CHAPTER 11
The Missing Princess
The next day Link wakes up at the Rollin' inn. He puts on his clothes, straps, and the Blue Tunic Zelda made. As he attaches his sheath containing the Master sword he walks out of the room. He traverses down the hall to the Royal room and notices that the door is slightly open. Links eyebrows narrow. He pulls out his sword and rushes in, worried, he starts to look around the room. Zelda is nowhere to be seen. Links eyebrows narrow as he starts to sweat. "Where could she have gone?!" he thinks to himself. He makes his way down to the lobby and asks Bime, "Did you see the princess?" "O' yeah! She left earlier." Bime replies. "Where did she go?" Link asks as his heart starts beating faster. "I-I don't know. She didn't say." Bime blurts nervously. Link runs out of the inn and starts going around the city asking if anyone's seen the princess. All of the Gorons have no idea where she's gone but they saw her leave the city. Link heads for the trail leading out of Goron City and as he runs to the bottom he sees Impa and Purah. "Oh, Link!" Purah yelps. "W-Where is the princess?" Link asks as he gasps for air. Impa and Purah become astonished as this is the first time they've ever heard his voice. "S-She…" Purah tries to speak, "Uhm, she-she went to the shrine. Yeah, uh, we saw her earlier and she said she was headed to the shrine to see if she could open it with her Sheikah slate." Purah explains. "Where is it?" Link asks as he regains his stamina. "On top of that mountain where the pillars could be seen." Purah says as she points to it. "Thank you!" Link bellowed as he runs to the stable to retrieve Epona. "I didn't… I never expected to hear him talk." Impa stuttered. "Yeah, me neither." Purah adds on as the two look on with wide eyes.
Zelda kneels down in front of the pillar that stands in front of the shrine. The shrine has a Sheikah design around it and the front door is covered with Sheikah symbols. The shrine and the other big pillars near it seem to have been there for ages; moss is growing on them. Zelda inspects the pillar and puts the Sheikah slate on it but nothing happens. "Nothing. Just as I thought." she whispers to herself as she looks at the shrine, "It appears that this structure was designed to be exclusively accessed by the sword's chosen one. But designs can always be worked around, at least I hope." She backs up from the altar and faces the door, "How do I get inside…? I need to activate it somehow" she says. Epona's neigh alert Zelda and she turns around. She frowns upon seeing Link arrive. Link jumps off of Epona and runs towards Zelda. "I thought I made it clear that I am not in need of an escort." she says as she walks up to him. Her eyebrows narrow and she puts her hands on her hips, "It seems I'm the only one with a mind of my own." She holds her hand up to her chest, "I, the person in question, am fine, regardless of the king's orders." Link listens as the wind blows through his hair. "Return to the castle. And tell that to my father, please." Zelda demanded as she walked past Link. As she walks back to her horse, Link starts to trail behind her. Hearing his footsteps, she scrunches her face and turns around. "And stop following me!" she shouts.
A few hours pass and night begins to fall upon the valley, they stay at an inn near a lake. Zelda sits in her room and writes in her diary again,
"I said something awful to him today... My research was going nowhere. I was feeling depressed, and I had told him repeatedly not to accompany me. But he did anyway, as he always does, and so I yelled at him without restraint. He seemed confused by my anger. I feel terribly guilty...and that guilt only makes me more agitated then I was before."
She finishes writing and sleeps in the bed. Link sits outside of her door making sure he doesn't lose her again. He stands for hours until his legs start to become weak and he sits. Bags start to form under his eyes as he tries to fight the urge to sleep. His head starts falling but he picks it up. Trying to stay awake, he loses the fight and falls asleep. The sun started to rise but rainclouds cover it. Zelda wakes up from the dim light that shines through her window and gets dressed. Walking out of the room she sees Link asleep at her doorstep. "Again? Just like the tent." she thought to herself. Rain begins pouring outside as she stares at Link. She opens up her Sheikah slate and presses it. Finalizing her plan she sets a course to a specific location and she exits the inn. The rain kept pouring as Zelda retrieved her horse and left the inn. Link wakes up and hits himself realizing that he fell asleep. He stands up and knocks on Zelda's door. It's silent. Links eyebrows narrow as he slowly opens the door. He sees that the room is empty and grunts. He runs out of the inn to see that it's heavily raining and retrieves Epona. Not knowing where to go he puts his head down in defeat but sees imprints in the wet dirt. Zelda's horse left an imprint in the dirt leaving a trail. Links eyes widen as he follows the trail.
