it's resolution time. Grab hold of y'all's suspenders and hang on tight.

Everyone froze. And then Majora began to run at Hazen, his hands outstretched, stalking right past Irene like she wasn't even there. Hazen lifted his swords--

Majora was blasted away by a burst of white light. Irene watched him sprawl on the ground, her hand still raised, and looked at Hazen. "I'm--I'm not ready," she stammered, clinging to his arms as he came in close. "I don't have a plan, I'm not--"

"It's okay, we'll think of one," he reassured her, turning to watch Majora rise to his feet. "What did you do just then?"

"I," Irene trailed off, standing behind Hazen as he fought off Majora again. She stared at the ground, seeing Winnora's face burning away. She felt numb. "I . . . destroyed his memories."

Hazen looked back at her. "So he has no idea who we are?"

Backwards. It was so backwards. She'd taken his most precious memories and destroyed them, leaving him with only the hate and pain. The madness. She forced herself to answer Hazen's question. "I think he knows us. But . . . he--he doesn't want to kill me anymore."

Hazen's voice was strained. "Irene, what does that mean?"

"Please."

Shoving away Majora, he called out to some witches and they ran over. While they fended off Majora, Hazen turned to Irene fully, raising her bowed head so he could look her in the eyes. "I don't know what you did, and right now, it doesn't matter," he said, wiping the tears that fell. "But I need to know what to do now."

It was lost on Irene. "I ruined him," she whispered.

Who does something like that? Like what she did? What kind of monster violates a person like that? Her own reasonings were deaf to her ears, and she vaguely felt Hazen shake her shoulders. It was like she was experiencing everything through a fog. His voice was muffled, her ears ringing, and she didn't notice the bloodstained girl running over until she was right in front of Irene.

Crack!

Irene's head snapped to the side, and just like that, she could hear clearly again. She stared at Saval, whose eyes were hard, like chips of amber. "I don't know what happened, but this is no time to blank," she said, grabbing Irene's arm. "We need you right now."

"Just put it all away," she added, softer, and in her eyes Irene saw carefully applied makeup, winces while putting on a pale blue dress, a blank expression at the dinner table. An empty smile. "Hide it in a little drawer and don't look at it until you're okay."

Irene sucked in a trembling breath and bit her lip, hard. Saval stepped back, sympathy flaring in her eyes, and Irene felt a thousand times worse. The fact that Saval was using her own experiences with abuse to help Irene get over what she'd done . . .

Somehow she was able to get herself together. Once she straightened and muttered, "I'm okay," Saval nodded and dashed off to get Tessen's back, just as Majora roared.

Hazen looked away from the battle. "So what do we need to do now?"

Irene was already thinking, rushing through the memories she'd seen. "We can't kill him, that's for sure," she said aloud. "We just have to seal him enough to send him back to his own time, and make sure he can't do anything like this again."

"What if he does? And how can we stop that from happening?"

"Majora was in league with Ganondorf. He gave him the power to try and wipe your father from Hyrule," Irene said. "And now, he's attacked you, Link's son. But somewhere along the line, he got confused."

She quickly explained the memories, and what she'd done. "So he thought the witches were the ones that sealed him away," Hazen muttered. "But you said that he fought the Fierce Deity on the field."

"He did," Irene answered, ducking as a monster flew overhead, screeching. "But I'd only seen some of the truth when I told you that story. He did fight the Fierce Deity, but it was only because he was in Majora's way. After Winnora died, Majora went insane. He attacked anything and everything, and he was bent on destroying the witches for good. That's when the Fierce Deity put him down with the mask."

"Then Majora only fought the Fierce Deity to get to the witches?"

"Yes," Irene agreed, sending a blast of light to eviscerate a group of monsters approaching. "He only ever wanted to get to the witches. But his feud with the Fierce Deity created another rift in his mind--he became hell-bent on destroying his old friend, too."

"So then why did Majora make a deal with Ganondorf and try to kill my parents?"

"I think it's because Link looks like the Fierce Deity. Here."

Quickly, Irene conjured an image of the Fierce Deity and showed Hazen. He squinted at it before nodding slowly. "I guess they look similar."

