The general store sat quietly without a customer in sight. This was rare, especially during the winter season when crops and food were a much-needed necessity. It wasn't as if Pruce expected a swarm of people every morning; it was usually only a person or two that would poke in every hour or so. Today, however, the store had remained completely empty since dawn. This wasn't an issue for the store owner though, for business had been good this winter and if anything, this gave him time to craft the arrows that usually filled some of the display crates. As he sat behind the counter near the front, his hands swiftly worked as he tethered feathers to the ends of thin wooden rods, with a basket of arrowheads sitting within reach. He hadn't once looked up from his task until the store's front door opened as the first customer of the day walked in.
"Celessa! It's good to see ya, girl," he said as the young woman walked in with a smile on her face.
"It's good to see you too, Pruce," she answered cheerfully as she began looking at the dairy products that sat in baskets on display.
"It's been quite a while. How's your… um, what did you call it? Ah— How's the pilgrimage coming along?" he asked as he watched his customer sort through the basket with a bunch of bird eggs in it.
"It's actually on hold at the moment!" she said, choosing one of the eggs from the basket before moving on to the rice display. "It was all about learning about Princess Zelda, only for me to learn that she's very much alive and living here!"
"Ah, you heard about that, eh?" Pruce chuckled. "Does that mean you'll be staying in town for a bit?"
"Absolutely," she answered, picking up a bundle of Hylian rice before glancing over at the dark fruit on display near her. "How much for the truffles?"
"Twenty-four, hasn't changed," the storekeeper answered. Celessa pursed her lips in thought before shaking her head, choosing to grab a bottle of milk instead. "If you're staying, then I guess you don't need arrows, huh?"
"I use a sword and shield, not a bow," she said, moving to the front to place her items on the counter. "Though, I should probably learn to use one soon. Monsters are much stronger than they used to be, and they don't seem to be going away, even with the Princess's return."
"You know, I heard a story that she was holding off some evil in the castle for a long time with that power of hers," Pruce mentioned, setting his arrow parts aside in order to start counting up her goods. "If she's back, then doesn't that mean whatever she was holding back is gone? Wouldn't the monsters also disappear? Twenty-two rupees total, by the way."
"Unfortunately, I don't understand that kind of stuff too much, not yet at least," Celessa said as she reached into her pouch. "But, maybe I'll get answers later. I've still got a lot of things I want to ask her. Recently we've been a little… distracted with some important business."
"Nothing bad I hope?" Pruce asked as he held his hand to take the rupees she had pulled out.
"Depending on what she's doing at this very moment, hopefully not," Celessa chuckled as she took the ingredients off the counter. "Thank you as always, Pruce. I'll see you around!"
"Take care, and stay peppy, ya here?"
Waving back as she pushed the front door open, she walked out into the snow and began down the path towards the inn. As she made her way, she looked down at the ingredients in her arms.
It's a good thing Prima is letting me use her cooking pot… I can't afford to pay for a bed and constant meals, Celessa thought before recalling her comment about the monsters from earlier. With the monsters as strong as they are now, I can't kill as many as before, and even then, I wasn't making too much to begin with.
With a lofty sigh, she looked up into the blue sky, decorated with darkened clouds.
That's just how things are, she continued internally. I'm sure Link and Zelda will get to the bottom of it eventually. Those two don't like letting things go, in more ways than one.
Suddenly, Celessa felt a bump on her shoulder. She stumbled, trying desperately to keep the store items she had bought in her arms before regaining her balance. Confused, she looked around before spotting a person next to her, who had just regained their balance as well.
"I'm so sorry!" she said, lowering their head in apology. "I was not watching where I was going! I can't believe I did that—"
"No, no, it's fine, I promise," the person chuckled. "I was a bit lost in thought too, honestly."
She was a younger lady, one that looked only a year or so older than Celessa herself. She was in a simple dress, with tan sleeves and a black front that was decorated with a burgundy sash tied around her waist. Though her dress seemed a bit simple, what stood out from most of the villagers in town was the dark shade of purple her hair was, with her long bangs parted in a way that covered one of her large blue eyes. Celessa raised an eyebrow.
"You're a new face," she said. "Are you visiting like I am?"
