A/N: So, I'm working pretty hard here to get this story done. Now that I think about, I'd say we're pretty close to finishing. I don't have an exact chapter amount, but I want to say maybe 5 left?
Also, when I'm done with this story I know I made a lot of errors in the first one regarding my comma usage, so I'm going to go back and make as many corrections as possible. Now that I know they exist in such a large amount, it bothers me.
As for my plans after? I might retire, I don't have any other projects I plan on doing.
Zelda's body was screaming at her to move, to do something, anything to stop Link from leaving her. However, all she ended up doing, was letting him go without even saying a peep.
I really just let him go without trying to stop him. This- This can't be happening! After all this time... to just up and leave... I'm hallucinating, r-right? My eyes must be playing tricks on me.
She looked over to Purah with pleading eyes hoping that she was wrong, but the slight shake of the head was more than enough to confirm things.
Link was gone.
Her throat swelled and her eyes glistened, there was nothing she can do to stop the despair from taking over. Link... the chosen of the Blade of Evil's Bane, her appointed knight, her friend, lover... gone. She struggled for so long to get anywhere with him over 100 years ago, and when she finally managed to get over that hurdle she ended up losing him, because she failed to unlock her powers in time. The only reason why she remained strong all that time while being held in captivity, the only reason why she didn't succumb to the Darkness, the only reason why she was here today was because of her love for Link. Her unwavering faith and belief that he would return, save the day, and they'd live happily ever after. She truly believed in happy endings, and she truly believed that they would in fact be together forever.
After all, Link was her entire reason for existing today. Without him, she wouldn't be here. They had promised to be together forever, but with each passing second, it seemed that her fairytale ending was only just a silly dream.
Was she foolish for believing in such a dream? She didn't think so.
However, hoping and doing were two very different things. Even though she's never realized it, Zelda has hoped for much more than she would ever do. It was only a matter of time before that kind of thinking brought her misfortune.
The Gold Lynel's deduction had been right all along. Zelda had driven herself insane from the guilt and shame over what happened to Link. As much as she wanted to move past it, every time she seen that cloth over his eyes she was quickly reminded of that event. She was weak... She knew that, and so too did the Lynel. As a result, he played with Zelda's heart, toyed with her mind, until he had corrupted her heart into thinking that there was no salvation for her transgression.
Now, all that remained was a cloud of Darkness that loomed over her head.
It was becoming increasingly more clear that she had no place in this world if Link wasn't there. What was her reason for living? What was she going to do now? What was her purpose in life?
Her mind recalled a moment from the past...
"...You are the heir to a throne of nothing... nothing but failure."
It was a title that many people gave her long ago, and it was a title that remained true to this day. Zelda was a failure, she was never fit to become a ruler, and she was foolish to think that she was capable of love as well. She had always crumbled under pressure, and she had always leaned on someone else for support when the goings got tough. And, when there was no one to lean on?
She broke.
Zelda could count on her fingers the amount of times that she took the initiative with anything in her life. How could someone like her ever hope to lead an entire kingdom? How could she ever sustain a relationship with that mindset? Sure she managed to unlock her sacred power, but that was only after losing everything dear to her. Even then, all she could do was hold the Calamity at bay, and pray that the stars aligned where Link would awaken and save her before she was inevitably overwhelmed by the Darkness. And, since that final battle with Calamity Ganon, she hasn't been able to use them once.
She collapsed to the ground. All of her energy, her will to keep going had finally been sapped from her.
Why do I torture myself like some masochistic pig? Do I enjoy feeling this way? Do I enjoy losing the things I hold dearest to me? Apparently...
Someone... release me of this burden...
Her own thoughts scared her, however, she didn't have the energy to stop these thoughts from rampaging in her mind.
Zelda had never seriously considered death being an option when the going got tough. She had been broken many times, but she always found a way to pick up the pieces to keep herself together. But, maybe that wasn't entirely true. Each time she broke, she lost a piece of herself forever. She was never the same each time she put herself back together, and consequently became more fragile with each incident. With that in mind, it was only a matter of time before there was nothing left to salvage. Maybe this was the time where Zelda broke, and never recovered.
