So sorry for how long I've been away. I really don't have an excuse other than general business and writer's block, but I have been slowly working my way back into fan fiction! (I've started watching supernatural, talk about inspiration!) it may be a little while before I have another chapter up, but it is slowly happening!

I woke up alone again the next morning, but this time, the loud pounding on the door jerked me out of a deep sleep and sent me stumbling down the stairs to answer it, forcing back a yawn as I did so.

"Yes I'm com- Collin?" My eyes widened in surprise at the young boy in front of me, his face red and flushed as if he'd run here all the way from Terminus.

"Zelda! You and Rose need to come quick! My mom is having her baby!"

"Now?!" I exclaimed, and he nodded. "The doctor isn't in town and there's no one else to help her!"

"Don't worry," I soothed, placing one hand on Collin's shoulder. "Your mom will be ok, she's strong lady."

"What's all the pounding about?" Rose came up behind me, still in her nightgown looking exhausted. It was still pretty early, and the sun was just beginning to peek over the horizon.

"My mom is having her baby! Please hurry! My dad sent me to get you!" Rose gasped softly.

"Of course Collin. Zelda, have Link saddle a horse and take you over there. Collin will assist me with the wagon. Now go, hurry!"

Quick as a flash I raced up the steps into the bedroom I shared with my husband, changing into an older skirt, blouse and vest before yanking a brush quickly through my hair and pulling it back into a messy braid. Collin was waiting anxiously in the kitchen for Rose while she changed. I touched his shoulder gently before gathering my skirt in my hands and racing for the barn, almost tripping in my hurry.

"Link!" I called as I got closer. "Link!"

"Zelda?! What is it?! He appeared from the barn just as I reached the door, a dirty rag in his hand and grease covering both hands and smudged all along his forehead.

"We have to hurry. Uli is having her baby and Rusl sent Collin to fetch us. He's going to stay and help Rose with the wagon but we need to go now!" Link nodded and disappeared into the barn, leaving me to follow him anxiously. I waited as he quickly saddled and bridled Roy, and then led him out of the barn. Rose and Collin were just exiting the house as we exited the barn, hurrying towards us.

"Rose, you and Collin take the buggy. It's easy to hitch and you'll only need Thatch. Zelda and I will be taking Roy. We'll meet you there."

Not waiting for a reply. Link easily swung himself up onto the saddle, holding a muscular forearm out for me to hold on to. (Not that I noticed or anything)

He easily swung me up on the saddle behind him when I put my hand in his, smiling softly at me.

"Hold on tight Zelda." His voice sent a shiver down my spine. I waved at Collin and Rose, who was smirking at me, but we didn't wait for a reply as Link urged Roy forward, and suddenly we were flying away towards the home of Rusl and Uli.

-0-

Rusl was about as anxious as he looked when Link pulled Roy to a halt in front of the charming cottage the couple called home, the relief on his face evident when he saw the two of us.

"Thank Nayrue you're here Zelda. Uli's been in labor a while now and I have no clue what to do. They wouldn't let me in when Collin was born." I smiled as Rusl reached up and helped me down easily from the saddle, linking my arm with his and starting up the steps of the cottage.

"Don't worry Rusl, Rose will be here soon, and I'm sure we've both delivered babies before." I couldn't even keep track of all the babies Impa and I had delivered in my 17 years of life. I winked at Link before entering the cottage, ready for the long hours of work and patience ahead of us.

-0-

5 hours later, Uli was only minutes away from delivering her baby, the labor of her second child being a much longer one than Collin had been, she'd assured me. Rose checked the position of the baby while I slipped out to fetch more cloths, finding myself faced with three men (ok two men and a boy) anxiously dwelling in the front lawn while they (failed) to patiently wait for the new baby. Rusl looked more anxious than I'd ever seen him, Link just as anxious and pacing almost as much as Rusl. Surprisingly, Collin was the calmest of the three, sitting quietly on the steps of the porch looking cool and collected. Upon seeing me, all three rushed forward, expecting news.

"How is she? Everything ok? Is the baby here yet?" I smiled reassuringly.

"Not yet, I just came out for more cloths. It should be any time now." Colling leaped off the porch and made his way towards the clothes line of clean laundry. Link's brow furrowed and he touched my elbow softly, staring at my face.

"Are you ok? You like tired." I laughed quietly. "Uli's been in labor almost 8 hours and you're worried about me being tired?" Collin appeared back on the porch, a bundle of cloth in his hands. I took them from them and nodded at him. "Thank you Collin. And don't worry; I'll be back as soon as I have news." I turned around and left the three anxious men on the porch, somehow looking just as anxious as they had before.

