Link's destination ended up being the Royal Stable. The Royal Stable was an elaborate equestrian facility filled with purebred, remarkably well-trained horses used exclusively by those in the Royal Family and those in close service to them, such as the Royal Guard.
Guilt still plagued him, but Link forced his attention onto other matters. He marveled at the sheer vastness of the stable and paddock; rows of horse stalls lined the cobblestone pathway to the pasture, a horse in each one. Many stable hands trotted about; refilling water troughs, mucking stalls, and grooming horses—completing the various, equine-related chores assigned to them.
A large, chestnut horse hung his head over his stall door and gave a quiet whicker in greeting as Link approached. Link smiled and stroked the horse's velvety nose. His thoughts wandered to home, and he wondered how his own beloved mare, Epona, was doing.
Epona was Link's horse; and much like this one, she too sported a red, chestnut coat. Whereas this stallion was a solid color all over, Epona had four flashy white socks and a blaze. Oddly enough, she had a white mane and tail, too.
Epona was initially the family workhorse, but Link learned to ride her as a child and from then on, her duties extended beyond plowing fields. As Link grew up, they'd become a great team. He used her for farm work, but also often rode her through the woods just below town, taking in the sights of nature, and sometimes practiced target shooting at the mounted archery camp. Riding was one of his favorite things to do.
Upon being enlisted, Link had opted not to take Epona with him. He'd left her home for a couple of reasons; one being he didn't want to subject his longstanding, faithful farm horse to the dangers of battle, the other due to the fact he knew his mother would be alone for some time while he and his father were away. Link figured at the very least she could use Epona for company and to help with the farm work.
Despite himself, Link missed his horse. He'd grown fond of the colt he'd ridden in the cavalry as a solider, but since being promoted to the Royal Guard he was horse-less.
The chestnut stallion snorted and, seeing that Link was not about to free him from his stall, moved away. Link watched the horse for a moment longer before turning around—
—and coming face-to-face with a stable hand.
Link startled and immediately backed up, preparing to apologize for being in the way, but the stable hand, a red-haired girl, beat him to it.
"Ah! Sorry about that, I was just bringing him some water."
Link noticed the water bucket the she was carrying and unlatched the stall door for her.
The girl grinned, "Thank you kindly!"
She poured the water into a trough in the stall and the stallion gratefully took a long drink. The stable girl gave the horse a pat on the neck before heading out.
Moving past Link with a polite "Excuse me," the girl took the water bucket and headed back the way she came, presumably to repeat the process.
While the girl seemed friendly enough, she was clearly busy and Link didn't want to get in the way anymore than he already had. So, he wandered down the aisle and made his way to the paddock; there didn't appear to be as many people there, and that suited him well.
Link watched as the horses grazed; lazily munching on grass and swishing their tails at flies. He leaned against the fence with a quiet sigh and shut his eyes. Maybe, if he concentrated hard enough on the familiar scent of horses and grass, he could make himself believe he was back home in Hateno; with Epona gazing calmly beside him, roaming free in their yard.
A heartbeat passed; two, three.
Sadly, he had no such luck.
A distant voice yelled, "Make way for her royal highness!"
Link opened his eyes and turned to the source of the sound. On the other side of the paddock was a large, white horse being led toward nonother than Princess Zelda. Even from far away, Link could see the animal was decorated with royal tack; a flashy breast collar depicting the Hyrulean emblem and purple bridle were what caught his eye. Princess Zelda wore her riding outfit; it was the first time Link had seen her wearing something other than a dress.
Link welcomed the distraction and watched with mild curiosity as the princess approached her mount. She hesitantly brought a hand up to its face in an attempt to pet it, but the animal shook its head and took a step back. Two knights stood on either side of the horse, and they pulled it forward.
Link was perplexed by the scene; was her horse untrained?
He immediately dismissed the idea—of course not; this is the princess' horse. The King undoubtedly employed trainers to school the horse on days when the princess did not ride, just as he hired grooms to care for and tack up the animal for her.
With that in mind, perhaps it had been awhile since Princess Zelda had last ridden, and her horse was simply unused to her.
One of her knight attendants gave her a leg up onto the saddle; and there the princess sat, perched atop her noble steed, looking highly uncomfortable. Link noticed the two knights weren't leaving the horse's side. He could faintly hear that they were talking, but couldn't make out their words.
Suddenly, the white horse reared—standing on its hind legs at an impressive height and striking the air with its hooves. The princess was unseated by this; as the horse came up, she was thrown from the its back, landing on her butt in the dirt.
Immediately the knights came to her aid; offering hands to help her up and, although Link couldn't hear them, he was sure they were asking if she was hurt. Unfortunately, in doing so, they let go of the horse.
