Summary: Zelda and Link have been preparing for the return of Ganon for years, but when he finally arrives, their plan is thrown off by the arrival of someone on the battlefield, someone they're both willing to die for.

HELLO MAJOR CHARACTER DEATH/NOT A TERRIBLY HAPPY ENDING. Maybe stop reading now if you don't want that!

(The only reason this oneshot exists is because I was watching Cinema Therapy's A Quiet Place episode at midnight, and they started crying during that scene at the end, and I was like omg... yes. I want something like that to happen. And then I wanted to write in present tense, and I didn't want too much dialogue like I usually have, and I couldn't think of a good name for a character so I just didn't give him one, and I'm sick, so this is a slightly different style than I usually do because I was kind of bored and idk if it works but we'll see.)

Word count: 6170

Zelda stares over the parapets as she has done more times in her life than she cares to admit. Her hand lightly traces a circle against the rough stone, but she doesn't notice because her attention is wholly elsewhere.

When she was a young teenager, she'd hide her face between these same stones so she could watch the soldiers train in secret, amazed by their skill, skills she could never understand. They moved like water, fluidly transitioning from one stance to another. It had entranced her enough that she'd kept coming back.

When she'd gotten a little older, she was still amazed, but her eyes were drawn to one knight in particular, and she didn't hesitate to focus her attention almost entirely on him. He was young and almost scrawny, shorter than the others. She wondered just how young he was, but the more she'd looked at him, the more she determined that he'd been about her own age. His short blonde hair looked newly sheered, and his eyes shone. That's what drew her attention most of all. Amidst the training, the swords, the blood, and the pain, he always looked like he was having fun. He enjoyed swinging the sword around and showing off in front of others. He laughed at jokes, and taunted his opponents, but he was easily humbled by loss as well, and graciously accepted defeat.

But before she could even muster the courage to introduce herself, he'd been sent away on some quest. Not long after, she'd been amazed to learn he was the hero of legend: the destined wielder of the Master Sword.

It wasn't a celebration. The appearance of the Master Sword on a soldier's back meant oncoming danger, and everyone in Hyrule had gone on alert.

Years passed and Zelda had breached twenty. She'd matured enough that she'd stopped spying on the soldiers or indulging in her own whims, instead focusing on how to unlock her Goddess-given powers. Creatures had begun to appear in Hyrule in droves, and the soldiers were sent away to fight.

"Be careful," she'd said to almost all of them as they walked past her in a line as they marched out of the safety of the Castle walls.

But Zelda's training continued the longer time went on, and she'd returned to travelling to the springs to try to open herself to the Goddess.

It was never that easy.

Once half of her guards had been strewn across an open field in an attempt to protect her, Zelda had been caught between a lynel and a cliff. She'd never prayed harder for the Goddess' divine intervention, begging Her to unlock her powers so she wouldn't be impaled by the lynel's horns. She'd already been injured once during that encounter, and she couldn't move. The Goddess was all she had left.

Zelda did try. Panting, she tried to push herself along the wall, hunched in pain as she felt the gashes in the skin of her back rub together and send her into a near delirious pain. The lynel had clawed at her while it ran past, but Zelda wasn't keen on dying. It was only when her leg stopped supporting her that she looked up to meet her fate, bloody hands against the grass, sweat on her forehead, a rockface trapping her from behind. The only thing she could do was to keep her eyes on the lynel as it charged at her, hands pushing off the ground for more momentum. She'd held her breath, but never closed her eyes.

Until she was whisked off her feet and toppled to the ground just before she heard the impact of the lynel into the cliff. The creature was too stunned to move, trying to recover from the pain.

At first, Zelda didn't know who it was who'd moved her. There was no one beside her, so perhaps it truly had been divine intervention at her behest. She couldn't feel any of the pain anymore, so perhaps it was the Goddess' arms embracing her.

But as she took in the lynel, she could see someone on it's back, bringing it down despite it's bucking and thrashing until it stilled and slumped over, and the rider hopped off as if he'd just jumped off a bed, entirely too casually.

