POV Zelda

Purah keeps talking, switching from one topic to another without caring if the line of reasoning gets lost in between subjects. Her tea has long since gone cold, practically untouched. She seems determined to update me in a single day on everything that has happened in the kingdom over the last 100 years. I try to pay attention to her words, but I find myself unfocused, dwelling on this morning's events.

In the early hours of the day, Link and I finally managed to obliterate Ganon. I replay the sequence of events over and over, trying to understand what I might have said that made him so distant during our reunion. Perhaps I had just idealized this moment too much. After all, it had been literally 100 years thinking about it, during the trance to keep the threat at bay while Link recovered in the resurrection chamber. He showed as much emotion as he ever did in the past, remaining closed off and servile.

Therefore, the blame for the disappointment of not having an emotional reunion falls solely on me, who created utopian scenarios in my head.

"Wow, really?" I respond automatically to Purah upon realizing she is waiting for some reaction to continue her story. She resumes her tale, and I return to losing myself in the memory of a few hours ago.

After addressing me as "majesty" — which is at least ironic considering the kingdom is reduced to ruins — Link offered me his mare, Epona, and suggested for we to go to Hateno to start spreading the good news. Keeping a respectful distance from me, he helped me mount the animal and then we began the journey to the town. We stopped at the nearest stable so Link could get another mount to make the trip faster. I didn't have the courage to suggest we share Epona, given the distance he had imposed between us from the first moment.

Except for this interaction — him informing me that we would stop at the stable to get another horse — we exchanged no words during the several hours' journey to Hateno.

Upon reaching the town, different people greeted Link and stared at me with curiosity. I recognized no one — probably only knew their great-grandparents and great-great-grandparents, who certainly had died long ago. Trying to ignore the feeling of guilt for being alive while so many I had sworn to protect had died, I just moved forward.

"Where are we going?" I asked Link, addressing him for the first time since I questioned if he remembered me.

"I thought we'd go to the lab, to meet Purah," he replied in his usual few words.

I was happy to hear she was still alive. How old would she be now? I never knew her exact age before the Calamity, but I think she was just under 30 years old… The Sheikah people live longer than common hylians, but 130 years is an advanced age even for them. My heart ached at the thought of Impa, Purah's younger sister. Was she still alive too?

"Do you know if Impa is…" I tried to ask, but couldn't complete the thought.

"Yes, she's fine. Living in Kakariko, we can go there tomorrow. It's a little over half a day's journey on horseback from Hateno."

I received the information with great relief.

"Is Purah well?" I tried to keep the conversation flowing.

"She's… different," Link responded vaguely.

Exasperated that he didn't elaborate, I assumed he was referring to the fact that she certainly must look like an elderly woman, contrasting with my last memory of her as a young, smart, and agile woman. I nodded and fell silent once more.

A few minutes later, after climbing to the top of the town's cliff, we arrived at a building I didn't remember. We dismounted our horses and headed to the door. Link knocked three times, alerting the residents that visitors had arrived.

"One moment!" a strangely familiar shrill voice shouted. "I'm coming!"

Seconds later, the door opened and I saw no one. Confused, I lowered my gaze a little and saw that the door was opened by a child of about 6 or 7 years old, very similar to Purah.

"Zelda?" the child exclaimed with genuine surprise, staring at me.

Astonished that this child recognized me so immediately, I crouched to her level to respond.

"Hello, little one! Yes, it's me. Is your... grandmother home?"

I looked at Link, annoyed.

"Why didn't you tell me Purah had a granddaughter?" I complained.

I noticed he was looking at me with an amused expression. Realizing he was displaying some emotion, he quickly returned to his usual stoic look. Before I could respond, the child began to laugh.

"Zelda! Don't you recognize me? It's me, Purah!" said the child, making no sense, and continuing to laugh.

"Excuse me?" I questioned, not understanding.

"Purah was studying an anti-aging rune, and the experiment went wrong. She reversed her age too much and now her body is that of a child," Link explained succinctly.

I observed the expressions on that child's face, the way she moved, and matched them with the memories I had of Purah. Surprised, I slowly recognized her. She gradually stopped laughing and recovered.

"Oh, Zelda, you're okay!" she said, throwing herself into my arms.

Swallowing the resentment that I believed Link would welcome me back this way, I hugged Purah.

"What happened? Tell me everything, please! Do you mind if I take notes? I want to record what happened!" she began excitedly, pulling me by the hand into her house — which I realized was also her laboratory.

"I will… leave you to catch up. I'm going home to drop off these weapons, I'll be back later. Do you need anything, majesty?" Link informed.

"No. I'm fine, thank you," I said. He nodded and left quickly.

"He hasn't changed a bit, has he? I think I say more words in a day than he does in a year. You haven't changed either, you look exactly as I remember! I wonder why you haven't aged in the past years — would you mind if we did some tests? I haven't aged either, but you know why — well, technically I aged and then rejuvenated, but that's beside the point. Oh, how rude of me, you must be exhausted! Come, come, I'll make some tea for us, sit wherever you like! While the water heats up, tell me what the last 100 years were like for you! Mine were very productive despite everything, I…" and she continued, barely giving me a chance to respond. Which was great, because despite having spent the last century in silence, I strangely had no words to say now.