"And if Link looks like him, then so do you," Irene added. "Majora is completely insane, Hazen. He's attacking anything in his path. When he saw your father, and felt the rage of Ganondorf, he latched onto that. But it didn't work. Ganondorf died, and Majora was again without a target. And then you were born--a spitting image of your father."

Hazen's face was losing color the longer she talked. "So what do we do?" he asked. "If the Fierce Deity is what Majora wants, can we bring him here?"

"That's a bad idea." Irene shook her head. "If we disrupt the timestream any more, it might collapse for good, and we're stuck here. But . . ."

She hesitated. It could work, but the risks were high. And she didn't want to put Hazen through it if he didn't--

"Irene? What is it?"

She hesitated once more before speaking. "There is a spell that I can use to, ah, boost your power. It's dangerous, though, and I don't know if--"

Hazen stood. "Do it."

Irene scrambled to her feet. "Hazen, wait! You don't even know what it is!"

His eyes met hers. "I trust you."

"You could die," Irene snapped, though there was little anger in her voice. It was annoying how he always, always had to be the hero. But she was afraid--there were so many things that could go wrong, and it was him--

"Irene." She refused to look at him, so he took her chin and forced her to meet his eyes. "If there's a way to defeat him, tell me. I'll do it."

The words stuck in her throat. While she tried to force them out, Hazen's hand drifted to her crown, the ruby from his sword glittering brightly, reflecting the flames and blasts of light. "Let me do this," he murmured.

Irene swallowed. "If you died," she said, trying to control the shaking of her voice, "it would be my fault. How could I go to your parents and tell them that I used a spell that killed you?"

"You won't let me die."

"How can you be so sure?" Irene hissed, gripping his shirt tightly.

"Because I know you." His swords clanged on the ground as he dropped them, taking her clenched hands in his. He held them between them. "Remember what I said? Your hands help people, not kill them."

Irene tried to argue, but Hazen just sighed loudly and planted his mouth on hers, pulling her flush against him. Don't kiss him back, she told herself, even as she felt herself respond. He's manipulating you!

It's working, she thought, sliding her hands into his hair. His tongue brushed against hers, and she sighed into his mouth as he pulled away. "Kissing me won't change my mind," she murmured, almost dizzy.

Hazen smirked, as if he could tell the effect he had on her. "Are you sure?"

"Shut up," she muttered, and he laughed.

He brushed a kiss to her cheek. "I love you," he said, grabbing his swords again. "That's why I'm doing this."

"That's cheating," Irene griped, following him anyway. They ran out from their hiding spot, his hand holding hers tightly. They stopped in the middle of the battle, and he tore his gaze from Majora battling a whole group of witches.

"Do it, Irene," he said, and suddenly he was breathless, his eyes alight with battle and determination. Irene swallowed hard, her hands trembling at her sides, and let out a breath that was almost a sob, grabbing his face and pulling it down to hers.

She pulled away, lighting her hands with magic. "I love you," she said, and pressed her hands to his chest. Hazen's eyes burned bright blue--then flared white. He let out a shout, falling to his knees, bracing himself with one of his swords. His other hand raised to his face, and Irene's heart stopped in her chest--but she didn't stop funneling power into him.

He needs it all, she thought, as his shoulders rose and fell in quick, harsh breaths. And then some.

When she was done, she took her hands away, and Hazen stayed on his knees. He let out a groan, rising to his feet, and lifted his head.

He looked the same, mostly. His face shape was the same, and he still had the golden skin of his parents. But instead of golden, his hair was now white, his eyes were sightless and empty, and his face was painted with red and blue markings under his eyes and on his forehead. His chest rose and fell with heavy breathing, and seemed about to say something when Majora roared behind him.

Hazen turned, swords raising, and met eyes of living flame. "You!!" Majora screeched, sending blast after blast at him, and Irene deflected them almost without thinking. Majora took no notice of her, his eyes staying trained on Hazen.

Without a word, Hazen ran straight at Majora, his swords clanging against an invisible shield. It did nothing to deter him.

"What did you do?"

Irene turned to see Link, the Hero of Time, standing at her side. She gestured at the two battling among the pits and bodies. "When I was training with his mother, I read about a spell that could grant another's power to someone. All I needed to do was experience that power for myself." She lifted a hand limpoy at Majora. "Experiencing his memories is as close to that as I could get. I figured it would work."