She was eventually met by steeled blue eyes, deep and unrelenting and unfamiliar until she saw the sword he held in his hand.

The boy from the training yard. The Hero of the Goddesses.

Link.

Perhaps this was what they thought she meant by divine intervention. Their sense of humor agitated her.

But she'd begun to take notice of this knight after her recovery. He'd returned to the castle with her, and he'd become her escort rather quickly anytime she wanted to wander the castle.

He was funny. From his hardened expression, and near permanent non-smile on his face, she'd expected him to have become a droll adult. And he was. In front of everyone except her.

Once she'd been released, Link had also been reassigned. Zelda missed seeing his messy ponytail in front of her when he checked for danger, and his blue earrings that she had the best view of when he was walking beside her for conversation.

So, she'd returned to the parapets and watched him train the newest soldiers before he'd lead them out for some experience. She'd done this for days, comfortable against her arms as she watched it all. She watched him take boys and turn them into soldiers. His hard demeanor was back, and people showed him reverence and respect. He was the epitome of a perfect soldier, following orders, going on raids, training the troops. His eyes were sharp on them, watching for their flaws and correcting them. He even trained on his own, though Zelda didn't think he needed it. And as he trained, he'd been so focused that she wondered if he'd see the King if he'd been standing beside him.

That was until he'd caught her watching him.

He'd indulged her, toying with her interest. He'd taken off his shirt on hot days while he trained and pretended that he didn't see her because he knew once he did, she'd blush and leave It left him tense in a whole new way, constantly aware of her as if she were a tangible feeling. And the longer she stayed, the more Link started to feel confident that it was because of him rather than a fluke, and he'd longed to show off for her a bit, throwing himself harder into his practice sessions until he'd return to the barracks drenched in sweat, heaving from exertion with only enough energy left to bathe and make it to his bed.

He'd begun to volunteer as one of her guards whenever she went out to study something, and he'd steal glances when he thought no one was looking. And the times that she did catch him, she'd done nothing to deter him. She'd even egged him on with a sly smile or a returned look. And he'd sat there, mouth tight, longing to smile at her, but that wasn't something knights did.

Soon, neither was content with flirtatious looks. He'd brush up against her in the hall and she'd never flinch. He'd taken her hand to help her onto her horse and she never pulled away. He'd offered to accompany her almost every time she went out until it practically became his job. They'd gone out alone several times, and those were his favorite days because she'd talk to him, and he'd tell her things he'd never told another soul.

Zelda had liked these moments because they were some of the few times that his hardened gaze cracked and revealed the mischievous glint of the boy she'd once watched train all those years ago. The thing that gave her the most pride was when she could coax the small tipped-up smile that he had when she'd said something that he really liked.

She'd pulled it all from him again and again until they finally realized that this indulgence was mutual, and not just a fantasy in either of their heads.

Zelda had been the one to kiss him first. It had been during a midnight stroll through the newly shaped topiary gardens. The smell alone had made it enticing, freshly cut grass and leaves and the smell of oncoming rain had drawn her out there like she was following a trail. Link had been with her. Link was always with her.

As the Hero, Link held titles that permitted him to court the Princess without any hassle, despite his role as a simple knight, so as soon as they'd brought it to Zelda's father, he'd given his blessing for the match. By then, they'd spent so much time together that Link no longer masked anything from her in any regard, whether it was smiling when she made him happy, or screaming because he'd become so frustrated with all the expectations that he was forced to carry, and she'd opened up to him completely, from her fears to her insecurities, and her doubts and her desires.

From the time they started officially courting, it was a year before they'd married.

It had been a grand spectacle, and the Kingdom had forgotten their restless vigilance for some unknown danger for that week, turning it into a celebration.

Two years after that, the kingdom celebrated again, this time, for the birth of a prince. Link had been by her side, and it had been the happiest day.

Zelda was bursting with love as she looked on at the small bundle in her arms. He hadn't opened his eyes for her to see what color they were just yet, but she gingerly stroked the blonde tufts of his hair and caressed his cheek as tears bubbled straight from the depths of her, spilling over with a force and a power she never knew she had in her.