Uli let out a loan moan as soon as I stepped back into the room, and Rose began tossing orders my way as I scrambled around the room, preparing the blanket to hold the baby in and carrying the fresh warm water to Rose, where she waited by Uli's feet to deliver her new baby. But birth was never that easy.

"Zelda quick! Grab that cloth! She's bleeding too much!" I began collecting every piece of cloth I could find, helping Rose to stamp the alarming amount of Uli's blood.

"Get more!" Rose ordered, and I was out of the room in a flash, racing out the door and leaping off the porch towards the clean laundry dry on the line, startling the three males waiting in the front yard. Rusl's face went even paler, if possible, when he saw the blood on my hands. Link's face was frozen in horror, taking in my hurried movement and obvious panic.

"Zelda? What-" I didn't wait to hear the rest of his question, just darted back into the cottage where Uli's life depended on Rose and I remaining focused.

Thankfully, the bleeding began to slow just after I arrived back into the room, Rose letting out a shaky sigh of relief as the bleeding began to stem off, and Uli began to groan again as contractions shook her.

"I can see the head, it's almost here Uli!" Rose encouraged, moving in to the deliver the baby. Moments later, the slippery body of Uli's baby slipped into Rose's hands, and the baby began to cry loudly, filling the room with shill cries.

"It's a girl!" Rose announced with a smile, moving to cut the cord. She did so, and handed the tiny girl to me, waiting with a soft blanket to swaddle her in.

"Shhh little one, don't cry." I soothed as I gently cleaned the baby off and wrapped her up in the blanket. Rose was still occupied with Uli, so I quietly left the room to introduce the little girl to her family.

As I stepped through the door carrying his daughter, Rusl's face was frozen in awe, his eyes never leaving the bundle in my arms.

"Rusl, would you like to meet your new daughter?"

"I have a sister?" Collin spoke before his father had even moved, rushing forward to see his new sister. I knelt down with her in my arms, letting him peer down at her little face. Her eyes blinked open as she stared at her brother, revealing a brilliant blue. He touched her cheek in wonder, and I held the precious bundle towards him.

"Would you like to hold her?" I offered, and Collin nodded, his eyes wide as I carefully handed his sister over, making sure to adjust his arms to hold her properly. Rusl moved to stand next to him and peer down at his new daughter.

For a moment, not a word was spoken. Then I felt a hand rest on my shoulder, and turned to see Link staring down at me with a mixture of pride and wonder on his face.

"Good job Zelda." He said softly, and I beamed at him in reply, letting my head lean softly against his shoulder as we watch father, daughter and son bond together. After a few minutes, Rose appeared in the doorway looking exhausted, and I could see why Link was worried about me earlier.

"Rusl," she said softly, catching his attention." Uli is asking for you; and Collin as well." She smiled as Rusl carefully took his daughter from Collin, leading the boy back into the room where their wife and mother waited for them.

As the family was uniting over their newest family member, Rose pulled me from Link and into a hug.

"Well done today Zelda, I couldn't have done it without you." I blushed, and Rose let go of me to accept a hug from Link.

"You both did good." Link said, "But I think it's safe to say Uli did most of the work here."

"Very true," chuckled Rose. "Delivering babies is hard work, I'm sure you'll see someday." Rose shot me a wink as she said that, deepening my blush. Link cleared his throat awkwardly, and I kept my eyes down, refusing to meet his blue ones.

"Zelda?" The three of us looked up at the sound of my name, finding Collin standing in the doorway.

"My mom's asking to see you all." We followed him silently into the room, where Uli was still lying in bed with the baby in her arms, Rusl perched next to her and unable to look away from his daughter.

"There you are." Uli said as we entered the room. She had a bright smile on her face despite the exhaustion I knew she must be feeling right now. The baby slept nestled in her mother's arms, also exhausted after her busy day. She had a tuff of golden hair on her head, and when her eyes had been open, they were the same startling green as her mother's.

"Zelda, I know we haven't known each other long, but Rusl, Collin and I have something to ask you." She glanced down at the baby in her arms before meeting my blue eyes.

"If you would be willing, we'd like to name her Lily, and have you be her godmother."

I felt tears gather in my eyes as Uli's words washed over me. They wanted me to be their daughter's godmother, despite only knowing each other for a short time, already the small family in front of me felt as though I had known them for years.

The tears spilled down my cheeks, unable to stop them. Link saw my tears and gently pulled me to his chest, making a gentle hushing noise until I was able to slow the tears and wipe them away.