Link was quiet for several long moments. "The Happy Mask Salesman has been telling me how dangerous Majora's Mask is for a long time," he said quietly. "He told me about another mask that was equal in power to it, but that its power might be too much for any one person to handle." He looked at her. "Are you sure he can take it?"

Irene struggled not to let her doubts show. She knew. She'd seen how destructive and overwhelming the Fierce Deity's power was. She'd felt it. Giving that power to Hazen--trusting that he'd be able to control it--was as good as giving a piece of bread to a starving man and telling him not to eat it. He might be able to hold out, but the longer it took to defeat Majora, the more it would tear him apart.

She must not have been very good at masking her thoughts, because Link looked at her face and nodded slightly. "He trusts you," he said. "It must have been good enough for him."

"He overestimates me," Irene said, bitterly. "Once I give him that power, it's his to control. I can't do anything to help him, and if I take it from him now, I'm taking away any chance to defeat Majora."

Link thought for a moment, long enough that Irene thought he was done speaking entirely. She'd just winced as Majora slammed his arms--contorted into spindly, brightly colored things--into Hazen's swords when Link spoke again.

"What if he shared the burden?"

Irene's head snapped around to look at him. "What?"

His eyes were steady. Narrowed. "What if he wasn't the only one using the Fierce Deity's power?" he elaborated.

Irene still wasn't understanding. "Wh--how would that even work?"

Link sighed. "I think you're underestimating yourself, witch. You have nine heroes here. Your prince may think he has to do everything himself, but he does have help."

"You--you mean--"

"Let me gather everyone." Link walked off, dispatching a monster here and there. They were few and far between, and getting lower in numbers the longer the battle dragged out. The Hylian Alliance may not have had fangs or spiked tails, but they had numbers, fearlessness, experience, and a ferocity to match any monster's. They pushed through the monster ranks efficiently, and while there were still many monsters fighting, their numbers were dwindling.

Irene wrung her hands, watching as Hazen lunged to stab Majora, his swords a blur. Across the floor, she saw Link and Zelda helping each other over to a healer, a blue-haired girl with a book that spilled white light. Zelda lay on the ground, her face twisted in a wince as blood leaked from her leg, but her eyes turned towards Hazen's battle and didn't move.

A large group broke out of the fighting and rushed towards Irene. She moved to meet them, finding nine faces so similar it was almost scary. "These are the heroes, then?" she asked tersely, her eyes searching for Hazen again. He was fending off Majora, but he stumbled under the power within him, and his legs began to buckle. Blood leaked from his mouth, his arm, his leg, his temple.

As she watched, Majora attacked again, and Hazen had barely blocked his attack before doubling over, coughing violently. Blood splattered on the ground, staining it red.

He's dying.

She whirled back to the heroes. "I've already explained," Link said quickly, and Irene nodded her thanks, her tongue sticking to the roof of her mouth.

She forced her mouth to work. "Get close to Hazen, and I'll do the rest," she said, voice hoarse. They nodded without another word and dashed off, taking out monsters with deadly precision. Within moments they were at Hazen's side, and as the battle stalled, taking in these new odds, Irene slipped behind Hazen and pressed her hands to the sides of his head.

Magic flared, and Hazen crumpled. At the same time, the heroes around him grunted, some doubling over. But they all stood up straight, and Irene's hand slid across Hazen's back as he followed.

"Let's finish this," he said, voice like grinding glass. As one, the heroes attacked.

Irene almost couldn't believe what she was seeing. They moved like they'd fought in hundreds of battles before, every movement smooth and streamlined, not a single one wasted. It was like they were dancing, except every strike wore down Majora more and more, and it was clear the demon knew he was losing.

"It's not just your fight," Link said beside her, and Irene was surprised he hadn't joined the battle. "Majora was going to destroy the timeline itself, which meant all of us would have died too."

As if in response, the timeline shuddered. One of the vertical spirals of time began to collapse, but before Irene could move to catch it, the whole thing simply froze.

A glance at the sidelines of the battle showed Zelda's hand outstretched, her face pulled into a strained grimace. Another woman with long, bright golden hair ran up to her side and added her power. The Sages of Time, some voice in Irene's mind said, but she barely heard it.

