Friendship Bonds in Winter.
By Fox McCloude
Disclaimer: The Legend of Zelda and all related characters belong to Nintendo. All rights reserved.
Hyrule Castle…
Since about three weeks ago, a winter mantle had completely covered the lands of Hyrule, replacing the usually green landscape in the fields surrounding the castle by a snow-white one. As the adults took it to clean up the roads for the horses and carriages, the kids didn't waste the chance to come out and play in the snow. Some of them built forts for themselves and threw snowballs to one another. Other few took advantage of the frozen water at the nearby lake to use it as an ice-skating rink. And yet others preferred to slide down the hills in their sleds at full speed. Yes, the kids in the castle town loved that season of the year. Almost all of them, except for a young girl.
In one of the towers of the imposing castle above the surrounding citadel, was the heir of the Hyrule Royal Family, Princess Zelda, who was 10 years old. A girl with delicate and soft facial features, fair skin, sky-blue eyes and golden hair, the latter of which barely peeked underneath the headdress she wore. Unlike the other children in the Castle Town, she was not playing, she was sitting before a desk, studying (or at least, she was supposed to be studying). Her right hand was holding a quill writing on a scroll, and she occasionally moved it to the inkpot next to her to fill it up again. Her left hand was holding her head below her chin. Her face clearly showed an expression of complete boredom. All she could hear was her teacher's nonstop chattering, while he wrote on the board for her to read.
"Now, let us review again, Your Highness. The three Golden Goddesses, known as Din, the Goddess of Power, Nayru, the Goddess of Wisdom, and Farore, the Goddess of Courage, came down from the far skies over the chaotic land we know today as Hyrule, and gave it the life as we know it. Din, with her strong flaming arms, cultivated the land and created the red earth. Nayru, poured her wisdom onto the earth and gave the spirit of the law to the world. Farore, with her rich soul, produced all life forms who would uphold the law…"
The Princess exhaled a sigh. She knew by heart that chapter of history, since she had been reading it over and over again the whole week. Even so, she still kept writing what the teacher dictated, but after just a few minutes, she wasn't listening anymore. Her gaze went towards the window. From that height she had a pretty good view of the grove near the west wall of the castle. There was a small group of kids having a snowball fight. Even from where she was, she could still hear them as they laughed. There was nothing she wouldn't she give to be down there, having fun with them…
"Your Highness!" The old teacher suddenly spoke up, tapping with his cane in front of her. "If you were so kind to give me your full attention."
"I'm sorry." The young princess apologized. She immediately focused back on her work, although not before gazing one last time to the group of kids outside.
Many girls of her age perhaps dreamed of being princesses, and of all the privileges that came with that. Yet her life as a princess was not exactly a dreamy one, at least not every day. Starting on the fact that his father had passed away just a few years before, and her mother had to raise her alone. Queen Selena, despite being a caring and loving mother, couldn't always be there for her, since she too had her own responsibilities. On top of this, Zelda was much younger than most of the heirs of the noble houses and the neighboring kingdoms, which meant that the practically didn't have any friends her own age. It didn't help that, whenever she left the castle, the kids in the castle town never approached her, and she was too shy to break the ice by herself.
Once she finished her class, and the old teacher allowed her to leave, she walked without a hurry towards her chambers. She was so depressed and crestfallen that she didn't notice the other person walking in the opposite direction of the hallway, until she bumped into their leg.
"Ah, I'm so sorry." She immediately apologized. She looked up to see the face of the person.
It was a woman, seemingly around her thirties, quite tall and with a muscular and athletic build. She had slightly tanned skin, and silvery white hair, tied in a short ponytail behind her head. She wore a skintight dark blue bodysuit, with silver protective pads featuring a peculiar symbol, a red eye with three triangle spikes above and shedding a tear. This was the symbol of the Sheikah, an ancient tribe of dwellers from the shadows, who had served the Royal Family of Hyrule for several of many generations. The name of this woman was Impa, and she was the caretaker and guardian of the young heiress. She was in charge of looking after her when her mother was absent.
"Have you finished your duties, Princess?" She asked.
"Yes." The young lady answered, unable to hide a small shred of sadness in her voice.
"Is anything wrong?"
"No, why do you ask?"
"Princess, please don't lie to me." The woman kneeled down to look at her face to face. "I've been caring for you almost since you were born, and I can always tell when something is bothering or weighing upon you."
"Hmm…" The girl looked away from her caretaker. Admittedly, the Sheikah could always tell whenever she was sad. "Alright, I admit it. I feel really bored and lonely in here. Why do I have to spend my day doing all of these duties? Why can't I go outside to play with other children?"
Her voice seemed to crack more and more as she kept talking. The Sheikah didn't stop her, she just listened closely and let her vent over as much as she wanted.
"Why… why did I have to be born a princess?" She finally said, struggling to hold back her tears. "Why couldn't I just be a normal girl?"
Impa sighed at those words. Other adults might lecture the little princess for wanting to deny her noble heritage, but Zelda was just a little girl, and her attitude was more than understandable. She spent the entire day locked up inside the castle, submitted to a daily routine, with no contact with other people other than her own mother and the castle servants. She was a well-behaved girl, and she'd never make a scene in public, but in the inside she felt like she was going to explode. The Sheikah solemnly placed her hands on the little girl's shoulders, and spoke to her with a kindly voice.
"Princess, I understand how you feel, and believe me, I don't blame you. If it depended on me, I assure you, I wouldn't let such a huge burden to be placed on your shoulders at such a short age. Why don't you discuss this with the Queen?"
"Mother is always too busy, she has too many things to worry about as is." Zelda replied. "I don't want to bother her with my selfish whims."
That much was true, the Queen had many responsibilities to attend to. However, she was also an understanding and loving mother who was always willing to make some time and lend an ear to her daughter's concerns. Zelda loved her mother dearly, yet she also respected her enough to not bother her with something a trifling as that.
"If you're so worried, would you like me to speak in your behalf? I am certain that after the meeting today she will have time to hear about this." Impa offered.
"Would you do that for me?" Zelda let out a small smile.
"It's my duty and pleasure to serve you, Your Highness." The Sheikah smiled as well.
"Thank you so much, Impa."
Without a single more word, the princess hugged her caretaker. Other servants might take this kind of gesture the wrong way, but Impa truly deserved the "special treatment". She was the most loyal amongst the castle servants, and the Queen trusted her more than anyone else (the biggest proof being that she would leave her daughter in her care during her absences). Impa never got married or had any children, but she treated Zelda as if she was her own daughter.
Satisfied of having helped the young heiress to feel better, Impa escorted her back to her chambers, promising to come for her later at dinner time.
The throne room, a few hours later…
Once the meeting with the royal council was over, all of the members took their leave, although Impa stayed to ask Queen Selena for a few minutes of her time to speak to her. The Queen agreed and they both went to the throne room to discuss it in private. The Sheikah woman spoke to the Queen everything Zelda had told her just a few hours before, and the monarch listened closely every single word until she finished.
"I had noticed." The Queen said. "You are correct, Impa. It's not fair for my daughter, she doesn't need to go through that at such a tender age."
"If you allow me a suggestion, Your Majesty, perhaps what she needs is someone she could spend time with." Impa said. "I mean, someone close to her age, with whom she could easily relate from peer to peer. Like a friend, a playmate, do you understand what I mean?"
