In the years that followed the fall of Calamity Ganon, the kingdom changed dramatically from the grand splendor it was prior to evil's reign.
With the hero's destruction of the darkness that plagued the land, monsters did not vanish at once, but weakened over time. Little by little the bokoblins and lizalfos appeared fewer and farther in between. It would take several months before the residents of Hyrule deciphered why: they were no longer regenerating. With blood-moons quickly becoming a tale of legend and malice a thing of fiction, monsters ceased their cycle of rebirth. Coupled with the combined efforts of the Zora, Goron, Gerudo, Rito, and Hylian people's' efforts, the tyrannus creations quickly vanished never to return within the era.
It was at this point and time that the long lost Princess Zelda stepped into the light to reclaim her goddess-given right and change the future of Hyrule forever. The land expected her to rebuild the castle. The oldest non-Hylian residents of the land still remember the splendor that was Hyrule Castle one hundred years ago, so it made sense that those same people expected to hear the Princess's plans to rebuild the royal palace.
Instead, she tore it down.
Shortly after the shock of such an announcement spread through the far reaches of Hyrule, there was a second proclamation made: Zelda would be the last royal to reign over Hyrule. Instead, future generations would develop a new system of choosing the governing powers. Perhaps something more suited for a growing and prosperous land or participating residents with a voice rather than that of mere observers. It would appear a hundred years locked in a decaying castle with the saturated evil of the world made a young woman learn a few things about ruling her goddess-given right. For thousands of years since Hylia herself walked the land, a single family reigned supreme and ruled the land. In all that time the same repetition of destruction and fall continued as well.
There would no longer be a royal family. If the princess one day would be blessed with a child, that child would have the same right to a throne as any other child of the same generation. The Goddess's bloodline could continue, but unless there was explicit need to pull it into the light, there served no purpose to put it on a throne.
At this point the princess's third and final decision was made. It was only a misfortune so few were around to hear it. Shortly after the changes to Hyrulian ruling were proclaimed, Princess Zelda vanished from the only land she'd ever known.
Rumor was she traveled to far-away lands to build an army. Other's whispered of the rebirth of the sheikah tribe. Even fewer voices spoke under hushed voices that the princess was resting deep past Faron Woods with her beloved knight. She was last seen with the Calamity Hero; he too had vanished with the young princess. Little did any of them know just how far back history was going to repeat itself.
- - - - - 3 Years Later - - - - -
Deep within the humble dwelling, a couple slept in their shared bed.
They were a young pair by outward appearance, but wise with time and experience that betrayed their youthful exterior. In truth, the couple had survived more than a century of war and even as they lay resting in the calm of night wrapped in their lover's arms, their hearts still stood armed against the darkness that plagued their memories.
A pair of green eyes jolted open with a racing heart and silent scream swallowed in the young woman's throat. Zelda nearly jolted out of her skin in sheer terror, her stomach flipped in on itself and blood ran icy cold in her veins. The image of the dark red eyes burned in her mind's eyes and it left her petrified in fear.
As if on instinct, the once soundly sleeping and warm body behind her sprang into action not an instant later. Link jolted up the moment he felt his princess's fear, one arm clutched tightly and protectively to his lover's arm, the other buried under his pillow where Zelda knew he still hid a blade for protection.
Neither of the pair spoke, but Link's eyes scanned the room quickly and efficiently despite the slumber still heavy in his eyes. It took a moment, but once the young man was convinced the room was empty and safe, he loosened his grip on Zelda's arm. Link glanced at his hand retracting from the princess's porcelain skin and grimaced when faint red marks remained where he had gripped her none-too-gently.
Meanwhile, Zelda remained motionless and completely separated from the sting of his grip. Locked in a trance-like state, the evil glare of death's eyes plagued her mind and the screams of terrors echoed in her ears. It took several moments for the haunting nightmare to fade away even with Link's attempts to soothe her the best he knew how. He held her close to him much more gently this time with a strong arm around her middle and a soothing circular massage of his calloused palm against her arms. His breath was warm against her neck, and despite the young woman's of his usual attempts to ease her mind it took several minutes before Zelda felt comfort from in his touch and could finally let her racing heart slow to a more normal rhythm.
