Link got to walk with Princess Mipha one more time and Prince Sidon got to play with him several times – the little Prince even got Princess Zelda to join – before it was time to leave Zora's Domain.

"Promise you'll come back again!" had Prince Sidon said to him. Link promised even though he wasn't sure if he could keep it. It might be a long time until he would see the beautiful Domain again. Mipha had a wished him and the Hylian Princess a pleasant journey back and her yellow eyes had been slightly glossy, as if it was hard for her to let them go. Link found himself gazing perhaps a little too long at the magnificent architecture before he turned his head around and accompanied his Princess.

Princess Zelda couldn't contain her curiosity any longer when the Zoran soldiers who ensured they made it back to the end of Zora River safely finally left them. It would take a bit of time until they would reach the smaller village they had left their horses at a few days ago so she took the opportunity to once again ask him about his acquaintance with the Zora Princess. She was hoping she'd get an answer this time but wouldn't be upset if he wouldn't tell her.

"I had no idea that you were so close with Princess Mipha, you must have been friends for a long time! How come you've never mentioned it?" She smiled at her knight. She had seen a different side of him these past days during their visit. Never had she imagined seeing her serious knight play one day… and not with any child either, but the Prince of the Zoras!

Link shrugged. There hadn't really been a reason or opportunity to mention it, he thought.

"How did you meet?"

Link looked back at the Princess. Her eyes were bright and curious and her smile genuine. It was as if it dispelled the clouds of worry in his mind temporarily. He couldn't resist giving her an answer when she looked like that.

"My father was a Knight of Hyrule and used to serve the royal family. Your family." He added with a nod to her. Zelda remembered that her father had briefly mentioned that Link's father had been a knight. She continued to listen. "Sometimes, he had to visit Zora's Domain for some business on the behalf of Hyrule and couldn't always leave me at home, alone, for several days so I got to come with him. Prince Sidon was great to play with while my father was busy… and I guess I must have been quite wild myself for Princess Mipha would always heal my wounds whenever I got hurt." A corner of his mouth turned upwards at the memories.

Princess Zelda's mouth was slightly opened in surprise. "So you've known each other since you were a child?"

"I wasn't sure if she would remember me. I hadn't been there for years and I only met her and Prince Sidon a few times."

"But she did remember you. That's… I still can't believe you've never told me, I thought I was the first person with royal status you met!" she joked and laughed.

"Apologies, your Majesty. I didn't mean to disappoint you." he joked back. She giggled.

They kept on walking and listened to the noise the ground did underneath their shoes. Zelda thought a little about what he had told her. "But if your father was sent to Zora's Domain when you grew up, you must have lived nearby?" Zelda looked up at her knight who was currently not behind her but walking next to her instead. And then she suddenly remembered the last time she had asked him personal questions and how she almost had made him annoyed at her for them. "I-I mean, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to of course." She felt nervous again.

"Hateno."

She blinked. "Hateno? I don't think I've heard of it."

Link stopped to look around them and Princess Zelda feared once again that she had crossed a line. He raised an arm and pointed at a mountain top. "It's behind Mount Lanayru. It's a smaller village, not much happens there." he explained.

She followed his finger. "… That's quite far away." she commented. Link nodded and began to walk again. She stared at the mountain for a few more moments before she jogged up to him and joined him. "Do you ever miss it?"

Link thought for a moment. "Sometimes." he admitted.

Princess Zelda didn't exactly feel that her questions were making Link uncomfortable this time but she stopped asking them just to be sure. The conversation ended and the rest of their walk went fine except for some monsters that interrupted them. She watched him take them down one by one but she could tell that he got hurt at least once by the way he was rubbing his upper right arm. She asked him if he was alright and he nodded back after glancing at his left palm. His arm hurt but he wasn't bleeding so he would be fine.

"I'm sorry you got hurt" she said anxiously. Link looked at her and she guessed that he didn't understand her even though his face didn't show confusion, so she added "I mean, you wouldn't have if you didn't have to protect me." She honestly felt a little guilty about it but she didn't know why. She hadn't chosen him to be her knight after all.

"It's my job to, Princess."

They held eye contact for a moment, both thinking that the worst is yet to come but none of them mentioned it. Link wondered how much worse it would feel if the Calamity would hit a strike and Princess Zelda feared that her knight might have to face it alone if her prayers weren't answered soon. She glanced down to the ground and began walking again. "You're right. Never mind." None of them spoke for the rest of the walk and the wind played with their hair until they got their horses back.

Princess Zelda sat on her horse in silence and thought of the time they had spent together and how she would spend a lot more time in the castle from now on. She opened her mouth to say something but closed it again. Then she tried a second time. "You know… We've traveled to all the Divine Beasts now and I suppose I won't have a reason to leave the castle for some time. I shall do what my father wants and continue praying to the goddesses." She looked at her knight. He looked back. "I just want to thank you for everything so far. I'll… I'll miss spending time out here."

