"Do you... truly remember me?"
Those words rattled in Link's mind as he looked to the unconscious princess before him. Zelda, torn, tattered, and exhausted, lay asleep in the bed in front of him. Shortly after leaving Hyrule Castle, Zelda had fallen asleep on the way to Kakariko Village, and had yet to awaken. Link had been inherently worried at first, as she nearly fell off the horse. Impa had cleared his mind of any worry when they arrived however.
"I suppose you've never gone a century without a nap, have you?" she had joked.
It had then made sense to the young man, however, he still hadn't left her side for long since. One hundred years had passed, and yet, she looked exactly as he remembered on the day of Calamity, down to the tear stains on her dirtied face and the emerald eyes that had shone despite her state. That was what had taken Link by surprise. He did remember her. He remembered her clearly. Too clearly.
Link shook the thought from his mind; why ponder what can never be answered? He retrieved his small bowl of warm water and rag from the small nightstand and began to wipe the one hundred year old grime off of the Princess' face.
It's the least I can do, he thought, after all, she fought a battle intended for me for a century. Link froze for a moment and let out a frustrated sigh. All that time speaking of how she was a failure…
"Link," called a gentile old voice behind him, "You can go to sleep you know. I promise she will still be there when you wake."
The knight jerked quickly on his stool, finding Impa with her teasing smirk. Link let out a relieved breath and nodded in response to the old woman.
"Truly, though, you've had quite a day yourself. Why not rest?"
"Not tired," he responded simply, continuing his task. Zelda smiled slightly at the warm touch, but did not wake even as Impa took a seat at the foot of the bed. As he worked, Impa's knowing smirk was trained ever on the young man. Eventually, he huffed and turned to the old woman.
"You're a fantastic liar, you know. Even in the glory days, you could fool near everyone into thinking that nothing ever troubled you. Do you wish to hear a secret, though?" Link's confused look only bemused her more as she leaned in closer.
"The man who held the world on his shoulders eventually was crushed by the weight."
The young man pursed his lips and gave a small nod, saying nothing. Impa could tell he brooded the thought, however, as he went back to wiping the Princess's face. He was gentle, careful not to wake her or-
"She won't break, you know," Impa commented, "You touch her as if she is made of porcelain."
"I don't want to wake her," He whispered. Impa laughed quietly at the prospect.
"I believe that the gods themselves could not wake this woman right now." Link couldn't help but smile at the old woman's joke. Perhaps she was right. He wasn't sure why he hovered so much, why he treated the princess so delicately. Old habits die hard, I suppose, he thought to himself.
He couldn't lie to himself, however. He knew the real answer plain as day. Link pursed his lips in thought and turned to the old woman. There was no harm in a question, was there?
"Impa, do you mind if I ask you something," he questioned quietly.
"Oh, come now," She responded with a raspy, soft chuckle, "When have I ever minded your questions?"
Link didn't ask right away. He opened and closed his mouth, fishing for the right words.
"Have you ever…" He trailed, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Have I ever… what?" Impa inquired, confused. Link took a deep breath before starting again.
"Have you ever felt like… let me put it like this," He attempted to explain, "Think of a ball of yarn. The use of the ball of yarn is to be made into an article of cloth, something of use; but when you knit, occasionally a few stitches will be forgotten. Once you see the mistake, you should undo all the work you've done just to repair that one stitch."
Impa tilted her head to the side, confused and concerned, the chains on her conical hat rattling slightly.
"Impa, I feel like someone knitted me together, but did it so quickly that they didn't go back and fix the dropped stitches." He explained, a cynical smirk on his countenance while he fiddled with the warm cloth in his hand. "Creating this cloth that cannot keep any warmth or protection…"
"Link, my dear boy," Impa soothed as she placed a comforting hand on the young knight's shoulder, "do you not know what you have accomplished? Ganon is defeated, the Divine Beasts are back under our control, and you rescued your friend from the depths Hell itself. You've done so much and come so far. How can you say you cannot protect when you have done nothing but since you awoke?"
