"Are you sure about this? Your chart says you've already got a horse roaming around," the stable master informed him. This one didn't know general signs in order to explain the situation in its fullest, so Link settled on a firm nod and tapping the desk to say, now.

"No need to get snippy," the stable master said. "I have to check in case you lost 'em or they died. For record keeping."

Link waited at the desk as one of the stable hands brought out one of his other horses. He slipped the stable hand a blue rupee and gave Tipsy an apple. Already saddled up, he pulled himself up and guided her towards the Great Hyrule Forest.

"I hope you don't mind, but you'll have a different rider for the rest of this trip," he said softly, leaning for her to hear. His voice was thin from a lack of use. Thankfully, horses didn't really care what you sounded like, so long as you said it with the right tone. "I think you'll like her. She's… talkative, but she's nice."

He gave Tipsy a soft pat and spurred her on to go a little faster. Zelda was waiting for him with Meadow outside the entrance to the Great Hyrule Forest. He was close enough to see her mouth moving as she fed Meadow a carrot, but certainly not close enough to hear or take a guess at what it might be. As he pulled up next to her, he dismounted and tied the reigns on the same branch as Meadow's.

"Oh, she's beautiful," Zelda said, instantly taken with Tipsy. She brushed Tipsy's dusty brown coat with her head, soft and slowly, stirring a content sound from the horse. "What's her name?"

He signed, "Tipsy."

"It's… very cute, but why in Hyrule did you choose that?" she asked. He couldn't help but notice the small furrow in her brow.

"When I first saw her, she was swaying about the field like a drunk," he answered.

"And this horse?" Zelda asked, her brow now raised at Meadow. Oh dear.

He signed her name and watched as the Princess's lips twitched at the corners, obviously resisting a smirk.

Defeatedly, he signed, "I found her in a meadow."

And whatever restraint she did have broke. She held her stomach as she bent over slightly, her hand still on Tipsy but now as a way to keep her upright rather than to soothe the horse.

Link mounted up on Meadow and instantly spurred her into a trot. From behind him, he heard Zelda yell through her laugh, "Wait!" He didn't, but she managed to catch up with him in a minute. Once she did, he felt a pang of guilt in knowing he should've waited. He knew he used to be her personal guard in the time before, and though she could view his actions in jest, he still couldn't help but feel that he had left her on her own, even temporarily as he knew the area was still monster infested. She didn't scold him, merely giving him a smile as she pulled up her horse next to his.

Passing by Hyrule Castle on their way to what could essentially be summarized as a beach vacation felt odd, though not "wrong." At the moment, there was nothing to do there. It was less a center of government than it was more of a glorified building considering there was no government to rule within it. The only person with a claim to any governing title was beside him, but she had yet to make any mention of her role as Princess or the future of Hyrule.

Seeing as she helped save all of Hyrule, Link had few objections to letting her avoid it by going to Lurelin village.

Once they hit the main roads, Link removed his Hylian hood and passed it to her. With her attention on him, he tapped his collarbone and nodded to her, trying to signal to her that she may want to hide her more identifiable features. Even though she had wondered to him about being identifiable, he had no idea if she actually wanted the people to know she had returned, much less returned to rule. Regardless, she took the hood and his suggestion, tucking away the necklace under her shirt.

The trip involved a few stops for the horses as well as giving Link time to scout ahead and clear the way. Except when Link gave her a warning to be quiet on the dangerous stretches of the trip, the Princess was content to talk without his participation. The experience, it felt like one of the memories he had recovered, and he almost enjoyed the feeling of connection to his memories.

Her one-sided conversations – clearly directed at him as opposed to talking to herself – included topics such as pointing out where small towns and villages used to be and how the landscape itself had changed in the past century. Sometimes she'd delve into topics beyond him, but when she started to talk of the Guardians and her past work with Impa and Purah, she stopped. He gave her a questioning look which she shook off.

The next day's sun was just setting by the time they reached Lurelin village, but approaching it was unlike anything Link had come to expect in his journeys there before. There was music and cheers and laughter. By the time they actually could see the village, they saw the works of a celebration.

"It's Link!" someone yelled. In response, others whooped and hollered, waving some kind of noise maker. Several of the villagers surrounded Zelda and himself as they tried to make their way to the inn, but none of them explained what the celebration was for until they checked in and Clarissa explained.

"You really haven't heard? One of our traders came by with great news! Calamity Ganon has been sealed away!" she exclaimed as she handled the payment for the rooms. "Of course, he was nowhere close enough to see the battle in full detail. He said, by the time he even made it to Castle Town, no one was there!"

Link swallowed a lump in his throat. He had made it a point not to run around telling people he was the Hero that wielded the sword that seals the darkness, so of course they didn't know that before them stood the very people they were celebrating because of. But part of it felt just as wrong as the desire to still keep it under wraps.