"Yeah, you could say that," the woman said. "I'm not sure how long I'll stay though. I've been on what many would call a personal journey. I'm just kind of going where my feet take me."
"Oh! Well if that's the case, I strongly suggest checking out some of the springs that sit dormant in Hyrule," Celessa began explaining. "They're the same springs Princess Zelda prayed at a hundred years ago!"
"Princess Zelda," the woman murmured in a lofty tone. "Her, huh?"
"That's the one! Have you met her? She's around, you know; freed from her self-imprisonment," Celessa asked. The woman sighed.
"Yes, I have, though it was a while ago now," the woman answered. "It was an…interesting day, to say the least."
"I see…" Celessa said before noticing the clothing in the woman's arms. "That's some interesting clothing you have. They look kind of thin for the winter, don't you think?"
"Ah, yeah, they're not really made for this kind of weather," the woman chuckled. "They're actually more for the Gerudo Desert. I was just thinking of getting them dyed in a new color."
The woman pointed over to the building they stood in front of, which was decorated with four large color-filled vials.
"The dye shop!" Celessa exclaimed with a smile. "Sayge will be happy for the business! I won't keep you then; I'm sure we'll see each other in the inn later if you stick around, even if only for a few days."
The woman smiled kindly.
"It was nice meeting you," she said with a wave before entering through the dye shop's large entrance. Celessa waved back before frowning.
"I didn't get her name…" she mumbled, yet with a shrug, she turned to continue her journey back to the inn.
"Celessa, is that you?"
"Hm?" Celessa responded, turning around to see someone briskly walking toward her, and this time they were recognizable. "Link? What are you doing here? You should be home!"
"What do you mean by that?" Link asked before narrowing his eyes as he stopped before her. "Wait, were you also part of Zelda's scheme from earlier?"
"That's not important!" Celessa exclaimed. "Why are you here and not there?"
"Because she collapsed," Link answered urgently. Celessa's eyes grew wide.
"What?" she asked worriedly.
"She's stuck in bed, hot to the touch, and having a hard time breathing," he explained. "I was heading to the mountain to see if Purah could come to take a look at her, but then I figured you may know something since you've been around her at the inn."
"Know something?" Celessa asked.
"Like if something happened to her, or if someone poisoned her," Link said, now speaking a bit quickly. "Anything. I know that one traveler with the welt on his forehead is still there, right? I can't help but think that—"
"Link, slow down a moment," Celessa said, shaking her head in confusion. "You think Zelda was poisoned? Really?"
"Yes, I do," he answered sternly, "or something like it. Look, if you don't know anything then I need to get to Purah, we may not have much time—"
"Link, slow down,"Celessa said. "I adore the princess too, but these are massive assumptions you're making. Why would you think she's in that much danger?"
"Because—" Link began, now starting to get irritated, yet he balled his fist and stopped talking. Averting his eyes, he said, "look, I have my reasons."
Celessa furrowed her brow, looking him up and down.
"Look, I don't know fully what's going on, but judging by what you told me just now, and the little I have been informed about, I don't think Zelda is in danger," she said.
"What?" Link asked. "She collapsed!"
"Calm down," Celessa said sternly. "I'm telling you it might not be that bad and we'll figure that out now. Follow me."
"Where are we going?" he asked.
"I'm going to put this food away at the inn, and then we'll head to your house," she answered, turning to head toward the inn. "If what you said is all that's wrong, it may not be that serious, but just to be sure, I'll take a look at the princess myself, okay?"
After a pause, Link blew air through his nostrils as he began to follow her.
"Are you sure? Wouldn't Purah be more suited for the job? You know who she is, right?"
"I do. I visit here a lot and I've met her sister," Celessa answered. "And I'll be honest, I really doubt that old lady will want to be dragged down the mountain for something like this."
...
Link sat at the dining table, rapidly tapping his foot against the floorboards while twiddling his thumbs as he awaited an answer from Celessa, who had gone up the stairs to the loft where Zelda lay bedridden. He felt jumpy. It was as if anything could suddenly pop out at him. With his lover now down, this would be the perfect time for an attack. She could be taken away from him— if not from whatever poisoned her— by the assassin who kept antagonizing him.
