The Failed Hero
AUTHOR'S NOTE: This is a post-TP oneshot. It is mostly canon, although the Hero's Shade's backstory is somewhat AU. This is my interpretation of who the Hero's Shade is, and how interacting with him helped Zelda and Link draw a little closer together. Let me know what you think in reviews!
Link drummed his fingers on the heavy wooden desk as he waited for Zelda to finish writing. They had spent the past several days holed up in the castle library, writing down an account of the Twilight War. When she appointed him Captain of the Royal Guard, he never imagined his first order of business would be to sit down with the princess and describe, in great detail, every single thing he'd done in the past year, but Zelda believed firmly that maintaining the royal histories was of vital importance to the kingdom. They were already on their fourth day of this, and he'd barely even reached his first visit to Kakariko Village.
Link looked up to see Zelda carefully dot the end of, presumably, her last sentence. She placed her quill carefully back in the ink and her gaze rose to meet his.
"Where were we? You collected all of the tears in Kakariko Village. What next?"
Link thought for a moment, shifting in his seat to get more comfortable in his new uniform. Thankfully, he wasn't required to wear the armor here, but the stiff fabric still felt unnatural on his skin.
"Well, next I went to see the Gorons…" he trailed off, feeling like he was missing something. He tried to think, cursing his poor memory, when the weight of the sword on his back reminded him. "But I forgot to mention—while I was collecting the tears I met another wolf—or rather a swordsman—who taught me some more advanced sword fighting techniques."
Zelda set her quill down and looked at Link with keen interest.
"Hm? A swordsman who was a wolf?"
Link leaned back in his charm and scratched the back of his head.
"Ehhh, I guess I'm not too sure what he was. Whenever I found a certain kind of strange-looking stone, he would appear as a golden wolf. He'd tell me to meet him as a human at different places around Hyrule, and when I'd go there, he'd appear as a large, skeletal man in armor, and he'd teach me."
Link hoped that was a good enough explanation for her. It was a rather strange part of what was already a strange tale, but he was feeling exhausted from explaining all of his experiences.
"Did he say anything else? About who he was?"
Link leaned back in his seat, trying to drag the memories out of his stubborn brain.
"Hmmm… He said something odd like… 'I accepted life as the hero.' And I remember him talking about regrets."
Zelda nodded solemnly, as if that was exactly what she had expected to hear. She rose from the rich rosewood table and floated over towards one of the many densely-packed bookshelves, her formal white-and-pink dress swishing behind her.
"How familiar are you with tales of the heroes of the past, Master Link?" she asked, as she scanned the books for whatever title had grabbed her attention.
"Not too familiar. I heard some songs and stories at festival time, but never paid that much attention," he said, a little sheepishly. It was slightly embarrassing to be the Hero Chosen by the Gods, but not know anything about the previous heroes.
"Ah…" she said, continuing her search intently.
She didn't explain what she was looking for, and Link didn't ask. He still didn't feel terribly comfortable around the princess. They had only met a few times during the course of the Twilight War, and each time she had seemed… sad, and distant. He still knew very little about her, and seeing her only reminded him of the loss of his dear friend Midna. He had hoped that, in the peace time that followed Ganondorf's defeat, they might get to know each other better, but so far her solemn and formal demeanor, along with Link's own admittedly reserved character, seemed like an insurmountable barrier.
"So then perhaps you have not heard of the Failed Hero. It is a sad tale, so it is not oft repeated. I would not be surprised if you had never heard of it," she said, finally locating her desired tome. She stood on a low stool and reached up high to pull the thick, leather-bound book from the top shelf. With the book safely in her arms, she returned to the table, laying it down with a heavy thud.
Link looked at the book, noting the thick gold letters stamped across the cover, Legends of Hyrule Most Holy. He shook his head.
"I have never heard that story," he said, and Zelda continued.
"Legend has it that, long ago, a hero chosen by the goddesses and a princess of divine blood were called upon to defend Hyrule and thwart the powers of evil. The pair were victorious, but in the process, the princess was killed."