He understood then why Zelda wasn't so keen to return to civilization immediately.

Link gave Zelda a dismissive wave, trying to let her know she could go and partake in the celebration if she wished. She bit her lip and seemed to consider her options before taking a seat on the second bed in the room they rented.

"It feels weird," she explained. He nodded in agreement and then set down his pack. "Should I… should we tell them?"

He didn't answer, mainly because he had no answer. He could prove his claim to the title of Hero, and she could probably do the same for her role as Princess. Telling the village would feel exposing while keeping it secret would be denying them the truth. Truth be told, even telling them now might be too late considering how he never told them before. He had come to know these people. He ran errands for them, delivered letters to far off loved ones, and ate meals with them.

"If I may, I suggest we tell them," Zelda began, "but not tonight. The woman told us that they're celebrating the end of Calamity Ganon. That doesn't need to include us."

Again, he gave her no answer. He got ready for bed, pulling out his ponytail and running his hands through his hair before he shrugged off the armor layer of the Hylian tunic and knocked off his boots. When he sat down on the adjacent bed, he saw that Zelda no longer sat on hers.

"I want to meet the people. I'll be back soon," she said with a smile left the room.

He watched her back as she left. A moment later, he heard holler similar to the one the villagers yelled when they arrived. The general merrymaking continued at a relatively normal pace, to which Link took as Zelda keeping her word as well as her appearance not giving away who she really was.

Trying to tune out the happy celebration outside, Link laid down in the rented bed and slept.

It's so dark that he can barely see five feet ahead of him. He yells out another call for help, cold and wet and so, so tired. His limbs feel somehow both sore and numb. He's thankful for his shoes, even as wet and uncomfortable as they are, as he walks through an unfamiliar forest of tall trees.

He yells another plea for help, his throat scratchy and hoarse and threatening to fail him. He yelled as much as he could as the river swept him downstream when he wasn't trying not to swallow another mouthful of river water in his attempt to stay afloat.

He wished he paid more attention to his mom's maps. He wished he was older than seven with longer legs and knowing how to swim and everything older kids had. He wished he was stronger to help his friend on the bridge, to not get pushed off-

Snap!

He freezes and holds his breath. A moment passes and he hears another snap.

He isn't alone. And it might not be good.

Despite the fear settling over him, he forces himself to take another step and push his back up against a tree. He closes his eyes, his sight doing nothing for him in this darkness.

Another step. His heart rate doesn't calm. The rustle of something heavy being dragged. Not a cart. Carts squeak.

The steps stop. When they resume, he hears them growing louder. He flexes his fingers, cold and slow and non-compliant. He opens his eyes and sees the gleam of a sword a few trees away.

Something – he's not sure what – pushes him to action. His legs push him in the opposite direction, partially slipping over wet leaves in his haste. He catches himself, his hand grabbing onto something on the ground – a stick? He takes it, deciding something is better than nothing.

He hears whatever it is follow him, making noises he knew weren't Hylian. It gained on him.

A cold sweat chills him even further. Running water ahead. He digs in his heels to stop and turns. It's a bokoblin. He has no chance. He raises his tree branch with both hands, the bark scratching at his skin.

He watches it stalk towards him slowly. He waits. He digs in his heels.

It launches towards him-

A hand on his shoulder. He jerked awake and tried to move back only to hit the wall. "Link?" someone asked. It was familiar, but he struggled to remember to whom the voice belonged. His heart still raced, pounding painfully in his chest. A couple blinks later and he saw Flavi, the Geurdo treasure hunting woman, stood before him with concern painted all over her features.

"I hope you forgive my trespassing, but I could hear your struggles from my room. Are you alright, voe?" she asked.

Link sat up and patted himself down, trying to anchor himself. He was here. In Lurelin village. Zelda was out enjoying the festivities. He was on a bed at the inn in one of the private rooms. Whatever the hell he dreamt, it wasn't real.

"Nightmare?" Flavi asked, taking a seat on his floor. It was clear she didn't mean to leave until she thought he was well.

He shrugged, not sure what it was.

"You've slept many times in the common room, but I've never been woken by you before. Did something happen since your last visit?"

Technically, many things had happened since then, but none of them were included in the weird dream he had. He had never felt scared of bokoblins aside from his first fight with one when he first left the Shrine of Resurrection, but that was neither at night nor under the circumstances in which the dream happened.

It… it could've been a memory, but that seemed just as unlikely. His only memories of the past happened when he stumbled across places that the Princess had taken photos of, that triggered specific memories of those locations. He had been to Lurelin village many times. If it was a memory, why? Why now? The Deku Tree had warned him that escorting the Princess might trigger other memories, but there had been no mention of her in the dream.

