"Just think of the possibilities!"

They had been young.

"Uh-huh."

And innocent.

"You're just nodding along and don't think I can do it, am I right?"

And dumb.

"I'm sure you can do it if you set your mind to it."

Really dumb.

It had been a dream. They were young, full of hopes, and in service of a man who everyone knew would be an amazing king. Hyrule was to become the most glorious Kingdom history had seen.

And they were there to witness it.

To work on it.

They were so proud.

Work had bound them together. Dotour was smart and to the point, he could take the right choice even when it hurt. Auru had been the heart of the team, the people-pleaser, the mood-maker.

Their King had taken them under their wing, had trusted them with everything. Whatever had come to them, they faced and solved it without a hitch. The way they solved their problems was telling of how the Kingdom would fare.

When the King blessed them with a daughter, with a future for Hyrule, Auru was the first to step up and take care of her.

What a lovely child, what a lovely family, what a lovely dream.

Their King had had a smile plastered to his face, had had a gleam on his eyes that was telling.

Their future was bright. They had time.

The King had wanted to expand his family, to ease Hyrule's worries.

They had thought they had time.

It had really looked like they had.

Auru sighed and cocked his head, "There are people telling me that the crops this year will be bad."

Dotour nodded, he made a mental check of their resources. They would live.

"There are a lot of farmers telling me that next Winter will be really bad."

Dotour nodded, they had prepared.

Their King reassured everyone. They would be alright. They were prepared.

But then Winter came and people started to die of hunger.

"We have to take food from the nobles and give it to the peasants, they're dying!"

Dotour licked his lips, "They still have some left, and it's not like we can just up and take the food from the people who paid for it, right?"

"There are people dying, Dotour."

"It is a harsh Winter."

"They are dying because the nobles stocked up with everything!"

Dotour scratched some numbers from his parchment, "They did sell it themselves, though."

"We have to do something."

"Yeah? Like what?"

Dotour had thought about making an announcement and then collecting every edible thing and putting the King in charge of its distribution. Dotour had thought about asking for help to the nearby races. Dotour made calculations on his parchments and was too much in his head to see the King failing to find the words to calm the people. Dotour was too busy writing letters to the Gorons and Zoras to see Auru going to talk directly to the nobles.

Dotour had been too busy, and Auru had been too eager, and their King had been too lost.

And the peasants had been too angry and the nobles too irritated.

Who would have thought it would come to that?

They had been trying to fix things.

They hadn't mocked their people's circumstances.

It had happened in a second.

A measly second.

Some noble had thought it a great idea to throw a party to celebrate his son's birthday. The same day the peasants met in the plaza to share their food.

Dotour could understand it. It had been a cold day, dark, somber in the way only clouds could do it. And they had been hungry, and desperate, and they still had bodies in their houses they couldn't part with.

And they had heard laughter and cheering and they could see the warm colors of fire painting the night.

Dotour could understand it.

One second he was talking with the King about the situation and the next he was being tasked with Princess Zelda's safety and urged to go through a hidden tunnel.

He had never been near the child for more than an hour, and even then it had been Auru who had done most of the talking.

She had been trembling against him, terrified, her hands were too small to grab much of Dotour but he pressed her body to his, tried to warm her up.

Dotour had never been good with kids, had never tried to be good with them. But that night he would have died for that child.

How was one supposed to tell a six year old child that her mother had been killed?

How was one supposed to help a grieving widower when the people who he was supposed to protect had taken the love of his life?

How was one supposed to forgive the people who had caused this very incident?

What was one supposed to do with so much anger?

One didn't tell, one didn't help, one didn't forgive and one wasn't supposed to know.

That was how.

The future of Hyrule felt...

The King of Hyrule became cold, "Have we been able to find Auru?"

Dotour clenched his teeth, "No, Your Majesty."

"What do you think happened to him?"

Dotour had been checking every new corpse that was found, could feel the tears welling up behind his eyes whenever Auru's face wasn't there. Death would have been better for them. "I would say he ran away, Your Majesty."

His Majesty didn't care, "Dotour." And Dotour cared too much. "Zelda is Hyrule now."

A child.

"Yes, Your Highness."

That time was the last time Dotour saw a glimpse of sadness on the King's eyes.

"I would have wanted to give her brothers and sisters, I would have wanted to give her a choice... I..."

How was one supposed to tell the King of Hyrule to remarry after such a tragedy?

The King hung his head low, wiped his face with force. The King stood tall and cleared his throat, "Dotour, you must help her."

It had been a command, all stern voice and straight back. But The King was disheveled and his hair was damp from walking around too much, his boots were caked with mud and his eyes were bloodshot and though he had tried to give strenght to his voice it had quivered at the last minute.

And Dotour heard a plea.

How was one supposed to raise a princess, and love a princess, and prepare a princess to become Queen?

How was one supposed to differentiate love and duty and fight off the urge to protect?

How was one supposed to forgive mistakes and cowardice?

"Dotour, the Princess is asking to be with His Highness again."

Dotour walked with a brisk, eager to cuddle the child, to soothe and coo.

"Princess, what do you say you play with me instead?"

The Princess would fake anger, ask 'again?' with a pout, but her hand would find Dotour's and her laugh would ring through the room.

How was one supposed to forgive the future?

One tried.