Warnings: Innuendos

Galen's laughter echoed throughout the gardens, his ten-year-old form zigzagging in between the bushes and shrubs. "You're going to have to be faster than that if you ever want to be a true hero!" he called over his shoulder, his blonde hair swept back in the wind and his blue eyes reflecting the sunlight.

"Slow down!" Matteo panted, his own little blonde curls bouncing as he chased his older brother, swatting his wooden sword bravely, displaying his missing tooth proudly with each smile, "Bad guys aren't that quick!"

The king, Link, chuckled, his own arm linked with his queen, Zelda's, as they walked through the garden paths, observing and carefully avoiding the antics of their children.

Galen accidentally bumped into Zelda V as he tried to escape his six-year-old brother. The young girl huffed with anger, rearranging her long, golden tresses with the ornate combs she had chosen herself. "Mother, tell them to be more careful!" the eight-year-old pouted, puckering the lips she had inherited from the queen with annoyance.

Zelda smiled softly, exchanging the gesture with Link. "Boys, try not to trample your sister," she chided gently.

After redecorating her hair, Zelda V stooped over, resuming picking some of the wildflowers that were poking out of the beds that lay in front of Patia's small shrine of honor. Nearby, Remus toddled behind Impa, suckling his thumb and clutching his nursemaid's skirts as his wide eyes took in his surroundings. The three-year-old's eyes lit up as he spied the royal couple, eagerly waddling his way to Zelda with outstretched arms. "Mama, mama!" he pleaded, reaching his arms higher, "Lift, pwease!"

Zelda reluctantly slipped her arm free of her husband's, bending over and scooping her toddler into her arms. "My, you're getting a big," she panted, balancing the boy on her hips, "Mama won't be able to lift you much longer."

"Let Papa take him," Link offered, "We wouldn't want to tire out Mama."

Remus happily consented, snuggling into Link's strong arms. Link grinned at his wife over the top of Remus' light curls, and Zelda smiled back warmly, her love and admiration showing through her eyes.

A shrill cry erupted from Impa's arms as the chubby figure inside them squirmed and kicked. "Hush," Impa soothed quietly, "What's the matter now? Your mother's already fed you!"

Remus' curiosity was captured, his eyes drawn back to Impa. He wiggled in Link's arms stubbornly, prompting his father to chuckle and return him to the ground, "Alright, alright, little one! Go see your sister!"

The baby princess Alessia, only a year old, was still crying as Remus returned to Impa, standing on his tiptoes and trying to view the newest addition to their family. "Should I take her?" Zelda asked, her voice tinged with slight worry.

"I'm sure Impa will know what to do; this is our time together, you know," Link grinned at her, pulling her close and pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"I know," Zelda replied, resting her head on Link's broad shoulder and leaning comfortably into his embrace, "I just can't help it. A mother's instinct, I suppose."

"And you're a wonderful mother," Link reminded her, running his fingers through her hair, "And you have a beautiful family."

"We do," Zelda agreed, looking over her shoulder, smiling brightly as she watched her offspring with Link frolic and play, "They're all such darlings; I love them so much."

"They are," Link concurred, nudging his nose against Zelda's forehead playfully, "And you know that we could always make more of them. If you were up for it."

Zelda laughed, "I think five heirs is a satisfactory amount for continuing the royal lineage."

"Well, there's no harm in being extra cautious," Link grinned, "Just in case."

"Could we handle another?" Zelda took in the sight of her family once more, "Alessia's only just a year old now."

"I think we can handle anything," Link murmured, kissing Zelda's nose, "As long as I have you by my side."

The king's smile was contagious, Zelda unable to resist returning it, her face practically glowing as she tipped up and pulled her husband into a kiss. "Eww!" Matteo shrieked, "Mother and Father are kissing again!"

Galen's face twisted with disgust as he hurriedly looked away, while Zelda V sighed dreamily, clasping her hands together and resting her cheek upon them comfortably. Zelda grinned sheepishly, drawing back much to Link's disappointment. "Oh, stop it, Matteo!" Zelda V said, "Mother and Father only kiss because they're in love!"

"Well, couldn't they be in love somewhere else?" Galen's nose scrunched at the mental image still fresh in his mind.