I'm tired... tired of doing this, tired of repeating this cycle over and over again.
Giving up would be the easy way to solve her problem. After all, she did her role. The kingdom was saved from the impending doom, she doesn't have to fight anymore. That honestly didn't sound like a bad idea.
Maybe, just maybe... not fighting back is the right thing to do. Give up, take the loss, not try altogether. That sounds... nice.
Death was ready to embrace her. To snuff out her light, and transform her into an agent of the Darkness. The seed had been planted within her heart, and all she needed was one final push. One more step to consume her completely.
"..."
She looked around in her dazed state. Purah had hovered over her, concern evident on her face.
"..."
However, Zelda couldn't hear her, the words just couldn't reach her.
As the light faded from her world, she could feel herself being heaved up and carried away.
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"You sure it was alright leaving her? You didn't even say anything."
"Now you're asking?"
"I'm just curious, love. Just curious."
Link scowled, "I'd appreciate you not calling me that."
"Aww, hit a nerve did I?"
He scoffed at her comment.
It was true that Link kinda left abruptly. He wasn't even going to tell Zelda, because he knew that she'd protest; it was unfortunate that she ran into him when she did. Truth is, Link didn't want to leave. After all, he was leaving behind the love his life, the very person that gave him a second chance, someone who he promised forever. However, he had to do this. He realized that trying to live a life of peace and comfort on his path of chaos was never going to work out.
Calamity Ganon was only a stepping stone, not the end like Link assumed.
He knew that if he wanted a chance to return to the peaceful life he had with Zelda, then he'd have to see this through until the end. Otherwise, he was only going to continue hurting them both. Link knew that he was the one holding her back, and that best thing for them both was to cut the toxic part out of her life; even if she didn't realize it.
"She might never forgive me... Honestly, I wouldn't blame her if she ended up moving on from me and finding someone else, when she's ready."
"And you're prepared for that? You're prepared to lose her forever?"
"When you love someone, it means that you want them to be happy. If you truly love someone, sometimes that means wanting them to be happy, even if that means taking you out of the picture. If Zelda can find true happiness without me, then I'll support that decision, because I love her."
"Touching, we'll see if you're still like that once this is over."
"You remember our deal, right?"
Freyja sighed, "You're the idiot for wanting to go through with it, but I remember."
"And, there's no way for you to break that deal either, correct?"
She grumbled in annoyance, "That's correct, we both die if I break the contract."
"Good."
"Don't you forget about your end of the deal either. If you decide to break the contract, I eradicate all the Light within you. Your soul will be filled only with Darkness, and you'll be mine forever."
Link had entered a blood contract with Freyja where, in exchange for her teaching him how to use his suppressed dark powers, she couldn't bring him back from the dead anymore. Only she could teach him how to wield the powers of Darkness properly, and this was the only way she was going to teach him.
Through a test of will.
It was a tremendous risk, not to mention the odds were stacked against him, and of course he still couldn't tell anyone about her. Freyja's eyes had lit up at the chance to see Link struggle in hopes of ultimately failing. To watch him desperately claw his way through the mud, only to end up sinking. Her legs quivered when she thought about the moment where Link's back is against the wall, and he begs her to save him, admits that he needs her. Because, that'll be the moment when he surrenders himself to her, the moment that he succumbs to his dark desires and becomes her's forever.
But the reward? Becoming reunited with the love of your life with a chance of happily ever after. It was a do or die situation anyways, might as well make the stakes as big as possible.
"Well?" he asked.
"Well?" she replied with a smug grin.
"Where should we start first?"
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When Zelda awoke she found herself back inside the lab.
"You're awake at last!" cheered Purah from across the room.
She clutched her head.
"What happened?" she asked in a weak voice.
"You collapsed and passed out. We brought you back inside to make sure you were okay. I imagine the shock was too much for you."
"Shock?"
Zelda retraced her memory.
