Ilia bit her thumb gently after she had pricked her finger.
She sighed and put her sewing down.
Mending her father's shirt. Again.
Sable jumped onto her lap and licked off the drop of blood on the needle.
Where've you been, huh?
The lairyn simply ignored her.
Ilia sighed and lifted her off her lap and stood up.
Uli and Telma came in, holding a basket filled with white fabric.
They set it down and, smiling, grabbed her arms and pulled her towards the basket.
"You'll love this one, honey." Telma said happily.
Uli simply smiled as they held up the dress.
It was a simple white sleeveless dress that fell to her feet. Ilia examined the fabric, thinking of everything that she could do with it.
Add some straps, a sash, maybe some embroidery around the hem and neckline...
Satisfied, she nodded and smiled at the older women.
"Thank you! It's perfect. Where'd you find it?" She said, standing up.
Telma simply waved her hand. "Don't worry about that, honey."
Uli nodded in agreement. She held out her hands, and Sable jumped into them.
Ilia smiled.
~o:o:o:o:o:o~
Link sighed mentally, listening to the old general ramble on and on about the importance of discipline and responsibility. In truth, he gave this same lecture in the last Council, and besides, everyone knew this principle and didn't have any problems when it came to those specific principles.
Princess Zelda seemed rather annoyed at the old general, and one of the Lieutenants was falling asleep.
Geez, hurry up. We're all busy.
He leaned his head back, looking at the intricate designs carved into the ceiling.
Zelda noticed his boredom and politely asked the elderly general to sit down and shut up. He got the message.
She herself stood and concluded the meeting, and the men and women were dismissed for the day.
Gratefully, Link stood and stretched his legs as the princess walked towards him.
"What do you think about the boy's message?"
He shrugged. They hadn't spoken much in the past few weeks."
"It's...strange. He seemed familiar, in a way."
Zelda nodded, and the two of them walked outside.
"I understand that. I had the same feeling. It was very strange."
Link nodded and sighed.
His mind drifted to Ordon.
Ilia…
"When will your wedding take place?"
"First of New Spring, sometime around noon." he said.
"Are you nervous?"
He stopped. Well, duh, of course he was.
"Link?"
He smiled and looked down.
"'Nervous' is an understatement."
She laughed.
"Two more weeks..." he said quietly.
It started to snow as they walked back to the castle.
Ilia's voice echoed in his head.
"The lake froze over last night, and it looks thick enough to skate on. C'mon!"
Five years,he thought.Five whole years.
Which reminded him.
"How old is General Ressna?"
"Seventy-three."
No wonder.
~o:o:o:o:o:o~
Sable leaped out the window when she was sure her master was asleep.
Through the forest, across the stream, up the tree…
There.
A tiny mewling, barely longer than Sable's fluffy tail, crept out of the hollow.
Another lairyn, a male, lifted his head when he saw her.
She gently nudged the rest of the litter and they woke and joined their sibling.
Four mewlings.
Two boys, two girls.
The father nuzzled her neck and dropped a Deku nut in front of her. She ate it hungrily.
~o:o:o:o:o:o~
The clashing sound of steel on steel was heard echoing throughout the castle courtyard.
It was still snowing, despite it being late winter. It was odd.
Normally it doesn't snow this late in the year.
Link shrugged it off. It was probably warmer in Ordon.
It normally was.
General Zestrio, the youngest of the the generals, held his hand up, signaling the soldiers to stop.
Servants gathered the dull practice swords ( they were dull, although if swung hard enough, would leave a nasty bruise), and they ran off, carrying their own armload to the armory. The soldiers were dismissed for the day. Link took this chance to leave for some privacy.
He went south, towards the field.
Climbing to the top of one of the tall stone pillars, he looked down at the field below. A thin layer of snow blanketed the field in white, and Agitha, the Bug Princess, was searching the shrubbery for any bugs for her ball.