"It is possible to observe that the subject shows signs of attention deficit after being exposed to a long period of isolation and trance…" I heard Purah murmuring as she wrote in her notebook, realizing she had stopped talking a few minutes ago while I was lost in memories.

"Oh, I'm sorry, Purah. I'm having trouble staying focused today… it's been a long day. A long century, actually," I apologized, feeling guilty for not giving her monologue the attention it deserved.

"No problem, how rude of me! You must be exhausted. Do you know where you'll be staying, considering the castle is in ruins?"

"I have no idea…" I said, looking around and considering asking her for shelter. I didn't see any bed or sofa in this room, but I could sleep on the floor if she had any spare blankets and pillows.

My thoughts were interrupted by Link's return, entering the laboratory after knocking on the door to announce his arrival.

"Oh, Link! You returned at the perfect moment. We were discussing where the princess can be accommodated tonight. Any suggestions?" Purah asked excitedly.

I noticed a strange gleam in her eyes, but ignored it — only Hylia could understand what was going through her mind — and analyzed Link. I saw that despite saying he would go to store the weapons, he kept the Master Sword.

"If you're not uncomfortable, majesty, I would offer my house," Link suggested, addressing me.

I felt my face grow warm and realized I was blushing. He noticed and quickly continued.

"I rarely stay there, I use the cottage mostly as a weapon depot… As I'm always on the road, I usually spend the nights either in inns or in the wild. Tonight I'll stay at the inn here in Hateno, if you accept staying at the cottage," he clarified. The familiar bitter taste of disappointment rose in my throat.

"Oh, yes. I'm very grateful, Link. This arrangement won't be a bother, will it?" I said, formally.

"Not at all. I imagine you're tired, it's already quite late — the sun set some time ago."

I was surprised, considering we had arrived in Hateno around noon.

"Would you like to leave now or stay a bit longer here?" Link asked.

"Let's go," I said, feeling all the exhaustion descend upon me at once. I hugged Purah, said goodbye, and assured her I would return soon so she could run any tests she wished.

We stepped out into the cold night, and I noticed there were no horses nearby. Link saw me looking for them.

"I left them at the cottage. It's not far from here. Is it okay if we walk there?" he asked. I nodded, indicating it was no problem.

A cold breeze made my hair fly, and my arms shivered. I hugged myself instinctively against the chill, still wearing only my sleeveless white tunic. Seeing my reaction, Link removed the cloak he was wearing and offered it to me.

"Here, may I put it over your shoulders? It'll help with the cold," he proposed, and I quickly agreed. "It's a bit dirty, I haven't had time to wash it recently," he apologized. Without thinking, I turned my head to smell the fabric, but detected only his faint scent.

"No problem," I replied. "We can go now."

We walked side by side without speaking. It took us a few minutes to descend the path to the center of Hateno. Once back in the town, I saw it was much quieter than earlier, with most inhabitants already back in their homes resting for the next day. I was glad to see that in this small part of the kingdom, life seemed to continue normally despite the Calamity.

"Are there more places that survived?" I asked hopefully to Link as we walked.

"Few," he replied without looking at me.

My heart ached painfully, remembering that all that destruction was because I couldn't access my powers sooner. I wondered if he also blamed me for all that. I hoped he would continue, but he remained silent.

We passed through the town, and when we were near the east exit, he instructed me to turn left. We climbed a slight hill where there were some logs serving as a rudimentary staircase on the grass. I saw some houses with different architecture from the rest of the town, made of wood instead of stone, as if they had been built recently. A little further ahead, at the end of a wooden bridge, I noticed a small secluded cottage.

"Is this your house?" I asked, admiring the construction. A large tree stood to the left, and at the back was a steep hill, bringing a sense of security and privacy to the cottage. Link nodded without saying anything.

We approached the entrance, and he opened the door, holding it open for me to enter. The interior of the house was very simple, with no furniture. There were only a few racks on the walls, displaying some of Link's weapons. Looking to the right, I saw stairs leading to an upper area.

"The bed is up there. The sheets are clean; I changed them recently. The bathroom access is outside. Just exit the house and turn left, it's at the back in a wooden annex," he said, looking directly at me for the first time since our reunion.

I nodded, indicating I understood the explanation.

"I'm going to the inn now. If you need anything, I'll be there. We passed it on the way here, just follow the path back and you'll find it. I'll come by early tomorrow so we can go to Kakariko," he continued. For a moment, it seemed he wanted to say something more, but he quickly regained his composure. "Is that alright?"

"Yes," I agreed, too exhausted to continue the conversation.

I didn't want to be alone after 100 years of isolation, but I didn't think it fair to ask him to stay and sleep on the floor — knowing Link, he would never accept me sleeping on the floor while he had the bed — just to keep me company. He watched me for a few seconds and then left, closing the door behind him.

I sighed, climbed the stairs, and, exhausted, laid down on the bed. Within minutes, I plunged into darkness in a deep sleep.