I was coming to talk to Link and-
Her eyes grew wide when she realized.
"That's right, Princess, he's gone," said Purah.
Hearing those words caused her to start sobbing.
"I know this is hard for you, but you gotta understand. This wasn't about you, it was about him."
How can she not think that this had nothing to with her?
"There's... something going on with him. I can't quite explain it, but from what I can tell, he knows that there's something going on too..."
It wasn't making any sense.
"...The longer he stayed here, the more obvious it became. I tried confronting him about it, but he was always quick to change the subject..."
None of it was making sense!
"... I'm confident that's why he left, and why he left alone."
"What do you mean that's why he left? I-I don't understand!"
"Don't tell me you never noticed? You've been with him the longest, surely you noticed something different about him throughout your time together."
The time at their house immediately came to mind.
"W-Well... there was that one time..." her voice trailed off.
"And? What?!"
Purah's sudden yelling caused Zelda to instinctively flinch and stutter, "H-He just seemed off! Being around him made my skin crawl, and I never feel that way around him. He was like that in Gerudo too. And, in both instances he seemed... I-I don't know how to put it. It was like his entire being was conflicting with mine, it was unpleasant. I just assumed he was upset, so I tried to do what I can to make him feel better," she desperately tried to explain.
Purah began writing in her notebook.
"Interesting... Did he seem fine after you comforted him?"
She sniffled while wiping her remaining tears away, "He wasn't unpleasant to be around anymore, but I don't think-"
"Umu, umu. Still... it makes me wonder how things will turn out for him now that you're out of the picture."
"What do you mean?"
"I think it's safe to assume that whatever it is that's bothering him has more to it than, 'He's not feeling well.' It could very well have been your presence that kept the balance for all we know."
"How could my presence have anything to do with it? That's absurd."
"You're a direct descendant of the goddess, a wielder of Light; an embodiment of Light. If you're saying that you didn't feel right around him, maybe it was your soul trying to tell you something. Have you tried tapping into your powers to confirm if it's something tied to that?"
Zelda gave her a guilty look, which caused Purah to slam her notebook on the table in frustration.
"Goodness girl! Why haven't you been listening to what your heart has been trying to tell you? Why haven't you tried using your powers?!"
"They don't work anym-"
"Don't give me that!" she yelled. "You mean to tell me that after 100 years of being able to use your power, you just all of a sudden can't use it anymore? No, you've neglected them. You've neglected them, because you're afraid. Afraid of losing what you love most in this world, but it's that very same fear that has caused all of this. The power you possess isn't something that simply vanishes, or that you forget. It stays with you forever.
"Whether you like it or not, you still have an important role to play. You can't just run off and play house, while the world struggles to recover. Link knew that, which is why he's out there, and you're still here. When will you wake up?!"
Zelda vehemently shook her head, "T-That's not true! I'd never... I'd never do such a thing as to abandon my quest for something so trivial! We were just taking a small break," she said while looking at anywhere but Purah.
"Oh? Cause from here, it looks like you haven't done anything at all. While Link struggled with his recovery, what did you do? Nothing. You just sat back and watched from afar. I took you on those research trips hoping that they would motivate you to get out of your slump, not so you could use them as an escape."
She let out a frustrated sigh, "This is what I mean when I said you still had a long way to go. You're still immature, and relying on others to solve your own problems. Link won't always be there to save you, sooner or later you have to realize that."
Zelda was quick to go on the defence, "What do you take me for? I'm not that useless, I'm capable of taking care of myself!"
Purah rolled her eyes, "Do you really expect me to believe that?"
"I..."
Even Zelda knew that it was true, there was no point in hiding it. She knew that she was leaning on Link too much. She knew that if it wasn't for him, she never would have even survived Calamity Ganon, and even before that when she was struggling to awaken her sacred power. She had become complacent around Link. To the point where it had almost become an expectation that things would magically work out just because he was around.
Zelda fell on all fours, shaking with frustration, "I know that I'm weak!" she cried out. "I know that I'm useless! I know that I would have never have gotten here on my own merits! You don't have to tell me that..." her voice trailed off as she hung her head with shame.