Princess Zelda stood up on her own, ignoring their hands, and dusted herself off. It seemed the only thing hurt was her pride.
Link didn't watch past that because he realized quickly that the princess's mount had come around the perimeter of the paddock and was galloping for the stables; the stables he was in front of.
Link was familiar with how to calm a spooked horse; Epona occasionally got spooked and bolted, though Link was always quick to get her under control.
Unthinking, Link grabbed the horse's neck as it ran by; swinging himself onto its back. He didn't bother using the stirrups; they likely wouldn't fit him and even if they did, he had no time. The white horse reared once again, attempting to throw its rider. Unfortunately for it, Link had great balance and was unbothered. Link ran a hand through its mane and spoke gently; trying to sooth the frantic animal. He continued trying even as the horse spun and bucked with all its might, until eventually it slowed and stopped, breathing heavy. The horse craned its neck around to look at him, and Link gave it one last pat before climbing off, holding the animal by the reins.
One of the attendants Link had seen with Princess Zelda ran up from behind him, reaching out to take the horse.
"T-that was amazing!" The man stammered, breathless from running.
Link rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly, giving him the reins; he wasn't good at taking compliments.
Then, Princess Zelda, followed by a few more knight attendants, came into view.
Link suddenly feared he would be reprimanded for handling the Princess's equine.
He stepped back a few paces and watched as Princess Zelda took the reins from the knight Link had handed them to and began checking the horse over for injuries.
Must to his surprise, with her back turned to him, she spoke,
"Thank you, soldier, for calming him. Storm is quite spirited; more so than I am accustomed to handling."
Link realized belatedly that she was talking to him—thanking him, even. He was the only one wearing soldier's gear, after all. Her manner of speech was elegant, and her voice was soft; much gentler than he remembered when she'd yelled at him in the sanctum.
The other knights turned to look at him, collectively expecting his response. Link felt their eyes on him and he knew what he was supposed to say; something along the lines of "You're welcome, Princess," or "Of course, your highness." But the words wouldn't come.
Seconds ticked by and the silence grew more and more awkward.
After checking over her horse, and feeling satisfied to have found find no injuries, the princess turned around and her gaze found Link.
At first, she appeared somewhat confused; likely puzzled by the soldier's lack of acknowledgment to her comment. Then, she recognized him.
Princess Zelda's confused look changed into a sour one, and Link resisted the urge to look away. Something he had learned upon being knighted impromptu, was that one was expected to maintain eye contact when addressed, unless kneeling.
Link gave brief consideration to taking a knee.
Surprisingly, Princess Zelda did not say anything to him other than a curt, "excuse me," as she turned heel and led her horse back the way they'd come.
Link couldn't help but feel relieved to see her leave.
A few of her knights stayed behind, and waited until she was out of ear-shot to confront him.
"Her highness thanked you and you don't even have the manners to say 'you're welcome'?" One of them asked, incredulous. "What's wrong with you?"
Another agreed, "Even when I was a soldier, I knew better than to ignore royalty. How arrogant!"
Arrogant…was that how he came across? Link sincerely hoped not; he felt far from proud, the opposite in fact.
The third one was less offended by him, suggesting, "Maybe he's mute?"
When that garnered little reaction, his face broke into a grin before adding, "Or he's an idiot."
The knights howled with laughter at his expense, and Link felt his face grow red in embarrassment.
Today was not his day.
Just then, a familiar voice caught his attention over the noise,
"Hey Link!"
Link traced the sound to see Kodah waving to him as he walked over to where he and the knights were standing.
The knights stopped laughing as someone of higher rank, a Royal Guard, approached.
When they realized who it was, however, their demeanors reverted back.
"Oh, it's just the bastard."
"I swear, they'll let anyone into the castle these days."
Pointedly ignoring the other three men, Kodah began talking to Link like they weren't even there.
Kodah gave a wide grin and said, "Man, I can't believe you. First you kick my ass in battle, then you turn out to be some sort of horse whisperer? I guess I shouldn't expect any less from Hylia's chosen hero."
It dawned on Link that the three knights had no idea who he was. He didn't have the Master Sword with him, and he was dressed as a soldier.
Realization hit the knights like a ton of bricks as they realized they'd been mocking the young man destined to save the entire kingdom.
They all backpedaled awkwardly,
"Oh, uh, excuse me, sir. I didn't realize…" He trailed off.
"I'm so sorry! Please don't tell Captain Remont!" One begged.
"I should be getting back to the Princess now…"
And before Link could even fully comprehend the situation, all three knights hurried off in the direction Princess Zelda had gone.
Kodah watched them go and snorted derisively, "Idiots." He scoffed.
Turing to Link, Kodah reiterated, "Seriously though; that was pretty cool to watch."