The Queen pondered on it. That could be the answer. Zelda actually didn't have any friends her own age. Most of the heirs of the allied kingdoms were already in their early teens, so they were a bit too old to play with a 10-year-old girl. It wasn't too much to ask, if only one of them would agree to make her company and play with her, they could at least mitigate somewhat that feeling of loneliness. The question was, where could they find someone like that? It would be weird to knock the doors and ask one of the families in the Castle Town if any of their children wanted to come and play with Zelda every now and then. But with not any other options available, that seemed the only sound course of action.
"I need to think about this, Impa." The Queen finally said. "In the meantime, I'd like to remind you that tomorrow we'll be having the tournament to select new recruits for the Royal Guard. We need to have everything ready. Once we're done with it, we can take care of this, is it alright for you?"
"Of course, Your Majesty." Impa replied, bowing before her. "If you excuse me, I'm taking my leave."
Impa left the room, leaving Queen Selena alone with her thoughts. Incidentally, what had kept her so busy the past few days, had been that very tournament. Every year they organized a small competition for young swordsmen, where the best of the best were chosen as potential candidates for the Royal Guard. But at the moment, she couldn't think about that tournament. Inside, a part of herself prayed to the Goddesses so they, if possible, would send someone who could help fill that void her daughter was feeling. That void that could only be filled with a real, true friend.
The next day, at the Castle Town square…
During the whole morning, the castle soldiers cleared out the town square, prepping it for the very important event taking place. Dozens of young men inside and outside of the Castle Town had come over to take part in the tournament organized to earn a place in the Royal Guard. Queen Selena herself had decided to come in person to oversee and judge the participants, leaving her daughter in Impa's care.
The tournament itself didn't have an age restriction, yet the minimal age to enter the Royal Guard was thirteen plus years, so most of the participants were very close to that age. For this reason, the queen was quite surprised to see one that particularly stood out from the others.
Judging by his height and build, he might not have more than 11 years of age, clearly the youngest of the participants. He had messy, dirty blond hair and dark blue eyes, as well as slightly tanned skin. He was dressed in a green tuning held by a black leather belt, and underneath a long-sleeved brown shirt and pants, with deerskin gloves and boots, and a floppy cap matching his tunic on his head. He also wore a traveling coat and a scarf to protect himself from the cold. An elderly man came with him, he was also dressed in green, except that he wore a bandanna on his head instead of a floppy cap. His long, white hair and beard made him look too old to be the boy's father, he looked more like his grandfather, although despite his apparent age, he looked quite strong and full of vigor. Unsure as to why, the Queen took a sudden interest in the boy.
"He doesn't look much older than my daughter." She thought.
Indeed, when they went to sign up for the tournament, the registration form confirmed it. The boy's name was Link, and according to his birthdate, he had turned 11 years just a couple months before. This caught the Queen's attention, since the rest of the participants were either already or close to turn 13 years old, since that was the regulative age to enter the Royal Guard. It looked that someone wanted to try it a little ahead of time. The reason? She had no clue what it could be.
Due to the amount of participants, the soldiers split them in several groups, each participants each. They would be fighting amongst each other in one-on-one elimination matches, and their performance would be judged. Only the best of each group would be taken into consideration. For safety reasons, the swords they were given, despite being made of metal, were blunt swords, which would make them unable to cut, although they could still hit pretty hard. For that same reasons, they were also given protective gear for their arms, legs, chest and head, also made of metal, although they were of light weight so they could move without difficulties.
Once the groups were sorted for the tournament, Queen Selena couldn't help but notice that the block in which the little boy named Link ended up was full of participants who greatly outsized him. Anyone who saw him would probably think "poor little runt, he stands no chance". However, they boy didn't seem scared or nervous. He was strangely calm, not showing any sign of feeling intimidated by the bigger opponents he had to fight.
And when his turn came up, the Queen could see why. In the first round, he goaded his opponent into attacking first, and caused him to trip over outside of the line to get him disqualified. In the second, when his foe tried to take him out by kicking him, he jumped up and struck him with his sword right on the helmet, so hard that it resounded as loud as a church bell. The poor other kid went tumbling around in a daze, so much that he ended up stepping out of the line as well and was disqualified. Once it was chance, twice it was coincidence, but Queen Selena could tell the little boy knew what he was doing. He was fully aware that his opponents surpassed him in strength and size, so he chose to be faster, and smarter than them. This caught her interest.
"This is interesting." The Queen said, a smile appearing on her face. The boy clearly had potential.
Coming at the final round of their group, Link had to face the winner of the other match. The difference couldn't be any more obvious. The name of his opponent was Groose, he had red hair lifted in a pompadour and despite being around 13 years old (according to the data on his form) he looked perhaps older due to the size difference with Link (in fact, he was the larger in size in their group). Before they started, he laughed out loud upon seeing who his final opponent was.
"Hahahahahaha. For the Goddesses. Of all people, I had to face in the final the little runt, Link." He said. "Long time no see, kiddo."
"Indeed." Link replied, not breaking a sweat. "Is it my idea, or you're fatter than the last time we met? Keep up that pace and you'll end up being broader than taller."
"Watch your tongue." Groose replied. "You're still not of age to enter the Royal Guard, so why bother? A little runt like you is not even good enough for a warm-up."
"Age doesn't matter, skill does. And I've been training a lot with Grandpa to hone my skill." Link said with determination.
Queen Selena paid attention to their little exchange. It seemed that this pair had some history with one another. The judge gave them the signal to get started. Groose was the first to attack, jumping over Link with all of his weight. The little one, clearly knowing that he couldn't win against him in a direct confrontation, dodged the strike by rotating his body and placing himself on his foe's blind spot, delivered a thrust directly to the upper part of his head. Predicting the attempt, Groose jumped away to dodge the, but all that Link intended was, not to hit with that strike, but to break his position, and he had made it. He immediately pressed with a series of quick strokes in rapid succession, forcing him to block and step back, but rather than pushing forward, he stepped away after finishing.
"Nice trick, but you won't beat me if you don't land any hits." Groose said.
"It's not like you've landed any yourself." Link replied back.
That comment was enough for a small vein to bulge out in Groose's temple. He couldn't let that little runt to make fun of him, no sir, no way. He raised his sword and charged at Link to deliver a strike, but he stopped it just with a simple horizontal parry. Furthermore, Link held his own sword with both hands and used his legs to push him back into a more vulnerable position, and began his counterattack without hesitation. Groose could be stronger than him physically, yet his moves were slow and clumsy compared to Link's. In fact, his previous victories were only thanks to his brute strength, but that wasn't helping him now.
The Queen kept on watching closely this match, not paying much attention to the others happening at the same time. This little boy was the only one who deserved her full attention at the moment. He was the youngest, yet at the same time seemed to be the most promising amongst all of the contenders. He made up for his lack of size and strength with skill and strategy. He was able to hold his own against an opponent bigger and stronger than him, and that was a worth of her admiration.
Groose, who was already getting irritated, began screaming at Link to stop fooling around and face him like a man, to what Link replied that he was "still a kid" in a mockery way. Finally, in a fit of rage and by a lucky strike, he managed to land a hit on Link's right hand, right on the unprotected zone. Link let out a small cry in pain and almost dropped his sword. Taking advantage, the redhead tried to deliver a strike towards the shoulder to win, yet the blond boy managed to jump away, and in the blink of an eye switched the sword towards the left hand. He managed to parry the following strike, spun the sword to push it away and immediately countered with a three-thrust-combo, first towards the face, then the feet and finally at the torso to get him to step back.
