I apologize in advance. I got sick for a few days, and I've been feeling really strange. Detached from reality, somehow. But I wrote (slowly) anyway. Now, I have no idea what I'm gonna write after this chapter, since I hadn't thought ahead to this point in the story (bad idea). So...yeah...

Here's what I think to be my sub-par chapter.
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Chapter 26

Sun., Sept. 1

Qn. Zelda sighed. "She won't talk to me about it," she said. "Something happened yesterday--she's been crying since she got home."

"Guess I'll try my luck." Dark Link opened the door to his daughter's room, situated nearby the Queen's, and slipped inside. The room was an utter mess. He could only guess where the many wrecked items had previously been placed. An array of clothes, littered with chunks of wood, suggested a dresser. Broken mirrors, ripped paintings, and a lot of unidentifiable junk had been thrown everywhere, and there was a crack in one of the two windows. "Zelda?"

He finally noticed her, lying on the bed, head in her pillow. "Go away!" she shouted.

Dark Link made his way over to her, choosing his path carefully, so as not to break anything any further. He sat down next to her, and reached out, pulling the covers back a bit. She slapped his hand away.

"I said t'get the f...outta my room!" she screamed louder, not caring to rephrase it, or take the Censor Spell into consideration whatsoever, for that matter.

"Zelda, calm down," Dark Link said softly. "Just tell me what happened, and I'll go."

She peeked up at him, and her tears returned. "He cheated on me," she answered in a soft voice.

"Who?"

"Who the f...d'ya think?! Caleb!"

Dark Link was taken aback. Laura didn't have that much of an effect, did she? "You were dating him?"

Zelda scoffed. "No, we were playing checkers."

"Hey, I'm just surprised. How long has it been?"

"I dunno...two weeks?" She wiped her eyes, and sat up.

"So he said 'no' to try and hide it. He thought we'd be against it..." He paused, proceeding rather awkwardly. "You didn't...um...y'know--"

"Yeah, we did. Three times." She was no longer afraid of him knowing, for she was so distraught.

"What?! Three times?!" Dark Link hadn't actually expected it to have occurred at all. Or at least once...maybe even twice, if he was unlucky. But thrice he had come close to being a grandfather? That thought really freaked him out: being a grandfather before he was technically even an adult.

"I thought he loved me!" she continued. "But then Sahara shows up, an' he runs off with her."

"Just like that?"

"No, he... After you left, Mom took me back here. Said there was something we had to do. It was just the Gorons complaining about you an' Caleb doing something to their leader or whatever..."

"Ah...lest we forget, they hate me. Carry on."

"Got really boring, so I left. Then I saw Caleb following her into that old shop--y'know, the one they were practicing in. They come out two minutes later, and she waves at me and leaves. Now, I know something happened in there. She had that stupid grin on 'er face, and they were both blushing. I mean...the idea disgusts me, but...the evidence just...ugh!" She became even more angry, picking up some piece of wood by her side and throwing it across the room. "Then the ba...comes up to me an' says it's not his fault! Right after he says he didn't do anything! Loada bulls...!"

"And so you dumped him?" Dark Link suggested, once her silence had gone on for a while.

"Well duh! Ya think I'm gonna forgive him after that?!"

Dark Link sighed. "Okay, I'll talk to Caleb and Sahara about this, and will personally deal out any necessary punishments."

Zelda nodded, having forgotten the conditions under which she had told him all of this in the first place. Dark Link got up, and carefully walked out. With the door closed behind him, the Queen approached.

"So?"

"Apparently, she and Caleb have been dating, and she just dumped him. Logically, her earlier depression must've been from the fact that he might've been the White Wizard. I think that's all."

Qn. Zelda gaped. "Caleb?"

"And for Pete's sake, take off her Censor Spell. I know you're trying to get her to be more 'lady-like', but it's failing miserably. Half the time I have to make sure she's still talking to me..."
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Caleb was in his own world. Playing Halo, listening to his iPod ("You Give Love A Bad Name", by Bon Jovi), and basically trying to shove out all other thoughts. Prs. Zelda had dumped him, it was true. Steve, Mary, and John were with him, but he had forced them to leave him alone. They were probably swimming. Laura was in the kitchen, talking with Hannah and Malon.

Lucia had gone back to Termina. The night before, she had gotten mad with Caleb, who didn't give a damn about Kafei's children. It wasn't the first time they'd argued, but it sure had been the most intense. But why should he care? Why did anyone? They were gonna be alive again once this was all over, right? And everyone died someday.

Caleb decided to play multi-player—against no one. He merely snuck up on the second player and overkilled him, then waiting for him to respawn further away. Halo 2 was coming out soon, but he no longer wanted it. Subconsciously, he reasoned that it didn't matter, since Steve had pre-ordered it, but, nonetheless, he didn't care.

