Link did not sleep the night of the battle or the day after, instead he spent the day meeting with various elites of Hyrule society and being brought up to date on the war. The first official he met with right off the battlefield was Princess Zelda.

"Link! You've returned!"

Zelda ran up to Link and hugged him. Link himself froze. Zelda looked almost exactly has she had in his memories, which meant at his current height she was taller than him. Presently she was squeezing his head and seemed to be crying.

I can't believe it's been four years! Honestly!"

"I've… missed you too."

For a moment Zelda got a look on her face before she schooled her features. "That's so like you." She sighed. "Still, you came in the nick of time; I don't know how much longer the waterways would have held out. From what we can see Ganondorf's army is in full retreat towards the Gerudo desert. "

"Unfortunately it's not over." Impa added. "While we forced them to retreat we didn't actually do that much damage to their army."

Zelda shook her head. "Bokublin are very affected by moral shocks. It will take some time for Ganon to turn them into a reliable army again. That will by us the time we need. "

"Perhaps," Impa said, "But Ganondorf has a power over them we don't fully understand. We'll have to field an army to make sure they don't return to their camps."

Zelda nodded before turning to Link with a smile. "Now then, Sir Link, would you accompany me back to the castle? Perhaps we can find something clean for you to wear."

Link sighed. "Yes, your highness." He didn't really want to go to the palace but at this point he had already reached the point of no return. At least until Ganondorf was beaten and his army dispersed he had to stay and help. Besides, he didn't have a very good track record on saying no to Zelda.

The princess's face beamed. "Good boy."

…

Hyrule castle was much like Link remembered it. The war outside the town walls seemed distant in the castles quiet gardens, surrounded by white granite and marble. Apon arriving he was separated from Zelda by a group of maids who made him change into a knights uniform and took his clothes to be washed. He wandered if he would see he green tunic again since the maids made a disgusted face when he gave it to them. Once he was dressed in the uniform—which didn't fit right—he was brought to Impa who had also changed into court wear.

"Link…that uniform doesn't fit you." She smiled.

"Laugh it up." He huffed.

"I don't laugh, but the princess will."

"Great…"

"More importantly," Impa began. "The King has asked to speak with you."

"Ok..."

"He's very ill. He's been bed written for a month and his doctor says he doesn't have long. Princess Zelda, myself, and the ministers have taken over most of his duties."

Impa led him into the keep of the castle where the royal families living quarters were. The King's bedroom was under guard by two elite solders. Two maids had also set up in the hallway to meet the king's needs.

After taking his weapons the stern guard knocked on the door, then opened it without waiting for a response.

"Sir Link of Hyrule your Majesty." The guard spoke with a crisp, upper-class voice.

"Good, send him in." a weak voice replied.

The guard bowed and stepped aside so Link to enter. The door was closed behind him and Link was left alone in the bed chamber with the King of Hyrule.

Link walked over to the bed and kneeled. "Your majesty"

The king seemed to have wasted away since the last time Link had seen him. His fat had become like droopy skin which hang limply off his pale frame. "Rise boy rise, I can't see you down there."

Link did what he was told and stood over by the king.

"My, when I heard what you broke into the enemy camp and engaged Ganon is single combat I figured you would be fully grown but you still look like a kid!" The king laughed, and then coughed.

I heard about the war and I hurried as back as soon as I could. I'm sorry I couldn't have arrived earlier".

"Don't be hard on yourself boy, you wouldn't have done much good locked behind the walls with us anyway. Fate put you exactly where you were needed."

Link wasn't so sure of that but nodded anyway.

"I never thought I would ever meet a greater warrior than Impa." The king remarked contemplatively. "But even she can't do the things you do. A warrior of your caliber can singlehandedly change the fate of a kingdom".

Link again nodded. What the king said about his skills was true.

"That power of yours is dangerous… In my younger days I might have had you killed just to keep that power in check.

"I've never used my strength for evil." Link said defensively. At least he had never intentionally aided evil.

"Don't worry my boy. If you were interested in power you wouldn't have left to train yourself for years. "The king coughed again. "I've called you here because I have a request."

Link got a sinking feeling. "What is it your majesty?"

"I've ruled this country for forty years. When I took the throne I was a young warrior like you, now look at me… I'm on my death bed and about to hand all my power to a teenage girl."