Link let the words sink in before he nodded back and returned his attention to any potential lurking monsters in the field. He agreed with her. His work would be much easier if he had to keep an eye on her in the castle again, but it could be so… dull. His days as a royal guard were filled with routine and even though he was now the Princess' knight, there wasn't much of a difference when they were within Hyrule Castle's walls. But when they were outdoors, on their travels, he had to stay alert all the time and, perhaps the best thing with being outside the castle, he didn't have the other guards admiring his sword and romanticizing his fate. And he didn't get any anonymous notes. Goddesses, those notes. He wished they would just stop. Hopefully there wouldn't be any waiting for him when he returned.

Link accompanied Princess Zelda to the lab once they were back in the castle. He listened to her explaining her work on Vah Ruta to the young Sheikah researchers with less attention than usual (he didn't understand much of their discussion anyway, it was too complicated for him) and glanced around the room. His eyes landed on a large, metallic creation with protruding… tentacles, he assumed, as they usually did whenever he was in the lab with the Princess. He knew that they were called guardians and he remembered him and Princess Zelda in the castle's cellar looking for more. It was something so unfamiliar with the guardian, something so different from anything he had seen before that he couldn't help but to stare at it. It was hard to believe that something so massive and technologically challenging as this guardian and the four Divine Beasts were built in a time that no one remembered anymore. He heard the researchers mentioning something about the guardian finally lighting up and he saw a huge grin on his Princess' face. He was glad for her sake that things seemed to go as she hoped for.

Princess Zelda told him that she would stay in her study, she was too eager to get back to work again, so Link was left off duty. The first thing he did was to take a bath. He noticed a bruise already forming on his arm but paid it no more attention once his shirt was back on. Feeling somewhat tired after the travelling and the hot bath, he went to his bunk bed in the guards' shared chambers and flopped onto the mattress. Pretty soon he noticed two notes on it, one of them was half squished underneath him, but he didn't bother picking them up to read. He could already guess what they said anyway. He stared at the bottom of the bed above his for a while, his mind going through older notes he had gotten until he remembered one that was different from the others. Searching in his pockets, he found the note from Princess Zelda, the one she had written to tell him that they would go to Gerudo Desert. He read it again. And again. But the third time, he just admired her elegant handwriting. The message itself was not much of interest but it felt better than the other ones for the moment. He thought back to the desert. It had been hot, he had worried that he had lost her and he had saved her from the Yiga clan in the last minute. There weren't that many pleasant memories from there on his behalf but something in the desert had made Princess Zelda speak again and seem a bit more like herself, so that was good.

And Link suddenly remembered the clothes he had to buy to sneak into Gerudo Town. Not much time had passed since he had the awkward conversation with the saleswoman but he could already see the humor in it. Link, destined hero of Hyrule, walking around in women's clothes and fearing of getting found out. He folded the note, put it back in his pocket and turned to his side with a smirk.

Yeah, the desert adventures might have been troublesome but it was better than any day in the castle.

"Oi, Link! D'you got a love letter there or somethin'?" a royal guard called out with a grin on his face when he saw Link's smirk. Link immediately wiped it off and turned to lie on his other side so he wouldn't have to face any guards. He couldn't believe that he forgot that he wasn't alone.

"No need to get mad, I was just askin'."

Link tried his best to ignore him. But then he heard more guards entering the room and he figured that their shift must have ended and they all came here to rest. Suddenly it was much harder to ignore them when they noticed him being back in the castle and it didn't take long until their thoughts about him, about his sword, about his fate were spoken aloud.

Link mourned for a moment that his travels through Hyrule with the Princess might be over.

"Link! A note for you, from the Princess."

Link stopped whatever it was he was doing and walked up to his old commander who had called for him across the room. Two weeks had passed since their return from Zora's Domain and Link had only occasionally followed Princess Zelda around in the castle. He had slowly noticed how quiet things were around him whenever he wasn't with her – she was more or less the only one who tried talking with him and although he wouldn't add anything to their conversations in the castle apart from nods or shakes of his head, he felt oddly enough lonely without hearing her voice. He hadn't noticed how quiet it was without her words filling the silence around him. It was as if she was the only one who wanted to know who he is instead of the hero he was supposed to become.

He took the note and opened it. It was indeed from Princess Zelda.

Pack your things! We have found out that there is more to be done on the Divine Beasts, so we better leave as soon as possible. I suggest that we visit Rito Village first and then continue to Goron City, Gerudo Town and lastly Zora's Domain, just like last time. – Princess Zelda

Link folded the note and put it in the pocket together with the previous one. He was grinning inside and wondered if the Princess had felt the same when she had written the note. She must surely want to leave this place too.

Not too proud of this chapter, but the next one will most likely be more exciting. Thank you for reading!