Chapter Eighteen

Humble Hearts (I)

Days turned into weeks as the temperature grew hotter. With each rising and setting of the sun, the season progressed to its zenith. While the country continued to trade stories of their week of festivities, time continued to move forward.

The demands of being Queen began wearing on Zelda once more. Without reprieve, she slowly began to wither under the pressure. At the urging of Impa, with Mikal and several Healers supporting her, the young Queen deciding to relax for the weekend. How could she run the country and help its people if she didn't maintain her health, they asked her? She ceded after being reminded that running herself ragged would do nothing but put her in the hospital once more.

It was this decision which led her to sleep in. Normally waking around dawn, she now rested until after breakfast. It wasn't until the clock struck half-ten that her eyes fluttered. With a moan, she rolled towards the edge of the large bed and buried her head under the pillow. "Sl'p," she mumbled as she heard Impa walk quietly from her own chambers.

"You can go back to sleep if you want," came the reply which was much too awake for Zelda's taste.

Moaning again, the groggy woman fought consciousness. "You g'bac ta s'ep t'."

Shaking her head, Impa checked to make sure the curtains were closed before walking towards the sitting room. "I can't go back to sleep," she replied quietly with a fond glance at the lump that was her Charge.

"W'y?"

With a sigh, she looked at the scroll held in her clenched hand. Taking a shuddering breath, she made her decision. "I'm meeting my grandmother for lunch."

[-]

Less than ten minutes later, Zelda trailed behind Impa, determined to get answers. After squeaking in shock and nearly falling off the bed in her haste, the Hylian had rushed to dress. So dazed, she barely noticed as she followed the Sheikah from their rooms and into the sunlit corridor.

"Grandmother?" she repeated for the third time.

"What, you thought I was hatched?" Spoken with amusement yet laced with offense, the quiet reply hung between them for a moment.

"No. It's just...you don't talk about your past a lot."

Pausing, Impa looked over her shoulder. "Because, for the most part, my past is irrelevant."

It took near forty-five seconds to realize Zelda was still standing in the middle of the hall, mouth agape.

[-]

"Can I go with you?"

"If you want."

"...do you want me to?"

"I didn't say that."

"You never told me before."

"I was trying to keep her safe."

"From...?"

"The war."

"The war's been over for over two years."

"There were—are—still plenty of people who would want to hurt her."

"To hurt you."

"Yes."

A pregnant silence fell between them, their footsteps the only answer to thoughts unspoken.

[-]

They entered the kitchen without another word between them. Both ate slowly, lost in their own thoughts. This day, the food tasted bland despite its richness. Their hearts were too heavy, their minds too clouded by emotion and chaos to worry over the simpleness of taste. When they eyes met, they looked away.

Impa swallowed her cold tea as she stared at the cooling coals in the open rotisserie. Hurt and worry filled her. Was it truly such a shock that she had family? Yes, she'd told Zelda many times over the years that she was her family…her world. This was true. Had she done too good a job in protecting her grandmother?

With a quiet sigh, she put her head in her hands. This was not how she'd pictured the day beginning. In fact, she had tried to never picture this day specifically. The day when Zelda asked to meet her grandmother.

On the same day her grandmother requested to meet Zelda.

The Goddesses had a twisted sense of humor. Partially ironic…but mostly twisted.

With a sardonic smile, she shook her head and opened her eyes. She'd known it was bound to happen eventually. The fact that Zelda had lasted fifteen years since her last questioning of her family was amazing. Her inquisitive nature all but demanded the young Queen find answers to every question she had. Yet the amazement didn't hide the truth: the two people she'd tried to keep apart for nearly twenty years wanted to meet each other. Face-to-face. Today.

With a groan, she put her head in her hands once more.

Zelda watched the older Guardian with hooded eyes. She pushed vegetables around her plate without thought. She knew her shock had been extreme. The insinuations which filled her previous questions made her wince. Her intention had never been to harm; but then again, wasn't the road to Hell paved with good intentions? With a nearly silent sigh, she laid her fork on the plate and stared at her untouched food.

Had she ever given the impression...no, she didn't think she did. She hadn't asked Impa about her family since she was a child. The last time she had…the sight of her tears...she couldn't bring herself to cause the older woman that much pain again just to satisfy her curiosity. Or at all. Rubbing her face, she muttered under her breath before looking across the table again.

"Impa?"

The quiet question, a single word which drifted softly between them, a name filled with insecurity and remorse, caused their eyes to meet.

"Yes Zelda."

"I'm sorry."

A whisper hardly breathed brought the smallest of smiles to red eyes, though it barely reached frowning lips. "I am too."

Silence fell one more, much less strained yet containing reminiscent of tension. Giving up all pretense of eating, they cleaned their dishes and left the kitchen.

"Do you truly want to come with me?" Impa asked softly as they traveled the long, sunlit halls.

Pausing, Zelda waited until Impa also stopped before meeting her eyes. She spoke just as softly as she clasped their hands. "Yes, I do."

"Then you shall." Looking over the clothes the Queen had chosen less than hour before, she frowned. "Go change into something more...durable. Suited for riding. I'll prepare the horses." She brushed her lips over the other woman's knuckles before releasing their hands. "Go."

Backing away, Zelda waited until she saw Impa start walking before turning around to jog back to their chambers. Something told her she wasn't completely forgiven just yet.