There was a burning in her chest, and she'd cried out. Link took their son from her just before she curled up into a ball and kept screaming.

Someone had taken the baby, because Link was holding her now. And then, he wasn't. He'd sat back to marvel at her as she glowed like the sun, and energy radiated off of her like relentless waterfall, beating down until it was all Link could feel.

Zelda had opened her eyes, and for a moment, they were as golden as her hair while she marveled at her own hand, at the light that was emanating off of her before her eyes settled back into their usual verdant green.

Zelda breathed heavily before she gasped, "He's returned," and then promptly passed out in Link's arms.

Sure enough, the day of their son's birth had begun it all: Zelda's powers unlocked, Ganon had been released, and Link began to hear the Master Sword inside his head. They'd never figured out what event had triggered it all. Had it been the birth itself? Had Zelda's powers unlocked when she held her son? Had Ganon done something that triggered Zelda's powers to unlock? That was one riddle they'd never solved.

For years, they trained and waited. Ganon was out there, gathering his strength, becoming more of a threat with every passing year.

So now, as Zelda stares over the parapets, she's not just watching Link train, but she's watching him with their son.

He's barely eight years old, but he was born with his father's natural abilities with a sword. Zelda wonders if that's some divine curse. Because while she has always admired Link's physical strength, his courage, and his leadership skills, she didn't want her son leading an army into war one day, and his father might.

Their son always favored Link in appearance. From the shape of his face, to his nose and his mouth, he is doubtlessly Link's son. But his eyes are all Zelda. There isn't a trace of Link in their son's eyes.

He's good at fighting for someone his age, but he's still just a child, and Link is a legendary accomplished swordsman. So while Zelda can see Link give their son somewhat of a challenge for a while, Link relents and falls to his knees, pretending that he'd been brought down by the training sword of a young boy. And it brings their son far too much joy to have bested his father, throwing his hands up in victory.

Zelda can see them both laughing, and in the distance, she can even hear it faintly. It brings on a wide smile that she can't stop from spreading. Her heart hurts from the strain of loving them both so much because they are her whole heart and it's overflowing.

Link pulls their son down, playfully wrestling him and then letting him win again. Link covers his eyes as if he's embarrassed by the loss, but then he sees Zelda and his expression immediately softens and adoration is written all over him. He pulls their son into his lap to get him out of the dirt and points to Zelda. She can see Link say the word 'mom' before they both wave to her.

She's so full of love for them both that she's actually concerned that she could burst apart. She waves back and blows them two kisses. Link catches them and their son laughs as Link places the kiss on both their cheeks before his arms tuck his son against him and he plants his own on the boy's cheek. He's laughing wildly now, and Zelda can't tell if Link has kissed him, or given him a raspberry. Either way, she laughs with them until Link has them waving goodbye at her as he sets their son on his feet and takes his hand to lead him back into the castle.

That night, she sits up in bed and throws herself onto Link. He laughs because she's laughing too, and she traces patters along his face, his jaw, his ears, his neck, and his chest until he's practically purring like a contented cat. She just wants to admire him, maybe taunt him a little with her hand trailing lower, which she does. But all of it is enough that Link can't contain himself, pulling her tightly and flipping them over as his lips roam all the places that she'd just teased on him.

He pulls off her nightdress, and she's scattered his clothes. There's something sudden and desperate about the way they hold one another that night. Zelda can feel it in his tight grip and in her deep kisses. It's there every time their eyes meet, and their names have never sounded sweeter on the other's lips.

They fall asleep, as tangled up in each other and intertwined until there's no discerning who's limbs belong to who. It's tight, and it's constricting, but they're both at peace, needing to feel the other as much as humanly possible.

An urgent knock on the door wakes them. They both sit up quickly, but the door opens before they can say 'come in', so Zelda pulls up the covers for modesty and waits. It's Impa, their closest friend and advisor, second hand of the King, and their son's tutor.