The Queen took notice that, after switching to the left hand, Link's strokes became a lot different, much faster and more accurate. Did that mean he was actually left-handed all along? The match was set when Groose, in an attempt to show Link up, tried to deliver a jump slash, but Link got away rolling underneath him, and as soon as he landed, quickly turned around and tackled him with the shoulder on his back. Since they were on the very edge, he pushed him off the lines.
"Cheating! Cheating!" Groose started to shout. "You tackled me!"
"So what?" Link retorted. "Which part of the rules say that I can't do that?"
"Actually, that was an illegal move, young one. I'm afraid I'll have to disqualify you." The soldier who acted as a judge replied.
"WHAT?! No fair! The previous one tried to kick me and nobody said anything!" Link yelled, incensed at that.
"Haha, seems like I win." Groose sneered.
"Dang it." Link took off his helmet, and threw it on the ground and kicked it in frustration, while Groose delighted himself in his "victory".
Queen Selena still had her eyes fixated on the blond kid. To an extent, she thought that, indeed, it wasn't fair that he got disqualified that way. Especially because until that moment, the little one had shown a clear superiority on his swordplay and general skills. On the other hand, Groose only relied on his brute strength to overpower his opponent, in a rather brutish, inelegant manner. If they weren't restricted by the rules, the result could have been different. He saw the little boy walking towards his grandfather who was on the other side and said something to him, maybe he was apologizing for having lost. The old man simply placed a hand on his head and ruffled his hair, perhaps telling him "you did your best" or something like that. Link removed the rest of his protective gear and left it behind, leaving the place along with his grandfather. After all, since he lost, he wouldn't be taken into account for the new recruits.
Once the winners had been selected, including Groose, who seemed quite proud of himself, the soldiers explained that this tournament was but a preliminary stage, and the real test to enter the Royal Guard would come later, thus they would have to come to the castle a few days later to take it. The soldiers would give the Queen the forms with the information of the selected participants. As they checked them out, one of the soldier was about to dump the rejected ones.
"Wait, please don't throw those." The Queen said.
"Your Majesty?" The soldier asked.
"Please, there is something I need to see." The Queen insisted.
The soldier complied and handed them to her. The Queen checked them one after the other, until she finally found the one with the name "Link". Fortunately, the forms not only included the information of the contestant, but also that of the person who authorized them to enter the tournament, including occupation and the place where they resided. The old man was, indeed, the boy's grandfather, he was called "Smith", and fittingly enough, the occupation field had "blacksmith" and according to his address, they lived in a small cottage a couple of kilometers down the path south of the Castle Town. The boy had potential, despite his short age; he had proved having great skills and it seemed unfair to let them go to waste just for having lost on a technicality. At the very least, he deserved some reconsideration for another chance.
"I hope the good Mr. Smith doesn't mind that I pay him a small visit." The Queen mumbled.
A few days later…
On the meadow, a top a small plateau next to the path going towards the Castle Town, there was a humble cottage. The old blacksmith and his grandson Link, who was also his apprentice, lived in it. The boy's parents had died in an accident a few years before, and as his only living relative, he had taken care of him since then. Mr. Smith was a firm believer in hard work and earning your things with your own effort, and had been instilling that way of living in his grandson since a very early age, thus Link helped him in his work as much as he could. Despite his young age, the boy was as hardworking as his grandfather, and always did his best to get things done, and get them right.
At the time, Grandpa was giving form to some horseshoes, while Link used the pincers to hold a red-hot blade to place it into the water and cool it off. With this done, Grandpa asked not to be interrupted for a while and asked Link to go take a break for the moment. The little one took the blunt sword he used for practice and started hitting a training dummy with it.
He was still quite upset for what had happened a few days before at the tournament. He thought it was unfair they had disqualified him, and on top of that that jerk Groose made fun of him, since now he could rub it in his face: "I entered the Royal Guard, and you didn't". He had been training with his grandfather for months awaiting that day, and now he would have to wait at least another year to try it out again. The boy wanted to enter the Royal Guard to follow in his grandfather's steps, who was a great soldier in his prime, very dedicated to the protection of the people. He eventually retired to settle down with his family and switched duties to forge the weapons for the next generation who would protect the kingdom. Link was particularly enthusiastic about being part of said generation.
"Bah, who cares?" He said as he delivered one last stroke to the dummy's head. "If that training turns out has hard as Grandpa said, maybe that idiot won't last a week."
He couldn't help but chuckle at the thought. Link knew him well, Groose loved to boast and talk big of himself, yet more than once he had bitten off more than he could chew and paid dearly for it, so it wouldn't be the first time that he had ran off on something out of his league.
He sat by the window to gaze at the path outside. They were lucky that in the past couple of days the snowing had stopped a bit and they had chance to clear the path, since Grandpa had many works pending for deliver at the Castle Town. On the other hand, it could be a little boring being away from town. Grandpa had gotten them to move to that zone since it was a perfect middle traveling point between the Castle Town and any of the nearby villages. That was a good thing, except, of course, during winter. It was no fun having to get up in the early morning, pull out the shovel and clear the snow from the path to make their deliveries.
"Hmm? What's that?"
Suddenly he noticed a carriage pulled by two white horses coming closer down the path. At first he paid no mind to it, until it got close enough for him to recognize it as a royal carriage, judging by the golden and jewelry ornaments it had. He was even further surprised when it stopped right in front of his house. The coachman hopped off and opened the door, and out came none other than Queen Selena herself. She was wearing a deep blue winter gown, including a coat with a hood for further cover. It goes without saying that Link was quite astonished to see such an important person in front of his humble home, and even more when she looked towards him, and waved her hand to greet him while smiling. He could barely return the greeting, and as soon as he recovered from the first impression he ran off to the workshop to get his grandfather.
"Grandpa!" He cried out. "Grandpa, come quickly!"
"Link, I thought I told you not to disturb me?" Grandpa asked a little angry, as he didn't like when they interrupted his work.
"It's the Queen!" Link insisted. "The Queen's outside our home!"
"The Queen? Ha, stop joking, kid, you've always had a humor sense, but now is not the time to..."
"I'm telling you, it's true!" Link grabbed Grandpa's arm and tried to drag him outside. Of course, it was useless, but at least it did get his attention.
"Link, enough with your jokes, if you don't…"
DING! DING! DING! When Grandpa was almost ready to scold Link, the doorbell rang. Obviously he couldn't leave that unattended, so he immediately went towards the door, his grandson walking behind him. He was in for a surprise when he opened it to find face to face with Queen Selena.
"Good morning, Master Smith." She greeted him by name. "I hope I'm not interrupting anything important."
"The… the Queen…"
The elderly blacksmith could have almost had a heart attack in an instant. He turned around to look at his grandson, whose ample smile clearly said "Told ya." It took him about an entire minute to get himself composed again and answer her properly.
"Your Majesty, what an honor to have you in our humble place!" He exclaimed, bowing before her immediately.
"There is no need to be so formal, good sir, this is not an official visit." The Queen replied. "May I come in? There are some things I'd like to speak with you, if you allow me."
