Okay, guys! Happy New Year!

So… one of the most convenient things about writing Breath of the Wild fanfiction is that the world is so detailed. In this story in particular, I actually used the world to plan out where everything would take place. So if you follow the directions Link took in the first part, you'll actually get to a lizalfos den and a little path that leads back around to Hebra Falls and a very fast-flowing river.

Here's the route for this chapter: start at Selmie's place and notice the window right above the bed. Then go outside to that same window and head west (the same direction the front door is facing) and you'll find a little path. Go quite a ways down the path until you can see an aspen tree and a column of wind in the distance, and that's about as far as a certain character goes in this story. Amazing game!

I also have a confession to make. I thought, originally, that this would have three parts only. Then I thought four, and now… well, I'm almost done writing it, and it looks like it'll be six. So sorry! Hope that's alright! Thank you all so much for the follows, favorites, and reviews - it makes me so happy that I can share my work with others! Don't worry - the final part of this story will make it all better, I promise!

ICE

"So how did it go?"

Zelda didn't look up at Purah's voice, instead making her way to a stump and gazing out southward into the pristine winter world. Goddesses above… she had never seen Link so downcast. Even this past week there had still been a glimmer of light in his stunning blue eyes. But just now, as she spoke to him… he'd seemed almost dead. His soul had seemed as cold and barren as the icy wilderness they'd rescued him from.

Memories stole through her mind… She could hear Link's shallow pained gasps as he knelt in a rain-drenched field, pale from blood loss, the blue of his Champion's tunic stained a deep crimson from the many burns and - and holes littering his body.

She could remember the horror of those past few days, seeing her hero beaten and broken and all but destroyed in his efforts to save her and anyone else they came across in their flight. She could still hear the echo of his agonized screams in her ears.

At that moment she'd lost the will to bear any more of it. "Link, save yourself!" she had urged him, gently pulling at his shoulder, trying to get him to stand. "Go! I'll be fine - don't worry about me! Run!"

And he looked up at her with a gentle smile, a sad smile, his blue eyes glistening with tears. "Can't do that," he croaked, stumbling to his feet. A guardian quickly found them, crawling over the remains of its kindred, setting its sights upon Link's chest. He looked back at her, wavering with fatigue, and smiled again. "Goodbye…"

"No!" Zelda whimpered, darting forwards in front of him, raising her hand.

And then it happened - her power unleashed itself upon the entire guardian-ridden field, destroying each and every one of them. Zelda was overcome with a sudden feeling of invincibility, hope, and… and love.

Goddesses above… she was in love with Link.

"Was that… the power…?" she murmured softly.

A feeble grunt and a thud from behind her. She turned around and gasped as she saw Link curled on the ground, the Master Sword still desperately clutched in his weakening gasp. Feeling suddenly cold inside she hurried to join him in the muddy grass, kneeling at his side. "No, no… Link, get up!" Quickly she took him in her arms - any other time she would have blushed at the feel of his sturdy muscles beneath the sodden cloth of his tunic, but now… now she could feel only the warm, sticky blood that was quickly leaking onto her fingers.

He coughed weakly, eyes narrowed against the pain, blood trickling from his lips. Zelda felt tears burning in her eyes. "Y-you're going to be just fine," she told him, gently brushing his damp bangs away from his face. He looked at her through eyes dull with fatigue and pain; then those eyes slid closed and he went completely limp with a nearly inaudible groan. Zelda's eyes widened…

A sudden draft of icy wind jolted her back to the present. All at once she felt eons older… there was certainly a reason she'd tried her hardest to escape that particular memory.

Let him die? Never.

Determination burned in her soul. He might not see himself in a pleasant light, but I certainly do, she thought. It's time - I have to tell him exactly what he means to me. Perhaps… perhaps knowing that will give him purpose…?

She narrowed her eyes, thinking hard. I could also point out to him that if the only thing necessary to defeat Ganon was my sealing power, I could have done it long before he woke up. And that he defeated the Blights that killed our kingdom's finest warriors - they're facts, and logical ones at that…

Zelda blinked rapidly, feeling a wave of fear crash over her. Such a statement would surely make her feel better about herself, as her mind was more geared towards such thinking. But Link… perhaps not. Nayru, guide me, she begged. Tears streamed down her cheeks.