The sun started to set, and the horizon turned a deep crimson. On the opposite end of the field, two young boys, clad in green, whacked each other with wooden swords. One of them fell down, and the other burst out laughing, resulting in a snowball in his mouth.
Link chuckled and jumped down from his perch. He walked towards them. They froze and quickly dusted off the snow in their hair. He laughed and tossed a snowball at them.
"What's wrong? "
They smiled, and the older boy threw the snowball at him. Link smiled, and the younger bent down to make another.
The swords lay, forgotten on the snow as the largest snowball fight of the season took place as children slowly joined.
By nightfall, most of the snow was on their clothes and there were about thirty kids, along with ten adults watching, smiling, happy that their hero watched over their children.
~o:o:o:o:o:o~
New spring.
The big day.
Ordon was alive with activity that morning.
Ilia had on an apron and had tied her long hair up with a cloth. Maeri and Rowan had moved down to Ordon, and Maeri and a seven-year-old Ava were helping her cook and clean and sew. Uli and Telma were there, too, along with the rest of the women in the village. The kitchen was bustling with activity, and the delicious smell of food wafted outside.
Princess Zelda was there, along with Shad and Gor Coron, issuing commands to the gorons and hylians to help set up.
Link, Rusl and Mayor Bo, meanwhile, were in Link's home, helping him get ready. Uli had made his clothes; they were fashioned after the hero's tunic, only made of white fabric.
~o:o:o:o:o:o~
Ordonian weddings were private occasions, reserved only for the couple, their parents and the priest.
Link and Ilia knelt at the small alter at the Sprit's Spring. In front of them was Renado, holding a jug.
Bo, Maeri, Rowan and Telma (Ilia needed someone to be present, representing her mother) stood behind them.
Link wore the tunic that Uli had fashioned for him. On his back was a sword and shield that Rusl had made especially for this occasion.
Ilia wore the white dress that Uli and Telma had given her. She had done some embroidery on the skirt and top and was wearing a golden sash around her waist. Flowers were woven through her hair.
All in all, she was beautiful.
"Telma, would you please come forward?" She came and held out her hand. Renado raised it with Ilia's and bound them together with a leather cord.
"Mayor Bo."
He came and Renado bound Ilia's other arm to her father's.
"These bindings symbolize the bride's connection to her parents." Renado said.
"Link. "
He laid the sword on the alter.
Renado called Rowan and Maeri forward and did the same to Link.
"These bindings symbolize the groom's connection to his parents."
He picked up the sword and cut all four of them. He then laid it on the alter again.
Renado bade Link take Ilia's hand after they had knelt down again. She smiled and squeezed it gently. He smiled nervously.
Renado then bound their hands together. Link replaced the sword on his back and they stood. He led them out of the spring and to the ranch. The villagers cheered when they raised their wrists, showing the bindings.
"These bindings are a representation of the oath that they make with one another. They are bound together as one soul, body and mind." Renado said. Ava grabbed Link's hand, and as a result to the bindings, dragged both him and Ilia to a trio of seats, two of which were at the head of the table. They sat down, and Ilia yanked her wrist, which was still bound to Link's, behind her and she kissed him tenderly. A series of oohs and aahs came from the villagers, along with a squeal from Beth.
~o:o:o:o:o:o~
The party lasted well into the night, filled with eating, laughing, singing, dancing and more eating. Sometime around midnight, though, Link and Ilia wandered off to the old willow tree. They sat by the small stream, watching the faeries dancing on the water.
Ilia leaned her head against his shoulder.
"Link..."
"Yeah?"
"Will we..." She blushed and looked away.
"Never mind. It's a stupid question anyways..." she said.
Link turned her facetowards him.
"Ilia, what's wrong? "
"Will we always be together? "
He looked at her, slightly surprised. Then he smiled and laid down on the mossy ground.
"Yeah..."
"Forever and ever?"
"Yeah. "
He smiled and pulled her down into a passionate kiss. She smiled and climbed on top of him.
After all, it was their wedding night.