Link made a few more stabs into the crisp, cool air of the Sacred Grove before he decided to settle for the night. Nearly six years had passed since his defeat of Ganondorf atop the rubble of what was then a destroyed Hyrule castle. Of course, since time had seemingly reset itself to the point before Ganon ever started the whole mess, Link was only just reaching adulthood for the second time. The reason for the timeline distortion including Link and Princess Zelda's seemingly exclusive memory of events was still only slightly grasped by Link even after extensive explanation by the ever eloquent Zelda. Still, it had been a chance to live some of the life he had almost missed out on during his previous trips through time. And ever since he had saved her, the Princess seemed perfectly content to spend as many days and evenings with Link as her companion as she could. Impa still stuck around, even though she knew Zelda was in very capable hands with the Hero of Time.
In spite of the seeming carefree nature of his new life, Link still found himself uneasy. And so he found himself once again in the very center of the Lost Woods, unsure of what to do.
"Still haven't gotten used to this blade," he mused to himself as he sheathed the sword that he had forged himself in the fires of Death Mountain. After he had replaced the Master Sword in its rightful stone at the center of the Temple of Time, Link had realized he would need a new way to defend himself should a problem ever arise. No problem ever presented itself, but that didn't stop him from spending the next five years as an apprentice swordsmith under the elder Goron Biggoron.
Those years, dozens of failed attempts and many burns later, Link had finally created a near perfect replica of the Master Sword in its powered down state.
Soft padding came as his faithful steed, and treasured gift, slowly trotted into the clearing.
"Hey girl, where have you been?" Link asked as Epona came to a stop before him, nestling her head against his cheek. "Playing with Malon probably." He really didn't have to guess, mostly because he could smell the sweet scent of apples and cinnamon coming from somewhere nearby him.
"How do you always know?" A young woman of just nineteen years old peeked around a tree just to Link's left.
Malon was a ranchgirl. Always had been and probably always would be. But that fact in no way meant that she was homely. She was of slender build, had gorgeous blue eyes, and had hair as fiery red as her passion for animals. The one thing Link love more than anything about her was her scent. Apples and cinnamon. All of those things used to make it hard for Link to even think around her, let alone form words. However he was getting more confident lately and had even started visiting her on market day to help her bring Lon Lon's milk to the castle.
"Oh I don't know, maybe I just sensed beauty in the air," Link grinned playfully as he half joked to the girl.
"Yeah? Hear that Epona? He can sense you."
She was deflecting. She always deflected.