[-]

As Zelda showered and changed, Impa quickly made her way through the castle via the servant's passages. Uninterrupted, she entered the stables in half the time it would take if she'd used the main corridors.

"Miss Impa?"

Turning to the stable-boy standing in the tackle room doorway, she smiled softly. "Yes Ben?"

The boy, no older than thirteen, ran a hand through his already messy hair, his light brown eyes cloudy from his half-sleep state. "Need m'ta get somethin'?"

Shaking her head, she felt her smile grow. He reminded her of a young Link, something which amused both Ben and Link to no end. "No, thank you. I can handle it."

Wiping the rest of his nap-induced-grogginess from his eyes, he yawned softly and began his duties. "Miss Impa," he said again. "You an' the Queen gonna go out?"

"Yes, we are," she told him while chuckling. The son of a widower footman who worked in the castle, Ben had taken to the horses due to his older brother's care of the animals. When he had been a child barely reaching her knee, he couldn't pronounce "Guardian" or "Maderone" and had simply called her "Miss Impa". Clearly it was a habit he had yet to (and might never) outgrow.

Not that she minded. It was endearing, truth be told.

"'s Link goin'?"

Chuckling again at his less than subtle admiration of the Hero, she shook her head as she finished brushing her white mare. "No, he's not. I have no idea where he is."

"Oh," was the only response she got. A comfortable lull filled the barn as he hummed Epona's Song to the horses while he worked. She continued to smile while saddling both her and Zelda' horses.

From the side door, Zelda held her arms crossed over her chest as she watched. She smiled softly as she watched Ben care for the horses. Her smile grew as she noticed the boy slipping them all treats when he thought Impa wasn't looking.

Her quiet chuckle caused them both to snap their heads towards her. Ducking her head, she felt guilt poison the happiness which had filled her. "Sorry."

Ben said nothing as he looked between the older women he considered friends despite their social standings being far above his own. "Why?" he asked. "Didn't do nothin' wrong..." he added as he furrowed his brows, ignorant of the fact that he'd just forgotten his father's many lessons on how to address the Queen.

The innocence of one who hadn't yet entered the grueling world of adulthood brought another smile to Zelda's lips. She turned to Impa. "I don't know. Did I?"

The question, unasked but not unknown, fluttered between them like a hummingbird. When Impa shook her head, she sighed quietly in relief.

Oblivious to the exchange, Ben shrugged and went back to work, talking to both the women and the horses as he cleaned the stalls. He waved goodbye and bade them a "fun and safe trip" as they lead their mares from the massive stable.

Their boots shifted the gravel beneath them as they walked towards a delivery bridge which led to Eldin Province. They spoke little as both became lost in their own thoughts. It wasn't until they were in the vast field and seated atop the horses that they turned to each other. With a shared smile, they faced forward again as Impa spurred her mare forward, galloping north.

[-]

It wasn't until they neared the rocky path that Zelda realized where they were heading. The Hidden Village, also known as "Old Kakriko", was up ahead. "You hid her in plain sight!" she exclaimed as they continued to race towards the high rock ridges.

"Yes," was Impa's quiet response. She slowed her horse to a canter and waited for Zelda to do the same before facing her. "There was no where else I could hide her."

They slide from their mounts and walked through the tunnel towards the secluded dwelling. As they stirred dust, Impa looked around the nearly deserted town, her eyes moving from the faded sign to the narrow street. The end of the war had seen the village cleaned and updated, yet it still had few residents. Her grandmother, an old bomb maker and his son who cared for the semi-feral cats along with a traveling merchant who had decided to settle.

Zelda's eyes fell upon buildings which had once been shambles and took in the sight of order. She wondered if the boarded windows hid stores and occupied homes or merely empty structures. Clenching the lead tighter, she felt a shiver run down her spine.

Poe energy.

"They're harmless," Impa murmured as they neared a apartments at the end of the lane. "They guard the town rather than cause mischief."

"Why?"

"No one knows."

"Why not?"

Smiling softly, the Sheikah ran a hand through the Hylian's unbound hair. "Because they disappear before anyone can ask."

"Oh... What about Dampé?"

"Link told you about him? I'm surprised; I thought he'd keep silent."

Grinning, Zelda bumped her hip against Impa's as the stopped walking for a moment. "Why? Don't think I can keep a secret?"

Returning the grin, the older woman shook her head as a cool wind blew through the deserted down, carrying the sound of wolves long gone. "More along the lines of ascension usually being something one keeps silent. It's rarely spoken of by those who witness it."

"Oh." Without realizing it, they had resumed walking and were standing before their destination.

Impa took several deep breaths and looked at her Charge. "Are you sure?" she asked quietly.

Lacing their fingers, Zelda nodded. "I want to meet her. She's your family."

Swallowing hard, the Sage of Shadows took a deep breath. Her stomach churned as her throat tightened. With a shaking hand, she knocked softly on the door. As arm lowered, her thoughts raced.

The Time Sage squeezed her other hand. She didn't need the bond to know the other woman was nervous. "It'll be ok," she whispered. She ran her thumb over white knuckles in a soothing gesture.

Seconds became hours as they stared at the door. The nearly silent click of a turned lock was a cannon blast to their ears. Ever so slowly, the door opened.