She barely spares a glance at the state they're in because she's breathing too heavily, and her eyes are unseeing, despite how wide they'd gone.

"He's here," is all Impa can manage before Link has already reached for his discarded things, and Zelda's eyes scan their room for her armor.

She tells Impa to protect their son until they can get there, and they move faster than they'd ever moved before. Link is in his full armor, plates, chainmail, gauntlets, Master Sword. Zelda wears chainmail and a breastplate that covers all the way up to her neck so no sword or arrow can near her heart.

Zelda pushes past Link to grab their son and carries him in her arms, despite his gangly legs dangling because it's clear that one day, he'll have his mother's height as well as her eyes.

Link grabs Zelda's arm to lead them through the halls that they know well, and head to the predetermined location. Impa watches their back, and Link watches their front. They all know their roles, where to be, who will follow who. This day had been foretold little over a decade ago, and they certainly had time to plan it all.

They meet in the council chambers where the King is already waiting with his own guards. His shoulders sag in relief when he sees his grandson is safe, and then he leans against a table that contains a map.

Zelda sets their son down, and whether she knew she was doing it or not, her arms become his shield, covering the soft skin of his neck while her other arm passes over his heart while she presses him against her in a comforting embrace, though her eyes are on the map.

Link's hand rests on the back of their son's head, soothing him with a gentle motion of his thumb, even subconsciously remembering to be gentle with all his heavy armor on, because like Zelda, his attention is on the map.

Impa lays it all out. Ganon is in Hyrule Field, making his way towards the castle with unprecedented speed. It's all Link needs to hear before he kisses Zelda and their son, whispering 'I love you' in both their ears before he hurries to the garrison to lead the troops out.

Zelda wishes he'd held her longer, but she kneels down to kiss her son long on the forehead before wiping away some of his nervously fallen tears. They might have been prepared for over a decade, but he hadn't been.

She runs her hand through his dark blonde hair and lets herself get lost in how it feels, memorizing every strand as best she can.

"Go with Impa. She has armor that you have to wear, but you'll be safe. It's just to keep you safer. You stay with your guards."

"Don't go," he pleads, his eyes wide as more tears spill, and she can feel a weight sitting heavily against her, demanding she stay with him.

She has to fight every instinct in her body just to shake her head. "Oh, My Heart, I can't stay. Who else will protect you and daddy?"

"You have to," he relents quickly. Because he knows that if there are two people who are capable of protecting the whole world, it's his parents. He doesn't know about their Goddess blessings, but he knows that they're everything in his eyes.

"I do. And when this is done, we'll both come find you."

"Do you promise?" he whispers, his voice trembling.

Zelda freezes. She can't promise that. She wants to ease his heart, but she knows that a false promise could just as easily break it if the worst should happen. He's a child, but he has to know. "We will both do everything we possibly can to come back to you. That I can promise you."

If he can tell that she's dodged his question, he doesn't show it because he nods and wraps his arms around her neck.

Zelda fights back tears for his sake and picks him up before walking over to one of her most trusted guards. "Take him back. Keep him safe," she says as she pries his arms from her and transfers him to the knight.

"I love you, so much. Listen to them. Listen to Impa," she whispers and kisses his cheek once more before the knight has him tight.

The knight isn't unfamiliar, but their son struggles and begins to wail as he realizes their leaving is actually happening.

He screeches her name again and again until echoes of 'mommy' have faded out from the distance.

Zelda sobs and clutches her hair and her chest as she feels her heart crack. With him out of sight, she can break down, and the cool ground is against her legs as she lets herself fall.

There are arms around her, and Rhoam is holding her the same way she'd held her own son. He runs a hand through his daughter's hair. "This is how you protect him," he whispers. "It hurts. Don't I know it? But this is how we protect everyone we love."

She knows its true, but it doesn't hurt any less. She buries herself into her father's neck, careful of the armor on his shoulder. Waves of empathy crash over her when she realizes he's sending his only child into battle against an unspeakable evil that only she and Link can vanquish, and he can do nothing but shield her back with the troops.

And besides Link, there's no one else she trusts more with her life.

