Moving On Chapter 12

The sound of softly running water echoed through the cave, ripples of water shone upon its walls as it gently passed by the two sitting atop a rock.

"Hurt again." Mipha sighed, stifling a small chuckle, she knew exactly what Link was like, always reckless. Even now, she heard the small splashing sounds as he kicked his legs forward and backward in the water, caring not for the many small sharp rocks he couldn't see that were likely to cut up his feet at any moment. "How's Sidon?" Link asked, gaze shifting between the water and Mipha every so often. "He's well. Still getting himself into trouble at every turn, much like his role model did when he was young." She said, the two sharing a small laugh. "Well, I bet he'll grow up to be the shining hero of the Zora then." Link flashed a toothy smile, earning one in return from Mipha. "Yes certainly!" She giggled, bright smile shining brighter than her healing magic. "There, all done." She said as she lifted her hands from his arm, revealing all wounds to have vanished. "Thank you. You're the best." Link gave her a warm smile, wrapping his freshly healed arm around her and pulling her close, surprising her a bit. She was adorable when she got nervous. "I love you." He said, leaning in, she smiled warmly back at him and blushed.

"..."

Her mouth moved but no words came out, a look of concern flashed over her face all of a sudden.

"Mipha?"

More soundless words. Her sad face changed to acceptance as her mouth moved more with no sound. He couldn't make out what she was trying to say, only her last words did he hear.

"Please, I want you to be happy."

After which, she was no longer there, he was alone in the cave.

"Mipha!?" He cried, tears welling up. Water rushed faster through the cave, its blue hue turning purple and suddenly a tidal wave of malice rushed in and engulfed the moment. Guardian lasers, princess Zelda, darkness, Hyrule castle again, calamity Ganon, gloom, sky islands, Ganondorf. With every passing moment sight grew darker as event followed one after another, only at the end did a hand grab his, bringing with it a hint of light.

"GHAAAAAAGHH." Link screamed, eyes shooting wide open as he catapulted upright. He felt his heart racing, tears ran down his cheeks as an irreparable sense of dread and misery hung from his heart. Through his panicked panting, he didn't notice a hand falling onto his own, gripping it tightly.

"...nk ... link... Link!" He finally heard Riju calling to him. Blinking, he started to calm himself, bringing himself gradually back to the moment, holding onto Riju's hand as an anchor to the real world. He heard howling in the distance, a somber melody helped ease him into reality. Link brought his right hand to his face, looking at it as if to make sure this was real. Lightning scars twined around his fingers and arm, reminding him of what had transpired the day before. He slowed his breathing and wiped the tears away from his eyes. The overwhelming feelings he'd felt before were waning, replaced by a loose feeling of remorse that clutched onto his mind.

"Riju..." Link spoke through a shuddering voice, turning to see her concerned face as she still held firmly onto his left hand. Before any more words could be spoke, Buliara rushed up through the door, blade in hand, obviously worried by the commotion Link had made, only to see the aforementioned hero of Hyrule and Riju holding hands, looking like lovers, in Riju's bed. Of course, there was only one thing to assume in such a situation.

"Lady Riju? L-Link!? Y-You..." Buliara was almost speechless at the sight, sword arm going slightly slack from the shock. The howling in the distance stopped as she spoke.

"Buliara, wait! It is not what it looks like!" But before Riju could say anything more, Buliara rushed out of the room with her head hung low, nervous at walking in on what looked to be an intimate scene, which Riju would later adamantly refuse as the truth. "D-Don't worry about her Link, she won't tell anyone, and we can tell her the truth of the matter when we leave." Riju reassured Link who seemed just as shocked as Buliara was. "R-Right." He sighed, thoughts returning to the nightmare he'd had. He could barely remember it now, though the main point, Mipha vanishing, remained clear in his mind.

Riju had been awoken by the sound of Link saying, "I love you" She was shocked and excited to hear him say such a thing but quickly realized he was talking in his sleep, then he mentioned Mipha and Riju began to piece things together in her mind before he screamed awake.

"So, you were close with champion Mipha weren't you?" She asked, drawing him away from his thoughts again. "Mmhm." He hummed, a solemn glint in his eyes. The two were silent for a moment as Riju processed what that meant, no wonder he pulled away from that kiss. "I'm sorry for your loss." She firmly squeezed his hand, getting a squeeze back from him in return. "I know it must be difficult."

"Everyone tells me to move on, to let go and be happy but my happiness was with her, how could I possibly, just, let her go. Even if she's not still here, it doesn't feel right." He explained, finally caving and talking about his own feelings for the first time in a long time. "It feels like betrayal, to be so close to someone, only to forget about them once they're gone." He continued. "Moving doesn't mean to forget, you still embrace the good times you've had with them. You just have to acknowledge you can't experience something like that again." Riju tried to explain, though it was difficult as though she'd experienced loss before, she hadn't experienced the kind he had.

"Mmh." Link hummed, acknowledging the truth in her words. "I know what you're saying is true but... It's so much easier to say that, but words won't just heal my feelings immediately. I wish they could." He admitted, more to himself than to Riju. "It's okay, now that Kaago has been dealt with, you have all the time you need to heal. And I'll be here to help you for as long as you need." Riju spoke, leaning a bit closer and holding has hand tight.