"Alright, Galen, Mother and Father will be in love somewhere else," Link grinned impishly, taking Zelda's hand in his own and beginning to tug her away, "Come, dearest. Let's be in love in the privacy of the royal bed chambers."

Zelda's cheeks flushed with color, rendered speechless as Link pulled her back inside the castle. "Link!" she exclaimed, swatting at his chest playfully, "I can't believe you said such a thing—in front of the children!"

"They won't think anything of it," Link grinned mischievously, "They don't understand."

"But still-Impa was there! And that was no way for a king to talk…under any circumstances!" Zelda arched one eyebrow.

Link brushed his lips against hers gently, "I'm sorry, dearest. I meant nothing by it. But you're right of course; I'll try to behave more properly from henceforth."

Link's blue eyes met her own seriously, the very blue each of their children had inherited. Zelda found herself bashfully smiling up at him without even realizing it, "Oh, how can I ever stay mad at you?"

Link shrugged playfully, cupping her cheeks and kissing her once more, "I'm not sure, really."

Zelda shook her head, but kissed him anyways, "You're fortunate that I happen to be madly in love with you."

"Why don't you show me how madly in love with me you are?" Link suggested, his hands resting comfortably on Zelda's hips, "And in turn, I'll remind you of how deeply and passionately I am in love with you, my beautiful, wise, and treasured wife."

"Very well," Zelda consented with a playful grin of her own, allowing herself to be led away by her husband of ten years, the king of all Hyrule, and the man to whom her heart belonged.

THE END

Well, I certainly hoped that you all have enjoyed the story! It was a pleasure to write and to know that others liked it as much as I did is a great joy to me. Just to clarify, Patia has a small shrine in the royal gardens to demonstrate the resolution of that conflict between Link and Zelda. In the end, Zelda wanted to show her understanding of Link's friendship with her and help him overcome how badly he missed her as a friend. So she arranged for Patia to be honored by erecting a memorial in the gardens. And dare I say Link very nearly shed tears of happiness and gratitude when Zelda revealed it to him too!

Also, two age modifications I'd like to acknowledge: I have not yet gone back and edited the other chapters as I had hoped to, but when I do, I'd like to change Zelda's age to eighteen and Link's age to nineteen. That makes her marriage to Link and Link's marriage to Patia happen even earlier, but I initially wanted Zelda to be nineteen when she had Galen. She is currently nineteen when the story begins, making her twenty when Galen is born because she has had a birthday. And there are certain situations where I prefer Link to be younger than Zelda, but in this story, I'd like him to be just a bit older than her. The other age modification is in reference to the author's note in the last chapter. Koume and Kotake are actually 380 to 400 years old when they die, not 600 as I had said! So this story takes place approximately 400 years before Ocarina of Time. Or at least in my head it does, heehee.

To clear up the final timeline in case you were confused…in my head, Link marries Patia when he is seventeen. He has his eighteenth birthday, and much later during that same year, Patia is murdered. After a few months of mourning and just after his nineteenth birthday, Zelda proposes her marriage idea to him when she is eighteen years old. They marry a several weeks later, as Zelda is still eighteen and Link is still a relatively new nineteen-year-old. Nine months of pregnancy pass as does Zelda's birthday, leaving the last chapter of the story ending with Zelda nineteen years old and Link's twentieth birthday quickly approaching. Now, as Galen is ten-years-old, Zelda is twenty-nine and Link is thirty.

And hopefully nobody minds that they have LOTs of children. I could just picture this version of Link and Zelda having several; it was what worked the best in my mind. And in case you were confused about age and order:

Their first born, Galen, is now a ten-year-old boy. They then had a daughter who they named Zelda V, who is now eight. Matteo was their third child and second son, and he is now six. Remus is their fourth child and third son who is three. And Alessia is their second daughter and fifth child who is only one-year-old.

What an obnoxiously long author's note! To conclude, I only wish I had a way of better expressing how grateful I am to each and every one of you for supporting this story through reviews, favorites, alerts, or simply by reading! And a VERY special thanks to Macartyjr2 for reviewing every single chapter! Hearing everyone's thoughts and input has been such a joy; I honestly can't thank you all enough!

If you have the time, stop by my profile and vote on my poll on which story idea I should write next!

Other than that, I can only say thank you so, so much for taking the time to read the story! You're all fantastic!