Link was speaking again. "This fight is personal--for all the heroes."

His voice was low and chilling. And as if in answer, the nine heroes gave a collective shout, their swords flashing in the fires still burning, and Majora roared--in pain, rage, hatred, Irene couldn't tell.

"Get ready," Link said, gripping his own sword's hilt. Irene tensed, her hands flaring with magic. He was right--she could feel something coming--

Hazen lunged forward, and Irene saw it. She thrust her hands out, and he flared as bright as the sun for a split second--all the Fierce Deity's power flowing out of the heroes and into him--and his swords slammed into Majora's chest, down to the hilts.

The sound that came from Majora's throat was inhuman. Irene wanted to cover her ears, but she couldn't take her hands away, because Majora was still here, and he was still--

Hazen ripped his swords from Majora's chest, but instead of blood leaking from the wounds, he just turned his face upward and sneered at Hazen. His hands twitched--

"Now, witch!" Link roared.

Enough of this.

Irene summoned her power and it flooded her veins, searing her eyes white, freezing her emotions the same way he'd burned away his own. She froze Majora where he knelt and with one arm, sent a blast of her power at him so hard it sent him sprawling. Striding forward, she extended a hand at the rivers of time, flicking a finger until she'd gotten to the right place.

The fields of Termina rippled in the wind, the walls of Clock Town rising into the distance. She turned back to Majora, who was just raising his head in a snarl--and seized him around the neck, her magic's grip impossible to break, and threw him into the river with a single word.

"Goodbye."

She closed the river, letting it return to its flow, its eras flying by just as fast as before. Trying to ignore everything in her heart, Irene turned to everyone watching. The battle had finished by now, with only a few monsters here and there, but they were being quickly dispatched. "We need to get home, now," she called. "The timestream is breaking down."

It gave another rumble, and another rift opened up. But instead of stopping, the rumbling kept going, and as they watched, one of the time-rivers began to break up, the eras within it growing disrupted, stuttering in their path.

"Get moving, now!" Zelda shouted, getting to her feet. Over the sudden clamor, Irene saw Link speaking quickly to the heroes. They nodded, heading to their respective positions in the time rivers, but before they stepped through, Irene sent a wave of her power through each of them, wiping their minds of the entire thing. A gentle nudge from her power sent their confused forms stumbling through the rivers, back to their own times.

She let out a breath. That's one crisis averted, she thought. She stayed back with Hazen, Saval and Tessen and their parents while everyone else left. Once the last soldier had gone through, they followed, Hazen's hand tight in hers and leaning heavily into her side. They ended up in Hyrule Field, a place both familiar and not, and Irene disengaged from Hazen, handing him off to Tessen, to turn back to the timestream, visible through an arch of sorts.

She inhaled deeply. Now for the hard part.

Her ancestors had done this once before. She'd never learned how, but as she raised her hands and closed her eyes, she saw the timestream in her mind, in all its glory. It stretched away in the vast expanse of space, lines diverging here and there, representing different worlds, different realities, some thick and some thin.

When she looked deeper, she saw the cracks. The realities hanging on by a single thread, the ones that were seconds from breaking away forever. She focused on those, and summoning her power, searched for the threads to sew it back together. They appeared as colored lines, bright against the white and black, and she pulled what needed to be pulled, her hands moving nearly of their own accord.

Vaguely she felt sweat dripping down her back, but it was far away, as far as she'd always considered the stars to be, and yet here they were, surrounding her. She felt like she was tied into the timestream, as much a part of it as the wind was part of the worlds she knew, and it spoke to her.

She fixed the last crack, and slowly felt herself come back into her own mind, feeling cramped and small compared to what she'd just experienced. She kept the entrance to the timestream open, revealing the smooth floor, the uninterrupted rivers of time spinning and flowing as they always had. It was done.

The breath Irene took shuddered. She felt her knees buckle, and she sank to the grass. But she never touched it.

A hard, warm chest met her back and strong arms circled her from behind, supporting her. "Have I told you how amazing you are?" Hazen's voice rumbled in her ear.