Link relaxed a bit and gave a small smile, "Thanks." He said honestly, though it wasn't for the compliment and they both knew it.
Unlike Link, Kodah was a naturally loquacious person. Link appreciated that trait because it meant even when Link had little to say, Kodah could carry on a conversation with him.
Like now.
Kodah started walking back towards the stabled and Link followed in step beside him.
Kodah gestured to the horses in stalls as they passed them, "These are the knight's horses. The Royal Guards horses are kept on the other side of the paddock, across from the King's." He explained.
"The horse you tamed is a stallion named Storm. He's one of the King's horses; Princess Zelda's horse."
Looking thoughtful, he continued, "She used to ride a mare named Diamond; it was the Queen's horse that was passed onto her, but the mare died a few months ago. Storm is one of Diamond's foals, which is why Princess Zelda wants to ride him."
Link nodded solemnly; he knew horses didn't live forever; he dreaded the day Epona would pass away.
Kodah continued walking around the paddock, and Link realized they were headed for the Royal Guard's stable.
"Diamond was a very old horse; she was old even when Princess Zelda first began riding her, from what I'm told. Storm is very young. And with her…" Kodah trailed off, searching for the right words, "…limited riding experience, she is ill-equipped to handle a young stallion like Storm."
Link hoped neither Princess Zelda nor anyone else was listening to Kodah gossip about the Princess's poor horsemanship.
Kodah stopped in front of a stall and leaned over the door, peering inside. Link did the same. Inside, he saw a black horse hiding in the shadows in the far corner of its stall. When it saw Kodah, its ears perked up and it gave a quiet whicker in greeting.
Kodah proudly introduced the horse as his own, "His name is Blackjack."
Link gave him a questioning look.
Kodah smirked mischievously, "I won him in a game of Blackjack."
Link blinked. That certainly explained the name, though it was a tad on-the-nose.
Blackjack wandered over to them and hung his head over the door, sniffing the two guards as he inspected them for treats. Kodah ruffled his forelock, making the horse toss his head.
"You don't have a horse yet, do you?" Kodah asked semi-rhetorically.
Link shook his head and answered, "No. I rode a colt in the cavalry, but nothing since then."
Kodah grinned, "You'll have to pick one out after you beat Captain Remont this afternoon."
Link winced slightly when the battle was brought up. Kodah noticed and his smile fell.
Kodah spoke directly, "You…don't like fighting, do you?"
Link thought hard about how to reply to that. Years ago, he'd had a similar conversation with Mipha. Though that was, of course, long before he'd obtained the Master Sword. Which, on one hand, hearing that the wielder of the legendary sword that seals the darkness 'doesn't like fighting' might give people the impression that he is a coward. But on the other hand, maybe it spoke of him being pure of heart; Link certainly wasn't the type to abuse the Master Sword's power, and he genuinely liked Hyrule and its citizens and wanted to protect them from harm.
It wasn't that he didn't know how to kill things; like every other commoner, he hunted deer and wild boar for food, and raised and butchered livestock. It was part of life. He'd also been in quite a few battles with a variety of monsters in large numbers created by the calamity; bokoblins, moblins, lizalfos, wizzrobes, etcetera. Slaying monsters didn't bother him too much, though it was never something he took pride in doing. But when it came to other, sentient people; Link simply couldn't see himself killing another sentient being.
When he was drafted, he was incredibly grateful that Hyrule was too preoccupied with the threat of Calamity Ganon to pit itself against any neighboring kingdoms in war.
Link decided on saying, "I don't want to hurt people."
Kodah was silent for a bit. Then, he asked, "Not anyone?"
Link assumed he was referring to the knights that had been teasing him earlier. He promptly shook his head; they didn't deserve to be hurt. Link wasn't sure what someone would have to do for him to consider them deserving of harm, let alone death.
Blackjack, having decided that treats were not coming his way, retreated back into his stall.
Kodah watched the horse move back with a far away look in his eyes.
"It makes sense." He mumbled. Link initially wasn't sure if Kodah was talking to him or himself, until Kodah added, "For you to be chosen, I mean."
Link was surprised; that was the first genuine vote of confidence he'd gotten as the hero.
A strange thought occurred to him, and he suddenly asked before he could stop himself,
"Do you want to hurt anyone?"
Kodah's expression changed slightly, though Link couldn't make out exactly how.
Then, he turned around and began walking away. Link regretted his question, thinking that he'd offended his friend, but Kodah waved like usual as he walked off, saying,
"Good luck with your test, see you later!"
Link watched him go, mulling the conversation over.
At face value, it seemed that Kodah did want to hurt someone. But Link also knew from experience that assumptions were wrong more often than not; many times, his own silence had been misinterpreted.
The least he could do was give his friend the benefit of the doubt.