To say Link was taken aback by Zelda's dream would have been a significant understatement.

Me? he thought. But wha- how?

His gut instinct was to dismiss the idea outright; strange dreams weren't so out of the ordinary for Zelda. It certainly wasn't the first time she had shared a bizarre dream with him.

"Zelda," he squeezed her arm, trying as hard as he could to not let the worry show on his face. "It was probably just a dream."

Zelda didn't seem too convinced. "Maybe." She furrowed her brow and shook her head. "But then why have I been seeing the same vision night after night? I cannot make sense of it."

"What do you think it might mean?"

"I truly have no idea." A pause. The room was silent save for the faint crackling of the fireplace. "But I fear it may be a premonition."

Link swallowed hard. Something about her connection to the Triforce of Wisdom occasionally granted her small, unsolicited glimpses into the future. These premonitions, however rare they were, however vague the vision, always came to fruition.

And they were hardly ever positive.

"Listen," he said, doing his best to sound comforting, "I'm sure it's nothing. I certainly have no plans to mount an armed insurrection against you and usurp your throne." He chuckled at the absurdity of his own words.

Zelda evidently shared in his amusement, as she chuckled with him. "It does sound rather outlandish, doesn't it?"

He kissed her forehead. "I'll personally give the order for tighter security around the castle in the morning." Another kiss. "And if something does happen, then we'll face it together. Ganondorf himself was no match for the both of us, remember?"

His wife smiled. "This is true."

She yawned, stretching her arms in the air. Link soon followed, realizing both how late it was and how exhausted he was. The fire was slowly dwindling, and sleep began to tug at his eyelids. He stood up, offering her his hand. "Shall I escort you to bed, my lady?"

Zelda nodded through another yawn, reaching up to him. He took her in his arms and carried her over to the bed. Holding her tight with one arm, he drew back the covers with the other, and gently placed her on the mattress. He planted another kiss on her head as he pulled the covers over her, and she hummed happily, a sleepy, goofy grin on her face.

"Sweet dreams, my darling," he whispered to her, running his fingers through her hair. She murmured something under her breath, but her voice trailed off as sleep overtook her. Soon the only sound she made was soft breathing while she slept.

Link crossed back to the fireplace, sitting down once again on the couch. Despite his earlier reassurance towards her, he would be lying if he said he wasn't bothered by her sharing her dreams with him. He leaned forward in his seat, resting his chin in his hands.

Why had he been in the dream? More importantly, why had he taken Zant's place? Was it just a dream, as he hoped? Or could Zelda be right, that it was something more? He knew better than to deny the prophetic capabilities of the Triforce of Wisdom. After all, Zelda had confessed to him that similar dreams had predicted both the Usurper King's initial takeover, as well as the sudden food shortage that had led to the Kingdom's current state of ruin. If it were anything different, Link would have no doubt in his mind about its accuracy.

But this made one absolutely no sense. For one, Zelda was his wife, and for another, he was Hyrule's Lord Hero. He was nothing if not absolutely loyal to both. Why would he ever turn against them? Was it even possible for him to do so?

He pondered Zota's words from earlier that evening: we Zealots have not forgotten what you really are. Could it be related? It didn't seem like coincidence, but then again he had no idea what the connection could have been.

He looked over his shoulder at his wife, fast asleep. She looked so calm, so peaceful. He wondered if she would have the dream again tonight, if he would be in it again. His head reeled from all of the questions swimming inside of it. It seemed the day had only brought with it more questions, and no answers.

Maybe tomorrow my luck will change, he thought as he stood from the couch. Goddesses, he felt exhausted. With one final yawn he grabbed the metal stake by the fireplace and poked its final dying embers, putting it out. Satisfied, he hauled himself back over to the bed and crawled under the covers.

He wrapped a gentle arm around Zelda, who muttered in protest as she stirred from her sleep.

"Shh," he cooed, rubbing her side. "It's just me."

She calmed, and snuggled back into his embrace. He held her tighter and kissed her hair as he felt himself beginning to drift off.

"Link?" Zelda said groggily.

"Hm?"

"I love you."

Link smiled. "I…lov…"

He was fast asleep before he could even finish the thought.

"Hyah!"

The shouts of the Hyrulean soldiers echoed far throughout the training yard. An impressive sound, nearly as impressive as the size of the army making it as they thrust in perfect synchronicity. The unit moved as one, felt as one. It was a spectacle, a far cry from the sorry louts who had previously made up the military.