"Why of course. Link, please get the couch ready for the Queen."
"Yes, Grandpa."
A few minutes later, the Queen was sitting on the couch at the living room. Meanwhile, Grandpa hurried to serve her some warm tea, very fitting for the cold season.
"I'm really sorry we can't offer you anything better, Your Majesty." He said as he poured some tea on the cup for her.
"It's no bother." The Queen said, blowing it a little before tasting it. "Ah, it tastes great, it's really comforting with this cold weather."
"Well, Your Majesty, what else can I do for you?"
"I wanted to speak to you, about your grandson." She said, looking at the boy. "If I'm not mistaken, little one, your name is Link, isn't it?"
"Yes, Your Majesty."
"Well, this is about the tournament we organized a few days ago, I must say, you were the one who looked the most promising in your group." The Queen said.
"Really?"
"I was surprised at the way you made use of your skills, especially considering that your opponents surpassed you in size and strength." The Queen continued. "Until you were disqualified, you clearly had the control of that match. Let me put it this way: in my opinion, you deserved to win."
"That might be true, Your Majesty, but the rules are the rules, aren't they?" Grandpa piped up. "Well, no need to be depressed, we'll have another chance next year."
"It doesn't have to be next year." The Queen said. "Truth to be told, even for a preliminary test, I believe the standards are rather low in the tournament, and I feel the quality of the new recruits in the Royal Guard had dropped a little in the last few years. I believe it's due to the fact that they're being chosen depending on the winners, no matter how they do it. In light of that, someone like your grandson here, who at such a young age is capable of showing that skill to defeat opponents bigger and stronger than him, deserves to be taken into account."
"Are you saying that you want to give Link another chance?" Grandpa asked.
"I could still enter the Royal Guard?" Link seemed hopeful at this.
"Well, there are some things I cannot change, like the fact that the minimal age to enter the Royal Guard is 13 years." The Queen clarified. "What I can do, however, is to allow Link to train along the other recruits in an unofficial capacity. I'm certain that, with proper training, two years should be enough to finely hone his skills, and once he is of enough age, he'll be ready to enter."
"Hey, that sounds good." Link seemed quite enthusiastic about the idea.
"Hold on, kid." Grandpa said. "My Queen, as generous your offer might seem to be, I'm most certainly sure that you wouldn't be the type of person who would come to our place just for something that. Tell me, are you expecting something from us in exchange?"
"You are a smart man, Master Smith. Indeed, that is correct." The Queen confirmed. "However, please do not misunderstand me. I don't expect you to see this as some business proposal or an obligation. I did expect to ask something of you, but not for myself."
"Then, for whom?"
"Master Smith, tell me, how does your grandson get along with other children?" The Queen asked. Grandpa seemed quite confused at this question.
"Well, he's always well-behaved, unless they provoke him, of course." The blacksmith answered. "But what does that have to do with anything?"
"What I'd like to ask of you, like I said, it's not for me, but for my daughter, Zelda." The Queen explained. "You see, things have been a little hard for us since my husband passed away. I love my daughter dearly, but my responsibilities don't always allow me to be there for her. During those days, I know she often feels really lonely, since she doesn't have anyone her own age to play with."
Link and his grandfather exchanged glances. It didn't take a genius to know where the Queen was going with it.
"I'll go straight to the point, this is what I'd like to propose to you guys. Young Link, I can ask the Captain of the Royal Guard to allow you to train with the other recruits and prepare you for when you have enough age to enter. In exchange, if you can give my daughter some company every now and then, I would be eternally grateful. What do you say?"
"I wouldn't mind, but…" Link stared at his grandfather. "I work here part time too to help Grandpa. What happens if he needs me?"
"It doesn't have to be every day." The Queen said. "Only whenever you're available."
"Hey, Link, you've worked pretty hard too. Besides, since we came here, you don't play with the other kids anymore, you're too busy helping me." Grandpa said. "You deserve some time for yourself. And who knows, you might even enjoy spending time with the little princess."
"Hmm…"
Link placed a hand on his chin as he sat on the edge of his couch, crossing his legs. It didn't look like a bad deal; besides, the Queen wasn't asking for too much, it wasn't something he couldn't do, also giving him the chance to eventually enter the Royal Guard, just like he wanted. Only thing, he had no idea what kind of person Princess Zelda was. Well, he'd have to find out himself, by meeting with her in person. Furthermore, the Queen wasn't giving him an order, she was just asking as a simple favor for her daughter. And another of the things his grandfather had taught him was that, whenever somebody asked you for a favor, and it was something you could do, you shouldn't refuse. And not just because the Queen was an important person; that was something he had to do with everyone equally.
"Alright." Link finally agreed. "I just hope your daughter doesn't get bored with me."
"I don't think she would." The Queen assured him. "I think it would be nice for you two to meet as soon as possible."
"If you want, you can take him right now, Your Majesty." Grandpa said. "He's already done with his duties here, he can go out for a couple of hours."
"But Grandpa…"
"No buts, young man." Grandpa replied in a severe tone. "I've already told you, you deserve to take a break. Of course, so long as you're back for dinnertime."
"Don't worry about that." The Queen said, standing up. "Well, Link, will you come with me then?"
"Of course, Your Majesty. Let's go."
The Queen thanked the blacksmith for the tea and took Link's hand to escort him back to her carriage. It goes without saying that the boy was quite nervous at the idea of riding in the same carriage as the Queen of Hyrule herself, and also having accepted to become Princess Zelda's "new playmate". As for the latter part, he still wondered what kind of person she would be. The Queen was a very polite and kind woman, if her daughter was the same, maybe it wouldn't be so bad.
Hyrule Castle, half an hour later…
Princess Zelda was sitting on the edge of one of the flower beds in the castle's courtyard. Another day, her duties concluded, and once again she felt lonely and bored. In fact, as a way to make her annoyance evident she had removed her headdress, letting her hair free. For some reason, that day she felt it tighter than usual. Her mother had left about one hour ago, telling her she would go to attend something important, but she would be back soon. She couldn't help but wonder what it could be. Maybe some surprise or gift for her? She didn't want to be spoiled or selfish, yet being just a little girl, it was understandable that she would like that idea.
Meanwhile, at the courtyard entrance, Queen Selena finally found her daughter. She was holding Link's hand, the moment of truth had come. Taking a deep breath, they walked together towards the young princess, who quickly took notice of her mother's arrival.
"Mother!" She exclaimed in joy.
The little girl immediately ran off towards her mother, but she stopped in her tracks upon noticing she hadn't come alone. Her gaze was fixated on the little boy who had come with her, and she wasn't the only one, for he gazed back in the same way.
Link's first impression was that Princess Zelda was a very, very cute girl. Her face was definitely a younger version of her mother's, and her blue eyes irradiated an aura of innocence almost palpable. Even more, since she wasn't wearing her headdress at the time, he could see her golden hair in all its splendor. It barely fell on her shoulders, with sidetails framing her face in front of her ears. He was so focused on her, he didn't even notice that his mouth was half-open and his cheeks were turning red, until the Queen spoke to her daughter.
"Sorry I took so long, Zelda dear." Queen Zelda said affectionately. "I'd like you to meet someone. Link, if you were so kind."
"Uh… hi." Link greeted her coyly. "I… my name's Link… but you already know that… your mother just said it." He immediately wanted to give himself a kick for how stupid his words sounded and tried to correct himself. "Nice to meet you."
