised to end up here as you were to find me here. But, it seems as if I am caught up in a story of my own now. And my path has led me here." Her bright sapphire eyes locked with his deep blue gaze. "In my time the seals on Ganondorf's prison have weakened. I believe that this is because the Kokiri, Gerudo, and Shiekah have disappeared from Hyrule. And I haven't any idea of what became of the Sage of Light either. I need to find out what happened to them, and I don't find it insignificant that I have been placed before the one man in Hyrule's history that has experience with time travel."

"You're asking for my help on your quest," he stated in a neutral tone.

"Yes, I am," Zelda Orianne bowed her head as she spoke and then dropped into a curtsy so deep it placed her knees on the tile floor. Her shimmering blue dress clung to her and cascaded down her legs to spread out around her like a pool of water. "Hero of Time, I ask for your aid once again, for the sake of Hyrule's future."

"Please, Princess," she felt his strong hands gently grasp her arms and pull her upright. "You don't have to bow like that. Not to me." He gave her a hint of a smile, "And the name's Link. It's a lot easier than going around calling me 'Hero of Time.' I'll do what I can. How can any hero worth his salt refuse such a plea from a princess anyway?"

A smile beamed out from Zelda Orianne's face like a ray of sunshine as she looked at her new companion. "Thank you, Link."

Author's Notes: Yay a new chapter! I don't really have a lot to say about this one. Feedback is always appreciated!