"Feel free to keep telling me," she murmured, suddenly exhausted down to her bones.

A chuckle vibrated in his chest. "I'd love to, but there's still things to take care of."

She sighed. He was right. Hazen released her, but kept a tight grip on her hand as they walked towards the crowd waiting for them. "Is it done?" Zelda called.

Irene nodded tiredly. "It's done."

The relief was palpable. The tension above the Hylian Alliance evaporated, and orders were shouted for medical supplies and other things. They were lost on Irene as Saval and Tessen approached, along with two other faces she'd recognize anywhere.

Wild Link and his wife smiled widely as they embraced Irene. She unexpectedly felt her eyes burning as they pulled away, and she found her smile reflected on their faces. "We are so proud of you," Zelda whispered, brushing Irene's loose hair behind her ear. "You've done so many amazing things, and you'll only keep going."

"Thank you," Irene whispered, wishing she could keep them with her, or even go back with them. They were like parents to her, and they'd taken her and the others in when they desperately needed help. She wished she didn't have to leave. But that was impossible. She had to say goodbye.

They seemed to see it in her eyes, and stepped back. Zelda wiped her eyes, turning to Hazen, Saval and Tessen. Link wrapped his arms around Hazen, murmuring something she couldn't hear.

Hazen stepped back, sharing Link's smile, and as the others said their goodbyes, the hero and his princess walked up to the glowing portal, hands entwined. Irene raised her hands, and a faint glow enveloped their heads. When it faded, Hazen couldn't see their faces, but they began to look around, and something nudged them from behind, pushing them into their own time.

Before they could turn, Irene raised a hand to the river, but before she could do anything, it shifted of its own accord, stopping at a village set far back against a forest. The witches stepped forward, stepping one by one through the portal without a second glance. The last one turned just before stepping through, facing a shocked Irene.

"No need to wipe our memories," Analise said, winking. "We're plenty capable on our own."

Irene seemed to want to say something, but she just closed her mouth and nodded, though her hand clenched at her side. Analise noted the move and smiled sadly. "Don't worry, little witch," she said softly. "You'll find us sooner than you think."

She put a foot through the portal, and as she stepped backwards, her body getting enveloped in golden light, Irene took her in for the last time, unexpected tears in her eyes. Analise's pale blue hair shone brighter in the light, her sapphire eyes glinted with unspoken knowledge. Her lips twitched in a smile. Something in the shape of her face . . .

A tiny gasp escaped Irene. She took a halting step forward, but Analise disappeared in a flash of gold light, and she was gone.

Irene seemed frozen, and as Hazen watched, a single tear escaped, trailing down her face. She let loose a breath, her chest hitching, and swallowed. Hazen was about to ask what was wrong when she raised her hand again and set the timestream's river flowing again, traveling back and back, the images flying past too fast to comprehend until drifting to a stop at a familiar open field, an empty gate frame looming beside a small fence.

She turned back to everyone, and Hazen forced himself to swallow the sudden lump in his throat. She went to his parents first, embracing a bloody and limping Zelda tightly, despite her wounds. "Thank you for everything," he heard her whisper, her eyes shut tight.

They pulled away, tears in both their eyes, and Link wrapped her in his arms for a short moment. "Thank you," he said, offering a smile.

Irene accepted it, and went down the line, sharing a handshake with Dark and Ilayen, a short embrace with Midna, who was crying in a rare public show, and when she got to Tetra, the Royal Advisor gripped Irene's arm with tight fingers, her lips trembling. Her throat bobbed, and Irene gripped her shoulders as tightly as Tetra did hers.

When she turned away, she came face to face with Saval. The Twilight princess was crying already, and upon seeing it Irene couldn't hold hers back anymore. They crashed into each other, stumbling on the grass, shoulders trembling. Irene's hand stroked Saval's hair, smoothing the snarls down, and her tears left wet blotches in her shirt.

"You are so strong," Irene whispered. "You don't need to hide anymore."

Saval nodded into her neck, and when they pulled away, she backed up to let Tessen come through. He smiled despite everything, wrapping Irene up and lifting her off the ground. She laughed, clutching him tightly, and kept a hold of him when he set her down. "Thank you for never giving up on me," she said, smiling abashedly. "Even when I deserved it."

