AN:
Another chapter! Yay! So, apparently the next DLC pack is going to take place after BOTW, so…I'm actually a little disappointed. I really like the Champions and was kind of hoping to get to play through stories with them. I'm still excited for it, though. I still don't own Legend of Zelda.
Claree went above and beyond what I was expecting. Where she keeps all of these clothes, I have no idea. As soon as we entered, I was pushed outside by Claree and her assistant, who I remember as firefly girl. The girl who was excited because I let bugs loose in her home.
I was stuck sitting outside for the better part of an hour and a half. Then the princess finally emerged in new, fitting clothes, holding a few boxes of clothes. "Your grace, we can carry those for you." Firefly girl begs.
"What do you think he's for?" The princess places the boxes in my arms. I hear all three women giggle but can't really see over the boxes.
"I thought you had the slate, why didn't you just put the clothes in that?" I ask.
"I can do that?" The princess takes the higher boxes off so that she can see my face.
"Where do you think I keep all of my armor?"
"How do you do it?" Her smile widens.
"Is there somewhere I can put these down?" How the tables have turned, now I am the one teaching the princess about her precious slate.
"You can come back in." Claree grabs a few more boxes and we all gather around the counter as I show the princess how to store things in the slate.
"What do you want to put in here first?" I ask.
"Here." The princess hands me a shirt not unlike the one she is wearing.
"Alright, so you go to this tab, line up the piece of clothing with the camera lens, and press this button." The shirt disappears and a new tab of clothes shows up, specifically for her. I show her and her grin somehow widens.
"Let me try!" She exclaims, taking the slate from me. She follows my instructions and a pair of matching pants appears.
"It does this for everything, food, materials, weapons, bows, arrows, shields, korok seeds, basically everything."
"Without limits?" The princess asks as she continues to scan in her clothes.
"The weapons, bows, and shields have limits, though I have been able to expand those."
"How?" Wow, she is fast at this, she's already through five out of seven boxes.
"A giant korok named Hestu."
"A giant korok?" She stops for a second, confused.
"Around twice my height, he has these maracas, and he must dance or so he says all of the time. I traded him korok seeds for new slots in my inventory."
"I need to see this." She states.
"The Deku Tree has requested a visit, so we will." I assure her. She's down to the last box now. She turns so I can't see what's inside. Probably for the best. I ask Claree how much, and she assures me that no payment is necessary. Yeah right. I put a handful of golden rupees on the countertop and the princess and I quit the shop.
"I need to return these to Paya." She says, and we make our way towards the elder's home.
"Master Link!" Cottla calls. I motion for the princess to keep going.
"Yes?" I ask.
"Is it time for our ride?" The little girl asks excitedly.
"I don't know, the princess may have to speak to Lady Impa about something."
"Oh." The two sisters' faces immediately fall and I feel awful.
"Let me go check." They immediately light back up, children are so good at manipulation. I jog up the steps and stick my head inside the house. Paya is nowhere to be seen, but Zelda is speaking with Impa about something. I walk fully inside.
"Yes?" Impa asks.
"Koko and Cottla have requested that it is time for their ride."
"Ride?" Impa turns to the princess.
"We're taking them on a short horseback ride."
"Their father agreed?"
"Yes, I was present when he was asked. He said that as long as we don't wander too far from the village and that Link is present, he had no objections." The princess explains.
"I'm glad to see him loosening up." Impa smiles. "Go take the girls for a ride, we will have all of the time in the world for conversation later."
"Alright." Zelda stands up and walks towards me. "We won't be gone too long."
"Remember, the banquet is at seven!" The elder calls after us. The door shuts and the princess asks the time.
"Three."
"It won't take us four hours." The princess shakes her head and walks down the steps.
"Princess Zelda!" Koko exclaims.
"Master Link!" Cottla yells.
"We're coming girls." The princess laughs. When we get to the bottom steps, small girls attach themselves to our legs. "Alright, alright. Who wants to ride with who?"
"I want to ride with you!" Cottla tells the princess.
"Okay."
"Get on, I'll pass her up." I tell her grace. When we're all situated on the horses we start to make our way down the path.
"DADDY!" Koko calls. "I'm on a horse!"