"I'm alright," she finally muttered so low Link's perceptive ears even struggled to hear. Her voice still trembled with the icy fear that had chilled her bones. "I'm safe." She didn't say it to him, she said it to herself. It was one of the practices that had been recommended to the traumatized pair upon discovery that a "normal" life after the fall of Calamity Ganon was much more difficult to obtain than one would expect.
Link breathed deeply beside her and rested his chin on her shoulder never relinquishing his embrace. Zelda could feel the slowing rise and fall of his chest pressed against her back and knew he was quickly falling asleep against her.
"Go back to sleep," She whispered to him softly. She turned to him and kissed his cheek. It was warm and pink with sleepiness. "I'll be fine."
He kissed her back wordlessly and without any further instruction, lay back onto the mattress and sheets and quickly let slumber recapture his mind and body.
Zelda had to smile.
You would think after sleeping a hundred years he'd finally have had enough sleep to last him a lifetime.
Some things never changed, apparently.
The image of a long lost ancestor floated to her mind's eye and Zelda felt a dull, painful ache settle into her chest.
Lying here before her, he looked so peaceful. He looked so much like Him .
Knowing full well that sleep was not going to return to her now, Zelda finally made the decision to forfeit attempts and rose out of bed. She walked quietly over to the chair by the window across from the only bed in the room. The shuffling of sheets grasped her attention and Zelda watched in amusement as Link shifted closer to the warm spot her body had in the mattress, turn over onto his stomach, and promptly fall complete still.
It was amazing how well the man slept after everything he'd been through.
Her green eyes floated over him. Every scar, freckle and marking shown off his sun-kissed skin like a landscape she'd learned to memorize over the past few years. The scars in particular were a sore spot for some time, but after she'd grown to know each one and kiss each one and lavish each memory of pain with something much sweeter and loving, they'd grown into markers of love and memory.
Zelda's stomach did an unexpected flip and she gasped for a moment before clutching her middle.
"Shhh…" she hushed low into the morning light with a feeble smile. Her hand instinctually began to rub slow circles over her growing middle and she felt the turbulence deep within go still.
Link let out a long exhale and it made Zelda snap her attention back to him.
"You're watching me sleep," a rough and sleep-soaked, gravelly voice spoke. Zelda broke into a grin.
"I can't watch you sleep if you're not actually sleeping," she replied with a feminine gentleness to her voice. Link didn't respond for some time, and for a moment she even wondered if perhaps he'd fallen back into slumber. A few moments later however, he finally turned over to face her and cocked open one sleepy blue eye.
He didn't speak this time, reverting back to his silent state that was so customary of him. But he didn't need to speak the words out loud for her to understand them.
I can't sleep knowing you're not here.
He rose. Joints and muscles stretched and groaned as he moved to all fours atop the mattress before swinging a leg over the edge and finally leaving the comfort of his bed.
The air was cool in the house, but Link either didn't notice or wasn't bothered by it because he stumbled sleepily over to her with only a pair of low-hanging shorts on his hips and chest bare to the cold night air. He groaned with heavy, sleep-drenched eyes that made Zelda chuckle as he made his way over to her. He stopped just shy of reaching her legs and let his body drop to the floor in a less than graceful manner – eliciting a roll of eyes from the princess before him – before scooting closer to her, wrapping his arms around her bent legs, and resting his head against her knees as if it were a pillow. He shifted a few more times to find just the right position before finally releasing a long breath and he settled into her lap.
She wanted to say something about the absurdity of his stance or how child-like his position was currently but she couldn't bring herself to do it. She knew what he was doing, and she understood why. She'd spent the greater part of a 100 years apart from the world fighting for her life and his. He'd spent a hundred years healing from death's doorway in the shrine of resurrection and lost all memory of his previous life in the process. He still hadn't recovered a large chuck of his memories and at this point in time, likely never would.
They needed each other. She needed him close to her to feel his presence like a warm blanket in the cold just as much as he needed to know she was still there. She was one of the few from his past life that still remained and he was one of the few people in her life that knew the girl she was before the Calamity hit.
"What's bothering you, my princess?" Link's voice was low and sleepy but she knew he was staying coherent solely for her benefit.
She smiled and let her left hand rest against his hair to stroke him gently.
"Nothing, " she lied unconvincingly.
Link looked up, raising his head to lock eyes with her. The stare he gave her challenged her falsehood and declared his disbelief.