"You never deserved it," Tessen replied, then pressed a loud kiss to her cheek. It got her to laugh, and the sound echoed through Hazen's mind, sending a flare of heat through his suddenly cold body. Irene turned to him, and he couldn't breathe.

I don't want to do this.

She was right in front of him suddenly, looking up at him with eyes swiftly losing their mirth. "Don't," he tried softly, but she just shook her head at him.

"I have to leave."

He knew it. He did, but--"Couldn't you stay?"

Irene shook her head again, tears welling up. "I don't belong here," she said quietly, taking his hands.

Hazen let her, his own eyes burning. You belong with me, he wanted to say. But it wouldn't change her mind. And deep down, he knew he was being selfish by asking her to stay.

She seemed to sense the resignation in him. She took a deep breath, wrapping her arms around his waist. He pulled her tight against him, trying to remember how she felt, trying to crave the memory of her into his body, into his mind.

She pulled away, but didn't go far. Rising onto her toes, she kissed him, and he buried a hand in her hair, the other tightening on her hip. He angled her head, sliding his tongue along hers, and she hummed into his mouth. He tried to go slow, but his mind was screaming that this was the last time he'd get to kiss her, the last time he'd see her, and he wanted to make it last.

It could have been seconds or hours later that she pulled away yet again. Her chest hitched as she inhaled. "I love you," she whispered, trailing her fingers along his cheek.

He couldn't speak. He wanted to speak, to say anything, but his tongue was frozen. Irene seemed to realize, and simply smiled at him, the pained affection in her face in contrast with the tears that fell.

She backed away to the portal, watching as Saval and Tessen came to Hazen's side, and hesitated once.

"Goodbye."

She stepped back, a flash of golden light surged, and when it faded, she was gone.

She was gone.

Hazen's eyes cracked open.

He got out of his cot and padded across the carpeted floor to the washtable. Washed his face with cold water, running it through his hair, threw his white shirt on and buttoned his tunic over it. Pulled on his boots and laced them up, grabbed his sword belt and strapped it across his hips.

The familiar sounds of the camp rose into the air outside his tent. The heavy flaps parted as he was making up his cot. "Excuse me, Your Highness. The Empress would like to see you when you're ready."

Hazen nodded wordlessly, and the soldier left without another word. He threw his pillow at the short headboard and left the tent, stepping outside into the camp.

For the last three weeks, the Hylian Alliance had camped out in Hyrule Field following the battle in the timestream. There were a lot of bodies to be recovered, a lot of names to be carved into stone, a lot of reorganization to be done. The rulers of the empire with the exception of Lorule's king, who'd returned to his country to deal with the broken dam. The battle in the timestream had dealt a lot of damage, both within and without. Even though Hyrule itself had only experienced some minor earthquakes, other nations weren't as lucky.

Hazen made his way through the camp, snagging an apple from one of the baskets by the eastern food store. Soldiers walked along the dirt paths winding through the camp, some holding maps and sheafs of paper, officers escorted from command to command by their details, some on patrol, others making their way to the makeshift lunch area, in the center.

Hazen followed the path to the lunch area for a while before turning left, for a semi-circle of tents set aside and surrounded by other officer tents, all denoted by the Hyrulian flags. His parents.

He walked past the soldiers on duty outside and ducked inside the center tent. It was white, with a massive Triforce on the front and flags of both Hyrule and the Alliance bordering it. Inside, his parents stood at the wide oval table, staring down at a map of the empire. Beside them stood Commander Impa, Captain Russell, Captain Pipit, Commander Gaepora and First Company General Dark.

Like Ilayen, Saval's father had kept his position in the empire's army, moving up the ranks while Ilayen had chosen to head the Sheikah company. They didn't look up when Hazen entered, and he hung back as was expected. He'd come to enough of these meetings even before he'd disappeared to know that he wasn't to interrupt.

His mother was pointing to a southern part of the empire, her Alliance uniform as clean and pressed as if this was the first time she'd worn it. "Holodrum wasn't hit so hard. Mayor Ruul reports minor flooding, but nothing that will damage the harvest. Luckily, the aqueduct was not damaged at all."