"Zelda is more than capable…" Link argued.

"She is a child!" The king said with whatever force he could muster. "The royal family's rivals already smell blood in the water. Once I am dead Zelda will sit on the throne and everyone with a scrap of power in this kingdom will try to seize some of her authority for themselves. With the war on we've already had to call on feudal ties I sought to abolish. "

"There is no one more worthy of the throne than Zelda." Link insisted, his face hard.

"I know." The King sighed. "But she needs protection. I need you to be her right hand."

There it was a request that Link didn't want to take but couldn't turn down. He had been expecting something like this since he came back to Hyrule.

He had come to realize that fate and the Triforce ineffably bound him to Hyrule and the royal family. The only escape from that shared fate was death. And as much has he wanted to walk away, he knew it was a choice he would regret.

"Your majesty, I will always serve your daughter and the royal family." Link said with a slight bow.

The King sighed with relief. "Good, with you here I can rest easy. My end is coming soon. Please, call for Zelda. I must speak with her."

"Yes your highness." Link bowed and proceeded to the door.

"I will always be in your debt…. May the way of the hero open the way to the Triforce."

Link said nothing. He would never tell anyone how much he hated that prayer.

…..

Zelda quietly laughed at Link's uniform. But when Link told her that her father wished to speak to her she turned gloomy. The princess disappeared into her father's room for several hours, before she emerged with red eyes.

Impa and Link both waited for her in the hall outside the room. Impa was the first to speak.

"Is his majesty….?"

Zelda shook her head. "No, he is asleep, but I fear he will not wake up again." She wiped a tear from her eye before looking at everyone in the hall.

"From this point onward I will be in charge. You may bring all state business to me."

The guards and maids were surprised by her announcement, but Impa simply bowed. "Yes your highness."

…..

The Kings passing took nearly four days, until his body ran out of fuel and he shut down. Normally there would be a long, multiday procession to Kakariko Graveyard where the King would be interred. Then on the next holy day the heir to the throne would take the crown. Unfortunately the roads between towns were still under harassment from gangs of bokublins, so a regal procession was impossible. As it was the Kings body was being preserved in cave beneath the castle, but according to tradition Zelda could not be crowned until the burial, which meant in the mean time she was ruling as regent.

As Zelda's father predicted the remnants of the old nobility who he had pushed to obscurity, as well as the growing merchant class and the major landowners, began politicking in whatever ways they could, making demands on the crown in exchange for their "sacrifices" for the war. While in theory Zelda held all the power, the kingdom would grind to a halt without the cooperation of these groups.

So despite Link's promise to the king he actually didn't take to Zelda much. His role came to standing around during court and casting the occasional glare when appropriate. He spent most of his time with Impa, helping her plan the next stage of the war.

"An invasion has to be our next move!" Impa insisted before the royal court. "Raiding parties and monsters are constantly flowing in and out of the Gerudo desert, unless we strike Ganon's base of power he will continue to raise armies and attack Hyrule."

"No one has never successfully invaded Gerudo lands, not even King Daphones . How do you propose we accomplish such a feat?" An old minister named Sahasrahla asked.

"Previous campaigns failed because no one could navigate the Gerudo lands but we now have someone who knows the routes through the canyon and desert." She gestured to Link. He was dressed as a knight, though he now had a custom uniform that fit him. "Sir Link has spent considerable time in the desert and knows the locations of the key Gerudo strongholds. He and I will lead an army of ten thousand men and capture them. Without the Gerudo Ganon will have no source of supplies for his army and it will collapse.

The room erupted with objections.

"you would entrust our army to a child?!"

"How will we pay for such a campaign?!"

"Your plan will leave Castletown defenseless!"

Link's seemingly meteoric rise to the highest levels of the court had made him a good deal of enemies. Some resented his youth; others believed he was only there because the princess had a crush on him. Some had even maliciously spread the rumor that he was the bastard son of the king and he was having a sordid love affair with his half-sister the princess.

"Silence!" Zelda spoke from her seat next to the royal throne. Until she was crowned she was not supposed to sit in it. "Lady Impa, It's true that this campaign would have considerable risks and great costs. What say you to this?"