She sighed. "Sometimes I can still feel the Goddess's pain for her lost Hero." Her voice wavered at the last word and Link sensed her stress.
"Do you not love me as much as she loved him?"
That was something she hadn't expected at all and startled her completely.
"Of course I do." He heard the distress in her voice and regretted his choice of words immediately. "But these memories…" she searched for her words. "They float back to me, each more painful than the previous one and while it makes me realize I was always destined to be tied to you, it just makes to truth of our history more tragic each time." Link could see the pain welling up in her eyes. He knew she wouldn't cry. In the past three years since the Calamity he'd never seen her cry again. But he knew the look she wore on her beautiful face was one of pain and self-loathing. That much hadn't changed in the past 100 years.
Link unwound his left arm from around Zelda's legs and reached for her hand. The marking on his wrist began to glow as he touched her skin and shined brightly when he intertwined his fingers with hers. He wrist did exactly the same.
"Can you tell me?" He whispered to her even though there was no one to hear them.
Zelda took a deep breath to give herself time to think and Link waited patiently. He lay his head back against her knees but never let go of her hand or moved his eyes away from hers.
"Do you know the story of the Goddess Hylia and her Chosen Hero?"
"Marginally," he replied low. He turned away for a moment to kiss her silk-covered knee before resuming his comfortable position. "But my memory is damaged of that time, and even then I fear I've only been told a small part of the tale."
He was right.
"Long ago, before our history was even recorded, there were a species of people that lived on the land and called themselves Hylians. They worshipped the Goddess Hylia much like we do today and even called their land Land of Hylia.
For centuries, the Hylians were at peace and they learned love and respect for the land and lives on it. But like all good things, the lack of adversary and change made them grow complacent of the centuries and generations, and their hearts began to change over time.
One day the Earth split into two, and a darkness spilled into the Goddess's beloved land and hearts of her people.
Evil began to poison the ground and hearts of many. Harvests diminished from abundance to sustenance. Love shifted to jealousy, loyalty to revenge. Monsters began to grow from the darkness in the land's heart.
But not all submitted to the darkness. Heroes rose to defend the beautiful land of Hylia, those who loved the Goddess and remembered her divine love and blessing. They did it without hunger for recognition but out of the purity of their hearts and the three goddesses blessed the purest of them with strength of power, wisdom, and courage to assist them in protecting the land.
So evil was pushed back for a time, until a new danger arose.
With the three goddess's blessing strengthening mortal men, the people became scared of their power. Hylians turned against them and slaughtered or imprisoned those that claimed such strength and loyalty. Most of them perished, and those that didn't rotted away in chains and shackles until their lives extinguished.
Hylians are smart people, but they are horribly self-righteous and terribly afraid of power. It was this fear that made them capture their strongest hero yet – a knight of the royal family – and lock him up for a crime he didn't commit. Oh, but they had reasons of course. Their claim was ' if Hylia had wanted such a hero to be so strong among men, she would defend him.' They stripped him of all his title and reputation. They tortured him until his body was weak and blood dirty with the filth of the earth. But they could not break his soul, so they let him rot shackled to his imprisonment until his bones hardened with time and muscles weakened with stasis. But his will…his will was tempered and strengthened like a fine metal until it was as unbreakable as a diamond.
Meanwhile, Hylia was in the midst of a war that would soon destroy her beautiful land. Faced off against the poison that was evil, she couldn't protect the men and women who defended her honor so darkness spread. It festered and grew until years later the sanctity of the divine land crumbled and war erupted in the land.
The Goddess fled evil's presence, and began to rally her people. It was these people that came in search of the strongest hero they ever knew, still kept locked in the castle dungeons. They brought him into the light, gifted him with a new sword and armor, and asked him forgiveness and strength to fight alongside them. Any lesser man would have spat on the very people who destroyed his body and honor, but the hero did not. Now weakened with time and sick from the poison inflicted on his mortal body, he warned of his weakness but took up arms anyways for the good of his beloved land.
Zelda closed her eyes and took a long, slow breath. She could remember that voice in her head from tens of thousands of years ago as if it were herLink talking to her now. It made her heart heavy in her chest, a weight so strong it pressed against her lungs until it was difficult to breathe.
Link, as perceptive as he was to her well being noticed and reacted accordingly. He brought her hand still locked with his up to his lips and kissed the back of her fingers tenderly. It was a silent and small gesture, but the significance was big enough to change Zelda's entire attitude and give her the confidence to continue the story.