He felt a strong feeling in his chest, love with a tone of regret. He came to a realization within himself that he didn't want to be miserable forever, Mipha would not come back and no matter how much he loved her, she wouldn't want him to spend the rest of his life miserable for her sake, she wasn't still here to appreciate the sentiment of his guilt. Though he still felt that guilt, that pain, he realized now that it wasn't good to stay like he was. Not for Mipha, not for himself. He had Riju right next to him, a living, breathing chance to be happy again, and he knew now he wanted to take that chance.

"Thank you." Link spoke clearly as he leaned closer, resting his head on her shoulder. He let that feeling of love wash over him, trying his best to ignore the guilt that had held its healing waters from him for so long, letting the fires of a Ruby circlet free to burn away his sadness. "Of course." Riju replied, resting her head beside his.

"Excuse me, Lady Riju, Princess Zelda is here, it is about the swordsman." Buliara spoke from beside the doorframe, careful not to intrude on the two again. "Ah! We shall be right down." Riju replied, moving away from Link and getting out of bed. Though he was a little annoyed his moment with Riju had been cut short so soon, he was glad he'd get a chance to see Zelda again, it had been a while now. Link got up and put his boots and hairband on before following Riju downstairs. Luckily Zelda wasn't in the hall already so he wouldn't have to explain why he was walking with Riju from her room.

Riju sat upon her throne with Link and Buliara standing to her right and left respectively. Riju called out to the guards to permit Zelda entry and soon enough they saw the gold haired Princess walk into the hall, relief flashed across her face when she saw the hero. "Link!" The two rushed over to each other, embracing like a brother and sister. "I heard about what happened, when I got here everyone was talking about it!" Zelda spoke as soon as they let go of each other. "I'm glad you're safe, both of you." Zelda addressed Riju, turning to her and bowing.

"Thank you, Princess, I'm glad you're holding up well yourself. We were led to believed that Yiga had kidnapped you, I'm glad it turned out false." Riju thanked her. "Yes, it does sound like they posed a very serious threat to not only you, but all of Hyrule. I'm truly grateful to both of you for defeating such a beast." Zelda thanked both the warriors in the room, getting a nod from Riju.

"There's something I need to tell you about their leader, Zelda." Link spoke. "Ah, that's right, something strange happened once he was defeated, I'm sure you'll want to know." Riju added. "Hm?" Zelda hummed.

"He housed the soul of Ganondorf, after I defeated Kaago, Ganondorf's soul fled from his corpse, though the master sword destroyed everything that remained of him. My theory is that his soul separated from his body when he became an immortal dragon, and he infested one of his Yiga followers afterward." Link explained, leaving out a few details such as the arm for the sake of brevity. "Interesting... Then maybe... Yes, you've given me a lot to think about, thank you Link." Zelda stood in thought for a moment, her scholarly instincts taking over, before she remembered where she was.

"Ah, before I forget, here." Zelda took a letter out from her pack, handing it to Link. "A strange man in a green outfit handed me this as I left Hateno, he told me it was for the hero and took his leave before I could say a word." Strange, Link didn't know anyone who dressed fully in green. But the way she described what he said... He doubted it but maybe it was that shade. He opened the letter and was greeted with an old music sheet with the word 'healing' written at the top. He knew loosely how to read music and recognized the song to loop mainly around 3 notes, and it sounded just like what that wolf was howling in the morning. He hummed it to himself.

"What a strange melody. It's somehow... calming. Where'd you hear it?" Zelda asked, Link responding by pointing at the sheet of paper in his hands, Zelda gave him a brief look of disbelief though she couldn't really stay shocked as he was known for his experience with the most outlandish of things. It wasn't really the truth, but Link would have a much harder time explaining that he heard it from a wolf outside Riju's bedroom that only he could hear.

"Well, sorry to say but I'll have to be leaving already. There is still so much to be done in terms of Hyrule's restoration, I'm sorry I couldn't stay longer, really." Zelda turned to Riju and apologized. "It's quite alright princess, I of course understand. Best of luck." Riju smiled warmly to the princess, the two nodding to each other before Zelda turned to leave.

"Will you be coming with me Link?" She asked, smile still upon her face. He hadn't thought about that, of course she'd want him to come with her, that was his duty as her knight. She was giving him a choice though, and though he felt he should be going with her, he was starting to feel happy here, starting to accept what he was feeling, he didn't want to interrupt that healing. "You can stay here if you want." Zelda whispered, quiet enough for only him to hear. "Danger has long since passed, I won't be needing a knight for a while, you should look after your own needs for once." Her words shocked Link, had she gathered that there was something between him and Riju? No, she couldn't have, there were absolutely no signs throughout the day.

"I'd rather stay here for a while." Link said, surprising Riju and Buliara. "Of course, if that's what you want." Zelda smiled to him, before turning and walking away.

She knew just by the way he'd acted; she didn't know who, but someone had caught his eye. She hoped that they'd be able to finally help him through his loss, guide him out of his own misery. She of course was upset it couldn't be her, but she had to respect his feelings, respect that she couldn't restore that place in his heart. She'd like to meet that person someday; they must be truly special if they could do such a thing for Link of all people.