Mitako blinked a few times, trying to adjust to the dark room. She tried to look around, but the room was pitch black, except for a pair of deep crimson eyes glowing above her. Mitako's whole body trembled in fear as tears began to fall down her face. "Wh-what happened?" she asked in a shaky voice. "You fell asleep, so I brought you here." Ashala replied, running his fingers through her hair. Mitako swallowed hard, too afraid of what he might do.
Shadow Link silently crept up behind Ashala, roughly pressing the tip of his sword against the Dark Prince's back. "Get your hands off of her!" he said in an angry voice. Ashala chuckled a bit, carefully getting up off of the bed. He could feel the tip of a sword digging into his back. "Fine, have it your way then." he replied. Ashala turned back to Mitako. "I look forward to our next encounter, m'lady." he told her before he vanished into the shadows with a smirk.
Shadow Link sheathed his sword as he walked over towards the bed where Mitako was. "Are you alright m'lady?" he asked in concern. Mitako nodded shakily, unsure of who the strange person was. Shadow Link carefully leaned down and wrapped his arms around her in a hug. Mitako returned the embrace, crying on his shoulder. "Thank you... you saved my life!" she said. "You're welcome. If you ever need me for anything like that again, I'll be nearby, just in case." Shadow Link replied softly. He gently laid Mitako back down on the bed. "Do you promise?" Mitako asked as Shadow Link pulled the covers up over her shoulders. "I promise, sweet dreams M'lady." Shadow Link replied with a small, kind smile. Mitako let out a soft yawn, falling asleep once more. Shadow Link stood against a nearby wall, keeping watch for the remainder of the day.
Meanwhile, Link continued walking down the dark hallway, holding onto his lantern for light. "I wonder where she could've gone?" he questioned. "She's gone this way!" Twinkle said, turning a medium shade of blue.
"Hey, how do you know?" Navi asked the other fairy. "I'm her fairy partner, of course." Twinkle replied somewhat obviously. "We'd better hurry, there's no time to argue." Link said to Navi. "Come on, follow me please!" Twinkle said urgently.
Link followed after Twinkle down the hall to a room at the end. He cautiously opened the door and saw a familiar face. Walking inside, Link slowly approached the dark figure. "What are you doing here?" he asked. Shadow Link turned to face Link. "She was being attacked by some strange man with black wings on his back. I told him to leave, so he just vanished with a dark look on his face. The poor girl was frightened to death of him." Shadow Link explained honestly. He then turned back to look at Mitako's sleeping form on the bed. "I told her I would stay close by in case he returned." Shadow Link said simply. Link let out a sigh of relief. "How do I know you're not lying?" he asked his dark-self. "I saw the whole thing. The guy tried to take advantage of her." Shadow Link said. "Thank you for telling me the truth. At least Mitako's safe for now." Link said with a small smile. "You're welcome. It's the least I could do." Shadow Link replied, returning the smile. Link went over to Mitako's bedside, sitting on a chair next to her. He set his lantern down on the small table against the wall, turning the knob down to dim the light a little.
**** (In the World of Dreams)****
Mitako began walking through that same forest from before as the sun shone brightly through the trees. She was wearing a sapphire blue dress with long sleeves and matching heels. In her hair was a silver star hairpin. Around her neck was a matching necklace with a silver star in the middle. She opened it up, for inside it was a picture of her and her parents. 'Oh, how I wish I could see them again.'Mitako thought with a sad smile.
She kept walking until she came to a clearing with a small pond. She sat down near the edge for a while, listening to the birds singing. Mitako closed the pendant and dipped her fingers into the cool water, moving them in little circles. She smiled as she watched the small fish swimming around near her.
Moments passed as she sat there. "Konnichiwa, m'lady." said a familiar voice. Mitako saw the shadow of someone standing behind her. She turned to see who it was with a look of surprise, her face turning slightly pink. "Oh, um, konnichiwa, Marth-kun." Mitako replied shyly. Marth walked over and sat down next to her with a kind smile. "You look lovely. That dress makes your eyes sparkle like the stars." he commented. Mitako tried to look away, her face turning a darker shade of pink. "Ano, a-arigatou M-Marth-kun." she replied.
Marth gently placed his arm around her shoulders. "Daijobu Mi-chan, gomen nasai. I didn't mean to embarrass you." he apologized. Mitako looked up at him, feeling a bit shy. She simply gave him a small, shy smile.
[Author's Note: Here's what Mitako looks like in this scene!]
"Tell me, how did you find this place?" Marth asked curiously. "Um, I'm n-not really s-sure."Mitako replied shyly. "I used to come here many times whenever I needed to take a break." Marth told her. "From what?" Mitako questioned as she looked up into his deep sapphire eyes.
Marth let out a soft sigh. "Well, mostly from the boring political meetings. They always made me want to fall asleep!" he said with a grin. Mitako couldn't help but grin back, giggling at the thought. "No way, you sleeping through that?" she asked. "Yeah, it's true I would!" Marth replied.
Mitako smiled happily. "I like it here, it's so peaceful." she said, watching the little fish swim around her fingers. "As do I Mi-chan." Marth replied with a kind smile. He looked back at Mitako, who seemed a bit pre-occupied with the pond. Slowly, he leaned in close to her ear. "I hope to see you around more often, Mi-chan." Marth whispered softly. Mitako's face turned slightly pink as he said it. Marth lowered his face close to hers and gently kissed her cheek.
Mitako removed her fingers from the pond, deciding to watch the fish swim around. A light breeze began to blow small strands of her hair in her face. She could hear a soft melody playing as the breeze blew, so she decided to sing along.
"I love the part in fairytales
that's very near the end,
when all the kingdom cheers for their new queen.
And all is well, and all is good
and everyone belongs
And happily there ever after-ing.
But when I enter the kingdom of dreams
And face the promise of all I can be,
Will they see me as a heroine?
Tell me, will they let me in?"
Marth simply listened to Mitako singing. 'Wow, she has such a beautiful voice.' he thought in amazement, smiling happily.
"I love the part when seasons change
And winter turns to spring
And bright new branches welcome new born blooms
The earth makes room for every flower
That reaches for the sun
The "Glad you've come" is whispered on the breeze
But when I enter the spring of my dreams
just like the one hour the birds "So-La" sing
Will I find my place with a gentleman?
Tell me will they let me in?
And if a heart's breaking
a part of me's aching
to show them how much that I care
but if no one let's me
or turns and forgets me
then how? How can I share?
I love the part in fairytales,
that's very near the end
the princess and the prince proclaim their love
and hearts are healed and souls are changed
and two blend into one
all orchestrated by the stars above
But when I stand at the door of my dreams
and hear the lonely heart calling for me
I could fill that emptiness within
if that heart would let me in
Won't someone let me in?"
Marth clapped as Mitako ended the song. "That was beautiful, just like you." he commented with a smile. "Thank you Marth-kun." Mitako replied shyly, her face turning light pink.
Meanwhile, Zelda had walked down the same dark hall and found the room at the end. She silently walked in, seeing Link and Shadow Link standing close by the bed. "Link, what's going on? What happened to Mitako?" she whispered in concern. Link turned to face Zelda with a worried expression. "Some guy with black wings tried to take advantage of her. He said his name was Prince Ashala." Shadow Link explained. "She'll be fine, just let her rest a bit." Link said softly, not wanting to disturb Mitako.