Suddenly, his character fell to the ground, dead. The score came up: 7-1. Shocked, Caleb looked to his right: as he thought, there was Sahara, holding the second controller. "Hmm... This game has an astoundingly simple structure." She tried out a few other buttons. "Yeah...well, I see that Nakeem never ceases to find new ways to train its youth into becoming killing machines. Yet, I do find it quite hard to believe that some of these guns just happen to be lying around the area, with no dead body in sight to signify the previous owner..."

Caleb paused the song, and moved his character along, picking up every new gun he came across, whether he wanted to swap or not. Coming up to Sahara's, he threw a grenade. It bounced off of some invisible plane in the programing, and killed him instead. Sahara laughed. Caleb guessed that she had used magic to make that occur. "Go away," he said, annoyed.

"Why? Have you and the Princess made up?"

"No, she dumped me," Caleb replied flatly.

Sahara's eyes widened. "What? Why?"

"Why d'ya think? She thought I was cheating on 'er."

"I'm sorry," Sahara said sincerely. "I didn't think she would... I mean, it was only a minute or two... Well, okay, it is physically possible, but the probability that we'd do that at such a moment..."

Caleb took his chance and reset the balance: 9-2. "Yeah, she's an idiot."

"Look, I'll go and tell her what really happened."

"Don't bother."

"But don't you--?"

"I already know you're not gonna do it anyway. And even if you did, it wouldn't change her mind."

"Wait." Sahara put a hand up. "Honest to Nayru, I am not the kind of person you accuse me of being. I will allow a truth spell, if any of your companions are willing."

Caleb put down his controller, disinterested in continuing. He sighed. "No, I...it's okay, I'll just go with you."

Sahara raised an eyebrow. "Well, that was a quick--and unenthusiastic--decision. Especially since you told me to leave."

Caleb shrugged. "What else can I do? You pretty much destroyed my options."

"First of all, I didn't mean to. Second, that's not necessarily true, for you don't absolutely need to date me, and I'm sure there are others--"

"No, really. After a kiss like that, who could resist?" Caleb grinned, showing he wasn't mad. "As long as no one finds out about me and Zelda, I'm fine with it."

Sahara bit her lip trying not to smile. It was a lot less...romantic...than she had envisioned, but he had agreed to date her! That fact alone seemed to make up for everything else. "I'm still gonna talk to her."

"If you know what's good for you, don't," Dark Link warned, having appeared without them noticing. Caleb jumped, his iPod falling to the floor. "She may not be able to kill you, but...well, you know the saying."

"So, Zelda's taken the risk?" Sahara asked calmly, not even turning around. Caleb, however, saw just how angry he looked.

"Caleb, I'm trying not to take sides on this one. I'll listen to both your stories, then--"

"Stories, stories..." Sahara interjected. "In a nutshell: Caleb dated your daughter, they made out three times, and I kissed him. The end. Go teach Midna already." She snapped her fingers, and he disappeared before he could object.

"And...how do you know how many times we made out?" Caleb asked.

"I'd rather not answer that..."

Then another interruption. "Hey Caleb!" Laura exclaimed, coming into the room. "Why don't you introduce your girlfriend to us?"

Sahara got up, and stared directly into her eyes. "Ah, I thought there was some reason I had been reluctant upon meeting here... Caleb, I think I'll go talk to Zelda now. When I come back, we'll go somewhere we can be alone." She teleported to Hyrule.

Laura giggled. "Alone, eh?"

"Don't even--"

"Is it true?" Laura inquired, having listened to the conversation. "About Zelda, I mean."

"Yeah."

Laura sighed. "Hate to get all serious on you, but...I think you're rushing things. Three times in two weeks... I know everyone wants to break me and Link's record, but that's an adult's contest. So, my advice is...keep your pants on. 'Kay?"

Caleb settled back into his seat. He didn't even respond to her. He waited, and she just gave up, going back to the kitchen. "You call that parenting?" he heard Malon remark. "'Keep your pants on'? Really, Laura..."

Caleb thought that he just might make sure not to follow that advice, out of spite. But not now. He felt like crap. Whether it was because of Zelda, or finding out he was the White Wizard, he couldn't tell. Or both, maybe? They each seemed to drain something from him...

Hope. That was it. He had lost all hope. His existence was gradually coming to an end, and he was being forced to bring it about. Why? He remembered Sahara's words from the day before: "I just don't think it's fair that you should be dragged into all of this before you had a choice." But didn't he have a choice? He still had to go to the Dark Realm to become the White Wizard, right?

Caleb's surroundings melted away, being replaced by those of the Desert Colossus. He was seated on a large rock, most likely part of the Spirit Temple, which lay in ruins behind him. Sahara paced slowly in front of him. For the first time, he noticed two things: first, she didn't wear shoes. Her cloak was always so long that you couldn't see her feet, but now he caught a glimpse. Second, her eyes were now red. He knew that wizards could change their appearances, but now he wondered if brown had even been her true color. Whatever the case, her beauty struck him once more.