"Of course I will." I sniffed once I had removed my face from Link's chest, "I would be honored to be her godmother."

Gently, Uli offered my new goddaughter to me and I took her, cradling the sleeping baby in my arms. She was so perfect, so peaceful I was unable to look away from her tiny face, as though the minute I looked away, she would be beautiful and grown right before my very eyes.

-0-

2 weeks later…

"Zelda! Link! Hurry up we're going to be late!"

I laughed loudly as I sprinted through the front door and off the porch, running wildly as my husband laughed behind me and gave chase, catching me around the waist with one arm only three steps from the porch. I squealed loudly as he swung me towards his chest, his other hand finding my rib cage and tickling me venomously.

"Ahhhhh ok! Stop- I give up! Uncle! Uncle!" I screeched as his fingers continued the ruthless attack on my sides.

Grinning like an idiot, the tickling imp ran his fingers over my ribs one more time before relenting and allowing me to slip from his grasp.

"Are you two done fooling around like children? We're going to be late!" Standing to his full height, Link towered over me as I stuck my tongue out and sprinted towards the porch, just barely missing his fingers as he reached out to grab me again. Rose was standing in the doorway, hands on her hips as she tried to scowl at us, but failing miserably to keep the smile off her face.

"I suggest you get the wagon ready Link! We're to be meeting Rusl, Uli and the children at the festival soon!" Link saluted mockingly at her and jogged off towards the barn. I took that opportunity to sneak past Rose and into the house to change before she could scold me next, emerging onto the porch only ten minutes later in my white dress with a small hat covering my head.

Rose fussed over me the instant I stepped out onto the porch, brushing imaginary lint off my dress and straightening the ribbon tied under my chin. We didn't have to wait long for Link, soon he was driving Thatch and Roy from the barn, the two horses hitched to the wagon (the buggy was too small for all three of us). Link was dressed much nicer than normal, wearing a white dress shirt and clean pants, his hair combed back nicely (even though it wouldn't stay that way for long)

Link first helped Rose up into the wagon, and then myself, his eyes meeting mine as he helped me up before settling himself next to me.

Only fifteen minutes later we pulled into the courtyard where the summer festival was being held. The area was bustling with men, women and children laughing and having fun on this bright summer day. I spotted Rusl and Uli with their two children waiting under the statue of the town's founder, and waved happily at them. Link pulled the wagon right up to them, tying Thatch and Roy up before lifting me gently from the wagon while Rusl helped Rose.

I immediately rushed over to Uli's side, cooing at the sleeping baby nestled in her arms. When I emerged from cooing at Lily, Link and Rusl were gone, having left to take care of the horses. Only Collin and Rose remained with us, and soon Rose was distracted by several ladies waving her over.

Uli led us over to the flat, grassy area where several other families had set up blankets and picnic lunches, directing us over to a patterned blanket underneath a large oak tree. The blanket was comfortably in a shady area, a basket of food setting on one corner with our lunch in it.

"Look how blue the sky is!" I remarked, admiring the clear sky with no signs of clouds. Collin pointed towards a large array of fences with various animals in them.

"Look Zelda! They have a petting zoo!"

"Let's go see the animals!" I took Collin by the hand and let the excited young boy lead me to the various animals. He took his time pointing them out to me, leading me from animal to animal before we arrived at the horses.

"Horses are my favorite." I told Collin with a wink as we started at the black colt at the pen in front of us. The animal eyed us wearily, but made no move. Collin's face was filled with an enormous smile.

"That's Mayor Bo's new horse! I remember when they brought him to town! Dad and I saw it, and he was so wild! Bucking and kicking, I thought they would never get him to calm down!"

"I wonder why? This must be a very special horse!"

"Indeed, this horse is very special…" A deep voice said next to me, a man in dark clothing appearing at my left in front of the pen.

Crooked grin in place, Zant continued with his explanation. "This horse was born from the famous race horse owned by the king, Ocarina's Folly; first horse to win the Triple Crown in a century." A shiver ran down my spine as Zant's eyes met mine, the dark look in his eyes instantly making me uneasy.

"Zelda, let's go back now, I'm tired of looking at the horses." Collin's voice was off, far from the excited boy he had been moments ago. Unconsciously stepping away from Zant, I took Collin's hand.

"That's fine Collin; Link is probably looking for me anyways." We turned to leave, but a gloved hand on my arm stopped me suddenly. "What do you see in him anyways?" Zant bit out harshly. "That Link Shade. He's not the goody too-shoe he pretends to be."