"Nice to meet you too, Link." The Princess replied as she bowed politely.
"I know that you can feel very lonely here in the castle when I'm not around, so Link here has agreed to keep you company every now and then." The Queen explained. "From today on, he will be your playmate, if you wish."
The Princess' face immediately lit up in joy upon hearing those words. She couldn't believe it, she could finally have a friend to play with. On his side, if Link thought that the princess was cute, that expression of radiant happiness increased his first impression a hundredfold.
"I'll leave you two alone so you can get to know each other, please enjoy to your hearts' content." The Queen said as she took her leave.
As the two children were left by themselves, Zelda didn't waste any time to grab Link's hand and asked him to sit next to her by the flower bed. She seemed to be very anxious. She immediately bombarded the boy with her questions.
"How old are you?"
"I turned 11 a couple months ago." Link said. "And you?"
"I'm 10." Zelda replied. "I'm glad, I don't have any friends close to my age."
"That's weird, I mean, for a girl as cute as you…" Link blushed and looked away when he realized what he just had said. It just came out, even though it was fully true.
"You… do you really think I'm cute?" Zelda asked, blushing slightly as well.
"Of course, have you looked in the mirror?" Link replied, as if it was obvious.
They both remained silent for a bit, Link because perhaps he had sounded a little rude when he tried to compliment the young princess, while she thought she might be starting to annoy him with her questions.
"I'm sorry." She apologized. "Perhaps you're getting bored with all my questions?"
"Well… not really, it's just…" Link decided to be honest. "This is a little awkward for me, I mean, the Queen asked me to keep company for her daughter. Look, how about we go play something together?"
"Something like what?"
"Hmm." Link looked around. The courtyard itself was pretty big, and it had many places to hide. "We can play hide-and-seek, there are many places here for that."
"Hide-and-seek?" Zelda's face clearly said that she didn't understand.
"What, have you never played it before?" Link asked.
"Truth to be told, no." She replied, as she lowered her head in embarrassment. Link almost felt the urge to laugh at that, yet for some reason he held it back.
"Aw, look, it's easy. One of us covers their eyes and begins counting. The other uses the chance to hide somewhere. Once you finish counting, you go looking for the other until you've found them, or give up."
"That's all? Sounds simple enough." Zelda admitted.
"Well, do you want to seek first, or hide?"
"I think I'll seek first." Zelda said. "How much do I have to count?"
"How about to 20? That should be enough for me to hide, is that OK?"
"Alright."
Zelda covered her eyes and began counting. Curiously enough, even though she wasn't said not to do it, she didn't feel tempted to peek while she counted. Meanwhile, Link hurried to find a hiding spot out of sight. He climbed up a very thick pine tree, hoping that his green clothes would help him to blend in better. As soon as the princess finished her count, she began looking for him around the courtyard. At first, she went the other way, but after a while, she came closer and closer to him. He held back his breath and tried not to move, but she finally came over and looked underneath the tree.
"I found you." She said with a smile.
"Heh, not bad, for your first time." Link said. "Alright, now it's my turn to seek."
Link got off of the tree and began counting. The two children continued playing their game, exchanging positions over and over, as they were watched closely by two women from one of the windows above them. They were Queen Selena and Impa, and the latter had taken a particular interest in the boy playing with the princess. She seemed quite satisfied to see the Queen had decided to take her up on her suggestion, and she couldn't help but smile. Even more because this boy Link seemed to be quite nice and cheerful, no doubt the type of playmate needed to get a smile out of the lonely young princess.
They spent the next two hours, jumping around and climbing up the trees in the garden. Princess Zelda didn't recall having had this much fun ever before in her life, to the point she didn't even notice how worn out she was for running around all over the place. That is, until they started playing tag. Link laughed out loud as he ran away from Zelda, who tried to catch up to him.
"C'mon, little princess, can't you keep up with me?"
"If only you stay put I… ah, ai-aiiiieeeeeee!" All of a sudden, while she was running, her feet got tangled up with her dress and she lost her balance.
"Watch out!" Link cried out, and for simple reflect he rushed to catch her before she fell to the floor nose first. He managed to get a hold of her by her armpits before she fell, although he took a little to notice the position they had ended up in. Fortunately, being children, nobody would get any ideas even if they saw them. "Are you… OK?"
"Uh-huh…" Zelda nodded. "T-thank you."
"Should we rest a little bit?" Link suddenly said to change the subject. "We've been running around quite a while already."
"That sounds good." Zelda agreed.
They both went to sit by the flower bed again. Trying to defuse the tension, Link produced out of his pocket a small paper bag and took a cookie out of it.
"Would you like some?" He asked Zelda as he handed it to her.
"Huh? For me, are you sure?"
"I've got plenty of them, it's no problem. Plus, I can't eat them all by myself." Link replied with a smile.
"Hmm… alright. Thanks." Zelda took the cookie, a little unsure, but she finally decided to take a bite. It was sweet and crunchy, it tasted like cinnamon; she ate it all in a blink of an eye. "Delicious."
"Take another then." Link said as he pulled out another cookie for her.
She wouldn't refuse for anything. She very rarely had the chance to eat something sweet. Her favorite food were cinnamon rolls, so these cookies were exquisite for her. When there was only one more left, Link, who had been counting them, split it in two and gave a piece Zelda. The princess took notice that her piece seemed to be the bigger one, if only slightly, but she didn't protest.
"They were really good." Zelda said after she swallowed her last piece. "Where did you get them?"
"The baker in town makes them." Link replied. "Sometimes he gives me a free bag when Grandpa is not around for a tip."
"Hmm… So, what does your grandpa do?" Zelda asked, full of curiosity. She hadn't asked that when he came.
"He's a blacksmith. When he was young, he was a soldier of the Royal Guard, but he retired years ago." Link answered. "When I grow older, I want to be one too."
"You want to enter the Royal Guard?" Zelda asked. "But, you still don't have the age."
"I know, yet… I wanted to try." Suddenly, his expression changed to a little more depressed. "And also, I wanted to give that jerk Groose a lesson."
"Who's Groose?"
"A guy from the town where I grew, since I can remember, he's taken to make my life impossible." Link said. "I was hoping to beat him at the recruit selection tournament and enter the Royal Guard, that way I could knock him off his horse and show him, and I almost made it, but…"
Link gazed at the young princess. Upon noticing he had caught her full interest, something inside him pushed him to tell her the whole story.
"Princess… to be honest, the reason I accepted coming here… it was because the Queen told me she would allow me to train with the recruits until I was of age to enter the Royal Guard, if I accepted to spend some time with you in exchange." He confessed. "Don't get me wrong, what I mean to say is… well, I didn't know what kind of person you were, and… I had just been given another chance. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to…"
"It's alright." Zelda stopped him. "I don't care why you came here in the first place. Today is the best day I've had in a long time, I've had a lot of fun with you."
"Really?" Link smiled. "Then I'm glad, because I've had a great time with you too, Princess."
"Link… could you do me a favor?" Zelda looked around, making sure there was nobody around, and even then she still lowered her voice. "If anyone sees us in public I don't mind, but… when we're alone, I'd like that you call me just by my name."
"But… Grandpa says doing that would be a lack of respect." Link replied.
