Hero of time #1: Welcome Home
It was another ordinary day in the village of Ordon. At least, ordinary now that everything had gone back to normal. Link had finished his quest of defeating Ganondorf and returning peace to both the land of Hyrule as well as the twilight realm. When Link had returned home, there was a great celebration to congratulate him and welcome him back. Ilia had been the first to see him, as she had waited at the village entrance every day for nearly a month. When he finally did come, she ran to the village to tell everyone the good news.
It had been almost two weeks since that day, and Link returned to his work helping Fado, the rancher. Every day Fado would allow the goats out into his pasture to graze and Link would watch them for the day and return them to the barn before nightfall. Link always tried to get the herding done a little bit early, as that time right before night, twilight, brought back terrible memories of his quest, memories that he shared with no one. He knew peace had finally returned to Hyrule, but he still could not rid himself of that feeling. It was an unexplainable feeling, so unknown to him that if he even tried to explain it, he couldn't find the words to say.
Link woke earlier than usual that morning. He felt like he had heard something moving around outside of his house. He had come to be a light sleeper, as his need for caution on his quest made him constantly alert, even when sleeping. He lay in bed for a while, listening. The sun was just starting to rise over the mountains in the east, filling Link's room with a brilliant golden tint. Link finally sat up and looked out the window. Epona was gone! He quickly got dressed into his normal Ordonian attire, his green tunic having been put away after his quest. He hoped he wouldn't have to use it again. He loved the familiar feeling of his old clothes, and preferred them to his green tunic. He ate a small meal and then went outside, nimbly hopping off his porch and onto the grassy ground below. He walked over to where he kept Epona, and then studied the ground around that area for tracks. Just as he expected, a new set of tracks had been made, leading down the path to Ordon spring. He sighed. He knew it would happen one of these days again. Ilia. She must have taken Epona to Ordon spring to clean her, as she had done many times before. He slowly walked down the path, kicking at an occasional pebble. He was in no hurry. He loved to have Ilia clean Epona. It saved him the time, but she also did a much better job than he did. When he finally arrived, he saw them. The two of them stood silhouetted by the sun's golden rays reflecting off the water's surface. Ilia had her hand resting gently on Epona's muzzle. Link just stood at the entrance, he did not want to break the moment. He wanted to remember this vivid picture in his mind. Before, Link had never felt overly close to Ilia, he just considered them friends. But as his long journey continued, he realized how dear she was to him. But that day in Telma's bar, when he finally saw her again, he was crushed when he saw the blank expression she gave him. He began to walk to her, but stopped. He knew, somehow he knew, she did not remember. As link began his new quest of trying to restore her memory, he felt a new determination. An inner strength he had not known before. Could it be…love? He had often wondered this, but never really thought deeply about it. But when he saw her standing there with Epona, he knew it was true.
"Oh, Link!" Ilia turned to him, smiling sweetly, "I was just cleaning Epona for you, I hope you don't mind. I know I do it so often, but I love to have her clean."
Link shook his head. Of course he didn't mind. He also loved to have Epona cleaned. Link slowly walked toward them. His bare feet encountered the cool water, but he didn't even flinch. It was as though he was being carried through the water. When he finally walked next to them, Ilia had almost an angelic glow around her from the sun reflecting off the water. He realized how beautiful she really was. Sure, he had let her know on several occasions that he thought she looked beautiful, but it dawned on him how much he had really meant it. Ilia knew Link was thinking hard on something. "What is it, Link?" She asked timidly. Link looked away towards the mountains behind the small lake.
"Ilia," He began."I have seen many things on my journeys. I realized how truly fragile life is and how much just one life can mean to you. I have seen many beasts fall to my blade, many of them simply obeying orders because they had to. I am sure many of them did not want to die, but that is the price they paid for joining the side of evil. If given the chance, I would have let them live, but I was not given that choice. I don't know who they were, but I can remember their faces. Each of them had a life, but it was as though it could not have made a difference in the whole perspective of things. But I will remember one thing. There was a life that did make a difference to me, a life that gave me inspiration to continue. Many times I was on the verge of defeat, fatigue, even death, but that life gave me the urge to fight to live on." Ilia had listened intently the whole time, taking in every word he was telling her. When he got to this point, she became even more intent.
"Who, Link?" She asked
He turned his gaze back to her beautiful eyes. "It was you, Ilia." With this last remark, her eyes became wide, and then relaxed as she smiled at him.
"Really, Link?" She asked, almost doubting her own ears. Instead of answering her question, he put his hands on her shoulders and brought her to him, his head slowly cocking to the side. She did the same, and they met in a kiss. Link felt an inner joy course through his veins. He had longed to do this, ever since she was taken from him. Ilia could swear she was dreaming, but it was real. She knew it. Epona snorted gently, as if saying. "It's about time!"And it was. Ilia wrapped her arms around Link, never wanting to let go. Link gently placed one hand on the back of her head, and the kiss became stronger. When they finally parted lips, they remained in an embrace.
"Ilia?" Link said.
"Yes, Link."
He slowly leaned in to kiss her again, whispering as he did, "I love you." They kissed once more. When they parted again, Ilia replied, "I love you too, Link." With that, Link took Epona's reigns in his left hand and Ilia's hand in his right, and they all walked back to Ordon to start the now beautiful and not so ordinary day.