I need to know just how much he remembers, she realized hopelessly. I remember everything; I remember how strong our friendship was, and I remember that he used to speak with me openly…

Now, it was as if he'd gone right back to the beginning, but with the impairments of memory loss and loneliness in addition to his shyness. "Do you really remember me?" she'd asked him. And he'd nodded, and she believed him… but perhaps he only remembered her, and didn't remember how he'd acted around her -

"Hello?" Purah asked, impatiently snapping her fingers in front of Zelda's face. "Anyone in there? Have you even heard a word I've said?"

Zelda blushed. "I was… lost in thought, I suppose…"

Purah's features dimmed, the corners of her lips twisting downwards. "I take it that… that you weren't able to help him feel better, then?"

"I didn't know what to do!" she protested, wringing her hands. "Purah, he told me everything, and he… he needs help. He doesn't remember how brave, how good, he is; he refuses to acknowledge the role he played in vanquishing Ganon. He's miserable, and depressed, and thinks he's a failure, and - and I just don't know what to say, or -"

Purah held up her hands, cutting her off. "Well, what did he do when you felt that way?"

Tears welled once again in her eyes. "I can't remember," she whispered. "Goddesses above, I… I just can't remember. It's been a hundred years; there are many things about him that I can still see in my mind, clear as day. But… not everything. I know he was kind; I know he really did help, more than anyone or anything else, and yet the memory of his words has entirely vanished..."

"Perhaps because it wasn't words that he used?" Purah put a sympathetic hand on her shoulder. "I think… right now… what he needs is a friend. Show him through your actions, not your words, that you believe in his worth." She smiled ruefully. "And… knowing how much he wants to protect you, I think you'd better try not to cry so much in front of him. He'd never want to hurt anyone, but if he sees you in tears after he's told you what's going on, it might make him feel worse."

Zelda nodded slowly, wiping at her eyes with a watery laugh. "You're right; I'll have to do better with that."

Purah gave her a quick smile and a hug. "Great. Now, are you going to help us get some wood? That fire's not going to last forever, you know; have you seen the woodpile recently?"

"I'll help," Zelda smiled, getting to her feet. Link was probably unconscious now, right? Nothing could -

A pained grunt drifted faintly to her ears and she frowned, looking around. "Did you… hear that?"

Purah looked at her sideways, eyes narrowed. "That wasn't Selmie," she muttered.

Zelda's blood went suddenly colder than ice. Link! Without wasting another second she ran as fast as she could towards the cabin, each step sinking knee-deep into the thick, icy snow. Confusion swirled through her mind just as snowflakes swirled all around her, dancing in the wind. Had he gotten up and fallen or something? Is he hurt? With Purah right behind her, she made her way carefully over icy black rocks, around the woodpile beside the house and to the porch. Quickly she heaved the door open and went inside, stamping her boots against a little rug by the door to get the snow off of them. "Link, are you -"

She gasped, eyes wide as she stared at the bed. It was empty. Link was gone.

"The window," Purah pointed out, gesturing towards the snow swirling into the little cabin.

Zelda darted back outside and around the edge of the house, eyes wide with terror. "Link!" she cried out, desperately scanning the mountainside for his slender figure. "Link!"

Footsteps crunched in the snow behind her and Purah waded to her side. "There," she said, pointing to the snow beneath the open window. Zelda winced, seeing the distinct indentations of bare human feet in the snow. Reckless.

Without wasting another second they trudged onwards, following the footprints west down a narrow mountain path, slipping slightly on the steep incline. "Link!" Zelda shouted again, cupping her hands around her mouth and peering desperately into the thickening storm. "Farore, please don't take him…"

She nearly mistook him for a rock, but then… rocks didn't shiver. Link was kneeling in the snow, head down, one hand in front of the other as if he'd been trying to move forward. Zelda forced herself to run faster, to plunge through the snowdrifts as fast as she could, without paying any heed to the danger of slipping. "Link!"

He didn't look up as she neared, but she heard him coughing violently. Zelda slid the last few feet on her knees, hurrying closer and putting a gentle hand on his ice-cold shoulder. "Please - come back with us, alright? Come back to the cabin."

He still didn't seem to hear her. His eyes were glazed over and mostly closed; he was shuddering violently, teeth clacking loudly. He mumbled something she couldn't quite make out and a choked sob escaped his throat, sending him into another coughing fit as tears trickled down his crimson cheeks. "Link," Zelda called softly, desperately trying to hold back her own tears as gently she stroked his hair. "It's cold out here; we need to get you back to Selmie's place, alright?"