"To me it's not, because I want to be your friend." Zelda insisted. "So, when there's nobody else around, you can call me just Zelda, it's alright."
"Alright… Zelda." Link said, somewhat awkwardly. "Heh, come to think about it, it didn't turn out so badly that I lost to Groose."
"No?"
"Nope, not at all." Link said. "He might have beaten me in the tournament, but we'll see if he can keep up with the training. As for me, I admit I was a little nervous before I met you, but not anymore. You're a really pretty and nice girl, so in the end I gained a new friend. Besides…"
"Besides?"
"If I can make it into the Royal Guard, that means I'll be able to spend more time with you. It's great, isn't it?"
The Princess couldn't contain anymore the joy that was storing up inside her heart. Without a second thought, she jumped to give her new friend a hug filled with gratitude and affection.
"Link… we'll be friends from today on out, right? Will you come to play with me every day?"
"Well… I don't know if I can come every day." Link said. "Grandpa has a lot of work, and I'm always trying to help him however I can. But I'll come whenever I can."
"You promise?"
"I promise. Even more, let's make it a pinky-finger deal." Link extended his pinky finger, as a sign of good faith with Zelda. The Princess followed suit with her own, and they intertwined them. "If this promise I don't keep, it'll haunt me in my sleep. And as I lie beneath my quilt, my conscience will be full of guilt."
"What's that?" Zelda asked.
"I don't know, just a little poem Grandpa always made me recite whenever I promised to do something." Link explained. "Heh, and he always made sure that I kept said promises."
Zelda giggled a little, it actually sounded kind of cute, with the rhyme and all. In that very instant, Impa, who had just come down, approached the children.
"Your name is Link, isn't it, little one?" She asked. Link nodded in response. "I am Impa. The Queen just asked me to escort you back to your home."
"Already? Wow, time surely flies when you're having fun, doesn't it?" Link said.
"Can't he stay a little longer?" Zelda asked.
"I'm really sorry, Princess." Impa said. "But the Queen said that the young man's grandfather explicitly asked that he returned home for dinner time. Besides, since the sun sets earlier in winter…"
"She has a point." Link conceded.
"Link, you will come back soon, right?"
"As soon as I can." The boy assured. "Don't worry, we'll play together again, I promise you."
"Alright, I'll be waiting for you."
While Impa was taking Link with her, he and Zelda didn't stop looking at each other until he finally crossed the entrance. The little princess let out a sigh, she was saddened that her new friend had to leave already, but she felt hopeful as she knew that they would be able to play together again very soon. They had just met, yet she already felt a very special connection with the boy. If she could have more days like this one, it would be wonderful.
One year later…
Time flew by, and in just one year, the friendship between the blacksmith apprentice and the young princess became stronger with the passing of each day. Even though Link couldn't visit her every day, he still managed to see her at least three or four times a week, whenever he had time to spare after the training sessions he was allowed to attend at the Queen's orders. It goes without saying that the Captain at first wasn't exactly happy to accept this "unofficial recruit" in his ranks, yet upon seeing the results, he took back his initial complains. Amongst all of his peers he was the most dedicated and hardworking in the training, and despite being the youngest he still managed to score wins against all of the others. It would seem quite obvious that once he turned 13 years old he would be accepted in the Royal Guard immediately.
Meanwhile, Queen Selena kept a close eye on her daughter's activities with Link. It didn't go unnoticed that Zelda seemed notably more cheerful since they started spending time together, in fact, she even told her so directly once. Admittedly, the Queen too was growing quite fond of the boy. Due to that, she was starting to consider the possibility of bringing him to the castle definitely. She was willing to make an exception on the age restriction to allow him to enter the Royal Guard. However, in any case, the boy was still under the legal custody of his grandfather, so she'd have to discuss that matter with him first. Thus, that very morning, she wrote down an official letter to be sent to Link's grandfather when he returned home. For the time being, she was waiting for the children to come back from the Castle Town. Just for security reasons, she had sent Impa with them to keep an eye on them, although she thought Zelda needed a change of airs.
That morning, Link and Zelda spent their time going around all over the town. Zelda was wearing a simple winter dress and her hair down to avoid being recognized and pass off as a normal girl, so nobody paid any attention to her. One of the places they visited was the game gallery, where they could play many fun games for a small price. Zelda found them a little hard at first because she had never tried them before, but even then she had a great time. Before they returned to the castle, they decided to make one last stop at the town's bakery.
"Welcome, what can I serve you?" The baker greeted them. "Ah, it's you, Link, so good to see you."
"How's it going, Mr. Wheaton?" The boy greeted back. "It's been a long time."
"You said it, kid." Mr. Wheaton then noticed Zelda. "Well, well, who's the lovely young lady who comes with you?"
"Pleased to meet you, sir. My name is Zelda." She introduced herself as she bowed politely.
"Zelda?" The baker looked at her more closely, and took a few seconds to realize. "Are you…?"
"Yes, she is." Link interrupted. "But please don't say it out loud, we don't want to cause a ruckus."
"Of course." The baker calmed down. "Well, tell me what I can offer to you. Do you want the usual, Link?"
"Heh, not today, I'm afraid." Link replied. "Two cinnamon rolls, if you were so kind."
"You guys are in luck, they're just freshly baked."
He walked towards a tray and used the pincers to grab the two rolls, wrapped them in paper and handed them to Link. The boy gave one to Zelda and pulled out a bag of Rupees to pay for them. With this, they thanked Mr. Wheaton and walked back to the castle town. They sat by the fountain at the square, still watched by Impa.
"You didn't have to." Zelda said.
"Why not? I know how much you love these." Link replied.
"What I mean is that you didn't have to pay mine too." Zelda cleared up. "I don't mean to sound ungrateful, but…"
"Who cares?" Link unwrapped his roll. "I don't mind, let alone if it's for my best friend. Well, let's eat."
Zelda nodded, she unwrapped her roll and prepared to eat it. As she did, Link's words "my best friend" made her remember how that year had passed. Even though Link couldn't visit her every day, whenever he came he always ensured that she would have fun as much as possible. The young heiress, who had been a rather shy and quiet girl her entire life, was becoming more cheery and sociable thanks to her friend. Maybe he was the only friend she had, but it was the best she could ask for.
The clock at the square rang sounding four o'clock in the afternoon, just as soon as the children finished their rolls. Impa told them it was time to go back to the castle, so without wasting a second she took their hands and walked them back. It was fortunate that with so many people around nobody would pay attention to them, plus, since the young princess didn't leave the castle often, let alone with regular clothes, nobody had an idea that it was her.
Back at the castle, Impa escorted the princess back to her chambers, while Link awaited for her return, since she would accompany him in the carriage back home, as usual. That day, however, a small group of squires from the Royal Guard passed through the entrance while Link waited, and in front of all of them there was none other than Groose.
"Well, well, just look who's here. Mr. 'Unofficial Recruit' himself."
"Hey there, Mr. 'Red Pompadour'." Link spoke back. "Skipping the practices today too?"
"Ha, ha, ha." Groose made a fake laugh. "There's nothing wrong with that, I'm not gonna get rusted for skipping one or two."
"Don't be so sure." Link said. "The Captain says that your performance leaves a lot to be desired, and you'll be kicked out if you don't work harder."
"That's none of your business." Groose snapped back. "And changing the subject, what's with the special treatment? Even though you lost the tournament, you're still allowed to train with us."