He gave Flavi a tired smile to let her know he was alright now and, despite, not having really answered her questions, she didn't ask for anything and left. He laid back down and tried to sleep, but found himself waking often through the night on his own. Once, he turned to see that Zelda had not only come back but had also fallen asleep in her bed.

After a few hours of tossing and turning with no relief, he decided to forego the effort despite his fatigue. As quietly as he could as not to disturb the sleeping princess, he pulled on his shoes and grabbed his pack. He changed his clothes in the common room as he had done so many other times before, feeling uncomfortable about changing in the same room as Zelda, even while she slept.

Flavi was still asleep, as was a merchant that must have arrived sometime in the later night. He had changed in common rooms so many times that it felt normal, so he pulled off his dirty layers and put on his sand boots and a loose fitting shirt, preparing for a day in the sand and sun.

The sun was just starting to rise, the sky a soft yellow. A few of the fishermen were already awake and beginning with their work. He spotted Sebasto tying together a net and took a seat next to him on the sand, holding out his hand to offer to help. Sebasto didn't seem surprised at the sight of Link this early in the morning and handed him the half-finished fishing net.

Link had helped before and knew how to work the ropes, and he found the repetition of it calming. His fingers twisted, looped, and pulled at the ropes, his hands too calloused from fighting and climbing and whatnot for it to hurt too much by the time he finished but his fingers did feel sore from the effort.

"So the girl you brought here," Sebasto started at long last. The sun was already hovering right above the horizon. "She your friend?"

Link hated that he had to think on the question. He knew they were friends. She probably still saw him as her friend. He nodded to answer Sebasto, who hummed.

"I know better than to ask you for specifics," Sebasto said with a laugh at the end, "so I'll just say it: she's special, right?"

Link looked at Sebasto, his eyes widening slightly being the only thing betraying his calm disposition.

"Thought so," Sebasto continued. He grabbed a few items to craft together lures. "She talks much, much differently than the people who usually pass through here, and she holds herself differently too. I doubt I'm the only one who noticed. If she's who I think she is, especially considering recent events, people might ask her questions she doesn't have the answers to. I just wanted to let you know. Thanks for the help, boy."

Sebasto momentarily stopped in his crafting. "This is unlikely here in Lurelin village, but it is also likely that people might not be eager for change, whether or not it's within their control."

Link nodded, absently handing him the completed fishing net as his mind busied itself with the new information. He left the beach and returned to the rented room, finding Zelda still soundly asleep. He almost considered waking her up but decided against it. What he wanted to ask her, he wanted her full attention.

So he sat on his bed and waited. And waited. He closed his eyes for a moment, figuring that staring wouldn't make time go faster.

"Link?" he heard her ask and he jerked his head up. She stood before him, dressed with her hair combed and… holding a plate of food. Oh Goddess, he must have dozed off. "Oh good, you're awake. Here."

She handed him a plate of seafood paella, likely of Kiana's generosity, but he quickly set it aside to keep his hands free. He began to sign quickly, asking her about her intentions as a Princess, about the future of Hyrule, of her expectations once she told the village of Lurelin who she was.

But she said, "Wait- wait, Link, please slow down. I can't understand what you're saying."

He stopped and took in a deep breath, trying to approach this from a less panicked state.

"If you want to tell people who you are," Link signed, wishing he had figured out how to approach this subject earlier, "they might ask you if you're planning on re-establishing the previous government."

She looked pensive but said with an air of absoluteness behind it, "Of course."

"What are you going to do if people don't want that?"

Her brows drew down and she looked at the floor. She obviously hadn't considered that. To be fair, he hadn't either. He had been more concerned over if she was ready to go back into the public eye or how she'd fare adjusting to a Hyrule she didn't grow up in, not how the people might not welcome back their Princess with open arms.

He caught as her shoulder sagged and a sigh escaped her lips. She sat down next to him on his bed and leaned forward, holding up her head with her hands on her cheeks and her elbows on her knees.

"Link, of course I plan to reestablish my family's legacy. My… line needs to continue to combat Ganon the next time he comes back, but I spent so much time in my prayers and my studies. I was taught how to rule with council in an existing system. I have no idea how to create a government out of nothing," she confessed. Her hands moved up so the covered her face. "And- Goddess, this sounds so selfish, but I wanted to help you and- and get to know you. That's why I wanted to come here. I wanted to see the people you helped, had relationships with. The people here, oh Link, they're so wonderful. They only had nice things to say about you last night.