Zelda opened the book to a chapter she had at some point marked with a ribbon and showed Link the title. Lamentations of the Failed Hero. The book was very old, and still written in the old style, each letter painstakingly decorated with flowers, patterns, and colors. The margins were filled with gorgeous illustrations, and Link pulled the book towards himself to take a closer look. On the first page, a tall man in green gazed affectionately down at a resplendent golden-haired princess. Although the illustration was in an older, simpler style, Link could still feel the trust and affection between the two so poignantly that it almost felt intrusive to look at it. In the next illustration, the man knelt alone and sorrowful, sword thrust into the ground in front of him. He was the very picture of defeat.
"I studied this legend in depth during my captivity," Zelda said, smiling faintly to herself. "Considering myself to be something of a Failed Princess, it seemed particularly pertinent."
Link frowned uncomfortably. Princess Zelda was often like this—self-deprecating and regretful—and he didn't really know how to respond to it. It was true that her reign had been tumultuous, and that the kingdom had suffered under her rule, but none of that had been her fault. Link couldn't think of anything she could have done differently to aid the kingdom, but he wasn't sure if it was his place to say so.
Zelda paused for a moment, her eyes gaining that faraway look she often had when contemplating her own supposed failings.
"The Failed Hero, despite his victory, could not forgive himself for failing to prevent the princess' death. As he himself approached the long sleep, he was not allowed to pass on and was instead cursed to remain in Hyrule as a shade to aid any subsequent heroes in their quests."
Link looked up from the book in surprise.
"Cursed? But… didn't he succeed in the end? I never thought of the goddesses as being so cruel."
Zelda nodded in agreement. "True. Some versions of the story say he was cursed, but others say he chose the punishment himself. We have no way of knowing which is true."
Princess Zelda gave Link some time to read through the chapter. It wasn't terribly long, and it essentially described the same story Zelda had already told him. Once he finished, Link took another long look at the illustrations, then closed the book carefully.
"So… You think the swordsman who taught me might be this… Failed Hero?" Link asked, looking the princess in the eye.
"I think it may be. If you would, could you take me to meet him?"
"I'm not sure… I can't be certain he will reappear. But I can take you to the last place I saw him."
"I'd like that, thank you," she said, taking the book back, clutching it to her chest, and rising. "That will be all for the day. Thank you for taking the time to help me with this history. I know it can be taxing."
"It's not a problem, Your Highness," Link said, surprised at her perceptiveness. Perhaps he shouldn't be surprised—she did have the Triforce of Wisdom, after all. He rose from his seat, bowing deeply towards the princess, and left.
Based on her busy schedule, Link had expected their trip to see the Hero's Shade to be put on hold for several weeks, if not longer, but Zelda surprised Link by calling him to the stables the very next morning. He walked into the stable, mouth gaping in a wide yawn as he loosened his shoulders in preparation for their ride. It felt good to be wearing his own green tunic and armor again. He'd grown accustomed to the weight of the chain mail and the cut of the tunic over the months.
Link had tested out the day before if he could find the Hero's Shade at the location where he had last met the specter, on the bridge just north of the castle. As Link had suspected, the shade hadn't appeared, and so Link planned to take Princess Zelda to the last wolf stone he'd found—the one in the hidden village. That meant he and the princess had a long day of riding ahead of them.
The princess was already in the stables, punctual as always. She had her own mount—a regal white beast with elegant bit and bridle, and Link found Epona looking restless in her own stall.
"Hey, girl," he said, gently patting her neck and producing an apple for her. He hadn't made it out to the stable in a couple of days, and he felt bad for neglecting her. If nothing else, this trip would be good for Epona.
The ride over to the hidden village was a solemn affair, as everything with Princess Zelda seemed to be. They spoke rarely, and what little they did discuss was fairly superficial, but it didn't bother Link much. He was relieved just to be out of the stifling castle, doing something he was good at. It was so much easier to feel useful when you were working with the familiar, and he was excited to show the princess his knowledge of Hyrule.