Link stood on the parapet above them, his cloak blowing in the gentle breeze. The rain and subsequent frost had chilled the morning air; the wind stung his cheeks, already rosy from the cold. His breath curled into thin wisps of steam in front of him as he drew icy breaths.

"They're improving."

Ashei stood beside him, her arms crossed and her lip pulled back into a look somewhere between satisfaction and inquisitiveness. Her statement, despite its finality, carried a hint of uncertainty, almost like she was trying to convince herself.

He raised an eyebrow towards her. "Something wrong, Lieutenant?"

She shook her head, her eyebrows furrowed. "No, just thinking." She paused, putting a hand on her chin. "There's a huge difference between training in a yard and experiencing a real battle."

She had a point. Many of these soldiers had not been in true combat; the majority of their expertise was patrolling the streets of Castle Town, keeping the unruly citizens contained. Though, he supposed, the lines between both scenarios were becoming increasingly blurred the more the unrest in the streets grew.

"They look fine to me," he told her. "Do you disagree?"

"No, sir, I just…" Her voice trailed off, and she waved her hand in front of her. "Never mind."

Link was puzzled, but chose not to pursue the matter further. "Any report from the first patrol?"

"Not yet, but we anticipate their return momentarily. However, our scouts informed me this morning that we may have intel on another Zealot settlement deep in the heart of the Death Mountain Valley."

Link crossed his arms. "I see." He supposed it had been wishful thinking to believe that he had rooted out the problem entirely with Zota's capture. Properly dealing with it would rob him of even more manpower and resources that he didn't have to spare.

"Do they pose a direct threat to us at this juncture?" he asked.

Ashei just shrugged. "I don't know, though I fear for the safety of the Gorons. You've seen what they're capable of."

He bit his lip. He had seen what they were capable of, which was precisely why he wanted to avoid as much as possible just throwing more soldiers at them. Eleven men had died at their hands with Ashei's help. And he couldn't send her on another mission so quickly; he needed her here. If something were to happen either in the city or at the castle, he didn't want to deal with it without her at his side.

"The Gorons can take care of themselves," he said, trying more to reassure himself than her.

"I know that, but what if they convince the Gorons to join their cause? Their mines are our largest source of steel." Ashei grimaced.

She was right again, he knew. The Goron tribe was one of Hyrule's most valuable allies for that reason. If they lost the support of the Gorons, they might as well have lost the kingdom.

"I'll consult the Queen," he told her. He nodded to the soldiers below them. "In the meantime, continue their training."

She nodded, and turned her attention back to the yard. Link crossed the parapet back into the Castle, weaving through the long, twisting corridors. It was close to noonday now, which meant that Zelda would likely be in her office tending to paperwork. It also meant that there were only a few hours before she would stand once again before the Council to beg and plead on the behalf of her starving citizens.

Link was already well aware of how it would go: not well. The song and dance was always the same; Zelda advocating for Hyrule's constituents, the Council reprimanding her for her "youthful naïvety" before dismissing her out of hand.

Still, he held onto the hope (or maybe just foolish optimism) that she might do something to change their minds. Unlikely, but not impossible.

He reached Zelda's office door, and planted on it a firm knock. "Your majesty?"

"Come in," came a curt, almost annoyed reply from the other side. Link raised an eyebrow. It was definitely Zelda's voice, but it wasn't often that he heard her sound so agitated.

He swung the door open and found his wife at her desk, hunched over a piece of parchment, the fountain pen in her hand racing across the page in bold strokes. Several books were piled messily on the corner of the desk, with a few sprawled open in front of her. Nearby, a young man with messy red hair and large round glasses paced back and forth across the length of the room, muttering something to himself as he flipped through a large book in his hand, offering sporadic quips of trivia to Zelda. She gave him an occasional "That is nice" or "How interesting," but the look of sheer annoyance on her face betrayed the kindness of her words.

Neither one of them made any sort of effort to acknowledge Link.

"Ahem," he cleared his throat.

The man glanced up from his book, and grinned widely. "Ah, Link! How do you do?"

"Fine, Shad," he replied. "And yourself?"

