1. A Chilly Morning

Waking up in the Royal Castle was always quite an experience for Link, no matter how many times he did it. It was just something special about the morning sun shining in through the great windows at the end of his big, soft bed, thin, purple curtains hanging down to soften the rays as they played over his waking face. Opening the windows to let the morning breeze in would always be the first thing he would do, before washing up. Link loved the smell from the sea of flowers coming from the gardens below his dormitory, and this particular morning he took an extra deep breath from where he stood in front of the windows, filling his lungs with clean, fresh air. He needed it, washing away the bad dream he had experienced during the night. He wrinkled his eyebrows at the memory of it – Hyrule as it had been when he first walked out of the Temple of Time, after his seven years long sleep. Those were dreams that would never leave him, he thought. And he didn't mind, anyhow, really. After an adventure like that he was happy to even be alive, some bad dreams was hardly a serious problem.

"Good morning, master Link," a dry, squeaky voice greeted him as he left his bedroom and strolled into the living room of his private chambers. The voice belonged to his butler, a spry man in about the same age as Link himself. His name was Malok and although Link thought fondly of him he was just as dry as his voice. Very professional, but not what Link would call great company.

"Morning, Malok," he said, stretching out his arms and back while walking through the room towards the bench where he the night before had laid his clothes. He wanted to get dressed as fast as possible before…

"Master Link, I'm sorry but Her Majesty has ordered me to ask you to bear the Ceremonial Kokiri Outfit this day!"

Damn it! Link ignored the servant and continued his walk towards the bench. He wouldn't put those silly green clothes on today again, he just couldn't stand it. He would wear normal, Hylian clothes, just like everyone else. The only problem was that Malok, knowing his master, had already removed his clothes from the bench. Link sighed and turned to face his butler. Malok had a small smirk on his face.

"There, there, master Link. You must think I'm soft in the head!" he said with a laugh. Link gave up, laughing as well.

"I knew it was a bad idea hiring you, Malok. You never let me do what I want," Link lightheartedly pouted.

Malok's mysterious smirk came back. "Now, Master Link, how would the world look if everybody could do what they wanted to?"

About half an hour later the royal family gathered for breakfast in one of the smaller lounges in the back of the castle. The King was talking about how the Zoras had begun to show more interest in taking a more active role in the newly founded Hylian Council, a committee founded shortly after the victory against Ganondorf with the goal of preventing the races from dividing again. The Princess and he was deeply engaged in the conversation, with the King speaking and his daughter listening, nodding and sometimes making a positive sound like "Yes, father" or "Precisely, father". Link, on the other hand, was sitting a bit away from them, eating his eggs and bread in peace. He was still sulking because of the clothe incident that morning. Although he didn't want to show it in front of Malok, he actually hated that his wife made him wear that stupid, green outfit. It wasn't even the real Kokiri tunic he had worn during his quest, it was just a copy. A copy with "some minor improvements". Zelda's words. The fabric was lighter, finer, almost like silk. The belts were useless and some of them didn't even fill any functions, the just hanged there for the look. On top of that, the outfit was filled with medals and golden details, like flying fairies and the Triforce. Link assumed it was all very nice, but he hated the clothes. They felt phony. And he felt disgusted.

"I hate this outfit," he suddenly exclaimed.

The King stopped in the middle of a sentence and the two royals looked at him with the same deep, blue eyes. Link sunk deeper in his chair. He always felt so simple when they looked at him like that. They were royals, nobles. They knew politics, religion, geography, history. Link was just a Kokiri boy. He didn't fit in here. His heart ached when he remembered that he hadn't fit in back in Kokiri Forest either.

The moment of stillness broke when the King abruptly exploded in a roaring laughter. Zelda looked at her father for a short moment, then looked at Link with a rather confused face. Link knew these moments. This was how the nobles handled their problems. At least that was something he had learned quickly. He started to laugh as well, smashing his hand in the table as he did. Zelda, still confused, started to smile before joining in with a small, careful laughter. Some time they sat there laughing, until the King stopped and dried his eyes.

"Well, young Link, I think that this is one of the few things I can thank Ganondorf for – without him you wouldn't be here, and then we wouldn't have had the benefit of enjoying your good humor!"

They all laughed a bit more, although Link felt the gall climbing up his throat. He quickly finished his meal, thanked the King for his hospitality and excused himself.

"Where are you going, husband?" Zelda asked, her first words aimed directly at him that morning.

"Just checking out the grounds. I'll be back before sunrise, You're Majesty."

He had not missed her putting the emphasis on "husband", and he did not think she had missed the weight he put on her title. She didn't smile when he left.