The harvest is due soon, Hazen thought, feeling a chill wind sweep through the camp. It wasn't winter yet, but summer was definitely on its way out.

He wondered what the weather was like where she was.

"Valoo sent a letter," Dark informed everyone. "He says Waker experienced turbulent seas, but no typhoons."

"That's fortunate," Link murmured. "It is the season for it."

"Any word from Ravio?"

Impa shook her head at Zelda. "Nothing to report yet. Her Majesty Hilda is inspecting the construction efforts along the border. She is with the delegation from Termina."

Hazen flinched.

"How is it going?"

"Well," Impa answered. She kept her voice level, though she, like everyone, had noticed Hazen's reaction. "The dome should be completed within the month. Bolson has already begun cutting the stone for the stage."

"Good." Zelda's voice was quiet. "That's enough, I think."

Everyone began shuffling papers together and packing up. As they headed for the tent flaps, Zelda said, "Impa, have Her Highness Saval and the Lord Tessen come here. Dark, find Midna and my advisor, please, along with her husband."

"Yes, Your Majesty," they murmured. As they passed Hazen, he shifted on his feet, his arms crossed. When the only people left in the tent were himself and his parents, a silence stretched out that grew more and more uncomfortable.

"I suppose you want an explanation."

Zelda took a slow breath. "I want you to tell me when you're comfortable."

Hazen snorted. "Well, that's never going to happen. I might as well say it now."

His mother was still as marble, and her expression was just as hard. "I'm glad you're able to crack jokes about it," she said coldly.

"We know how you feel, Hazen," Link said, shooting a glance at Zelda. "And it's not something to joke about."

"You say that like someone didn't make a death joke in the castle every five damned minutes," Hazen suddenly snapped. His parents flinched.

"Hazen--"

"Go ahead," he gestured to the table. Walking forward, he flopped into an empty seat, staring down his parents. The anger had come out of nowhere, and he felt it in every single one of his arteries. "Tell me your latest excuse."

Zelda's eyes flared. "What do you want me to say? You want to hear how I ended the war? How I watched my friends die over and over again, all because I couldn't recognize a demon when I saw one?"

"I want to hear about everything."

Zelda wasn't prepared for that. "No you don't."

"Yes I do," Hazen insisted. "I've seen it all already, but I want to hear it from you two. No more lies."

Zelda's chest shuddered as she stared into Hazen's eyes. "Are you sure?" she breathed, leaning forward on the table. Beside her, Link sighed, turning his face away. Hazen didn't back down, but there was something in his mother's eyes now, something cold and dark and angry.

"Are you sure?" she repeated. "You want to know about the slaughter at Great Bay? How the Clock Tower fell in the middle of the purge, crushing Terminans underneath, left to burn? Left to die? You want to hear about how we fled? Running through the woods while being chased by monsters, crossing the bridge before they set fire to it? You want to hear how we were too late?"

Hazen forced himself to not break her gaze.

"Because we were." Her voice was soft and chilling. "We were still on it when they set fire to it. I listened to a little girl burn to death, and I cradled her sister on the banks of the Zora River. She fell asleep smelling smoke and listening to Great Bay burn."

Zelda straightened, taking in Hazen's pale complexion. "What's wrong? I thought you wanted to hear about it."

Hazen gritted his teeth. "I do. From the beginning."

Link stepped in. "Hazen, you don't know what you're asking."

"I've already seen it all," he insisted, and now the anger was gone, as swiftly as it had arrived, to be replaced with desperation. "You never talk about this! You've never told anyone--not me, not Auntie Tetra, not even your brother, Dad! You've got to let it go!"

"And you?" Zelda demanded. "Would you be able to let it go? Can you let go of what happened to you?"

"I--" The words stalled in his throat. Zelda sighed, her face losing some of its anger. "Hazen, darling. Please. Do you think it's so easy? To just forget about everything? The pain, and the fear? Emotions can't be turned off."

"I'm not asking you to turn them off," Hazen said. "I'm asking you to trust me with them. I'm asking you to share with someone who understands."

Her eyes had begun to soften, but now she shook her head. "No, Hazen. You don't understand."

He opened his mouth to argue, but a voice outside spoke. Impa.

"Your Majesty, they're here."