Impa bowed her head. "We simply have no realistic alternative. The supply of monsters in the desert regions is almost infinite, and Ganon's magic gives him a powerful influence of them. AS it is now he can simply continue to send raiding parties and monsters into Hyrule and bleed us dry. If we don't strike now while we still have the manpower and resources we will only grow weaker and weaker until we have no defense. "

Several voices objected by Zelda raised her hand; silencing them. "Lady Impa is correct. It is unfortunate but an invasion is our only logical recourse. To that end we will begin raising the necessary troops and outfitting them. In the meantime, we will convene with our allies in order to secure the Kingdom from further raids and economic degeneration."

The meeting continued for several hours, and no matter how Impa's opponents at court tried Zelda was not dismayed. But while Impa won the debate she made many of her opponents at court even more resentful.

….

Link found himself very busy in the preparation for the war, so he was very happy when he found time to slip away from the castle and explore the town for the first time in years.

Walking around in a new green tunic, Link explored the market place. The first thing he noticed was that the creepy mask salesman had closed his shop. After his time in Termina Link was aware he was far more than a simple merchant, he was a potentially dangerous being with an obsession for masks. Link was hopeful he would never encounter him again.

The market was subdued. The people were still nervous after the siege and the merchants were having trouble getting supplies into town. Everything seemed overpriced.

Link found himself looking at a display of leatherwear when he felt someone approach him from the side.

"You!" a young woman said angrily before walking up and slapping him.

A few people gave them looks but most kept to their own business.

After the shock of being slapped, Link turned to his assailant and quickly recognized her. It was Malon. She had an angry look on her face.

"Malon?"

The teenage girl put her hands on her hips. "I'm glad you remember, too bad you didn't remember to come see me with Epona! It's been four years!"

"I've been traveling outside the country." Link protested. "I just got back when I heard about the siege."

It's been a month since that ended!" Malon said, still angry.

"Sorry, I've just been busy at court; they're making me take an active role in the army so I don't get out of the castle much."

Malon looked Link over suspiciously. "They say you're a big man in the royal court." She got in close and whispered. "Is it true you're the king's illegitimate son?"

With Malon so closed Link blushed. He noticed that Malon's chest had grown out.

Snapping out of his stupor, Link shook his head. "No! Some people were jealous and started a rumor."

"Hmm?" Malon looked at him skeptically.

Link decided to direct the conversation away from him. "What are you doing in castle town anyway? It's pretty dangerous to be traveling these days."

"We travelled in a caravan. It was our first chance to deliver to the castle in months. Dad's probably up at the castle now, if you hurry you can probably get him to kiss your ring and suck up a little."

Link sighed. "Geese are you still holding a grudge over Epona? I've taken good care of her, if you want I'll take you to the stables and you can see her yourself.

Malon's face changed from frowning to beaming in an instant. "Well…I don't want to impose, but if you insist…"

…

Epona was currently living in the royal stables, which was—for horse—a rather luxurious life.

Malon gently stroked Epona's snout as she nayyed happily.

"Hmm I guess you have been taking care of her, she seems happy with you…" Malon said, her eyes slightly glazed over as she pet her beloved mare.

"Epona doesn't get along with many people. The stable hands have told me they have trouble with her, and their used to some pretty mean stallions. "

Maron huffed a little. "Epona doesn't like people who look at her as an animal or a tool. She only comes around to people who open their hearts to her."

Link nodded; he felt the same.

"if you like you could ride her for a while."

Malon turned to Link with the happiest face he had seen her with since he said he wanted to buy Epona. "Really?!"

Link smiled. "Sure, knock yourself out."

"Thank you Link!" She hugged him. Link once again blushed as he noticed her chest.

Link helped Malon up and watched her ride around the stable yard. She was a great rider, as good as a lot of the knights. It was a real pleasure to watch her handle Epona. For a while he could forget he was a solider about to embark on one of the most risky campaigns in Hyrule's long history of bloodshed.

Author's Note:

I'm sorry for the delay putting this out. I'll try to be better about future chapters.

This entry is a bit longer than the last, though it's about where I want each chapter to be. I never set out to write a novel length work but more a novella. While King Daphones was based on the King from Wind Waker I gave him a darker personality given what we know about the period before OOT.

Please leave me a review and let me know what you think. I find feedback very valuable.

-Gedaemon