"Because none of it was me." Link responded immediately, "It was all her." He motioned to Zelda, face now clean, sleeping soundly and peacefully.
"I barely have any memories of what I once was, but I do know this. If it hadn't been for Zelda, I would have failed twice." Link's fierce blue eye bore into the old woman at that moment, both sombre and bitter.
"And once was one time too many."
Impa was stunned for a moment. Not only was this the most Link had ever to spoken to her, either in this century or the last, but never had she seen someone victorious look so… defeated.
"Dear boy, you are far too hard on yourself. You released the Divine Beast, You found the Master Sword, You defeated the Calamity Ganon." She pointed a grizzled old finger at the young man, "You did that. Please do not forget this."
Link didn't respond at first, but smiled, his face now guarded as it ever was. Eventually, he nodded and returned his gaze to the Princess. Impa sighed in frustration, but did not argue.
"Well, if you're not going to sleep, you can at least eat something." She said, groaning as she stood with her small cane. Link could help but perk his eyes at the prospect of food. Now that he thought about it, he hadn't eaten since his battle with Calamity Ganon.
Imma smirked once more as she heard the hero's stomach rumble.
"I'll get something for you." She stated. Link, of course got up himself and tried to exit the room, However, the quick thwip of Impas wooden cane blocking the doorway stopped him.
"I assure you that I have more than enough energy in these old bones to whip up some food." She pointed back to the stool. Link looked as if he was going to argue, "No buts, young man. Go rest."
Whether from the motherly tone Impa used or Link's sheer exhaustion, he obeyed with a huff. Impa, on the other hand, looked quite happy with herself.
She fumbled her way out of the room and down the stairs. Paya was waiting, nervously biting at her fingernails. As she saw her grandmother come in, however, she ran to the elderly woman.
"How are they? I-is the princess alright? I-is L-link getting any rest? Oh, I'm so worried about them…". Paya raddled, wrinkling the fabric of her tunic, "Wh-what of when she wakes, she doesn't remember him? What if the battle with Ganon drained her so much that she just fades? What i-"
"Calm yourself, dear!" Impa interrupted, "They will both be fine. They just need some rest. I was actually going to bring Link some dinner."
"Oh!" Paya cheered instantly. She ran to the nearby table and retrieved something, then returned, holding a black box with an enticing aroma. "I, um… I already took care of that…"
Impa looked at the container with interest as the young lady opened the clay lid. It was filled to the brim with all kinds of fish, rice, fresh fruits and other delicious foods. That must have taken quite a while, Impa mused. Her granddaughter's little infatuation with the hero was not something Impa had missed.
"I just wanted to s-say thank you to him, you know? For all he's done; and I know how much he adores a good meal, and… um…" Paya trailed off, blushing as deep of a pink as the salmon in the dish.
"Thank you, dear. I'll let him know it was from you."
"Oh!" Paya exclaimed, covering her face, "Please don't! Oh, I would be so embarrassed, grandmother! Can't you say you made it?"
"I don't think he'd believe me if I did, m'dear." Impa chucked, but she understood her granddaughter's dilemma. The poor girl was just too shy. "But if you wish, I will not tell him you made it for him."
"T-t-thank you, grandmother." Paya replayed quietly, clasping her hands together. The young lady turned, stepped to the window and knelt, resuming her nightly prayers. Impa couldn't help but be proud of what a sweet and devoted grandchild she had.
Impa took over the grand task of climbing the stairs once more to Paya's room, the box in tow. However, once she entered, soft snoring could be heard in pairs.
Impa peeked around the corner and found the hero fast asleep on the stool, his head and arms resting on the side of the small bed. Impa's smile returned once more as she placed the box on the nightstand and hobbled over to retrieve a spare blanket. The hero didn't even budge as the elderly woman draped it over him.
"Not tired, eh?" She mused, taking one more look at the pair of sleeping Hylians before blowing out the candle.
"Sleep well, Heroes."