"Let's go Zelda, look; my parents and Link are waiting for us." Collin was right, I could see Link and Rusl had returned, and Link did not look happy when he caught sight of us with Zant.

"Coming Collin." I pulled my arm from Zant's grasp, meeting his eyes firmly and boldly before making my way back through the crowd towards the rest of our group. Link met us halfway, one arm instantly on my elbow as he searched the crowd behind me.

"Are you ok?" he asked, his voice full of alarm. I nodded and he let go of my elbow, wrapping one arm around me and letting his hand settle on my lower back.

He said nothing more as we arrived back to the blanket, Collin leaving our side and racing towards his father.

"Dad! Zelda and I saw Mayor Bo's new horse! He was even bigger than the last time we saw him!" Rusl laughed loudly, ruffling his son's blonde hair.

"I bet he was! He was a nice colt, wasn't he?"

"Yeah! Can I have a horse like that someday dad? Please? I promise I'll feed him and take care of him! Please please?!" Uli grimaced at the idea of a horse and all the work involved, but Rusl only laughed again.

"Zelda!" Collin addressed me again suddenly. "Can we go look at more animals? I'm not hungry yet and we didn't get to finish before Zant interrupted us!" Rusl and Uli both frowned at the mention of Zant, while Link stiffened next to me. I smiled at Collin. "Sure we can! You lead the way and we'll go see some more animals!" I let Collin take my hand and lead me off towards the animals.

"Wait up, I'll come with you!" I heard Link's voice behind me. As he moved to walk beside me, I latched my left arm with his right, still holding Collin's hand in my right.

As we passed by the horses again, Collin insisted we stop to take one more look at Mayor Bo's new colt, to which Link and Collin both eagerly admired.

"Nice colt." Link told me, "See how long his legs and neck are? That's exactly what you want in a racehorse."

"That guy Zant said the parent horse was called Ocarina's Folly." I said, trying to ignore how Link tensed slightly at the mention of Zant's name. What exactly had happened between the two of them?

"Parent horse? You mean his Dam?" I made a face and Link laughed at me." In horses, the mother is Dam and father is Sire. I can't remember what this colt is called, but they've been breeding Ocarina's Folly and Phantom's Mystique for a couple years now."

As he said this, an abnormally large man came around the corner of the colt's pen, smiling when he caught sight of us.

"Well if it isn't Link Shade!" He came rushing forward to greet us, grabbing Link's hand and shaking it so hard it made me flinch. But Link didn't bat an eye, just shook his hand with a large grin on his face.

"Good to see you Bo! We were just admiring your new colt." He put his arm around me as he spoke.

"Ah, and who might this lovely young woman be?" The man, who I now understood was the Mayor Bo, turned his attention to me.

"This is my wife, Zelda." Link announced, "And Zelda, this is Mayor Bo. He's an old family friend."

"Pleasure to meet you Mrs. Shade." Bo took my hand and shook it much gentler than he had my husband's. "Your husband was friends with my daughter, Ilia before she left for Castle Town. She's a lady in waiting there for the Queen." He winked at me, "Of course she also represents Ordon. Much better at public speaking than I am."

"Zelda and Rusl's son Collin saw your new colt earlier, nice looking colt Bo." The mayor grinned widely at the change of subject, happy to show off his new toy.

"Named him Hero's Destiny, he's a beauty all right. Might just be the last colt they get from Ocarina's Folly."

"Didn't Farore's Grace win the Duku Sprint this year? She-" I stopped listening as Link and Mayor Bo started talking races, leaving Link's side to join Collin, where he was feeding handfuls of pellets to a pen of sheep only a couple feet away from Hero's Destiny.

"You keep feeding them and they'll never let you leave!" I teased as more and more sheep began to crowd the fence around Collin.

"I don't care!" Collin reached his hand on and placed some of the pellets in my hand. "Try feeding them, it's fun!"

And so we did. We stood there feeding and petting sheep until a gentle hand on my shoulder revealed Collin's father, Rusl standing behind us.

"I see Mayor Bo has stolen Link away." He chuckled at the sight of the two men still talking near the colt's pen. "Sorry Zelda, but I've come to steal Collin for a bit. The two of us are going to check out some of the weapon booths before lunch." At the mention of weapons and time with his father, Collin's whole face brightened, and with a wave, my young date left with his father.

Finding myself on my own, but not wanting to stray too far from Link, I left the animals and made my way to the craft booths. I wondered slowly though them, admiring works of art, jewelry, knitted blankets and pottery, when suddenly a loud shriek startled me out of my browsing.