"She brought her hero the Sword of the Goddess in hopes to help him in his weak state. But he was a mortal man, one who could not wield a divine weapon alone and one who did not believe he had the honor to be gifted such a blessing from the Goddess of Light.
I think that's when she fell in love with him.
She fell in love with how much love he had for her and all she created. He forgave the people that nearly killed him just to protect his home and her grace.
So the hero reforged the sword into the master sword and in doing so created a blade bound with the power of the goddess and the soul of the hero. Together, Hylia and her beloved hero fought several days and nights against the evil that plagued the land before they finally drew up the plan to raise the remaining Hylians to the sky and out of evil's reach."
Zelda stopped again, but not because the story was over. Link glanced up at her eyes and watched in shock as a tear slid down her cheek. Her lip quivered and the vein in her neck bulged and strained as she tried to swallow the pain in her heart.
"Um…" her voice broke and she paused to refocus her words. "This is usually the part of the story where people say the Goddess took her people to the sky, created Skyloft to keep them safe and shed her divinity to protect them." She spoke the words as if each syllable were a knife through her flesh. "But that's only part of the story."
"Hylia watched from a distance as a bright white light split the land in two and her beloved creations rose to the sky. She had planned this with her hero; she would fight off the darkness and he would plunge the sword into the earth when all the Hylians had gathered at the predestined location and rise to the sky with them. The plan was for her to meet him there. She was going to have a life with him in the sky. She was prepared to make him a god among men so she could spend the rest of eternity with him.
But…he didn't make it to the sky. I remember the feeling she experienced; I remember the pain – the agony when she realized her hero was gone from the world. This man she loved so dearly left her alone on the earth and it was that traumatic moment of defeat and despair that finally cracked her resolve and unlocked from deep within her soul the light that pushed back the darkness.
He'd saved the people, but died in the war. A Goddess can do many things but bring back a loved one from death is not one of them."
Link wasn't sure when Zelda had released his fingers but she was cupping his face with her palm a moment later and as much as it pained him to watch her cry, he let her finish everything she had to say.
"He looked so much like you, and every time I remember that time it reminds me of holding you lifeless in my arms and thinking how close I was to losing you."
At that point her cry was on the verge of a sob and Link could not watch his princess in as much pain as she was experiencing. He stood on his two feet as quickly as he could muster and pulled her up by wrapping his arms snuggly around her body. Zelda sank her weight into his embrace like it was what she had long been waiting for and let all the turmoil and pain in her heart flow freely from her body.
He didn't speak, and he didn't move. He simply held her close. Crying eyes pressed into his chest and sorrowful hands clutched at his bare back as if he were her lifeline until he felt her calm. Even then, neither of the couple made an immediate move to separate. Link kissed her forehead and closed his eyes inhaling her scent and wishing he could absorb some of the pain in her heart and mind.
"I know this is my burden to bear as the descendant of the Goddess, but it was a whole lot easier to manage before I started getting some of the memories of my past lives." Zelda sniffled against Link's chest and upon feeling his smile against her forehead and lightly sway her side to side buried her face further into his warm skin.
"It was probably easier before you got pregnant too."
Finally, Zelda laughed and Link had to smile as he gave her space to wipe her tears and take a moment to admire the smile he'd pulled out or her. Even teary eyed and red with sleeplessness, she was beautiful to him when she smiled.
Link brought her close to him again and Zelda looked up at him expectantly and closed her eyes on instinct just before his lips touched hers.
There was a moment of pure, undiluted light whenever they came together. It was a moment of magic that coursed through their veins and shined off their souls to illuminate any shadow of darkness around them whenever they kissed or touched that left Zelda breathless and bewildered with the surge of energy that filled her body.
"That never gets old," she whispered still holding her eyes closed and lips just barely grazing his. Link smiled warmly and felt Zelda's arms wrap around his neck, so he kissed her again. And again. And once more for good measure and his own selfish desires.
"What happened after the hero's death?" Link's voice was low and soft like a warm breeze that gently lulled her into a blanket of comfort and assurance. She inhaled slowly, letting the smell of his skin and taste of his kiss linger on her senses.