Purah tilted Zelda's chin towards her, "Yes, you are weak. It's time to put a stop to that, don't you think? Don't you want to be someone who can stand on her own two feet? Don't you want to let the Light shine brightly on this land again? Don't you want to stand proudly at Link's side?"
She did, she absolutely did, but...
"Link's gone, he left me. There's no way he'd acce-"
The impact of hand to cheek immediately stopped Zelda's sentence then and there. She looked at Purah with wide eyes as she put her hand over the cheek that had been slapped.
"Not. One. More. Word. Do you really think so little of him?"
Of course she didn't! That's... That's...
"Think of why he left. Do you really believe he'd just up and leave you for no reason? Think of how he must be feeling right now."
Purah was right. Link would never do that to her, but the question remained...
Why did he leave?
If Zelda was going to get to the bottom of this, she had to put her feelings aside, and think about this rationally.
"When I think about it, his aura did feel oddly familiar today, similar to those other two times in fact. Was it because I was so absorbed in my own dark thoughts that I failed to notice? Considering how he was those other times, the only thing I can think of is that whatever is bothering him, it's become serious enough to warrant him leaving on his own.
"But, what's been bothering him all this time? Why hasn't he ever opened up about it?"
"We all have our own demons, Princess. If it's Linky we're talking about, it must be something that he didn't want you involved in, or didn't know how to bring it up."
She'd be lying if hearing that didn't sting, but it also made her wonder just what exactly could cause Link to shut himself out like this.
It had her deeply concerned.
"Maybe I should go after him."
After all, if she could track him like she used to when she was imprisoned, then it wouldn't be hard for her to catch up to him.
Purah shook her head, "That's the one thing you mustn't do. Linky has resolved to do this himself, and you must respect that. He has his own war to fight, as do you. You must finish uniting the provinces, and put the foundations in place to rebuild Hyrule."
"But, shouldn't we also help Link? If there really is something going on with him, I'm worried that something bad will happen to him."
She felt a pair of arms wrap around her, "Princess, no, Zelda... Believe in him, just like you did for those 100 years. This wasn't a permanent goodbye. It'll be hard for the two of you, but I'm sure you will be reunited again, and get your happy ending."
Zelda's heart ached at Purah's words, "You know, this is similar to how it was when I watched over his journey from the castle. I gave everything I had to buy him time to prepare for his inevitable final battle, and I always kept watch over him.
"I watched him grow and triumph through all kinds of feats, witnessed him struggle and claw his way through countless arduous trials. Some days he accomplished a lot, and some days he barely did anything. But, the one thing he always did was move forward. Just as he's doing now."
Link has done his part, and now I must do mine. I want to stand by his side once more, to see the land we worked so hard to save prosper, to be someone who is no longer afraid to shine her light.
Tears started to trickle down her cheeks, however, these weren't tears of sorrow, rather tears of rejuvenation.
"Thank you, Purah, for the harsh lesson. The Sheikah never were ones to beat around the bush when it came to teaching."
"We're an honest bunch."
She smiled, "I was really hoping that I had finished waiting for him, but it seems that destiny has other plans. How cruel of it to torment me like this."
"Don't think of it as torment, but what to expect at the end of the road."
Zelda could see it. The end of the road, and there waiting for her with open arms was none other than Link.
I won't allow my Light to become shrouded by Darkness.
Her heart reached out to Link.
I refuse to drag you down any longer. I hope, no, I know that we will be together again. Please remain safe, and know that I love you.
Wiping her eyes, and she dusting herself off as she stood, "Well, no sense in waiting around now is there? I've done enough of that."
"Are you sure you're ready to leave?"
"I'm scared, but... I'm serious about this, so I must go."
Purah smiled, "Let's get you ready, then."
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"What is it?" asked Freyja when they suddenly stopped.
"It's nothing... I just felt a sudden warmth."
A/N: Make sure to like, comment, and share to show your support. It always means a lot when I see it. Thanks again, everyone.