He still didn't answer; instead he pulled away from her, crawling another half-pace towards the edge of the path, which dropped away into the storm. Zelda got to her feet and squinted through the snow; she could just make out dark black rocks and thick snow at least a hundred feet below the edge of the path. The realization sent fear jolting through her and she offered another prayer up to the Goddesses, pleading for guidance.

And suddenly she had an idea. "Link, I… I'm so cold… I don't think I'll be able to make it back up there on my own… I need you to help me."

He coughed again, shaking like an autumn leaf. "Y-you have Purah," he croaked, speaking at last. "Sh-she'll help you. Y-you don't… don't need me…"

Zelda looked back at the Sheikah desperately, eyes wide and pleading. Purah winked. "Alright, I'll help you," she said grudgingly, walking towards them. All at once she stumbled backwards, falling onto her rear with a startled cry. "Ouch! I - I think I hurt my ankle! I guess I'll head on back; I couldn't possibly help another person - sorry, Zelda!"

Zelda couldn't help but roll her eyes. Please don't let him see through that… Hopefully the cold had numbed his mind. "Link, I can't feel my hands anymore, and my feet hurt so much… I can't make it up there by myself…"

Finally he looked at her with red-rimmed eyes, tears causing them to glitter like sapphires. With a pained groan that he was clearly trying hard to hold back he pushed himself to his feet, reaching down with a bandaged hand and gently helping her to her feet. "C-can you walk?" he asked softly, his voice warm despite the chill of the air.

She knew he was hurting. Knew that having him support her weight would hurt him more, at least physically, even though she wasn't very heavy.

But if he thought for a second that she really didn't need his help… she feared what he would do.

"A little," she said, guilt and worry gnawing at her insides. She looked away as he draped her arm across his shoulders and held her hand in his while curling his other arm around her waist.

"Sss... not far," he shivered, taking a halting step forward. Zelda felt terrible, acutely aware of his struggles to bear her weight, as weak as he was. His bare feet slid in the snow and every so often he stopped walking to cough, his chest heaving violently. Sweat steamed off of his skin; his breaths came in heaving gasps as each step grew weaker and weaker.

Zelda didn't know what to do. She couldn't think of anything else, right here, right now, that would prevent him from taking his own life. But at the same time, she didn't know how much longer she'd be able to bear his desperate, weakening attempt to 'save' her from the cold. What if… what if he dies doing this? He certainly didn't sound or look far from it now.

But his strength did not give out, his determination did not waver, until they were but a few feet from Selmie's cabin. Then, at last, with a hoarse groan, his eyes rolled back in his head and he crumpled limply to the ground, unconscious. Zelda dashed towards the small grove of trees where they'd been chopping wood and found Purah already urging Selmie back to the cabin; together they quickly carried Link inside and once again began the process of warming him back up again.

"Perhaps you ought to take him somewhere else," Selmie fretted, pacing nervously before the fire. "Somewhere without any snow."

"I don't know where we could go," Zelda murmured, anxiously gripping Link's motionless hand. He'd been out in the cold for less time; as such his breathing and his pulse were not quite so faint, but he was still, yet again, woefully cold. "He doesn't… have a home…"

"What?" Purah blinked. "You don't know? He bought a house in Hateno - it was going to get torn down, but he bought it. I don't really know why, but…" She shrugged. "It's something, isn't it?"

Zelda nodded slowly, and Selmie turned to regard them anxiously. "He might feel more comfortable if you bring him there instead. With that… special technology of yours."

They waited for midnight, to keep the Sheikah Slate's existence a secret at Purah's request. With Selmie sound asleep, they left a note explaining that they had gone; then they warped to the Myham Agana Shrine, carefully carrying Link across the bridge to his home - an old, ivy-ridden little place with darkened windows. Wedging the door open with a rock they pulled him inside and dragged him up the steep staircase to his bed, trying to be gentle as they dumped him onto the mattress and pulled blankets up to his chin.

"Well," Purah cleared her throat awkwardly, "seeing as the lab's just right up the hill… I might as well go interrupt Symin's beauty sleep. Let me… let me know if you need anything, alright?"

Zelda nodded sleepily, not even turning to look as her friend headed back down the stairs and out the front door. She studied Link's still face, so peaceful in slumber, and prayed for his well-being until her eyes slipped closed.