He helps her to her feet and holds out his hand. A guard hands him a great royal claymore that he sheathes on his back so he can walk with his arm around her until they reach the point when they must part ways.

He nods once to her, and she returns the gesture as he hurries off.

Now that she's here, and the doors are right in front of her, she feels a new sense of resolve and steel settle over her. She'd learned from Link how to protect herself years ago, so despite her magic, a guard hands her a sword and she pulls the belt around her waist while her guards surround her and the doors open.

The sky is a bloody red, with clouds swirling like they're caught in the vortex of a tornado, only wholly unnatural. The air is thick and stale to the point where Zelda has to smack her lips together to keep them wet. It's almost a challenge to walk, like there's an unseen force trying to hold her back, but she pushes through until they're all in place.

Her father appears on the battlefield just in front of her, leading her last line of defense. She can see Link on a horse beside a battalion of troops, and he's calling something to them, and they scream something back and stamp their spears into the ground twice. He isn't allowed to lead them out into the field because he has to be the one to fight Ganon.

Over the horizon, a dark mass begins to take shape, and Zelda winces when she realizes it's his own forces, running towards them. Link urges his troops forward, though they're led by another. He looks back and she knows he's looking directly at her until something draws his attention away in the distance.

Zelda sees it too.

Ganon.

A beast of unimaginable proportions, tendrils of darkness whipping around, emerges over the horizon and lets out a deafening roar that pierces Zelda's eardrums even from this distance.

Her eyes are locked on the beast, and she feels that it knows exactly where she and Link are.

It takes a while for it to make its way all the way to them, but the plan had always been to let the soldiers try to bring it down or weaken it before they had to step in. Zelda sees a thousand arrows lodged in its skin, seemingly unaffected by any of them. Malice poured off of it, and Zelda took a deep breath before it thickened the air.

She pushes forward past her father to make her way towards Link. She knows this is their fight now, not the soldiers'.

Ganon is still not close enough, but they're going to let him come to them.

Link's horse spooks the next time Ganon's ear-shattering roar rings out, and he hops off just in time before it bolts.

Zelda's beside him and takes his hand as they wait. Link is conserving his strength, she knows. Now that he has no horse, he'll have to run faster and harder.

Ganon towers over them, even though it still has a little way to go. For a moment, Zelda's heart lurches, feeling there's no way to possibly do this. She feels Link's grip tighten, but she isn't positive whether it's to reassure her, or himself.

They're so focused. They're ready.

But Ganon's attention snaps off of them and off to its left before it completely readjusts itself.

Confused, Zelda follows its gaze and she nearly collapses into Link. Because standing in the field with a sword and shield that hardly fit in his hands is their son. His armor is snug on him, but he's added a helmet.

Behind him, guards are screaming and chasing him, but both Link and Zelda have already begun running.

He's just standing there, shield out and feet spaced perfectly as Link had taught him. And he's not running, even when Ganon slinks towards him. He takes several steps back, but that's all.

Zelda thought she'd moved quickly to change into her armor, but nothing compares to the speed their feet carry them to get to their son.

Ganon's neck twists as he watches them, and a tendril whips out in their direction. Link pushes Zelda forward and raises his shield, covering her as she passes before he's following again.

Another tendril races toward her, but she doesn't slow, only raises her hand and sends out a pulse to redirect the tendril away. Something moves quickly toward her son, and she skids to her knees to cover them both with a domed burst of energy, and she lets out a cry because it hurts her as Ganon's hand flinches away, also in pain.

"Why are you here?" she asks in a panic, but she doesn't want an answer and pushes him toward Link. "Get to dad! Go!"

But Ganon recovers too quickly, and Zelda sees two tendrils headed for her and her son.

She's never tried to split her magic into two locations, but she tries now and it doesn't work. The choice is easy enough as she sends out a pulse to shield her son, only to feel all of the air rush from her lungs in an instant.

Her nose throbs and she's crying because she can't help how much it hurts. Her back is crushed under the tendril, and while the impact hurt, the malice all along the tentacle is burning her skin as it holds her down.