He still found himself wishing, at times, that she would talk to him more. He had just sworn fealty to her, and yet he knew almost nothing about her. That was all right, he supposed. He had done it for Hyrule's sake, and not hers… But still, he would like to know who she was. He'd like to know what kind of person it was he had sworn to lay down his life to protect.
Before long they reached the hidden village, and Link led Zelda to the wolf stone. He reached for the charm that would turn him into a wolf, but hesitated, for some reason embarrassed to transform in front of the princess. She seemed to sense his hesitation, and turned away from him to give him some privacy. He nodded to her in gratitude—even though she couldn't see it—and touched the charm, immersing himself in the thrill and pain that overtook him each time he transformed.
Zelda turned back around when she heard his paws hit the ground, and watched as he howled to the stone. As he howled the familiar song, he knew that his body did not leave the hidden village, but he felt transported to some other, different place. In this strange dream-like version of Hyrule Field, he looked out across the land and saw the golden wolf on a distant plateau, joining him in song. When the last notes of the song drifted off with the wind, the golden wolf turned to Link and spoke.
"Hero, I have taught you all I know. For what purpose have you come to me today?"
"I… I…" Link stuttered, having not really thought out ahead of time what to say, "I wish to speak with you again, in your human form."
The golden beast barked out the wolfish equivalent of a laugh at that. "If you can call that human, I suppose it can be done," he said, then disappeared. The dream-like world faded around him, and Link found himself crouched in front of the wolf stone in the hidden village. He quickly took off the charm to regain his human form and rose, facing Princess Zelda.
"He said that he could see us…" Link said uncertainly, not sure what to expect. He didn't have to wait in uncertainty for long, as the air in front of the wolf stone seemed to warp and shift. Link and Zelda both turned towards it, intent.
The skeletal warrior appeared before them, just as Link had seen him before, eerie bones covered mostly by heavy, moldering armor, single eye glowing red in its socket. Zelda let out a small gasp beside him, and the warrior noticed her for the first time.
"Your Highness," the shade said reverently, falling to one knee. Link felt a small stab of guilt, realizing that he did not treat Zelda with the same kind of respect—bordering on adoration—that this warrior did. Was he supposed to?
Still wondering at the specter's reaction, Link almost jumped when he saw Zelda walk confidently towards the man, seemingly discarding much of her normal reserve. Once she was right in front of him, no further than a foot away, she reached her hand down to the helmeted skull and gently stroked along a pale cheekbone with the back of her hand. As she did so, his skeletal form seemed to fade away, only to be replaced by a semi-transparent man kneeling on the ground, blue flames licking at his feet. Link's jaw fell open in shock—the man was wearing a green tunic, brown boots, and a green hat, much like himself. He was older than Link, perhaps about 30 years old, and one of his eyes was scarred over from some vicious injury, but his features still bore striking resemblance to Link's own. It occurred to Link for the first time that this man was probably his ancestor. When the shade had mentioned "our bloodline" in their previous encounters, Link had always just assumed that the shade was talking more generally about the Hylian race. He had never imagined that he might literally be descended from this man.
"Hero," said Zelda, addressing the shade, "You have served Hyrule well. I release you from your duties."
The shade looked up at Zelda, his single, painfully human eye full of emotion, then looked down again.
"I… I cannot," he choked out, and Link could feel the man's pain like a knife to his own heart. "I failed Hyrule, and for that I must pay penance."
Zelda shook her head emphatically. She reached down and grabbed hold of his elbow, pulling him up from his knees to stand in front of her.
"Link," she said, and Link started a little upon hearing his name applied to a different person. "You have paid enough penance. You saved Hyrule in your own time, and you aided the current hero in his quest. If you ever owed Hyrule any debt, you have paid it twice over."
"Are you… sure?" he asked, as if asking her permission to forgive himself.
"Yes," Zelda said, plainly and firmly.
The pain and sorrow on the specter's face seemed to melt away at Zelda's words. His tense shoulders gradually relaxed, and he slumped forward. It was almost as though… he had clung to this world with unflinching tenacity for centuries, and had finally decided to let go.