"Positively splendid, if I do say so. The Queen and I are just continuing our research on Hyrule's historical domestic policy and looking at how different historical monarchies have handled crises in the past. Did you know that—"

Shad," Link interrupted, well aware that if given the chance the scholar would continue talking for the rest of the day. "As fascinating as that sounds, I need an audience with her Majesty."

Behind him, Link saw Zelda stifle a laugh.

Shad's expression faltered for a moment, but he nodded. "Of course." He turned to Zelda and handed her the book in his hands. "I would encourage you to peruse this chapter on the Sealing War. I believe it may hold valuable insight that could benefit you."

She offered him a pained smile. "I am grateful for your assistance, Shad," she said with as much warmth as an ice keese.

If Shad was at all aware of her feigned kindness, he didn't show it. "The pleasure is mine, your Majesty." He grinned at Link once again and left the room, whistling a tune as he did.

Link turned to Zelda. "He certainly has a lot of energy."

"I am well aware."

He waited until he heard the latch of the door click in place, then addressed her again. "Do you think he suspects anything?"

"About us?" Zelda chuckled again. "Please. The man is as daft as a doorknob. It truly astounds me that someone so well-read has so little common sense."

Link's eyes widened and he laughed. "You're not mincing words, your Majesty."

"Being subjected to hours of his mindless prattle tends to put me a bit on edge," she muttered as she scribbled some more onto her page. "You'll forgive me if I seem agitated."

Noted, he thought with a shudder. Better tread lightly. "I thought you were fond of Shad?"

Zelda sighed. "It is not that I dislike him. I truly do appreciate his desire to help me. Entertaining him can just be..." her voice trailed off as she searched for the words. "...quite exasperating."

She's not wrong, Link thought. He picked up the book Shad had handed Zelda and thumbed through its pages. It appeared to be a chronicle of all the major conflicts recorded within Hyrule's history. He raised an eyebrow at her. "What are you looking for?"

She shrugged, still scribbling on the paper in front of her. "I had hoped to find some sort of reassurance from our history that I am not the only Queen of this land who proved to be utterly helpless when her people needed her most." She stared at him and put her pen down. "Zant is gone, Ganondorf is dead, and yet nothing has changed. I am still just as powerless now as I was then."

"Surely that isn't true."

She scoffed at his comment. "Try telling the Council that."

"Isn't there something you can do to change their minds?"

"Brilliant idea, Link," Zelda snapped, her voice coarse and uninviting. She glared at him. "If you are dissatisfied with my attempts at negotiating with them, you are certainly welcome to try."

He frowned, but ignored her retort. Her words stung, to be sure, but he didn't think it worth it to argue with her, especially not now. She had a lot on her plate as it was; he had to be strong for her sake. Besides, he knew it couldn't really be how she felt.

As if on cue, Zelda's brow furrowed and she paused her writing again. She folded her hands on the table and looked at him with soft eyes. "I am sorry, my love. It was wrong for me to speak with you in such a way. I am just…overwhelmed."

Glancing quickly over his shoulder to make sure the door was shut, Link approached her desk and offered her his hand. "We've all been a dealt an awful hand in all of this, and we're all just doing the best we can." He leaned over the desk and cupped her face in his palm. "I've got you. We're in this together."

Her expression softened and she leaned her head into his hand, grasping it with her own. "Thank you," she said, drawing a deep breath. "Now, what was it that you wanted to tell me?"

He straightened. "Our scouts have reported that there may be another Zealot encampment somewhere in the Death Mountain Valley." Link fidgeted with the pommel of his sword. "We fear it may interfere with our relations with the Gorons."

"The Gorons have been our steadfast allies for generations now," Zelda echoed Link's earlier sentiment. "We cannot afford to lose their friendship."

Link pursed his lips. "I understand, Zelda, but with all due respect I'm not sure I have the manpower for another frontal assault. The Zealots are too powerful, and having scaled Death Mountain on more than one occasion, I can personally attest to the canyon's impenetrability as a defensive position." He lowered his voice. "As much as our army has improved over the past year and a half, sending them there would be a death sentence."

Zelda's expression soured, but she nodded in agreement nonetheless. "As much I hate it, we will have to trust the Gorons to take care of themselves." She dipped her pen back into the inkwell on her desk and grabbed a fresh sheet of parchment, beginning more furious scribbling. "I will send notice to Darbus at once, and encourage him to be wary of their presence."