"The strangest thing happened," she began, still not looking at him. "She called me a dog, and then seemed to be surprised that she had the ability to say it."

Caleb, figuring wisely that Sahara had blocked Dark Link and given a TM to Laura, threw off his initial discomfort at being teleported without warning. He laughed, somehow understanding that she left out the fact that Zelda'd specified it as a female dog. "She had a Censor Spell on 'er, that's why."

Sahara stopped, and looked at him quizzically. "But why would someone Censor that?"

"Cuz it's a cuss word, duh."

They each stared at one another, confused as to why the other thought what they did. "And what, exactly, is a 'cuss word'?"

"Y'know..." He listed off as many as he could think of. "You're just not supposed to say 'em."

"Why not?"

"Don't ask me. I didn't make the rules."

"My father never said anything about it... He used those words around me all the time." She shrugged. "Well, with how many stupid things society's done, this shouldn't be that surprising, really..." She snickered. "Banning words...how silly... It just begs the question, 'Why'd they make 'em in the first place?'"
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Dark Link sighed. "Well, it seems that you didn't need much practice."

Midna rubbed her forehead, storing the reserve energy. "Yeah, but this R.E. crap's gonna take forever to get used to..."

"Sahara's still blocking me," Dark Link groaned. "This whole thing is so stupid..."

"What about it?"

"It's not that I'm against my daughter dating someone. The problem is that he kept it a secret from me, and that was one of the signs of the White Wizard. I woulda thought he'd tell me the moment I told him about it--cuz, apparently, they were dating even before I told him about that. But no, he thinks I'll be against it, so he does whatever he wants before I can find out and stop him."

"So Sahara just...?"

"She took him to the desert. All I know about her right now is that she's madly in love with him, and that she's gonna help us just because it's part of her plan. I wish she'd at least given me some time to speak with Caleb on this matter, but I must admit that she's a lot stronger than me. I just hope Evol can't get to them either."

"And what ever happened to Sutar?" Midna sat against the wall of the Crystal Chamber, staring at The Crystal's bright blue depths.

"Yeah, we haven't seen him for quite a while, have we? Sahara said she was punishing him for neglecting his step-sister, but it still seems pretty strange that he would just leave us alone like that."

"Now that I think about it, not having him killing off people every day or so feels sorta weird, huh?"

Dark Link put a hand on The Crystal, searching once again in vain to find the means to extract Link from the Dreamer's Dimension. He thought he might know how, but it seemed impossible for him to do. It must've required the White Wizard's power. So they wouldn't be able to get them out until at least the sixteenth.

He had to decide still: his or Zelda's plan. True, there were many deaths which needn't've happened, but what would happen after it all? Would everything repeat itself, with the sole difference of there being no anomaly to destroy? Or would everything be completely different? And what if...what if he still existed?

"Y'know, I think I'll go back," Midna said abruptly.

"Now?"

"Might as well. Nothin's going on here anymore, and I'm getting curious... I know it'll mean I'll most likely have to marry Zant, but...I don't care anymore. There aren't many guys around here I like anyway..."

Dark Link snapped his fingers. "That's it! I knew there was something I forgot! You could go with Eleah, if we ever get him out. He's a pretty good guy, and he's been looking for a new girl for a long time now...everyone says he's after Malon, but I can tell he's not really interested in her. I think you'd like him."

"But doesn't he have that Servant Pact with Malon? What if she suddenly gets jealous or something?"

"Well, I'm sure we can work out some sort of loophole. He only did that to get away from Evol."

"Wait, he's the one who dated Hannah, right?"

"Yeah, and he married a Gerudo named Nahara, but she died a long time ago. He's Sahara's father."

"Oh, he is?" Midna hesitated. "I thought that was...oh! Oh, now I get it. Sorry, too many names for me to remember..." She scratched her head. "I dunno, I think I'll just take my chances with Zant. What about you?"

"What about me?"

"Hannah? Zelda? Anyone...?"

"I don't think anyone would really want me anymore."

"Then what about Hannah or Zelda?" she joked.

Catching on, he laughed. "I doubt they would either. Hannah says she's over me, and Zelda just wants me to help with our daughter. Fortunately, it seems that the whole love triangle thing's passed."

"Looks like Evol was right, huh?"

"Even so, I'm surprised. I mean, love was the very reason I became the Gray Wizard, so I don't see why it's turned out like this. I oughta feel something. Oh well..."

They teleported to the Arbiter's Grounds, and Midna immediately walked up to the portal. "I think I'll come back in a week or so," she announced.

"Sure ya don't wanna stay another day?"

"I'm sure. Good-bye." She waved.

Dark Link waved back, as her body started to break up into little bits again, flying through the hole in the slab of rock. Half wanting to follow her in there, he went back to Link's house, to await Sahara.
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Again, I should apologize for actually writing while in this weird state of mind. I hope this feeling goes away, because I think I've got major Writer's Block on my hands here... I dunno, maybe I should write one of my other stories for a while...

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