"Zelda?!" A woman with red hair came racing towards me, throwing her arms around me and squeezing the life out of me.

"It's so good to see you! I haven't seen you for months!" Recognition came over me at once and I hugged her back. "Malon?" She pulled away to look at me, her bright eyes full of laughter as always.

"I missed you Zelda! The last time I was in Kakariko they said you had moved, but I didn't know it was to Ordon! What have you been up to?"

I blushed, "well I got married. I moved here to my husband's home town." As I expected, Malon reacted well.

"You got married?! What's his name? Is he handsome? Oh we have so much catching up to do!" I laughed at her excitement.

"Yes we do! I've only been in Ordon a few months. My husband's name is Link, and our parents arranged our marriage many years ago, but I didn't know about it until a couple months ago."

"An arranged marriage?! How romantic! But you haven't answered my biggest question missy!" She waggled her finger at me, "So spill! Is he handsome or what? I bet he's super dreamy!" When I blushed again, she giggled loudly.

"I knew it! So he is handsome! I can't believe you are married! Remember when we were little, and we used to talk and dream about the man we would marry?"

Malon was not from Ordon or Kakariko, but Lon Lon Ranch just outside of Castle Town. Her ranch delivered milk all over Hyrule. Even though we didn't see each other as often as most friends, Malon had still been my best friend growing up.

"I remember that! You were convinced you would marry a hero who would sweep you off your feet!"

"And you were going to marry a prince! So you could be princess Zelda!" We dissolved into a fit of giggles, our childhood games and ideas coming back in a flood of memories.

"So tell me, is marriage everything you dreamed it would be? Is your husband like a handsome prince?"

"It's not exactly how I thought it would be, I always assumed I would marry for love, not in an arranged marriage. But…" I leaned in close to her, "I really like him. I mean, I think I really like him!" I could see tears beginning to form in Malon's eyes as she clasped my hands in her own.

"Oh Zelda. I'm so happy for you!" She threw her arms around me, again squeezing the life out of me.

"How long will you be in Ordon? We must get together while we can!"

"I'm only here until tomorrow unfortunately. I was just here an extra day visiting my cousins Cremia and Romani. But I would love to see you next time I'm here! Where do you live?"

"On a ranch at the edge of town, just keep following the main road. You can't miss it!"

"Zelda?" I turned and saw Link behind me, clearly having finally escaped from the Mayor's clutches. Malon gasped next to me.

"Is that… him?" When I nodded, she darted from my side and over to Link, snatching his hand up and shaking it furiously.

"It's so nice to meet you! I'm Zelda's best friend Malon!" Link looked slightly started at the attack, but he stayed calm and responded politely.

"Nice to meet you? I'm Zelda's husband Link." She turned to me and made a face, pretending to swoon while Link just looked amused. To the right, I spotted a young woman and a little girl standing next to a pottery booth, but with the same striking red hair as Malon. I immediately assumed they were Malon's cousins.

"Malon!" I nodded in their direction and she made a face.

"Oops! I forgot! Sorry Zel, I've got to run, but it was great to see you!" she hugged me briefly, and then joined the two waiting for her.

Link was staring at me with an eyebrow raised when she was finally out of sight, and I couldn't resist giggling.

"Sorry about that, I forgot how she can be."

"S'ok. She was nice." I peered at Link's face, observing how he looked slightly crestfallen.

"Is everything ok?" I asked.

"Yeah, sure, everything's fine." He replied, but I could see right through it. As it turns out, Link is a terrible liar.

"Are you sure? It seems like something's bothering you." He hesitated for just a second, and I knew I had cracked him.

"Are you happy here Zelda, with me?" I stared at him in shock. Where had this come from? Was he unhappy with me? Had I done something?

"What do you mean?"

"I heard you talking to Malon… about our marriage." Well, at least he had decency to look guilty for eavesdropping. But when our eyes connected, he looked so distressed and crestfallen I couldn't help but feel guilty myself.

"Oh Link…." I stepped forward and placed both my hands in his. "Just because I said this marriage wasn't what I expected does not mean I'm unhappy. I truly never did expect to have an arranged marriage. But I can promise you that I am happy." I saw hope flood his features, and I couldn't help but smile at him in return.

"Are you… happy with me then?" I dared to ask, and with a small laugh, Link pulled me to him and hugged me.

"I am definitely happy with you."

When I started this, I really did not have a big plot all planned out, but I've really started planning with this story and how I want it to be. If there's something you want to see as readers, let me know!