Chapter 22: Memories

A few days later, Link sent a message to the castle, to Impa, telling her that he was finally ready. Link had been spending his days outside, mostly trying to help with the Cuccos. Malon had given him a riding lesson, despite her own protests. He was pleased to realize that, despite never having ridden a horse, all his past lives had, and the task came almost too easily.

Sitting beside the pen, he watched the Cuccos eat the feed he'd thrown in when he felt like he was being watched himself.

He spun around, but no one was there, and then a branch creaked just a little too loudly. Looking up, he could see Zelda, dressed in her Sheik garb, sitting in the tree. "You shouldn't become a farmer, Link. You look so bored with the Cuccos."

"Only bored because I'm waiting on you."

Zelda hopped down from the tree. "You'll be glad you did."

Without waiting for Link, she headed inside to where Talon sat, Cucco in hand, taking a nap. She tapped his shoulder. "Talon. Talon, Link and I are leaving soon."

"What in tarnation?" he gasped. "Is that today? Are his things all packed?"

"They are," Link responded, standing in the doorway. "I said goodbye to Malon before she went on her milk run with Cremia. I also said goodbye to Ingo before he hid in the silo all day. Now I'm here to say goodbye to you."

Zelda pulled out a loud, jingling sack of rupees from her belt. "Before we leave, I was wondering if you' be willing to do business? We have a long trip and could use a horse."

"'Course!" he cried. "Which one has caught yer fancy?"

"Epona."

Talon made a face. "She's stubborn. You sure?"

"She's the one."

Talon nodded and went out to the stable to grab a saddle and bridle.

Link turned to Zelda with a big smile on his face, not bothering to hide his excitement. "You bring your own horse?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, I brought the royal stallion."

"So, I get her all to myself?"

"I'll walk so you two can bond. She'll want to get to know her new master."

Link looked around and saw that they were alone. He leaned close to her and grabbed her hand. "Thank you, Princess."

Zelda didn't respond to him with more than a smile that she fought to keep from spreading across her face at his joy. It was rare to see him this genuinely happy, and his joy was contagious. They didn't let go of each other until Talon returned with a long saddle over his shoulder and a bridle in the other hand.

"Come on, let's get her ready!"

The three of them fitted the long saddle onto Epona over a blue blanket. They attached the bridle, and Link went back into the house to grab his few things: sword, shield, belts, and weapons. When he returned, Link said goodbye to Talon.

"Rest often. First time riders will get saddle sore. I gave you a longer saddle, since I know there are two of you. Let me get you your rupees before you go."

Zelda raised her hand. "Keep what's left."

"No, I saw far too much in that bag!"

"Keep it."

Link swung up into the saddle and offered Zelda his hand, pulling her up behind him. The saddle had enough room for her if she pressed herself up against Link, which was impossible with his shield.

"This isn't going to work," she said, swatting at the metal. He took it off and held it for a moment, thinking, before tying it around his belt. It was secure, and Zelda scooted closer, the sword not nearly as in-the-way as the shield was.

Link led Epona slowly from the ranch and felt Zelda's hands in a ball at his back.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Nothing?"

"Your hands. What are you doing?"

Zelda unclenched her hands and held them up. "I'm not doing anything."

Link chuckled. "I won't bite if you want to hang on, you know."

"I don't want to hurt you."

"You can reach over and hold the horn."

"It's fine."

Link sighed. "It's a long trip, Princess. Get comfortable."

With a frustrated groan, Zelda grabbed the fabric on the back of his shirt. "Better?"

"Yeah," he said, glancing behind him.

Zelda had removed her mask, and her red eyes were on Link's back until she could see him looking at her. "What?" she asked.

Without responding, Link spurred Epona into a gallop and felt Zelda's arms wrap around him as she let out a surprised yelp.

Everything about it hurt Link, but he kept going, relishing the feel of the wind whipping against his face, the whir of air in his ears, and, if he was honest, the company he kept. The gallop was less painful than the slow trot had been on his bruised and sore body, and he let out a loud, excited scream to the air. There was a small fence straight ahead, and Link could almost feel Epona speeding up, her own wild spirit invigorated with the run.

She leapt much higher than the fence called for and cleared it with ease. She finally slowed, skidding to her final halt before rearing up with an excitement of her own.