"Well, if memory serves, I almost beat you in that tournament." Link countered.
"And not just that, they let you spend time with the Princess, and that Impa woman always takes you back home." Groose continued, ignoring Link's remark. "How did you do that?"
"I didn't do anything. The Queen just asked me a favor, that's all." Link replied, limiting himself to say the truth without going into further details.
"Young Link." They heard Impa's voice. They turned around to see her approaching. "It's time for us to go now. We're going to the carriage."
"Yes, of course." Link said as he walked behind her. However, Impa stopped for a moment.
"Ah, young Groose. I'd be grateful that you don't refer to me as 'that Impa woman' ever again. Let me remind you that you should respect your superiors."
Groose gulped down. Impa's voice didn't show any anger or even annoyance, but her firmness when speaking was capable of instilling respect and fear on whoever heard her. Plus, everybody knew that, despite being a woman, she was quite strong and a better fighter than any of the soldiers of the Royal Guard. No wonder the Queen had assigned her as her daughter's personal bodyguard.
Once in the carriage, as they rode down the path to Link's house, Impa explained that she needed to deliver a letter from the Queen to his grandfather. Although Link offered to do it for her, Impa told her that she didn't mind doing it herself, besides, it was a very important matter, and if she could get an answer immediately, it would be that much more practical. The boy felt curious and asked what it was, but Impa told him that he would know when they were there.
Once they arrived, upon getting off the carriage, Link noticed that the workshop's chimney was smoking, yet he couldn't hear the hammer. That was weird, his grandfather never left the fire lit when he wasn't working so as to avoid wasting the coal.
"Grandpa, I'm home!" He said upon opening the door. "Grandpa?"
There was no response. Link all of a sudden had the feeling of something bad. His grandfather never left the forge lit to go take a nap or anything. Even though he frequently told him to not to disturb him (unless it was for something important) something wasn't right there.
"Grandpa?"
He slowly opened the workshop's door. And upon peeking inside, he was in for a shock. His grandfather was there, yes, but he was on the floor, clutching to his chest, the hammer lying by his side.
"Grandpa!" Link cried out, running beside him immediately.
"Master Smith!" Impa yelled as well. Her first reaction was to grab his hand and check his pulse. "For the Goddesses, he must have suffered a heart attack. We need to take him to a doctor."
"Grandpa, please don't die on me!" Link exclaimed in anguish.
"Calm down, Link, don't go into a panic." Impa told him, struggling to not to panic herself, for the sake of the boy and his grandfather.
Not wasting any seconds, the Sheikah woman lifted the old man and placed his arm around her shoulder to get him out of the house. She was grateful that she had decided to come along with Link inside the house, otherwise the poor boy would have been left with nobody to call for help in that moment. She carried him back to the carriage and placed him inside as she yelled at the coachman.
"Back to the Castle Town! We need to take this man to the clinic, hurry!"
The coachman immediately obliged, snapped the ropes and put the horses on full gallop. Inside, Link and Impa remained silent, praying to the Goddesses that they weren't too late…
Castle Town Clinic, the morning after…
Link had fallen asleep at the clinic's waiting room, anxiously awaiting for the doctors to give him news of his grandfather. The poor boy made a supreme effort to keep himself awake, yet in the end he couldn't and the sleep took him over. Impa stayed with him, as he asked the coachman to go and call for Queen Selena. Upon hearing the news, the monarch left her duties and immediately rushed to the clinic without a second thought, and stayed in the waiting room along with Impa and Link. Finally, the doctors came out, both of them with grave expressions in their faces.
"How is he?" The Queen asked, her voice somewhat sleepy for staying up all night long.
"Your Majesty… we did everything we could." One of the doctors said. That, and the tone he spoke with was more than enough to understand what had happened.
"I… see."
"We're really sorry." The other one added. "If only we could have seen him a little earlier, perhaps…"
"Don't worry about that, Doctor. We understand you did your best." The Queen said. She turned around to gaze at Link, who was still asleep on his chair. "Poor little boy, how is he gonna take the news?"
"We'll have to tell him when he wakes up. The sooner the better." Impa said.
And as it were, in that very moment, Link began stretching himself, he was waking up. As soon as he opened his eyes and saw the doctors, his first reaction was to rush towards them.
"Doctor! Doctor, please tell me! Tell me how's my Grandpa! Is he alright, will he recover?"
The doctors, the Queen and Impa exchanged looks, as if they asked who was going to deliver the terrible news. Link, at his 12 years of age was sharp enough to understand that king of language, which saved the adults the long explanation.
"No… don't tell me that he…"
"Link… we're really sorry." Impa said. "The doctors did everything they could, but… your grandfather didn't make it."
Link lowered his head. Both Impa and the Queen looked at the boy's hands, how they clenched into fists and began shaking. It seemed that at a moment's notice he would explode in tears of sorrow and anger, perhaps he wanted to rant against the doctors for not saving his grandfather, and if that was the case they couldn't hold it against him. He had just lost his last living relative, it had to be and intolerable pain. Yet there was no angry outburst. Only a small whisper came out.
"I understand." His voice clearly made sure that he was making a huge effort to not to cry. "Well, there's nothing left to do. No matter, Grandpa always said he'd had a good life, and that's why he wouldn't be afraid when his time came."
The Queen and Impa felt a weight on their chests upon hearing those words. The little one was trying to cope with the pain of the loss with the dignity of a grown man, even though he was still but a child. As admirable it was, they knew that deep down he was most likely broken.
"Link… we'll take you back to the castle for some rest." Impa said. "So you won't have to spend the night by yourself, is that alright?"
"Yeah… that's fine."
That said, she took him back to the castle. Meanwhile, the Queen stayed to settle the paperwork and pay for the expenses of this. This had been a rather tragic turn of events. Since Link no longer had anybody who would look after him until he turned of adult age, he was now completely alone. The letter itself was actually a legal document that only needed the blacksmith's signature to authorize that Link could move in to the castle, but she didn't get it. She'd have to investigate to see if the old man had left some kind of living will where he stated who would be his grandson's legal guardian should something befall on him. Nevertheless, something inside her told her that she couldn't leave the boy's fate in anyone else's hands.
Hyrule Castle courtyard, a while later…
Link was lucky he didn't run into Groose, he wasn't in the mood to deal with him at the moment. He went straight to the courtyard, specifically to the spot where he regularly played with Zelda. He told Impa he needed a place where he could have some peace and quiet. The Sheikah didn't bother to argue, just telling him that they would call for him at the time for the meals. For now, knowing how the boy felt, she just decided to let him have his time alone, he needed it.
It didn't take much for the princess to come to the courtyard and see her dear friend sitting on their usual spot, yet with a totally different expression to his cheerful and positive demeanor.
"Link?"
Zelda's voice got him out of his trance. Upon looking into his eyes, the princess could see that he seemed almost ready to break down in tears. However, he still tried, as hard it could be, to smile at her.
"Hi, Zelda."
"Link, what's wrong? Why do you look so sad?"
For a moment, he felt tempted to say "Nothing's wrong, I'm fine." But it was pointless, she could see through him, and if she didn't know already, it wouldn't take long for her to know the reason.
"Grandpa… Grandpa had a heart attack yesterday."
"Oh no." Zelda placed her hands on her mouth in shock. "How is he?"