"Will..." he said, his voice barely audible, "Will I see her again?"
Zelda's features were brimming with compassion and empathy. It was the most emotion Link had ever seen on her face, and it was overwhelming.
"I cannot say. I know very little of the life to come," she said, and she took one of the specter's hands in both of hers, holding it as if it were a precious gift. "I can only say, from personal experience, that wherever she is, she is not angry with you. She is proud of you. She wants you to find peace."
Tears appeared on the shade's ghostly face, but whether they were tears of relief, sorrow, joy, or some other emotion, Link could not say. Link could feel that the man was slipping away from this world. He had not noticed it before, but now that the man was leaving Link could sense a subtle connection between them, and the connection was beginning to dim. As the shade started to fade away, he gave Zelda one last smile, then turned towards Link.
"My child, you have done well. Thank you for accomplishing what I could not. And please, for me… keep her safe."
The soft green light surrounding the specter seemed to swallow him up, and he gradually disappeared, leaving Link and Zelda alone in the abandoned village.
They stood together, side by side, looking at the wolf stone in silence for several minutes. Finally, Zelda turned to Link.
"Thank you for bringing me here, Master Link. Are you ready to return to the castle now?"
Link nodded in response, and they headed back towards their horses. Neither spoke, but Link could sense a change in the atmosphere between them. Although he had not really known the shade well, Link couldn't help but feel gratitude on his behalf towards Zelda for what she had done. As soon as she'd heard of the shade's existence, she had immediately come to see him—to help him if she could. Link thought he saw, for the first time since witnessing her sacrifice for Midna, the immense amount of compassion and tenderness Zelda hid behind her cold exterior. It made him want to thank her… to return the favor in some way, although he wasn't quite sure how.
Zelda had already put her foot in the stirrup, and was about to mount her horse when Link grabbed her wrist.
"Wait a moment," he said, flushing suddenly at addressing her so brusquely. "Err… Your Highness, can you wait for a moment?"
Zelda looked down at Link in surprise, and stepped back down from the stirrup.
"Yes, Master Link?"
Link shifted his weight back and forth, trying to cobble together a coherent sentence from his swirling thoughts.
"I just… I want you to know that you're not a failed princess. I've… I've talked to a lot of people, been a lot of places in Hyrule, and nobody thought of you that way," he stopped for a moment, trying to remember if anyone he'd met had in fact criticized the princess. "And if anyone did, they'd be wrong," he finished emphatically.
Zelda smiled softly. It was a small smile, but coming from her she was practically beaming.
"Thank you, Link."
She placed a cool, delicate hand briefly on his shoulder, and he felt his chest tighten. Link self-consciously scratched the back of his head and looked off to the side, suddenly shy of her piercing gaze.
"Well, that's all I really wanted to say… Although, if you have some time later, do you think you could tell me more about the heroes? From the past? …And the princesses too, of course. I think it's time I learned."
"Gladly," Zelda said, gracing him with yet another rare smile.
She turned back towards her horse and mounted, and Link headed towards Epona as well. The ride back to Hyrule Castle was still a quiet one, but Link felt the silence was now more companionable. He still might not know the princess very well, but he felt that they now had something to build off of. It was a start, and he was eager to see where it led.
A COUPLE FINAL THOUGHTS ABOUT THE HERO'S SHADE: I know Hyrule Historia says that the Hero's Shade is Link from OoT, but that never quite made sense to me, because the Hero's Shade always kind of seemed like a cursed being to me. He says in the game that he regretted not being able to pass on what he learned to future generations, but that seems like not enough reason to be stuck waiting around in some skeletal form for centuries. Maybe I just like OoT Link too much, and imagining him waiting around to train future heroes as a moldering undead thing was just too depressing for me :p. So anyway, this Hero's Shade is a previous hero, but not one from any of the games. I assume there are lots of heroes out there in the lore of Hyrule that haven't had games made about them yet. It's exciting to think of all the untold stories! Let me know what you think about the story and your own theories about the Hero's Shade in comments, and thanks for reading!