"Thank you, Commander." Zelda didn't take her eyes from her son, and her voice was hard when she spoke. "You viewed the war from an outside perspective, Hazen. You saw what happened, yes, and you saw the horror of it. But you didn't feel your heart crushing inside your chest as you watched your godmother blown up, or as you watched the castle burning and knowing those were your people inside, being murdered. You didn't wonder where your friend was--whether she was dead, or alive, or being torn apart in front of your eyes. You never felt the guilt laying heavy on your shoulders, knowing that for every person that died, it was your fault."

Hazen didn't answer. Didn't have an answer. But Link did.

"We've been over this," he snapped, facing his wife. "It's not your fault."

"It absolutely is, and you know it," Zelda answered, and in that moment Hazen saw every death in her eyes. From her father all the way to Karane, it was all reflected in the dull blue of her eyes.

"How can you even suggest that?" Link was arguing. His eyes were narrowed and angry, and his face was contorted in a faint snarl. "You weren't the one who was resurrecting monsters in the castle's basement!"

"No, but I had plenty of chances to kill the man who was!" Zelda finally hissed, whirling from the table. Hazen couldn't speak, because--monsters? In the castle? He hadn't seen anything like that, had never even heard a hint of it--he'd just assumed the monsters had already been . . . around. No one had corrected him otherwise.

"What were you supposed to do? Throw the whole mission and attack him right then and there? Limping, with one sword and no sage power? Don't be stupid, Zel," Link snapped.

"It would have been better than letting him just go about his business," Zelda shouted. "Everyone that died after that Goddess-damned mission would still be alive if I'd just gone further in! Daruk, Urbosa, Nabooru, Revali, Laruto and Mipha--"

"You don't know that!" Link shouted, and his voice cracked. "You don't know that, Zel," he whispered, taking her hands.

"But they could be," she shot back, her voice a broken whisper. "At least I would have tried--"

"What's the point in wondering?" Hazen cut in, and it was so unexpected, even to himself, that they both turned to look at him. "Would it? They might be alive now, they might be dead. There's no way to find out, no way to change it. This is what I mean."

He leaned across the table and took one of their hands in his own. "You're stuck in what ifs and maybes," he said, looking into their eyes. "It doesn't matter what you could have done differently. You're here, in the present, not fifteen years ago. You've got to let it go."

Zelda looked like she was struggling to take his words to heart. Hazen let them go, straightening. "She told me," he rasped.

Their eyes flicked back to him. He swallowed. "She told me what she offered," he elaborated. "That night on the cliff. She said you rejected her. You said you didn't want to burden anyone with your pain."

"But don't you understand? Telling someone is the only way to let go," Hazen said softly. "When we were stuck in Stone Tower, she told me how her parents died. The first time she ever told anyone, it was her own hero. He went out and slaughtered monsters anywhere he could find them. She didn't know if it helped him, but she knew that letting someone else in helped. Even just a little."

At that moment, the tent flaps parted, and Saval and Tessen stepped up to Hazen's side. They exchanged a glance, turning back to their parents, sitting across from them at the table. Their parents all exchanged glances, and after several long moments, Zelda sighed deeply.

"Perhaps Irene has helped even more than any of us thought," she murmured. She closed her eyes, taking several deep breaths. When she lifted her head, her eyes were bright with determination, their blue color lit with the fire of the torches within the tent. Hazen's breath left his chest.

Passion. Determination. Confidence. Adventure.

"Very well," Zelda said, and her voice was strong. "Let me start at the beginning."

WHOO BOY. There it is. I am *inhales* so tired. I'm going to collapse into bed now, let me know what y'all think!

Review replies, before I forget again like last time

To thelinkmaster001: HAHA RIGHT?? I've been holding onto That SceneTM for sooo long lmfao.

To StJames1: mhmhmhmhmhm makes this chap hurt all the more I bet huh? NEHAHAHA. And how was the battle?

To Queen Emily the Diligent: if you mean like they're similar to the Triforce Trio, then yeah haha. I didn't intend it that way, but looking it over they do seem similar. Within the story tho, they're like completely separate people with unrelated storylines to the TT.

Okay. Thanks for reading! We're almost at the end, I hope y'all enjoyed this one! See ya!