She can hear two other screams of her name, and she rolls as best she can to angle her hand. She screams, and it's not a pulse, but a beam this time, one that severs the tendril and it disappears into nothing.

Ganon roars again, but this time it's different. It's not rage, but pain. It slinks backwards to recuperate.

"Zelda!" Link breathes, helping her up.

Zelda sees their son gripping Link's tunic, white knuckled and wide eyed.

"Get him out!" she screams, pushing Link away from her.

Link has a hand fisted on their son's shirt, but he doesn't move. "I can't hit that thing. Not even with the sword."

"What?" she breathes.

Ganon is back on its feet, and its skulking.

Zelda looks back at her family. It doesn't matter where they are, because if Link can't hit Ganon, they're all dead anyway.

She shakes her arms out, fighting past all the pain that threatens to send her spiraling into the darkness. "I can hold him off and strip the malice, but you have to get our son out of here first."

Ganon no longer bothers with the tendrils and charges at them on all fours.

Zelda steps in front of her family and screams as the most powerful beam of light she'd ever controlled pulsates out of her like a steady heartbeat. It hurts when Ganon hits it, but she is too busy looking at Link.

He's shaking his head because he can see it already. Her face is getting pale and the light is draining from her.

"Link," she says desperately, "You have to protect him. Our job is to protect him. So, you do your part and I'll do mine. Get him out!"

Link hoists their son into his arms, heedless of his sobs as he reaches out for Zelda. Link holds him and starts to back away. "I'm coming back. Promise me you'll hold out."

"I love you," she says instead, her eyes flickering between them both. Because that's another promise she can't make to them. But she can tell them the truth.

"I love you," he returns before he's running with their son.

Zelda sees them escape her peripheral vision and she can focus on the malice rather than simply holding Ganon back.

Removing the malice is as painful as if she's removing her own skin, and she's shrieking because she can feel it burn her arms the more she pushes it back. Ganon is writhing in pain, and it pushes her so hard that her foot slides back.

Zelda can feel that she's used most of her strength. She can't hold on forever, and she knows what she has to do for Link.

She focuses everything she has left into her center, feels it worming around her chest and caressing her heart. She smiles because she can feel her feet leave the ground as she collects every remnant of energy that isn't being sucked in by the malice. It warms her and blocks everything else out so she can't hear Link yell for her. But she's gathered it all.

And she sends it directly at Ganon's heart.

The malice peels away, and Zelda falls from the air and collapses into a clump.

Link freezes over her, but there's no time to check on her because he's not going to let Zelda's efforts be in vain.

He swings at Ganon's arm first because the beast is trying to stand and rear back again. The Master Sword cuts through easily without the malice shielding it, and when Ganon falls, Link goes to the other claw to make sure that if Ganon wants to get up, it's going to have to do so with a struggle, not a limp.

He rushes toward Ganon's chest and drives the sword straight up. Ganon screams and swats Link away. Far away.

He's winded and his head throbs because he realizes he'd hit a tree. But he staggers to his feet and pushes the sword into the grass as he limps back. He can feel his Goddess-blessing taking over him, and he moves faster, he ignores the pain.

And he slides under the struggling beast, letting his sword rip through the exposed skin, letting the blood and internal malice seep out as Link grits his teeth and grabs one of the sharp scale-like pieces of armor that cover where Link approximates its shoulder is. He uses it to pull himself up and takes the beast's pained position as an opportunity. He makes his way to the front, and plunges the Master Sword down, like he's returning it to where it sleeps.

Ganon thrashes for a moment, and Link is thrown.

The grass is cold on his cheek, but he knows he's done it this time because Ganon is beginning to literally shrivel as the malice practically melts away.

Link doesn't even care when the sky begins to return to blue. He's scrambling over to Zelda and cradles her in his lap.

Her mouth is open as her head hangs back. Her eyes have already glassed over and her skin is greyed because she's used everything she had to take this thing down.