Gritting his teeth, he glanced over at the trident that hung on the wall. As usual, it sparkled in the room, unaware of the eyes upon it or even the fact that someone in its proximity was sick. It was just a piece of metal and nothing more, regardless of the abilities its owner once wielded. Link continued to stare at the elegant weapon right up until he heard the footsteps of someone coming down the stairs. He looked over to see Celessa making her way toward him.
"Is she alright?" he asked, standing quickly from his chair.
"She's fine," Celessa answered. "It's just a cold."
"But Zelda's never been sick before," Link debated. "At least, not like that."
"Zelda's also never been this exposed to the winter," Celessa explained. "She's not like us who have been in harsh conditions most of our lives, nor has she ever physically worked as she has now at the inn. Her body isn't going to adapt from castle life and luxurious travel to a relatively harsh winter in only a few months. Regardless, while she feels terrible, that's all it is: a cold."
"Just a cold, huh," Link said thoughtfully. After taking a deep breath, he glanced up at the loft.
"I'm surprised you couldn't put that together yourself," Celessa said sternly, still inspecting him. "Now that I know who you really are, I find it hard to believe that a trained knight from a hundred years ago and someone who has done nothing but travel for the past year didn't think of that."
"Of course, I thought of it," he said. "That was my first reaction, but I can't allow myself to think of issues so simply. As you said, I used to be a knight, and Zelda, while she isn't going by it, still at least was the princess and still has her powers. There are still reasons I can't lower my guard."
"Do those reasons have something to do with the monsters that are still around?" Celessa asked curiously.
"It's not them I'm worried about," Link said quietly, though, for a brief moment, the thought of his sacred blade appeared in his mind. "Look, it's just… I can't afford to relax, okay? There's too much at stake right now."
"Is taking it easy really that bad of a thing? Even if just for a moment?" Celessa asked.
"Yeah, it is," Link said. "I mean, look at what happened earlier. I drop my guard for two seconds and Zelda comes crashing down. I didn't even notice—"
"Still, there's a difference between being cautious and paranoid," Celessa said. "Eventually you're going to run out of energy if you keep thinking so hard about things. I know what's out there in the wild, Link; I'm a traveler like you. I understand—"
"No, you don't," Link cut in, looking down to meet her eyes. "No one does. You don't know how it feels to have someone constantly watching you, waiting to make a move the moment your guard is down, or maybe when the person you're supposed to protect is suddenly bedridden and defenseless—"
"You think someone is watching you?" Celessa asked. "Here? In Hateno?"
Link didn't immediately answer. He continued to stare into Celessa's curious brown eyes, contemplating whether or not to spill his concerns. He wanted to say something, and yet, Zelda's words from before echoed in his mind. Celessa was a traveler. She was naturally more keen thanks to her time in the wild. She was also somewhat knowledgeable on his past and the kingdom of old, and more aware of the dangers that plagued them. Yet she hadn't once mentioned noticing anything odd in the village. He was still the only one who had seen him.
"How do we heal Zelda?" he asked suddenly.
"Woah, wait a moment—"
"I've never really been sick, so I'm not sure how to deal with it," he continued, ignoring Celessa's opposition to moving along. "Is there an elixir, or a certain meal that can cure her?"
"Yeah. Patience," she answered. Link frowned, but before he could argue, she continued. "From what I know, there is no elixir or special ingredient that'll just make her better."
"But elixirs can heal wounds," he debated anyway. "What about a fairy tonic? Or maybe a—"
"Link, those heal physical wounds," Celessa said. "An illness is fundamentally different from a simple flesh wound. I'm sorry, but she really does need to just rest and allow her body to fight it off."
Agitated, Link ran his fingers through his hair. He turned and again glanced back at the trident on the wall.
"Sometimes, the best thing you can do during hard times is to be patient, and calmly think things through," Celessa continued, noticing his aggravation. "If you overwork your mind, you're likely to make poor decisions. If you overwork your body, you're likely to lose a fight. I know you understand this. There's no way you could have beaten the Calamity if you didn't."
The Calamity wasn't constantly around me, Link thought, yet he didn't say anything more. The room remained silent until Celessa sighed.
