My first story on here! Based around BOTW post-game Zelink. I hope you all enjoy and don't forget to leave a review :)

Hateno village was always nice this time of year. Blossom littered the straw ceilings of the central huts, and the light reflected off of them in a way that showered the world in soft pink light. Without the looming image of a world turned black in the backdrop, where once hyrule castle crumbled in fuchsia shadows, the sky was clear as far as Rito Village from the highest points. This is where she chose to sit, the ancient technology lab proud to boast her presence with the royal family's banner whenever she would visit.

Her father's spirit had died along with the calamity, and zelda often pondered would things have been different if they had reconciled- not that she ever stopped loving him, but she grew to resent him for her lack of freedom in their final days together. She only ever wanted to make him proud, but had this been enough?

"You okay up there, your highness?" came the voice of Purah from below, child-like in a way that caused her to adore the little woman.

"Yes, I'll be right down," but she wasn't planning on moving, at least not as long as the sun still lit her former home just like how she remembered. They were all she had left of her father- her memories and the crumbling remains of the guardians that protected Hyrule Castle still. King Rhoam's legacy was guaranteed to be one that sparked hope in generations to come, but after even a hundred years trapped within the place she had grown to fear the pain of losing him still felt raw. When she had extended her condolences to King Dorephan she had seen that pain in his eyes, and it made her chest ache with unrelenting grief. There was so much they had lost, so much time they couldn't ever replace, that it made life feel almost unbearable the last few weeks. She would have seeked comfort from Link, but her Knight had been so exhausted that all he seemed to do was eat and sleep, and when he wasn't he was simply watching her, barely uttering a word. She could see it in him too- how the calamity had taken a toll on him. She couldn't imagine losing her memories, of him, of her father, of the champions…

Oh, Urbosa. The woman who stepped up in the darkest of times to be to her what she needed- a mother figure. Someone to guide the way, lend a shoulder or even just give little snippets of advice under the guise of one-liners. She needed her right now- needed her strength. The road to rebuilding was long and winding, with dangerous pitfalls and crumbling paths, not to mention Zelda's own journey into womanhood and what will one day be the ruler of a kingdom of rubble and ruin. Her father had warned her she would someday be the heir to nothing, but all this time had still felt too soon.

"Zelda?" She knew that voice, so soft spoken it's barely audible, and yet from the chest of someone stronger than any Hylian she'd ever known. Almost like a whisper, or as though it's being carried through on a breeze.

"I said I'll be down in a minute, or did you not hear me?" The stubborn princess muttered, her eyebrows drawing together in a frown. She was busy… mourning, she would call it- not 'dwelling' as Sidon had insisted in their short stay at the Zora Domain. She could hear feet shuffling and then footsteps that clinked from metal boots that Knights were often outfitted in. Before she could imprint the view of Hyrule to her heart her vision was blocked by two narrowed blue eyes and a narrow, pointed nose. He didn't need to say it, she knew he was baiting her. The silence they had grown accustomed to together was almost more telling than words themselves, especially after defeating Ganon. It felt like all the progress Zelda had made in getting him to open up had been destroyed. He had most of his memories now, but the little moments that had mattered to her were lost in the fabric of time and she didn't know how to get them back. Their deep conversations by campfire, or the nights where he would wait in the entrance of her tent to keep guard because she was afraid of the Yiga Clan returning, or the things she had begun to feel for him- they didn't feel real anymore. They had come so far, and now they had so far to go. She just wished he would talk to her more, but she knew this wasn't easy for him.

The Princess sighed, standing up so that he was no longer looming over her. "Sorry Link, but I'm not in the mood to stay and… not-chat." She turned on her heel but he was faster, weeks of eating right, things that weren't dubious, keeping him in his best form.

"Wait."

His hand circled her wrist, and when she turned back to the boy who had grown into a man before her eyes his cheeks were slightly pink. A welcome change from his usual stoic expression. "Are you… okay?"

Her stomach lurched, but she formed a tight-lipped smile all the same, "I've just been thinking too much. I'll be fine."

"You're Zelda, you don't think there's such a thing as thinking too much." His face was serious, but his cheeks and eyes gave away the humour in his statement. It almost felt like before the calamity, where everything was new and exciting and he knew her, really, for her.

"Maybe I was wrong," Her voice was unsteady, and she pulled her hand out of his grasp reluctantly, immediately missing the warmth of his palm through her glove. "About everything."

He didn't say another word, instead frowned and gestured for her to make her way inside. Sometimes she wondered if he still thought he was obliged to protect her how her father had wanted. Today she just settled for quiet acceptance, checking over her shoulder to see him walking behind her as they retreated inside the tech lab.