The sound Link lets out is guttural, and he screams like a wounded animal begging for help. He has her pressed against his chest, and the second he realizes he can't feel her heartbeat, he has to scramble away from her because he wretches into the grass while tears burn his eyes and he can't breathe because there's no air left in the world.

And then he hears another cry that's not his, and he crawls back to Zelda, but it's not hers.

He scrambles to his feet, but he can't make it and slips back into the grass just in time to catch their son and tuck the little boy's head into his chest, regardless of any blood or if the armor was scratching him. Scratches would heal. Blood would come off. But seeing his mother lifeless in the grass would never go away.

Using everything in him, Link gets up, his knees shaking as he carries his son away, one hand preventing the boy's head from moving while the other supports him.

Guards flock to his side, helping him to walk inside because Link refuses to let go.

With his son there, he has to stay strong enough to get through. He can't rush to Zelda and cradle her forever, like he wishes he could. He can't curl up into a ball and cry, because his son is already crying and he needs to be strong enough to be there for him.

It isn't until Link is alone in their room that he lets it out. He'd had half his heart torn out and destroyed, and he felt that as if it were a physical pain that was going to bring him to his knees.

If there was an object in his way, he breaks it. He pulls all the sheets and the pillows off because they still smell like her. He overturns the mattress because that was where they slept. He kicks the couch into the table because she'd read there and stroke his hair while he sat in front of her after a long day. He hits the wall until his knuckles bled so he can feel pain anywhere else, and then sinks to the floor because there is nothing he can hit to get her out of his memories.

It's his fault. His. He left her. He couldn't break through the malice without he, and it had cost her everything.

No. Not everything.

It's enough to help calm his breathing and he shakily stands up. It's then that he realizes there's an audience in the doorway, eyes downturned because they are only making sure he is okay while still trying to offer him the privacy to grieve however he needs to.

He pushes past them.

He's clean now, because Rhoam had ordered him to wash up before he locked himself in his own room as well.

Link isn't quiet when he opens the door to their son's room and sees him sitting up, shoulders shaking as he cries. Link wastes no time moving to sit on the bed and pulling the boy into his arms because Link is crying too and he could use a tight hug almost as much as his son.

"Was it my fault?" the boy asks after a long time.

Link pulls away, appalled that it even crossed his mind. He can't control his face well enough, because his son looks away, ashamed or embarrassed.

"No," Link finally croaks out. Because it's his fault. "No," he says again, more firmly. "It's not your fault. Don't ever think that. It was no one's fault but Ganon's."

The boy finally looks up at Link with Zelda's wide green eyes and Link chokes before pulling his son back to his chest.

"I wanted to protect you both," the boy whispers, and Link breaks a little more.

"It's not your fault. You did protect us. You have no idea just how much you protected us."

"I want her back."

"Me too." Link tries to discretely wipe his eyes. "Hey, tomorrow might feel worse, okay? We're going to wake up and she's not going to be here and it's going to be really sad. And that's okay. It's okay to be sad and hurt. But we'll get through it, okay? You've got me. You've got your grandad. I just want you to be prepared."

"Okay," he whispers, because he understands the words, but the feelings don't register to him yet.

"Hey," he says, nudging him. "Can I stay in here tonight?"

His son looks up at him, and it's Zelda's eyes again. Link has to blink, because he can see her face for a moment. But his son is nodding, so Link crawls over him and gets comfortable before opening up his arm. His son crawls in and Link rubs his back to try to soothe him while he spends the night crying into Link's shirt until he falls asleep.

But Link is in pain, physically and mentally, and rubbing their son's back is the only thing that's keeping him grounded.

It's a long time until his eyes close, but they're burning from the tears and they're begging him to close them.

And when he does, he can almost feel a cool hand ghost along his forehead, smoothing his hair back with a familiar comfort.

And he dreams of Zelda.

Review responses for this chapter: James Birdsong: Thank youuu! write-or-left: Hahahhaha thanks! I actually enjoyed the style after a while! I'm sorry for making you cry lol! And thanks! Almost totally better now! thelinkmaster001: IS ANYONE EVER READY? Lol