Link reached around to instinctively keep Zelda on the horse as she reared. Zelda was an experienced rider, though. After the initial shock, she'd loosened her grip around Link and leaned her head back, enjoying the rush all her own. When Epona had reared, she reached around Link with one hand to hold on to the saddle horn, her other hand securing herself against Link.

He turned in the saddle to look at her, both of their faces flushed with excitement. "Holding on now, Princess?"

"Yeah, yeah," she said, sliding her hand back. "That couldn't have felt good."

Link could feel the pain everywhere. "It's not bad. A good pain. If it didn't hurt, I'd be dead, so I welcome the pain."

They rode for hours before Link couldn't take it anymore. He pulled Epona under a shadow-covered overhang and dismounted. Zelda hopped down and looked around. "Don't get sick out here. We're in the middle of absolutely nowhere." She uncovered her face, letting her hair fall free as well. Her hair was tightly braided and wrapped up so it would look thinner. She left that. Her eyes stayed red.

Link walked up to her and looked at her eyes, trying to see how they became red. Zelda could tell what he was looking for, and she waived her hand in front of her face, her eyes changing from red back to blue. She waved it again, returning them to red.

"I always wondered how you did that," he admitted before sitting down. "Princess? I need to check all… this," he said gesturing to his chest and stomach. "Do I have to be modest still? You've been ogling me shirtless for a few weeks now."

Princess Zelda scoffed. "Oh darn. Do whatever you want, I won't stop you. And I don't 'ogle.'"

"Right," Link laughed before he gingerly pulled off his shirt. His whole side was a mix of purples and blues with very little of his normal skin coloring coming through. Each of the scars on his chest were red and pronounced still, and he laid back in the grass, a pained breath loudly escaping him as he lowered himself down.

Link ran his hands over his eyes in frustration. "Some hero, huh? I'll never be able to help Nabooru if something went wrong in the temple."

"You're too hard on yourself. You just awakened three Sages, defeated two massive underlings of Ganondorf. You almost lost a hand, let's not forget that weird situation."

Link chuckled. "Thanks for not letting that one happen." He paused for a moment and rolled his head so he could see Zelda. "We'll figure out what's happening with your father. If it's Ganondorf, or if it's something else, we'll figure it out."

"Thanks," she said. "After you were taken, he was a really attentive father and king. I think Impa told him bits of what happened. I was distant for a while. Then, I started to hear the Goddesses in my sleep, telling me that I had to open the Sacred Realm. I went with Impa to find the Spiritual Stones, one of which was in Ruto's possession. It's how I knew she'd be the Sage. Once I opened the Door of Time, I heard the Goddesses almost every night, telling me how to harness their gifts.

"One day, my father and I started to fight about my training. I ran away again, and he kept me locked in my rooms. That's when I started learning to teleport. It's not comfortable, and it winds me, so I can't do it a lot, but my father never found out. If he does know, he's never let on. He always insisted I just learn how to seal Ganondorf and learn how to run the kingdom."

"It doesn't sound… so bad," Link said. It also didn't sound ideal.

Zelda smiled, but it was filled with sadness. "He was always loving, but it started to turn into something different. It became paranoia. He had guards follow me everywhere and report back. He had them sweep my room when I was out. He sent Impa and I to each of the Goddess Springs to ensure I kept the blessings of the Goddesses. That's when I started seeing things that were wrong in the world, or monsters crawling around at night. I was sick of hiding behind Impa, and one day, I set them all on fire. She trained me from that day on."

"She did a fantastic job. You'd never expect to see even half the things you can do."

"Some of it is this suit. It's blessed. If I take this off, I can't make some of the really high jumps I've done, or some of the other more difficult things. Most of it is me, though."

Link sat up slightly. "Why the name Sheik?"

"Impa picked it. She said it was an old friend of hers and a wise tribe member."

"Did that Sheik ever marry a Zora?"

Laughing, Zelda shook her head. "How long did it take you to realize I wasn't a man?"

Link gritted his teeth. "Not long. Sorry."

Zelda made a face and excused herself for a moment, returning shortly after with three apples, sitting beside Link and handing him one. "The best I could do."

Link bit into his with a loud crunch and finished it before Zelda had even gotten halfway through hers. He eyed the third apple hungrily. Since being at the ranch, he'd mostly only eaten soup or other liquids.