"She buried him," She said simply before growing quiet once again. The silence this time was less out of despair and more out of respect. But the story wasn't over, and there was one key element to the legend that none but the Goddess's blood herself understood.
"He wasn't gone completely from her, though." Link opened his eyes and met her gaze with a question in his deep blue gaze. Wordlessly, Zelda pulled one arm down from around his neck and tried not to think about the smooth expanse of skin she grazed over as she moved her hand down his chest. She clasped his left hand in her right – the triangular markings mirrored in their wrists glowed on contact – and placed his hand open-palmed against her swollen middle.
It took Link a moment to register what the princess was suggesting to him. Perhaps it was the sleep still heavy in his head, or maybe it was the hunger he'd fueled to taste her again that clouded his reasoning. When he finally did realize what she was implying his face changed into a dramatic, illuminating smile.
"She didn't know it right away, but she carried the blood of her beloved with her even after his death. It's part of the reason she shed her divinity to be reborn a mortal rather than join him in the afterlife." Link did not need a moment to digest this.
He released her slowly and lowered to the floor before her. Zelda watched unwavering as her beloved knelt in front of her body before meeting her eyes. The look in them was asking her permission, of what she wasn't quite certain but she trusted him explicitly and he had her blessing to do whatever he may to her. She nodded so minutely he almost didn't see it at first.
His hands rose past the hem of her sleeping gown to the smooth skin of her legs and Zelda felt a shiver escape her lips as goosebumps erupted over her flesh when he touched her. Then, slowly, his ran his hands up her legs and thighs, bringing the silken fabric with him until the gown pooled in his hands and her growing middle became revealed to him.
It was the most miraculous thing he'd ever seen in his life. Granted, large chunks of that life still remained lost from his memory and probably always would. But he couldn't imagine anything would ever compare to this right in front of him.
Zelda's nightgown bunched over her belly and she watched with glazed eyes as Link leaned forward until he finally could press his lips against the stretched skin.
"To think," he spoke low as if he didn't want to air between them to encroach on their moment. "Even after all this time, the cycle of life and history still surprises me." He smiled as if hearing the proclamation all over again. "You have the Goddess's blood in you, little one," he whispered to Zelda's middle once more before kissing her stomach a final time and rising to his feet.
"As do you," she said simply. "Hylia didn't just give birth to one child, she gave birth to two. That is how we've always been bound to one another. What Hylia and her Chosen Hero created was a split bloodline - one that would carry the light of the Goddess, and the other the spirit of the Hero."
It was all new information to Link and it probably should have been information that surprised and astounded him. Rather than reflect any of those reactions that the princess had expected from her beloved hero, she instead greeted with a much less dignified and almost childlike look of both amusement and comical horror.
She cocked an eyebrow inquisitively at him a moment before understanding why he was giving the look he had. "Link," she nearly laughed at deciphering the puzzle. "It was nearly fifty millenia ago. I don't think shared ancestry really matters to our relationship that far down the line," she laughed at him and attempted to land a playful slap on his check. Link caught her hand instead, and held it close against his heart.
"Good," he began moving closer to her and pulling her against him in one fluid tug. "Because otherwise I might feel guilty about what I'm about to do to you." Without another pause, Link swept Zelda off the floor in a quick and powerful pull until he held the squealing princess bridal style in his capable arms.
Zelda's laugh illuminated the bedroom much like the golden glow of the morning sunrise filtering in through the window behind them while he carried her to the bed.
"And what are you going to do, exactly?" She asked him playfully with her arms wound tightly around his neck. She watched his blue eyes darken with a well familiar hunger and almost buzzed in anticipation .
He carried her to bed and Zelda laughed as he carefully lowered her to the cushioned mattress before planting his mouth firmly against hers and letting himself taste the love she held for him. Her fingers rose to dig into the blonde waves at the base of his skull and he groaned into her mouth when she tugged tightly on the golden strands.
"Maybe I'll try to see if I can repeat history and turn our future child into two." His voice was thick in Zelda's ear and she wasn't sure if it was the lust in his voice or weight of his body as he pinned her into the cushioned mattress that made her breath tremble in her throat and skin buzz with electricity. He pressed hot lips to the column of her throat and she nearly forgot to breathe.
"I don't think that's possible," she tried to quip with intelligent rebuttal but instead merely whimpered with a voice that begged him for something else.
He smiled.
"Well it doesn't hurt to try."