"I see that sweetheart, be careful." Dorian replies.
"OKAY!" Koko yells back. Wow small children can be really loud. She turns to look at me. "Where are we going?"
"Just a little ways out of town."
"Can we go see the fairy?" Cottla asks.
"The Great Fairy?" The princess asks.
"Yes, wasn't she here before?"
"No, she was, it's just, everything else is so different I really never know." Her highness breaks eye contact with me.
"Some things will never go away." Like the Great Fairies being creepy.
"No, I guess not."
"Have you seen the fairy Master Link?" Cottla asks.
"Yes, I've seen all of them?"
"There's more than one?" Koko smiles widely.
"There's four of them, plus a Horse God."
"That's so cool!" Cottla exclaims.
"How much did you pay them?" The princess asks.
"Too much." I shake my head. "This one is my favorite solely because I had to pay her the least." We make it up to the fountain, no small fairies are hanging around right now, so we keep going. "Wait, not this way."
"Why?" The princess asks.
"There's generally a Yiga Assassin down the road."
"Oh Hylia."
"Here, let's go up to where the other shrine is."
"Yiga." Koko states.
"They're bad guys, sweetheart." Princess Zelda explains.
"I know…"
"They won't come back into the village ever again." I assure her.
"You'll protect us?"
"It's what I do." It's all I do, protect people.
-oOo-
The banquet quickly came. I was shooed out of Impa's home as Paya helped the princess into Claree's dress. The door eventually opened behind me and the shy sheikah girl stuck her head out. "Grandmother wants to know if you still have that circlet that you wore here before."
"The diamond one, ruby, or sapphire?" Paya sticks her head back inside and asks.
"Diamond." I hand her the circlet and the door closes again. The princess has decided that the slate is for me, it always was. While she may need it from time to time, it's meant to be mine. The doors open once again and I am ushered inside.
"So…how do I look?" My mind blanks for a moment. The princess looks apprehensive.
"Great, you look great." She breathes deeply.
"Thank you." Great doesn't begin to actually describe her. Despite this dress just being Claree's "for fun" project, it is incredible. The dark blue fabric flows in an almost water-like way. Okay, stop, stop.
"Claree did well."
"Yes, she is rather talented." The princess smiles. The silence hangs heavily between the four of us.
"Paya, dear, help me get down to the banquet." Impa stands and reaches for her granddaughter. "I will announce you two, it should be in around fifteen minutes."
"Yes, Impa." Princess Zelda smiles. We are soon left alone. "Why was Koko so disturbed by the mentioning of the Yiga?"
"Her father used to be one, and when he betrayed them, they killed his wife." The princess breathes deeply like she may cry.
"At least they still have him."
"Koko has decided that she wants to be a chef. Cottla just wants to play."
"They're sweet girls."
"Yes, they are, your grace."
"Don't…"
"Don't what?" I ask after a few moments.
"Don't call me that, please. There is no kingdom, there is no royalty. My castle is destroyed. And even disregarding all of that, I don't want to somehow be…above you. You worked for almost a year to free the Divine Beasts and save me. You barely remembered anything, yet you still did what you knew to be right." She takes a few steps closer to me.
We remain silent for what feels like hours after that. "Zelda?"
"Yes." She smiles. I don't really know what I was going to ask.
"What are you planning on doing now?"
"I don't know."
"Now, as you all know, tonight we are celebrating the end of the Calamity and the beginning of a new era of Hyrule!" Impa announces.
"How is that small woman so loud?" I ask.
"She's always been this way, you were afraid of a total of three people, as far as I knew. My father, though you did admit that fear mostly stemmed from his ability to have you executed on a moment's notice, Urbosa, and Impa." The princess laughs.
"And you." I add.
"Now, it is my pleasure to officially announce the return of Princess Tetralis Hyrule, and her appointed knight, Sir Link." No last name. Her high-Zelda, Zelda grabs my arm and turns us towards the door.
The doors swing open and we are met with as much applause as Kakariko village can muster.
AN:
Alright, I know that I said the celebration was going to be this chapter, but I got carried away writing early on and it started getting too long. So, definitely next chapter. Also, update schedule, there apparently is no schedule. I will not go more than a week without updating though. See y'all next time!