"He spent the whole night at the clinic." Link said. "He didn't make it."
"Oh, Link… I'm so sorry."
"Don't worry." Link said. "It's weird, despite his age… Grandpa always seemed to be full of vitality. In fact, I don't ever recall having met someone as strong as he was. Alas, I guess we all have our limits. He had worked so hard his entire life, maybe… he already deserved to have a rest."
Zelda could see it, Link was trying to play strong with those words, to cope with the pain for his grandfather's death. Even more, it seemed like he didn't want to cry, or at least, didn't want to be seen crying. Right there, he seemed to be struggling with all his might to hold back his tears. Yet in that very instant, part of what he truly felt managed to slip through, without him being able to stop it.
"Still… to think that now… I'm all alone…"
The princess understood what he meant. She already knew that his grandfather was the last living relative he had, as he had told her that his parents had died in an accident. She couldn't even imagine the pain he was feeling. Maybe, the closest thing would be when her own father died, when she was 6 years old, barely enough to remember him. She didn't want to think how she would feel if she lost her mother too, since she helped her in soothing her pain. Something in her made her feel the urge to soothe the pain of her friend as well.
"Link… when my father died, I cried for days." Zelda said. "I was really little back then, yet I still felt ashamed. But my mother told me… there's nothing wrong with crying over the loss of a loved one."
"Zelda?"
"I can see it. It hurts, doesn't it?" It wasn't a question, it was a fact. "If you can't bear it, just let it go. Don't hold it back."
With that, he decided to let it out. Instinctively, he embraced the princess, who despite being a little surprised, immediately wrapped her own arms around him as well. Link let out every single tear he had been holding over the course of the day, calling out nonstop for his grandfather. In the middle of the embrace, he didn't notice that Zelda's eyes began shedding tears too, although she decided to shed them in silence. She too felt sad to see her friend suffering that way. At the moment, he just needed someone who would help him soothe that burden, and she accepted to be that person on her own accord. They had shared a lot of joy and happiness along that year they had gotten to know each other, and if sharing the pain helped relieve it, if only a little, she wouldn't refuse.
A couple of weeks later…
Master Smith's funeral came over quite soon, and a fair amount of the residents of the Castle Town and the nearby villages came over. The elderly blacksmith had always been a good, hardworking man who always got the job done with everyone who knew him, so it goes without saying that everyone was really saddened for his passing. Of course, nobody felt more devastated than his grandson.
For the following days, Queen Selena investigated thoroughly, but unfortunately there was no document stating what would become of Link from now on. Even though some of the blacksmith's close friends offered to take him in, the Queen finally decided to move her strings and officially declared that she would place the boy under the custody of the Royal Guard (which meant that, indirectly, she was placing him under her custody). Upon being asked why she was doing this, the Queen explained that she had made a deal with Master Smith to get his grandson eventually inducted into the Royal Guard, and regardless of his passing she had no intention to break it. That was enough to silence the gossips; however, some still thought that the Queen had other reasons to give Link this "special treatment" (and they weren't too far off).
Even though they helped Link in moving all his belongings to the castle, the boy requested his grandfather to be buried by their home, as according to him, that was the place he wanted to rest forever when his time came. The gravestone had been placed on the small plateau, and the epitaph read "The hardest worker until the very last of his days ". Link was wearing above his usual clothes a black winter coat, and also had removed his floppy cap, clearly in a sign of mourning and respect. Next to him was Princess Zelda, dressed in a similar coat. They both held hands as they gazed at Grandpa's final resting place, and the snow fell upon them. In any other season of the year, the rain could be taking as a sign of the skies crying in mourning. Perhaps in winter, this snow would mean the same.
Queen Selena and Impa were behind them, also dressed in black winter coats. Each one of them placed a crown of flowers on the gravestone. Once Link told them he was ready to leave, they went to the carriage to go back to the castle. Both of the adult women could see that Link and Zelda's eyes were still red from crying so much, and they couldn't blame them.
"Link, are you sure you're alright now?" The Queen asked.
"I'll be fine, in time." Link admitted. "What I'd like to know is, what's gonna happen to me now?"
"Don't worry." Impa said. "We've prepared you a spare room in the castle. Also, we've spoken to the Royal Guard Captain. You'll be officially accepted."
"I'm glad for that." Link said, trying to smile. "I'm sorry you're taking so many bothers on me."
"It's no bother." The Queen replied. "It's the least I can do, after all you've done for my daughter."
"Thanks a lot." Link said. "I promise you, I'll become stronger, I'll do my best to become a great soldier, like Grandpa before me."
"We are certain that you will be." Impa said. "Who knows, in time, I could even give you my post."
"What do you mean?" Link asked.
"Don't you remember? I am the Princess' personal bodyguard. The Queen wouldn't entrust her daughter's safety to anyone else than me, and that's saying a lot."
"There is still time for that, but if you prove to be strong, loyal and worthy enough, I might consider it in the future." The Queen said. "Of course, only if you wish to."
"Hum…" Link looked at Zelda. The princess didn't say a word, yet judging by her smile, she didn't seem to dislike the idea. And admittedly, neither did he. "I'll… think about it."
The monarch couldn't help but smile. Of course, it was a little too early to decide, since he still was a child. Still, it was pretty much clear, with proper training and formation, he would grow to become a fine man, a strong and brave soldier, worthy of being Zelda's protector. The Queen sometimes felt sad of never being able to conceive a male heir, even though she loved her daughter with all her heart, and when seeing Link, she couldn't help but think that, had she been able to have a son, she would have loved that he would have turned out like him. There was also the fact that he had been able to make her daughter smile, and she was infinitely grateful to him for that. With that in mind, and to honor Master Smith's memory, she would take good care of him.
Over the course of that year, Link and Zelda had formed a very strong bond of friendship with each other. That had been the Queen's original goal, and she felt pleased at that, since her daughter was quite happy and no longer felt lonely, yet now, she had begun considering the possibility of something else blooming between them. Many other parents (either nobles or peasants) wouldn't let anyone get near their daughters. Yet, at that time, Queen Selena thought that, if this friendship bond between them eventually turned into something else (and she saw it very likely), she wouldn't mind. For now, however, they were just children, and if those feelings were already blooming inside them, it was too soon for them to understand or to let them out. Only time would tell.
FIN.
Author's notes:
How's it going? Well, as you have noticed, indeed, this story goes in the same continuity as "Swordplay Lessons for the Princess". My original idea was to have some flashbacks of Link and Zelda as children in that story, but when it grew longer than I had expected, I cut them out. Still, I felt those ideas were too good to waste them, so I retook those flashbacks and put together this prequel with it. I'll confess to something, originally, the death of Link's grandfather was not in my plans, yet considering that in the other story he was just mentioned in passing yet never appeared in person, wouldn't be too hard to imagine that he might already be dead. I had three main reasons to do it. First, I needed a more or less valid motive to have Link living full time in the castle and with "special treatment". Second, this makes the bond between Link and Zelda much stronger, because real friends not only share the joy, also the sorrow (which is made clear when Zelda cries along with him too), and sharing these things will make their relationship more solid when they grow older and fall in love with each other. And third, the drama has never been my strong point in writing, I wanted to practice it in a little dose with this story, if only at the end.
I guess that's all. If you enjoyed this one, please let me know if you like me to translate more of my stories into English. Until next time.