"Look, while she still needs to rest—and that really is the best and only way she'll truly heal— you can still make things easier on her," she said. At these words, Link turned back to face her once more. "Why don't you cook something for her? They do say a good meal does help with the healing process, and they say the best meals are the ones made with love."
"If only it would heal her. Food doesn't usually fail me like this," Link mumbled. Celessa rolled her eyes.
"I know you want to immediately heal her," she said, "but, just because there isn't a fast solution, doesn't mean you're forced to do nothing. If my lover made me something to eat while I was sick in bed, I would at least feel a little better. I saw some hearty truffles at the East Wind… I'm sure she would like something with those in it, wouldn't you agree?"
Though it did look like Link agreed, he glanced up at the loft again.
"I'll watch Zelda for you until you get back," she grinned. "I promise she's in good hands."
"I thought you said she needed to rest," Link said skeptically. "Won't you bombard her with questions?"
"I won't," Celessa promised. "She's at the inn almost every day, so I'll always have time to question her. Now get going and get back soon! Zelda actually likes having you around, you know."
Though he still hesitated for a moment, Link nodded.
"Thanks," he said quietly as he began to head past her and towards the door. He reached out and grabbed the handle, but before he opened the door, he looked back. "And thanks for coming. I really appreciate it."
"Of course! I couldn't pass up a chance to see where the princess now lives!" Celessa giggled. "Now go! Oh, and tell Prima that Zelda won't be in for a few days!"
"Got it," Link said. With that, he disappeared out the door and into the snow.
"That guy," Celessa sighed as she watched the door close. "He's definitely changed. I can see why Zelda is trying so hard to get him to slow down."
Lost in thought, she headed back up the stairs to find Zelda exactly where she had left her. She was laying in bed with the sheets up to her chin. Her face was still extremely red, though her breathing had become a lot more rhythmic than it had been earlier that day. Grabbing the chair from the writing desk, Celessa pulled it over to the side of the bed and took a seat.
"Is Link still here?" Zelda asked weakly once her visitor had settled.
"He's not. He went off to get a few things for you," Celessa answered. "But he'll be back, so all you have to do is rest up."
"I don't have much of a choice now, do I?" Zelda said with a sigh. "To come down with something during such an important moment…"
"Oh? An important moment you say?" Celessa asked with a smirk. "And may I ask what you two were up to before Link came to find me?"
"That's," Zelda mumbled, averting her tired eyes. "I'll just say that, had it not been for this illness, progress would have been made. Unfortunately, it's probably that which pushed my body over the edge. It's so embarrassing."
"You seem to be embarrassed a lot these days," Celessa giggled, to which Zelda frowned. "I won't ask what happened, but… How was it?"
Zelda glared at her, yet after seeing the pure eagerness in her eyes. She groaned.
"It was… wonderful…" she murmured quietly. "I only wish we had gotten to finish."
"Maybe next time," Celessa encouraged. "Now you know that he is interested though, right?"
"That's true," Zelda said, closing her eyes in relief. "Still… My main objective failed."
"You mean getting him to rest?" Celessa asked. Zelda nodded.
"He's probably even more stressed now that I've come down with a cold," she said worriedly. "I can't imagine what's going through his mind right now. It's possibly even worse than before…"
"W-well…" Celessa mumbled, thinking back to her conversation with him downstairs. "Let's worry about that when you're better, all right? You can come up with another plan to get him better once you're healthy."
"Another plan… I'm not sure if I can do the maid thing again," Zelda said.
"What? Come on!" Celessa exclaimed, leaning closer to the bed. "You have to do it again! You're way too cute in that outfit!"
As the two continued talking, with Celessa begging her to re-try the maid outfit scheme, and Zelda adamantly refusing, little did they know Link had returned to the house. He had left without much thought, planning to go straight to the inn before the general store. That was the plan, until he realized that money would be a bit low since Zelda wouldn't be working for the next couple of days. Deciding smart to save where he could, he had headed back to take a look into the cabinets and glance at the Sheikah Slate's inventory to check what they did and didn't have, only to hear the tail end of the discussion upstairs.
She… really did that just to distract me? That was her main goal? He asked himself silently. Furrowing his brow in frustration, he turned on his heel and disappeared back out into the snow.