The rain stops pouring and the sun comes out as Link and Epona enter the Gerudo Desert. The trails lead them here and Link starts to get an idea of where the princess went. He continues into the desert and goes into a nearby town filled with many people from all the races, Hylians, Ritos, Gorons, Zoras, and Gerudos. They walk around the town spending time together, eating, gossiping, and swimming in the lake that's in the middle of the hot town. They notice Link and bow to him, thanking him for his duties as the Hero of Hyrule. Link steps down from Epona and walks up to a Goron asking, "Do you know the way to Gerudo Town?" The Goron tells him directions to the town and Link thanks him. He gets back on Epona and follows the directions the Goron gave him. He arrives at the front of Gerudo Town seeing two guards. They jump in surprise, seeing the Hero of Hyrule at their doorstep. "May I meet with Urbosa?" Link asks as he steps down from Epona. "O-Of course. Let me go in and tell her of your arrival." the Gerudo guard replied. Link nods and the guard walks into the throne room and kneels before Urbosa. "Lady Urbosa, the Hero of Hyrule has come demanding your presence." the guard stated. "Link? He's here?" Urbosa replied. "Yes." the guard finished. Urbosa stood up and made her way to the front of the town. She sees Link brushing Epona with his hands. He notices Urbosa and walks up to her, "Urbosa, I believe Zelda has exploited your law that restricts men to enter the town to get away from me." he explained. Urbosa's eyes widen as she hears Links voice for the first time. She chuckles, "She's one smart girl, isn't she?" Urbosa replied, "As you know, there is no way for you to enter Gerudo Town. Plus I haven't seen or heard of her being here." "There must be some way to enter." Link exclaims. "Well…" Urbosa utters as she whispers into Links left ear. His face turns red when he hears Urbosa's suggestion and he slowly gets back on Epona, riding back to the town he was just at. "Is he really gonna do it?" Urbosa questions as she returns to her throne.
An hour goes by and word of a female Hylian spreads throughout Gerudo Town. As Urbosa walks through the town one of the guards tells her about the visitor, "She has blue eyes, blonde hair and wears blue garments." the guard states as Urbosa starts to chuckle. She sends her guard away and tries to look for the Hylian in blue. She walks through the marketplace and sees the Hylian but really it's Link in womens clothing. "He really did it." Urbosa thinks to herself as she laughs and walks up to him. "Have you found her yet?" she asks. Link looks up at her and shakes his head. "You know. I didn't expect you to take my advice seriously but now I can see why you would. Being the princesses appointed knight and all." Urbosa admired. Link starts to walk around the town trying to find Zelda. Urbosa searches with him as the moon starts to rise. She gives him a proposition, "Link, stay at the nearby town for tonight and rest. If I find her I'll send a messenger to come and get you, ok?" Urbosa says. Link nods his head and his stomach grumbles. He holds his stomach and scratches the back of his head in embarrassment. "And it seems you haven't eaten at all today. Come with me." Urbosa commands as they go to a food vendor. She gets food for Link and they say their goodbyes at the entrance of the town. "He sure is committed in finding her." Urbosa smiles.
Urbosa walks out into the desert to see Divine Beast Vah Naboris. A giant tan mechanical camel that walks on four limbs. Where the limbs attach to the body there are round fenced off balconies. Some of its body and neck is outlined by blue lights and the humps of it look like temples that connect together with a hallway. It lays in the sand and Urbosa steps up onto it. Using her Sheikah slate she makes the Divine Beast stand up on its limbs. As she walks up the stairs to a balcony she sees pillows and a quilt on the floor along with Zelda holding onto the fence, "Little Bird?" Urbosa uttered. "Ah, Urbosa. I'm sorry to intrude." Zelda says, "But I needed to be alone." Zelda holds her hands behind her back. "I understand. How about now? Are you feeling better?" Urbosa asks. "Yes." Zelda replies. Urbosa smiles and sits down on the quilt. She tells Zelda to sit with her, "You know, that boy spent all day looking for you." Urbosa recounted. "I was out on survey." Zelda says as she yawns, "And I don't need him watching my every move." "He seems to have trouble expressing himself…" Urbosa continues. Zelda stays silent as she rests her head on Urbosa's shoulder. "I think...you two can really help each other-" Urbosa stops as she realizes that Zelda has fallen asleep on her. Urbosa takes out her Sheikah slate and makes the Divine Beast walk to the town where Link is staying.