"These people, they've survived for so long without Princess Zelda. And- and- and Link, this isn't – Goddess forgive me – this isn't the Hyrule I know. I know the Hyrule that had a bustling Castle Town, that had functioning villages all the way from the castle to here and yet aside from the few stable-inns we passed, there was nothing. There were only ruins. How am I supposed to return one-hundred years later like-"

Zelda stopped when he reached his arm behind her, resting a hand the back of her shoulder and giving it a soft squeeze, trying to comfort her. She turned her head to look up at him, he could see the tears in her eyes and on her cheeks, and he used his other hand to wipe a few of them away.

He had no answers for her. Nothing she had said was incorrect. The people she was supposed to rule were long gone. The castle she was supposed to rule in was destroyed. Before her was a monumental task that he had no idea how to help her in.

But he knew he wanted to help her. It wasn't the same feeling that tugged at him every time she looked at him, not the guilt in wanting to make it up to her that he wasn't who she needed him to be. He felt a personal stake in not just helping her but helping the only Hyrule he currently remembered. And despite only having a few fleeting memories of her, he knew it to be truth that there was no better person to lead Hyrule.

They continued to sit like that for a minute or two until Zelda sniffled and gave him a soft smile, her own hands replacing his in wiping away her tears. Link pulled his hands back into his lap – until he remembered the food sitting on his other side and his stomach growled loudly. He heard Zelda laugh lightly at the sound but otherwise made no comment as he picked up the dish and ate his breakfast.

When he finished, she asked, the smile no longer gracing her lips, "How am I even supposed to reestablish a government after a century long disaster?"

He thought on it despite his complete lack of experience in governing matters. That being said, he did know most of the people as a result of his travels. He signed, "Start small. Talk with local leaders."

Her eyes lingered on his hands for a moment until she nodded. From the look on her face, he knew the cogs of her mind were turning, formulating some kind of plan. And he knew what it was.

She stood up and took his dish, giving him a nod for her to follow him. He followed the unspoken order, following her back to Kiana who was just finishing up breakfast with her sons.

"Link! We missed you last night!" Zuta exclaimed, looking slighted.

Kiana shushed him. "You looked absolutely drained when you came in last night. I made sure the boys didn't wake you."

Link smiled at the kids and signed a thank you. Not that he would've minded the boys and their avid curiosity of his travels and their desire to run around and play, but she was right, the day of travel and fighting had left him tired. If he had traveled via Sheikah Slate, he would've joined in the celebration, but he rarely mentioned his… alternative form of transportation. Too much to explain.

After a small conversation in which they narrowly avoided the question of Zelda's name, Link led Zelda to Rozel, the village elder. But Link didn't enter Rozel's hut, opting to stand just outside to give them an opportunity to speak one-to-one. Zelda didn't look too pleased about it but didn't insist he do otherwise.

From where he stood, he could still clearly hear the conversation they had. Rozel seemed surprised by Zelda's confession of identity but not terribly so, and then Zelda began talks of how Lurelin village fared the last century. It moved from then to ways to improve the area around Lurelin now that monsters weren't endlessly spawning: how the village could grow, how trade could be improved, and how to better establish communication with the other villages.

It took longer than Link thought it originally would, and he began to tune out the talks, unable to keep up with the intricacies of the talks, only coming to when he heard a definitive end of Rozel saying, "I'll hold a town hall with the others to extend your offer, Princess. I'm honored you came to us first. Goddess bless you."

Zelda joined Link outside the hut, positively glowing. He followed her by her side for a few steps until they stood at the waterfront. She gave him a smile and turned to face the sea, the mid-morning sun dazzling the waters.

In hushed tones, words meant only for him, Zelda said, "I fear that my insecurities kept me from resuming my responsibilities immediately. I worry I may not be the leader that Hyrule wants or needs. I…" She paused, looking down at the back of her right hand. It was vivid, the flash of the memory where the Triforce glowed on her hand when she had- when he was-

The pain in his chest again. It was sharper this time. Deeper. He couldn't hide his reaction this time, his body jerking forward slightly.

"Link?" His name from her mouth dripped with worry.

And as quick as the pain came, it was gone. He felt her hand on his shoulder and saw her leaning forward, trying to face him as he leaned over.

"Link, are you alright?" she asked, the concern that coated her words reaching a level he wasn't comfortable being the receiver of.

He righted himself and gave her a nod and a smile. It didn't ease the worry she clearly wore on her face, but he didn't know how else to respond.

"I'm fine," he signed. When she still didn't look convinced, he stood up straight and even puffed out his chest a bit. "See, I'm fine."

She looked only slightly convinced at his insistence.

"Well, what are we to do with ourselves as we wait?" she asked, her finger tapping at her chin.

He thought about it and, as his eyes drifted up, saw the one thing the Princess would love to do most. He unclipped the Sheikah Slate from his belt and handed it to her, giving a nod towards the blue-glowing Shrine across the village.