"Take it," she offered.

Reaching to Zelda's belt, Link took one of her knives and cut the apple, leaving the larger half and taking the small one.

Zelda put the knife away. "Sure, Link, you can borrow my knife. Here, let me get it for you."

He grinned but didn't say anything as he ate the rest of the apple. He could see Zelda's eyes on his scars, though she kept trying to glance away. "What do you want to know, Princess?"

She turned red, knowing she'd been caught. Running her finger along her own neck, he felt for the scar she was referring to.

"Oh, this one? The only thing I had any interaction with was a Stalfos. When Nabooru pierced my ears in the Sacred Realm, it came through to the real world. The Stalfos can't speak, so he chained me to a wall and just dragged his knife down my throat. That's the only day Ganondorf showed up, too. The wound was infected, but there wasn't anything I could do for it except stay in the Spirit Realm until I had healed. That's why it's still pretty visible after all this time."

She pointed to a large mark on his chest. He couldn't exactly see what she meant, since he was covered in bruises. "This one?" he asked, pointing. She nodded. "Uh… I think this one was from a hot sword tip? If I was ever in the back of the cell when it wanted me to come forward and I wouldn't, something like this usually happened."

Link could see that Zelda was visibly upset as she looked at the small marks all across his body. "I'm sorry. None of that would have happened if I hadn't called you to the castle. Every horrible thing that you endured has been my fault. Your friends, your imprisonment, injuries, Ganondorf. It's all because I dragged you into my mess."

"It's not your fault, Princess. If fate is right and I'm some chosen hero, I would have found trouble at some point. It's not your fault. And I wouldn't trade my life for a different choice. I'd still go to you when you were attacked by a Lizalfos. I'd still sneak into the castle with Impa, knowing I'd be captured. All of it brought me here."

They were silent for a while, until the stars shone in the sky. Link dozed off once or twice. When he opened his eyes, he could hear a soft, melodious tune. Zelda was playing her harp, but she looked completely different. She had pure yellow hair with straight bangs across the top of her head and she wore a long, pink dress with a blue sash around her waist.

He looked down at himself. He was clad in all green with armor under his shirt, a green cap atop his head.

Zelda stopped playing and beamed at him. "Morning, Sleepy Head." Bounding onto his lap, she planted a kiss on his lips. Link held on to her, but he could barely respond, he was so shocked. It was familiar and playful, not their first time.

"Are you ready to see what we can do with the Lanaryu Desert? I still think that south of the desert is going to be water." She pushed herself off Link's lap, but he found himself pulling her back down, hastily reaching up to catch her lips in his. She laughed and stood up without breaking the kiss until the last second. "We have to go, Link."

"Everyone can wait a few extra minutes," he complained, pulling on his boots.

He opened his eyes again. There was no music this time, and it was still night outside. Rolling onto his side, he looked for Zelda. She was staring at him with a curious expression.

Link sat up. "Were you just watching me sleep?"

Zelda, once again in her Sheik garb, shook her head. "You wouldn't stop saying my name. I'm not counting those as you calling me Zelda, by the way. I figured you either were dying, or just having a really great dream, since I was there."

He turned red and chuckled nervously. "Not a dream, a vision. What's one of the… more unique ones you've seen with us?"

She made a face and thought for a moment. "Well, there was one where you were a wolf?"

Surprised, Link hid his grin. "A wolf? I was some sort of beast?"

"Don't say it like that. I can only imagine you twisting that. You were a very nice wolf, okay? You were with a cursed Twilight Princess and both needed my help." She looked at him suspiciously. "Why? What did you just see?"

Remembering that he'd seen this version of himself before, he recalled the old vision. "I was flying on the back of a large bird and when I looked up, you threw yourself off a floating platform and landed on the bird with me. It was… bizarre."

"Oh! The first ones! I have visions of us then all the time."

"Yeah?" he asked again. "Learn anything?"

She leaned back and closed her eyes. "Lots of things."

"Okay," Link said, laying back down. He couldn't tell if she was hiding what she knew, or if what she knew was just too general and uninteresting.

Either way, Link wasn't sure he wanted to go back to sleep, trying to spare himself another vision. He had to learn to stop sleep-talking, fast.