Link had to be satisfied with that solution. It wasn't ideal, not even close, but he needed as many soldiers as he could muster here protecting the castle. The number of riots in the streets these days was more than concerning to him, and that wasn't even accounting for his growing worry that the zealots might mount a rescue for their leader locked in the dungeon. His first and foremost obligation had to be Zelda's safety.

The problem was that the more soldiers he kept at the castle, the more room he gave for the Zealots' influence to grow. Every day the scout reports indicated that the anarchist politics of the group were spreading further and further away from Hyrule proper and into the far reaches of the kingdom. His top generals had already told him on multiple occasions that at the rate the terrorists' following was growing, it wouldn't be long before the Kingdom had a full insurrection on their hands.

They needed to get the Council on their side if they even had a prayer of averting that outcome.

He decided to change the subject. "Did you dream again last night?"

Zelda shook her head. "No, oddly enough. I cannot explain why." She closed her eyes and smiled ever so slightly in his direction. "Though I like to believe my beloved Hero protected me from the darkness, even in my slumber."

His cheeks flushed at her sap, and he felt small flutters in the pit of his stomach. He couldn't keep his mouth from curling into a smile. Goddesses, he was so in love with her.

"If holding you was the solution to all of our problems, I would never let go of you."

He leaned over the desk again, his face inching ever closer to her own. He heard her breath quicken as his lips touched hers. They tasted sweet, like the wild cherries he had grown up eating as a boy in Ordon. Decadent.

His wife grabbed his face and pulled him deeper into her kiss, breathing even more heavily as she did. He cradled the back of her neck with his hand, his lips gliding smoothly against hers, the thrill of it causing his heart to beat faster and faster. She was his, and no one else's.

An aggressive knock on the door snapped Link out of his love-drunk stupor. His eyes shot wide open and he pulled away from Zelda, wiping her lipstick off of his mouth with his sleeve. He glanced at her out of the corner of his eye, chuckling as she fidgeted with her skirts and smoothed her hair in an effort to straighten herself out. She met his gaze, and she giggled. "Let's not try that again," she whispered.

Link didn't often get to see this girlish side of her; she most always presented herself with complete elegance and poise, a paragon of royal sophistication. But the sparse moments when those walls came down and she let herself be free of any superficial expectations were some of Link's favorites.

"Enter," Zelda commanded, and the door swung open once again to reveal a pair of middle-aged men. Link let go of a breath he didn't even realize he was holding. It was just Auru and Rusl, evidently back from their patrol. Both bowed in reverence to the Queen.

"Your majesty," they said in unison.

"Welcome, Auru. Welcome, Rusl." She nodded respectfully towards both of them. "I trust you both fare well?"

"Indeed," said Auru, and Rusl nodded in agreement. "We have come with the scouting report that the Lord Hero requested."

Rusl glanced to Link, then to Zelda, and back to Link again. He raised an eyebrow, and Link saw a wry grin creeping across his face. "That is," he said, a tinge of sly humor in his voice, "if we are not interrupting anything." He snickered under his breath.

Link tried to ignore the embarrassment seeping throughout his whole body. The entire kingdom was literally on the brink of collapse, yet his friends were more concerned about teasing him about his and Zelda's love life. Why was this anyone's business except their own?!

Thankfully, judging by the redness of her cheeks, Zelda was just as embarrassed by Rusl's comment as he was. "C-certainly not," she insisted. "My husband and I were simply discussing politics, nothing more."

Rusl didn't appear convinced. "Mm-hm."

"If you were anybody else, you'd be hanged for that," Link muttered to his adoptive father.

"Link," Zelda hissed, only compounding his embarrassment. He gazed shamefully in her direction, and she stared back at him with pursed lips and a creased brow. Her message was simple: Knock it off.

If looks could kill…

Auru put a hand on Rusl's shoulder. "Young love, eh?" The two men could barely contain their laughter. Link simply rolled his eyes.

"Moving on," he said firmly, "I'd be pleased to hear what you have to report." He gestured toward the door. "Shall we?"

Rusl and Auru nodded, still chuckling, and exited the room. Link turned back to Zelda and offered her an apologetic smile. "Sorry," he offered.

Zelda exhaled heavily and pressed a hand to her temple. "'Let's get married,' he said," she murmured to herself just loud enough that he could still hear. "'It'll be fun,' he said."

Link furrowed his brow and shot an inquisitive look towards her. She laughed at him and shooed him away. "You are much too easy to tease, husband."