Link sits outside of an inn waiting for the messenger Urbosa told him about until he feels a slight pulse vibrating in the sand. He stands up and walks around the inn to see Divine Beast Vah Naboris slowly descend to the ground. His eyes widen and with all his strength he runs on the sand making his way onto the Divine Beast. He runs up the stairs and upon seeing Zelda he slows down. Urbosa turns her head to him and says, "Ah, well...you certainly got here fast. I should have expected as much, from the princess's own appointed knight. She was out on a survey all day today. Still as the sands now…" Zelda continues to sleep on her shoulder. "So…? Spill it, boy." Urbosa demanded, "Have the two of you been getting along all right?" Link takes a step and doesn't say a word. "It's OK... I know. Your silence speaks volumes." Urbosa says as she looks down at Zelda, "She gets frustrated every time she looks up and sees you carrying that sword on your back. It makes her feel like a failure when it comes to her own destiny. Don't worry, it's not like you carry blame in any of this." Link slowly starts to understand Zelda's feelings towards him. "It's unfortunate. She's put in more than enough time. Ever since she was a young girl, she's gone through rigorous daily routines to show her dedication… She once passed out in the freezing waters trying to access this sealing power. And she has nothing to show for it..." Urbosa explains. "That's the motivation driving her research. I'd be doing the same thing. She really is quite…special." she says as she brushes Zelda's hair to the side. "You be sure to protect her with your life. It's quite the honor." Urbosa admired. Link nods. "The night brings a chill... It's probably time we take her in. Hmm...or." Urbosa smirks as she hold her chin. She then reaches out her arm and snaps her fingers making lightning strike the ground. The sound of the lightning so close to them wakes Zelda up. "Urbosa! What was that?! Did you feel that?" Zelda exclaimed. She looks behind her and sees Link standing there, "Wait, what-how did you-What are you doing here?!" she bellowed. Urbosa starts to laugh. "Wh-What's so funny?" Zelda questioned as Urbosa continued to laugh.
Sometime later, Urbosa steers Divine Beast Vah Naboris behind the throne room and brings Link and Zelda into their separate rooms. In Links room, Urbosa tells him, "You two will have to leave early so you don't get caught breaking Gerudo law. All right?" Link nods and she leaves the room letting him sleep. She goes into Zelda's room and sees that she's fallen asleep. Urbosa slowly sits on the bed and smiles while brushing Zelda's hair. "Tired little bird." Urbosa whispered. The next morning, Urbosa walks in to wake Link up. As he gets dressed Urbosa tells him that Zelda will meet him at the nearby town and that she's already left. Link nods and the two make their way to the entrance of the town. Urbosa and Link say their goodbyes and Link rides towards the town.
At the town, Zelda steps down from her horse. She lands on the ground making an imprint of her shoes. The town is silent. The sound of wind blowing sand through the air is the only thing that could be heard. "What happened to everybody?" Zelda thought to herself. As she walks away from her horse a Yiga Footsoldier poofs right next to it grabbing its lead. The horse neighs and Zelda turns around noticing the Footsoldier, "Get away from her!" she shouts.
The Yiga Footsoldier slowly turns to Zelda and her brows drew together as she started to get nervous.
Two more Yiga Footsoldiers show up and start running towards her.
Zelda's eyes widen and she starts running away.
Two Yiga Footsoldiers dash around her and get in front her.
Zelda turns around.
The other Yiga Footsoldier runs up behind her.
Zelda falls backwards catching herself with her hands.
She tries to crawl backwards but realizes she's surrounded by the three Yiga Footsoldiers.
Her heart starts pounding.
They pull out their crescent moon like swords and wave them around, taunting her.
The Yiga Footsoldier that scared her down raises his sword.
He strikes down.
Zelda looks away in fear.
A clang of metal is heard.
Zelda, untouched, slowly opens her eyes.
The Yiga Footsoldier falls to the ground.
Link stands in front of Zelda, protecting her from the last two Yiga Footsoldiers.
Zelda takes deep breaths as she looks at Link.
Her eyes widen and glisten.
She gapes her mouth a little.
Link raises his sword.
The two Yiga Footsoldiers take a step back in fear.
Zelda's heart starts beating faster as she raises her brows.
She looks at Link in amazement as the wind blows through his hair.
The two remaining Yiga Footsoldiers poof away leaving Link and Zelda alone.
Link sheaths his sword and reaches out to help Zelda up. She takes his hand and gets back up. Zelda, unable to say a word, blushes as she stares at him. They walk to their horses and journey back to Hyrule. Back at the castle the two part ways and Zelda enters the castle stables. She steps down from her horse and starts to brush it. She puts her head down thinking about Link and a corner of her mouth turns up. After she washes up she unpacks her satchel in her room and takes out her diary. She sits at her desk, smiling, and writes,
"I am unsure how to put today's events into words. Words so often evade me lately, and now more than ever. He saved me. Without a thought for his own life, he protected me from the ruthless blades of the Yiga Clan. Though I've been cold to him all this time...taking my selfish and childish anger out on him at every turn... Still, he was there for me. I won't ever forget that. Tomorrow, I shall apologize for all that has transpired between us. And then...I will try talking to him. To Link. It's worth a shot."